1) A quote from a useful discussion about the myth of writer's block:
“When your fingers are moving, your brain is working.”
Shirley Bahlmann, The Myth of Writer’sBlock with Shirley Bahlmann and Heather Ostler, Author’s Think Tank, Episode
#11
The idea behind this quote is brilliant. Even if you start out writing junk, your
brain is working and is going to kick in and start producing something useful
(and then you can go back and delete the gibberish). So to get past a place
where you’re stuck, you just start writing anything, even something unrelated
to what you want to work on.
Author’s Think Tank describes themselves as: A think tank of authors helping each other
reach their potential. Their site has a blog with writing tips and information,
as well as a series of podcasts. I only discovered this site recently and have
been enjoying catching up on their podcasts.
2) Here's a podcast about revision that has given me a lot to think about, especially in terms of my goals for my story and characters.
“It’s often useful to write out what you want the reader
to feel about the character…that doesn’t always come through on the page.”
Cheryl Klein, Revision Techniques I by Cheryl Klein and James Monohan, The Narrative Breakdown. 
Cheryl and James discuss some of Cheryl's strategies for helping writers revise, including writing "intention" letter about the story, making a book map and using character charts. I've heard about some of these techniques before and they are also in Cheryl's book, Second Sight, but it was great to think about how they apply to what I'm currently writing. This is a podcast episode I'd probably listen to again from time to time.
Some great-sounding links, thanks for sharing :-)
ReplyDeleteThese both sound good. I'm not much of a believer in writer's block, either.
ReplyDeleteSweet. I love podcasts. Next time I'm cleaning the kitchen, I'm going to give these a listen. Thanks for putting these out there:)
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