Writing Tips: The Blank Page

You might have noticed that this post is about three hours late. It is now Tuesday, so you are correct. However, in my defense, I would like to say that I have spent my entire day believing that it was Sunday. Apparently, owning a calendar filled with beautiful pictures of Ireland does not mean that I will actually look at said calendar. My apologies for not updating earlier.

Anyway, right now, Camp NaNoWriMo is in full (beta) swing, so I thought it would be appropriate to do a post on writing!

Today I sat down in front of my computer and I opened three blank documents. Then I put my hands on the keyboard and... nothing. I stared at the screen like it was going to eat me and then I decided to go and do something else.

One of the most difficult things a writer faces on a daily basis is the blank page.

I'm currently terrified of it, even though I know I should be writing my Camp NaNoWriMo novel. 


The thing is, I just can't start. 


When I look at a blank page in front of me, I see possibility and perfection. It's like looking out at a fresh, thick layer of snow on the ground. It's pretty, it sparkles in the sunlight, and it's untouched. Somewhere deep inside of me, I have this overwhelming urge to run out and trample all over it. And, during the winter, I do run out into the snow. I stomp around like a little kid. I build snow forts and snow men. I make snow angels and I make snowballs to eat or throw at unsuspecting victims. And, at the end of the day, I wander back inside feeling satisfied... until I look outside.


Upon seeing the horrible mess that I've made out of the once pristine snow, I am irritated at myself for giving in to that impulse and ruining something so beautiful. 


I feel the same way about blank pages. 


I have all of these awesomely wonderful ideas in my head, but when I sit down to write, I can't do it. The blank page is pristine and anything I write on there - if it comes out as anything less than perfect - will ruin it. 

The other prominent issue I have with the blank page lies a little bit farther down the line. I know that, someday, someone else will be looking at whatever I write in that document. And if I don't think it is perfect then, certainly, no one else will want to see it. Sure, they'll ask to see it at first, but I know they'll walk away disappointed. And that fact, along with the issue of ruining perfection, keeps me from writing a single word.

This post isn't really a writing tip, you see, because it is a present issue.  Even in the middle of Camp NaNoWriMo, which is meant to get you writing with literary abandon - I cannot move. This post isn't a tip, simply because it doesn't have a solution.


This post is here to let you other writers know that you are not alone. 


Numerous people suffer from fear of the blank page.


I said this post doesn't have a solution in it, but the truth is that it only lacks a solution that I have already used. 


You can never move forward if you don't take the first step, and stagnate water is no good for drinking. 


This week, my goal is to take the first step and ruin a piece of paper without caring too much.  After all, how bad can it be? (Excuse me while I cringe and try not to think about that question.)


So, what is your goal for this week?

Music Recommendation: Colorado Sunshine

For the last few months, I've been steadily pushing my way through my independent study project. The class ended, but I still have a deadline to meet and my book is far from finished. So, I've been building a soundtrack for my novel and that means I have more songs to share with you!

This song doesn't usually hit my top ten favorites list on its own, but I would be lying if I said I don't love it. Plus, it fits one of my main characters almost perfectly. How could I not post it?

Colorado Sunshine - 3Oh!3

Happy listening!

Happy 4th of July!

Have a wonderful holiday! 

Also, Camp NaNoWriMo update:

I need to be more disciplined. Granted, I really haven't been home much, but I am behind. I hereby donate the rest of today to writing... and not playing Free Rice.

How is your word count coming?

Camp NaNoWriMo

I am horrible about checking my e-mail.

Therefore, before I get to the point, I have to say: Thank you, Neve! Without you, this post would not exist because I hadn't heard of this before you mentioned it.

Moving on. There's some fun stuff happening over at NaNoWriMo.org. Namely, Camp NaNoWriMo has just opened! It even has it's own website, which is mentioned in the 'Breaking News' section of their front page.

For those of you who don't know, Camp NaNoWriMo is a novel writing summer camp created by the lovely people of the Office of Letters and Light. 

Okay, so you don't really get to camp. 

In reality, Camp NaNoWriMo is quite similar to NaNoWriMo. It's premise is the same. 50,000 words, one month. The difference is that Camp NaNoWriMo takes place in the summer, instead of during November - which is a great opportunity for all of us who have exceptionally busy Novembers to take some free time and settle down to write 50,000 words or more without stressing.

