I love this apartment

[sun_set_bravely]

There is so much sunlight flooding my living room this afternoon that I think I'm actually getting some color in my cheeks. I'm doing some music promotion work, and I am getting a light mid-winter tan. I may start working in my bathing suit.

Okay, not really; it's not that warm in here.

I feel back on track after a few weeks of spinning-brain-syndrome, mostly related to the move. It's amazing what two mochas and writing time with a kindred spirit will do! Also, writing practice. How do I forget this so often? It almost always improves my mood and re-centers my brain. I'd make a note to myself, but I'd just forget to read it. This must be my path.

Comments

[tallgirl.livejournal.com]

By "writing practice" do you mean prompts and such to get yourself started? Do you have a particular source for these exercises?

[sun-set-bravely.livejournal.com]

Not quite. What I'm talking about are what Julia Cameron would call "morning pages" (I think), or Natalie Goldberg would call "timed writings." I sit down, write for 15 minutes about anything, without stopping or re-reading, and then put the pages away and get to my project at hand. These pages turn into anything from dull brain-drain writing to alive, present-tense writing. It's like my warm-up.

[tallgirl.livejournal.com]

Okay, that's interesting...do you go back and read them later? I imagine that sometimes they go in the recycling bin and some are actually used for later somethings.

(Sorry for all the questions. I'm just really interested in other writers' working spaces and processes.)

[sun-set-bravely.livejournal.com]

I don't mind the questions at all! I'd love to hear how your writing days work, too.

I save all of these spirals of writing practice, and when I finish one spiral, I go back through and read everything with a gentle eye and a pencil, and I circle the phrases or sentences that are truly present and alive. I copy those down somewhere else, and then file away the spiral in my cabinet. (I took this practice from Natalie Goldberg's Writing Down the Bones.) Because I'm also a packrat, I keep all of these spirals. I know that some people let them go, so YMMV. In the short term, they're helpful because they help me clear my brain of daily deitritus, and in the long term, some entries help me better understand the movement of my thoughts.

Some questions for you: how do you structure your writing days? How do you start them off, and also, how do you return to your projects after time away from them? When you hit a funky spell, how do you reboot?

[oceanic.livejournal.com]

We used to call those "freewrites" in high school. I have notebooks and notebooks full of that stuff. It really gets your brain flowing and helps you weed out all the static and floating bits of things. I've always found them very helpful, but then again, I don't write professionally or as anything more than a sanity-maintaining hobby, so...

Hooray for sun!

[tallgirl.livejournal.com]

I'm still trying to figure out how to structure my writing days. Right now, there are things I have to do in order to "get to work." I really like to have the bed made and the dishes done before I sit down to work. For some reason, if the dishes aren't done, eventhough they're in another room, they will really bother me and I'll be distracted and I'll want to get up to do them. Other things, such as a messy living room, don't bother me as much.

I usually start my time on the computer by checking my email and livejournal and now...another distraction, myspace. I give myself some time to do those things so (hopefully) they won't be such a distraction when I'm actually working. I wish I had a separate computer that didn't have internet access. Sometimes, I'll leave and go to a coffee shop and write in a notebook. It helps my productivity sometimes to just get out of the house.
This would also answer the question of how I "reboot." I tend to take a lot of breaks. If I'm really struggling, I'll take a shower or leave the house for a while. I'll post in livejournal or I'll read. I usually do something to try and re-motivate myself.

I'm not sure how I approach projects after time away. It usually helps for me to reread it several times, even out loud. I like to mess around with structure--switching around paragraphs, changing the way a piece begins. Often times it will change into something entirely new. I play around alot and have several versions of things saved.

I don't feel as if my answers are very articulate. How would you answer the same questions?

[treehousegal.livejournal.com]

should i bring my swimsuit to NY and come sunbathe in your apartment? hmmmmmm...sounds good!

[sun-set-bravely.livejournal.com]

Totally! I'll make margaritas and we can get freak1c to fan us with palm fronds like a cabana boy.

[treehousegal.livejournal.com]

Only if he wears fraying cut-offs and lots of tanning oil!
but seriously...would you guys have any free time on sat. afternoon to meet up with me and thomas?

[sun-set-bravely.livejournal.com]

Yes! Call us on Saturday morning and we can find a place and time to meet up. Phone numbers are on their way in an e-mail!

[missprune.livejournal.com]

Sunlight flooding your living room, that sounds wonderful indeed!

[missprune.livejournal.com]

That is the second time I have seen YMMV in two days. What does it mean??

[sun-set-bravely.livejournal.com]

"Your Mileage May Vary." I love that one -- it's so efficient!

[gurdonark.livejournal.com]

Music promotion work! What fun.

I'm glad you're settling in after the move.

[inahandbasket]

it's a lovely apartment. Jealous of all your sunlight!