It has been a little over a year now since I started 'No One Will Recall' over again, from the metaphorical ashes of my old writing. With a lot of big changes in my life coming up I figured it was time to look back over some of this year's works and take a mental inventory. See how far I've come and where I should be going, and maybe revise my rules a little.
I think the most difficult issue that I've struggled with this year is actually writing about things I care about. I feel like for any normal person this is a non-issue. I've always had a problem with 'saving the best for last' because I don't want to waste an idea. I actually wrote about this very thing last year. I'm always afraid I'll ruin my interests and, to be fair, every time I have attempted my favorite ideas in the past I have butchered them. Unfortunately that's a necessary evil though. Your best ideas are also the best for practice because you know exactly how you want them to turn out. When I fail to live up to my own vision of a piece I can examine it and see exactly where I went wrong. Running your best ideas through the grinder is some of the best possible experience. Using a throw away idea doesn't provide the same sort of perspective, or even incentive. Messing up a throw-away idea carries no weight because, "It was a throw-away idea anyways". Perhaps that is an unmentioned rite of passage; feed your items to your creative flame, and the ideas that survive are those worthwhile...?
Another issue that I've run into has been dwelling on myself/my thoughts. In some posts, like this one, focusing on self-examination is pretty much unavoidable. I noticed though, that especially as my writing tapered off in January my posts were shifted towards dwelling on my failures and agonizing on my deficiencies. Overall I think I've reduced how often I agonize over my writing, but I need to extend that effort even further. I'm prone to bouts of depression, but adding a simple rule might help me to avoid long cyclical posts in which I don't really accomplish anything. I really wouldn't mind pouring my depressing thoughts onto a page as long as I have direction and an end goal.
Speaking of ruining interests and talking in circles, my last noticeable issue is a lack of interest. Not surprising really. I update inconsistently, my writing is still improving, and to be fair a lot of my posts probably aren't that interesting. Nobody wants to hear about me, you don't know who I am and my writing isn't refined enough to interest anyone in my process (what process). I've already decided to reduce posts dwelling on myself, which is a good first step but I need more than that. I don't know what people want to read but I know that traditional writing isn't cutting it for me. I wish there was a way to seamlessly combine visual media and the blocks of text I'm prone to. There has to be something else out there that works better for me. So I need to experiment. Which means I need to fail a lot. I need to explore and find what works for me, because if I find it interesting I'm sure some others will too.
Last, I'd like to improve on the humor of my writing; which is more of a personal goal so I'll be leaving that one off the list (below). Once, I used to pepper my writing with small jokes throughout, these days I tend toward the serious. Although, I still manage occasional dry or sarcastic humor. 'Things I Hate' has helped me work on comedic phrasing but I could definitely use more practice. I don't really have a message or cause I want to convey. I write because I want to evoke emotion and entertain, and comedy would be a valuable skill towards that end.
I think the most difficult issue that I've struggled with this year is actually writing about things I care about. I feel like for any normal person this is a non-issue. I've always had a problem with 'saving the best for last' because I don't want to waste an idea. I actually wrote about this very thing last year. I'm always afraid I'll ruin my interests and, to be fair, every time I have attempted my favorite ideas in the past I have butchered them. Unfortunately that's a necessary evil though. Your best ideas are also the best for practice because you know exactly how you want them to turn out. When I fail to live up to my own vision of a piece I can examine it and see exactly where I went wrong. Running your best ideas through the grinder is some of the best possible experience. Using a throw away idea doesn't provide the same sort of perspective, or even incentive. Messing up a throw-away idea carries no weight because, "It was a throw-away idea anyways". Perhaps that is an unmentioned rite of passage; feed your items to your creative flame, and the ideas that survive are those worthwhile...?
Another issue that I've run into has been dwelling on myself/my thoughts. In some posts, like this one, focusing on self-examination is pretty much unavoidable. I noticed though, that especially as my writing tapered off in January my posts were shifted towards dwelling on my failures and agonizing on my deficiencies. Overall I think I've reduced how often I agonize over my writing, but I need to extend that effort even further. I'm prone to bouts of depression, but adding a simple rule might help me to avoid long cyclical posts in which I don't really accomplish anything. I really wouldn't mind pouring my depressing thoughts onto a page as long as I have direction and an end goal.
Speaking of ruining interests and talking in circles, my last noticeable issue is a lack of interest. Not surprising really. I update inconsistently, my writing is still improving, and to be fair a lot of my posts probably aren't that interesting. Nobody wants to hear about me, you don't know who I am and my writing isn't refined enough to interest anyone in my process (what process). I've already decided to reduce posts dwelling on myself, which is a good first step but I need more than that. I don't know what people want to read but I know that traditional writing isn't cutting it for me. I wish there was a way to seamlessly combine visual media and the blocks of text I'm prone to. There has to be something else out there that works better for me. So I need to experiment. Which means I need to fail a lot. I need to explore and find what works for me, because if I find it interesting I'm sure some others will too.
Last, I'd like to improve on the humor of my writing; which is more of a personal goal so I'll be leaving that one off the list (below). Once, I used to pepper my writing with small jokes throughout, these days I tend toward the serious. Although, I still manage occasional dry or sarcastic humor. 'Things I Hate' has helped me work on comedic phrasing but I could definitely use more practice. I don't really have a message or cause I want to convey. I write because I want to evoke emotion and entertain, and comedy would be a valuable skill towards that end.
5 Basic Rules for Improving my Writing (2016 Edition)
1. Write often.
2.Do not worry about what you will write about. If you write enough you will figure out what you really want to write. Ruin your interests- write about what you love most as often as you can stomach it.
3. Whenever possible: Wait at least 24 hours, reread, and revise.
4.Read often and actively, not passively. Read often; stop and think.
5.Explore different genres and styles both in writing and reading. Experiment until you find what works.
1. Write often.
2.
3. Whenever possible: Wait at least 24 hours, reread, and revise.
4.
5.
6. Don't dwell on yourself.
