Running (on empty) to stand still

Man, a week or so ago I was on a roll when it came to writing. I was doing a blog post a day and getting a couple hundred words or so on my book, all of which I did after writing some stories for work. And now?

Damn you, writer's block kitteh! Damn you, and your cuteness!

What are the possible reasons for this? Lack of creative energy is one, no motivation is another. Yet another? I’m burned out right now. Running ragged, needing about a month to sleep off my recent schedule.

This guy with the stylish office knows what I mean.

I’ve worked each of the past two Saturdays, including six days straight last week, and I need a breather. Luckily I’m not working this weekend, just as luckily as I am to have a job.

That’s about it for this post, too tired to do more or to care about links. Also, “The Stand” miniseries is pretty good, even after reading the book.

What makes up a literary character?

This is quickly becoming my default picture for posts about writing.

Like I blogged about yesterday, I’m trying to write a novel. I’m making decent progress, but I realized I don’t have physical descriptions of my characters, which got me thinking:

How much of a literary character’s image is dependent on a physical description, and how much is dependent on the character’s actions and personality?

I know there has to be a balance, but I’m not sure what the balance should be. Memorable literary characters generally stay with me because of what they do, not how they look. Sure, Ahab may have had a peg leg, but his most memorable characteristic was his insatiable lust for revenge.

I can’t tell you what anyone from “The Stand” looked like, but I know what they did. Ditto “Fight Club,” “Disgrace” and countless other novels and short stories.

What’s the general consensus, if there is one, on this?

A novel undertaking

If these damn cats can write a book, I can too.

As cliché as it is, I’m writing a novel. Off and on, piece by piece, it’s coming together. I’m at about 5,100 good words right now, and just for the hell of it I checked Wikipedia to see how long a novel is considered to be.

I’m only about 1/10 of the way through what’s considered to be a novel-length work, by Wikipedia’s standards, but I think what I have is actually a pretty good start.

I have some fairly well-established protagonists, and I should be introducing the primary antagonists soon. I might rearrange the order, however, and introduce the antagonists sooner and it wouldn’t interfere with what I have now.

While I’m pleased with what I have so far, and it’s rare for me to be happy with most of what I write due to my almost crippling lack of self-esteem and what not, I wonder if I have what it takes to stick with it and write a full-length novel.

Aside from not having a good attention span, my job tends to burn me out, along with my desire to write for pleasure, as I’ve blogged about before.

Anyone who has tips on writing should help a guy out, because writing can be a good cooperative effort.

On writer’s block

One of the benefits of being a reporter is that it forces you to write everyday, which can be a key to overcoming writer’s block. While I might not always have great ideas to write in my free time each day, I usually don’t have to struggle to write, even if what I write is something inconsequential. Like this blog.

There is, of course, a drawback to having to write everyday for your job. Primarily that, being required to write, especially on topics you might not find interesting, can really burn you out and kill any desire to write for pleasure.

Kitty is exhausted after writing 500 words on a council meeting, 425 words on a drug bust and 350 words on a community bake sale.

I guess every profession runs into this problem. I loved playing music in high school but I didn’t go into music education because I didn’t want to get burned out on something I enjoyed doing. (A quick disclaimer: I was pretty terrible at trombone, too.)

Then there are some nights when it’s not so much writer’s block that hits, but more of a general apathy towards writing. Yeah, I love writing for pleasure, but sometimes I’m just “meh” about it.

Of course, it doesn’t help when I work late four out of five nights in the week, like I am this week.

I hope to have this problem one day…

Soon to be an endangered species?

There was a good article on Salon.com today about the plight of authors who are trying to establish themselves in today’s literary climate. Even though just about every journalist/English minor says they’re going to write a book, I really am going to, and one paragraph in particular from Laura Miller‘s article was especially disheartening:

“It has become a mantra that today’s author — whether self- or conventionally published — must learn to promote his or her books … People often become writers because they’re introverted or awkward in personal encounters and have poured everything they want to say to the world into their work. What usually gets lost in the perpetual refrain about authors becoming their own marketers is that there’s no particular connection between writing talent and a gift for self-promotion.”

That sums up, almost perfectly, my personality, why I like to write instead of be on camera or on the radio. There was one part of Miller’s article, discussing Harper Lee, which I disagreed with:

“Today’s conventional wisdom, in both traditional and indie publishing, decrees that someone like Lee might as well not bother; however good her book is, it won’t find an audience unless she’s willing and able to make hocking it at least a part-time job … What this means for readers is troubling. Even if the next generation’s ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ gets published, the author’s inability to promote it effectively may prevent it from reaching the millions of readers who would otherwise embrace it.”

I tend to think great literature, or even appealing writing, will inevitably find an audience. For example, Philip K. Dick, Franz Kafka, H.P. Lovecraft and countless other writers died in obscurity and penniless, but their work eventually found its audience. Of course they died before they reaped the benefits of their work, but that can happen in virtually any profession.

Oh well, I need to finish that book before I start thinking about promoting it or anything like that…

Also, Cindi has pink eye, I’m hoping to not catch it.

If I wake up and my eye is like this in the morning, the woman and I will have some words...