Thursday, July 25, 2013

Crunch Time


How many of you out there have blogs? Quite a few, I’m betting. How often do you update? What do you write about? How much hair have you torn out already, and how little do you have left?

Trust me, I’m with you. I’m on two blogs, and even with only weekly updates they’re still worth a handful of lost hair apiece. Half the time post day comes and I have no idea what to write about. I end up scraping the bottom of the inspirational barrel and pretty much throwing words at the page to see which ones stick. If I’m lucky, it’ll all make sense at the end.

Writing a blog is just like writing in general. Some days the words flow, some days they don’t. If the no-flow day is the same as your post day, you in a heap’a trouble.

Here’s where being a pantser comes in handy. I’m used to sitting down and frantically scribbling whatever pops into my mind with no clue about where I’m going. Luckily my best inspirations hit while I’m actually writing. The act itself stirs the creative soup and ideas bob to the surface. Next thing you know I’ve put in my thousand words or so, and I’m safe for another week.

I think this blog’s easier to write than the other one. Shapeshifter Seductions is more of a fiction blog, so those thousand words have to tell a story with a beginning, middle and end. Try doing that in only a thousand words, every single week. Since I’m allegedly a professional writer, by this point I should be able to with only a minimum of hair loss. That isn’t always the case. The light bulb refuses to go on. Storylines peter out. I write myself into a corner. If you’ve ever wondered why I posted so late in the afternoon, it’s because it took me all damn day to come up with a flash scene. I should have taken art in school. Then I could just draw pictures.

Compared to that, this blog’s a breeze. I just sit at the keyboard and let my brain barf out whatever it wants to talk about. First, though, I have to kick my brain out of bed and get it to sit down with me. The advantage here is that whatever I post doesn’t have to follow fiction’s rules. It can be as long or short as the idea will run, and doesn’t necessarily have to say anything of significance.

Like today. I have nothing at all to say today, so I’m rambling. I had no topic for today’s blog, so I made that my topic. I’ve run off at the virtual mouth for about 500 words at this point, and said next to nothing of import. I should have been a Congressional speech writer.

Is this how it goes for you, fellow bloggers? Do the ideas fly at you like quills from a porcupine, or does your well consistently run dry? For that matter, how often do you update your blog? I’m struggling with once a week. If I had to update daily, I think I’d have a breakdown. Something tells me if I only updated monthly I’d still run into these problems. I’m not the fastest writer on the planet.

Of course, the easiest solution is to write more and get more books and stories out there. Then I can post updates and excerpts and promo pieces and never have to actually write anything. The downside to that plan is that, in order for it to work, I have to write that book in the first place so I'll have something to update, excerpt and promo. Then I run into the same problems I suffer coming up with ideas for the blog. Well, nobody ever said life was easy.

At the moment, over on the other blog, I seem to be writing a serial novel. Each week is a scene with the same characters, furthering the plot. I don’t know how long it’ll run or if I’ll ever finish it. Something else may grab me instead. In the meantime, hop on over to Shapeshifter Seductions (www.shapeshifterseductions.blogspot.com) every Monday for a new installment. Watch a book take shape before your eyes! When it’s done, you won’t even have to buy it because it’s all on there for free. That’s a deal you can’t beat with a stick, especially in this economy.

As for this blog, I just rambled on for almost 800 random words. Hope you enjoyed them. See y’all next week!

5 comments:

Serena Shay said...

I'm a terrible blogger. There, I've admitted it. ;) When I started the blog I was all set to make it a daily thing...yeah, that didn't work out. I spent too much time trying to create a blog and not enough actually writing. Then I thought 3 days a week, short simple thoughts and graphics. That sorta worked, but now I'm random at best. One day here another day there.

Summer's always the worst for me. With Darling Diva out of school, I spend less time writing anything and more time ogling Dr's and wishing I had a Tardis!

Who knows, maybe my blogging inspiration will pick up again and maybe it won't...not gonna beat myself up about it.

Savanna Kougar said...

Pat, you have the most entertaining way of way expressing yourself with all those words you 'throw at the page'... ~smiles~

It's tough writing a blog everyday, which I've been doing at Kougar Kisses. Like you say some days are much easier because the words flow, or the rant writes itself. I have a big yap, and what goes on in these times gets my blood boiling but good. So, it's not just an author blog obviously... it's a personal journal-blog of sorts. I couldn't write merely an author's blog every dang day.

And over SHAPESHIFTER SEDUCTIONS, it's a real big challenge to come up with flash fiction pieces sometimes... but I love it, and being with you all is the best.

Plus, from a writing perspective, it's good exercise, so to speak... and all those WIPs I have... that's how HMSC got written. And it is selling, thank! the author goddesses and gods. The Divine. Whoever! Most of all thanks to the readers!!!

Pat C. said...

Savanna - you blog every day? (Bows down until forehead touches floor)

I seem to write best when I don't think too hard about it. Maybe I should try the Early Stephen King Method and write when I'm drunk or doped up. It certainly didn't hurt his career.

Serena - I added the "Smiling Cas" pic to my page. Maybe we'll get more smiles now that he's human.

Savanna Kougar said...

It's partly because I've had health issues, and this is what I can do, energy-wise.

Yeah, most of mine is based on some kind of inspiration, and done on a wing and prayer. If I had to think it through, it would never get done.

Serena Shay said...

Hehehe...that is a great smile! I love the nerd one below it as well. Hell yes we win! :D