tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5037107797013641705.post7576460737891004484..comments2024-03-26T05:15:39.663-07:00Comments on Equestrian Ink: Writing About RidingJami Davenporthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05259390150273030284noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5037107797013641705.post-3764411231268451352012-07-11T01:38:33.026-07:002012-07-11T01:38:33.026-07:00I love writing in general - I'm most passionat...I love writing in general - I'm most passionate about equine related topics, but tend to adore putting pen to paper (or keys to keyboard) and watching characters and a story form.<br /><br />One day I hope to get published and am currently working on three different ideas - come to think of it although they're quite different, they do all feature horses!<br /><br />Like you, I'd be stumped by someone who wants to write without having a love of reading a particular genre...Christinehttp://equus-blog.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5037107797013641705.post-85521864931067396732012-07-02T11:45:30.962-07:002012-07-02T11:45:30.962-07:00Sir Dick Francis! How I loved his wonderful and e...Sir Dick Francis! How I loved his wonderful and exciting stories. I really miss him. It's great that your books can be purchased & downloaded on Kindle. My husband has a Kindle & I'm going to ask him to purchase the first book you wrote. Looking forward to reading it and many more.<br />Debbie Prset<br />my blog: Life with KramerKramer's Momhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07094450351419177174noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5037107797013641705.post-81711209597702805112012-06-30T08:23:23.214-07:002012-06-30T08:23:23.214-07:00WHP--I think you have done a great deal of work on...WHP--I think you have done a great deal of work on both what you want to do with writing and also personal exploration--what you want to do with your life. What sort of surprised me about some of my students was the fact that they seemed to have done NO work of this sort. Many of them seemed (to me) to be a bit confused about what they wanted to do--period. It was as if they were hoping that writing might fill a gap in their lives--even though they'd never tried it and were unsure what they wanted to do with it. Since this is very different from the place that I came from when I started writing mystery novels, I had to think a bit when it came to how to inspire these students and get them going.<br /><br />Thanks for the insights--very interesting, as always.Laura Crumhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15200878892304748308noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5037107797013641705.post-21212157798058433662012-06-29T15:55:24.148-07:002012-06-29T15:55:24.148-07:00It took a while before I realised that one writes ...It took a while before I realised that one writes creatively from a place deep within. The Shadow, some would call it. A repository of stored away aspiration, fantasy and other peculiar material repressed by the conscious mind. In writing I bare a part of my soul. Perhaps for some people the idea of writing appears, however what comes out - if truly and authentically personal - isn't quite what they would like to share with the world. There are times when, having written something deep, I feel naked and exposed. At that point one has to both care and not care. The repressed stuff, of course, has the potential to fascinate readers. It gives them a foil to project onto. <br /><br />I guess that I started off wanting to write about horses and riding, however what emerged was quite different. Horses figured, however gender and identity were the issues that really got explored.White Horse Pilgrimhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18256903307281225327noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5037107797013641705.post-235403972824782402012-06-29T08:17:05.141-07:002012-06-29T08:17:05.141-07:00Val--That is a really good insight. And its true, ...Val--That is a really good insight. And its true, those particular students have expressed quite a bit of gratitude and also excitement that they now know what they want to do. Thanks for the comment.Laura Crumhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15200878892304748308noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5037107797013641705.post-70769371047018985612012-06-29T07:20:01.494-07:002012-06-29T07:20:01.494-07:00I think that sometimes people sign up for a class ...I think that sometimes people sign up for a class like that because they are hoping to be inspired, even if they do not know much about the topic of the class. It sounds like you were able to deliver for those students. Consider that a success for yourself as their teacher!<br /><br />I love to write about my horse and horses in general. I completely understand how your passion for horses fueled your mysteries. Writing about what you know and what you love makes it a pleasure.Valhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07335385366138424092noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5037107797013641705.post-34036982545861608822012-06-28T15:15:39.213-07:002012-06-28T15:15:39.213-07:00Kate--I like writing blog posts, too. Perhaps more...Kate--I like writing blog posts, too. Perhaps more than I like writing fiction. And I really enjoy reading your posts.