Ask the Author: Jared Morrison
Answered Questions (8)
Jared Morrison
Among the many moments of my life I wish I could revisit, I wish I could remember when I had the idea for Of Dreams and Angels. I don't remember the exact moment or thought, or what I was doing when it came, or how I felt when it happened. That seems to be how it goes. I've had story ideas come in the middle of the night, or while filling my car with gas, or while reading a book or watching a movie. I do know that Of Dreams was inspired in part by a literal dream of mine that led me to the love of my life, and that's probably the better answer than the one above. ;-)
Jared Morrison
That's a tough one, and also a tricky one, in that I think it's dangerous to wait for inspiration to strike as a prerequisite for writing. I can't speak for anyone other than myself, but what's worked in the past has been consistent, daily discipline. Five hundred words (minimum), right after I wake up and before anything else (aside from smooching my wife, of course). Some days it's trash and uninspired. Other days it's brilliant and three hours goes by in what feels like three minutes, with thousands of words left in the muse's wake. But if I relied on being inspired, I think I would write only a handful of times a year. The inspiration comes *from* the writing, rather than producing it.
Jared Morrison
Just. Write. I don't normally subscribe to that word-period-word-period nonsense, but I don't know how else to emphasize this. Or take any one of the million quotes out there about writing for inspiration, such as "You can't edit a blank page." If you're looking at someone who has published a book and you're feeling daunted by the idea that you haven't (yet), the only thing that separates you from that person is. that. they. wrote. In fact, it's one of the things I love most about writing--whether you're Stephen King or Margaret Atwood or lil' ol' you, the process is exactly the same.
No matter how many books you read, seminars or classes you attend, rituals you put in place, character bios you write or perfect background-music playlists you create, nothing will substitute sitting at your keyboard and actually putting words on the screen (or page, if you're a long-hander). King and Atwood have to do the exact same thing. IT DOES NOT MATTER IF WHAT YOU WRITE THAT DAY IS BAD. (I didn't want to do the word-period-word thing again.) That's what editing is for.
To throw you a bit of a bone, I'd highly recommend reading "On Writing," by the aforementioned King. I believe everything you need to know is in there, and if nothing else, he mentions that if you want to be a writer, there are two things you must do above all else: read a lot, and write a lot. And without the latter, you'll never have your book. Read On Writing, and write every day, even if it's only 500 words, until you have something.
Pardon the rant, but I just never understand it when I hear or see someone say they're an "Aspiring Writer." Stop aspiring! Just do! Then you're a writer. I get it--I was terrified at one time too. But the only way around it was through it, or a million other pithy platitudes. Just write. Right now. Go on, stop reading my Goodreads page (right after you review Of Dreams and Angels ;-)) and go write your first 500 words. I'll even read them, if you want.
No matter how many books you read, seminars or classes you attend, rituals you put in place, character bios you write or perfect background-music playlists you create, nothing will substitute sitting at your keyboard and actually putting words on the screen (or page, if you're a long-hander). King and Atwood have to do the exact same thing. IT DOES NOT MATTER IF WHAT YOU WRITE THAT DAY IS BAD. (I didn't want to do the word-period-word thing again.) That's what editing is for.
To throw you a bit of a bone, I'd highly recommend reading "On Writing," by the aforementioned King. I believe everything you need to know is in there, and if nothing else, he mentions that if you want to be a writer, there are two things you must do above all else: read a lot, and write a lot. And without the latter, you'll never have your book. Read On Writing, and write every day, even if it's only 500 words, until you have something.
Pardon the rant, but I just never understand it when I hear or see someone say they're an "Aspiring Writer." Stop aspiring! Just do! Then you're a writer. I get it--I was terrified at one time too. But the only way around it was through it, or a million other pithy platitudes. Just write. Right now. Go on, stop reading my Goodreads page (right after you review Of Dreams and Angels ;-)) and go write your first 500 words. I'll even read them, if you want.
Jared Morrison
Everything. Everything about it is also equally terrifying, but I wouldn't trade it for anything else. Putting your art into the world. Having the stories come through you, rather than of you. Reading back a sentence later on that you can barely recall writing. Being moved by the music created by the words. Telling the stories that only you are capable of telling, because even if they're tales that have been told before, they haven't been told by you, in your words, from the whispers you heard in your heart.
Jared Morrison
......is it bad to say that I've never really had "writer's block"? I've had plenty of days where I didn't want to write, sure, or plenty more days where I didn't know what to write. But I firmly believe that's where so much of the magic happens. The best days are when the story or the characters tell *me* how it's going to go, and not the other way around. How *would* I deal with writer's block? I'd sit there and pound the keys anyway. Five hundred words, minimum, without fail, without negotiation. "Write for the wastebasket," I once heard. But more often than not, there's gold in that refuse.
Jared Morrison
You had this one life. And you didn't do what you really wanted to do.
Jared Morrison
I'm maybe, just maybe, a *huge* fan of Stephen King's The Dark Tower series. So anywhere in that universe, really, whether Gilead or The Wastelands. As long as I have Roland with me, though, and he teaches me to shoot as well as he does.
Jared Morrison
I'm totally a mood reader, so while I have a (virtual) pile, it often changes depending on what I'm currently reading, or what catches my interest at any given time. At the moment I have about five books on the go: A Promised Land by Barack Obama, Outlander by Diana Gabaldon, A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson, The Girl Who Played With Fire by Stieg Larsson, and Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell. My summer reading will be comprised of some John Irving, Cherie Dimaline, Stephen King, Yaa Gyasi, Colleen Hoover, and many more! (But that could change, of course, depending on my mood--ha!)
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