Questions for Writers
- When did you realize you had some talent for writing?
The answer for me is tricky. I suppose before I realized that I had at least a modicum of talent for writing, I realized I was an absolute catastrophe as an artist. As early as kindergarten, I can recall looking over at other students little pictures and colorings and admiring them because mine looked like — CRAP! I was so bad that I hid my own pathetic efforts from my parents because I knew that they would tape them up to the fridge and thus make a monument to my failings while telling me lies about how good they were! Finally, in around fourth grade, I wrote a story that my teacher loved and had me read it in front of the entire fourth grade. I LOVED it. In high school, the formulaic nature of essays didn’t suit me, so my confidence got somewhat rocked by middling grades. However, I excelled in writing for the school paper and was actually hired by the community paper which restored my confidence lol. I guess it has been a yo-yo journey for me and it continues to be. I have some articles here that have 500 reads and others that are adrift in literary tumbleweeds! I would love to hear your story!
2. Do you have any odd talents?
I do! I can remember song lyrics verbatim without effort. I mean I have thousands upon thousands of songs memorized in my head which has actually lead to some pretty cool remunerations at Happy Hour “Name That Tune” contests. I have come away with bicycles, TVs, etc. I am wondering if there is some common thread in those of us who can entertain via the written word. By the way, this talent of mine comes with a high price tag for my family. The extent of my talent in remembering song lyrics conversely parallels my lack of talent in singing said songs. I enjoy singing even though I suck, which is terribly unfortunate for my wife, children, and dog.
3. Do you actually ENJOY writing?
I do not…most of the time. Every once in a while, I get on a streak and really enjoy it. Most times though, I like to THINK about writing but don’t actually like sitting down and getting to work .
4. Do you have a writing “place”?
Again, I do. My favorite place to write is in one of the study cubicles at our local public library. I can go in there and sit for hours sometimes. A secondary place is our local Starbucks, but I don’t like it if someone bumps my chair or something. Of course, I CAN write other places, but those places are my preference.
5. Do you listen to music while you write?
I do. I don’t listen to the sound of silence unless I am actually listening to “The Sound of Silence”. Even then, I like classical music better even though I don’t like classical music in general.
6. Do you write long or short stuff and if you write both , which do you like better?
I am TRYING to write a book, BUT I definitely like shorter pieces better. I am going berserk trying to piece the novel ( which is non-fiction and true crime AND has several sections on Medium) together in a reasonable, fluid way. Shorter pieces don’t require that kind of horrifying frustration.
7. Do you get the feeling that people aren’t really honest when responding to your writing?
I definitely do. Perhaps there is a quirkiness in a lot of our personalities, but I for one, tend to think people are just being nice when they give me favorable responses. I am not a perfectionist in any other aspect of life really, but I generally feel that all of my work is unpolished. I don’t think it is BAD per se ( sometimes I do , and sometimes I am right!) it just never seems “done”
I hope this isn’t one of my posts that elicits the sound of metaphorical crickets, because I really and curious.