Write Stuff

[Fiction] Friday #54

[Fiction] Friday Challenge for May 9, 2008:

Using first person narration, logically describe something that is crazy.

How Fiction Friday works
Fiction Friday is easy to do.

• Every Thursday, just check this page for this week’s theme or challenge.
• Spend at least 5 minutes composing something original based on the theme or challenge.
• But, remember, no editing. This is to inspire creativity not stifle it.
• On Friday, simply post what you wrote to your own blog.
• Then come back to Write Stuff and leave the link in the comment section below.

If you’re participating in the Write Stuff meme, please leave a link to your entry in the box below. (If you’re not participating, please don’t leave a link. People who aren’t playing will be removed). Please don’t forget to leave us a comment in addition to leaving a link!

Powered by… Mister Linky’s Magical Widgets.

If you’d like to participate further, just go visit some of the other links left by other participants, read what they wrote, and leave a comment. Just be sure that your comment is constructive—this is, after all, a meme to give us all a little writing practice.

Want more information? Want the code to drop into your own blog with no hassle? Visit the Fiction Friday page.

Technorati tags: fiction, fiction friday

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Send your submissions here.

Next CC: May 10th

Submission Deadline: Midnight central time, May 9th
Only one submission per blog, please

Bright Stuff #454

Five more questions to ask during revision:

1. Do factual inaccuracies rob the draft of authority?

2. Similarly, does incorrect punctuation, spelling, or usage rob the draft of authority?

3. Does the piece bog down with unnecessary “business,” such as introductions, or hellos and goodbyes?

4. Does this draft seem the right length for its breadth and depth?

5. Are you ready to identify that one nettlesome worry that has troubled you just under the surface while writing this draft?

From The Pocket Muse: Endless Inspiration by Monica Wood

It’s In The Air

“I’m a famous writer in a country where nobody reads.” ~ John Grisham

That quote is more truer than some of us may like. Personally, I was part of the problem not the solution. I own 140+ books in my little library and haven’t read half of them. I keep acquiring more and put off reading them. Bad habit, I know. However, things have change as of late.

My step-grandmother and I have been swapping books. Then, my aunt and step-uncle entered the mix. Reading has become a hot thing in our household. In the last eleven days, I have finished reading one book and read two more. I started a fourth today. I’m hoping to keep this going.

While this may not be true for everyone, I feel it is in the air for me. This may be a fad and I might end up going back to being a lazy reader. All I know is I feel highly motivated to crack open some books. Anyone else?

Bright Stuff #453

Write about the one who got away and regretted it.

Time

Time is such a complex subject. It is difficult to understand and quite impossible to grasp. There is a theory that time is an illusion with purpose. I think that Edgar Cayce, a 20th century psychic, stated this.

In a way, technology works to show us how time can be an illusion. You are most likely reading this with the assumption that it was written on May 7, 2008 but it wasn’t. I’m writing some posts ahead of schedule because I am expecting a baby.

What’s the difference if I write this post on May 1st or May 7th? There may be none. I originally wanted to post that each of the postdated entries would be very different from the ones that I would have written on a weekly basis.

But I have no way of really knowing that. Do I?

I guess that it depends on how you look at writing. Can a work differ greatly if written a week ahead of schedule? What if you wait a few days–or years–to complete a project? Can your thoughts significantly change your writing from moment to moment?

Bright Stuff #452

Write about getting lost in time.

Un-Comfort Zone

It’s easy to become comfortable. And the older I get, the easier it seems. In some areas of life this isn’t a bad thing. For instance when juggling the extra-curricular activities of a family of six, I have no problem steering some kids into activities I’m familiar with—especially if it means fewer destinations for my own chauffeur service.

But in writing this comfort zone can be a very bad thing. While all readers, at one time or another, look for the familiar, writing that stands out is writing that is fresh and original. Comfortable is one thing, complacency is something completely different.

So how do we as writers stop ourselves from becoming complacent on our own writing?

The easiest way is to vary your reading. Sci-fi is my favorite genre, and I could easily slip into reading only that. But more I make a point to read from as many other genres as I can.

However, the best way is to keep trying new things with your own writing. Experiment. Art, at it’s very nature is experimental. If you love to write in the 3rd person, write a few stories—or even scenes—in the first person. Try a genre you sometimes read, but never write. Try a dialogue only story.

I routinely find that if I’m stuck on one story, shaking things up by writing something new—something I never intend to polish and pursue—can get me unstuck in a hurry.

So that’s your assignment for this week. Write something in your Un-Comfort Zone.

Bright Stuff #451

Spark word: Addiction