Daydream believer and decorating my own soul…

Getty Villa Museum, Malibu, California

In my daydreams I explore the unknown, I’m brave, I’m empowered to be the purest form of myself possible, to express myself vibrantly, to be free to live life as I’d like it to be. In my daydreams, my destiny doesn’t seem so precarious. In my daydreams I am Jane Austin, Wonder Woman, and Carrie Bradshaw. In my daydreams I look like I stepped from the pages of Vogue magazine, write with literary prowess, make people laugh, charm men, and love openly. In my daydreams Mr. Big exists. In my daydreams I have good knees and a collection of expensive high heel shoes to be rivaled. In my daydreams I live in San Francisco, Los Angeles or New York in a fabulous urban house or apartment, or on the central California coast in a lazy beach house with the ocean waves a few hundred feet from my front door or someplace like Kentucky where the land is green, plantations are large and the horses are thoroughbreds. In my daydreams my passport is full of foreign stamps, money is not a constant worry and I have friends all over the world.

Author David Morell, creator of Rambo said in his keynote speech at the 2007 Yosemite Writers Conference that “daydreams are your subconscious bubbling up as your narrative voice.” I am a daydream believer, for in our daydreams our characters run free and have adventures. The trick for the writer is to transfer those adventures from the daydream onto the page. Or maybe the ruse is to live your life as if it were your daydreams.

There are times when I get lost in my daydreams…

Sometimes when my day job or the routine of responsibility becomes overbearing, when things aren’t going as I’d like them to, I escape into my daydreams, picture myself in a different situation, a different city, or a new house. It may seem strange, but I pay attention to the little details and decorate the rooms. Maybe I’m decorating my own soul for imagining myself living a different life calms the chaos of my day, calms the unrest of what should be and isn’t, calms the inevitability of fate.

And then there are days when I manage to capture my daydreams on the page and set them free. Those are days when I feel most like a writer, those are the days when I feel most alive.

Labels: David Morrell, daydream beliver, daydreams, imagination, soul, Writing

  posted by Matildakay at 9:05 PM 1 comments

Yosemite Writers Conference: The writers New Year
In trying to sum up my experience at the Yosemite Writers Conference I thought I’d share a few of the memorable sentiments, phrases and writing advice that really resonated with me.

“Art is a lie that makes us realize the truth,” ~Pablo Picasso, “and that is fiction” ~Ginny Rorby

“Sheroes” (women heroes) ~Brenda Knight

“You can change what people think with your writing.” ~N.L. Belardes

“Social networking is a way to raise awareness.” ~N.L. Belardes

“Write from the heart, write what’s around you, write the truth of hidden history” ~Brenda Knight

“Make writing a practice, make it a priority” ~Kate Gale

“You want to aspire to write great work.” ~Kate Gale

“You have to make your book stand out.” ~Farrin Jacobs

“Write the novel you want to write.” ~Steve Yarborough

“Your voice is important. Use your voice to capture attention for yourself, use your voice as a community service.” ~N.L. Belardes

“It really was inspiring. Felt like the writer's New Year for me.” ~Genevieve Choate

“One of the things you achieve from a point of view character is VOICE.” ~Hallie Ephron

“Movies have ruined more fiction writers.” ~David Morrell

“The most important thing in a book should be tension.” ~Irene Webb

“Be a first rate version of yourself not a second rate version of someone else.” ~David Morrell

“Develop an identity for yourself as a writer.” ~David Morrell

“Never underestimate the emotion of jealousy.” ~Bonnie Hearn Hill

“You can have a literary voice and still tell a good story.” ~Bonnie Hearn Hill

“Writing well is the best revenge.” ~David Morrell

“Always remember the enthusiasm with which the idea struck you.” ~David Morrell

More on the 2007 Yosemite Writers Conference:

Yosemite Writers Conference: The Writers New Year
Is Book Publishing Dead? Yosemite Writers Conference provides food for hungry writers
Yosemite Writers Conference: A Conversation about Blogging
Rambo Creator Reinvents Captain America
Yosemite Writers Conference: Demystifying Chick lit and Women’s fiction
Yosemite Writers Conference: Poetry talk
Mystery talk after David Morrell's big speech
2007 Yosemite Writers Conference: Brenda Knight Sidesteps the TVA man
Yosemite Writers and the Chukchansi bathroom break
Headed to Yosemite Writers Conference to talk writing for social change

Labels: Brenda Knight, David Morrell, Literary, N.L. Belardes, Steve Yarborough, Writing, writing advice, Yosemite Writer's Conference

  posted by Matildakay at 11:05 PM 1 comments