Even more fun, is the fact that Camp NaNoWriMo takes place during the month of July... and August. Two months of pure motivation right in a row.

Thank you, Office of Letters and Light! This is excellent.

For those of you who wish to participate, travel over to this link and sign up or sign in!

Camp NaNoWriMo



(I will be participating and, as I mentioned a couple posts ago, the bars on the side of my blog recording writing progress will be changing. 

Anyone in for a little competition?)

PS: Yes, I know it's Thursday. However, this post is relevant to tonight (starting at midnight), so I thought it was appropriate to post it early. Next week, things will run on schedule.

Book Review: Who Will Run The Frog Hospital?

Who Will Run The Frog Hospital? by Lorrie Moore

"In a Paris bistro, Berie Carr, a middle-aged American woman, sits across from her husband, whom she realizes she no longer loves. Her thoughts return to a small town in upstate New York, to a time when life was as thrilling as it was ordinary, as sweet as it was bitter.What she remembers most, though, is a deep friendship she shared with a captivating girl named Sils - Sils who was always a little older, a little faster..." (Cover blurb on book)

Who Will Run The Frog Hospital? by Lorrie Moore was loaned to me by a professor I had during Winter Semester. I feel my reading experience was impacted by the amount of notes in the margins and the sticky notes tagging many of the pages, but even without the temptation to think further into this, I found this book to be thought provoking. (In fact, I went so far as to write an essay on it... except it wasn't required and I didn't submit it).

The main character, as is stated in the summary, is actually a middle-aged woman looking back on her teenage years. For that reason, I am unsure of how to classify this, but I think this would fall under the category of coming-of-age fiction. On a surface level, I think that's what it is, but I also feel that it goes much deeper than just coming-of-age or the teenage years. 

As Berie looks back, we see her and Sils engaging in many typical (although, I hesitate to use that terminology) teen behaviors - dropping into bars with fake ids, dating, drinking, etc. However, what we're really seeing isn't Berie and Sils together, it's Berrie in comparison to Sils. Sils is prettier. Sils is a little older. Sils hit puberty first, while Berie was a late bloomer. Sils and Berie worked in the local theme park, but Sils was Cinderella and Berie was a cashier dressed in a non-becoming costume. 

In short, this book looks at self-esteem, the longing to be in the spotlight, the habit of placing others on pedestals, feelings of rejection, and social maladjustment. And, even if the reader was never any semblance of these characters, I feel that this is a book most everyone can relate to on some level.  

And, if you can't, then just enjoy it for the wording and the craft itself. The story feels a bit disjointed at times, but I think that was intentional and it was a detail that I think added a lot to the story.

This book is a quick read, but it is hardly a light one.  

While I was reading it, the book was droll, bitter, hopeful, and melancholy. Many times throughout the novella, I caught myself smiling at details and twists of humor. I also kept a notebook beside me, taking down  some particularly poignant lines that I liked.

On the overall, though, I honestly found the book to be quite disturbing. It left me depressed for couple of weeks and, thinking back on it, the same feelings return with just as much strength. This is, probably for obvious reasons, not a book I can see myself reading twice. But I am impressed that it has stuck with me so well, and in such a distinct way.

I think I can safely recommend this without going back on my feelings about it later. 

This book can be found in bookstores and online:

Who Will Run The Frog Hospital?

Happy reading! (Well... sort of.)

Announcements And Notes

As of yesterday, Ink Is Gold has been under construction, (Finally!) and that means it is time to introduce you to the changes: 

Top Bar Changes:

You may have noticed that the pages bar up at the top has changed. There is now an 'About Me' page and a 'My Work' page. The 'Independent Study' page has been removed, due to the fact that I've decided to combine that page with the 'My Work' page and the 'Writing Tips' page.

Side Bar Changes:

The 'About Me' section on the sidebar is less personal and considerably shorter than the 'About Me' page on the top bar is going to be. It will continue to exist for those of you who prefer to read the short version.

On the side of the blog, there has been a section labeled 'Works In Progress'. There are a couple of bars showing off the progress of a few of my current projects. For those of you who have been reading here for a while, you may have noticed that those bars have remained relatively unchanged. I have finally figured out how to operate those and I will be updating them now! (How exciting! Not really, unless you happen to be writing and using those bars as competition - in which case you may find them helpful.)

