Diddy Bopping Along

I don't know if I mentioned anything about this in any earlier posts, but if not, I'll drop this tidbit on you now then.

I'm playing online with a few other people gathered together by another blogster here and we're trying to collaborate and put together a novel.

Sound exciting? Sound like fun? I thought it might be that when I decided to take this plunge. At the least, I figured it might help me begin to learn a little bit perhaps about writing dialogue - something I've never had to conjure up before in any pieces I've ever written. I knew there was a darned good reason I liked writing articles and essays!

I HATE trying to write dialogue! I SUCK at that too! Trust me, I really do!

I don't have that much problem finding words to pull together in the other type of stuff I've been writing but tell me to put something together that indicates a conversation and I am dead in the water!

I suppose a lot of that stems too from the fact although, in general conversation, I can pretty well hold my own, but that is also very dependant on the circumstances too. How well I know the person I'm conversing with is a big factor. And, if we are just "gabbing" - talking about bits and pieces of things weighs in too. Often, my conversations have a tendency to go off in several different directions and rapidly too. And sometimes, some folks I end up talking too can get me off course quickly as well simply by interrupting when I am in the process of speaking, asking a question or in some instances, several rapid-fire questions and poof - my train of thought immediately flies out the window! Frustrates the living daylights out of me that does!

And, heaven forbid that my conversation be with a male, especially one I'm maybe just trying to get acquainted with! Talk about dullsville! You got it for sure then and there, baby! I may as well crawl into a cave, curl up and write that off as a dismal failure then.

Ok, now that we know if I ever should seriously try my hand at writing fiction, it sure as hell isn't going to be one with any potential for romance. That's totally out of my league since I can't even, in my real life, carry on a worthwhile conversation with men, you know damned well I'd never be able to write any wild, steamy prose of bedroom activities now don't you? And, isn't that often the big draw to fiction anyway? Ok, so there's no steamy sex going on in "To Kill A Mockingbird" - probably not in many other great novels that have been written too but that one comes immediately to my mind. But, I also don't have the imagination needed to think of characters, plot, conversations these folks would have to drive my plot - all that good stuff.

So, just so you are aware of it right now, we can rule out that I will never achieve a high faluting goal of writing the Great American Romance Novel - or probably any other piece of fiction either for that matter!

Is this writing project fun though? Well, yes and no. It's fun in a way after I do manage to struggle - and boy, I do mean struggle too - to get my segment completed when it comes around to me.

Is it exciting? Yes, that I have to say it is. It's exciting to me to see what other people can pull together from maybe a few tiny things I tossed out there or someone else put into play. It's exciting, even though we are really early on in this project - only into Chapter 2 right now - to watch things surface and to be a part of this.

When it came back to me today that I was up, my turn to write, you know, I'd been thinking about this off and on all this past week, knowing it was around the corner but I figured I'd have a bit more time as there was a lady ahead of me. However, as circumstances often happen, her computer fritzed out on her yesterday - damn, how convenient was that to have happened? and it bounced down to me. Yeah and here I was totally unprepared, actually totally BRAINDEAD, I think!

But, I managed to insert six pages into that chapter tonight. Took me roughly seven hours - give or take having to stop and feed my grandson, get Maya ready for bed, try to convince Maya to pick up her toys and a phone call from a distant cousin that took me away from my trying to concentrate and write this bit.

However, once I got through a pretty drawn out dialogue that I felt was pretty dead and dull on my part too for much of it, I saw something else coming through. I think I may have succeeded in laying down some seeds for those picking up after me to be able to swing this project out in a couple different directions for future events. I didn't speak out directly on anything - just alluded to some stuff so now it's up to the next couple of folks to see if they pick up on any of that and where they take it from there.

Here's hoping by the time it comes back my way, I'll have my head working a little clearer and maybe someone else will insert some little tidbits too - pave the way for me then to roll a little better with the flow as time - and chapters - continue to roll by me!

Wish me luck in this endeaver please! Actually, you better wish Gene, Marva, Sarge, and the others in this group - sorry but my brain just went back to sleep on me on the names there - lots and lots of luck in trying to figure out what the hell did she just say you see!

And now Gene - back to you for the rest of the story!