Plotting Forward the Asian Way

Sawadee Krap.

That's how you say 'hello' in Thailand. I don't know much Thai, but that is one of the things I have learned in the two years the Claxtons have been in Thailand. One would have thought I would have picked up more Thai by now. But that's not the only thing I should have picked up. I should have taken a cue of how they drive and styled my writing after it.

What do I mean? Allow me to explain. I firmly believe (convinced by many a writer's manual/podcast/blog out there) that once the plot is done, you should just start writing. Don't look back, just keep going, ignoring inconsistencies you know are in the story, characters that say or do things that don't necessarily mesh with what you had in mind for them and, yes, even syntax errors. In fact, had I learned that, the previous sentence would have looked like this:

'Don't loko back just keep going, ignring inconsistenceis you know are int he story, caracters that say or do thigns that dont necesarily mesh with what you had in mind for them and yes even sntax erors.'

After all - the computer is friendly enough to throw red dotted underlines all over the screen, so I can correct it afterwards. And even after that: someone has to make the editor later feel good about herself.

My point being is that when writing, the only guarantee to get to the first draft is to just keep tapping at that keyboard. And I have yet to master that. And that is if I even GET to writing in the first place. The setting up of this blog alone cost me the better part of the day yesterday! Not too mention I'm trying to lose weight (I weighed 204 pounds/93 kilo - converting that by the way cost me another 30 seconds), shop for groceries, have lunch breaks, coffee breaks, rest breaks and pee breaks!!! How am I ever going to get past chapter 15 like that?

There is focused light at the end of the activity crowded tunnel though. I meditate. It helps me focus. Period. I feel that it's a good investment of time if it allows me to ignore reading e-mail until lunch time, stop directionless surfing the Internet and getting mired down in n-th generation linked webpages that nowhere resemble the topic I originally started out on. Ten minutes of calming my hyper-active mind down and ten minutes of active listening to my breath produces a day worth of focused concentration on tickling the plastic cobblestones to story heaven.

(I know...I'm not a poet - but I don't care to go back and edit the sentence - SEE? it works!)

So when I am in the zone, that is how they drive in Asia. They look forward, and maybe just a little to the left or right, but never backwards (the rearview mirror is to gaze with humor at the panic stricken foreigners in the back, who think this ride might be their last). But it works. They all do it, so looking 100% forward eliminates the need for the driver in front of him to split his attention to 50% forward and 50% backward.

Well, technically it's maybe 90% forward and 10% to the sides (never is good to drive onto the sidewalk and squish people). Which is what I am doing. I'll write forward 90% ignoring all that went before trusting on the road to take me where I want and the momentum of the vehicle to propel me forward. This blog then is the sidewalk on each side - a guideline to make sure I stay on track.

Gotta go! My Muses are on the horn!