May Newsletter - The Writing Life

May 2003 Newsletter

By Jessica Page Morrell

Turning Pro ãThe professional dedicates himself to mastering technique not because he believes technique is a substitute for inspiration but because he wants to be in full possession of the full arsenal of skills when inspiration does come. The professional is sly. He knows that by toiling beside the front door of technique, he leaves room for genius to enter by the back. ã Steven Pressfield, The War of Art Iâve been editing a lot lately and have had a chance to witness up close the impact of my suggestions and insights about a writerâs level of skill. While there is always something good to say about every writerâs work, because frankly, anyone who has the courage to write deserves credit for that simple fact, along with the strengths, too often there are problems with a manuscript that a writer doesnât realize until theyâre pointed out. Which is were I come in÷not on a white charger, but instead wielding the dreaded red pen. I often meet with writers after I work on their manuscript and if you think I look forward to these meetings, you are mistaken. I also dread dental appointments, mammograms and most medical appointments even when theyâre not gynecological in nature. Writers react to bad news about their writing with everything from hysteria and rage, to steely anger to gratitude and professional courtesy. And this is where we separate writers from dabblers, pros from amateurs. Writers who are professional, ambitious and savvy take their lumps and do everything possible to improve. Even if that means swallowing bad news from an editor or critique group. Even when he or she feels overwhelmed or like he doesnât have the skills to pull it off. In The War of Art, Pressfield writes that turning pro is simply a decision brought about by an act of will. Turning pro means many things: youâre always learning, always improving, always humble. Serious writers make room in their life for the work, and make room in the tool box When praise comes your way youâve earned it. life for improvement. And we cannot improve if we believe that our writing is a reflection of who we are. Whatever youâre writing, and that means if the subject is your deepest, cruelest secrets, the writing is not you. Even when itâs rejected. It is merely a measure of your skills at this moment in time. That measurement will change next week and next year÷that is, if youâre willing to turn pro. Amateurs donât build on their skills, donât listen to helpful advice, donât read books about technique. They keep making the same mistakes, keep asking the same questions, keep offering the same excuses. So like so many solutions, this one is simple. Declare yourself a pro. Do whatever it takes. Pay attention to how other pros handle themselves, set their priorities, keep their promises to themselves. Professional is an amazing term to apply to ourselves. Try it on. ************************************************************************************************ The calendar is fast ticking off the days and spring is now thoroughly established here in the Northwest, with sweet ,new green everywhere. This month the rhododendrons and dogwoods are abloom and the rain has lingered like an uninvited guest. But as the spring months tilt toward mid-year, Iâm reminded of time slipping through my grasp, of writing goals still to be accomplished. Every month, every season is a reminder to keep our promises to ourselves. In my life, there is nothing more difficult. Distractions are endless, weakness comes naturally. So, itâs spring again, although the newness of the season is fading. You cannot help but walk through all this green, sometimes as if itâs a field of shimmering emeralds without hope, without renewal, without imagining endless possibilities. May it be so for all of us. ************************************************************************ Writing Myths You Can Ignore Myth: Write what you know. Truth: Write what you love, or hate, or care passionately about. There is so much we all donât know, it would fill volumes. Instead, follow the inner whisperings of your interests and passions. Myth: Write every day. Truth: Write when you can squeeze it in, write when youâre able, write in small segments, write because you must. Write regularly because youâll stay connected to your work. And remember to live a little. Myth: Write until youâre satisfied with your final draft, then pen the blessed words ãthe end.ä Truth: Youâll likely never feel as if youâve reached the end. Youâll likely write until you cannot stand the draft any more. At this point you might feel sickened, depressed or frightened. If you expect to feel euphoric, youâll often be disappointed. Myth: Show, donât tell. Truth: Show (demonstrate) most of the time, and tell when it is appropriate. All writing is a blend of both techniques. Write to deliver emotion, but donât forget that sometimes this requires subtlety, and emotion doesnât mean screaming at the reader. Myth: Writing is hard. Truth: Well, sometimes. And at other times the words and ideas burble forth with such speed and ease we can barely keep up with them. Myth: Write because youâre called to the page. Truth: Write for a reader, and make your calling his or her understanding. Writers must write, but they are never pretentious about their reasons. ************************************************************************ Inspiration ãThere is a bond between us, readers and writers, an ancient tie as old as writing is, if not as old as speech itself, a pact, a promise which the act of setting down sentences . . . implicitly solidifies . . .that what we shall say shall be as true to things and to our own hearts as we can make them, and that what we read shall be free and unforced and uttered out of what the deepest respect for the human language represents, whatever its contents otherwise. ã William H. Gass ************************************************************************************** ãLanguage is the only homeland.ä Czeslaw Milosz ********************************************************* ãA sentence is a group of words expressing a complete thought. A thought is only the beginning of an idea. A paragraph expresses an idea. A concept can be symbolized by just one word. I know this for a fact: every artist begins with a concept. He begins with an idea, whether heâs a painter, a graphic artist, a plastic artist, whether heâs a musician, whether heâs a writer. Creative thinking is nothing more than having the concept out of which the idea grows. It doesnât matter whether youâre writing a poem or a piece of prose. It begins with the idea.ä Margaret Walker ****************************************************************** "One ought , every day at least, to hear a little song, read a good poem, see a fine picture, and, if it were possible, to speak a few reasonable words.ä Johann Wolfgang von Goethe "Being a real writer means being able to work on a bad day.ä Norman Mailer ******************************************************