I don’t know how many of you remember the PSA from which I borrowed for the title of this post. Here it is: It was ominous and creepy and unforgettable. It’s exactly the phrase that comes to me when I wake up in the middle of the night fretting about a problem in my book. I feel as though I should know where my characters and my plot are—if I don’t who can? But lately a central plot point has eluded me, and my confidence has wandered off too.
My favorite sentence from this marvelous post is: "I do know that when I stay in a book and on this side of judgement I have a better time of it, and the inevitable problems seem more of a fun challenge and less a stark failure."
This makes me feel so much less alone in those moments of doubt. Thank you for your honesty. And : The Specials!! My favorite!! Did you actually get to see them perform? I'm always waiting for the rest of the world to re-discover them...
Again, thank you so much for this. I am working on two projects, one more nascent than the other, and I was just talking to my husband tonight, again, about how long it all takes, how long the work is in limbo, the proverbial baggy mess, and how hard it is to sit with that, often for years. But isn’t sitting with that--doing the sitting and the writing and the thinking--what it’s about. It’s just so hard to keep that understanding at the forefront.
Oh, those middle of the night torments! While I wish for the easy sleep of my husband - and my pre-menopause self - I have also come to appreciate the mental work and casting about of thoughts and dilemmas that come in the dark. Your cast is far-reaching - for a plot! Mine is more likely to catch a word or phrase that fits... but still, I feel better having found those small pieces. By the end of your post, it sounded like you are back on the trail - I've mixed a lot of metaphors in this comment! - whew. I have the deepest faith that YOU, of such heart and mind, will always find the words that work.
Alice, I almost "plotzed" when I read the title of today's blog, as my husband and I have recently been investigating plots, you know, the kind for the final denouement, so to speak, which is always a part -or at least can be -- of a good plot. As an aside, I write nonfiction, so my plots are usually nicely laid out in advance, so I'm off the hook (pun intended).
You phrased it beautifully in our craft class once when you mentioned walking through a Jackson Pollock exhibit and realized that only by following through on all of Pollock's early experiments did it eventually lead to the final product. That anecdote has helped me a lot over the years in letting the work evolve on its own time, but not abandoning things.
A wonderful PSA about the fantasy of expecting there will come a time, after some number of novels or years or successes, when it will all come easily. So glad for your middle of the night epiphany! 💙
Thanks for your honesty, Alice. Philip Roth once said in an interview something like this. When a dentist goes in to do a root canal he knows how to do that root canal. It’s a practice he could do in his sleep. But, no matter how practiced a writer is, when she starts a new project she is a beginner again.
Another beautiful piece. Wrestling with plot, wrestling with self-doubt. But enough belief in one’s instincts to keep forging on: “And yet I have learned to trust that if I put all the ingredients in the blender I will be able to find the answer someday.”
As a reader who loved and respected Fellowship Point, I value your sharing your struggles. As a writer who mostly writes in her head, I am grateful that you share and that you persevere.
My favorite sentence from this marvelous post is: "I do know that when I stay in a book and on this side of judgement I have a better time of it, and the inevitable problems seem more of a fun challenge and less a stark failure."
This makes me feel so much less alone in those moments of doubt. Thank you for your honesty. And : The Specials!! My favorite!! Did you actually get to see them perform? I'm always waiting for the rest of the world to re-discover them...
Also, yes, the title made me feel old and, I read this right after Summer Brennan’s most recent post and they go together beautifully.
Again, thank you so much for this. I am working on two projects, one more nascent than the other, and I was just talking to my husband tonight, again, about how long it all takes, how long the work is in limbo, the proverbial baggy mess, and how hard it is to sit with that, often for years. But isn’t sitting with that--doing the sitting and the writing and the thinking--what it’s about. It’s just so hard to keep that understanding at the forefront.
Oh, those middle of the night torments! While I wish for the easy sleep of my husband - and my pre-menopause self - I have also come to appreciate the mental work and casting about of thoughts and dilemmas that come in the dark. Your cast is far-reaching - for a plot! Mine is more likely to catch a word or phrase that fits... but still, I feel better having found those small pieces. By the end of your post, it sounded like you are back on the trail - I've mixed a lot of metaphors in this comment! - whew. I have the deepest faith that YOU, of such heart and mind, will always find the words that work.
Alice, I almost "plotzed" when I read the title of today's blog, as my husband and I have recently been investigating plots, you know, the kind for the final denouement, so to speak, which is always a part -or at least can be -- of a good plot. As an aside, I write nonfiction, so my plots are usually nicely laid out in advance, so I'm off the hook (pun intended).
So glad you are fighting your doubts and sticking with it. We’re all with you.
Oh, how I envy your students.
You phrased it beautifully in our craft class once when you mentioned walking through a Jackson Pollock exhibit and realized that only by following through on all of Pollock's early experiments did it eventually lead to the final product. That anecdote has helped me a lot over the years in letting the work evolve on its own time, but not abandoning things.
A wonderful PSA about the fantasy of expecting there will come a time, after some number of novels or years or successes, when it will all come easily. So glad for your middle of the night epiphany! 💙
Thanks for your honesty, Alice. Philip Roth once said in an interview something like this. When a dentist goes in to do a root canal he knows how to do that root canal. It’s a practice he could do in his sleep. But, no matter how practiced a writer is, when she starts a new project she is a beginner again.
Thank you. You are so wise. Keep going back. I needed this and will always need to read this.
Another beautiful piece. Wrestling with plot, wrestling with self-doubt. But enough belief in one’s instincts to keep forging on: “And yet I have learned to trust that if I put all the ingredients in the blender I will be able to find the answer someday.”
As a reader who loved and respected Fellowship Point, I value your sharing your struggles. As a writer who mostly writes in her head, I am grateful that you share and that you persevere.
I absolutely love reading you! Thank you for your missives. They bring me delight and wholeness
You reached me with perfect timing! Thank you ❤️