Sunday, April 10, 2011 | By: Unknown

Deviousness and The Writerly of the World

Letter D, zacden, sxc.hu
We writerly types can be very devious indeed. We scheme, plot and devise bloody deaths for people we know and even a few people we don't know. We contemplate ways to get away with the perfect murder, or how to live on another world on a less than perfect planet. Occasionally, we take forays into magical worlds filled with all types of mystical and mythical beings. Other worlds are inhabited by vampires and werewolves.

The world of fiction writing is perfect for unleashing all the negative feelings we puny humans deal with everyday. The characters in the stories aren't real so no harm done, but that doesn't mean we're not envisioning a friend or family member as the one being brutalized while we're writing it. It can be quite cathartic.

Writerly people are also masters at being devious enough to avoid working on days the words just won't flow. We've all done it. You peruse every status posting by every person in your network for the past six days. You invent reasons to hang out in groups to talk to people or play games. Researching an obscure term just took top priority on your things to do list. Anything shiny within your field of vision is a good enough reason to chase it.

In writing and in life itself, the writerly are masters of deviousness. We can kill people all day long and get away with it, or hang out yakking because we can't muster the words or energy to dismember someone. Whatever the reason, never lose the devious streak lest your writing suffer.

6 comments:

Tony Payne said...

I really hate having to try and write something when I am under pressure and the words just won't flow.

I also sometimes begin a wonderful article, but run out of time and have to come back to it to finish it, by which time my muse has left me.

Unknown said...

I am more of a non-fiction than a fiction writer, but I struggle sometimes getting the words right, even when the truth is right there in front of me.

Marie Anne said...

I've not written fiction, but I wonder if I would be devious or deviant.

Popping in by way of the A-Z Challenge. I’m blogging at:
Write, Wrong or Indifferent
Marie Anne’s Missives
In the Garden With Sow-n-Sow
Every Day Crochet

Theresa Wiza said...

Writing screenplays – for me – is magical. I enter a world that I created filled with people I've birthed and once their characters become firmly etched into existence, they tell me what's next. The whole process is exhilarating. And no, none of my screenplays have made it to the big screen – yet! http://myheartblogstoyou.blogspot.com/

Jolie du Pre said...

The main character in my novel is a killer, literally. LOL (Jolie du Pre)

Derek Odom said...

LOL this was a genius post. *raises hand slowly* <--- guilty.

Hi, I'm Derek, and i'm a procrastorholic. :P