About a month ago, I wrote a post on a writing quote from Anne Rice. Rice’s quote encourages writers to go where the pain is, where the pleasure is, wherever your passion is when writing. I believe this to be sound advice. However, I’ve found it hard to follow. In particular, I have a hard time going where the pain is. Opening wounds does not come easily to me, and my struggles make me wonder: are some wounds not meant to be opened, even for fiction?
I’ve sincerely tried opening wounds for my writing. I know that there’s a rich vein of emotional material there, but something keeps blocking me. Whenever I attempt to immerse myself in these pains and sensitivities, I hit a brick wall. It feels as though something clamps down on my skull and an unbreakable window stands between my writing self and those emotions.
Don’t get me wrong, my negative emotions and experiences do often slip into my writing. It’s when I consciously write those emotions, when I try directly opening wounds, that I can’t access them.
Ray Bradbury once said that thinking is the death of creativity. Is that the case here? It certainly doesn’t help. When we overthink the pain we’re trying to access, we fear revisiting it. At least I do. Self-preservation dictates we avoid that which causes us pain. If memories and emotions cause pain, our minds and bodies will do all they can to avoid those wounds.
Does that mean we should avoid opening wounds? Are some scars too fresh or deep to touch, or should we push past the avoidance reflex for the sake of good writing? Do we just need to stop overthinking it?
My answer is a firm maybe.
Really, the memories and emotions we want to avoid make our writing rich and real. If we’re so deeply affected by them, our readers will be, too. Still, we have to take our mental well-being into account. If we have severe mental and/or physical reactions to opening wounds, those wounds may not be ready to pick at yet. Someday we might be ready but, at the moment, we’re not.
Sometimes writing can help us work through our emotions, like therapy. Sometimes we need to forget that other people might read the work to let the emotions seep through uncensored. Many times, we need to abandon the idea of directly accessing emotions and memories and let our subconscious write for us. We may not get what we originally set out to do, but we’ll at least have solid material to work with.
Emotions are the, to state the obvious, the heart of writing. Anything written without them turns out like crud. That’s why we can’t let ourselves shut out our personal selves while we’re writing. We may not react the same way as a character should or we may blather on in order to work through raw emotions, but those problems are best ironed out when rewriting. The initial writing phase is all about getting words onto paper; we need to let our id speak then and give our ego and super ego the stage later.
Do you have a hard time writing about painful emotions or personal pain? Have you found a way to push past that brick wall? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.
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Earlier today, I read an article from The Writer about creating DIY writing retreats, whether at a friend’s house or at a home rented in Mexico. The author has many interesting ideas and makes many good points. The two most important she discuss, in my opinion, are the need for no distractions and the need to set your own definition of “productive”. However, most of the ideas in the article involve either you going away or the other people in your house going away. What if we simply can’t do that?
I’ve discussed finding the best place to write multiple times on this blog. Somehow, I can’t ever find the right place. I can’t afford to leave and, unlike the author of the aforementioned article, no one I know plans to leave town for too long anytime soon. Even if they were, at best I’d only be down the street from the chaos. I can’t send everyone else away, either; they have their own responsibilities to take care of here and they can’t walk away for more than a day or two without a lot of advanced planning. I get some writing done in those short bursts of freedom, but lately it hasn’t been enough.
I know a lot of writers have this issue. We have family, social obligations, work (we have to pay the bills somehow), pets, chores, the list goes on. I can hear the objections to this belly-aching already: if you’re a real writer, if writing is so important to you, you’ll make some sacrifices and find a way to fit it in.
I’m sorry but I need money, so I can’t pay to leave and I can’t close down shop (figuratively) for more than a week or two. It also doesn’t help that not everyone gets the hint to shut up when I say I’m working.
Well then, what’s the plan? How can we create DIY writing retreats when we can’t go away or send others away?
Desperate times call for desperate measures; it’s time for plan “barricade myself in my room (or spare room)”. It’s a bit obvious but often the obvious answer is the right one.
