I started writing a completely different post to this but recent events have put me in a dark mental place and I suspect I'm not the only one.
First there was Orlando. There are no words for the pointless destruction wrought on the people in the night club there. I'm not going to share any more of that hate though, I'm going to share a bit of love:
And then...I won't go into politics here, but most of you reading this will be well aware that the UK is having a referendum on whether or not to leave the EU. I attempted to engage in debate about this - true, informed, educated debate designed to help all involved, including myself, have a better picture of the potential impact of the referendum result.
I was polite, restrained, mildly funny and I got completely trolled on twitter for it. Nasty, aggressive, rude, sometimes moderately informed, always biased and vile team trolling. I withdrew. There was no debate to be had, I was hunted by a group of campaigners actively requesting assistance to "Take down this b*tch."
And now Jo Cox, Labour M.P. for Batley and Spen, has been killed and I don't know if it has anything to do with the referendum but I can't help but feel the nature of some quarters of the campaign verbally reflect precisely the aggressive and violent actions that brought this young woman's life to an end.
I am tearful. I am sad. I am in no mood to write - but....
I have a book to finish.
So how do you control your mood so you can effectively produce what's needed on the page?
1. Listen to music.
Music can turn your mood around - you can pump up your heart rate or swell with emotion if you choose the right sound track. I never listen to music when I'm writing ( well, rarely, sometimes classical tracks) but I often do to get me in the mood before writing. Guaranteed mood changers for me are:
- Eminem's Lose Yourself is my power up track.
- Pharrell Williams Happy to cheer me up:
- Coldplay's Fix You to make me weepy:
2. Pretend:
I used to be an actor, where pretend is your bread and butter. Here are a few simple tricks for you:
- If you're down and you need to not be, force yourself to smile - this can genuinely work.
- If you need to write something upbeat and strong try the Wonderwoman stance. Stand up, raise both arms in a V above your head then bring your fists down to your hips, arms akimbo. Job done. You are powered up.
- Need to write a sad scene but you're full of the joys of spring? This is hard, be prepared to dig deep - think about something really sad that happened to you. Touch all the emotion but don't let it swallow you - this is work, you are using your experience for your writing so you need to control it.
- Stand in front of a mirror and act out your character's part - be sincere and note how your feelings actually feel.
In the light of what's happened recently, I want to recommend a couple of books that make you think and might just make the world a better place.
Jeannie Waudby's One of Us
Robin Talley's Lies We Tell Ourselves.
Lisa Williamson's The Art of Being Normal.
Please make your own recommendations in the comments section.
Play nice. Be kind. Let's be better.
Thanks, Addy. And that's more books to add to an already impossibly long list! My favourite is still the last line in 'Little Boy Lost' by Marghanita Laski, but I can't say it here as it would give the story away. It has me blubbing every time. I even stole the name of that character for one of my own stories as an homage to the book but it didn't get picked up. (Still might
This post began with a conversation between Addy and me about a moment in Millions by Frank Cottrell Boyce that takes you emotionally by surprise. Addy said, I can do a post on that! And she did - in the most inclusive way! Thanks, Addy! Notes from the Slushpile really feels like a lovely community with this post! Such a blubworthy list!<br /><br />... er but what happened to Millions?
Re Grandfather's Bench - was this the grandfather married to <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UkBnHri8oHE" rel="nofollow">fighter pilot gran</a>?
Aw - thanks, Clare. I will have to read it!
I've lost Millions! I love Millions! Shame but now an excuse for a future blog for all those lost words.
Ha! No! This grandfather was more Private Peaceful!
Made me cry - a lot. <br />I can't read The Selfish Giant (Oscar Wilde) or the moment in The Children of Green Knowe ( L.M.Boston) where Tolly & his great grandmother hear 'Lully lullay' on Christmas Eve " and four hundred years ago, a baby went to sleep."<br />Thanks hive mind.
Oh, that's lovely, I'd forgotten Green KNowe - there is soooooo much beautiful writing.
Ridiculous to blub just at these tiny fragments, isn't it? But lovely too. Beautiful selection, Addy. I just finished A MONSTER CALLS and was beside myself with grief and wonder. "I don't want you to go." *lays head on table and sobs self stupid*
Oh I KNOW!
I've cried more at that book than any other!
I have two book moments. The first has taken a bit of finding, it's Mrs Weasley. She's trying to get rid of a boggart from a wardrobe but it keeps turning into her dead children - 'I see them d-d-dead all the time!' Mrs Weasley moaned into his shoulder. 'All the time! I d-d-dream about it.' It was a great way to show the seriousness of the fight against evil has real