What a gorgeous day! Snow weights the pine branches like those in my childhood paint-by-number paintings. Blue sky stretches over forest, field and pond. I walk. It’s a feel-good day. In my window, sunlight powers the gears of my new rainbow maker. They rotate the crystals, and light flashes, separating into all its colors.
What we need is a solar cell for writing. Input a manuscript and see it instantly separated into its parts. No, I don’t mean the readability programs that leave no room for creative expression. What I want is a device that tells me where the plot is weak, what sensory details I’ve neglected to use, which character needs more development. If there is anything like that out there, maybe I wouldn’t trust it. Back to the shrunken manuscript and trying to channel Gertrude Stein – “In the midst of writing there is merriment.”
I think the best solar cells for writing are our own intuition and that of other writers that we trust. As for the merriment, I find it during those longed for delightful bursts where the words go directly to my fingers and onto the page. It's magic!
ReplyDeleteI agree, Karin. My intuition works so much better on short pieces, though! Critique groups seem to function well with shorter pieces, too. It's hard to find willing readers for a novel,don't you think? Maybe some groups have a procedure for novel-reading. I'd be interested. A good question for the list-serve!
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