Inspiration – Page 9 – Word Inventions

“…get whatever is in you out.”

creative tools collage

Todd Henry began ‘speaking to me’ way back in 2015 when part of my job was to create something ‘new’ or ‘more original’ than what was already out there.

This author/creator of four books [Die Empty, The Accidental Creative, and Louder Than Words, and Herding Tigers–I have the first three.] has been a go-to ‘mentor’ ever since. >>NON-affiliate link to his books

Let’s ‘listen in’ to this excerpt from his newsletter that arrived yesterday [3/30/2018]:

“You have one job: get whatever is in you out. Your one and only job today, and every day, is to get whatever is in you out. Not tomorrow’s work, not yesterday’s work, but today’s. On my computer monitor is a note that reads, “Can I lay my head down tonight satisfied with the work I did today?” If I have made my contribution that day, I can rest with a clean conscience.

Do not be dulled, friends. Do not allow the lull of comfort to cause you to abdicate your contribution. Stay sharp. Keep your edges. Nothing – NOTHING – is worth giving up the most precious thing you have to offer.”

***

Pep talk

Hey, there is not this vast expanse of creative time and energy in front of us.
We have to get to it.
Now.
Find your creative tools of choice.
Start with five minutes.
Then maybe ten minutes.
And let’s see where it takes us.

NOTE: I ‘borrowed’ this post from my other blog, retirerenew.com .

Curation Friday: Austin Kleon gems…

inbox internet overload

I confess to allowing my inboxes to be overloaded with quality resources that I don’t consistently pursue. Not so with Austin Kleon’s weekly newsletters…

Here are two Austin Kleon items that I vouch for:

1. Working On It [5 Quick Thoughts on Writing]

2. How to Keep Going [Take time to watch his 26-minute talk OR, if you’re pressed for time, lock in his list of ten tips and bookmark the page for a later viewing.

Two of my favorites:
—The ordinary + extra attention = extraordinary.
—Build a ‘bliss station’. [borrowed from Joseph Campbell]
Quote from Austin: “Airplane mode is not just a setting on your phone; it can be a way of life.”

Another of his tips: You are allowed to change your mind. Well, here goes…I was going to add a third A. Kleon gem, but other commitments arose and I just plain wanted this out in the world, so I’m changing my mind and sharing only two. Thanks, Austin, for the license to do so!

And believe me, these two items are value-packed. So, turn on Airplane Mode and enjoy.

Curation Monday: If You Can Talk, You Can Write [more gems]

More worthwhile points from If You Can Talk, You Can Write by Joel Saltzman. [Not an affiliate link. I just couldn’t easily find his own website.]

” ‘Who needs another book on writing?’ ”
I did.
I needed to write this book for myself–to see if I could take what I had learned over the years and write about it my way, with my particular slant on things.”
“Remember: There’s nothing new under the sun. So don’t let an old idea stand in your way, not for a second. Don’t sit around waiting for the Big Idea; start with a small idea (like “two women go on a road trip”) and make it big.”
A quote from John Cougar Mellencamp: “All I can really do is entertain myself, and hope along the way I can entertain somebody else.”

Curation Saturday: If You Can Talk, You Can Write

One of my favorite recent purchases [August 2017 is recent for me] is the book, If You Can Talk, You Can Write by Joel Saltzman. [Not an affiliate link. I just couldn’t easily find how own website.]

Here are a few points I’ve revisited today in my reading session:

“Whether you’re struggling with a single sentence or polishing a book-length manuscript, let progress be your guide, not perfection your nemesis.”
“Along the way, you’ll develop technique, stamina and—if you’re lucky—the ability to make your next effort better than the last.”
“Conquer your worry about not writing by writing every day—either by counting the minutes or counting the pages.” In my case, I’ve been counting the words. I’ve done so ever since the January 500 Word Challenge.

Stephen King Infographic

Picked this up from: http://www.hodderscape.co.uk/infographic-14-top-tips-stephen-kings-writing/

It’s printing out as I post this…

StephenKing_Infographic

Curation Saturday

Let’s focus on Jon Winokur‘s tweets for today.

