Lea_Schizas_MOD: Kim the floor is all yours
kimsmith: woo hoo and the crowd goes crazy!!!
kimsmith: hi yall
kimsmith: welcome to the workshop
applause
kimsmith: first question... why do you think you
need this workshop?
LisaHaselton: the muse can be fickle
Sinai: my muse likes to go on vacation when it's
the most inconvenient
pamwrites: We need motivation!
feywriter4736: my fears are crowding out my muse
carolynettinger: for the days when i just can't
write one word!
Lea_Schizas_MOD: I need to get off emails
Joanne9456: I have a writing schedule, but I don't
stick to it.
Amber_Stults: I'm drained after NaNoWriMo and need
to get writing again
ClarkWriter: my emotions (sometimes anger) is
getting in the way of the Muse
Sinai: actually, many of the above
Kate2239: so much stress - the Muse takes a hike ~
and rejects or no responses to subs are such a bummer ^_&
pamwrites: distractions like job and family are
big hurtles!
kimsmith: inconvenience lack of motivation fear no
inspiration distractions emotional upheaval disappointment -- this sums it up
yes? well, have I got some things to tell you!
<ClarkWriter> sent sound: applause
kimsmith: Get a pen and paper to take some notes
kimsmith: *the sound of the music on Jeopardy*
LisaHaselton: is there such a thing as a writer
without pen and paper?
pamwrites: ready!
kimsmith: okay
kimsmith: First things first. I believe that we do not write sometimes not
because we are horribly blocked, but because we are hungry, thirsty, or plain
old tired. In case the last is the case, just remember that you are responsible
for your health first. If you are tired, then excuse yourself from writing and
plan on picking it up the next day.
Next, there is no right or wrong way to get
something written, there is just the writing itself. Sort of like the little
guy on Star Wars, Try not. Do or do not, there is no try. Don’t beat yourself
Sort of like the little guy on Star Wars, Try not.
Do or do not, there is no try. Don’t
beat yourself up when you write crap. It’s okay to do that
Now let’s get to it.
First of all I want you to go out and buy
something just for you. For your writing life. Call it your idea file.
It is a file of colored index cards and on each
different color you are going to write something to help you get organized
Like, colors, smells, sights, sounds, romance, fantasy… Just a snippet. Just an idea. Something I
call MUSE TWEAKERS
Hopefully by doing this you will never have
another day where you can say, oh heck, I can’t write
You will always have a thought at hand to send you
off with these cards
The first thing I want to do tonight is teach you
how to write from a Muse Tweaker
ClarkWriter: do you mean each color is a
category... sight, sounds, smells?
kimsmith: yes or however you wish to do it
whatever works with your personal method
Katie_Hines: Are you just writing a word, or is it
a sentence or two?
kimsmith: you will see in just a few minutes cuz
we are gonna do some
okay so here is the first thing for you to try
think of something that has happened in your life.
some highly emotional event
remember it fully and then write one line about it
one liners have been deleted for privacy
Lea_Schizas_MOD: Kim, how elaborate should these
one liners be in our file?
kimsmith: not very
here is why
Moose2186: I threw the yellow rose to the ground,
it would died just like her.
kimsmith: these muse tweakers are the first lines
in your next piece of work
open your piece with emotion
you are no longer blocked because now you have
something to say
and it is personal and it is something you
identify with on a personal level
ClarkWriter: Does this go on a colored card
then...? Sorry, a little confused.
kimsmith: It certainly can
pick a color ... red if you are using anger
blue if you are using sad
ClarkWriter: OK, got it. - one sentence per card
kimsmith: and you can add to them as you have
thoughts
maybe you started out with "we were silent
beneath the great oak"
then another day you said "nothing moved but
the leaves on the tree " you could surely add it here and make it a part
of this one ... or not, it is your call
that is the beauty of writing
you are in control!
