Tag Archives: not writing

Another Non-Sequitur Thursday

Posted on March 13, 2015 by mohawkvalleygirl

When I left for work this morning I did NOT bring the puzzle book which was part of my downfall the other day. I was going to WRITE on my breaks. I did bring a printout of the article I was working on for Mohawk Valley Living. I thought I could work on it.

I got to work early enough to write. I looked over the article. Marked out how I wanted to rearrange the paragraphs. Added a sentence or two. Made a couple of notes of things to look up further. This was great. I felt like a real magazine writer.

It was time to begin work before I got much else done. At my nine o’clock break, I thought I might work on a blog post. Couldn’t think of anything. I’d written a bunch of notes on my novel (currently at something of a standstill) but felt I could add nothing to them. My play was in the other notebook.

That play. I’m going to be seeing the fellow I’m writing it for next week. And I don’t think it is very good. I think I have some major plot problems. I began writing a synopsis of the plot, so as to get a better handle on what I had going on. I continued the synopsis during my lunch break (pausing to call and talk to my husband, obviously a very important thing to do). I think it is very complicated.

When I got home, I got to work on stuff to submit to Mohawk Valley Living, the deadline for which is tomorrow. I finished my article. I took two previous blog posts and edited them for submission. This, I might add, was a long and complicated process, given my old and infirm desktop computer (I’m composing this on the acer). May I just add, the comfortable feeling of being a real magazine writer did not last.

All this by way of saying, I’m too tired to also write a blog post. However, if my dearest husband can help me come up with a catchy title, we can call this another Non-Sequitur Thursday.

Leave a comment

Posted in humor, Non Sequitur Thursday, personal, Why I Cant Write a Post, writing and tagged , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

But You Should Have Read That Post in My Head

Posted on February 28, 2015 by mohawkvalleygirl

So there I was trying to write a blog post when it suddenly became clear: what I composed in my head while I was working (it’s OK, it’s the kind of job I can daydream and do properly) does not necessarily translate through my pen and onto the paper.

Oh, there are the Know-It-Alls gearing up to say, “I could have told you that would happen. You can’t THINK about things before you write them, you have to just WRITE.” Blah, blah, blah. I think I know better than to listen to those yahoos by now. Yes, sometimes it is better to sit down at the page (or screen) tabula rasa as it were and see what comes out. Sometimes it helps to think about it first. How much thinking you ought to do varies.

That last sentence is the crux of the matter. The thing is, any piece of writerly advice — even wise, insightful advice (and any advice that begins with a sniff and “I could have told you that would happen” is probably neither wise nor insightful) — is only good some of the time. Every piece of writing is different. What works for one may be a disaster for another. Likewise, one writer’s Rosetta Stone is another writer’s brick wall (ooh, isn’t that a nice metaphor?) (now I’m remembering another piece of writerly advice: if you write something particularly fine, strike it out. I forget who said it).

Another thing about advice is: most people like to give it, few people like to take it. I don’t much like to listen to advice myself, especially if I haven’t asked for it. So anybody gearing up to offer advice on this blog post, NEVER MIND! Unless you’d like to leave a comment. I like when people leave comments. But if you comment with advice, I will probably not follow it.

In case anybody hasn’t noticed, today is Lame Post Friday.

2 Comments

Posted in blogging, commentary, humor, Lame Post Friday, personal, writing and tagged , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

At Least the Turnover Was Good

Posted on February 18, 2015 by mohawkvalleygirl

In my defense, I have a sinus headache.

I thought I would lead with that instead of making it the headline.  Now I don’t have a headline.  Yes, it’s Tired Tuesday.  I was working on my play during breaks at work today.  I was aware, somewhere in the back of my mind, that I did not have an idea of what to write a blog post about today.  If I was smart I would have spent some time thinking about it.  And here we come to the ugly truth about me.

When I got home I looked in my notebook and found a post I started in January about Munson Williams Proctor Art Institute, which I had visited in December with a sister and a friend.  I thought I could use it, so I typed it in.  Turns out, not so much.  I need to work on it.

I know, I KNOW, just work on it now.  I draw your attention to the first sentence of the post.