Blog Posts:

I've went through and done some minor alterations on some of the blog posts. More of these to come, along with some bigger changes.

Ink Is Gold - Twitter:

For those of you who don't know, Ink Is Gold has a Twitter page. This is on the side bar.

Although this isn't really a change, I thought it was important to bring this to everyone's attention.

The Twitter page for Ink Is Gold is:

http://twitter.com/#!/K_L_Stevens

It is not Ink Is Gold. I realized the other day that while I have been getting hits from Twitter, I have not been receiving any messages on Twitter, and it occurred to me that people may be typing @InkIsGold, which sends you no where. I don't get those messages. I get messages addressed to @K_L_Stevens.

Ink Is Gold - Formspring:

Ink Is Gold also has a Formspring page, labeled Q & A on the sidebar. This is for all of your questions. Thus far, it hasn't been used and that's fine, but I just wanted to let everyone know that it's there and that I check it periodically. As far as that goes, you can probably ask questions through Twitter, too, but Formspring keeps them around and looking somewhat organized.

 Links:

Over on the sidebar, there are some new links for you to check out.

Background:

I'm not totally sure, yet, but I think we're going to get a new background on here over the summer. I'm kind of bored looking at this one.

Side Bar Changes Part 2:

This is separated because it isn't really related to the other.

I think we may be getting another sidebar on the left. Maybe not, maybe so. Still debating on this one.

Ink Is Gold Update Schedule:

Yes, we finally have one! The blog will now be updated every Monday and Friday. Hope you enjoy the new schedule!

And... I think that's it? I don't know. Maybe not. I'll edit this later if I think of anything else.

Music Recommendation: Alice's Theme

Over the last couple of weeks, I've been writing something that's kind of a mixture of fantasy, adventure, and action. This isn't my usual type of writing, so I had to dig up an entirely new collection of music to fuel it. I'm well aware that this song is actually from a movie soundtrack, but it's added a lot to the feeling of my story. Plus, it's pretty fun to listen to even when I'm not writing. Hence, I'm recommending it to you.

Alice's Theme – Danny Elfman

I might also note that I am also a Lewis Carrol fan. More on that later, though.

Happy listening!

The Summer Plan: Blog Revisions

So, this post is rather late because I have spent the last few weeks warring over an idea. When I sat down to write this post, I had a choice to make. On one hand, I was considering posting something for writing tips - because it has been a while since I've done a post like that. And, on the other hand, I was looking at this blog and considering taking it in a new direction. As you can probably tell, according to the title, I went with the latter option.

When I started this blog, I had it in my head that this was going to be mostly focused around writing. It was designed as a place to offer up some of the stuff that I have learned over the years, in hopes that those tips could help someone else. And, on the side, I was going to write book reviews.

However, I have severely misjudged the amount of time I have for writing blogs. School has kept me busy. Life has kept me busy. My actual writing has kept me busy. Basically, I had a grand idea in my head and I started on it when I was unwilling to make time for it. That is going to change.

Thus far, I do not feel that this blog has lived up to my original dreams. And, to be honest, I'm kind of disappointed in myself because of that. So, I've made a decision. School ends for me on June 16th, 2011. And it doesn't just end for a few days, I'm done for at least a year, which gives me loads of free time. When school gets out, I'm going to set aside some of the time I spent working on school stuff to work on this blog. In other words, I am planning to revise the posts that are on here already.

There are a fair amount of changes that are going to be made around here. I know that this probably isn't a common blog practice, but I hope you'll stick around to see it through. After revisions are done, I really hope the posts here in Ink Is Gold will be more enjoyable to read.

The other good news is: Once school is out, I'll be able to update this on a pretty much fixed schedule. More reading material!

Thank you for your patience and I am really sorry about the delays.




PS: Does anyone, at this point, actually read the twitter? Also, have any of you considered using the formspring account for Ink Is Gold?

Music Recommendation: Secrets

I am one of those writers who almost always has music playing while they work. And this song in particular is one that I listen to quite often while writing, so, I thought I would share it with you.

Given the fact that when I typed 'Secrets' into youtube, this was the first suggestion to come up, I'm guessing this song is probably more popular than I originally thought. But, even if you've heard of it, maybe it's time for another listen?

Secrets - One Republic

Lovely, is it not?