Depressed

[Dani257]

Does anyone mind if I whine a bit? No? Good

Someone i kind of know (werll, we're on the same email list, anyway) just won the Newbery Medal. (That's the award they give for the best children's book of the year in America) It was really exciting to see someone who I've chatted with receive a big award. Living vicariously, and all that.

But (here comes the whine) what about me?!! Sooner or later, anyone that meets me is going to learn one fact, I want to be a children's book author. The only problem is, I haven't written anything. Well, I write something, and have no drive to finish. And even those times are getting farther and farther apart. I remember years ago, I wanted to see if I could write a book. A real, 100+ pages book. I took a subject I was fascinated with, did a little research (not a lot, I made a lot of details up) and six months later, I had a 130 page book in my hands. It wasn't a masterpiece or anything, but it was a great accomplishment for me. That day seems so far away now.

I know there are people who want to have written, without taking the time to actually write. That is me, a little. I wish it could be that easy, but I know it's not. On the other hand, I really want to write. When the words come out, I'm happy. Even when I write my sadistic little poems, I get a rush from combing the perfect rhyme with the right spark of evil. But, for anything that I would want to submit to a publisher, I'm finding more and more I CAN'T write. I'm just sitting at the keyboard, wondering how painful beating my head on to the desk would be.

Sigh. Is there a point in time when writer's block has gone on too long? When you should shelve your writing dream back in the closet with your ballerina and firefighter dream?

[hadassahchana[$]]

Angela, this is just a suggestion, but when you feel overwhelmed by writer's block, then read. Especially as a children's writer, it seems to me that it is vital to have a strong background in classic children's literture - adding to your own arsenal, as it were.
so, perhaps you can try making a list of really fantastic kid's books that you haven't yet read. Then, wehn the urge to write disappears, grab one and finish it. Take notes- what did the authro do right? Wrong? What are you going to do differently? Keeping things like this in a writer's journal will be a great start to overcoming your stumbling block.

Then, the next thing seems to be that one has got to set aside a writing time every single day- whether or not the motivation is there, the hard work ought to be. You can always write lists, journal entries, or try some of the wonderful writing exercises available in books on how to write. If you know that you have to staya t your desk actually doing something from, say 6 to 8 in the evening, you might just find that accomplishing your goal of producing that kid's book will sound much better than making yet another list of words that rhyme with 'turnips'.



Cindy

[kurt_messick]

I can sympathise.

I have two unfunished novels and two or three fleshed-out ideas for novels. No progress in years.

I have two scholarly book outlines with partially finished chapters. No progress in years.

There's always something more pressing, or I'm too tired, or I'm uninspired.

So, I can sympathise.

But somehow, I never let go of working on them and finishing them. I keep hoping. And I suppose, as long as I keep hoping, they might in fact be finished one day.

[Dani257]

Well, I got the reading part down. That lady sneaking into the children's section of the bookstore? Me.

Yeah, I know I should write everyday. Maybe instead of reading a book when I eat lunch at work, I'll take a notebook.

[hadassahchana[$]]

But have you read the real classics in your field? I'd be willing to go way out on a limb here, and say that the following are books that one cannot ignore if writing for children:

Any and preferably all of the Sherlock Holmes books by A. Conan Doyle

The Hobbit, followed by
The Lord Of The Rings
Narnia Chronicles
All of the Pooh stories- in the original version by A.A. Milne
The Wind In The Willows
Anything (dare I say everthing?) by Mark Twain

Those are so hard to find in our library, either because they are popular and are gone, or usually because they aren't current enough, so no copies are available. I have bought all of the above (and more!) for my boys, and they have quite cheerfully gone through them several times. These are the kinds of books which can hold a child's attention (and an adult's, too!) over and over again, and the kinds of books I wish were still being written.

That's all I meant, sorry for rambling.


Cindy

[rich2003dm]

I'm not a writer, so my suggestion may be rather naive (perhaps stupid). But I'm not shy either, so here goes.

If you often network with other aspiring writers, why don't you find someone with similar interests and goals and collaborate?

Working together, sharing inspiration, taking advantage of each others ideas and talents, and just encouraging each other may be enough for you to actually finish and publish something.

Half a loaf...

Rich

[tpierzina[$]]

Due to my keen sense of perception, I can tell that you are depressed about not being able to get past this. Well, my keen sense of perception and the subject of your post and your post itself. But enough about me and my keen senses....

Seriously, are you finding this sort of pattern in other areas of your life, or is it just the writing? If so, it could be actual clinical depression. Not to say you're crazy...depression manifests itself in lots of ways, and there are tons of options out there for treatment (not all involving medication and/or therapy).

