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Feb 24

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Kerry: working on art

So happy! Babygirl slept for like a whole hour in her playpen and I actually spent that time working on art. It wasn’t so bad. I’m experimenting with pastels on paper, and haven’t quite found what I’m looking for, but at least it’s a start. While I was digging out the pastels, I came across some watercolors I was once working on. Now, watercolor is not really my thing, I like oils, but when I was expecting Babygirl, I had to find another medium because the oils and associated thinners are extremely toxic and can be absorbed through the skin. So I checked out a book from the library and started playing around in watercolor. Mostly I made a mess, but I wonder if I can remember anything. It might be fun to try that again.

Mostly, I can’t seem to get my mind away from finding a bigger house. Maybe I’m doing that nesting thing, and with new baby coming soon, and no place to put him, I can’t help but dream of more bedrooms. So, I’m being positive and looking online at larger houses, although really we don’t have enough time to move before new baby comes, and I don’t think I could, being as pregnant as I am. Who wants that hassle on top of the backaches and heartburn? I can still dream.

And maybe tomorrow there will be time for art again, but I’ve decided that I have to stop feeling guilty about not dedicating more time to my creativity. I am a mother first, and there will be time again. It is what I love, so I have to believe that. Right now, it might be enough to rest when I can and dote on Babygirl before her little brother arrives. My children are, after all, my biggest and best creations.

Feb 24

6 Comments

Brittany: Renewal: Spring in South Carolina

I don’t want to rub it in… okay, yes I do. Lately the weather here in Greenville has been hovering in the low 70s. The ground hog in Western North Carolina predicted winter, but the ground hog in Atlanta predicted spring. We don’t have a weather-predicting groundhog of our own, so we have been shifting back and forth between the two. First there’s a 70 degree day. Then the next day or two it’s rainy and cold in the 50s. Once you’ve grown to dislike that weather, you’ll have a beautiful sunny day again, just so you learn to appreciate it. I am in heaven.

We have been putting our zoo membership to good use lately and taking walks to the neighborhood playground as well. Like Miranda, I just can’t seem to find the time to exercise, but it seems a waste not to enjoy the sunshine. It does energize me, much to the detriment of my writing. After a nice walk outdoors, I am ready to write, which is a problem considering that I should be winding things down. But I have come to love my book, as much or more so than the weather, and all this yearly renewal is making me want to create. I sit down and think “I am going to bang out this last chapter” and before I know it, I’ve found a spot somewhere fifteen chapters back where I can write a little scene. Then there’s a touch more dialogue here. And maybe a little exposition there. I have said before that the creation of this book is less a writing exercise and more like the construction of the Winchester Mystery House. It seems that the writing part is neverending. I know I need to stop, but I am enjoying myself way too much. I’ve never finished a novel before, and now that I know I can, I don’t want to.

Feb 24

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Miranda: A little cardio, anyone?

exerciseFor those who live in northern climates, this can be the worst time of year for exercising. If you like to run or walk outdoors, snow and ice make those activities difficult–and the jogging stroller may well be gathering dust in the garage. Even getting to the gym is less appealing when it’s 24 degrees outside.

I wonder, considering the season and the usual demands of motherhood and life, are you are able to exercise regularly? Do you feel that there’s a connection between the amount that you exercise and your level of creativity? Is exercise a time for you to work out plot lines–or simply time to turn off your brain?

For many creative women, working out is a vital part of the daily routine. I agree that exercise is an important part of the mind/body connection–and there’s no question that I just feel better when I’m running regularly. Before this pregnancy, I was up to about 6 miles three or four times a week. I was building up my program and getting excited about longer distances. I was also taking a dance class. But that all came to a grinding halt when I got pregnant. Unlike many studly women, including Jenn, I feel the need to curl into a ball during the first trimester. Now that I’m heading into the home stretch, I’ve lost most of my muscle tone and I have back pain for which I see a chiropractor weekly.

I know that if I could just get myself to do the two prenatal yoga and Pilates DVDs I bought several months ago (and have yet to open) my back would benefit, as would the rest of me–notably my creative capacity and general mood. I’m also dreaming of getting into shape relatively quickly after the baby arrives, which I have a better shot at if I start now. Not to mention all the healthy example-setting for the kids. But I still use the “only so many hours in the day” excuse. (Especially when it comes to yoga, which I find difficult to do with audience, i.e., kids staring at me when I’m trying to breathe deeply and meditate, and so tell myself I need solitude). But like most things, including finishing my book, there is no escaping the truth of “where there’s a will there’s a way.”

