People watching is an essential part of being a writer and lesson in human nature. How this is done is by seeing people’s bad and good habits, distinctive temperaments, tastes, and appearances, and deepest longings and fears. It involves watching people to get an insight into the beauty and rhythm of the community around us.
I used to love flying kites with my kids when they were little. Just yesterday, as I tackled a challenging writing assignment (is there any other kind?), I experienced the exact same feelings of kite-flying.
My mind flashed back ten years to playing at the park. First came the weak, failed attempts of trying to get it airborne; the running and throwing, the frustration, the phrases of “this sucks!” or even worse “this will never work.” Then unexpectedly, gloriously, the kids and I got to see the kite finally catch the right combination of wind current and momentum and take off, with no more effort required on my part. I hung on and watched the kids’ cute SpongeBob kite appear to literally dance on air. Then came the inevitable and sad ending. Whether caused by me reeling the kite in because it was time to go or by the wind calling it quits, SpongeBob would crash to the ground with an abrupt thud.
I am SO fed up! And, I fully expect this article to get slammed by the faint of heart, the political correctness police, and anybody else who can’t accept a good, honest rant!
COMMENTS POSTED ABOUT: Profitable New Year’s Resolution? A Daily Word-Count Writing Goal = More Money!! Okay – I tried this over the three day weekend and I was amazed at how much I wrote. The key is TURN OFF YOUR INTERNAL EDITOR. Do not look back at the material written ñ just write more words. […]
The agencies we work for tell clients we want to hear their ideas, even though these ideas are often (bleep). But, let’s remember two things. First, the client probably feels like their idea is amazing and they’re likely proud of it. Second, they’re the ones paying the invoice. Hurting their feelings means hurting the project and your reputation.
Looking for a fresh article idea? An engaging topic? An interesting person to profile? Don’t discount yourself. The fact that freelancers so often look outward in search of interesting people, places, and things to write about can sometimes blind them to the fact that aspects of their own lives, too, may be abundantly noteworthy. I’ve […]
An intense love for writing can certainly breed openness to receiving ideas. Inspiration often comes out of nowhere-music, dreams, and maybe even from people-watching. The influx of ideas could be so great at times that honing in on just one may be a problem. In fact, I’d been guilty of pushing a story idea away, putting one off as if it weren’t as “worthy” as the rest of them. The problem is, sometimes that shelved idea could be the one that may start it all.
Angela, How do I access a WritersWeekly article from October 22, 2014? The title is “How To Edit Your Book Before You Submit To A Publisher” by Rickey E. Pittman. Marion Hi Marion, The link for our site map is located at the top of the website. I found the article HERE. Also, please […]
Writer overboard, writer overboard! Which scalawag turned him into a fish? It wasn’t anyone in the crew, you say? Then who the devil thought the poor lad made a better anchor than a sailor? Ah, the compass points to the three biggest obstacles of writing income, also known as the three devils of writing. They are the most terrifying monsters to haunt the seven seas of writing and stop many a talented writer from earning the income he deserves.
Many writers need planning to be easy, expedient, and effective, or else it just won’t get done. Microplanning is the solution …