The other thought I had was to give another shout-out to Heidelberg Bakery, because my husband went there earlier and bought us bread and a treat.  I thought I could spend at least a couple of hundred words expounding on the delightful experience of eating a chocolate turnover. Yum!

Then again, who wants to read the word “yum” two hundred times?  I’m thinking it is marginally more entertaining to read about me not writing.  But perhaps I flatter myself.  I hope you’ll tune in tomorrow,  Wednesday, when I will strive not to Wuss Out.

Leave a comment

Posted in blogging, humor, personal, Tired Tuesday and tagged , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Not Writer’s Block

Posted on February 6, 2015 by mohawkvalleygirl

It is not Writer’s Block. It is not Writer’s Blank. It is not Writer’s Anything! It is I Can’t Write Anymore!

I suppose I just proved myself wrong with that last paragraph, because, you know, I wrote it. But perhaps I have proven myself right with some of my previous posts (Only SOME? the inner critic carps).

That is what I wrote while at work today. And there did not seem to be much more to say. Then I came home, got on the computer, and read the nice comments on yesterday’s Wuss-out Wednesday post. Surely I was selling myself short and I could write a much better post. I WOULD write a better post! But I did not.

What I did instead was to go upstairs, get on the desktop (I’m on my little ACER now) and type in what I had written previously for an article to submit to Mohawk Valley Living magazine. It is about the play I keep using as an excuse or more accurately the reason for my skimpy posts. I did not just type in what I wrote. I re-wrote the lead, I rearranged the paragraphs, I edited what was there, I added more stuff.

Yeah! I WROTE!

So this is my Non-Sequitur Thursday post about writing. It was going to be a post about not writing, but then I wrote. I feel not displeased with myself. I hope to see you all on Lame Post Friday.

Leave a comment

Posted in blogging, humor, Non Sequitur Thursday, personal, writing and tagged , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

At Last! Writer’s Block!

Posted on January 13, 2015 by mohawkvalleygirl

I think I am finally experiencing Writer’s Block. I know, I know, many people believe it does not exist. Some people don’t believe in Santa Claus either; I refuse to debate some things. Normally I suffer from Writer’s Blank. I look at the page and it remains blank because that is my state of mind. Sometimes I suffer from Write It Down And Cross It Out (or Type It In And Backspace Over It, as the case may be). This, however, I can only describe as Writer’s Block.

I have a post that I wrote last week but did not finish. I thought I would type in what I had and finish it for today’s post. Then I looked at the lead and saw that it mentioned my Christmas vacation. Did that make it dated? Should I change the lead? Go with something entirely different or just change the wording a little to indicate that the post is about an adventure I had last month?

These are not difficult questions. All I had to do was pick an option and start typing. I could even put off the decision, type in what I had, and change it later. But somewhere in the back of my mind there lurked another lead. A good lead, one that made the post… different. Better. But the words would not come forward.

Well why does that matter? I argued with myself. Just type in anything, I said. You’ll find the words you want. If not right away, you can save the draft and finish it later or tomorrow. Just BEGIN!

And I could not.

I felt literally paralyzed (this is not a misuse of the word “literally,” I really FELT AS IF I was literally paralyzed. I did not say I WAS literally paralyzed) (so don’t get didactic on me). I had a couple of other ideas for blog posts I could have gone with. I thought, just write one of those for now. I put my fingers on the keyboard. Nothing happened. I couldn’t write ANYTHING!

Except, it seems, this. We’ll call it a Middle-aged Musings Monday and hit publish. Hope to see you on Tuesday.

5 Comments

Posted in blogging, humor, Middle-aged Musings Monday, personal, writing and tagged , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Yes, I Am a Silly Blogger

Posted on January 12, 2015 by mohawkvalleygirl

I had thought to have Sunday Running Commentary. However, since it was 19 degrees out, I opted to run in place on the mini-tramp. It was not a particularly blogworthy activity (yes, computer, I know “blogworthy” is not a word, but it ought to be). While I ran, I watched a Hammer horror movie I had DVR’d back in October. Naturally I did not watch the whole movie. Perhaps someday when I am training for a marathon I shall be able to do such a thing. Today was not that day.