What happens at your house?

Feb 23

3 Comments

Jenn: I second that, Bethany

What a timely post, Bethany. I just logged on after sitting at my kitchen table from 2:30 AM to 10:30 AM writing pretty much straight through. And I’m no closer to a finished product. I am in a similar situation in that I have 19 chapters in my book, but each is essentially a stand-alone piece of work. Instead of methodically going through and finishing one chapter, sending it to the editor, and moving on to the next, I’m finding myself chipping away at different chapters in a whimsical fashion.

I suppose I shouldn’t complain, because I *am* working. I’d just like to see a RESULT. (Here comes the part where I say it’s not my fault) The thing is, I’m waiting for the guest writer to send me SOMETHING, and she has a box in every chapter. I can’t send a chapter along to the editor without her input. And none of my students who are (a) fact checking, (b) adding and updating references, (c) getting figures from websites, and (d) drawing figures for me are getting their stuff to me, either. I’m not complaining, and if they don’t come through, I won’t let any of it hold me up, as I am perfectly capable of doing these tasks myself. But hey, if students want to do them, using their work study, who am I to refuse the help?

Also, I have barbaric dial up at home and no printer, so I can’t print out the figures, print ouf the manuscript, and really have at it. I was GOING to go to school for 12 hours today, as my husband has our daughter, but (BUT!) it’s cold and snowy and I don’t want to go shovel. I’m more of a let-it-melt kind of person.

So I’m WORKING. Yes I am. But it’s not a task oriented work. Is this okay? Should I be drifting like this? The other part of this is that I’m writing as I lecture, and when my student sends me the transcript of what I said in class, I like to get on it while it’s all still fresh in my mind. And while you, Bethany, have a potentially ENDLESS source of book ideas, I have a discrete, 19 chapter book that I eventually have to FINISH. It’s a mixed feeling: I’m happy that I”m working on it so much, but frustrated that I’ve nothing to show for it at this point besides a bunch of files on a flash drive and a bunch of waiting for other people to come through for me.

Right now, for example, I have “Plate Tectonic Theory,” “Plate Tectonic Boundaries,” “Principles of Weather,” and “Hurricanes, Tornadoes, and Thunderstorms” all open and I’m swapping back and forth while drinking too much green tea and listening to Alison Krauss and Robert Plant (remember, I’m the one who can’t work at Starbucks because the background music distracts me).

The fabulous, fabulous thing about this blog is that I really REALLY am enjoying the process. It’s so invigorating and fulfilling. I don’t even care if it ever gets done. I just like writing. I suppose I’d better get to the Monday Page so I can heap on some guilt…

Feb 21

4 Comments

Bethany: A Choice of Two

I’m constantly coming up with new book ideas.  Not that I am complaining, because one can never have too many ideas.  No. This is more of a preference.  Which book to I work on now?  See, I’ve been working on one book idea for a while now.  In fact wrote 100 pages, then scrapped them all and began another more detailed outline of the same book–but tighter, more suspense, and definitely more world building that makes the story have that much higher stakes.  This story’s been with me for a while.

Now the other book–let’s call it book 2–it is a newer idea.  One that I came up with during a chat with a friend not too long ago.  All that came to me was a title and an image.  But it was enough to fuel my imagination at 3am that night and get me out of bed.  Again, I have a page of notes to start.  Granted, it is nowhere near the outline the other has–but definitely enough of a plot line to get me started and get the book past the 100 page mark.

So the choice is this– book 1 or book 2?

Whenever I am starting a new book it seems that I am in this predicament.  I have idea folders (yes FOLDERS) on my laptop that I go to for inspiration.  Though I rarely need them.  The ideas, when they’re good, don’t go away.  They stick in your brain and and pick away until you write them down.  Completely.  Or to the point where I am with these two.  Now, it is just a matter of choosing one and getting it done.

But that also means I have to give up reading for at least 6 weeks.  Yep. I’m one of those, I give up one pleasure for the other.  So I can focus.  And I think it comes with the I’m A Mom With Little Time Role. If I am going to have free 15 minutes, I have to choose. And right now, my brain won’t let me read.  I. Must. Write.  But–which one?

Feb 19

8 Comments

Jenny: MIA

Two words: The Flu.

