For me, it's always a challenge to write anything SHORT. I personally
have to make anything I write a 900-plus page epic, whether it's a
fanfic or a report on something. Even in my creative writing days in
college, my instructors would always say, "can't you write anything
SHORT?"
In short, my take on the Writing Process: just let your mind flow, and
yourself be free as the waves in the deep blue sea, and the next thing
you know, you'll have your short story...or that phonebook sized one.
--Ashita, He Whose Fanfics Stay Crunchy in Milk (because they're too
thick to soak up all the milk!)
"Let your fingers do the walking."
--Traditional Yellow Pages Slogan
---Victor Coutu wrote:
It's difficult to explain what motivates me to write... In most
cases, ideas
come in a flash of inspiration (or insanity, according to your
viewpoint...)
and I just sit down and type them out. "Almost a Miracle" started
from the
discovery of RAAC, and upon reading a few fics, ideas literally flew
into my
head. I had to keep a pad beside me at all times, since I would
often have
these little flashes without warning, and sometimes in the middle of
writing
a fic!
Truth be known, I have *boxes* of finished, unfinished, and naked
concept
stuff around here, that to this day faces an uncertain future. <G!>
In fact, as I compose this response, something is coming to mind
that may
help explain things better...
<ficmode>
At last, the time had arrived, and I was free once again to venture
into my
own personal 'virtual reality'. I sat before the portal to a world
of my
own design, preparing to leave the real world and all it's troubles
in my
widening wake.
Leaning over, I started up my lowly computer, and loaded the tool
of my
emancipation... the word processor. As I not-so-patiently awaited
it, I
pondered my choices for the evening's distraction. Where would I
go? There
were a number of tantalizing choices available to me, ranging from
the known
universes established by those who enjoyed similar pursuits to my
own, to
any new dimension I chose to create. The whole process excited me,
to the
point where reality began to pale in comparison.
Grabbing a quick swig from the prerequisite coffee mug beside me, I
reached
for the keys and began to compose yet another new and wonderful
world for
the inhabitants of my imagination. As the new vista took shape in
the
glowing rectangle before me, a stray thought caught me wondering
what the
participants in my world-building thought of my efforts. I had never
considered such a circumstance, and quickly jotted the idea down in
my
ever-present scratch pad. Experience had taught me to always have
one
available, since concepts had a habit of striking randomly, without
warning
or reason, and it was best to be prepared.
The composition at hand flowed rapidly from my fingers, at least as
rapidly
as I could manipulate the keys... I could feel the hypnotic effects
of the
words coalescing around me, forming the new world, lending it depth,
ambiance, sound, color... thus allowing me to really feel the
environment I
was creating. This event told me that the infant was growing, a
feeling
that brought me great pleasure.
As I introduced new characters, I found myself already excited
about their
lives and promising futures, in fact embracing them as friends within
moments of their creation. As their lives and circumstances took
shape, I
even found myself feeling sad for their tragedies; happy for their
successes, romantic about their love interests... It became an
emotional
roller-coaster ride that I cherished a seat upon.
</ficmode>
That kinda summs up how it goes for me.
Coutuva.
Catch all my 'Fics (and more!) at Water's Edge!
http://waters-edge.home.ml.org/archive/Vic/
"If man realizes technology is within reach,
he achieves it... like it's damn-near
instinctive." - Maj. Motoko Kusanagi.
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