Learning the Craft

By Susan G. Haws

I read and watch now with a more critical eye trying to learn from novels and movies.  I observe a magnificent dust storm and think how I can describe it.  I read a book with natural conflict and think of ways to improve the conflict in my WIP.

Lately, I have contemplated try /fail cycles. Since my life seems to be full of them. Nothing is ever as easy as it looks, projects take multiple trips to the home supply stores and just when I think everything is working something breaks and needs repair.

 For example the swimming pool. The pump is not priming and running the vacuum around. So we dump buckets of pool water in the pump and start it up and when it stops call the pool man.  He finds a leak. Pipes are replaced, the leak is stopped but the original problem continues.  We replace the motor and still the problem persists.

My point is that in real life some problems are easy and some have multiple causes, or require repeated attempts. If everything were easy for the protagonist readers would have difficulty sympathizing. If problems were solved on the first attempt we couldn’t watch characters grow.

I am learning but still have my own try/fail cycles both in my writing and in everyday life.  One of them is how late I am posting this blog.