The Blahs

Finding a subject to write poetry about sounds easy, but when I finally sit down with pen in hand, my mind becomes as blank as my page and I’m like, you’re kidding me.  Why am I at a loss for words when my life is full of ups and downs, backwards and forwards, rounds and rounds. I can’t think of one thing interesting to jot down!  This is so frustrating. And when I finally write something, it feels forced and unnatural, like I’m totally faking it and I’m not a real poet or a real writer, a pretender that every reader will see through and laugh or either take a red pen and draw lines and circles and arrows to better words that flow like the Red Sea.

It’s tough putting myself on paper, creating histories of emotions and events, finding new ways of expressions through images that aren’t trite and cliché, that actually sound like poetry instead of chopped up lines.  

When this happens, I have to return to trusty writing exercises.  This one works well for me and it might work for you.

An exercise to help the poetry blahs:

Go to your favorite room filled with your favorite things.  Begin by describing a piece physically, as if describing it to someone who is blind and only your words paint a portrait for him.  Now, share its history, where and why and how the object came to you.  Then, personify this object, drawing upon emotion to create a living breathing creature.

Write your rough draft from this exercise and then put the draft away for a week.  No going back before the week is over.  Pull it out after a week and begin revising.

Quality vs. Quantity

You know the phrase: “It’s Quality, Not Quantity.”  So not true. And I’ll prove it.

Imagine this scenario:

He comes once a year to see his kid, but that one day is a special day, a “quality” day  at Disney World, riding every ride, eating junk food, and staying up late. No expense is spared on that special day, when he gives his kid the best of everything.

 And then…he’s gone, until same time next year. 

Now, for the next scenario: 

She’s there everyday for him, preparing breakfast, washing and ironing his clothes for school, creating fun “happy” face lunches before he catches the bus.  In the evenings, she leans over his shoulder, reading Math equations, or she sits beside him reading to him or listening to him read.  When he’s sick, she nurses him with medicine, homemade chicken soup, and TLC. With little money for vacations, she seeks local and regional landmarks and together they visit, with picnics on the ground, and long talks about how he only comes one day a year.

Now, which parent would you rather have?  Right.  Me, too!

What does this have to do with “Pen and Paper”?  

If you want rewards from your “pen and paper,” you must spend time with them on a consistent basis.  

So: 

#1.  Write every day for at least fifteen minutes.  Two word writing prompts that help me begin are:

            I am

            I will

            I was

            I won’t 

#2. You must give your “Pen and Paper” experiences. 

Not only must you spend time with your “pen and paper,” you must experience with your “pen and paper.” Think about what happens when you hear an oldie from high school, or smell the baked cookie smells that used to saturate your grandmother’s kitchen. What happens when you touch the feverish brow of a child or remember a lover’s kiss? Or when you travel through a familiar southern countryside when the goldenrod is in full bloom, noticing how the shadows have stretched long and narrow from the setting sun?  To experience means utilizing all senses because they stir memories. At the same time, our memories stir our senses. Therefore, sensory writing stirs your “Pen and Paper” and builds your relationship.

 WRITING PROMPT:

Choose three diverse scents. For instance, perfume, oregano, asphalt. Take in these scents for three to five minutes.  Then write about how scent affects you. 

Choose one location.  For instance, grandmother’s living room, your office, restaurant. From that location choose three memorable items. Write about how each item stood out to you.

Choose three diverse songs.  For instance, “Over the Rainbow,” Stairway to Heaven,” and “Amazing Grace.” Listen to each. Write about how each song moved you.

Writing Wisdom

Driving into 2012, if you’re like me, you have reflected and even regretted some things in 2011.  However, as you know, the vehicle that drives us from day-to-day, year to year, has no reverse. And it has no ”Park” either. Life goes on whether we’re ready or not. You can’t change what has been done.  But….

 You can REVISE! And by that I mean you have the power to take what has been done, learn from it, and mold it into something ”positive” for the future. Failure can steer us AWAY from what went wrong and towards educating ourselves to discover more productive ways to meet your goals.

We call this WISDOM!

DEFINITION:

Wisdom: 1. the knowledge and experience needed to make sensible decisions and judgments, or the good sense shown by the decision and judgments made.

(MY FAVORITE) 2. accumulated knowledge of life or of a “particular sphere of activity” that has been gained through experience.

EXAMPLE:

I had a short story that just didn’t work.  I had revised, submitted, gotten rejected, revised, submitted, gotten rejected…you know the story. Something was missing, but I couldn’t find it.  At a Mississippi Writers Guild Writers Conference, I had that short story critiqued by one of the conference speakers, an editor of a well-known literary journal. She taught me more about that story in fifteen minutes than I would’ve ever learned from just my private revisions. What her critical eye was able to pinpoint turned on so many light bulbs I felt like a Christmas tree strung with thousands of tiny lights and she had turned me on for the very first time.

In 2010, after considering all her suggestions, I pulled out that story “again.” I kept my storyline and main characters, which she loved, but I wrote the story in a totally different way. The more I wrote, the more I realized how much I had learned from her and how important it is to listen to the pros and educate yourself on the craft you are pursuing.

And, yes, I felt much wiser and more prepared for the next story I plan to pull out of storage.

However, let me make this clear. I’m not pulling out all my old stories.  Why?  Because I AM wiser and more prepared.  I know now that some simply will never work.  The characters are lifeless or stereotypical and the storyline is cliché. But from some, I can take the idea or even a character that I adore and create something fresh.

Oh, and I did submit the story AGAIN.  I’ll let you know what happens.

Welcome to 2010. Looking forward to growing wiser with you as a writer.

Richelle

www.richelleputnam.net

EXERCISE:  Take one story you love, but haven’t had any luck with, and be willing to have it professionally critiqued.  WARNING: Check out credentials and the history of the professional. Be sure they are reputable. Also, feel free to ask for references.  Yes, you will have to probably pay for the critique.  Remember, you are asking someone to give you “time” and “instruction.” Don’t expect them to do it for free.  Remember, even hobbies cost money, from crocheting (which you have to buy materials for) to tennis (which requires tennis balls, a racket, and a cute little outfit.) Your work is worth the small expense.

Getting Started

Guidelines: Below begins our journey into a story.  Before you blog your part, be sure the follow these guidelines:

1.  Don’t use the word smile in any form.

2.  Don’t use the words just, really, like, so, very

3.  Don’t use ANY adverbs (verbs ending in -ly)

4.  Only use one adjective for each five words within a sentence.  (If a sentence has 17 words, you are only allowed three adjectives.)

5.  No profanity or sex scenes please.  However, do lead us on!

6.  Always be respectful of bloggers.  Everyone has his or her creative ideas.

The beginning:

He followed her, watching how her hips swayed with each hurried step.  There were times she slowed, as if she knew someone was behind her and he would slip into an alleyway or the concave entrance of a shop. He had numbered her steps from her office to her car, had timed the trip from her home to parking spot 1718. He knew her best-friend was Amy Stephens and that she dated on occasion Brett Mason, an attorney who worked in the Trustmark Building where her advertising agency was located. And he knew that her father, Franklin Addison, had been murdered two years ago.

Begin here and add to the story. Don’t forget the guidelines!

Working as a Mississippi Arts Commission Roster Artist

In the classroom doing my favorite thing with the kids. READING, WRITING and MUSIC!