Work Room - Week 24

[clauderainsrm.livejournal.com]

What can you bring to a story that no one else can?

Because that's the question, isn't it? Sure, you can say "It's entertaining" - but if you are telling the exact same story that anyone could walk pass and write, why are you bothering? It's not just with fiction either - "story" here is any narrative form. What is it that you are bringing to the table?

I've seen more "I don't know"s over the years than I personally feel comfortable with. It's your writing. Kick the tires. Look under the hood. See where the magic pixies go in and out of the tubes that keeps that engine running.

Looking back, one of the saddest moments in my life was realizing that I could no longer answer the fundamental questions of - why am I writining? What can I do that isn't a reflection of someone better, but actually morphs the work into something uniquely me? Why am I passionate about writing?

Those things are important, fundamentally important to your existence as a writer. You lose them, you lose your sense of self. Or, maybe that was just me...

I know there are plenty of people who "just write for fun" or have only vaguely entertained the idea of calling themselves a writer. Maybe they don't even talk much about it in their real lives, because they have gotten the impression that it's a hobby or just something to kill the time.

I have a secret for you though. If you didn't take it at least somewhat seriously, if you weren't a little bit in love with the words that come out from your fingertips as they slide across the keyboard, you wouldn't be here right now. You most definitely wouldn't be in Week 24 and prepared to go as long as you can in this crazy thing we call Idol. intr

For all of the worry and concern that you might not be good enough - you are here. For all of the needing encouragement, you believe enough in yourself to hope that others see it as well.

Hopefully, at some point, you'll realize that and figure out what about all of this invigorates you and makes you so passionate about sharing your work with others, and what you are hoping they take away from that experience.

(and yes, a lot of this has to do with my own thought process following a conversation with an old friend, and thinking about how passionate I used to be about writing and about how to get that back... but never you mind that, we're talking about you here! ;P )

Comments

[theafaye.livejournal.com]

I have no idea what the topic means. I'm guessing it's some random Americanism that Gary likes to throw out. Google may be my friend and if it's not, then there's always the dropping out option.

It seems really egotistical to talk about what makes my writing different. I've never really worried about that anyway - I've spent my entire life being told that I'm different to everyone and since I write the way that I speak, I kind of feel it's pretty much a given. I'm good at concepts, original ideas and sarcasm. Most of what I write relies heavily on concept - but then most of my published work is non fiction and based on exploring and/or explaining esoteric concepts that not everyone understands or has even heard of, so it's not all that surprising really.

[theafaye.livejournal.com]

Ooooh it's a BASEBALL term. No wonder I didn't get it.

It essentially means your comfort zone, right? So in theory people could just write about their favourite thing and that fits the prompt?

[the-day-setup.livejournal.com]

Ooooh it's a BASEBALL term. No wonder I didn't get it.

Heh, you and me both. Sports! Who needs 'em.

[theafaye.livejournal.com]

It's not even a sport we play here! But that's one of the fun things about Idol - learning new stuff.

[cosmolinguist]

It's used in a metaphorical way in baseball, but it isn't from baseball. I've actually heard it a lot more since I moved to the UK than when I lived in the US (despite being a huge baseball fan).

[theafaye.livejournal.com]

UK born and bred and I've never heard the term.

[cosmolinguist]

Well I'm not saying every person in the UK has heard it as often as I have (my British husband said he wasn't familiar with it either, even though I distinctly remember one of his friends using it the other day). Just that it's not solely American, or about baseball; I myself always associated it with literal wheelhouses on water mills or paddle steamers or suchlike.

[theafaye.livejournal.com]

From what little Googling I've done, it does seem to have strong American baseball associations though, which would mean that if you are American or into baseball or both, you've got a much greater chance of knowing what exactly it means. I mean, even "wheelhouse" isn't exactly a common word - there aren't any paddle steamers in the UK that I'm aware of, or if there are, they're pretty rare and all the water mills I've visited have just been called water mills, not wheelhouses - the wheel is outside rather than in any kind of housing. What would be the implications of "In my wheelhouse" in those circumstances? Just that you're in your mill? What would it actually mean???

And now I've written wheel and mill too many times and those words are just looking weird to me. Perhaps I'll just grab a handful of words throw them up in the sky and write up what comes out as my entry.

[n3m3sis42.livejournal.com]

I think it generally means your comfort zone as in something you're good at. But using it the way you said might not be too much of a stretch.

[theafaye.livejournal.com]

Well that's the thing - if it's something you're good at, you can basically write about anything you like (emphasis on like) and you've fitted the prompt.

Now wasn't it you who said you thought that last week was effectively an open topic? Whoever it was, I say to you HA! And HA! again.

