I have a dilemma; I’m in the middle of editing and redrafting my current book. Do I put some of it on here as I go along? I’ve always been inspired by John Steinbeck’s Journal of a novel – it’s the notes he kept while he wrote East of Eden. According to the blurb he wrote the book in a series of notebooks, writing the novel on the right hand pages and notes to his publisher on the left hand page - Journal of a Novel, is the left hand pages.
If you know the novel then it is interesting in itself, but what I found even more dramatic was the insight it gave into John Steinbeck in action. Every day he got himself into the mood to write, sometimes talking about issues of character development or plot, but other times he was dragging an old portable air conditioner out of the basement and trying to make it work or any number of other minor tasks. The sheer stamina behind his creativity is enormous. The first time I read it I found it almost impossible to read more then a few pages without wanting to get up and DO something.
Blogging about a book as I’m writing it seems like a similar thing, but for sure my blog won’t be as inspiring as Steinbeck – well probably not.
On the other hand it seems like a fun thing to do and it might serve the same purpose – get me going, or keep me moving. Watch this space.
- Oh the book's called A Rag Doll Falling.
Why not try it and see how it goes?
ReplyDeleteYes, that's the plan, but even saying that raised more questions. Should I write about my problems with English, like the fact that every grammer checker I use comes up with different answers. Does that mean that any version is right, or simply whatever I write is wrong. (Sorry, a bit of paranoia creeping in there.)
ReplyDeleteMaybe I should write about the plot, or the struggle to know what tense to put it in, or how to show the inner thoughts of characters without feeling clunky. The list goes on....