after you have a muse tweaker written down you can
write a whole paragraph or a short story using it or maybe you just want to
savor it for another day
that is okay
Kate2239: Then once you start getting your teeth
into the story or verse, and fill the card, then move on to another medium?
kimsmith: well what I do is write the MT on the
card and carry it to the computer and start writing... or pull out my notebook
and start writing
you can use your cards to write on for sure if
that is how you wanna do it
they sell them in pretty big lots so ... no
worries there
pamwrites: do you find that the cards being there
in your hand are better than computer files?
the physical part is stronger?
kimsmith: I find that the cards are always there
... for me to fall back on whenever i am having trouble getting my butt in the
chair and something written
kimsmith: believe it or not, you will come back to
these cards and write DIFFERENT things for the same line
one time might be sadness at the dying oak tree
one time might be anger at the jilting lover sitting with the main character
one time might be the tree is a portal for a fantasy
ChrisChat: have you tried keeping pictures from
whatever you've read or copy them from the internet as a muse..this has been
used...
: ...to bring about positive thinking during self
confidence classes
kimsmith: yes
i think using pics are an excellent means to get a
visual
i am a photographer as well as an author and i do
love to have a pic
Where do you keep track of all these cards? Do you
have a little card file for them?
kimsmith: yes
or you can keep them ini baggies
whatever is convenient for you because we want you
to be comfortable
they are not to be something else to stress you
out
Sinai: do you tend to carry these cards with you
everywhere? or are these for use when you're writing at home/your designated
writing spot?
kimsmith: at home/designated writing spot BUT the
caveat is... keep a few handy for those times when a snippet of a conversation hits
you and you just have to keep it
one... do these MT's quickly.... write out the
first things to your mind
dont think of a right answer cuz there are none
what these do are get the mind going enough for
you to let the faucet of storytelling to get unclogged
and remember these should be good full emotions
too ... i mean if you aint feeling anything who else will?
roadwriter: Is this different from carrying around
a little notebook to capture what hits? I hardly ever go out without one -- but
then days and weeks can go by befor I look at them again
kimsmith: they are both the what hits and the
deeper inside of you thing that floats to the surface -- i am going to give you
a few as examples in just a minute
ChrisChat: we 'talked' earlier today about finding
my dictation recorder...do you carry one around or could someone just text
themselves...
...a message or even leave a message on their home
phone
kimsmith: i do not carry one any longer because my
batteries died but heck a TEXT is an
excellent idea!
: why not?
i mean i am at work a lot of times and i will see
a broken pencil under the desk and i suddenly want to say "broken like a
pencil" and i have nowhere to write, nothing to write on
i will use my phone from now on!
sometimes you will be compelled to write a LOT
about your MT
sometimes not at all
that is okay and fine
pamwrites: so these cards can have 1 thought,
emotion, or idea, but not for a particular story or article?
kimsmith: right -- but make it as rounded as it
needs to be... if you write "broken like a pencil" that won;t help as
much as "My arm hung limply, broken like a pencil"
pamwrites: For example, if my son says something
cute that would be a good character trait, I write it down on a card
kimsmith: good -- if that will help you to write
out something in your current work in progress
there is no right or wrong... remember, you are in
control
just remember these cards are for you to be
tweaked... to jumpstart the muse so you need to keep them as organized and
filled in as YOU need
ClarkWriter: More of a comment ... you could even
flip through the newspaper and jot down on your cards
kimsmith: oh heck yes... and i have done so ...
the paper is great fodder for us mystery writers (wink)
i mean only in the paper will you find someone who
is the dumb bunny of the day and you will HAVE to have that one
as many as you want ... keep two files or three or
=four
whatever gives you enough muse tweakers to get you
through your week
okay remember to read over what you write... i
mean we are getting the old muse kicked but we want to make sure that months
down the road we still get what we were thinking about
these are going to be purposefully chaotic (what i
am about to do) so dont worry about it
but when you get a fill in the blank use it as it
is or expand or rearrange as you need to okay?
