I want you guys to all know that I have been writing EVERY DAY.
I haven't been forcing myself and I haven't been scribbling random meaningless shit down onto paper each day.I haven't been on a schedule. ("Okay, I'm going to write at least one poem every day. Or half a page of prose.") NONE OF THAT BULLSHIT.I have so many wonderful songs and poems springing from honest emotion. It's funny the way that it all comes out once you're willing to be really honest with yourself about what you're feeling and freely expressing those feelings. It's great. It's therapeutic. It's cliche. It's beautiful.I've also been recording "reminder" bits on my phone so I don't forget what I want my songs to sound like. In doing so I have noticed, much to my disappointment, that my phone's mic is WAY better than my computer's. But it'll be fine. Thank jeebus Shaq gave me one for Christmas a couple years ago!Ugh, I just feel so FANTASTIC. For once, when someone asks me what I do or when I'm talking to someone about it, I can boldly proclaim that I am a WRITER. There's no disclaimer and no guilt and no retraction. "Well, I'm a writer but I haven't really had time/haven't written in a long time/don't really write that much."Nope.I really am a writer now and it just feels lovely and wonderful.I'm going places nowadays.I think a big part of it was letting go of the "novelist" idealistic scenario, because, you see, I'm not a story teller. I am an observer. I'm a manipulator. I can reach through your chest and grab your heart and make it do and feel whatever I want.I can whisper magic words into your ear and show you whatever it is I want you to see. I am a poet and I am an author of flash fiction. I am a songwriter, and that does not make me less of a writer.I don't need to pressure myself to become something that I'm not comfortable being just because some people think that it's a more valid form of art than mine.Because fuck them.OH, ANYWAY. THE NEWS.So as you all probably remember I purchased my domain name (abbeyminor.com) almost two years ago. I got tired of waiting on a design so I'm now using it as a redirect to my writing blog on tumblr. To look at it isn't much, but it certainly feels big to have a dotcom with my name on it. So there's that if anyone is interested.That's where I will be showcasing any and all work I produce from here on out. I'm tired of putting good work on facebook only to get a few nice comments from people who I know do not read or write unless they have to. Compliments are SO AWESOME, and I'm not complaining, but it would be nice to get some real feedback or a small following. It's just not the same when it's people you know. There's a filter there. They see you and then they see the piece, you know?Anyways hopefully someone is still alive out there and sees this blog and checks out the website. I know I can probably count on Juurian for that at least, haha.Thanks guys.Being here has been really, really helpful, because I can say all the things I want to talk about that nobody really cares to hear about IRL. So thanks, for real. Even if you're just lurking. <3 <3
You're welcome.
Holy cow there's so much good stuff there.
I wish I could give a good critique, but I'm not that well versed.Sometimes I like to lurk.
Sometimes I come across something that is especially shiny and feel that I must have it.Sometimes I feel like Santa, leaving one smallpresentcomment while I make off with mycookiesshiny.That had nothing to do with anything.Anyway, it's good to hear that you've found some direction, and yes, switching from novels to nearly anything else is going to feel relieving and productive, because you can see an end result much sooner and work a lot faster. By comparison, novels take an average of three to six months to finish (edits and all), where short stories would take you probably a month at most. Novels are far more difficult to publish due to the dedication required from agents and publishers, but shorts are far less daunting and can be read in less than an hour.However, I don't ever recall anyone saying that people who aren't novelists aren't writers. Novel writing is just one branch of the same tree with shorts, poetry, flash fiction, lyrics, screenplay, and others. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise.I wouldn't rule out novels as a manipulative medium though. If emotional storytelling is your goal, it should be possible throughout any medium you're comfortable working with. It just takes a different level of finesse, that's all. I for one am most comfortable with novels because I have difficulty telling a compelling story in only a few pages. But to combat this, I've written a few short stories and novellas to expand my horizons a bit.Anyway, good luck and it's always good to see another writer feeling inspired and productive.Thank you juurian! That really means a lot to me. :)
kilin, thank you, too! Honestly I'm not sure if anyone ever said that to me but it's just how I felt. Anytime you ever hear someone talking about the fact that they're a writer (or at least in my experience) they go on to talk about the book they're working on. And that's just not me. I get bored wayyyyy too quickly and I get too into description which makes for a boring book to most. I absolutely believe and know for a fact that novels are manipulative… I'm just no good at the extended story telling aspect of them. But the Great Gatsby, Chopin's the Awakening, Kafka's Metamorphosis… All made me cry and throw things, and they all changed my life. I jump up and down when something that I've wanted to happen happens. Oh, I love it.anyways, I digress.I appreciate receiving validation, encouragement, and support from other creatives in a setting that's not just people commenting vaguely and without meaning on someone else 's work in the hopes of getting a comment back on their own because nothing makes me question the validity of critique more than being in that kind of a community.you guys are rock stars. <3