Sorry ladies, but my family has been hit hard, twice in a row. First the stomach flu, which was BRUTAL, and now the regular flu with fever, chills, violent coughing, stuffy head, ear pain, aches, and all that good stuff. We haven’t been well except for maybe 3 days total in the month of February. I’ve never been this sick in my life. My thinking is foggy much of the time and today I ventured to Target and paid some bills. Just surviving has been the goal, so writing has been pushed aside. I know you moms will understand. I *hope* life here can go back to normal this week. God knows I’d appreciate it if he’d cut me a break. There’ve been moments these last 3 weeks when I seriously contemplated running away.

Feb 19

4 Comments

Christa: A mixed blessing

This week, Rain Dog is on school vacation at our house. School vacation, as for most families, is a mixed blessing. On the one hand, he’s available, so I should be able to get more work accomplished. On the other, he has his own expectations for his time.

In the past we’ve clashed, but by now I think we’ve learned how to work around each other. Still, I get about as much accomplished as I do during a typical week! The only difference is, I get out and about a bit more, which is actually preferable for me.

As for how it’s going this week: I’m still a little behind on my novella, but that’s as much because of the time I lost with the power outage as with the change in routine. I also had a few freelance projects come in at the last minute, and they all have “urgent” markers on them. Much as I’d like to ignore them and take my own little “vacation” (in which I write nothing but fiction), that would be irresponsible–and since I’m considering expanding my freelance business, I really need to be more responsive to this kind of work.

Meanwhile, I found an early draft of the short story that spawned the novella, which makes me happy because it contains a lot of backstory that I didn’t feel right about deleting. Now I realize that I must have had a sense about this story that I didn’t fully understand until now, and I’m so happy I listened to it!

I’ve been promised a day in which I can sit in a coffee shop and work in peace, so hopefully I’ll be able to bring together the various threads I’ve been contemplating and really pull the trigger on this story–and get back on track.

Feb 16

1 Comment

Lisa D: Creativity as a Means of Communication

My most recent post on my own blog deals with the topic of creativity.  I am curious to hear others’ thoughts on the topic, and I invite you to join in the discussion, particularly since it was some the posts on this site that inspired my latest line of thought.  I also linked back to Creative Construction in my post.

Feb 14

3 Comments

Struggling…trying…

Since I had to go back to work full-time about two years ago, I have not been nurturing my creative writing career. When I write for work, I find it hard to find the brainspace for my creative writing. That and, as a single mom of three kids (one not-self-driven and applying to colleges), I’m just so darned busy.

In the past few months, I’ve been able to cut my hours back some, and more recently, I’ve resolved to set aside at least a few hours on Thursdays for my own work. There always seems to be something that encroaches on the time, but for the second week in a row I am at least doing some of the business of writing if not the writing itself.

Last week I spent the morning preparing submissions for a contest. Granted, I hadn’t written anything new for a while, but I had a stack of stories I’d never submitted anywhere that fit the contest category. While it wasn’t as grand an accomplishment as writing a new story or finishing revising the epic essay I’ve been working on, it was something, and for now that’s all I can ask of myself.

Today, I am spending the morning doing pitches for a column in which I’ve been published in the past (the last time a year ago). Hanging over me is an article I need to edit for the publication I work on, as well as the oil-change in my car, the shopping and packing I need to do for a ski trip this weekend (as well as aforementioned epic essay revision), and a half hour on the StairMaster, but I’m determined to at least get this out and have it be killer. Not so easy, but at this point any small steps I can take are better than what’s been going on creatively with me for the past couple of years.

Of course, the fact that I’m writing this post on a Thursday morning tells you a little bit about my ability to procrastinate. Oh, let’s put a positive spin on that and say that I am actually processing what I’ve written so far so I can go back and refine it…

Feb 13

2 Comments

Miranda: Bloggerly housekeeping

housekeepingThe whip-wielding muse advised me that a Monday Page update is due from Jenny (how is that research coming along? We want to know!). Kudos to Christa, Bethany, Brittany, and Jenn–goals accomplished, and in several cases, surpassed!

I know that when I wrote my own Monday Page update this week, I was glad to note that I’d met my goal, but quickly realized that I’d given NO thought whatsoever to creative work for the coming week. If I hadn’t had to write it down, I probably would have left my writing time to the fates (and it would never had happened). So for me, stating my intentions regularly is a very good thing. (Sounds like Brittany had a similar experience!)

