The Internal Monologue

— Posted inPersonal, Writing — 2 min read

I am primarily an internal monologue addict. My writings chiefly center around the internal monologue of my characters with bits and pieces of dialogues introduced in between. Blame this addiction on two of my favorite writers of all time, Virginia Woolf and J.M. Coetzee. I’ve grown up reading their books and possibly somewhere down the line these two writers have impacted my mental makeup to a great extent. Also, I may attribute this to my own thought process of internalizing external experiences. As a child, I had always been a rather quiet one…in fact more of an introvert. Possibly this trait of mine has rubbed off upon my personality even as an adult. And it has had a major impact upon my characters too. Internal monologues help me to understand situations and the underlying philosophy embedded within the same to a great extent. It gives me the feeling that I am a part and parcel of the fictitious entities that I create. Also, I can give them a more rounded and solid voice in the process.

I am sure each and every writer has his or her own ways of dealing with their creations. Mine is embedded in the process of internal monologues. So much for now. Au revoir !

shallow focus photography of stack of books

Merci Beaucoup Vivaldi !

— Posted inBrowser, Productivity, Software, Technology — 2 min read

Came to the conclusion while getting my work organised today that since I’ve been using Vivaldi and all its attached services, my writing has become more streamlined and stress free. I know that there are various browsers out there and I’ve used quite a few of them including Mozilla, Chrome, Safari, Brave and Opera, but none of them incorporate as many features as Vivaldi does. Nor do they run as smoothly as the latter. The left hand tab of this browser is indeed a marvel. I mainly use the following on a daily basis :

  1. Vivaldi email to store my important files, since I use other emails for communicating. Also I find it extremely effective while downloading mails from other accounts. Previously, I used to use MS Office Outlook, but it did not keep a copy of the mail on the server for me to refer to while on the go. Vivaldi fulfills that need.
  2. The Calendar to plan my daily work and schedule.
  3. Contacts to store important contacts whom I mail frequently.
  4. The Notes tab to make important notes while I write and the Task tab keeps me on my toes at the end of each and every productive day.
  5. Last but not the least, the Vivaldi community helps me read wonderful articles on writing, travelling, and life in general. Also blogging at the of a day well spent at work, keeps the writer’s mind both relaxed and happy. Blogging is definitely better than scrolling through social media websites. Besides writing, blogging and cooking tends to bring out the zen in me 🙂

Thank you very much Vivaldi or shall I say Merci Beaucoup ! :}

flat lay photography of coffee latte in teacup on table

WYSIWYG

— Posted inPersonal, Productivity, Software, Technology, Writing — 2 min read

WYSIWYG or What You See Is What You Get is a famous acronym used quite frequently in the Internet parlance. However, though it may be true in case of most things including the world wide web and human beings in general, it is definitely not true as far as writers/poets/artists are concerned. We are definitely not WYSIWYG. There are layer and layers that tend to cover us. We are not easily decipherable. We hide and duck behind covers in order to keep our thoughts safe from people. We have stories and sometimes libraries of stories in our heads, while we juggle reality with some difficulty. Living a dual life can be arduous to say the least. However, we are also great adapters. We are like chameleons. We adapt to our surroundings with ease while keeping those characters in our minds safe and sound. Cushioned in secrecy from the outside world.

Just a little note about random thoughts that crop up during the course of the day. Nothing of importance in particular. By the way, I’ve started writing posts under my real name. It may seem pretty long and rather exotic to the uninformed. 🙂

Au Revoir ! Till I scribble again.

person using black typewriter

Too Lazy & Laid Back

— Posted inPersonal, Privacy, Productivity, Writing — 2 min read

Realized that NANOWRIMO is not for me, just like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and others are not for me. Maybe it works out for many out there (hats off to them !), but it doesn’t work for me. Inspiration does not come every single day. It comes in spurts, in bits and pieces, on special days and certain times that I fondly call “rainbow-tinged moments”. Therefore, typing 2000 words per day doesn’t seem my cup of tea. I can only write at specific times when inspiration strikes me, or when the characters of my novel urge me on to give them life on paper. Those who may finish their books in November are wizards in the truest sense of the term. They are people whose brains probably work faster and better than mine. And I respect them from the core of my heart ! But its not for me !

I suppose I am too lazy and laid back when it comes to writing. I tend to spend hours framing my characters in my brain. I lie back in a comfortable chair or sofa, close my eyes, let the winter in filter in through the window curtains and think. And dream. And ruminate. And then after an hour or two I switch on my laptop and type in all that I could see…deep within me. I suppose someday my agent or publisher or whoever will be dealing with my books will definitely go bonkers over this attitude of mine 😀 But that’s me. Too Lazy and too laid back. The typical old world writer….too slow for this fast moving world !

Congratulations on yet another failure ! I guess I failed to keep up with NANOWRIMO ! 😀

white cat lying on brown textile

November Notes

— Posted inPersonal, Privacy, Productivity, Writing — 2 min read

November didn’t begin on a great note. I was assailed by a temporary writer’s block which led me to lose a few precious days. Having recovered from the above, I intend to give my fullest to this month. There are three main things that I need to focus on :

  1. Finish Proof Reading my 1st Manuscript
  2. Finish Writing the 2nd one
  3. Keeping my Academic Deadlines

The world comes with its ample share of distractions for the writer and each must tackle the same in a way that he or she deems fit. There is work and society and online distractions, not to mention buying groceries and completing other daily chores. The secret to focused and hard work is complete detachment from everything and everyone ! It is more like being in a perpetual state of zen. Having said that I have decided to “turn off” the world a bit.

