Let’s face it, for some of us there’s nothing quite as effective as deadline pressure to get the creative juices flowing. Most writers have had to pull an all-nighter
at some point in their lives in order to meet a due date for an assignment.
I know that when I was a professional grant writer, some of my most effective and successful narratives were written in the wee hours of the morning a day or
two before the deadline. As useful as that adrenaline rush is, relying on it can sometimes result in missed deadlines and failure. In all my years as a grant writer,
I only missed one deadline. It was during a week when there were three major grants due in a four day span. What happened was that, under the extreme pressure,
my subconcious simply moved one of the deadlines back a day from Thursday to Friday. So, Friday morning I put the finishing touches on the proposal, made my
copies and looked at the grant guidelines to get the mailing address. Then I saw the actual deadline date and nearly passed out.
After that, I instituted a mental trick to make sure I never missed another deadline. I simply set my own personal deadlines about a week before the “real” deadline.
On my planning calendar, the official deadline never appeared. I only wrote in my deadline in big black marker with red circles around it. I also took the time to
mentally convince myself of the earlier date. I’d repeat to myself over and over “The VATEA deadline is the 15th!” so that if anyone asked, that would be the
answer I gave.
This method resulted in a late night or two, but I never missed another deadline. Interestingly, I also never had to pull another all nighter. Usually the grant was
finished a day or two before my imaginary deadline.
So, if you’re working on a submission for the contest. Don’t wait until the last minute. The earlier you submit, the sooner you’ll have the benefit of our readers’
comments to help you if you want to rewrite your submission. But you can harness the creative energy that the stress of a deadline can unleash if you create
your own deadline and treat it seriously.
—-Joe
I’m including this in my blog for several reasons. First, Ujjvala had asked me if I had ever written about Uncle Peter, and that set me to wondering why I hadn’t. This didn’t start off as a eulogy. I was simply trying to write about my Uncle. As it progressed, though I realized that it had become an eulogy and that Peter’s life had aspects that needed to be shared with his mourners. So, it’s an example of how something private can be shared in a way that benefits everyone, just as the Inaugural stories can. Finally, he was my Uncle and I’d like to memorialize him to the degree that I’m able.
My earliest memory of my Uncle Peter was that, as children, if we got too loud and wild, Uncle Peter would grab us by the arm and half-carry, half-drag us back to Mom and Dad. Being Peter, my “special” Uncle, he would use his full, adult strength when he grabbed hold. That’s when I learned that adults really are much stronger than children, and that when Dad spanked me, he must have been holding back and only using a fraction of his strength.
Uncle Peter was a mystery to me. He would sit in his favorite chair, making that sound he made by blowing air through his cheeks, or, when he was agitated, slapping himself over and over. I would wonder what he was thinking, but also how he was thinking. I knew his mind worked differently, but I also knew that there was more there than most people realized. When he talked, I prided myself on being able to decode what he was saying. Though it did take me a long time to realize that when Peter asked, “What time is it?” he didn’t want to be told, he wanted to tell.
But some things with Peter were crystal clear. He loved us. When he hugged you and said “Aww..” in that way of his, there was no room for doubt. Emotionally, Peter was completely honest. When he was upset, he would shout and stamp his feet. When he was happy to see you, he would hug you. No one else ever said my name, “Joey…” the way Peter did, and no one ever will. When he knew a niece or nephew or friend was coming to visit, the anticipation would excite him for days. And sometimes he would come out with an observation or comment that would give us a startling glimpse into his inner world. I remember the time that we discovered that Peter still knew Italian. He had spoken it with my Great-grandmother as a child. He could translate individual spoken Italian words into English, though he still couldn’t speak a complete sentence except with great difficulty.
In many ways, Peter’s life mirrored our society’s growth in attitudes towards our special members. I remember when he was younger. Grandma and Grandpa kept him essentially housebound. My Aunt showed me an old home movie, made when Peter was a young man. He was having a tantrum and Grandma was exclaiming, “The devil’s got him!” Years ago, we used to talk about how he’d been dropped on his head as a baby.
But as we learned more about Fragile X and other such disorders, people’s attitudes changed. I remember how excited he was when he first started riding the bus to “school” at about age 50. On some level, he was thinking, ‘Sister, Johnny, and Junior went to school. Then they got to go off and make lives for themselves. Now it’s my turn.’ To a large extent, that was true. Thanks to the help of many professionals and, of course, my Aunt’s loving attention, Peter was able to establish a life for himself, independent of the family with friends and activities of his own. Many of his self-destructive behaivors went away or lessened as he grew as a person.
Most importantly, Peter brought love to all the lives that he touched. Some people say that the measure of a man’s life is how many people came to his funeral. By that measure, Peter was a great man. Easily 250 people came to his wake. From the wonderful Sisters of St. Joseph who made Peter a part of their lives, to the people who worked with him, to other friends and neighbors, Peter always inspired love and affection.
That’s why I’m sure that, if anyone gets a free pass to Heaven, my Uncle Peter did.
One of the most common mistakes beginning writers make is overuse of the word “good.” Consider this sentence.
Tim felt good to be returning home.
It has some emotional impact, and the reader can empathize with it to a degree. But, compare it to these sentences.
Tim was excited to be returning home.
Tim felt a great sense of peace wash over him as he was returning home.
Tim felt an overwhelming sense of relief to be returning home.
These sentences paint a much clearer emotional picture. Plus, they have the advantage of setting up the next sentence in a way that flows well and makes emotional sense.
Tim was excited to be returning home. All his old friends were already there waiting for him, and they were planning to have a party, just like the old days.
Tim felt a great sense of peace wash over him as he was returning home. His Mother would have supper ready, and soon he would be sitting at the dinner table going over the day with his Dad.
Tim felt an overwhelming sense of relief to be returning home. Six days on the road, two missed flights and an unplanned eight hour bus ride had left him exhausted.
So, with just two sentences you can begin to establish the emotional landscape but only if both those sentences use vivid, descriptive words. “Good” is not good enough.
You may be wondering how to sit down and write your Inauguration story before the deadline. I’d like to give you three quick tips that have helped me.
#1. Find the time of the day when you’re most productive and schedule writing during that period.
For some, it may be in the morning before work. For others, it may be in the evening after a warm bath. Use the time only for writing. Don’t multi-task.
#2. Set a daily goal; work to that goal, then stop.
You may, for example, set a goal of one page a day. Someone else might choose to write for one hour. When you reach your goal, stop writing and revel in your sense of accomplishment. Go back over what you have written and savor the best lines over and over a few times. You’ll be giving yourself positive reinforcement.
#3. If you miss a day or a goal, don’t get down on yourself.
Frustration and guilt are not useful emotions. If you miss a day, just focus on the next day. One thing I’ve learned in the martial arts is that there’s always another chance to get it right.
Stick with these three rules and you’ll finish you’re submission in no time!!!
“10 Essays to Try” in the Nov/Dec issue of Writer’s Digest may help you write your account of Obama’s inauguration. At first we might think that the only relevant forms for this topic would be memoir and travel. However, the contemplative form may better express your mood as you witnessed the event. The lyrical style may match the joy you felt at the time. You could choose to write a nature essay as a different point of view on this historic moment, or use nature as a metaphor. Other forms discussed are the spiritual, humor, blog, “everything else,” and gastronomical essay. That last would certainly be an original perspective!
I will be keeping this piece in my folder of writing ideas. There are of course books out there on the art of writing essays, but I liked the conciseness of this article.
-Ujjvala
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