Jon Winokur @AdviceToWriters

1. When you’re speaking in the truest, most intimate voice about your life, you are speaking with the universal voice. [Just last night I dove into a fairly serious topic. It was okay, but it just wasn’t fun to write, especially in the revision stage. I’m not sure if I’ll find that universal voice…and do I even care to?]
CHERYL STRAYED #amwriting #writing #writinglife

2. #Editing is the same thing as quarreling with writers. Same thing exactly. HAROLD ROSS #amwriting #publishing [Whew-boy, was I rediscovering that this morning…]

3. “When you’re #writing and come to a rough spot and the ideas just aren’t flowing, put down dummy text and keep on moving…” bit.ly/2F4kUvt #amwriting #writetips

4. There’s always room for a #story that can transport people to another place.
J.K. ROWLING #amwriting #fiction

5. #Creativity is the residue of wasted time.
ALBERT EINSTEIN #amwriting #writing #writinglife [I must be extremely creative.]

Curation Saturday–Tweets About Writing

A few favorites from Jon Winokur’s recent Tweets…

@AdviceToWriters

Find your best time of the day for writing and write. Don’t let anything else interfere. Afterwards it won’t matter to you that the kitchen is a mess.
ESTHER FREUD #amwriting #writing #writinglife

Write what you want. People rarely recognize themselves on the page. And if they do, they’re often flattered that a writer has paid attention.
FRANCINE PROSE #amwriting #writing #writingtips

“Most people have no concept of writing, or what’s involved with the process…”
David Sedaris
http://bit.ly/2GjwHCd #amwriting #writing #writelife

Oh, that kind of writing night…

brain-954823_1280

This is one of those nights when I need to set a timer to get me going on my 500 words.

This is one of those nights when I find emptying the trash and relining the container an easy go-to instead of writing.—one of those ‘must-do’ items before I sit down.

This is one of those nights when I keep looking at the timer.

This is one of those nights when I keep editing as I go [there, I did it again…I had typed ‘mistakes’ and wanted ‘typos’ instead and then I went back and substituted ‘editing as I go’. It’s madness! Make it stop!]

This is one of those nights when I have to have some music playing in my head while I write. [Of course, the very act of opening iTunes and selecting some instrumental stuff—Dave Brubeck, in this case—is another avoidance tactic, though I hope it pays off down the line with keeping me focused.

This is one of those nights when I’m thinking ahead to the weekend when I have garage-cleaning and general decluttering on my list. Notice I didn’t mention writing. What’s wrong with that picture?

This is one of those nights when I am hyper-tempted to click on the ESPN window to check the latest Olympic results. How many smarter people have told writers like me to just plain turn off the Internet? I hate those people. I mean really, why should I tolerate anybody who has me pegged right down to the exact website I have temptingly available?

This is one of those nights when I’m glad I have ‘copy/paste’ down pat so I can keep repeating ‘This is one of those nights when’ and chalk up cheap words. But I have to say…it adds a certain rhythm to this masterpiece. ‘Rhythm’…’monotony’…tomato-tomahto.

This is one of those nights when I have more than a few topics I’m thinking of tackling, thus resulting in my taking a stab at none of them.

This is one of those nights when I’m back to the timer. One minute left in the 11 minute stint. 362 words in 10+ minutes, I’ll take it. Of course, if you’re still reading, you’re reaching through your screen to strangle me, which would be okay if you’d let me write about it for my next 500 words.

This is one of those nights when I’m glad I’ve reached 400 words and am slogging my way to 500. Aren’t we all just feeling exceedingly gratified?

This is one of those nights when I recalled that Valentines Day offered so much possible material and, once again, I dropped the ball.

This is one of those nights when I know I need to put in at least a scene, or part of a scene, in my kids book first draft.

So I guess I should be thinking about that and looking up where I left off.

This is one of those nights when it’s about time to move on with my other projects, satisfied that I’ve put in 500+ words in one sitting and pleased that I had forgotten about the 180 words I did when I got home from work. Okay, then, back to the kids book.

And this is one of those nights when I can pat myself on the back for not checking ESPN during this stint.

But first…a five-minute editing session.