On the other hand, last week, I had to force myself to work on the two chapters I’d intended to revise. I really didn’t want to, but seeing as I’d committed myself via this blog, and wanted to send the chapters to another reviewer, I managed to get the files open. I then had that wonderful experience of being drawn into a project that already has legs, simply by virtue of all the hard work you’ve already put into it. Within minutes, I was fully immersed, chugging along, making important improvements. The point of this vignette is directed toward those of us who procrastinate and make endless excuses about NOT doing our work (I know this applies to Kerry, among others): Remember, there is a point at which your project hits critical mass. Suddenly it has a life–and an urgency–of its own. The more time you spend being creative, the easier is gets. One day you realize you have nothing to fight against after all: you’re doing it.

As it was, this week I felt so connected creatively that I even finished a painting that I’d let sit for months. Sure, I was supposed to be cleaning the basement in preparation for our open house this Sunday, but after ten minutes of grunt work while Toddler played happily on his older brother’s drums, I realized that I knew exactly how to finish the painting. I whipped out the acrylics and painted straight from the tube, using paper towels to clean my brushes rather than go upstairs to fetch water. It all came out organically and I’m pleased with the result. (For the record, I am not a painter, but I enjoy painting during and between writing projects. My expectations for creative brilliance are low, which allows me to really enjoy the process.)

Unrelated Creative Construction updates: we now have 11 authors (not everyone has posted yet), which is wonderful. I’m so happy you’ve all joined our community. In our first month, we had nearly 1,000 page views–all from word of mouth. (We’re now up to an average of about 50 page views a day, which leads me to believe we have many “lurkers”–please do join us!) Note that I’ve just added a section of links to our other personal blogs; I’d intended to do so at the outset but wanted to keep our own links separate from general external links. An e-mail from Lisa D. prompted me to get the new link box up. So if you have other links you’d like to include, please send them to me.

All best wishes for a creativity-filled week!

Feb 11

4 Comments

Kerry: Excuses

Wow, isn’t it great being so pregnant…not really. The good thing, it’s almost over and I can meet my baby boy and get my body back. I can’t wait to bend over again. Picking up baby girl’s toys has become quite a chore.

I had a moment yesterday where I actually dug out my big sketch book and took out the oil pastels and stared at the colors…they smelled so good, and then I put them away… in a more convenient place of course. I told myself that baby girl would wake up any moment and I would barely get started, and the mess would not be worth the limited time, and I didn’t know what I wanted to do anyway. She slept in her playpen for about two and a half hours. Wasted time.

I spend so much time making excuses for not doing what I love, the biggest of which is no time and no space. But really, if I truly wanted to, couldn’t I make the time and the space? I battle myself over this constantly. I’m afraid I can’t get it back, that “flow,” that losing oneself in the art. The last time I tried to paint, there was nothing, just a sense of how much can I finish before baby girl wakes up? And I don’t like the painting. I was going through the motions. More excuses.

I think I need that studio space: a place to get messy and leave it all out if I have to. I suggested hiring someone to finish the basement room, and ironically, my husband spent a whole weekend day working on it. And then it stopped. Maybe he needs another nudge. Secondly, I need some dedicated time. My husband works evenings and is home most mornings, unless he can get overtime. We have discussed the option of him watching the baby so I can have some time. And he does, occasionally. I usually use that time for showers and cleaning, but I think my priorities must change if I want to preserve my sanity. I’m running out of time before baby number two arrives and I’ll look back on these days as filled with free moments (well, maybe).

Maybe I need to stop making excuses and do whatever I can to create. Use the kitchen table to paint on if I have to. Maybe it’s time to explore some new techniques…go really abstract…fast and furious, anything to get something new done. It might be worth a try. I might find inspiration there.

Feb 11

1 Comment

Bethany: Shhhh… I’ve got an idea!

I get ideas anytime and anywhere. This latest idea, just as I was ready to fall asleep while nursing my daughter last night.  Only problem with that–is that new ideas energize me.  So much so, they consume my brain and sleeping in NOT an option.

Much to my dismay, last night at midnight, I spend over an hour jotting down ideas, character sketches, plot lines I knew about, possible titles, and even a few e-mails to critique partners soliciting a few initial thoughts, etc.  Well, I have 5 pages of hand written notes for a new project.  One I likely will have to back burner for a while–but one I have documented enough, I can jump back in at any time.  Which I love.

I can’t wait to get started!

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