kimsmith: here we go
kimsmith: ______ Christmas trees
Lea_Schizas_MOD: white
sandra8705: fifteen
roadwriter: drooping
LisaHaselton: dead
pamwrites: too many
Sinai: everlasting
Michaela1143: sticky
ChrisChat: 50
Lin1745: living
rwadams: Laden
Tandra: decorated
Joanne9456: Fake
Kate2239: dressed
vafkra: Charlie Brown
Moose2186: snow laden
Michaela1143: spider-infested
kimsmith: honor whatever came first to you ... put
it on a card
ChrisChat: Overlooked
kimsmith: (or on your paper for now)
ClarkWriter: "I hate"
ClarkWriter: Ugh
kimsmith: do not worry about it being wrong or
right... this is YOUR muse speaking
ClarkWriter: cause I love them
kimsmith: but maybe the character that is trying
to surface hates them
Lea_Schizas_MOD: we found Scrooge
Lin1745: LOL
Sinai: lol
ClarkWriter: NOOOOOO!
Lea_Schizas_MOD: hehehehehe
kimsmith: maybe the main character is a ten year
old kid who is forced to carrry the tree all the way through town five miles
both ways?
pamwrites: up hill both ways
ChrisChat: just the squirrel who lived in the
Christmas Tree before it was a Christmas Tree
Sinai: and wonders why his family can't just use
the bush outside their home?
Tandra: now we have conflict--the beginning
element of a plot, haha
Joanne9456: thru 2 feet of snow
ClarkWriter: maybe it's me as the little girl
whose father had to have the trees decorated perfectly
kimsmith: well yall definitely got it
kimsmith: good clark
yes that is what you wrote right? the girl hates Christmas
trees because decorating them is a stressful thing
and when she grows up she will never own one
okay here comes the next one
kimsmith: describe three types of rain
ChrisChat: hard crashing destructive
pamwrites: gentle, pounding, cold
Penny_Ehrenkranz: showers sprinkling torrential
Joanne9456: torrential, freezing, gentle
vafkra: male female driving
ChrisChat: misty magical
rwadams: Sheets, mist, soft
LisaHaselton: wet, pouring, romantic
Lea_Schizas_MOD: Dancing in the Rain - warm,
escape
Laura6858: sleepy, stinging, sad
Tandra: pitter patter, downpour, drizzle
ClarkWriter: soggy, soaking, exhilarating
Moose2186: soft and rolling down my lids
ChrisChat: fresh alive
Amber_Stults: hurricane, wet and soft
roadwriter: misty, globby, tense
Sinai: cold, freezing the skin, stinging like
little needles
Kate2239: gray torrent, silver icicles, cloud's
tears
sandra8705: heavy, drizzle, calming
kimsmith: okay now tell me ... what you REALLY
think of that rain... if you think it is misty or gray or cold... why?
feywriter4736: a percussion on my roof, soothing
backdrop, cleansing
rwadams: sun showers
Joanne9456: I like "cloud's tears.
ClarkWriter: it stinks
Moose2186: cleansing my soul
sandra8705: it’s refreshing, smells great
Joanne9456: It's dreary.
Penny_Ehrenkranz: love the rain, it keeps Oregon
green
ChrisChat: fine like silk, barely there like
glistening dew drops
pamwrites: gentle because it washes away bad
things
Amber_Stults: very forceful rain.
Kate2239: cloud's tears heal the earth, wash the
grime of day from my cheeks
Lea_Schizas_MOD: rain means an open door to escape
the usual
ClarkWriter: it's dismal and no sun
Tandra: Grew up in the south where it rains a lot
and it reminds me of home
roadwriter: misty -- like a screen between me and
what I see
rwadams: cold grey mist of a late February day,
biting the fingers and stinging the face
feywriter4736: love the sounds, the cleansing
vafkra: essential in desert
Sinai: The sky pouring out it's misery to clothe
me in it as well (I think that pulled more off the cloud's tear)
kimsmith: i hope you all are writing these down...
and ahem... did someone say they couldn’t write when we started an hour ago???