I suppose I am gearing up to Yet Another Post About Why I Can’t Write a Post Today. Some readers may be calling foul over that. After all, I had a Wrist to Forehead day yesterday. I had a Lame Post Friday and a Non-Sequitur Thursday. Oh yeah, and a Wuss-out Wednesday. Did I also wuss out on Tuesday? I don’t remember, and I am far too lazy to go back and check now. So you see.

“Yes, I see,” my reader is saying (that imaginary reader in my head who always says such things). “I see that you are too lazy be a real blogger! You bum!”

Can you believe this: my computer considers “blogger” to be a real word! But “blogworthy is not! What’s that all about, computer? Obviously blogworthy is a far superior and useful word. Blogger just sounds silly. Is that what I want to be? I guess I am silly. And so is my blog. I hope I still have some readers on Monday.
‘

Leave a comment

Posted in blogging, humor, personal and tagged , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

More Writing About Not Writing

Posted on December 16, 2014 by mohawkvalleygirl

Well, it is not yet Tired Tuesday it is no longer Wrist to Forehead Sunday, yet I feel I qualify for both of those days. The annoying thing is that I did so write while at work today. I wrote at least a page before my shift started then a few paragraphs more at lunch time. I felt it was not contemptible. And yet. And yet.

What I really feel moved to write right now is an explanation of why I am not publishing what I wrote earlier yet. We’ll call it a Middle-aged Musings Monday and that will make everything OK (I do like giving things names) (I’ll write a blog post abut that one day).

After writing about Steven’s first Christmas gift to me (yesterday’s post), I thought it might be fun to do a week of Christmas memories. By age 51, I have quite a few. I have even been thinking about one particular Christmas lately. The reason I have been thinking about it is that I was broke then and I am broke now. I quite naturally began my post with that thought.

After a sentence or three I thought, “Somebody is going to tell me to stop whining.” You can’t tell tone of voice from typing. I felt I was being matter-of-fact about things, but no doubt some readers would hear whining. I wrote a few more sentences trying to dispel any notion that I am not facing my circumstances with cheerfulness, fortitude and a sense of humor (I’m not, really, I daresay I do whine, but wouldn’t it be nice if I did have cheeriness, etc.?).

Then I started to ask myself, am I even that broke? After all, I still have cable television and the occasional bottle of wine. I haven’t started stealing the dog’s food nor even applied for SNAP benefits. These reflections led to some half-baked philosophy about people crying poverty when the rest of us see none. This was not a Christmas memory! What the hell, Mohawk Valley Girl? So I skipped a line and jumped into the story I had intended to write, trusting to be able to clean it up later.

By the end of the day, I felt dissatisfied with what I had written. I felt certain there was a better blog post about that Christmas. And perhaps a Lame Post Friday post about comparative poverty or cheerfulness and fortitude. After work as I walked my dog, Tabby, I pondered my options, bearing in mind that I have rehearsal tonight and I was feeling more and more tired. I thought about writing about the walk I was taking. Then I thought about writing about why I could not publish the post originally intended.

And reading back over what I have written (I know, Truman Capote, it isn’t writing, it’s typing), I kind of like it. I will strive to be a little less tired on Tuesday.

Leave a comment

Posted in blogging, humor, Middle-aged Musings Monday, personal, writing and tagged , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

I Just Write

Posted on November 15, 2014 by mohawkvalleygirl

How many different things can one blogger think of to say about not writing, that is the question. I know, you thought it was “To be or not to be,” but you were mistaken. It is Lame Post Friday and I am feeling even more lame than usual.

Hmm, that was not a bad first paragraph, or do I flatter myself? I would feel more comfortable about my future as a blogger if I had not just sat here staring at it for ten minutes unable to think of another thing to say. OK, I just said that to be dramatic. I’ve been blogging for three years and I intend to continue, lame post or not.

One accepts when one begins at a writer that some days will be better than others. At least, I accept that premise. There are those who claim that “you just write.” But we’ve covered “There is no such thing as Writer’s Block” before. And anyways, it’s Writer’s Blank.

