Had to shift gears last week to handle some unexpected article edits. It felt weird emerging from the warm cocoon of half-forgotten murders only to plunge into the icy waters of how re-branding impacts medical facility affiliations.
To tell the truth, it threw me off balance for a few days.
So after finally re-submitting the revamped piece at 1.30 am, last Friday morning, I took a leaf from the Patricia Cornwell interview in the October issue of Writer’s Digest to help hot wire my stalled novel. (Note: non-subscribers can’t access the article but you can get a tasty overview at Andi Marquette’s blog).
The interview’s got some wonderful insights but my favorite is, “Treat your writing like a relationship and not a job. Because if it’s a relationship…it’s like visiting your friend.”
Hmm. I think she’s onto something. I’m not treating my characters like they’re my friends, listening to what they have to say or more importantly, to what they’re not saying.
Instead, my focus has been on maneuvering everyone as if they all have steering wheels implanted in their backs for me to use. Nothing like a little, pretty-as-a-neatly-wrapped-package-navigation OCD, eh? So I took a deep breath and this morning, I let go. I sat down with an iced mocha chocolate cookie latte, told my new friends to tell me like it is, and watched the creative engine fire back up.
Cranked out some good writing, although I’m thinking that perhaps the sugar/caffeine rush may have helped.