Locking yourself in a room within the house with your browser closed and phone turned off allows you to exist in a sort of vacuum almost free of all distractions. Of course, if you live in an area like mine, there’s still plenty of noises that you’ll have to block out. That’s where you’ll have to get creative. Play music you can write to, invest in noise-cancelling headphones, buy a cheap pair of disposable earplugs, whatever it takes. My personal favorite is playing a string of TV shows or movies I’ve watched a thousand times before; I can block that out a lot better than crowing roosters and people talking outside my door.
The fun part comes in personalizing your DIY writing retreats. Hang up posters and artwork you find inspiring; line bookshelves with your favorite books and works by writers you admire; a whiteboard, cork board, or sticky notes to jot ideas down; if you have a mini-fridge taking up space in the garage or storage, you could really make it a retreat. A mini-fridge stocked with essentials, a makeshift mailbox constructed from a cereal box slapped on the outside of the door, and a bed, cot, or sleeping bag and you’ll only need to leave for the bathroom.
Whether it’s for a few hours after work or a couple weeks, you can make your own retreat without anyone leaving the house. You just have to get creative and assertive. Insist that no one bother you, that someone else walk the dog and do the dishes. After all, people can’t tease you for being a writer who doesn’t write if they complain about what needs to be done in order for you to write.
What are your thoughts on writing retreats? Have any ideas for DIY writing retreats you’d like to share? Drop a line the comments below and help other writers find ways to solitude.
Today’s book is more for my readers’ kids than my readers themselves. The author wrote it for much younger readers, around preschool age, specifically to help them know what to expect on their first day of kindergarten. It’s not one of those children’s books that adult readers will read for themselves but you will want to check it out if you have a young child. For this post, I’m reviewing Abigail’s First Day of School by Sarah L. Bailey.
Abigail’s First Day of School follows a young girl named Abigail as she embarks on her first day of kindergarten. Over the next forty pages, Abigail meets her new teacher and fellow students, has lunch, plays during recess, and goes home. Bailey presents the reader with lessons on following directions and learning new rules throughout the story and brings the promise of meeting new friends on the first day of school.
As a little kid’s book, the story is very cute and entertaining. The rhymes pull the story along at a good pace and there’s just enough writing to keep a young reader’s attention. Illustrations make up most of the book, which makes it perfect for basic readers and the adults helping them learn to read. The illustrations depict a diverse cast of characters, which is very important to expose readers of this age to, and I hope that Bailey will continue with this diversity in future books.
Abigail’s messages could not only ease a little kid’s apprehensions about the first day of school but may also make the first day easier for teachers. While the book focuses on showing kids all of the good things they’ll experience on their first day, Bailey also teaches readers the importance of following directions and being respectful. If more children were taught these lessons ahead of school, we’d probably save teachers a lot of headaches. I know it could’ve helped my kindergarten teacher.
The minimalist plot and lack of conflict puts Bailey’s book on the same level as stories like Goodnight, Moon. This form of plot allows adult readers to use this book as a teaching tool for their children, both in the messages from Abigail and for use in learning how to read. However, I’m not sure that this story is one which kids will want to read or have read to them repeatedly. I also think that the lack of plot restricts the appeal of this book to preschool age, not the 4-8 years old that is indicated on the Amazon page. As readers get older, they prefer to have some form of conflict in their stories and this one doesn’t have any.
I’m torn on Bailey’s illustrations. On the one hand, they have the feel of being drawn by actual children, which is an interesting angle for a children’s picture book. However, this trait also detracts from the quality of the illustrations. The perspective does not match from one picture to the next and the scale of the drawings is off, i.e. a kid will look bigger than the others in one image and then the same size as them in the next. There also appears to be a mix of three-dimensional and two-dimensional drawing in the illustrations, especially around the lunch scene. The pictures do look like marker drawings done by children and I can see the appeal in that. Nevertheless, the illustrations hurt my eyes after a few pages and just weren’t my cup of tea.
