I am determined to make something fruitful bloom out of the chaos that has been planted in my life as of late. I did not sow this misery, but I'm gonna make dang sure I reap from it. How?
By writing it all down.
I will spare details. This isn't a soap opera blog, although it would make for a juicy one, riddled with all sorts of nastiness and backstabbing and he said/she said crap, but maybe the world will get to read it one day in book form.
That's right people. I'm certain this will be a bestseller! May just be wishful thinking, but that's the best kind, right?
Anyways, to the point- have you ever been weighed down with so many emotions that you can't handle it. Depression, anger, grief, despair...don't they tend to jumble your mind so badly that you simply just want to shut down and go into hiding? I've definitely contemplated it. But then I had a better idea. Why not write what I'm feeling, jumbled or no? Besides, it's my joy, word-smithing an idea into physical form; it's cathartic, making nothing, or in this case, bedlam, into something. So, since I've been seeing every hour past midnight(part of this is due to pregnancy insomnia too), I opened up my Mac, aka 'Money Maker,' and started translating all these emotions into words. I was surprised that when thirty minutes passed, I had nearly three thousand words. May not seem like much, right? Most people keep a journal and do the same thing. But an idea struck me as soon as I read what I had written: 'Could I make this into a fictional story? Wouldn't it strike home for so many people? I'm not the first to go through something like this! And isn't that the best kind of tale, one that people can relate to and get lost in because they empathize with the narrator on a variety of levels?'
I rubbed my hands together in splendid delight as I answered every question with a 'yes'.
When I was writing 'Seven Days Normal,' I was at a very happy place in my life, and the story came easily. Even though there are many depressing and dramatic twists and turns in it, 'Seven Days' is still a sweet story with a joyous ending. It truly does reflect my emotions at the time. Then I started 'Taffy,' which I work on ten minutes here and there. It hasn't come easy. I've gotten writers block many times, and I now know why. I just couldn't relate to the main character. There was nothing of me in her. I couldn't understand her emotions as well as I could Casy's or Bo's.
Well, that has definitely changed. Now that I know a little of what she's experiencing(can't tell, don't want to spoil before it's even published), I'm sure she'll flow onto paper a little easier. I can now relate.
So I've learned a lesson. I have to know what my character is experiencing to write better. I'm sure that's not the case for all authors, but it is for me. I've taken these tumultuous emotions hell bent on sending me to the crazy house, and morphed them into something good-a story. Maybe that can be said for other things in life, not just writing, but since it's my love, that's the avenue I've taken. Do you do that as a writer too? Can you take your joy and make a story come to life? Can the heartache or depression, or whatever less than desirable emotion you are feeling at the moment, be turned into a multi-dimensional character? I say if writing is your passion, then do it. Even if it means stopping one story and working on another one. Don't lose what's in your head and heart at any given moment, cause it may never come back in the same way. Utilize it for your good, and maybe one day the world will get to read your thoughts in the form of a book.
Happy Writing.
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