Writer's Slump

Sometimes it's good to be reminded that writing is truly a 'job' -- not too much about it is glamorous or sexy.  Yes, we writers have ideas (sometimes too many) and dreams of creating a good story that readers will fall in love with.  But then there are those other times when procrastination, frustration and well, just all-around angst hit.

And what happens then?

Nothing.

Nada.

Rien.

Zilch.

What I've found over the years is that it's best to turn my back and walk away from the computer.  Not forever, but certainly enough time to catch my breath, put the anxiety to rest and clear the mind.  Easier said than done, 'tho.

Today is one of those days.  Actually, it's been the past week or so.  I guess I could blame it on the winter, a season I'm not particularly fond of.  I tend to want to hibernate just like the bears -- crawl into a cave, pull the blankets over my head and sleep.

But life goes on -- family, work, bills to pay, a house to clean.

I think I need to read up on the Danish hygge thing -- find the good, simple pleasures of daily life, even in the dead of winter.  

And to remind myself that writing is a job.  Clock in, clock out; report for duty -- you name it.  Work, write and make it happen.  Thank you, Mr. Gaiman, for the above reminder.

I hope you'll stay with me, cut me a little slack until my creative engine is back in tune.

Plans?  Heck, yes!  Always.

It's just a matter of putting one's butt in the chair and hitting those keys.

And giving myself permission to play hookey for a bit!

". . . words, the brisk herbs of language, the fragrance
we think we sing." Eavan Boland, Poet

 

Sunday Afternoon De-Stresser

Vintage Tea and Text (digitally embellished by C. Hadleigh)

What do I do when in between writing my stories, especially in the midst of the Christmas season madness?  Easy -- I take out some lush yarns and brew a cup of tea; make sure to use a lovely vintage tea cup, put on the fire, the music and kick back. Works like a charm!

I'm not even sure what I'm knitting -- could be a hot pad for the table, a simple cowl, a pillow . . . ? It's just the simple, steady clicking of the needles, the feel of the soft yarn slipping through my fingers, the heady aroma of a good Darjeeling and a scrumptious candle burning on the mantel that eases the shoulders, the cramped neck, the frayed nerves (many of us writers have other jobs as well).

Before I know it, visions of words and scenes begin to drift through my mind. As I gaze into the fire or into the tea, words miraculously appear. I'm far, far away, in another place, another time. So despite wanting to put aside the writing and clear my mind, my mind decides to bypass my intent and dwell in the land of words. 

Blessed are they who see beautiful things in humble places

where other people see nothing. 

Camille Pissarro

English Beauty over Time

It's been a busy, hot summer but I feel like it's finally winding down a bit. Hard to think about writing when the garden and beaches beckon you outdoors! 

"English Rose: Feminine Beauty from Van Dyck to Sargent" - Exhibit at Bowes Museum

As I start to put together my preliminary notes for the next book, "Snowbound Seductions," I don't have much trouble envisioning my hero. But the heroine is a bit more troublesome. Then I came across this article about a new exhibition: "The English Rose: Feminine Beauty from Van Dyck to Sargent" running at the Bowes Museum, County Durham, England. 

Think of it -- 400 years worth of how English society depicted its ideals of beauty in portraiture. Now that is a resource that I can use as a writer!  Here are some images over time --

Such a wealth of information -- dress, hats, hair styling, jewelry and other adornments.  It certainly makes it easier to begin to craft not only the heroine, but also secondary characters.  And as this novelette will be set during the Christmas holidays, that will be my next subject area to research.

So I hope you stay tuned for more updates on Snowbound Seductions -- 

Down Time from Writing:

What does a writer do in between books? The summer is such a hard time to sit in front of a computer and attempt to create a story when the sunlight flickers on the blinds, the birds are chirping and the garden is beckoning you from beyond the window! So now that my studio/writing den is completed, I decided to give myself several weeks off to empty the tired brain, ease up on the eyestrain and enjoy the remaining weeks of summer. Here in New England it's just a matter of time before the weather may take a turn for the worse.