You are your Muse. You are it, baby. If you can do
this by my prompting you can do it without me... cuz i only PROMPTED == the
words and thoughts and feelings were all you!
ChrisChat: what I did tonight...everyone....we
showed up...how do you show up or train yourself to show up during life's day
to day stuff
Lea_Schizas_MOD: passion to get those emotions out
there
kimsmith: do you want to write? think before you
answer... do you REALLY want to do it?
ChrisChat: writing trouble...not much...the
showing up to tweak, oh yeah
roadwriter: that I spend my time working on
instead of my own art and writing
Lea_Schizas_MOD: you need to surround yourself
with positive forces, writers who can support, motivate, and kick your behind
kimsmith: okay Chris why do you write? is it to be
published or for mental floss?
pamwrites: tandra can write about that emotion
ChrisChat: both
Penny_Ehrenkranz: I think it's important not to
feel guilty when life gets in the way, but put your positive effort into what
you do get done.
ClarkWriter: Amen, Penny.
Tandra: Yeah, I guess...I think of it in the way
that I was given one good talent and so I better not waste it
Lea_Schizas_MOD: very true
pamwrites: amen to the amens
kimsmith: okay lets get back on format
Lea_Schizas_MOD: sinai
Sinai: kim, for the index cards, would you say
they work as well for getting your muse to continue sommething, as well as to
start?
kimsmith: yes i mean if you are in the middle of a
book and it is sagging a lot ... pull out the old cards
then let him cry
ChrisChat: magic innocence once asleep
ClarkWriter: Thank you so much
Lin1745: Her paper-cut fingers picked up the menu.
pamwrites: prayers and snuggles
Kate2239: waiter auditioning for theatrical role,
way he sings the specials, Not the next American Idol
Moose2186: Finally bedtime!
kimsmith: lol kate i like that!!!
roadwriter: but she doesn't wanna go to bed'
Sinai: PLEASE JUST GO TO SLEEP!!!!!!!!!!
kimsmith: dont shake the baby
Lea_Schizas_MOD: don't shake the crib
kimsmith: okay one more
roadwriter: stop jumping on the bed!
Lin1745: One more story an that’s it
kimsmith: He's so weird! he likes to eat ______
and ____ together!
ChrisChat: spinach and cabbage
Lea_Schizas_MOD: he likes to eat chips and vinegar
together
Penny_Ehrenkranz: avacado and cereal
Sinai: mushrooms, ice cream
Tandra: sour cream and honey chips and ketchup
sandra8705: jam sandwiches and beer
Amber_Stults: noodles and peanut butter
Lin1745: ice cream and tacos
roadwriter: cottage cheese and pineapple and
THAT"S IT
feywriter4736: peas and pizza
pamwrites: pickles and peanut butter
Penny_Ehrenkranz: hey chips with vinegar are good!
Laura6858: jelly on his hamburger - like sponge
bob
Kate2239: pizza and pistachio ice cream
rwadams: sardines and limburger Cheese...really
roadwriter: chicken soup and chocolate chip ice
cream
ChrisChat: I feel like I'm on the old Match Game
show
rwadams: where's Gene Rayburn when you need him?
Sinai: lol
Kate2239: thanks for the diet incentive - I will
have a nice light salad when we're thru ^_^
kimsmith: how about.... Describe how to write a
love letter
Sinai: this actually makes me think of family feud
- survey says the top five answers are...
Lea_Schizas_MOD: chips, vinegar and chocolate are
my favorite
ChrisChat: dry rolled up bread dunked in cola
Amber_Stults: Be honest and leave nothing out.
rwadams: that's easy, Kim, you write it with your
heart and soul long before it ever finds itself cheapened by pen to paper
ChrisChat: hot and steamy with no clothes on
roadwriter: how to write a love letter? Must be
with ink that smears with tears
kimsmith: whoop!
sandra8705: When writing a love letter you must
make sure you you've got the right recipient in mind!
