tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2725342624231517088.post6042163724328317740..comments2023-10-30T15:13:22.680+00:00Comments on Strictly Writing: ***?!***DThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11803989273524731892noreply@blogger.comBlogger30125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2725342624231517088.post-80472166025218878672010-03-17T20:06:06.365+00:002010-03-17T20:06:06.365+00:00Hope you are right, Colin! :)
SusiexHope you are right, Colin! :)<br />SusiexSusie Nott-Bowerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08428000582406338267noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2725342624231517088.post-26655119553728102202010-03-17T19:49:53.645+00:002010-03-17T19:49:53.645+00:00Emma Darwin said, "Letting go of an outcome h...Emma Darwin said, "Letting go of an outcome has the most powerful and peculiar effects on your creativity. "<br /><br />I couldn't agree more. It's certainly frustrating getting rejections but ultimately, you have no control over that. All you can do is focus on what you can control. You have total control over your writing, editing and your submissions. Let the other stuff be someone else's problem and while they scrape their feet, keep writing and keep submitting. <br /><br />If you chuck enough balls at enough coconuts, you'll win a fish.<br /><br />Colin MColinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15825910314726097048noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2725342624231517088.post-37662168346479408252010-03-17T19:39:04.919+00:002010-03-17T19:39:04.919+00:00Linda, I just read your blog - isn't it terrif...Linda, I just read your blog - isn't it terrifying how easily we can convince ourselves (at certain times) that we 'can't' and 'aren't'. Well done you for continuing across the garden and into your study!<br />And yes, I know from experience how letting go of outcomes seems to revitalise creativity. Sometimes one has to get mad enough to cut the cord between oneself and one's desires. Then it's as if something says: 'Great - now you've got out of the way of yourself, I can take over.'<br />SusiexSusie Nott-Bowerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08428000582406338267noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2725342624231517088.post-31375108062381880082010-03-17T19:05:37.675+00:002010-03-17T19:05:37.675+00:00Susie, all the comments here let you know that you...Susie, all the comments here let you know that you are not alone. <br /><br />I blogged about a similar feeling recently in <a href="http://writingthebookwords.blogspot.com/2010/02/from-casket-of-insecurity-writer-or.html" rel="nofollow">from the casket-of-insecurity, a writer or a fraud? </a> <br /><br />Sometimes the pressure of trying to get things accepted makes you miserable, we've all been there, and as difficult as it sounds I think Emma's advice - Letting go of an outcome has the most powerful and peculiar effects on your creativity - is worth thinking about.<br /><br />Keep writing but most of all enjoy it. Oh, and try wearing earmuffs whenever that particular neighbour is around!Linda Strachanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04354324158228109351noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2725342624231517088.post-76199856871125501302010-03-17T09:28:47.726+00:002010-03-17T09:28:47.726+00:00Thank you so much, Lydia and Emma.
What you say ab...Thank you so much, Lydia and Emma.<br />What you say about beating yourself up is so true. I always know when things are really bad because I see that I've turned against myself instead of 'staying faithful'.<br />And Emma, yes - absolutely the 'retirement' angle, when viewed without the frustrated emotion, is very important. And necessary. I think it leads to equanimity.<br />SusiexSusie Nott-Bowerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08428000582406338267noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2725342624231517088.post-31628358625795486732010-03-17T09:17:56.213+00:002010-03-17T09:17:56.213+00:00Oh, Susie, that was such a brave post and I so fee...Oh, Susie, that was such a brave post and I so feel for you (not least because I've been there many times.)<br /><br />I think Elizabeth Gilbert is right - one thing which depletes the well more than almost anything else, is beating yourself up for feeling like this. When you find yourself sounding childish, it's because some fundamental need isn't being met: in your case, your need to be heard (which is something we all have) is being thwarted by an assortment of things which are not your fault, such as the current economics of the book trade. That's a frustration you're entitled to be sad about. There's nothing worse for creating blank-page terror than simultaneously wanting This Piece to be the one which works by whatever magic formula the book trade is telling you has so far eluded you, and 'knowing' that it won't be.<br /><br />Telling someone to go forget about publication and go back to doing it for fun can sound like telling you to retire, but you might find it's more positive than that. Letting go of an outcome has the most powerful and peculiar effects on your creativity. But you need energy for creativity to have a chance of flourishing, and it does sound as if everything has conspired to make yours leak away. It will come back, though - it's in your bones, so it just needs food.Emma Darwinhttp://emmadarwin.typepad.com/thisitchofwriting/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2725342624231517088.post-58401164627181406102010-03-16T23:34:30.094+00:002010-03-16T23:34:30.094+00:00Oh, Susie - haven't we all been there? Such a ...Oh, Susie - haven't we all been there? Such a brave post, but you know in your heart that you can't give up. If you could you wouldn't have begun in the first place- this is a hard path we have all chosen to tread. Not needing to write would be much easier, but you can't do it, can you? <br />Be as kind to yourself as you would to any writer friend experiencing what you're going through. You wouldn't say to them: you're rubbish, why don't you just give up? You'd say: you've got talent; just hang in there; keep going and one day you'll get the recognition you deserve. So say it to yourself and know the truth of it. <br />Write tiny unconnected snippets just for the sheer joy of doing it and you'll remember why it was you couldn't stop yourself from doing this weird thing in the first place.