Where was I? Oh yes, not writing and apparently unable to think of anything new to say about it. How embarrassing is that? This has been a pretty long dry spell. I mean, I have had some not terrible blog posts (or do I flatter myself?), but the novel remains at a standstill. I don’t know how good my last couple of magazine articles were. I may have had a couple of good lines in some letters and post cards I have written.

Oh hell, Cindy, just end it and get off stage. This post is lame. Try again tomorrow.

And looking back, I’m not sure how good the first paragraph was either.

3 Comments

Posted in blogging, commentary, humor, Lame Post Friday, personal, writing and tagged , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

A Word to the Wuss

Posted on November 6, 2014 by mohawkvalleygirl

I should have seen it coming that if I had a Tired Tuesday, I would only be up to a Wuss-out Wednesday the next day. Well, sorry folks. I’m down. Down, down, down in the dumps.

I spent most of the day down in the dumps. I don’t mean to be tiresome, but I just can’t always be the cheerful Mohawk Valley Girl. Some people can write when they are down. I say power to them. All I could do on breaks at work was to work on puzzles in a puzzle book. That did not improve my mood to any marked degree, because I’ve done all the puzzles I like. All that is left is puzzles that I don’t like or are too hard for me or both.

Now I am being exceptionally tiresome. What a kvetch.

In my defense, after work I did come home and do a few useful things. I worked on dismantling my container garden. Astute readers (do I have any other kind?) may remember that on Monday I felt guilty for running and not working on that or on raking the lawn. My delightful husband Steven raked the lawn on Tuesday. I wanted to contribute.

After a short Facebook break, I typed into the upstairs computer what I have written so far on my articles to submit to Mohawk Valley Living magazine. Um, I did not write them today. I did not add to them either. After exhausting myself literarily (my computer is underlining that word, but my dictionary says it is correct) if not literally, I chopped vegetables and began making a salad for my lunch tomorrow. When it was almost time for Steven to be home, I put Tabby on the leash and walked out to meet him. I could probably have written my blog post on that walk. Oh well, missed a bet.

I perceive that I am over 300 words. Perhaps they are not good words, but they are words nonetheless. Ooh, that raises a question suitable for some half-baked philosophy on Lame Post Friday: Isn’t it the ARRANGEMENT of the words that is not good and the words themselves neutral? Followed by a listing of words that I say are good words. I’ll let the reader fill in the bad words for him or herself. I bet some of you already are.

2 Comments

Posted in humor, personal, writing, Wuss Out Wednesday and tagged , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Tired of Not Writing

Posted on October 29, 2014 by mohawkvalleygirl

I just looked back at my posts for the past week and see that last week I had a Tired Tuesday. I am mortified to admit to being tired again today. I am further mortified to notice that last Tuesday I at least had the excuse that I had just done laundry. Today all I did was come home and take my dog Tabby for a walk. I had thought to write a Pedestrian Post, but my brain seems uncooperative.

In fact, all my brain seems to want to write is Wrist to Forehead Tuesday. After all, I did not have Wrist to Forehead Sunday, I wrote about something! Then yesterday I didn’t have Middle-aged Musings Monday, I wrote about something! Couldn’t I have gone three days in a row writing about something? Apparently not. That is why my wrist is inclined to go to my forehead in the usual dramatic gesture.

I’ve been having a bad writing day all day. When I got to work this morning (arriving early to have writing time, as usual), I opened my notebook and looked at it. Then I reached for my puzzle book. Many years ago, i would always do a puzzle before working on my novel (whichever novel I was working on at the time). It would clear my brain, since I was always reading somebody else’s fiction at the time. Today, however, reaching for my puzzle book was not a good idea. I have done all the puzzles I like. I am reduced to looking at the “Hard” crossword puzzles, which are, I admit it, too hard for me. Alas.

On break and at lunch I couldn’t write either. My brain rebelled. I had been thinking about my novel a lot while I was working. This usually helps. Today not so much. So here I am, writing this ridiculous blow-by-blow of me not writing. How embarrassing is that!

But what can one do? Hit “Publish” and try again tomorrow, as usual. I hope my readers are all having a pleasant Tuesday.

3 Comments

Posted in blogging, commentary, humor, personal, Tired Tuesday and tagged , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.
← Older Posts
Newer Posts →