Mylene Dressler's Blog – April 2010 Archive (11)

Writing Out of the Box

Some young, inexperienced friends of mine bought their first house this week. They asked my advice about decorating it--I've owned half a dozen houses over the years, of all shapes and sizes--and I thought for a moment, and said honestly: beware the box. Some houses, like this one, invite boxiness. The house itself is a rectangle; all its rooms are square. It's a serviceable, in fact substantial canvas. But your temptation, I said carefully (I've owned houses like this one), will be to repeat… Continue

Added by Mylene Dressler on April 29, 2010 at 1:30pm — No Comments

No More Crash and Burn

When I first began writing novels, my friends, I started each day this way: I would sit down at my computer and start all over, each time, at the first chapter, with the very first sentence. And scrutinize it, to see if it could be any better. If it could be, I would then make it so. Or at least try to. And then, and only then, move on to the second sentence. And repeat this procedure. And so on. And so on. And so on.

Each feather of my manuscript had to be carefully examined to see… Continue

Added by Mylene Dressler on April 21, 2010 at 9:00am — 6 Comments

Over the Writing Hump

All right, it's Wednesday--the day I tend to encounter humps in my writing. Hmmm.

I go to sleep some Tuesdays--or rather, don't, tossing and turning--fretting over the latest blank I have drawn, by the end of the day, regarding where my story might be going next. I'm quite familiar with these blanks, so they have the power to scare me in the way that only a recurrent ghost can. At their worst, they signal the total breakdown of plot, the moment when it becomes patently clear to me I… Continue

Added by Mylene Dressler on April 14, 2010 at 2:01pm — 2 Comments

"Spot and Turn": Light and Focus for the Writer

Dear Friends,

This morning I'm thinking of all of you who have taken on the challenge of writing a novel; of all of you who have simply taken on the challenge of writing, and caring deeply about it; and of all of us, together, who simply live up or down, each day, to the challenge of living. There are times when we need, when we want, when we can call on deep, inspiritive powers to us--and they come. There are times, as Richard Wilbur says, when the poem comes looking for you. There… Continue

Added by Mylene Dressler on April 12, 2010 at 7:32am — 1 Comment

Celebrate Your Writing-Week

Do you do this as often as you should?

It's Friday. Look back. See what you've done. Did you manage to get a word or two down on the page this week? If so, close your eyes and pretend you're rolling in clover. Better yet, go out and do it. Scratch your back with the grass. Good girl. Good boy. Good writer. Good writer!

Did you write reams, and some of it was even worth keeping? This calls for food. You deserve your bowl filled with something nice. Go out to dinner. Dessert… Continue

Added by Mylene Dressler on April 9, 2010 at 1:00pm — 9 Comments

Life Without Writing

I stop to ponder what my life would be without writing.

It would be very pleasant indeed.

For instance, I would not spend so much time alone in a small room. My shoulders would be less hunched. My abdominals would be stronger. I would do yoga. Or learn to walk a tightrope.

I might make a real breakfast, instead of getting up only to sit down again. My first meal wouldn't be over the keys (well, in the keys, sometimes).

I would look out the window… Continue

Added by Mylene Dressler on April 9, 2010 at 7:43am — 12 Comments

My Writer's Resolutions

I will move. I will keep. I will grow.

I will leap every day.

I will sit in a chair and know that it is my job to pretend I am flying. I will smile at my good luck.

I will learn from each failure, while shedding it like old rain.

I will not ask permission.

I will honor the work of others.

I will show my gratitude as if it were the most beautiful thing I own.

I will shut myself away when necessary. I will not apologize… Continue

Added by Mylene Dressler on April 7, 2010 at 8:22am — 10 Comments

Reading is on the Rise

The reading of fiction is on the rise in the U.S. after a 20-year decline, and mysteries attract the most readers. Read the full article, in Library Journal, here: http://www.libraryjournal.com/article/CA6631020.html?rid=&q=thriller+statistics

Added by Mylene Dressler on April 6, 2010 at 1:14pm — No Comments

A Springtime Writing/Journaling Prompt

It's Spring, my friends. To help yourself really see it and note it and to develop your eye for color, detail and reverberation, try this exercise: Over the next few days, take the time to linger over and observe (or even interact with) scenes that catch your attention. Make notes on as many of these scenes as you feel moved to. Then, when you have a nice assortment, chose two and juxtapose them by writing about each one briefly, but in detail. Here's the key: Don't force the juxtaposition.… Continue

Added by Mylene Dressler on April 5, 2010 at 8:16am — No Comments

"Divine Dissatisfaction"

For those who may be curious, you'll find Martha Graham's famous phrase--referenced in my first SW blog post, below--in "The Life and Work of Martha Graham," by Agnes de Mille. These words sustained me all through my career as a dancer, and now keep me leaping as a writer:

"There is a vitality, a life force, an energy, a quickening that is translated through you into action, and because there is only one of you in all of time, this expression is unique. And if you block it, it will… Continue

Added by Mylene Dressler on April 4, 2010 at 7:29am — 6 Comments

The Struggles of a First-Time Novelist

A while back, a friend of mine wrote on the writers' blog "Boxing the Octopus" of her struggle with her stubbornly unfinished book. Her post, here, is definitely worth a read. After very cogentIy summing up the flaw near the beginning of her manuscript, and honestly describing her tears of dismay, she wrote:

"I want to fix it. But for the life of me, I can't figure out how. I can't figure out how to organize that material, and I can't figure out which parts of the subplots to… Continue

Added by Mylene Dressler on April 3, 2010 at 7:01am — 8 Comments