<br /><br />Cesca--I, too, feel busy enough without trying to write yet another novel, which is why "Barnstorming" will probably be the last in my series. And I do understand how overwhelming it can seem to emark on a book-length manuscript. I certainly felt that way myself when I started out writing mysteries.<br /><br />Grey Horse--Funder said that to me yesterday (we got to meet and have lunch). Some people just like taking classes. This is certainly NOT me, so it was interesting for me to realize that maybe my students were coming from that "exploring" point of view. Thanks for the insight.Laura Crumhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15200878892304748308noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5037107797013641705.post-80223208145581494442012-06-28T08:43:38.757-07:002012-06-28T08:43:38.757-07:00Having read a lot of mysteries I would love to tak...Having read a lot of mysteries I would love to take your class, I'm sure it's interesting and chock full of information. As for the students who signed up and haven't read a mystery or don't know which way they want to go with their story telling, maybe they just wanted to take a writing class. I think some people just like to gather information about writing and see if it interests them or if they think they have a talent for it. I've taken a few college courses in writing with the same teacher. She had us read P.D. James and some other books too. Mostly for the writing style I would think.<br /><br />Of course, I'd love to write a book about horses and other scenarios. I do have a few ideas floating around in my brain. Unfortunately, they'll have to stay there for now until I have more free time to dedicate myself and energies to full time writing. I have a hard enough time trying to find time to keep posting on my blog.Grey Horse Mattershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05837575441967937196noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5037107797013641705.post-78699189665749683642012-06-28T08:16:54.123-07:002012-06-28T08:16:54.123-07:00I'd love to write a book involving horses; so ...I'd love to write a book involving horses; so far I've not come up with a storyline that has "taken on a life of it's own" the way "Mucho Caliente" did, or (to a lesser extent) the way my other unpublished manuscript did. I think about writing a lot, but for now I'm happy writing blogs for Equestrian Ink, taking care of my house, garden and family, and riding my horse. I'm pretty sure the full-time writing bug will, at some point, bite me again. I'm waiting!<br /><br />However, if were in your position, teaching a class, I'd also be surprised by students who claim to want to write a novel not being more specific on what they want to write about. Then again, maybe they're intimidated, not necessarily by you, but by the formidable task of actually jumping in and writing something so "big". Maybe they signed up for the class hoping to lessen their intimidation, but haven't as yet managed to do that. Just trying to "feel it out", and put myself in their shoes...Francesca Prescotthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16312915602595615476noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5037107797013641705.post-4908187477405058552012-06-28T03:41:13.183-07:002012-06-28T03:41:13.183-07:00I've never written anything long-form, if you ...I've never written anything long-form, if you don't count all the things I've written in college or for work over time. I love mysteries, but don't know that I'd have the imagination for it. I'm more attracted to non-fiction, and my horse blog is very satisfying to write. I partly write just to clarify my own thinking, and hope that others find it interesting as well although you never know what a reader will make of it.<br /><br />I've often been intrigued by science writing - John McPhee comes to mind - and if I were to ever write fiction it would probably be science fiction, which I like perhaps even more than mysteries.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5037107797013641705.post-87676724499849503442012-06-27T20:20:03.236-07:002012-06-27T20:20:03.236-07:00Yes, good point. I was most puzzled by those who h...Yes, good point. I was most puzzled by those who had no idea what story they wanted to tell. But I do realize we all come from different places as we embrace the "writer" role.Laura Crumhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15200878892304748308noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5037107797013641705.post-3693294564328907222012-06-27T08:35:43.495-07:002012-06-27T08:35:43.495-07:00Like you, I'm a bit perplexed by writing stude...Like you, I'm a bit perplexed by writing students who don't read in their genre and don't have a driving need to tell a story. I usually end up asking them a key question: do you want to tell *this* story and that's it, or do you want to "be a writer"? Because those are two different horses to lead, ya know? <br /><br />And it's perfectly okay to have just one story to tell; memoir writers are often of this stripe, and it's fine. But if you want to "be a writer" then you probably have some work to do, some studying to do, and a lot of writing to do.Belea T. Keeneyhttp://www.beleatkeeney.comnoreply@blogger.com