Silly Does It

Silly does it because it makes sense.

Recently I heard the creative process described by an artist as the thought that manifests immediately prior to the thought that says, "You can't do that." (Mostly) childhood issues throw roadblocks before us that make us withdraw from being creative. You can't color outside the lines. Oh, that doesn't look like a doggy. This poem doesn't rhyme. Misguided attempts to make us fit within the norm helped kill the creator within each and every human being that wants to get their art out.

A favorite activity I use to get things flowing takes the rhyme and meter of song lyrics or poetry and inserts your own words. Childhood nursery rhymes have an innate goofiness that makes them especially resourceful.

What '70s lyrics could these replace?
I believe in Santa Claus - he's a big, fat man - who lives in a can OR
I believe in Sally Ann - she's one great pet - the best one yet.

Nursery rhymes
Stash, stash, stash your cash - Save it in the bank - Be sure you save plenty of loot - In case you break your flute OR
Gerry had a brand new cam - He put it in his car - If he waited until today - He wouldn't get too far. OR
I see lizards - I see cats - Next come dogs - Then come rats.

OK, OK, I hear you yelling "Uncle." Don't get caught up in the words. The goofiness is the point. Get goofy. Get loosey goosey. Get busy and try this exercise and I think you'll find it is a springboard to a very productive writing session. - Bethany Moran

I'm Lots of Things . . .

but published, I ain't!
After reading these posts you're probably saying, "It's easy to see why," but your casting of aspersions won't deter me. The creativity that awakened last year after two decades of dormancy has taken on a life of its own.
Last year was one filled with milestones. I moved past fear of failure and the negative judgement associated with it and sat down to explore creative writing again. My first novel was created in 67 days and I submitted it to an agent within 60days of completion. Another less memorable milestone is that of my first rejection. However, I've got to let you in on a secret. The rejection didn't end my world. I didn't drop dead when the email hit my inbox. In a past life, i.e. prior to my new found commitment to writing, I would have been devastated by the rejection, nearly to the point of suicidal tendencies.
What was the difference with this rejection than those of the past? Me. Before I sat down at the computer the day I renewed my dedication to my art, I chose to write solely for myself. I'd be lying if I told you I don't want to earn income from creative writing; my wallet is as flat as yours. The decision to write solely for self-edification was the most liberating decision I ever made. It freed me from self-doubt. It didn't matter if my mother, a writer whose opinion I highly value, liked a piece or not. Or my husband. Or a literary agent's assistant, let alone the agent. It mattered that I put my ideas on paper. It mattered that creativity flowed from me again. It mattered that I told fear to 'fuck off.' It mattered that I succeeded in my own right. - Bethany Moran

Story Development on a Budget

There are boundless books and websites dedicated to the art of creative writing, many of them quite good. Since leaving college, however, I find I'm not the best student when it comes to following someone else's directions so I set out on my own. When I have a story I want to pursue the first thing I do is write the idea in its barest bones. This can be a single sentence or a paragraph or so, but not usually more than a page. This isn't the stage that I worry about developing great detail.
If the story idea I have is: What would happen if cows took over NASA and colonized Mars? One possible answer is possibly the laziest and most obvious: The event would be a media sensation. Next, Would media members fight to purchase the rights from the herds the would-be astronauts left behind? Then, Why did cows decide to leave the farm for the sterile environs of space?
This method is fast. It keeps the mind moving swiftly along. Story development generally moves along at a brisk pace using this rudimentary technique because the answer to one question may spawn dozens more. Questions grant you the most luxurious commodity known to humans: choice. I'm empowered to choose one of several paths to follow. By the end of the Q&A session it's possible to develop a story line far removed from the original. This isn't a disappointment, it's a bonus: now I have two stories I can pursue. Maybe one of the new developments is far more interesting to me than the original. Perhaps felines replaced bovines and they plot to enslave canines as astrominers on Europa.
It sounds sickeningly simple, especially if you're stuck in a rut and facing a block, but it's effective. Another nauseatingly simple technique is to carry a tablet everywhere and ask, ask, ask using the Journalism 101 model: who, what, where, when, why and how. Who are the cows? What do they want? Where are they going? Where did they come from? When did they decide to revolt? When did they plan to take off? Why on Earth do cows want to become astronauts? The sillier the question, the better. The silly factor breeds creativity.
Look at everything around you. Your environment is not barren. Ask "What if" questions. Challenge. Ideas are everywhere, waiting for your brain to shape them into an intersting story. - Bethany Moran

Idendity Crisis

Characterization occurs differently each time. Names have Mojo for me. I hear a name or read it somewhere and I'm off filling out the characterization that goes with it.

What does the name Milly Bullwark Doodlehardt say to you? Eccentric spinster? Children's book main character? Maybe she's the apparently kindhearted church lady who poisons unsuspecting encyclopedia salesmen with her special jasmine tea. Maybe the name is just too far out.