<br />Good luck and a cyber hug!<br />www.lydiajones.co.uk/blogLydiahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15580243616937466192noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2725342624231517088.post-8977524133363190862010-03-16T22:34:11.013+00:002010-03-16T22:34:11.013+00:00Thank you so much, Nicola. I can't tell you a...Thank you so much, Nicola. I can't tell you and everyone else what this response has meant. Have just said elsewhere how very welcome it is to hear that none of us are alone with this, that most people have and do encounter this hard and challenging stuff at times. I do hope your muse will begin to whisper again very soon.<br />And Caroline, of course - ptenacity it is! :)<br />SusiexSusie Nott-Bowerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08428000582406338267noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2725342624231517088.post-76209391547059079352010-03-16T20:16:57.403+00:002010-03-16T20:16:57.403+00:00Susie, I hope all these responses will give you a ...Susie, I hope all these responses will give you a boost to keep going.<br /><br />I'm especially liking the ptarmigan of tenacity.<br />But shouldn;t it be the ptarmigan ot ptenacity?Caroline Greenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04708248040141519582noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2725342624231517088.post-22188698150646701552010-03-16T19:08:51.728+00:002010-03-16T19:08:51.728+00:00Susie - I have been there and it's horrible. O...Susie - I have been there and it's horrible. Or, of course, it's different for everyone and different circs etc, so I won't presume to say I have been exactly in the same place. But, like the others reading this, I felt your pain and have every sympathy with you. I was 21 years unpublished and it hit me hard every time I got another knockback. If you're anything like most/all of us, you'll pick yourself up, a new idea will come and suddenly you'll be burning to write it. I can't get the writing muse to join me either at the moment and i worry it won't come back - but in my head I know it will.<br /><br />That was a brave post you wrote and I wish you huge strength and luck.Nicola Morganhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12189894289540344094noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2725342624231517088.post-28870848538102643532010-03-16T17:01:23.321+00:002010-03-16T17:01:23.321+00:00Derek, you are indeed the peacock of persistence a...Derek, you are indeed the peacock of persistence and the ptarmigan (!) of tenacity, and an inspiration to those of us who know you. :)<br />SusiexSusie Nott-Bowerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08428000582406338267noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2725342624231517088.post-78105578189569644102010-03-16T16:28:36.693+00:002010-03-16T16:28:36.693+00:00Well Susie, needless to say I know where you'r...Well Susie, needless to say I know where you're coming from. The guinea-fowl of despondency (a distant cousin of the bluebird of happiness) comes to visit every writer from time to time. First the good news - you did in fact write something so the writer's block isn't universal. Secondly, maybe you could just write something else for a bit - a short story about writer's block? A chance to puncture the balloon, so to speak. And thirdly, in the words of Churchill, "Never give up; never give up; never give up." Repeat daily after meals.DThttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11803989273524731892noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2725342624231517088.post-65088902704063820582010-03-16T15:00:54.198+00:002010-03-16T15:00:54.198+00:00Thanks - it's such a relief to know it's n...Thanks - it's such a relief to know it's not just me. What a lovely supportive bunch you are. May we all know the joy of that 'yes' very soon.<br />SusiexxSusie Nott-Bowerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08428000582406338267noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2725342624231517088.post-8175491258469804762010-03-16T14:03:42.316+00:002010-03-16T14:03:42.316+00:00Oh Susie - I can so empathise with every-blinkin&...Oh Susie - I can so empathise with every-blinkin'-thing you say here. It sucks at times, doesn't it, this writing malarkay? And that "what about me" is such a shrill little voice that half the time you don't even want to admit you can hear because you don't want to sound like a whinger... I have another voice, though, that keeps my head above the slushy water we're in. My lovely writerly ( and bestselling-but-she-was-once-here-too) friend Claire Allan told me once "It only takes ONE yes".<br />((Hang in there))Debs Ricciohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10837598374947020855noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2725342624231517088.post-78312733700252073142010-03-16T14:01:54.732+00:002010-03-16T14:01:54.732+00:00Oh, Susie, I feel for you. Your post was painful t...Oh, Susie, I feel for you. Your post was painful to read because it is so true. But keep on writing and the self-belief and pleasure in writing will come back. It always does!Rosy Thttp://www.rosythornton.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2725342624231517088.post-15869086097033364782010-03-16T13:59:50.871+00:002010-03-16T13:59:50.871+00:00Gggrr - what an idiotic neighbour. Maybe she is ju...Gggrr - what an idiotic neighbour. Maybe she is just resentful of the fact you have achieved more than she has? You wouldn't be the first one to have heard these words though. I think at some point all writers will have encountered this phrase. Never give up!Gillian McDadehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02758782108258244355noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2725342624231517088.post-41006826532364482492010-03-16T12:24:14.844+00:002010-03-16T12:24:14.844+00:00Thanks, Lizzie. :)
