Trip to the Lab

Sleepless in the Car

A Test Run

I'm experimenting with a new process. A few weeks ago Sarah was doing her homework and informed me that Google Docs had the ability to do voice typing. Now, on my computer Windows has a voice typing feature and I have attempted to use it several times. My success was limited and fraught with frustration. I attempted writing with it and found that many words had to be corrected and it just did not work well at all. The program requires extensive training and that takes time. And I'm not sure it would work any better. It only works within certain programs. For example, you can give it commands to do certain Windows actions and you can use it in Wordpad and Notepad. I cannot use it in Scrivener and I was unable to find out how to use it in LibreOffice.

So when I found that Google Docs have the same feature I decided to see how well it worked. I'm now on my second paragraph and I admit that I think it is better than the windows version. Of course, it is limited to Google Docs. Although I still have to correct some word errors it has to do with pronunciation. I expect problems in that area since it is a computer assessing my speech patterns.

I'd like to try to use this on days when I do not feel well and can't sit and type. I can see one major problem. I seem to get frustrated when I have to go back and correct it or it doesn't put anything remotely like what I said. That was my complaint with the windows voice typing feature. It appears on first use that this particular feature in Google Docs is working better. I see fewer mistakes over the course of the page than I did when I was using the windows version of voice transcription.

So that being said, I have one more excuse taken from me in regard to my writing.This probably a good thing.  

I do think that Google should put a button on the menu bar that will allow you to access the voice typing feature rather than having to go to the tools menu scroll down and then select and the button appears on the desktop. However, this is a minor annoyance.

However, I plan to make several attempts using this feature.I will let you know in a future post how this comes out. Just know that this entire document has been done in Google Docs using voice typing.

This Close

What do I know about writing? I laugh aloud as I write the question. What do I really know? I know that I can. I know that I really want to write. But some days, like today, I don't think I know a single thing about the actual writing. I can form an adequate sentence and string together a bunch of them to make an adequate paragraph. If I work at it, I can actually string a bunch of those together and make a good story. I can't seem to finish them. Until now.

I'm this close to finishing The Long Summer Run, one of my favorite NaNo novels. It is exhilarating and intimidating. There is so much work still to do, even though I'm this close.

Is it a good story? Will anyone like it? Will anyone actually want to read it? Have I provided all the necessary components? Is it missing any vital details? Oh my stars, does it suck?

It's missing a whole lot of details. But the basic story is almost done. It has a beginning, middle, and almost end. Of course, the middle is a muddle but my middles always are. They are why I have trouble finishing a story. I can write the first and last of the thing but the middle seems to bog me down. I've been working on that, reading things by various authors that I hope will give me insight. I've run across some really good ones. What have I learned?

I just need to write it. Stop worrying and thinking about it and just do it. The story is all there. That's what I decided over the course of the last few months and attempted to do in November. It was going pretty good until some kind of monster cold nearly slew me. I was down for three weeks and by the time I got up I was only 5000 words in. But it was 5000 words I did not have on November 1. I estimate I have about 5000 more that I actually need.

So, what do I know about writing? Actually, a lot. I know good writing when I read it. And I know sucky writing when I read it. I'm a good editor so when I get to that point, I hope my abilities don't fail me. I know what I need to know to do it.

Knowledge is power, right?

I'm this close.

The War of Art

Sometimes things happen that just blow my mind. I stumbled across a book this week that totally changed my perspective about the difficulties I face in my writing and I feel as if I've turned a corner.

The War of Art, by Steven Pressfield, is written for writers who struggle to write and he nails the real reason we fail. Although the book appears directed at writers, the premise and principals he writes about can be applied to anyone who struggles to succeed. Pressfield identifies the culprit responsible for all failure, not as writer's block but Resistance. And according to Pressfield, Resistance isn't futile, it is evil and we are at war with it.

I am listening to a 2-hr audio version of the book. Last night I got halfway through and I learned so much about resistance in just that hour that it energized me. My brain felt as if it was flooded with some kind of euphoria. I wanted to jump out of bed and go write.

No, I didn't. It was nearly midnight and I had to be up at 6:30 a.m. So, needs must. I stayed in bed and listened for a while. This morning when I was getting ready to go to the write-in I had scheduled at the Mall, I found it wasn't as hard as usual to think about having to write. I have been sick for weeks and I'm still dealing with the cold but I found I was excited about writing. And I wrote when I got there. It was awesome. I came home and had been able I'd have written some more but by then the general fatigue I deal with struck and I sat down to rest. Pressfield would have said that resistance overtook me.

I want to finish the book tonight but I want to write even more. What to do? Pressfield says to identify what is a priority and what is important. Then do what is important. Writing is important.

If you're a writer struggling to write and want to attack the problems you face writing, I'd encourage you to get The War of Art. Pressfield knows whereof he speaks.