[n3m3sis42.livejournal.com]

It was me, and I do feel that way about this week too. Because between stuff you're good at and stuff you're not, isn't that pretty much, well, everything?

[theafaye.livejournal.com]

That's what I'm thinking. So, I mean, someone who likes writing fiction could just put up a fiction story about anything and they've satisfied the prompt even if the fiction is about clouds and butterflies with no wheels mentioned. Or you could go OUT of your comfort zone and do something you've never done because you want to twist the topic. But you still don't have to reference the prompt at all and you've satisfied it.

I am really, really lost this time around. Boring migrancy stories ahead, methinks!

[n3m3sis42.livejournal.com]

I'm pretty sure I'm going to write historical fiction this time but I have no idea what it's going to be about yet. I even posted a comment here asking if people have ideas of a particular event or person for me, which I'm not even sure is allowed.

Because right now I have no specific inspiration, though I'm sure I'll come up with something later. I get writing time tonight, which is unusual for a Friday!

[theafaye.livejournal.com]

I have been trying for three months to come up with a basic concept for a short historical fiction and I still have nothing, which is a weensy bit annoying given that I am an historian with an actual bit of paper declaring me an historian and everything! So I'm not the best person to be giving ideas on that front, but it's more than OK to ask for ideas - people do it all the time. It's just a bit more visible now that Gary does work rooms (he didn't always).

[kathrynrose.livejournal.com]

My opinion only, but if someone who likes writing fiction wrote about clouds and butterflies, IMO they would not have met the topic unless somehow they also talked about how fiction is their best thing.

Now, if they wrote a story about a thirsty plant and the cloud being just the one who could help out, that's using the prompt.

[theafaye.livejournal.com]

But surely if they've done nothing but fiction and established that they are good at fiction, then by doing fiction, they are automatically fulfilling the prompt? I mean, it's a massively egotistical thing to do, to assume that your fiction is so great that in itself it meets the criteria, but there are people out there who think that about themselves. Or alternatively, if fiction is the only thing they think they do well, then presenting a piece of fiction by default carries that connotion. It would be a gamble, but I don't think it would be wrong.

[kathrynrose.livejournal.com]

IMO, someone who is new to Idol should be able to read the entry and get the connection to the prompt. They shouldnt have to know what the contestant is good at to get the connection.

If your character is demonstrating being in his wheelhouse, and we don't have to have a previous relationship with him to know that, then I think the prompt is met.

[theafaye.livejournal.com]

The gamble, for me, would be whether someone had established themselves enough as being known for something in particular and, moreover, as being GOOD at that something. Which relies on the voting audience being familiar enough with someone's writing to do that and I know that I wouldn't have the guts to do that, assuming that I had established myself as a good writer of x, which I don't feel that I have particularly. That's not to say that I don't think I'm good (I think there's an argument to be made for everyone left falling into that category, as well as an awful lot of people who aren't with us for whatever reason), just that I don't think I've established a strong genre with this particular account, beyond writing real life stuff the majority of the time, to be able to take that risk.

But if I *did* feel that I could do that, I'd do what you're doing and make sure there was another link within the tale as well, just in case. I always like multiple ties to the prompt anyway - I often try to get more than one connection in just because I can.

[kathrynrose.livejournal.com]

But surely if they've done nothing but fiction and established that they are good at fiction, then by doing fiction, they are automatically fulfilling the prompt?

My opinion is really only worth my one vote, but I disagree.

[kathrynrose.livejournal.com]

I think it's more than your comfort zone. Like the subject of this post, it's about your special thing - the thing you do really well. The "sweet spot" for you of a task. The thing people would call on you to do if it needed done because you're just that good at it.

here's a (possibly bad) example. At work, if the printer or copier ran out of paper or toner, some people would not be comfortable refilling it. Either of those things would be within my comfort zone because I've done them many times, with varying results. But there's a woman - Diana - who is like the office machine whisperer. Someone can fight with the machine for half an hour with no success, and Diana can walk up, assess it, talk sweetly to it, flip and click things faster than you can watch and take notes, and the darned thing will be humming and spitting out perfect papers in seconds. I have a comfort level, but it's in her wheelhouse.

[theafaye.livejournal.com]

Ahhhh. That makes perfect sense. Thank you so much!

Although, of course, I am even more stumped than I was before, so I'm still far from actually being able to write something.

[pixiebelle.livejournal.com]

I'm an American and I've still never heard the phrase. Then again, it's baseball again and that could explain it... Or just that I'm so out of touch with most idioms I always have to google the topics. But you're not alone at never hearing it before!