Wednesday, November 17, 2010

My ABCs of Inspiration: O is for Oops!

I have heard the expression that "In art, there is no such thing as a mistake."  Well, I think this is true for the art of writing too.  And you can get all kinds of inspiration from your mistakes!

When I'm writing sometimes I go off on a fabulous tangent.  And that tangent is way better than my original plot line.  Or I put too many characters in a picture book and one of those characters needs their own book.  Or I come up with some cheeky little plot device that has no business in what I'm currently writing, but could be the basis for its own book.  The breadth and depth of my mistakes are endless!  And so, the possibilities are endless as well.

CONTEST NOTE:  I know you are all having super fun entering my contest, but I want to alert you to another with (dare-I-say-it) a much more awesome prize than my super cool prize pack!  Go visit my dear critique partner Julie Hedlund on her blog for her one year anniversary.  You could win ALL six Harry Potter movies!  And join her blog while you are there, she is super fantastic!

6 comments:

  1. LOL. My current wip is going off on an unplanned tangent. The guy really wants to kiss the mc, now. He doesn't want to wait another four chapters like I had planned. Then again, neither does the mc. ;)

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  2. Yeah, all of my writing pretty much follows an unplanned tangent--it's what makes writing exciting!

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  3. Thanks for the shout-out Megan. You're pretty awesome yourself. Mistakes are the sand in your oyster - ultimately it transforms into a pearl. (okay I know that was so cheesy, but I couldn't resist).

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  4. Tangents can sometimes yield the most wonderful characters, can't they??
    erica

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  5. :0) i love that you are making your way through the alphabet. fun stuff! christy

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  6. Sounds like your 'mistakes' should be called creative tangents instead!

    I also like to be open to unplanned detours, writing is so much more fun that way.

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