I’m in awe and even a tad envious (likely because, as I noted in my chat thread, the blocked feeling I’m having right now). It all sounds wonderful, but I’m especially eager to read more about the letters (Mark D and Alison and I kinda did that with 10 questions to each other) and the Garage Mahal notebook...and the Boulangerie sounds like a fine addition.
It is a list of projects, isn't it. My desk, by the way, is getting less messy. And I think this weekend I'll have a loaf rising in the Boulangerie, once I figure out the lever to pull in the settings. Push forward gently, Bryn. Everything's gonna be all right.
Very interesting and exciting, Mark. Thank you for mentioning my article. That links to your idea of going back through your notebooks. That's exactly what I've been doing lately, and part of that article (Bravery) came from notes I'd written about my dad as an exercise in a creative writing class of all things. Another one of my articles (My Life in Cafes) included a sentence I'd thought of and written down (because I liked it a lot, and so did others) some years ago. So, from my experience I would say it's definitely a good idea. Good luck with the screenplay, and your other plans. I've also been thinking about guest posts, and the other day I took the plunge and asked a friend, an optometrist, if we would like to write an article and he agreed. He's written a really interesting article, which I'll publish soon. Anyway, that's enough from me for now!
The notebook is going to be a mix of utility and revelation, I think. Utility is sufficiently safe, though also boring. Revelation.... Ah, revelation is where pretense and genius fight, and people either praise or jeer or mutter "Meh." I did like My Life in Cafés, too. Made me recall one of my experiences with pleasure. The screenplay is an interesting project, since it spills over into life, especially those productive sleepy moments when I head to bed. Ideas flow then, and I tell myself, "Heck, if it's a good idea, I'll remember it in the morning." But persistence works, even if it's just a few lines of dialogue a day. I have to find a character I dislike, though. Shouldn't be too hard.
I find it very frustrating when I DON'T remember it in the morning. I often quickly jot down a note for myself or leave myself an aid-memoir, like a knot in the cat's tail. (They have their uses)
Very happy to hear about all of these projects! I love the range! I've never thought about writing a screenplay, so I'd love to hear more about the process. Looking forward to a new year of Technocomplex.
Another writer who has too many projects and not enough time or energy to complete them? Tell me of your wisdom!
Excellent read, happy to join on a letter writing thread any time, especially to discuss the trials and tribulations of remaining free or going paid. It's a thing I struggle with as well.
You're not alone with the struggles. That's a good thing to remember, even though our work as writers is often lonely, and negative voices echo in our heads altogether too much. I have little wisdom. Just some tricks that I use. You know, the trouble with thinking up all these posts and things ... it's an ancient problem, with ancient responses. "Inventio" -- the generation of ideas -- was a first step in rhetorical training long, long ago. I bet even Cicero got blocked and had too little time back in his glory days.
Wow, that’s a year’s worth of work right there! I love a few of those--the stuff on form and you know I’m a sucker for cars. I love the eclecticism; been musing about this myself, as I look back on a year of writing and reading. Here’s what I’ll say Mark, and you can do with it what you like: the best writing comes from a place of deep interest and fascination, and not from punching a clock (in the form of a weekly or bi-weekly pub schedule). I’ll take an inconsistent writer who writers brilliant stuff over a clock-puncher any day. I’m looking forward to more.
I get it. But even between inspiration and clock-punching I think there's a balance. Maybe it's another one of those spectra rather than a polarity. I need a clock to tick in order to firm up my resolve and to have a nag that I can complain about. Some people I think can jinn up their own urgency, and sometimes even I can do that. But clock-punching helps.
An acquaintance of mine who had great wisdom about car restoration said, "Do something every day in the garage, even if it's just cleaning your tools." I try that with words, too.
Funny, I think my clock-punching reference was to publishing the work, not doing the work. When it comes to actually writing and thinking, I’m definitely a clock-puncher (or, in my preferred metaphor which I didn’t use, a wood chopper). (I used to tell people during interviews that they’d get to do some pretty cool work if they came to work for us, but there would also be stretches where they just needed to chop wood.) Or make barbecue: I was in Costco yesterday and succumbed to a 12-pound pork butt.
Such a great post, Mark! What great plans for Technocomplex - I particularly like the sound of The Boulangerie, and the Garage Mahal notebook! I'm looking forward to all of your 2023 posts already! 😃
In French mode, I'm thinking ... "Ménage à trois," too. But I know that the letters are an additional thing. I wrote a reader earlier today, and I told her that the "what's up" posts that I send out every quarter help to clear space around intentions and whims. A sort of formal way to give myself some elbow room for writing. It sometimes works, though anyone keeping count will see that some of my intentions never quite make it to the newsletter. And that's okay, too!