Names conjure important visuals. Milly Bullwark Doodlehardt = Milly sounds like an old maid; Bullwark sounds no-nonsense and Doodlehardt, well, it sounds absurd, but it catches the ear. Doodlehardt could be a nanny, an old maid, a librarian, a fairy, etc.

Obituaries are great resources for character names. This is especially true when observing names of persons who lived well into their eighties, nineties or the age of 100. Most of us don't have access to a Way Back Machine so turning to the obits grants us admission to past naming trends.

What is the first impression you want a reader to have when they see a character's name? Insight into their identity, their personality. Adolph Hitler may not be terribly novel, but a reader knows the character's sinister bent immediately. Eleanor Rigby sounds pretty meek. A character's name is his first impression. Readers size characters up based on general alliteration and past association of names. A character's name welcomes your reader into the character's life. How they look, what they wear, where they work, what they do for fun. A seasoned reader will happily answer these unspoken questions.

If you're having difficulties creating character names, relax, they're all around you. Fan through the phone book, peruse the obits, eavesdrop on conversations. - Bethany Moran

Now, a technical question: Are there legal issues involved in using the name of a real person, living or dead, in your work? If you know, please post your answer so we can all avoid painful, costly litigation.

What Did You Do In The Name of Creativity Today?

Take a moment and complete the following: Today I did _______________________ to reach my goal of expressing creativity.

What is your answer? Did it come right off the top of your head or did you have to give it some serious thought?

I am creative every day. This doesn't mean I try to come up with new and creative answers to bill collectors. It does mean I sit down for at least five minutes a day and actively create.

Some days I work on an active project. Others, I brainstorm (quickly develop) ideas to pursue or possible characterizations or names or situations. Lots of days, I'm completely flummoxed. Those days I take my trusty legal pad or legal pad, junior (a size I can carry with me everywhere) and quickly dash off notes about my surroundings. It's a great exercise that serves to get me started.

2008 is the first tax year I recorded expenses associated with writing for tax purposes. Unfortunately, it's the first year I recorded expenses that I don't have income associated with them. I'm definitely not a tax expert but when I work with the tax professional in a couple of months I will be sure to tell them that every moment of every day and every night is in active pursuit of creative writing. Each waking moment I encounter an idea I can develop in one way or another. Watching TV, surfing the Internet, talking with someone on the phone is likely to trigger an idea I'll use in future writing pursuits. Likewise, every moment spent dreaming has the same potential. I keep a stack of tablets on my bedside table to quickly dash off ideas that manifest in the twilight between being awake and falling asleep or that wake me from a dream. Over the centuries many creative individuals report ideas coming to them in their dreams.

Take advantage of moments of creativity that present themselves to you over the next few days. Keep pad and paper, laptop, sketchpad or voice recorder with you at all times. Sometimes I use pages and pages to record a character sketch as it occurs to me. Others, I dash down a word or two for later review.

Think of creativity as an ongoing process. For me, it isn't possible to turn creative efforts on when I sit down at the computer, I have become aware that it is part of my existence every moment.

Sometimes the best ideas are fleeting. Be ready to record them when they show themselves to you.

- Bethany Moran

Creative Endeavors By . . .

WELCOME one and all!

This is a blog dedicated to creativity. Have you ever heard someone say, 'I've got a great idea for a book (movie) (play) (website) (and on and on and on).'? Maybe they've said it for years on end. It's the same storyline, the same characters the same plot. But it's not a book. It will never be a book until they sit down and write it. This is my message to you. SIT DOWN AND WRITE THAT BOOK YOU KEEP TALKING ABOUT! It sounds trite. It sounds corny but you're not going to write that book (or take whatever creative step your heart desires) by talking about it for the next twenty years. So, sit down at the computer, at the easel, the potter's wheel, whatever your mode of expression and just do it. Type one letter, one number. Then type the next. Then the next. It isn't as hard as you think. I did it in 2008. If I can sit my raggedy, short attention spanned ass down and write a book I think anyone can. If I get a publishing contract in 2009 I think I'll be living the high life. If not, then there's always 2010 (which has a certain ring to it after all.)

So, welcome one and all. Pour a cup of coffee, tea, wine, whatever your poison is and relax in front of this blog for a few. Then stand up, give yourself a good feline stretch all over and get back to work. The muse is with you always. Let her speak. If you can't get it out right at the moment let it all out here.

Sit down and . . .

Take care! - Bethany Moran

Greetings & Salutations!

E. B. White's famous porcine character supplies the welcome to Creative Endeavors By . . . and that was said by some pig.

I'll be up and running for sure on 1/12/09.

Join me then!

Take Care - Bethany Moran