  1. News must be filtered to the minimum. A writer has no need of the real world or this massive influx of information.
  2. So must the social media (if you do use any. I use none). And other modes of communication like the email, text messages, phones etc. Tell your family that you are working during a specific period of time. Friends can wait for you to get back to them.
  3. Cut down on social obligations too. Meet them next moth or maybe the next year. Society can wait !
  4. Finally, keep one day for every little chore that you do. 1 specific day for shopping groceries, 1 specific day for doing the laundry etc.

I am trying my best to acquire this zen feeling before I begin working in earnestness from tomorrow. The month cannot be lost. Nor can I lose out on my deadlines. I must write. No matter what !

Au Revoir !

person holding umbrella beside street

The Road Not Taken

— Posted inLiterature — 1 min read

A temporary drought of inspiration led me to an old favourite poem of mine by Robert Frost. Sharing it on my blog for one and all. Maybe this poem reflects my current state of mind.

green forest during daytime

THE ROAD NOT TAKEN

BY ROBERT FROST

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

The Thirty-First

— Posted inLiterature, Personal, Productivity, Software, Writing — 3 min read

The last day of each month is usually kept for planning and other such matters that require an administrator’s brain rather than a writer’s. November will definitely be an extremely busy month for me. I have both academic as well as literary deadlines to meet, since I also handle certain administrative responsibilities at work, I must attend to the same too. To cut the long story short, November will see me with too many things on my plate. Keeping the above in mind, I’ve decided to streamline my work and plan ahead in advance.

  1. I will be keeping societal obligations to the minimum in November. I am already off social networks, however I still have to access the email for work. Planning to keep that to the minimum from tomorrow onward. The same goes for my phone and text messages.
  2. Deep or focused work is a must especially if I need to accomplish much. I intend to do that without getting deviated from my goal. Hopefully, I should be able to write at least 1000 if not 2000 words each day.
  3. At the end of each day I intend to keep an hour at hand for evaluating my work as well as how efficiently I made use of my time.
  4. Also I must remember to save my work online. I usually use my email accounts as well as Microsoft’s One Drive for backing everything. I must remember to access those daily and keep a backup of everything I create online on a daily basis.
  5. We writers tend to be extremely sensitive by nature and often the outside world (especially the workplace) tend to take advantage of the same. A writer must train his or her mind to completely cut out all kinds of diversions and interruptions to the ongoing thought process. The mind is extremely important and taking care of our mind and emotions is as equally important as taking care of out body. Mental and emotional health should be made into a priority.
  6. Last but not the least, a writer must be prepared at all times to write. “Work tools” as I refer to them are extremely important and its a blessing that we live in an age of information and software technology. I will definitely be carrying around my MS One Note in my phone and other MS Office programs for my writing whenever I feel the need to express myself, at any time of the day (be it at work or otherwise).
  7. Finally, everything is about the words and cups of coffee ! Keeping my fingers crossed and hoping that the words flow with ease every single day of the coming month.

So much for now. I will be back in November 🙂 Happy Halloween to all my readers !

NANOWRIMO

— Posted inProductivity, Writing — 1 min read

College reopens tomorrow and the month ends in a few more days. It will be Halloween soon and then November approaches us in her full glory. On an impulse I registered myself for this year’s NANOWRIMO. Come November and I will be busy typing away my next novel, trying to incorporate at least 2000 words per day. I do not know how much I will accomplish. I do not even know if I may fall out midway, but everything is worth a try. I’ve been wanting to try out NANOWRIMO for a very long time, but never really had the courage to venture forth towards this tough deadline. However, this year let me give it a try, I may accomplish framing the first draft of my second book, or I may fail midway and go back to my old ways. Let’s give it a shot !

Wish me luck folks ! I will of course be keeping my readers posted about my progress or the lack of the same 🙂

Microsoft One Note

— Posted inProductivity, Software, Technology, Writing — 2 min read

Has anyone ever tried Microsoft’s One Note? I have been using it recently. Previously, I used to depend on Samsung Notes in order to jot down my thoughts on the move. However, of late I’ve switched over to One Note. What I love about this particular app is that it allows one to dictate notes and the verbal dictation is immediately converted into a written note. This is amazing for all writers who would like to directly dictate their manuscript. Of course, I do not recommend that one should compose the whole manuscript through dictation, but this app definitely helps in making quick notes especially if you do not have the time or the opportunity to type. Also the fact that notes on One Note can be saved in your MS account is something that may help in keeping those spontaneous notes safe and secure. This app is indeed a blessing for writers on the move as well as those who may have to juggle other careers along with writing. It is a quick and a convenient way to frame the first draft of your novel. For later drafts MS Word is always at your disposal.

Just a little post on something that may help my readers and anyone interested in typing/taking/dictating quick notes on the go. By the way, keep this in mind since NANOWRIMO is round the corner in November 🙂

Au revoir !

photo of bulb artwork

Intense Work

— Posted inPersonal, Productivity, Writing — 2 min read

The next few days will see me submerged in both intense as well detailed work. With the holidays drawing to a close, there are commitments and deadlines that I must attend to. Dr, Cal Newport’s website and the LifeHack website have some wonderful articles on how one can block all kinds of distractions and focus on intense work periods ranging from an hour to around 4 or 5 hours at a stretch. What I usually do when I am determined to work hard is to keep my phone in the silent mode, stop checking emails (or check them once a day), and ask my husband to attend to sudden visitors. I am now thinking of framing a timetable for intense work once office resumes from the end of October. I must keep aside at least 4 hours of my day for intense work (which may include both academic as well as non academic writing). I must not let my academic schedule hamper with my dreams of becoming a full time writer. So much for now. Keeping my fingers crossed and hoping that I can devote quality time towards my writing during the last lap of these holidays.

Have a great Autumn/Fall everyone…