Lin1745: Eat bon-bon, drink glass of wine,
remember his name
Penny_Ehrenkranz: write it, put it away, read it
again, don't send it
Joanne9456: write it, then burn it
kimsmith: what if i said... make a muse tweaker
out of what makes up a mouse's home
Kate2239: address it my dearest love, then let
loose with imagined and recalled over time - the recipient will be so
flattered, never knowing
janetglaser: i doubt that an email is the proper
mode for a love letter, but people are used to it
rwadams: i see
ChrisChat: my house
Lea_Schizas_MOD: my kitchen scraps
Sinai: hole in the wall
RebelHeart: Would I access the transcript through
archives?
Penny_Ehrenkranz: underneath the rose bush in the
garden
Lin1745: dust bunnies under the bed...
vafkra: try not to forward to entire list...my
husband did that
ChrisChat: the neighbours' piled up garbage
vafkra: shiny objects
Joanne9456: under our shed
feywriter4736: lost odds and ends
Tandra: The mouse in my pantry is dead because my
cat is a murderer.
Moose2186: A nest of yarn scraps and dirty paper
towels cramed in juice glas.
ChrisChat: my attic is where the dead bodies
are...eww the smell
roadwriter: dog food was scattered on the floor,
popcorn missing from the plaque on the wall. The mice dined well tonight
feywriter4736: One man's trash is a mouse's home.
vafkra: insulation from under the car hood
kimsmith: okay now... describe a pickle
Amber_Stults: in the crawl space under the stairs.
Amber_Stults: sour and crunchy
sandra8705: sour, drippy, salty
Sinai: very very sour
Moose2186: bumpy green and slimy
vafkra: sometimes a pickle's just a pickle
roadwriter: crunch felt all the way through the
teeth, salt smiling down my throat
Kate2239: spicy tart with warts
Sinai: I have a comic running called Muse's Block
that I started when I decided my muse was being very stubborn:
http://www.worldofenantia.com/musesblock/
roadwriter: appetizer course at the deli
Lea_Schizas_MOD: that it's fun to not think but
just write
roadwriter: sometimes ya gotta be silly
Amber_Stults: We're in control of our Muse!
RebelHeart: i like that amber
feywriter4736: the ideas are there, just waiting
for me to let them in
Sinai: The Muse will learn to talk when I want her
to write!
kimsmith: and the best thing of all.... if you
have my email account... and you get stumped... i will send you a Muse
tweaker
Kate2239: the Muse is ever there to feed our need
to write ~ remember to carry a card, a pencil or even lipstick
Tandra: I can make the Muse do her work
properly
dawn7889: i need to stop multitasking and pay
attention
kimsmith: you guys need to remember that writing
is what you do for FUN and not just profit
kimsmith: when it quits being fun... you need to
go for a walk
Lea_Schizas_MOD: that's true, Kim
Kate2239: I like that, Dawn, seize the day, the
moment and Write
Lea_Schizas_MOD: I also use folders
Lea_Schizas_MOD: never could stick with index
cards---
ChrisChat: twitter your tweaker
Lea_Schizas_MOD: for my children writing--
RebelHeart: or tweak your twitter
Lea_Schizas_MOD: I use a binder with clowns on it
and duo tangs with clowns
dawn7889: lol
Lea_Schizas_MOD: and put all my ideas in there
ChrisChat: Follow Kim on twitter as she tweaks the
Muse
Lea_Schizas_MOD: for romance I use red binder and
duo tangs
Lea_Schizas_MOD: and for mystery I use blue
kimsmith: okay so to sum up...if the well runs
dry, you have a fresh supply to pull from to refill the beakerr... its a MUSE
TWEAKER!
Sinai: thankss kim and lea!
ChrisChat: Yes, thank you Kim....and after
listening to your radioblog...I have been hearing your voice in my head
throughout