Overall, Bailey’s book would make for a great bedtime story, especially the night before the first day of kindergarten. It would easily calm any child’s nerves and entertain them at the same time. Some people may hesitate to read the book to/with little boys because the protagonist is a girl, but I don’t think the character’s gender matters at all. The situation appeals to both genders and Bailey writes experiences which could happen to any child, so I think that boys will enjoy this book as well as girls. I don’t think your child will be asking for this story ever night but I recommend getting it to ease his/her first-day-of-school jitters.
To buy Abigail’s First Day of School follow this link to Amazon. For more information about the book and its author, please visit the book’s website.
Do you know any books I should review? Want me to review your published work on this blog? Contact me at thewritersscrapbin@gmail.com or reach out to me on Fiverr.
Today I’m reviewing a book which is very different from the other books I’ve reviewed thus far. I’ve sampled a bit of everything, from “mature” books like Anna James Watson’s Blackmail to Samantha Ryan Chandler’s inspirational A Love Story: How God Pursued Me and Found Me and Ameel Koro’s epic historical fantasy Sister of Echo: The Making of a Villain. Today’s book is yet another flavor of fantasy, one which is simultaneously relaxing and stimulating and defies any clear age group classification. For this post, I’m going to review The Blue Unicorn’s Journey to Osm by Sybrina Durant.
This illustrated novel follows the struggles of a tribe of Metal Horn unicorns as they try to avoid slaughter by the evil sorcerer Magh. As their numbers dwindle and all beings on MarBryn fall prey to Magh’s dark magic, there seems to be no hope for the desperate unicorns. Then Alumna, the oracle of the Metal Horn tribe, receives a message from her crystal ball about the one destined to save them: a blue unicorn to be born to Miral, the indium-horned unicorn. However, the tribe loses heart when the unicorn is born not with a metal horn but with a plain blue leather horn. No metal, no magic. How could this magicless foal possibly be their savior?
Fast-forward twenty years. The tribe has suffered many losses at Magh’s hands, including the death of Blue’s mother, Miral. Blue has grown up accepted and loved by his tribe, especially his stable mate and dearest friend, the golden unicorn Ghel. While he is not the hero they expected and one male unicorn teases him, the only one to really give Blue grief is himself. He feels like an outsider and is disappointed that he does not seem to be the magnificent savior that Alumna had prophesied.
Then, when all had lost faith in her visions, Alumna receives life-changing news from Numen, the otherworldly device behind the visions in her crystal ball. They’re going back to Unimaise, the world from which all unicorns originate, and Blue will be the one to get them there. Alumna tells Blue of the development and how he must go to Musika Wood in order to meet with the Moon-Star, which holds Numen. Blue embarks before they can meet with the rest of the tribe, but he lacks a crucial piece of information. Blue must be in the Musika Wood with the rest of his tribe or else he will die when the Moon-Star arrives and all will be lost.
Durant takes the reader on a series of mini-adventures with Blue, his tribe, and his non-unicorn companions, culminating in an epic battle of good versus evil. Will Blue meet his destiny? Will he and the other unicorns make it back to Unimaise? And if they do, what will they find when they finally come home?
Paired with beautiful watercolor illustrations, this story is a quick and engaging read that’s enough to keep anyone’s attention from start to finish. Durant writes with a simple style and vocabulary, although by no means is it a simple book. While an easy read for anyone 12 years old and above, the book conveys themes and messages with multiple layers, some of which may be hard for a younger audience to handle. The story openly explores death and the grief which accompanies loss, as well as the importance of believing in yourself and condoning violence.
I would argue that the writing, at times, can be too young for older readers to feel fully stimulated. However, it reads more like a fairy tale than a modern children’s book. Durant seems to be writing for children when, like traditional fairy tales, many components are better-suited for an audience of the middle grade and older age groups. Much of the humor, while clever, would also go over a younger audience’s head.
Many of the creature names—“Hoipolloi”, “Pendragon”, “Ragamoffyns”—make for humorous puns that, while childlike in nature, would only be understood by an older audience. Durant creates an overall vivid world with many imaginative elements, including my favorite, the Rainbow Colored Lands of Weita. This magical world combined with the pun-like names help the already-compelling plot construct a very entertaining read.
