November 5, 2011

Writing: Throw Paint on the Canvas

Life is a big canvas, throw all the paint on it you can. Danny Kaye

When I'm starving for blog post ideas, I hit the buffet of quotes on the Internet. There's something for everyone, and the perfect quote for every need.

Today, Kaye's quote popped out at me. My canvas is a blank page. I sit down, take a prompt, and start typing. Throwing caution to the wind, the words pour out of me. I try not to stop them.

Once the canvas is full, I walk away for a minute. Let it dry. When I come back, I have a more objective view of the scene. Some words get tossed aside, but some spring into a life all their own. A piece of work I never expected.

Rarely is a word wasted. I can start on one theme and end up with three posts. Or I can free write and end up with a new story idea.

National Novel Writing Month is a great time to remember Kaye's lesson. Write, write, write. Squelch your inner editor for the time being and give words freedom. What you end up with on November 30th is a blueprint. A starting point for something. It's not meant to be a finished novel, but draft one of many.

Although I'm not participating in NaNo, I'm embracing the spirit of it. I'm writing, every single day, and letting the editor take a break until 2012. Just words filling up my canvas... throwing all the paint on it I can.

5 comments:

Ruth Nestvold said...

Nice quote, Tia, thanks! And good luck with Nanowrimo. :)

Katie Gates said...

Wonderful post, and what a great idea to read through quotes in search of inspiration. I may try that one of these days!

Tia Bach said...

Thanks, Katie & Ruth. I love inspirational or thought-provoking quotes, and it's such an easy way to jumpstart creativity for posting.

I appreciate you stopping by and commenting!

Anonymous said...

This is wonderful advice and a wonderful quote. Free-writing can be very helpful when hitting a block. Sometimes I do this, and then I take one piece from that to develop into a new post.

Tia Bach said...

Thanks! Free writing always produces something of value for me!