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Get some Energy behind It!

edited July 2012 in Writing
Energy is Infectious

It is. You know when someone is inspired by what they’re doing. They light up. They glow. They radiate their enthusiasm. All metaphors for energy. It doesn’t matter if you’re talking to them face to face, or watching them on TV, you just know that they’re sharing their thing with you, whatever their thing is, because they really believe in it. And even if their thing isn’t your thing, you can’t help but feel their energy.

In the same way, you can tell when writers believe in their work. You can tell when they’re fired up and you can tell when they’re jaded. You sometimes find this towards the end of a book – and if you’ve written one, you may have experienced this from both sides – if the writer is tired and can’t be bothered anymore, the plot sags, the characters wilt and the whole thing just runs out of steam. But if the writer has you energetically hooked from the start, then even if they do dip occasionally, you’ll forgive them.

You can unpack your new toaster, and sit back and admire it. Or you can plug it into the energy supply and make toast.

Think about what a book is – a collection of symbols on a page or a screen. In and of themselves, they mean nothing. Assembled in some sort of sensible order, they impart information. But put some energy behind them, and they radiate your intention. That’s what readers pick up on. They know when the writer believes in it, and they know when they don’t. Writing is more than literary eloquence - it’s the ability to stir emotions in another person separated from us by time and space. And if particles can do it, damn sure writers can. Full article on http://www.freeyourib.com/?page_id=308

Comments

  • I have a sudden urge for glowing toast...off to read the rest of the article first though.
  • pbwpbw
    edited July 2012
    I love the images of books and toast, or toasting my book, or booking my toast - hot buttered, please.

    'Fifty Slices Of Hot Buttered...'
  • Sorry, just that talk of toast has got me hungry...
  • I've just eaten a home made meat pie - so delicious. Now Maureen has made a jam sponge. YUMMY.
  • [quote=Lib Salisbury]if the writer is tired and can’t be bothered anymore, the plot sags, the characters wilt and the whole thing just runs out of steam. But if the writer has you energetically hooked from the start, then even if they do dip occasionally, you’ll forgive them. [/quote]

    That's a very good point, and so true - I'll have to remember that!
  • edited July 2012
    So to summarise this technique,

    Plug in Toaster --> make toast (+/-butter) --> eat toast --> write bestseller.


    Flawless.

    :)
  • [quote=Lib Salisbury]You can unpack your new toaster, and sit back and admire it. Or you can plug it into the energy supply and make toast.[/quote]

    I plug mine in and make sparks. That's writing for ya.
  • I can feel the electricity!
  • I'm shocked into action
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