However, some of the names are little too heavy on the pun element for my liking. “Magh” for the magic-wielding sorcerer, “Iown” for the iron-horned unicorn who irons out disputes, “Nix” for the nickel-horned unicorn who nixes danger, it can feel cheesy after a while. Given the overall children’s book feel, I brushed these names off without too many problems. Still, given that it’s Middle Grade and suggested for readers 12-18 years old, I’m not sure how older readers will take them.
Durant severely under-develops the antagonist, Magh. He acts like the stereotypical villain, one with very little depth or reason for causing turmoil other than he likes power and pain. Durant briefly dives into his backstory, enough to perk my interest and make me realize that he could be so much more than he is in this story. I wish we could have learned more about him, such as why he took so well to the power he felt from evil magic when he was younger.
I also spotted a few grammar errors, including missing words and misplaced quotation marks. They aren’t that frequent in the beginning but seem to grow in number in the second half of the book. Regardless, they didn’t detract from my enjoyment of the book.
All in all, I really liked this book—loved it, even. It took me on a rollercoaster of emotions, easing me into the harder moments and providing enough humor throughout that I never felt overwhelmed. I saw many deeper messages throughout the story and genre-bending elements, a mix of fantasy and science fiction reminiscent of Anne McCaffrey’s The Dragonriders of Pern series, had it been written for a younger audience. The pronunciation guide, unicorn diagram, and map at the end of the book serve as great aids and are themselves entertaining.
If Durant chooses to pursue the worlds of MarBryn and Unimaise further, you can be certain that I’ll be checking out those books. To me, it doesn’t matter what age group the world is intended for. I’m a born-and-raised fantasy fan; if I like the premise, I’m going to read it, whether it’s G-rated or X-rated. I suggest other readers do likewise and fantasy readers in particular explore MarBryn and Unimaise.
To buy The Blue Unicorn’s Journey to Osm as an e-book on Amazon, follow this link.
In addition to a Kindle e-book, The Blue Unicorn’s Journey to Osm is also available as a coloring book. You’re never too old to color, after all. In fact, it can be quite the stress-reliever, so if you need an outlet, consider buying the coloring version for a great read and relaxation.
For more information on this book and Durant’s other work, check out the writer’s website and follow her on Twitter as @Sybrina_spt.
Have you read Durant’s work? Leave your thoughts in the comments below. Know a book I should review or want me to review your book on this blog? E-mail me at thewritersscrapbin@gmail.com or reach out to me on Fiverr.
Joyous day, everyone! The weekend is here! I’m working double-time right now but don’t worry, that means you’ll be learning about a lot of new books soon. In the mean time, I wanted to give you a writing prompt to remind everyone that writers are young at heart.
You remember when you were a kid and could devour a book every day? (OK, some of us still do, but back then you weren’t hindered by bills and other responsibilities.) The pure amazement and glee you felt as you read? It’s time to tap into that wonder again.
One of the reasons writers are so good at writing is that we are young at heart. We approach each book and story with that same sense of amazement and glee that we felt as children. Sure, our reading tastes have matured and branched out and our view of the world at large may now be more pessimistic, but we’ve never lost the reading magic.
For today’s writing prompt, I want you to write the sort of story or poem you would’ve read as a kid. Think Curious George, Horton Hears a Who, Winnie the Pooh, whatever you read when you were four to seven years old. Try not to think too hard about it; just find that concept that would’ve excited younger you and roll with it. Write no more than ten pages for a story or two pages for a poem. Feel free to draw your own illustrations, no matter how crude they might be.
If you really want to put your writing to the test, grab a kid you know–preferably a family member or friend’s child whom you’re close to–and have them read your work (or read it to them). How does he/she react? No one can help spark a fire under the young at heart than a child they love.
What were your experiences with this exercise? Want to share what you wrote? Have a writing exercise you think we should try? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.