For me, the biggest gain I've made in the past 3-4 years is learning to live with and manage depression, instead of trying to beat it. First though, I had to understand why I felt the way I did (hurdle #1) then accept it (hurdle #2, much bigger). Some days I'm running at 10%...I try to tread water through those and not create consequences for myself that I have to deal with when I'm back at 100% (missing work, etc.).

Wait, this was your thread, sorry to talk about me.

[Dani257]

No, it's just writing. Other than that, I feel fine.

[realtraveller]

I;ve been going through much the same thing. But what I've found is that the hardest part about getting started is getting started. That is, turning on Word Perfect and starting in on a blank page. Once I've actually written a few lines, the flood gates open and before I know it, two or three hours have passed and I've written three or four pages.

[AuntieEmma[$]]

If you're the sort of person who gets more done under pressure when you have deadlines that you have to meet, then maybe a class or a writers' group or a workshop -- anything where you're required to turn in a certain amount of work to a group for discussion -- could be helpful in getting unstuck.

[Dani257]

I'm taking a nonfiction class right now, although we just started, so we haven't written yet. But, yes, I do work best (and I tend to work period) under pressure.

[AuntieEmma[$]]

Originally posted by Dani257
I'm taking a nonfiction class right now, although we just started, so we haven't written yet. But, yes, I do work best (and I tend to work period) under pressure.

Me too. I wish, I wish, I wish, I wish I could be more self-disciplined -- but I'm not.

[tpierzina[$]]

Originally posted by Dani257
No, it's just writing. Other than that, I feel fine.

Geez, don't I feel silly.

Oh well, it's cheaper than therapy.

[Dani257]

Oh, I didn't mean to make you feel silly. Besides, it's better to say something and be wrong, than not say something and be right.

(And, that, ladies and gentlemen, was brought to you by Sap, Inc. Because we care)

[frazzledspice]

The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron has a twelve week program to help people work through blocks and become more creative in everything they do.

It's a fascinating book with lots of workbook exercises at the end of each chapter.

One of the things it suggests is morning pages (3 pages of whatever you think of as soon as you wake up.)

I once attended a group called Writer's Challenge when I lived in Missouri. We met and wrote . There would be a short write (on an assigned topic or theme) of 10-15 minutes. Everyone would read his short write. Then there would be a long write (60 minutes) and everyone would read that, too.

When I left that group I felt so charged! It was wonderful! I miss them so much

When Ican't write something long and coherent, I just pack away my snippets into a database for later retrieval or blogging.

If some of it is timeless, I will be able to use it and weave it into something when it hits critical mass. Or I can sell it to some trusting, naive standup comic.

[Dani257]

Cindy, the only books on your list I've read are The Hobbit and The Narnia Chronicles. Here's a list I offer up as classics

Charlotte's Web (just about a perfect book, IMO)
Little Women
All of L.M. Montgomery's novels
The Wizard of Oz
Alice in Wonderland
The Secret Garden
A Little Princess

(I notice my reading tends to focus on 'girl' books which is probably why I haven't read Mark Twain)

[satan]

Originally posted by hadassahchana
Anything (dare I say everthing?) by Mark Twain

Oh, most definitely everything from good ole Sam!

Don't forget Some Remarks on the Science of Onanism or the oft-forgotten The Mammoth Cod Club. Here're two of the reasons Twain gives for not joining the Club:

3rd. It is unscriptural. We are as we were made. Can any of you by taking thought add one cubit to his stature? (Matthew, vi. 27.) I have, at times, by taking thought added inches to this organ; but it was not a permanency, and should not therefore be counted.

4th. Largeness of organ is proof positive that it has been cultivated. The blacksmith gets an enormous arm by constantly exercising that limb, and I suppose a man by constantly using his private member will increase the size of it. Membership in your Society is a confession of immorality.

Extremely edifying stuff!

[Dani257]

I don't much about Mark Twain, but I think he'd get a kick out of being recommended by the devil

[satan]

Originally posted by Dani257
I don't much about Mark Twain, but I think he'd get a kick out of being recommended by the devil

Call me Lucy, darlin' . . .

And if you're looking to knock the socks and knickers off your readers with your writing, i'm sure we can strike an equitable deal . . . how does 24 years of stellar writing and wonderful reviews from critics for the paltry price of your soul sound?

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

If you're amenable to signing on the dotted line, have your people call my minions and we'll draw up a contract. i'm sure i don't need to tell you my bureau's phone number . . .

[Redlass]

I agree that it can be tough to find time to sit and write every day. If the idea of two hours per day seems overwhelming at first, then commit to 10 minutes. It's usually easy to squeeze 10 minutes in somewhere and you can start building a sense of accomplishment. Then, instead of feeling, "I never get anything done," you'll be feeling, "Hey, I'm getting something done."

But it is tough.