Facebook flog - Jul 31 & Aug 1 2013

[blogfloggery.livejournal.com]

Link: Jul 31 2013, 22:42
Disclaimer: This blog entry is verbatim, as originally posted on LKH's Facebook. Copyright belongs to Ma Petite Enterprises.

Writers are by nature solitary creatures. Throwing most of us out into the celebrity circus is like digging a mole out of its burrow. We don't know what to do above ground & we really just want to be left alone to create in the dark & putter in privacy.

Aug 1 2013, 4:44

To try and be more clear, I'm actually very good in public and on stage. I joined drama and speech team in high school to get over my shyness. It worked up to a point, I was under the mistaken impression that good social skills meant you were no longer an introvert, but that's not true. Not all introverts are shy, and not all extroverts have good social skills. The real difference is do you recharge your batteries with crowds, people, and conversation, or do small groups, quieter, & more solitary pursuits feed you and your muse? For writers, it's how much alone time, versus how much social time is the right mix. Too much either way can be fatal to productivity & getting those great ideas.

For me it's not just knowing the people well, but what we're doing while we visit. Some activities energize, some drain, & sometimes I need to embrace my inner mole & hide away, but other times the office is too solitary and I need activity around me. That's when I'll take the headset & iPad and write at a restaurant. There are very few hard & fast rules for creatives. We just need to listen to our muse & figure out what feeds our talent & what harms it. Some activities, like social media, can do both. So hard to explain what I myself haven't completely figured out. I've just learned to trust my instincts & not argue with my muse.

Comments

[suzycat.livejournal.com]

Meme about introverts and extroverts must be going round LKH's Facebook friends as well as mine, then.

[lliira (from livejournal.com)]

There is something of a point hidden under all of that. But she is so annoying and know-it-all about all writers, any point she has is buried under obnoxiousness. And her muse talk drives me batty.

Also, "creatives"? Everyone is creative in many ways. We just express it differently.

[kisstheground.livejournal.com]

me too. i want to say it was a neil gaiman quote from a talk show? maybe conan or something.

[okami-no-yume.livejournal.com]

Yeah......for some writers, solitude is a good thing. I can understand that.

However, I really think that LKH has been getting too much solitude in her beloved ivory tower. Going out and interacting with people is healthy Laurell. No really, it is. You should try it from time to time. You are not a mole, (what a stupid metaphor) you are a person, and people need light and air. I know I like to take extended breaks from writing to recharge my own creative batteries. Give the muse a rest.


Also, feeding your talent? What talent?

[deadsong.livejournal.com]

As an author who gets severely twitchy around other people and has some PTSD-related issues about being around more than three people at a time or in exposed open spaces, I want to empathize with her here. But it's kind of hard to find it under the smug. That, and it's irritating that she presumes to speak for all writers. I wish I could handle crowds. I wish I could handle the limelight. I've been in the public eye and for a little while I do quite well, throwing on the charm, pretending not to be shy, faking this whole "charisma" thing, etc.--but I can only handle the scrutiny of thousands for so long before I nearly have a breakdown and want to do nothing but hide. It's not something I'm proud of. It affects my career as an author and makes it harder for me to cope with the inevitable attention that comes with it, and it makes people leery of me. I like my solitude when it's time to write, but I only wish I was better able to handle the times I need to be able to step into the light. It's not just a matter of finding the right mix, or flaunting how much I like the dark. It's stressful and upsetting. Guess I'm not creative enough to fit into how Laurell defines a writer.

[zombiexbunny.livejournal.com]

What the fuck ever.

I get being solitary when you're working. I know when I'm making art I like to be by myself so I don't have any distractions and I can concentrate. But Jesus. Get over yourself with this "I am a special darkity dark snowflake and no one can understand me" bullshit. Just fuck all this.

(It's possible I am grumpy today, but this shit is just annoying)

[wanderingworlds.livejournal.com]

So... is she trying to say that all introverts have to be alone at all times? Because I'm an introvert, and I get lonely most of the time. I like a very small, selected group of people. And it doesn't matter what we're doing. We could be sitting in the same room on our laptops/phones/whatever and I'd still feel better because if I want to talk to someone, they're right there to turn to. I can get quality time with someone who isn't talking to me. Companionable silence is amazing.

Does this mean I don't get exhausted when forced to deal with large groups of people? Nope. I end up retreating and hiding away much like a hermit until I feel like I can handle them again.

Busy places such as airports, malls, carnivals, etc really exhaust me and leave me somewhat snappish and impatient to get the fuck out of there. (Granted with malls, that could easily be the abundance of pre-teens and teenagers...)

I happen to have several friends who are fellow writers and they are the opposite. They thrive in large groups, enjoy being the center of everyone's attention (no, please, don't look at me while you sing Happy Birthday, you're ruining it for me. Besides, look at this pretty cake!), and generally seem more enthusiastic when surrounded by people. They're also just as creative and talented as those I know who like their solitude and quiet time.

LKH, please get off your high horse once in a while. Especially if you're dragging that poor thing underground. It's bad for horses.

[astronauta.livejournal.com]

There is one statement I agree with in this entire blog. She is indeed very good in public and on stage. She knows how to keep interest and how to play to the crowd. It helps that she has props like Jon, her husband.

[a-sporking-rat.livejournal.com]

props like Jon, her husband.
oh man I laughed

[othellia.livejournal.com]

Writers are by nature solitary creatures.

Because he was a writer, and all knew that writers were strange.

[graesea.livejournal.com]

I don't recall Hamilton-the-overpaid-typist ever going to a restaurant with her iPad and headphones. Not saying she's never done it, simply that this information doesn't stand out in the boring flotsum and getsum of her social media offerings.