Keith, that's a great quot...Thanks, Lizzie. :)<br />Keith, that's a great quote. <br />SusiexSusie Nott-Bowerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08428000582406338267noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2725342624231517088.post-70416726503336947262010-03-16T12:03:09.407+00:002010-03-16T12:03:09.407+00:00You must keep sending work out; you must never let...You must keep sending work out; you must never let a manuscript do nothing but eat its head off in a drawer. You send that work out again and again, while you're working on another one. If you have talent, you will receive some measure of success – but only if you persist. - Isaac Asimov<br />I have dozens of these little snippets to keep me going. Hoping to share more of them on my blog.KeithHavershttp://www.grammargrub.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2725342624231517088.post-21657798830292318522010-03-16T11:50:49.911+00:002010-03-16T11:50:49.911+00:00Susie, I think you summed writing up in your last ...Susie, I think you summed writing up in your last sentence:<br /><br />'And maybe, one day ... hell, you never know.'<br /><br />It's not easy, but keep writing, don't give up and don't beat yourself up too much.Lizziehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00166250660630642263noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2725342624231517088.post-45875094326127441732010-03-16T10:32:32.031+00:002010-03-16T10:32:32.031+00:00I am SO touched by your responses and suggestions ...I am SO touched by your responses and suggestions and understanding. Thank you so very much. Thought I would be seen as a depressed whiner. Moments like this it's like the sun breaks through. <br />SusiexSusie Nott-Bowerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08428000582406338267noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2725342624231517088.post-15964369033079648212010-03-16T10:08:18.912+00:002010-03-16T10:08:18.912+00:00You are very brave and honest to bear your soul in...You are very brave and honest to bear your soul in this post. I share your frustrations and heartaches. Delighted for friends I see succeeding and struggling to remain inspired and motivated in my own writing. <br />I posted on my blog recently about reviving inspiration and motivation and some of the things I did. If it helps please have a look.<br />Keep writing and keep sending - any amount of rejections will be paled into shadow by the acceptance offer that wil come I am sure.<br />Michelle<br />xMichellehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06224208773361822237noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2725342624231517088.post-72741854049371655642010-03-16T10:06:01.914+00:002010-03-16T10:06:01.914+00:00Susie, your words resonate so strongly. I found th...Susie, your words resonate so strongly. I found this post very moving and the ideas uncomfortably familiar. <br /><br />Wouldn't it be wonderful to just quit? Enjoy the the way the sun seeps through the blinds on this birthday of spring. Forget writing, it's shit.Roderic Vincenthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06519267912305907364noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2725342624231517088.post-28331707201346764312010-03-16T09:46:46.461+00:002010-03-16T09:46:46.461+00:00Brady on Writewords has just posted this brilliant...Brady on Writewords has just posted this brilliant quote from writer Elizabeth Gilbert:<br /><br />As for discipline – it’s important, but sort of over-rated. The more important virtue for a writer, I believe, is self-forgiveness. Because your writing will always disappoint you. Your laziness will always disappoint you. You will make vows: “I’m going to write for an hour every day,” and then you won’t do it. You will think: “I suck, I’m such a failure. I’m washed-up.” Continuing to write after that heartache of disappointment doesn’t take only discipline, but also self-forgiveness (which comes from a place of kind and encouraging and motherly love). The other thing to realize is that all writers think they suck. When I was writing “Eat, Pray, Love”, I had just as a strong a mantra of THIS SUCKS ringing through my head as anyone does when they write anything. But I had a clarion moment of truth during the process of that book. One day, when I was agonizing over how utterly bad my writing felt, I realized: “That’s actually not my problem.” The point I realized was this – I never promised the universe that I would write brilliantly; I only promised the universe that I would write. So I put my head down and sweated through it, as per my vows.Caroline Greenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04708248040141519582noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2725342624231517088.post-52943418017956600582010-03-16T09:30:45.872+00:002010-03-16T09:30:45.872+00:00Hi
Awwww come on now - LOOK!! You've written ...Hi<br /><br />Awwww come on now - LOOK!! You've written a blog entry!!! And we're reading it!!<br /><br />:-)<br /><br />Take heart, take a break, have kitkat, deep breath and love yourself and your writing again!! Of course you can do this - and we'll all be cheering you on all the way!!<br /><br />:-)<br /><br />Take care<br />xOld Kittyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13185547869183611159noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2725342624231517088.post-87220343956730918792010-03-16T09:17:43.564+00:002010-03-16T09:17:43.564+00:00I have a friend who is in exactly the same positio...I have a friend who is in exactly the same position as you. He is a damn good writer but that publishing contract just hasn't been forthcoming.<br />He has for some time now, been telling me he is going to give up and just enjoy his life. He has an interesting job and a fab family. He doesn't need, he says, to introduce the pain of rejection again and again.<br /><br />I understand. And yet...where there's talent, there will be success.<br />To paraphrase the wonderful Elizabeth Gilbert, people say that being publihse dis like finding a cheap apartment in New York. Impossible. And yet every day someone finds a cheap apartment in New York.<br /><br />HBxHelen Blackhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00266205672947750373noreply@blogger.com