I had this dream last night. I was in the middle of a forrest with a stone table and some "random people" sitting at it. When i then realized those "random people" were not so random it was Anne Lamott who wrote Bird by Bird: some Instructions on Writing and Life , Ray Bradbury who Wrote Zen In the Art of Writing and last but certainly not least Carolyn Chute who wrote How Can You Create Fiction When Reality Comes to Call?. Then I thought why not ask them some question to help me improve my writing?
Me: Hey guys, could you possibly give me a few tips on writing?
Lamott: The first useful concept is the idea of short assignments.
Chute: Writing is like meditation or going into an ESP trance, or prayer.
Bradbury: The faster you blurt, the more swiftly you write, the more honest you are.
Me: That's some great advice. Can you lend me some more?
Lamott: Now, Practically even better news than that of a short assignment is the idea of shitty first drafts. All good writers have them. This is how they end up with good second drafts and terrific third drafts.
Chute: You see, I can't just switch from life mode to writer mode. Usually it takes three days to get into the writer mode. Three days of quiet non-life mode, lots of coffee and no interruptions.
Bradbury: The problem for any writer in any field is being circumscribed by what has gone before or what is being printed that very day in books and magazines.
Me: What gets you most frustrated while writing.
Lamott: I let my mind wander
Chute: I type a couple of lines. Pop! The "n" breaks off the daisy wheel.These daisy wheels are $30 apiece! My old well-made typewriter had one daisy wheel, which lasted 11 years. But this is a new typewriter. The cheesy typewriters they make now use three daisy wheels a day.
Bradbury:I tried to write stories heavily influenced by various of these writers, and !
succeeded in making quadruple-layered mudpies, all language and style, that would not float, and sank without a trace. I was too young to identify my problem, I was so busy imitating.
Me: Thanks Guys that actually really helped me out alot.
Then out of nowhere i snapped out of the dream and realized if i just think simple writing wont be that difficult.
Me: Hey guys, could you possibly give me a few tips on writing?
Lamott: The first useful concept is the idea of short assignments.
Chute: Writing is like meditation or going into an ESP trance, or prayer.
Bradbury: The faster you blurt, the more swiftly you write, the more honest you are.
Me: That's some great advice. Can you lend me some more?
Lamott: Now, Practically even better news than that of a short assignment is the idea of shitty first drafts. All good writers have them. This is how they end up with good second drafts and terrific third drafts.
Chute: You see, I can't just switch from life mode to writer mode. Usually it takes three days to get into the writer mode. Three days of quiet non-life mode, lots of coffee and no interruptions.
Bradbury: The problem for any writer in any field is being circumscribed by what has gone before or what is being printed that very day in books and magazines.
Me: What gets you most frustrated while writing.
Lamott: I let my mind wander
Chute: I type a couple of lines. Pop! The "n" breaks off the daisy wheel.These daisy wheels are $30 apiece! My old well-made typewriter had one daisy wheel, which lasted 11 years. But this is a new typewriter. The cheesy typewriters they make now use three daisy wheels a day.
Bradbury:I tried to write stories heavily influenced by various of these writers, and !
succeeded in making quadruple-layered mudpies, all language and style, that would not float, and sank without a trace. I was too young to identify my problem, I was so busy imitating.
Me: Thanks Guys that actually really helped me out alot.
Then out of nowhere i snapped out of the dream and realized if i just think simple writing wont be that difficult.