I’m in awe and even a tad envious (likely because, as I noted in my chat thread, the blocked feeling I’m having right now). It all sounds wonderful, but I’m especially eager to read more about the letters (Mark D and Alison and I kinda did that with 10 questions to each other) and the Garage Mahal notebook...and the Boulangerie sounds like a fine addition.
It is a list of projects, isn't it. My desk, by the way, is getting less messy. And I think this weekend I'll have a loaf rising in the Boulangerie, once I figure out the lever to pull in the settings. Push forward gently, Bryn. Everything's gonna be all right.
Very interesting and exciting, Mark. Thank you for mentioning my article. That links to your idea of going back through your notebooks. That's exactly what I've been doing lately, and part of that article (Bravery) came from notes I'd written about my dad as an exercise in a creative writing class of all things. Another one of my articles (My Life in Cafes) included a sentence I'd thought of and written down (because I liked it a lot, and so did others) some years ago. So, from my experience I would say it's definitely a good idea. Good luck with the screenplay, and your other plans. I've also been thinking about guest posts, and the other day I took the plunge and asked a friend, an optometrist, if we would like to write an article and he agreed. He's written a really interesting article, which I'll publish soon. Anyway, that's enough from me for now!
The notebook is going to be a mix of utility and revelation, I think. Utility is sufficiently safe, though also boring. Revelation.... Ah, revelation is where pretense and genius fight, and people either praise or jeer or mutter "Meh." I did like My Life in Cafés, too. Made me recall one of my experiences with pleasure. The screenplay is an interesting project, since it spills over into life, especially those productive sleepy moments when I head to bed. Ideas flow then, and I tell myself, "Heck, if it's a good idea, I'll remember it in the morning." But persistence works, even if it's just a few lines of dialogue a day. I have to find a character I dislike, though. Shouldn't be too hard.
I find it very frustrating when I DON'T remember it in the morning. I often quickly jot down a note for myself or leave myself an aid-memoir, like a knot in the cat's tail. (They have their uses)
Very happy to hear about all of these projects! I love the range! I've never thought about writing a screenplay, so I'd love to hear more about the process. Looking forward to a new year of Technocomplex.
The range. Yikes! I'm all over the place, I know. Always been a hallmark and, as you can imagine, a bit of a problem in academe!
Another writer who has too many projects and not enough time or energy to complete them? Tell me of your wisdom!
Excellent read, happy to join on a letter writing thread any time, especially to discuss the trials and tribulations of remaining free or going paid. It's a thing I struggle with as well.
You're not alone with the struggles. That's a good thing to remember, even though our work as writers is often lonely, and negative voices echo in our heads altogether too much. I have little wisdom. Just some tricks that I use. You know, the trouble with thinking up all these posts and things ... it's an ancient problem, with ancient responses. "Inventio" -- the generation of ideas -- was a first step in rhetorical training long, long ago. I bet even Cicero got blocked and had too little time back in his glory days.
Wow, that’s a year’s worth of work right there! I love a few of those--the stuff on form and you know I’m a sucker for cars. I love the eclecticism; been musing about this myself, as I look back on a year of writing and reading. Here’s what I’ll say Mark, and you can do with it what you like: the best writing comes from a place of deep interest and fascination, and not from punching a clock (in the form of a weekly or bi-weekly pub schedule). I’ll take an inconsistent writer who writers brilliant stuff over a clock-puncher any day. I’m looking forward to more.
I get it. But even between inspiration and clock-punching I think there's a balance. Maybe it's another one of those spectra rather than a polarity. I need a clock to tick in order to firm up my resolve and to have a nag that I can complain about. Some people I think can jinn up their own urgency, and sometimes even I can do that. But clock-punching helps.
An acquaintance of mine who had great wisdom about car restoration said, "Do something every day in the garage, even if it's just cleaning your tools." I try that with words, too.
Funny, I think my clock-punching reference was to publishing the work, not doing the work. When it comes to actually writing and thinking, I’m definitely a clock-puncher (or, in my preferred metaphor which I didn’t use, a wood chopper). (I used to tell people during interviews that they’d get to do some pretty cool work if they came to work for us, but there would also be stretches where they just needed to chop wood.) Or make barbecue: I was in Costco yesterday and succumbed to a 12-pound pork butt.
Such a great post, Mark! What great plans for Technocomplex - I particularly like the sound of The Boulangerie, and the Garage Mahal notebook! I'm looking forward to all of your 2023 posts already! 😃
In French mode, I'm thinking ... "Ménage à trois," too. But I know that the letters are an additional thing. I wrote a reader earlier today, and I told her that the "what's up" posts that I send out every quarter help to clear space around intentions and whims. A sort of formal way to give myself some elbow room for writing. It sometimes works, though anyone keeping count will see that some of my intentions never quite make it to the newsletter. And that's okay, too!