Thank you, Mr. King!

That titled isn't intended as a tagline to pull you into reading this particular post. It is a heartfelt thank you directed toward Stephen King. When I first realized that maybe I could write something people would want to read, I began to pick up books on writing. I don't think I ever made it all of the way through any of them. These books frequently talked about developing an outline, figuring out your plot, creating character sketches. It all seemed like a LOT of process when I simply wanted to write.

I've had Mr. King's book 'On Writing' sitting on a shelf for quite some time. I downloaded the copy for Kindle and even the audio book. And yet, I hesitated to begin it. Why? I was afraid that again I'd be told to outline, plot and so on. I cannot write like that. Honestly, I don't KNOW where my characters are going to take me. I don't KNOW where the story is going. I don't KNOW how it will end. I have my suspicions, but I don't know.

For me to write, I need to be drawn into the story. I need to love or in some cases hate my characters as I get to know them and what they are about. To me, if I can't be drawn in, why would a reader?

Mr. King does not recommend writing that way. Thank God! That is not to say that he doesn't recommend some things that make me screw up my face. However, he backs all of that up with actual descriptions and lets me see the difference. So, I will be reading 'The Elements of Style' and I will be reading a book on basic English grammar.

The long and short of it is, Mr. King gave me permission to write as I need to write. He gave me permission to let my characters lead me. Maybe permission is the wrong word. His opinions gave weight to my own that outlines, plotting and character sketches might work for some, but they don't work for all writers.

I highly recommend that any aspiring writer check out his book 'On Writing'. Let's face it. While you might not be a fan, he is a highly successful writer. From whom could you get better writing tips?

So...freed from what doesn't work for me...I now simply write. Sincerely, Thank you, Mr. King.

Where did I get my idea?

Every published writer complains that this is the question that they are most often asked. I don't know if people assume that there is some secret well known only to published writers and if they can find it they will be published too or what. I know Stephen King often talks about his 'What-if guy'. Me? It was simpler than that. On the way to my paying job one more, I was listening to Bruce Springstein. The song, track seven or eight, I think on the Magic CD suddenly got my brain going. I kept picturing this gold coin and then, I began picturing the man with the coin. Suddenly, I had the wording of the first paragraph. It grew from there as first the man and then the other characters began to speak to me. Now, I have given free rein to the story and the characters themselves. I am excited to see where they take me. :-) After all, it's their story. Shouldn't they be the ones to tell it?

To Write or Not to Write...

Since my early teens, I have felt compelled to write. Write what? Something/Anything...day dreams, wishful thinking, stories as they occur to me. My problem is that eventually I peter out on what I am writing. I think I finished one story ONCE. It turned out to be a poorly written, Harlequin-esque type of story. Not that there is anything wrong with Harlequin. They are often entertaining to my mind. But, the poorly written part was the problem. Heck, if it had been well-written, I might have submitted it to be published and earned a pittance for my efforts.

But, I want to do more, do better than that. I've heard published writers say they write because they must write. I think I've been so fearful of not being able to finish that I remain hesitant to even start. I think now that I may finally, finally have a story-line that must be written. The initial paragraph haunted me for weeks. I got around to putting it on paper and it grew into a whole chapter. But, upon completing Chapter Two, my characters stopped speaking to me. The work sat for weeks, months really.

Two nights ago, the characters started speaking to me again. First, they whispered, one at a time. Next, they spoke together and their insistance became louder and louder. Being the middle of the night, I refused to get up. The next day, I sat down and began to write. Chapter Three suddenly appeared and today Chapter Four came to light.

Anyway...this blog is about my journey to completion of this work and subsequent re-writes and hopefully eventually the efforts to get it published. Who knows, maybe the ideas will keep coming and this will become a blog about the beginning and continuation of a writing career. One can hope.