tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4620199782689299940.post3541552461250622824..comments2024-01-01T18:42:01.363-08:00Comments on International Christian Fiction Writers: Giving UpLisa Harrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11358581487206184033noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4620199782689299940.post-6629266348491091542013-01-16T11:58:53.835-08:002013-01-16T11:58:53.835-08:00Glad it stirred memories, Shirley. Sometimes it...Glad it stirred memories, Shirley. Sometimes it's just a matter of timing, isn't it?Dalehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14217918666756258037noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4620199782689299940.post-26893808119477672492013-01-16T11:56:42.010-08:002013-01-16T11:56:42.010-08:00It is when you consider I am not a gardener, Ken. ...It is when you consider I am not a gardener, Ken. I like your way of looking at things.Dalehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14217918666756258037noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4620199782689299940.post-79282293355375852422013-01-15T22:26:33.001-08:002013-01-15T22:26:33.001-08:00Hi Dale,
Your analogy of the jacaranda tree stirs ...Hi Dale,<br />Your analogy of the jacaranda tree stirs deep-rooted memories in my heart, as I spent my childhood years in Gwelo, Rhodesia - where the main avenues were bordered with magnificent jacarandas, causing a carpet of lilac blooms on the pavement and roadside. How do I know when to give up? I don't. I never consciously shelve a project. I just move on. Right now I have three books in progress. Will they all eventually bloom into a full book? Probably not. I spend my time on the one that shows the most promise, but if it refuses to bud, I move on to another.Shirley Corderhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04429641202607657089noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4620199782689299940.post-64673546838765207482013-01-15T16:27:49.283-08:002013-01-15T16:27:49.283-08:00Interesting that you use a plant analogy. If you t...Interesting that you use a plant analogy. If you think of the unconscious as the compost bin, throwing old projects in there will enable new things to flourish.<br /><br />Or, like my sister's ornamental pine tree, if it gets struck by lightning the wood can be recovered. Let some large branches dry for a year or so and they can be cut into enough pieces to make a small box. We might conceive projects as very large, but in the end they might be small but useful.<br />Ken Rolphnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4620199782689299940.post-39037889291387937742013-01-15T15:11:24.232-08:002013-01-15T15:11:24.232-08:00Thanks Alice for reading my post and sharing your ...Thanks Alice for reading my post and sharing your story.I pray the new project will work out for you and you may be able to come back to the other one at a later date with renewed enthusiam or find the missing bit that makes it work.Dalehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14217918666756258037noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4620199782689299940.post-16527199147282217062013-01-14T08:20:37.264-08:002013-01-14T08:20:37.264-08:00Dale, I've just shelved a project that I dearl...Dale, I've just shelved a project that I dearly wished to complete. Much as I was in love with the story, no amount of pushing and pulling and tweaking could make it come out right. I've been hung on on that project for months, determined to at least finish the ugly first draft. As a New Year's gift to myself, I decided to put it away and start something new. The first project had become a millstone about my neck. There was no joy left in its creation. It hurt to give up, to admit the project had failed, but, like your diseased tree, I had to recognize there was no life in it. When the joy is gone from the writing, I believe it is time to move on.Alice Vhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00218095053108888830noreply@blogger.com