What’s Up Wednesday
It’s been a while since I participated in What’s Up Wednesday, so here’s a quick catch up on what I’ve been up to. For those who don’t know, What’s Up Wednesday is a blog meme created and hosted by Jaime Morrow and Erin Funk. Please visit their blogs to say “hello” and to find out how you can join in the fun. So without further ado…
What I’m Reading
I am into the third and final volume of my three-volume edition of WAR AND PEACE. There are some interesting twists to the story, but it still feels like Tolstoy’s style is being cramped by the translation. I’ll persevere to the end, but I’m definitely going to re-read at some point in a different edition.
What I’m Writing
Largely blog articles, though I have started revisions to the short story I wrote last month. The basic story’s there, but it needs some depth in the narrative and more color to the story-telling overall.
What Works For Me
Ooo… this is cool. I admit, the old “What Inspires Me Right Now” wasn’t always easy to answer. This new section could be fun. At the moment, I’m in a re-prioritization phase. Some might call it a mid-life crisis, but that may be a little melodramatic. Having been all gung-ho to get a novel written, polished, beta-ed, and queried (I still have queries out, btw–no news yet), I need to step back and take stock. Am I doing what I think I’m best at doing–and I don’t mean just with writing. I mean with life in general. Everything I have going on, am I giving time to the things I think are most worthwhile for me to be doing? Do I need to put down my pen and spend that time doing something else? For some of you that might sound like blasphemy, but this “taking stock” involves me saying to myself, “Yes, you might like to write for a living, but you have a job. A good job. Working with nice people. It wouldn’t be the end of the world if writing was something you just did for fun as you have time.” There are a lot of things I still want to do. I haven’t known the meaning of the word “bored” for over 30 years. I may get to the end of this process and realize I’m actually not that bad at writing fiction, and it’s something I ought to keep doing. For now, I’ll work on the short story, but I’m not committing to much more (certainly not another novel) until I know it would be the best use of my time.
What Else I’ve Been Up To
After that rather heavy (and not necessarily inspiring) first go at a “What Works For Me,” here’s something fun. If you recall way way back in the early days of my blog (yes, Mum, I’m talking to you, since I think you were the only one reading it back then), for my very first “Road Trip Wednesday” I talked about a memorable book cover. The cover I chose was the 1975 Pan edition of H.G. Wells’ THE WAR OF THE WORLDS, largely because I read it when I was about 9 or 10 years old, and it was the first “adult” novel I read. I also happen to like the mood the cover evokes. (If you want to read that blog article, it’s HERE). Well… look what I found on Ebay:
It made my day to find that, and even better that I won the bid and it didn’t cost a lot!
So, what’s up with you this week?
Hooray for finding the book on ebay. What a wonderful place that can be 😀
It’s easy to lose track of why you write during that rush of editing and querying and rejections. Write what you want and why you want to. There’s nothing wrong with doing it just for you 🙂
Have a great week, Colin!
Ebay can be a wonderful resource, and I’m so glad it came through for me this time. 🙂
The main pressure I’m taking off myself is the feeling that I *have* to be writing fiction because I *have* to be a published writer. I enjoy writing, and certainly wouldn’t complain if that’s what I got paid to do. But before I devote a lot of time and attention to fiction, I want to have at least some level of assurance that I’m doing the thing that best exploits the skills I’ve been given, that I’m making the contribution to humanity that I was created to make. Writing may not be it. My contribution to humanity might simply be raising my kids. And that’s okay. But I think now’s a good time to consider the question carefully.
Thanks, Cole! 😀
Everything you said about taking stock resonates with me so much, Colin. I find myself doing that almost weekly, particularly when something writing-related doesn’t go as I’d hoped. But… I keep coming back to the same place: I love writing too much to put it aside. For now, anyway. 🙂 Best of luck with your musings. Sending tons of positivity and peace your way!
Thanks, Katy! Positivity and peace gratefully received. 🙂
I’m trying not to put too much stock into the fact that the first agent I queried didn’t immediately ask for a full. We all know how rarely that happens, and some people query for years before they find the right agent. So, hard as it feels at times, I’m not making this a moratorium on my writing adventure. It really is an opportunity for me to step back and determine if this is what I really want/need to be doing with my time. In fact, I would suggest that this would still be a good thing to do if I got “The Call” this afternoon. If there’s one thing I’ve learned about the world of publishing it’s that it doesn’t get easier. Indeed, this time where I’m unpublished and trying to find a home for my work is, in fact, the easy time. Should I get an agent and a publisher, then I’ll start getting hammered with deadlines, edits, promotional work, etc.
As others have said, if you can do something other than writing for a career, you might want to consider it… 🙂
War and Peace! I am all admiration that you’re even attempting it, not just because it’s long, but also because I get lost in the sheer plethora of names in Russian literature, and have trouble keeping track of them in my head. I had the same issue with Tolkien, actually, so it’s not just a Russian-names thing.
Congratulations on querying at all, whether it pans out or not. It means you’ve finished something, and you’re a working writer. Whether you get paid for it in the end is another thing entirely. Taking stock is important. But don’t let simple discouragement dissuade you away from writing!
Hello, Wendy! There are a lot of names, but thankfully, as the story progresses we seem to focus on a relatively small group of characters, so it gets a bit easier.
Having written a few novels already, and having been through the query trenches before, I’m pretty sure I’m not operating out of discouragement. I’ve had some disappointment, but I’m not discouraged. I just want to be sure this is what I should be doing. But thank you for your encouraging words. 🙂
Hi there! The other day I started thinking I hadn’t seen a post from you in a long time and I realized my blog reader had, for unknown reasons, stopped sending me updates on a few blogs. Dumb ol’ reader! But I fixed whatever issue it was having and I’m glad to see your updates again!
Hi Jennifer! I’ve been posting some things, but not many life-related posts. Mainly just Sunday School Notes and Who Reviews. But I’m still around, and I need to get back to posting things that may have, shall we say, a broader interest. 🙂
Thanks for thinking of me. It’s nice to know it’s not just my Mum and my wife reading. 🙂