Going primitive

My writing partner.

I once read a post by a female writer who said she would do anything to avoid writing. She would read any stupid thing on the internet, clean her closets, color-coordinate her clothes - anything to avoid facing that blank page. On a mini-scale, I can relate.

My writing motor is running smoothly again, but I did have some rough months. What I did to avoid writing was move my writing materials - ideas, notes, research, etc. - from one program to another, and then to another, and another ad infinitum. It was all about getting ready, an amorphous thing for a writer. But I finally realized that getting ready is something that happens in my head, not in computer apps. And this allowed me to begin writing again.

I abandoned my digital aids and returned to writing notes in, of all things, a notebook. It was a good move. I feel like I'm home each time I pick up my pen and write something down. (Mind you, the actual writing of the novel occurs in Scrivener, the world's best writing program. That's a given.) Without notes, I'm flying blind. They're a necessary tool for writers.

I discovered something long ago, but forgot it. I can record my ideas by typing them into a program, but there's something about writing the old-fashioned way that burns the idea into your brain. It's as if writing the idea down on paper makes the brain allocate a set place for it. That counts. I seem to lose many things that I type into a program - they're still there but I don't remember them or consult my notes to find them. But my handwritten notes are always there, always retrievable. Although I'm a very digital guy, I am reminded that writing by hand has benefits. I was happy to rediscover this.

I guess writer's block has similarities with baseball players who lose their swing. It's painful to watch them during these periods. They'll try anything to get their groove back, so they take advice from everyone and end up unable to play. And when they finally do find their swing again, they almost always say that the solution was to return to what they used to do when they were playing well. That's what I did. Notebooks are part of the way I write. I need them, I've got them and now I'm writing every day.

I know it sounds simple but that's how it worked for me. I'd love to hear about other writers' experiences...but that never happens on this blog. I used to write regularly about being a fiction writer. I hoped other writers would visit and share their concerns, habits, tricks, etc. The idea was that we could all benefit from hashing things out.

But I gave up. Why hold a party when no one ever arrives? Any writers out there? How does it work for you? A comment or two would be very nice. I'm not going to hold my breath, though. One learns from experience.

Five notebooks

I keep five notebooks for recording story ideas. Could I write all my ideas in one book? Yes, but I work on several books at once so that would only make it harder to find a specific note. For this reason, I use a number of notebooks.  That's a photo of my current workbooks above.

There is a separate notebook for each book I'm currently writing. One is for Xmas Carol, which I'm still working on. (The book is out to readers at this time and I got a great call this morning from a reader who just reached the climax. Lookin' good!) The Xmas Carol notebook is the large blue-green one on the right end.

A second is for Ink, which Is also a current project. It's the medium-sized yellow notebook. I've got another book just for new story ideas. It lists idea after idea, and this is where I go when I want to write a new short story. I can't tell you how happy I am about the ideas in this book. There's good writing ahead! The book for new ideas is the medium-sized avocado notebook.

I also have a large black notebook for the third book of The Worlds Trilogy. The story isn't written, nor is the plot set in stone. It too is a work in progress, though it's only in the planning (i.e., thinking) stage.

And finally, I have a small copper notebook to carry on my infrequent forays into the world, dog forbid an idea occur to me and I find myself unprepared to record it.

Each notebook you see above is a Clairefontaine Basics notebook. The paper is unbeatable and is so friendly to fountain pens, which I always use when writing by hand. As I mentioned in an earlier post, I have leather covers handmade for these notebooks at Renaissance Art. It's not as expensive as you might think.

(Note: they don't make perfect items, instead producing friendly, unique covers with all sorts of imperfections. I love them. Each is like an old friend, wrinkled here and there. In other words: perfectionists beware. Me, I think I've bought about 10 of their covers and I'm perfectly happy.)

This is my arsenal. Whatever idea occurs to me, no matter which book it concerns, I have a place where I can record it. This is very helpful when I sit down to write the book or story.

On the other hand, I also notice that each thing I write down in these notebooks essentially transfers the idea permanently to my brain. I can go to the computer the next day and start writing, often without looking at my notes. I think this says something about how the brain works. Perhaps by writing the words manually, they go directly into secure storage in the brain.  It's as if my contact with the idea is more intimate when I print it in a notebook by hand. I'm just musing here but it seems that way to me.

Write your ideas down in an organized way. Trust yourself. Know that your ideas are good and worth recording. This way, when you want to write something, you won't find yourself saying, 'But what will I write about?"

Works for me. What works for you?