Writerly naval-gazing

And now for something totally different - a few musings, not from the point of view of a reader, but from the point of view of a writer. I don't know why - maybe it's the analytical mode I've become locked into as a result of working full-time on my thesis - but lately I've been in an unusually reflective mood, and every time I pick up my pen to write I find myself thinking about how I operate as a writer. Here are some of my observations:

1) I am fascinated to an unusual degree by other times and places, and often merely reading about them doesn’t do the trick. I really need to know what it felt like to live, say, in 1920s America or in Russia during the Second World War. Short of acquiring a Tardis, the closest I’ll ever get is trying to “write myself there”, and I think that’s why I do it.

2) Inspiration is not a problem for me (touch nearest available wooden surface!) At the moment, my writing notebooks – yes, I have several – are full of potential plots for stories and novels, in various stages of development. Moreover, once I start writing, these have a tendency to spiral off in all sorts of unexpected directions, often becoming unmanageable monsters in the process! No, my problem is buckling down to the hard work of actually writing a story, and then editing and polishing it until I have a final version. I’m too embarrassed to say how many half-finished projects are currently inhabiting my bedside cabinet.

3) My strongest source of inspiration is music. Quite a few of my stories – and certainly some of my favourites – have begun when I was listening to a particular piece of music (usually when walking home late at night) and a germ of an idea entered my brain. This then sprouted a plot and characters and became a story – or in one case, a novella.

4) I don’t seem to be able to write “anonymous” characters. No matter how short or insignificant their appearance in the story, they all seem to end up with a name, background, motivations – the lot.

5) I’m a busy grad student, and logically speaking, writing should interfere with my scholarly life and make me less productive. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. I find that when I use my free time well, work just kind of “slots into place – so when I spend an hour or two every day writing and generally being productive, I’m just as efficient during my eight or so hours of study.