Wednesday, October 20, 2010

When you need a different perspective

I'm a very visual person. In order to really get a feel for where a story is going, I have to do the whole bubble graphs, story arcs, all that jazz. I have legal pads upon legal pads around the house where I've scribbled down notes, timelines, anything that will help me better understand where I want the novel to go.
Things have been CRAZY around here. While I don't wait to exclusively blog about my various and sundry complaints (and I apologize! I'll try to make all my posts from here on out sunshine and rainbows), I have to admit I've had a time of it. Had to push back a very important deadline. Have made four trips to the doctor in the last two and a half weeks for a sickness that won't go away. Have had to miss almost two full weeks of work now because of the crud. And perhaps worst of all, I've felt like I was banging my head against the wall every time I tried to work. Nothing was coming together. Nothing. I couldn't even put together a sentence that made sense. Suddenly my trump card (my delightful sense of humor) failed me. I couldn't write even a snicker-inducing scene, much less one that would actually make the reader laugh out loud. So today, I decided to do something different. Perhaps it was a burst of feverish delirium, or maybe, just maybe it was a little blessing from God, but I had a stroke of inspiration. A new perspective. A new, BIG perspective. Behold: (I'm really hoping this picture doesn't open up HUGE if it links up. I don't want everyone to witness my half-insensible scribblings ;o) Yes, that is the side of my refrigerator. Yes, that is also a sheet of butcher paper. And yes, I am incapable of cutting a straight line. For some reason, being able to plot on a large canvas has really helped me visualize better what I'm doing. And I actually think, despite everything seeming to work against me, that I might be able to get something done when it's time to get back to work. For now. Rest. Lots of fluids, cough drops, and rest. Hope everyone is doing well. Got any ideas on how to step back and take a different perspective on something? I'm always looking for new ideas.

1 comment:

Megg said...

Sometimes a different perspective is just what the doctor orders. It's amazing when you feel like you've tried everything and you feel as if you've exhausted all your resources, you can go back to a simple tried-and-true method, something we tend to overlook. And most of the time, that's all it takes.

Here's hoping it works! And if it does, think about taking up the front side of the fridge too.