This is my Cape Cod bowl of broken sea shells -- I call them my writing worry beads. Whenever I get in a jam for just the right word or phrase or a particular scene, I dip in and find a shell I can rub as I ponder. It also reminds me of my time on the beach at the Cape earlier this summer -- peaceful, relaxing, marvelous!

Another way to turn off the writing brain is crafting. I've been a crafter for years -- knitting, quilting, crochet, collage and painting. This is the current palette of colors I'll be working with, along with my stash of batik fabrics. I'm going to try to complete a log cabin quilt, probably just a lap quilt or a wall quilt to hang in my studio -- another source of inspiration!

This is a sample of one of the log cabins I finished this weekend. Now I'm interested in trying this pattern in crochet. Well, it's going on 3pm and I feel a need for a glass of chilled chardonnay and my latest read: Shannon Hale' Midnight in Austenland. I got such a kick out of the movie, Austenland, that I decided to try the book -- both quite enjoyable, although this one loosely follows Northanger Abbey so it has a bit of a Gothic twist! Have a great Sunday afternoon, everyone and thanks for stopping by!

After 20+ years in the lower level of our home, next to the laundry room and with very little natural light, I have finally emerged upstairs into a new creative space -- my studio and writing den . . .

I think I may faint!

 If I were Virginia Woolf, I would add to my famous quote: A woman needs a room of one's own (preferably with a lock), money and time . . . and natural light. 

When the last child moves out of the family nest, it is a bittersweet moment. And then the ideas begin to percolate. I am very lucky that my husband spent the past three weeks scrubbing down wood floors, buffing, painting, hauling teenage debris, especially in the 90+ degree heat we've been having (I helped, too!).

Although the space is a work in progress, here are some of the ideas I pulled from Pinterest. Windows are a big thing with me, as you can tell.  And color, lots and lots of color.

We copied the colors of our favorite place -- Cape Cod -- using bright white for the trim and windows and a soft, pale grey for the walls, leaving the wood floors clear of rugs.

Right now I'm working on some hand-crocheted mandalas, which I'll make into buntings for around the windows (no curtains) and perhaps along the bookcases.  Here's a sneak peek at what they look like --

Once I have enough, I'll string them together and hang. I like to follow two excellent crochet gurus:  Lucy at Attic24 and Wink in the Netherlands.  If you're into crochet or knitting, you must check out their sites.  

Well, what does this have to do with writing romance novels?  It's just another way to keep the creative right brain functioning, even when you're taking a break.  I've already begun the opening scenes for my next romance.  Hint: something set during the holiday season involving some merry widows!  

What is your favorite spot to create, read, paint, sew, dream?

Share it!  Pin it!  The more, the merrier!

Do you judge a book by its cover?

I don't know about you, but I'm a bit tired of seeing thousands of book covers (not just romance) filled with women in gowns either sprawled across the cover or running off toward the distance, their heads partially cut off.

I suppose it a kind of "branding" thing that publishers know works like a charm when choosing a book by its cover (pardon the pun).  So I decided to play around a bit (yes, I know I should be writing) to see if there are any unique types for cover designs -- not necessarily for regency or romance, but mainly for romance.  Here are some variations that I think show potential --

This image I pulled from Amy Rose Bennett's site (New Zealand) and, although it's another woman in a beautiful gown running away from the viewer, I liked the atmospheric aspect of this image.  Is she in fear?  Is she playing the tease?  The brooding landscape hints at maybe a Highland setting or maybe the French countryside.  Don't know, but I like it.  If I was a reader, I'd put my hands on this book because of the suggestion of intrigue!

Now, if I was writing something more contemporary, I don't want rippling six-packs plastered across the book cover (this must be my catholic school upbringing rearing its head).  If I want romance, I'd go with something more like these, mostly taken from Pinterest boards about dance, especially the Tango --

Now this would be a totally cool book cover!

Another great book cover, seductive, suggestive.  Phew, I'd grab this one of the shelf in a heart beat. Maybe a suspense romance set between the Wars, a la 1930s Paris? 

