THE EXCITING JOURNEY OF Writing
a Fictional Book
"IT'S A LUXURY BEING A WRITER,
BECAUSE ALL YOU EVER THINK ABOUT IS LIFE."
AMY TAN
BECAUSE ALL YOU EVER THINK ABOUT IS LIFE."
AMY TAN
ROBERT STEPHEN'S AUDIOS
5/29/2017
I have added a new page to my Website titled-Audio Essays-Stories- and More
Over the coming months I will read various works of mine and share some of the trials and tribulations of being a writer. I will also tell you about future projects. Thank you Robert Stephen http://www.rstephenwriter.com/audio-essays-stories-and-more.html #audio books, #robert stephen,#robert stephen writer,#robert stephen novelist THE WRITER'S ALLY-INTUITION
5/23/2017
They listen to that inner voice. -This is the single most important aspect of intuition. The inner voice, your gut, or the character's gut directing their actions. Does it always make things right, no not at all? When we take chances in life, are they always sure. Does our gut tell us when we should heed that inner feeling? “Run save yourself.” Did you ever experience a feeling you had difficulty explaining to yourself or fully understanding? You might not have listened to that inner voice and damn if you didn’t screw up. The common one is when we leave the house or apartment and we’re halfway to the car when something is bothering you. You forgot something, but you don’t know what it is. However later in the day it hits you. What is that? Something inside is telling you to pay attention, it may save your life. You control your characters. You help them make decisions even bad ones. If one is sure of every outcome to every challenge, sorry to say, you are not a writer just yet. Sometimes writing is like running into a dark tunnel without a flashlight and your inner voice is telling you, “run you have nothing to lose and whole lot to gain.” They take time for solitude.-Writers love solitude. Their minds wander to places and think of things that most people cannot. Writing fiction is not by committee, that is unless you have several personalities upstairs in your head, which is not bad either if they all work together. They create. - Of course, people who react often with their intuition happen to also be creative people. They stretch the boundaries and try new things. They observe everything- What is a simple walk for other people can be the beginning, middle or ending for a writer's story. They see everything and imagine all things. Rocks move, children have powers, animals talk, castles in the sky, rivers that flow up hill. Everything and anything is a possibility. They connect deeply with others. - Since writing is not really a team sport, writers are intuitive when it comes to other people but they are not usually the life of the party. They are loners who observe others. Most writers have a very small core of close friends, maybe two or three at most. They pay attention to their dreams.-Some say dreams are extensions of one's realities. Possibly, but dream they do. People who are writers daydream far more than most other people. It is obvious, the reason it is their job to daydream. They enjoy plenty of down time. - I'm not going to agree with this only because there is no down time if one depends on their imagination. That is on hyper drive constantly. There may be times when a writer is not mentally beating himself or herself up if you want to call that down time. They mindfully let go of negative emotions. - Let us just say that writers or all creative people who depend creativity to put food on the table are far more emotional than most people. All emotions are deeply embedded in creative people. Some unfortunately are destructive. Writers have several inner tools at their disposal which need to be cultivated if they are to be successful writing entertaining fiction.
If your gut is screaming at you to start writing no matter what the circumstances then listen to what it is saying. #intuition,#trust your instincts,#your intuition,#listen to your inner voice, #writers and intuition,#listen to your gut,#inner voice, #robert stephen http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/03/19/the-habits-of-highly-intu_n_4958778.html HEALTHY LIVING 03/19/2014 08:18 am ET | Updated Apr 28, 2015 10 Things Highly Intuitive People Do DifferentlyBy Carolyn Gregoire Talk about a long title, but how else could I have said what is so true. In the last three days two different people said pretty much the same thing. One could possess all the wealth and material objects that usually accompany such a life, but unless that person goes out and lives none of those things or money will matter.
The same holds true when writing a fictional story. If it is totally fabricated with no reference to places, events, or people than stop reading. This post is for those who have a treasure trove of life experiences to pull from. Those experiences are the gems which make a story rich and interesting. I am currently in the re-write stage of a book I expect to have out by no later than September, which is full of teenage experiences that are interwoven throughout the story. I could not have imagined writing the story without those experiences. Another book I am currently writing is a crime story, but the interesting part of this project is my conversation with a Homicide Detective that I know. Not only did he give me insight into procedure, but we drifted into past cases which were absolutely fascinating. As a writer everything we do daily can be an experience to write about. Go out and have diner in a quiet restaurant and suddenly a couple two tables over get into an argument or they can't keep their hands off each other. The food you ordered was too spicy and later that evening you were sick. What would it be like to have a flat tire on a dark secluded road with no bars on your cell phone. You leave early in the morning to go to work the same time you always do and today for some unknown reason the traffic is bumper to bumper. Normally, your commute is 30 minutes but today it is an hour and fifteen. You're the writer what happened. Was it a bank robbery with a shootout, Godzilla just crossed the street, or did a Presidential candidate's car brake down. I am not saying go out and put your life in harms way but as a writer sometimes your imagination needs a reference point. Your life experiences whether they are about love, breakups, work, hate your job, going on safari, climbing a mountain, buying a car or going to a baseball game all make you the creative person you want to be. Thank you for stopping by, Robert Stephen #life,#live,#experience life,#creative writing,#writing creatively,#novelist,#author,#robert stephen,#life's experiences THE OUTLINE- A Writer's Best Friend
5/8/2017
Please do not get me wrong, it can be exhilarating, but it can be very difficult. My second book began with a comedic flavor, which was similar to my first although the first from beginning to end was a romantic comedy. I would say near the halfway point of the second it took a sharp right and moved from light hearted to adventure/Sci-Fi thriller. I wrote both books without an outline. A small side note here: If you want to be a better than average writer, study, write, read, and repeat constantly. Respected people in the arts, writers, singers, photographer, composer, comedian, actor, screenwriter, all teach classes by video. 20-25 lessons, each video ten to fourteen minutes long, with exercises, and workbooks. I took the class from James Patterson and it was invaluable. Why, the man is one of the most successful authors. He talks about writing for over 3 hours of classes. The most important take away from his class. OUTLINING YOUR NOVEL I half listened the first time through the videos. The second time it resonated loud enough that I decided to give a shot. I outlined five chapters and was pleasantly surprised with the outcome. I could see not only the plot unfold, but characters developed, I created dialog, and most importantly the homogeneous ending and beginning of each chapter. It was a revelation. As though I had discovered fire for the first time! When the outline was finished, I had 12,000 words and a story. The outline offered me a flexibility to see the story in its entirety before I began to write. I could add and subtract where I felt necessary, tighten up loose ends, but most importantly, it kept me on track. I no longer worried about "what will I write today?" If I was stuck, I looked at the outline and made notes. I could answer questions of why, what, where, and who. I could walk away for a day or a week and begin where I left off without any anxiety of "where was I." If there is one central lesson to all of this that I learned is why make writing a story any more difficult than it already is. As writers, we begin with an idea and start typing away. I saved myself time and energy. It was far easier to write an outline of 7000-12,000 words than sweating half way through an 80,000-word novel only to decide it is not any good and trashed it. It definitely gives you the opportunity, early on, to see your story in the bigger picture. It answers a writer's crucial question, "Is the story worth writing?" If the answer is yes, you have a road map to guide you. The worst that can happen is that it works for you and makes writing your novel the exciting journey it is meant to be. #outline your book before you write,#book outline,#james patterson, #masterclass,#robert stephen, #be a writer,#novelist,#outline |
AuthorRobert Stephen. Archives
September 2018
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