Ellie Lieberman's Blog: Dusty Shelves - Posts Tagged "flying-by-the-seat-of-my-pants"
A Hike In The Forest
Writing a book is like taking a hike in a forest. You might have a map, a clearly marked trail, and even signs to point you in the right direction. However, I’ve never been good at reading maps. My curiosity tends to lead me off the trail. And if, by some miracle, I can find or don’t miss the signs, I don’t always want to follow what it says.
If you ask my boyfriend or my mother, they’d probably smirk and remark about how I always have to be the rebel. And there’s a truth to that. From the time I was in kindergarten, I colored outside the lines. Not because I couldn’t stay within them, but because I didn’t like to and I didn’t think I should have to. To this day my socks cannot match.
I do not like to be confined by the rules and the maps and the signs. Even if I am the one creating them. And neither do my characters. They want the same freedom, and quite honestly, are part of what leads me off the path.
Nobody should hike alone, and when you’re writing, you are joined by many companions. For me, they tend to be the leaders in this journey, because muses help me if I deny them that. Marshmallows go missing, as do the chocolate, and graham crackers are too bland to eat alone. Equipment disappears, rocks start flying, and they will not let me rest until I follow along.
Flying by the seat of my pants, or where the characters drag me, is not only simply part of my personality as a whole, but self preservation.
That being said, I’ve started on a new adventure. There are certain requirements to follow, such as word count and deadlines, and I am starting to dabble in some forms of planning. While the characters are taking the lead, they seem as lost as I am. I can’t seem to make sense of the map yet (am I holding it upside down), and it doesn’t help I’m dragging a two ton dragon along.
In short, you should probably never choose me as your hiking buddy.
If you ask my boyfriend or my mother, they’d probably smirk and remark about how I always have to be the rebel. And there’s a truth to that. From the time I was in kindergarten, I colored outside the lines. Not because I couldn’t stay within them, but because I didn’t like to and I didn’t think I should have to. To this day my socks cannot match.
I do not like to be confined by the rules and the maps and the signs. Even if I am the one creating them. And neither do my characters. They want the same freedom, and quite honestly, are part of what leads me off the path.
Nobody should hike alone, and when you’re writing, you are joined by many companions. For me, they tend to be the leaders in this journey, because muses help me if I deny them that. Marshmallows go missing, as do the chocolate, and graham crackers are too bland to eat alone. Equipment disappears, rocks start flying, and they will not let me rest until I follow along.
Flying by the seat of my pants, or where the characters drag me, is not only simply part of my personality as a whole, but self preservation.
That being said, I’ve started on a new adventure. There are certain requirements to follow, such as word count and deadlines, and I am starting to dabble in some forms of planning. While the characters are taking the lead, they seem as lost as I am. I can’t seem to make sense of the map yet (am I holding it upside down), and it doesn’t help I’m dragging a two ton dragon along.
In short, you should probably never choose me as your hiking buddy.
