tools of the trade

there is something about a fresh notebook that makes me feel like anything is possible. inspired by my new favorite notebook (seen above), here are a few of my favorite writing tools of the moment.

1. rhodia notebook: i am kind of a stationery, office supply freak. i need my tools to be functional and beautiful. i found the perfect system. it had notepads, filing, project management tools, templates, everything. and of course, as soon as i invested in this system, it was promptly discontinued. i was down to my last notepad and really, really tried to convince myself to just get the 3 pack at office depot. i couldn’t do it. a sad notepad just makes a things-to-do list even more depressing. luckily, my favorite local stationer scriptura hipped me to the rhodia. now, i owned a tiny one in the past, but didn’t know that the rhodia was made in the same factory as the fancy french clairefontaine notebooks. that’s why i love to shop with people who love what they do. i like the construction orange of the cover. it makes what i do feel more solid, somehow. i also like that it has a cover. i write in mechanical pencil, so i hate the uncovered notebooks because the front page gets all grimy and smudged. and the paper is as smooth as silk and designed not to smudge.
2. outlines. yes, outlines plural. that is one of many. i make maps, spreadsheets, keep character dossiers. it is kinda crazy. you can see a bit of another one here. although my outlines are crazy detailed, i always go off course. this is fine, but there is something about being able to hold these pieces of paper in my hand that calms me. my security blanket, i guess.
3. scrivener. i used to make index cards for all my plot points and spread them out on the floor. i would then clip the associated manuscript pages to the index cards. this quickly became unruly. i discovered a computer program a few years ago that is great for organizing creative projects. it even has a virtual corkboard, so it feels like what i used before. this week i have put several years worth of drafts into scrivener. it is a wonderful, wonderful tool.
4. freedom. this is a little program that disables your wi-fi connection for up to 8 hours. at first i thought it was silly. i should just have willpower! i don’t use the internet that much! i only use it for research when i’m writing! i started using macfreedom last year and it only took one session for me to see how unfocused i was with the internet on. definitely the best $10 spent.

i could go on and on, but what are your favorite tools?

fess up friday

43/32 the once again, you have everything you need edition

To be an artist means never to avert your eyes. ~Akira Kurosawa

she keeps writing and writing and writing. as i keep racking up days on my writing challenge, it is hard for me not to see the increasing numerator as a failure instead of an accomplishment. i’ve been revising on this chapter every day this year.  on day 32 i thought i was thisclose to finishing this section. 11 days later and there is still so much work to do! i have been antsy for the past few days and instead of being completely present in the work i found myself judging my speed, my process, my progress. just generally distracted. on twitter, my fellow writer randa jarrar (our fiction appeared in the oxford american’s race issue together) hipped me to macfreedom, a utility program that disables the internet for a prescribed amount of time. as my patience and focus dwindled i decided to give it a try. using macfreedom for the past two days showed me how i had been using the internet to “avert my eyes”.  what i needed to do is remain focused. then (and only then) the work would speak. when i can remain focused, push down the fear, the voices that tell me that i’m not good enough, the work isn’t good enough or that i’m just plain wrong, i am rewarded beyond my imagination. what i keep forgetting is that the frustration is part of the process. and just on the other side of a breakdown is a breakthrough.