Jax's Artistic Journey...

Why does the EUREKA moment feel like such a labor intensive journey?

Mr. Right and I were driving around town on his day off. He decided to ask me about my writing progress. I was reluctant to discuss it with him since I've been stuck for a few months now. I'm in what authors call the 'ick' zone--y'know, when everything reads like crap. I couldn't seem to get into the storyline hardcore like I used to because there was too much churning in my head. In fact, I was having sleepless nights from not being able to shut down my brain before bedtime. I told him about my world building and at a stop light he turned his head, pushed his sunglasses down his nose, and peered at me.





Mr. Right: You know what you need to do?

Me: What?!

Mr. Right: Keep it simple.

I pouted.

That was the end of the conversation.

Not the one in my head, mind you, but at least it dawned on me that he was right. If anyone knows me, I'm the most stubborn soul and I can argue for days on any topic...but in this case I knew it was a losing fight.

When I think up a storyline I tend to build my universe like I would in a high concept movie. My ideas take on a life of its own and when it does, I want to put everything I see in my mind's eye into the manuscript. I want to fill in enough details to help the reader understand what I'm seeing...but as readers, no one wants to have to learn about the world--they want to live it.

A part of maturing as a writer is understanding and accepting defeat. I realize that to be a successful writer I need to think like a reader again. I need to make the world I build more intimate and believable. Mostly, I need to keep it simple. I'm one who totally hates re-writes but I know when I do start over I'm going to do it right the second time around. Now that I've caught up on all my graphics work, I must do the thing that I've been pushing aside. I'm going to finish my proposal so I can finally send it out. I'm hoping that this eye opening words of wisdom from Mr. Right will help me get a contract by the end of the year! That's my goal and I'm sticking to it.

Now go write....

I love my new WIP, a contemporary romance set in Paris!

And...

I love characters full of baggage. People who seem to have everything stacked against them, yet their perserverance keeps them rolling forward. My heroines are terribly flawed. They are either a perpetual rollercoaster type personality or completely sealed in a glass box looking out. Why do I write these types of characters? Frankly, because I understand them. They are pieces of me. Pieces of friends and acquaintances. Pieces of those I observe and hear. Yet beyond the walls my h/h build around themselves, I can see their beauty. I can reveal that shimmering light that breaks through the dark clouds and when I am satisfied that the world sees them too, then I know it's one damn fine story!

I truly believe writing is a therapy. It allows us to explore our own fragile state and provides us with the right tools to either move beyond who we are....or leaving us with more questions. It's not necessarily a bad thing. It powers us up so that we can create more and as our words are spilling onto the pages, the weight seems to lift off our shoulders. When I don't write, when I am frustrated and seem unable to find my way through the dark tunnels that some perceive as 'writer's block'...I feel a sadness wash over me because words are my light. Words are the flames that will lead me back. The stories are the colors that slowly blossom in our mind's eye to comfort us and stays with us to warm our souls.

I love writing. I am blessed I am able to paint this picture for my readers.