Write Club Session Three: Asking a Question
The prompt for this session is...asking a question. I think. At least, that's what I've gathered from what @jayna told us. I had already started writing a post for Steemit but decided to make some changes and apply it to the prompt. It's about the king of the gods being cast out and forced to live among the mortals he supposedly holds so dear (unlike the rest of his 'siblings'). He spends his years there alone, and one day a woman comes along and asks him the same question every day: "Why are you alone?"
That's about as far as I've gotten in the story (a little over one thousand words). I've really enjoyed it so far, more than I've enjoyed my writing for the last month. It's not that I don't enjoy writing; I do. I love it. But I put a lot of pressure on myself to do well and I stress out to the point where it affects the quality of the work I'm producing (which compounds the stress I'm already feeling). Adding to that is Steemit (aside from a meager Social Security check for my disability) becoming my sole source of earned income. We're about to move in March (hopefully) so I can't quite get a job yet.
But now I think I'm hitting strides in my writing, which brings me to the next heading...
Changing Writing Styles
For the past month, my writing hasn't been as good as I want it to be. I had intentionally avoided workshopping anything due to time constraints (I had bills needed paying) and was hoping to create something worthwhile to get some good upvotes. But therein lies another problem: rushing work to get paid. It's something I loathe. I don't like it when published authors do it, and I certainly can't stand it coming from myself. I was telling everybody that I was intending on workshopping more, and I've failed to hold up my end of the bargain.
It's frustrating being put in such a position, moreso when that position has been forced upon by my own hand (quitting my job was a stupid idea). But I'm also lucky to be able to do this and not put my wife under too big a strain, though recent circumstances suggest that I need to step up big time. I've been able to pay the bills just fine (I volunteered to consistently pay them myself), but coming up with my portion of the rent has been the biggest struggle, and one I recognize is my fault.
I hate failing. Worse than that, though, is failing my wife, who has done nothing but support me in this venture one hundred and fifty percent.
So I decided to switch things up a bit. I changed my writing style. Third-person omniscient instead of third-person limited, where I have more control as a narrator rather than being forced to detail things from the perspective of a specific character (hence the 'limited' aspect).
As an example of how this works:
When Mr. Bilbo Baggins of Bag End announced that he would shortly be celebrating his eleventy-first birthday with a party of special magnificence, there was much talk and excitement in Hobbiton. -- The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, J.R.R. Tolkien, Houghton Mifflin, Copyright 1954, 1965, 1966.
There is 'telling' involved for sure, but it feels more natural. I started my story this way (not the exact same, mind you), and everything seems to flow better. I hope to show what I've been doing fairly soon.
Sorry for how long and personal this became. That wasn't my intention. See ya'll soon!