Wednesday, June 6, 2018

IWSG: Wednesday, June 6, 2018 ~ Chasing the Click







It's the first Wednesday of the month:
the day when members of the
Insecure Writer's Support Group
share their writing struggles
and writing successes
and offer their encouragement
and support to fellow writers.





To visit the IWSG website, click here.

To become a member of the IWSG, click here.

Our wonderful co-hosts who are volunteering today,
along with IWSG founder Alex Cavanaugh are:
Beverly Stowe McClure,  Tyrean Martinson, and Ellen@The Cynical Sailor,  

I hope you have a chance to visit today's hosts and thank them for co-hosting.
I'm sure they would appreciate a visit and an encouraging comment.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Every month the IWSG poses a question
that members can answer with advice, insight,
a personal experience, or a story in their IWSG posts.

Or, the question can inspire members
if they aren't sure what to write about on IWSG Day.

Remember the question is optional.
This month's featured question is:

What's harder for you to come up with, book titles or character names?


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Typically I have written nonfiction, so naming characters has not been an issue for me.
However titles have had me guzzling coffee
and chomping on crystalized ginger and chocolate long into the night
as I write a piece and search for the right title.

The odd time I have written fiction, naming my characters
has proven easier than searching for the title.





Whenever I think about writing character names and titles,
I think about one of my favorite novels that I read in 1962:
Margaret Mitchell's Gone with the Wind.






Wikipedia



The movie was coming to Sioux Lookout's one theatre screen,
and my mother suggested that I read the book
before she and I went to see the movie ~
a challenging undertaking for a twelve-year-old girl.

I have never forgotten the engrossing story
of the American Civil War and the Reconstruction Era,
set in Georgia, a time and location unfamiliar to me
as a young Canadian in northern Canada.

But it wasn't the war and reconstruction that captivated me;
it was the unforgettable characters and what they endured to survive
as their world and way of life was destroyed.
And of course, Scarlett, Ashley, and Rhett.

It is often said that "A rose by any other name would smell as sweet."
But I'm not so sure.

Pansy O'Hara just doesn't fit the passionate, willful, 
and unconventional Scarlett of Gone with the Wind.


Definitely Not a Pansy!


And "Tomorrow is Another Day" as the title?
I wonder if the novel would have done as well with such a milquetoast title.

Is it any wonder that writers sometimes struggle
to find the perfect character name and title?

I don't have a method for writing either.
I play around with words and names until something clicks,
like messing with fossils fragments on a lab table
as you search to find pieces that fit together,
and suddenly there is that gratifying click,
not a sound but a feeling, in the meshing of two fragments, 
when you've found a match.





On a completely different topic,
have you read
the 2018 IWSG Anthology
Tick Tock:  A Stitch in Crime?






IWSG






I found it great fun to read from two perspectives.
First, it's a delight to read the works of fellow IWSG members 
I know and to discover new IWSG authors whom I haven't read before,
and second, it's intriguing to see eleven writers
create such different mysteries with a common thread of time.
I'll be rereading the anthology more than once.

Happy writing in June!


Spring Clouds
Always Gone with the Wind 
Aurora, Colorado, USA
May 23, 2018
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue
All Rights Reserved







33 comments:

  1. I tried to read it in middle school but wasn't my cup of tea back then. Never saw the movie

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    1. Hi, Adam! The book is intimidatingly big with over 1,000 pages, and even now I remember how slow the beginning was. So kudos to you for giving it a try in middle school. The movie is long as well, almost four hours. But what a movie! I'd like to see it again to see how I would react to it now, since it is about 80 years old. Have a good one, my friend!

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  2. Greetings Louise. A well written piece. I struggle with names, as I like it to fit the best I can. I have the name 'Beefy' as a bully in one of my novels, which took me an age to think of! I seem to be alright with titles though, which I think comes from practice, as I've wrote over nine hundred poems which all have different titles - I've on many occasion given the same title as another piece, and had to change it. Blessings to you. Love love, Andrew.

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    1. Hi, Andrew! I knew that you were a prolific writer of poems, but this is the first I've heard of your writing novels! That's impressive! You put me to shame, my friend! Have you ever thought of publishing a book of poetry or one of your novels? Something to think about ...!!! Take care, my friend!

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    2. Greetings Louise. I haven't finished my novels yet, got about three or four chapters left on one, and I've wrote a chapter on another - I keep getting distracted which is why it's taken me so long to get where I am now with them. I'm going to wait until I get a possible publication with my novels before I send off some poetry to a publisher. In one of my novels, the female, main character is a poet and has many pieces included within! Hopefully if I get my most written novel published, it might give me some recognition with my poetry? That's the plan anyway! Take good and gentle care yourself. Blessings to you. Love love, Andrew.

