Ever wonder what you’d be writing if you didn’t know all the ‘rules’, or if your voice would have emerged faster? I do.
Last night, I wasn’t in the mood to write. I didn’t feel creative in the least. (Small wonder – it was already midnight.) So I decided to brainstorm new ideas, possible novellas and see if old ideas could be modified into Desires. I opened one file with a smirk, because it was the very first idea for a book I ever had. Probably sucks, right? Imagine my surprise – me of the ‘can’t seem to plot past two chapters ahead’ syndrome – when I found a detailed outline for a book. Detailed, people. Almost a full synopsis.
Granted, it has problems that need to be worked out. But there was real conflict, and the possibility for real character growth. I’d let my imagination soar and created in my head something like a movie. Scene after scene of goals and motivations and conflict. Scene after scene of plotting and moving the story forward. At that point, I’d probably read a couple small books on writing and a few thousand romances.
In my naivete, was I more creative than I am knowing all the ‘rules’ of writing, the latest trend in the market and what agents and editors are looking for? Was I more creative without the pressure of trying to find that ellusive ‘hook’ and ‘twist’ to make someone sit up and take notice?
Do you feel stifled by all the information and rules and STUFF that is absorbed into our brains on a daily basis? Or do you ignore it all and live in your imagination?
CAROL BURNSIDE / ANNIE RAYBURN 