And what about the younger generation, the New Adult market (18-30)?  Here's something a bit grungier, edgier:

"Dancing is the vertical expression
of a horizontal desire." (George Bernard Shaw, 1856-1950)   

I believe Mr. Shaw got that one right!  

Enjoy!

Sources of Inspiration

I've been working on my first Regency romance novel and, although I've read most of Jane Austen and seen so many of the excellent BBC movie variations, one still needs a bit of inspiration when working through the writing.

It's usually those small details, descriptive of the landscape or the manor house, that gives a work that added level of veracity, of impact for the reader.  Why else would readers want historical romance?  I have to think that it's the time period that intrigues, a bit like a time tunnel.  Go ahead, pick your period -- there's probably a romance set in each one.

That's why I love Pinterest.  If you can control the time spent on the great "P" -- and that's a big "if" -- there's so much out there to help spark those imaginative ideas or get a writer over the hurdle of writer's block.  Here's a few that I chose to help keep me churning out those words:

Image captured from Pinterest

Wouldn't this be the best image for the heroine as she enter's his lordship's grounds? Her first glimpse of his world . . . Stay or go, stay or go? Did I remember to pack those diamonds?  

Another shot of a classic Georgian-style manor house on a lovely English summer day --

And of course no English manor house would be complete without the venerable Rose Garden (this one was designed by Capability Brown).

Another source of inspiration and information are the British magazines that are now popping up at Barnes & Nobel and other larger bookstores.  This is one of my favorites, not only for the gorgeous images but also for the information on places, names, etc.

Of course, there is a word of warning:  between Pinterest and these magazines, you could spend your entire writing time immersed in viewing/reading!  What was that word count last time I looked?

Putting off the inevitable

 

Today I was home from work with a bit of the flu. It's a fairly warm and sunny day here for the end of January.  The birds are twittering away and for a few moments I sat on the deck just wrapped in a fleece jacket.  The sun felt good on my face, and for the time being I enjoyed my mug of hot coffee, watching the birds on the feeders.

But I knew I had to get back to the keyboard.  Isn't writing a tough task master?  

Can you count the ways that we procrastinate, putting off the inevitable?  I certainly can.

Dishes, laundry, paying bills, re-organizing the linen closet (ugh), naming the dust bunnies that continue to elude the vacuum, browsing on Pinterest (hours fly by!) . . . and the list goes on.

Why do we do this as writers?  It reminds me of artists who quake at the bare white canvas before slapping on a blob of paint.  Anything to kill off the taunting white paper / canvas.

Yes, we've all read the articles about how we should just roll up our sleeves and get down to it.  That the more we write, the easier it comes, so they say.

Writers like Julia Cameron have published a multitude of books for creative folk that speaks of daily rituals to help the writer / artist / poet slip into a realm of right-brained creativity.  And I do love to read her works even though there's a part of me somewhere deep in the back of my mind that doubts.

Easy to read, difficult to execute.  

So what did I end up doing today?  Rather than go back to my writings, I spent most of the afternoon creating this blog, adding links and other doodads.  Which I love to do, don't get me wrong. 

But no writing . . . nada . . . zip.  Although when I was on the deck earlier, I did run through some scenes in my head for my very first Regency romance.  

There, I said it.  My very first.  I am a beginner when it comes to romance.  For years I've pretty much dwelt in the world of mysteries; even wrote a few.  

The problem is, though, that writing is a very isolated craft, and I couldn't find an active, supportive mystery group in the area.  But romance writers are rabid about support.  You just need to check out those links on the right to see how much so!

This is my third year with RWA and CT RWA, and I'm hoping that "3" is the magic number.  That this year, I'll stick to it and see it through to the "happy ever after" ending -- a published novel or novella. 

That's the goal, so why not join me on this journey?  I'll stumble and detour, I'm sure.  But I'm sure I am not alone on that front. 

Thanks and WRITE ON!   
Claire