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  3. I've seen the movie, but never read the book. I knew there was a different title, sometimes one sure just hits on one that clicks. Never had issue with either at my sea. Sometimes I just hit a bunch of buttons randomly and make a name out of them lol

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    1. You never cease to amaze me, Pat! You don't let anything slow you down when it comes to writing! I don't doubt that you have created names by hitting a bunch of buttons randomly. And why not? I'm a big proponent of doing whatever works. You write books faster than I can read books. Your "Disconnective" is on my nightstand to read ~ have a few more books to get through first. All the best to you, my friend!

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    2. haha I'll probably have another one or two out before you get to it. Whoops.

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  4. Glad you enjoyed Tick Tock.
    It's funny how just the right - or wrong - title can make all the difference in the world.

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    1. I did enjoy it, Alex. The thought of writing a crime/mystery story was intimidating to me, so I didn't even try entering the anthology contest. It was fascinating to see how the eleven stories played with the element of time. One of these years perhaps I'll try my hand at one. Publishing the anthology is a wonderful opportunity for IWSG members, and that opportunity is something I really appreciate and am proud of the IWSG for doing. Have a good one. today is a busy one for you, I know!

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  5. Come to think about it, I've said to be "Don't be a Scarlet" before. I LOVE Gone with the Wind. I own the book and the movie and revisited often.

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    Replies
    1. I'm not surprised to hear that you LOVE "Gone with the Wind", Teresa! I have never forgotten what a powerful experience reading the novel was, and I've read it several times over the years. I must revisit the book and movie again. I hope you are enjoying visiting IWSG members today! All the best to you!

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  6. I find characters' names harder to come up with than titles, but you're right about clicking on a name. Sometimes a name doesn't feel right until you come across the right one. :)

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    1. Hi, Cherie! I'm looking forward to seeing how others have responded to this question. Titles and characters' names are likely challenging for most of us. Thanks for visiting!

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  7. I'm so pleased you enjoyed Tick Tock.

    Believe it or not, I have never seen or read Gone with the Wind.

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    1. Wow! You've never seen or read "Gone with the Wind?" LOL ~ I'm embarrassed at all the amazing and storied books that I've never read, Diane. There's never enough time. I have all three of the IWSG anthologies. My collection of IWSG books keeps growing. Have a great day!

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  8. Scarlett is definitely not a Pansy! I loved your poems!
    Happy June!

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    1. Thanks, Tyrean! And happy June to you too! Enjoy visiting around today!

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  9. Happy writing to you too!

    https://emaginette.wordpress.com/2018/06/05/iwsg-49-using-word-association-for-naming-a-book/

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    Replies
    1. Thanks, Anna! And thanks for the link. I'll be by shortly! All the best to you!

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  10. I find it fascinating that you read "Gone with the Wind" in Northern Ontario!

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    1. Hi, Sage! LOL ~ That's the power of libraries and a mother who was a passionate reader who loved "Gone with the Wind." I hope all is well with you! Take care!

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  11. I've read excerpts of Gone With the Wind, and it's on my short list. With any luck I'll be devouring it by December. (Or as soon as I finish with Moby Dick.)

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    1. I laughed when I read your comment, Crystal! I haven't read "Moby Dick" yet. It's definitely on my list. Good luck with your reading plans. You amaze me ~ You have so much on your plate. Take care!

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  12. I read "Gone With the Wind" as a teenager. I remember being shocked by a particularly racist turn of phrase that the author used when describing the slaves. I won't repeat it here.

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    1. Thanks for not repeating it, Debra. There were a lot of shocking things in GWTW. It really opened my eyes. Have a good one!

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  13. Your metaphor with the fossils is beautiful, and I completely understand that click when it finally falls into place. Nothing is better than the moment of satisfaction. I think it is one of the highs that keeps me writing.

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    1. Thanks, Erika! That moment of satisfaction keeps me writing too! Have a good one!

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  14. Nice review of a Stitch in Time! I struggle less with character names than I do with book titles. I like your analogies. Thanks and happy IWSG day! http://www.raimeygallant.com

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    1. Thanks, and happy IWSG Day to you, Raimey! All the best to you and your writing in June!

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  15. I can't imagine Scarlett O'Hara with any other name as well. Ginger and chocolate - yum! I've read Tick Tock and enjoyed it immensely. Some very talented people in IWSG.

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  16. Gone With the Wind was one of my fave books too. I read it when I was 7. Ginger and chocolate sound like an interesting taste combination. Great review.

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  17. I've never read Gone With the Wind and I remember very little of the movie! LOL! I know "some" of it, a very long time ago, when watching it on tv with my mom.
    Loved reading about how your "write", while, chomping on crystalized ginger and chocolate long into the night! LOL!
    Big Hugs!

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Thank you for your comments! I appreciate them very much.