tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30211588.post6668139615501958103..comments2023-05-14T08:36:03.832-04:00Comments on The Elephant's Bookshelf: How Do You Do It?Matt Sinclairhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07171715051853671712noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30211588.post-29262333864031258412010-09-26T14:13:28.127-04:002010-09-26T14:13:28.127-04:00Thanks. I'm glad you were pleased, and I hope ...Thanks. I'm glad you were pleased, and I hope you continue to write and develop your work.Matt Sinclairhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07171715051853671712noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30211588.post-70725936217669911682010-09-26T09:13:07.671-04:002010-09-26T09:13:07.671-04:00Thank you, Matt Sinclair, for taking the time to b...Thank you, Matt Sinclair, for taking the time to blog about my question. It's one that has been burning in my mind since this manuscript that I referred to has been one that I inherited. It did not come to me in whispers but in a surprise attack.<br /><br />I have not yet read Bird by Bird, but I have enjoyed some other writings by Anne Lamott. <br /><br />Something else that I've clung to is Matthew 6:34, "Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." And so, I try to keep a focus in life.<br /><br />Thank you.dr3am3rhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13180061943340517074noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30211588.post-5653935602862288082010-08-12T14:22:41.447-04:002010-08-12T14:22:41.447-04:00So would I. It's been far too long since I per...So would I. It's been far too long since I performed live. If I do, I'll make sure to let those in the NYC area know about it.Matt Sinclairhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07171715051853671712noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30211588.post-58912386683823548592010-08-12T13:18:16.402-04:002010-08-12T13:18:16.402-04:00Ha, I'd love to hear that one.Ha, I'd love to hear that one.Caroline Hagoodhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01950326977124661888noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30211588.post-44523980061252120402010-08-12T13:08:16.546-04:002010-08-12T13:08:16.546-04:00Thanks, Caroline. I've experienced similar sor...Thanks, Caroline. I've experienced similar sorts of relationships. (Why am I always the boomerang?) Especially with stories and their fictional characters.<br /><br />I actually wrote a song along those lines called "A Song I've Forgotten How to Play." To this day, it remains unperformed in front of an audience, but it tends to be the one I futz around with when I pick up my guitar. It just feels right.Matt Sinclairhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07171715051853671712noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30211588.post-31016198673943795102010-08-12T12:43:33.554-04:002010-08-12T12:43:33.554-04:00I do it bird by bird. I love how you described tha...I do it bird by bird. I love how you described that. Actually, the only way I keep going is that I'm so neurotic that if I didn't write it down, I'd be so bothered by those thoughts. Seriously. Oh and I love it. Oh and then I give up for a short time and come back. It's really more like a dysfunctional relationship than anything:)Caroline Hagoodhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01950326977124661888noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30211588.post-34759107233665069202010-08-11T10:39:42.211-04:002010-08-11T10:39:42.211-04:00I think that's true, Brian, and thanks for sha...I think that's true, Brian, and thanks for sharing your experience. I've only "completed" one novel (which has not yet sought an agent and is obviously unpublished), but the experience taught me a lot that I've applied to the writing of my second.<br /><br />Your comment reminds me of a profile I wrote a couple years ago for my college alumni magazine. I'd interviewed a painter who said he's never produced anything he felt was perfect. "I think if I did, I wouldn't paint any more," he said.<br /><br />I liked that comment because it kinda takes the artist off the hook. The goal isn't perfection, it's something that works effectively.Matt Sinclairhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07171715051853671712noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30211588.post-38144521392829356762010-08-11T09:40:31.777-04:002010-08-11T09:40:31.777-04:00As far as what keeps me going back to work on a st...As far as what keeps me going back to work on a story over and over again (besides the obvious contractual obligations) is that I'm not happy until the story on the paper matches the tone and feeling that I had in my head when I set out on the project. <br /><br />The thing about novel writing that I've learned along the way, is that with each one you write, you learn more about how to identify the many pitfalls, traps and dead ends. It never gets easy, but it does get easier to navigate. It's like anything in that once you develop a process that works for you, it no longer feels quite as daunting.Brian Jameshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08547208018232793140noreply@blogger.com