I'll Never Write Again

[Vado Tempestas]

That was a very serious promise I made to myself many years ago, after being on the receiving end of the cruelest mind #?%ks the gods of the creative universe had to offer. Sure, I knew there was going to be a big part of me missing in this decision, but so what. Once bitten, as they say.

Then along came On Writing, given to me by a friend, at what had to be one of the most difficult periods in my life's history.

And "later that night", (as they say, too), I found myself breaking a very serious promise.

Thank you seems a meaningless phrase, considering the meaningfulness returned to me by way of pages 167 - 170. But it's the best I can do.

Thank you.

~Vado

[ginapenn]

That was a very serious promise I made to myself many years ago, after being on the receiving end of the cruelest mind #?%ks the gods of the creative universe had to offer. Sure, I knew there was going to be a big part of me missing in this decision, but so what. Once bitten, as they say.

Then along came On Writing, given to me by a friend, at what had to be one of the most difficult periods in my life's history.

And "later that night", (as they say, too), I found myself breaking a very serious promise.

Thank you seems a meaningless phrase, considering the meaningfulness returned to me by way of pages 167 - 170. But it's the best I can do.

Thank you.

~Vado

Never say never. Speaking as a writer myself, I'm glad you're back in the fold again. :biggrin2:

[Bryan James]

If you're a writer, you can't not be a writer. You might be a bad one (I don't know), but you will write in your head until it asplodes like in that movie "Scanners."

So...protect your walls, carpet, and furniture by writing.

~BJS

[Mr. Palmer]

Definitely return to writing.

There are times where I feel like giving up, but then I'll receive an acceptance from a pub and all is right again. It's a lonely job, but someone has to do it!

[Vado Tempestas]

Muchos thank-yous, Bryan. Great advice that had me laughing.

[Wordslinger2]

Muchos thank-yous, Bryan. Great advice that had me laughing.

It's true, this little book helped me more than all of my college professors put together. I have always been a writer, it just seems to be in my blood. I may never have a word published, or read by another soul, but I have to write.

The good stuff in this book has been tremendously helpful in both my private life and a Univeristy. (Yes, still there plugging away on my Master's)

I think the best advice in there is the part about putting a thing aside for a while to let it sit, and for you to go back and re-read it, then do the edits. It works every time. This past semester I wrote a paper on Battlestar Galactica as political commentary (The new version by Ronald D Moore) and taking that advice and applying it made the difference between a so-so paper and the one that earned me the A I was after. (And new fans of the show too, which delighted me, now if I can just turn some of my friends on to our favorite Wordslingers work! ;)

[marv4213]

I want desperately to write a book. I actually think I may have a good idea. The problem is, I feel like the task is so overwhelming. I read "On Writting", and I do read all the time. Someimes I think, I could do that, then I read something like Under The Dome, The Dark Tower novels, even other novels like all of Neil Gaimens (and if you haven't read the sandman graphic novels, you are missing out on something wonderful, I hope that is OK to put in here, but I figured since Stephen wrote a foreward to one of the collected versions he wouldn't mind), and I get stuck. I know I could never hold a candle to Sai King, but I really want to try. I guess even Stephen had to start somewhere, although I know I could never even come close to his genius.

[Mr Nobody]

If you're a writer, you can't not be a writer. You might be a bad one (I don't know), but you will write in your head until it asplodes like in that movie "Scanners."

~BJS

What can I say? Spot on. I've tried no end of times to quit. I always come back, mainly because I start going a bit bonkers if I don't get the stuff out of my head and onto paper (or 'paper' - some of it doesn't get printed off as hard-copy).

[SeleneM1]

So follow Mr. King's answers: How do you write? One word at a time. How was the Great Wall of China built? One stone at a time, man, but you can see that f***er from space!! Write every day. Write a lot. If it's something you love, it's easier to write than you think. :)

[Broodmdh]

That's advice to live by. I'm trying to follow it, myself. We'll see how well I can put it to use. My problem is fleshing out the ideas into something worthy of a novel. The devil is in the details.

[harry]

My opinion: writing is easy. Writing well -- not so much. But I think once you've got your craft down, the hard part is selling yourself, and avoiding the pitfalls of pretentiousness. Writing can be a real blow to the ego. What you write, in subtle ways or not, is intrinsically a part of who you are. When you put something out there, and you get no response, or an untimely response that tells you in a roundabout way that you're not good enough, you just feel like a sack of dirt. And sometimes you lash out. Sometimes you pick up a vice or you scream at the world for not acknowledging your "brilliance." On occasion, I get the urge to throw my computer out the window, and prostitute myself for reality.