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I post on Monday with an occasional random blog thrown in for good measure. I do my best to answer all comments via email and visit around on the days I post.

Tuesday, April 20, 2010

J is for Journey and K is Kryptonite

Journey: Middle English, from Old French journee meaning day's journey, from jour meaning day, from Late Latin diurnum, from Latin diurnus.

As I look back on my life I can clearly see how one choice lead to another and to another, until after a long winding and interesting journey I have arrived here, at this point.

There have been some wonderful turns in the road when I was near overwhelmed by the spectacular views. Likewise I have fallen into the La Brea Tar Pits and come close to not being able to get myself extracted. There have been lush valleys, an arid plain or two, oxygen poor peaks, placid rives, and rivers in flood. I have crossed oceans both literally and figuratively.

Mostly, though, my journey has been fairly easy, following the contours of the hills and mountains I have climbed over and around.

This is all very metaphorical and the language rather flowery. But there is a point and a lesson for us writers. In noticing how our lives go, in noticing the individual steps we have taken on our journey, in training ourselves to become observers, we will become better writers.

As for me, the journey will continue until the day I take my last breath.

Kryptonite: A fictional element from the Superman. However there is krypton, a relatively inert gaseous element found in air and used in elelctric lamps, from the Greek kryptos meaning hidden. There is more at crypt.

As we all know kryptonite can bring down the Man of Steel, leaving him weak as baby.

I have my own form of kryptonite. It's called sharing my ideas too soon. Say I tell my sweetie about an idea I have for a story or novel. He will, of course, have all these who, why, when, where, and how questions and even make suggestions about where the story should go or what I shouldn't do. Because it's just an idea, a barely sprouted seed, I have not answered the majority of those questions even for myself, let alone someone else. And all of the questions acts like kryptonite.

I have learned to guard, protect and nurture my tiny sprout from outside influence else it could become over fertilized or over watered or get too much sun all of which have the same consequence. My idea shrivels up and blows away.

In fact, I don't like sharing a first rough draft of something I've written because the same thing can happen. I mean I know a first rough draft is just that. I don't need to hear about the problems. So...I don't like to share anything until I've got a fairly clean copy.

What's your kryptonite?

Anyone remember The Spin Doctors?

12 comments:

  1. Hmmm. Probably social media for one. It sucks away a lot of my writing time. Don't get me wrong, I love my blog, but it does create a lot of work between researching for content and then promoting it and myself. Keeping up with all the ways to do this can some days be overwelming.

    Too, I would say gaining distance from a manuscript, especially toward the end of the revision period. Sometimes I know there's a problem but I can see a way to fix it without spoiling the things that are working well. Getting a MS that last 10% can be hard for me.

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  2. Yes, time is my kryptonite. I only have one weapon in the battle against it- type faster CQG, type faster....

    PS- you've got an award on me blog:)

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  3. Excellent post!

    I love the journey to becoming a better writer and one day a published one, the journey is bumpy at times but it's part of me and I enjoy working through it!

    I'm like you and share ideas way too soon, I don't think it's always bad because the hubs can tell me what he's thinking but there are times where I'm like "Give me some time it's just an idea!!" lol

    Oh my gosh my I so know the Spin Doctors, my sister used to date one of them, lol!

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  4. Facebook is mine. I spend way too much time on there.

    BTW -- I've given you an award on my blog today! :)

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  5. I just pulled this cd out yesterday to listen to! Love that song!

    A writer once told me: write with the door closed, edit with the door open. Too many opinions when you're nurturing that idea can kill it before it has a chance to grow.

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  6. My kryptonite is this little voice in my head that talks negatively to me...That and not having spell check on every single form of written communication.

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  7. Oooh, you have 95 followers :)
    For me, the journey is everything. As to the kryptonite -- Internet. I love it and I hate it and must learn to tame my use of it.

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  8. My kriptonite: sleep. Or lack thereof. I don't function well without it, and always seem to need more than I have time for!

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  9. I like the statement that the journey never ends. There is always something to explore and discover regardless of age...

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  10. Great question! I'd like to borrow it for The Question of the Day, and link back to you, of course.

    My kryptonite is story. Just like your journey, story will grab hold of me and won't let go, no matter how frustrated I am or how dark I have to go until it's told in full.

    Can you tell my WIP is driving me cRaZy?!?!

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  11. Jen, That is so cool that your sister dated one of them!

    Sure you can use it Suzanne! I'd be delighted.

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Your Random Thoughts are most welcome!