This week’s Tweets on how to dodge subconscious blocks and WRITE THE STORY

Write the Story 14: New blog post – researching first love http://bit.ly/QIfXo [Okay, that’s a bit self-referential, but I didn’t want to confuse the rare individual who might actually be keeping track of my bizarre numbering system]

Write the Story 15: Success inspires: Enter a contest such as THE WRITER’s scholarship competition http://bit.ly/48hgAJ (due 3/1/10)

...or enter the Pike’s Peak Writers contest http://bit.ly/3jKf0E (due 11/15/09) for critiques and a chance to meet an editor or agent

Write the Story 16: Train to write the way you'd train for a race--and sign up for a "race" like NaNo for motivation http://bit.ly/4uQWiw

Write the Story 17: Explore place. Need ideas how to do so? Check out the November 2009 issue of The Writer

Write the Story 18: Seek fire's hypnotic inspiration—at your own fireplace (if you’re so lucky), a local Starbucks, or in a candle’s flame .

Write the Story 19: The more intensively you write, the more you need to refuel: read great books, walk down the street, people watch!

Write the Story 20: Dig for ideas - see blog post "On prairie dogs, seeds, and elusive ideas" http://bit.ly/pphtW

Write the Story 21: Obsess. Imagine your next scene while falling asleep; let your subconscious work; wake early to write what results!

If you’re interested, come join me at @CherylRWrites for Tweets to help you overcome creative blocks and thrive on the writer’s road.

:) Cheryl

On Prairie Dogs, Seeds, and Elusive Ideas

I was out early this morning, early enough that frost still shimmered on the ground and the air still had a bit of bite, even though it’s supposed to get up to 60F here today. It was also early enough that the prairie dogs hadn’t yet ventured out of their burrows. Can’t say I blame them. Even if they are all delightfully fat and fluffy in preparation for winter, who wants to scratch through frost and ice to find breakfast?

Most prairie dogs don’t hibernate, although they do something similar when the weather’s at its worst. On milder days, though, you can see them scurrying about and sitting up on their haunches to make sure you aren’t planning to run up and say “boo.” All this activity means they have to eat.

That got me thinking: what do prairie dogs eat for breakfast in the winter? In the summer, you can watch them nibble at all the greenery in the area. They like to keep it nicely trimmed so no coyotes can sneak up on them. In the winter, though, prairie dog towns revert to dry dirt and scattered leaves.

I noticed, this morning, that the earth around and between the burrows was marked with hundreds of little holes. They were all between three and five inches deep, maybe two inches across; they made the dirt look a bit like a playground sandbox.

What the heck was that about? And then it came to me: the prairie dogs were digging for seeds, sifting through the dirt for tiny morsels of nutrition.

This post is getting long, so here’s the point: It strikes me that, as writers, sometimes we feel like we’re in a barren place. Either we’re at a loss for words or ideas, or we feel too tired or drained to put pen to paper; but I think we’re kind of like those prairie dogs. It might look like we’re sitting in the midst of nothing, but if we dig, if we search patiently, we’ll discover the tiny grains of meaning hidden in our everyday experience.

Happy writing—or digging. Whichever seems right.

:) Cheryl

Note to self: you do NOT need to look up every unknown word

 

For instance, if you’re looking at the ingredient list for your dogs’ chew toys, you might not want to know what the word “pizzle” means. Especially if you’re currently holding said chew toys in your bare hands.

I’m just sayin’.

:P Cheryl

A problem of schedules

The problem with schedules…is that theoretically, I have this lovely writing schedule, with time set aside for fiction, nonfiction, lunch, exercise, and admin stuff (you know, like typing up the fiction from the day before’s writing.) It looks very practical and useful.

But if I start my day by writing fiction, I tend to get on a roll, and then I don’t want to let go of it, so I write through my scheduled times for lunch, exercise, and nonfiction writing. By then I’m so exhausted that I need a break—which eats up my time for admin.

If I start something else first, though, I don’t ever GET to the fictino writing.

Ah, well. If something’s really really important, I can always start it first. I do usually get to the FIRST thing on my list. And meanwhile, I would rather have too many wonderful things in my life than too few!

The data’s in: nice guys DON’T always finish last

Recent research at Binghamton University and the University of Arizona casts new light on the nice guy versus aggressive jerk question. Who is more successful, the polite gentleman or the pushy fellow who won’t take no for an answer? The answer appears in the November 6 issue of Science Magazine.

This is a very important question for YA writers, don’t ya think?

It turns out that these scientists study attraction in water striders rather than in humans, but their findings seem to translate to human culture pretty well. When a male jerk (water strider) approaches a group of female water striders, the females bug out (bad pun intended, and no, water striders aren’t really bugs, my fine fellow science geeks…) If a female happens upon a gentleman of a strider, though, she sticks around. Pretty soon, the nice guys are surrounded by females while the jerks…I don’t know, maybe they get into a bar fight?

Take heart, all you sweetheart males in the world. As soon as the gals notice you, you’ll be the center of attention.

I’m not sure this is good news for the girls, though. It might explain why most of the good guys are taken….

:) Cheryl