Saturday, January 09, 2010

Do You Breathe Through Your Eyelids?

Saturday—another day of un-writing my WIP, and I'm wondering, do I really want to hide in my office or do I need a change of scenery where people are chatting, coffee grinders grinding, steamers steaming, and whiny coffee house music trickling through the PA? For some reason that started a little dialogue in my head that ended with a very different question:  Am I a Lava Lizard or a Hermit Crab?

If you're confused, maybe I should let you in on a little more of that conversation.  It all comes down to the pros and cons of distraction, and yes, there are two sides to everything. If you're a fan of BULL DURHAM, you might remember the breathe-through-your-eyelids garter method.  That wonderful exchange between Susan Sarrandon and Tim Robbins when she wants him to act like a Lava Lizard (from the Galapagos Islands).  You know, the critter with the parietal eye that allows him to "sense" the things he can't see with his regular eyes.  His pitching sucks because he can't get out of his head enough.  He can only throw the ball, throw the ball, throw the ball...which hits everything (including the Bull mascot) but the strike zone.  So Annie talks Nuke into wearing her garter belt to get him off center enough to let loose.  He needs to be distracted a little to do his best work.  

I know that some writers prefer to hide themselves away in their cave, with absolutely no noise, nothing to distract them, like a Hermit Crab tucked into his shell.  Others thrive on a little distraction—music, television on in the background, people all around, like Lava Lizard working his parietal eye.  I'm somewhere in the middle.

Back in the day when I first started to dedicate myself to writing, my space was a corner in the kids' playroom.  Nap times were fringe times when I got the most work done.   Eventually, however, nap time was out the window and I had to leave the house just to get out of reach of all the "Mama, Mama, Mama" distractions and focus on my writing.  Armed with earphones and my laptop, I quickly learned how to tune out the café noise and write.  Now that I have my own space, I find that it really depends on my mood.  Bad television in the background can work, but so can fabulous play lists that echo the tone of my WIP.  I have to say, though, quiet time is still the best at home.  But, there is something about the white noise of a public place that forces me to draw from a deeper place. So being a Lava Lizard once in while really rocks.  The rose goes in the front, big guy.

So what about other writers out there?  How do you work best—Lava Lizard or a Hermit Crab?  Take the poll at the right or leave a comment...or do both!


10 comments:

  1. Definitely 100% hermit crab. If people are talking in another room, and I can't even hear the words, I'm distracted. I don't have kids, so I haven't yet had to force myself to deal with distraction 24-7.

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  2. Great post, Mary Ann. I would say I'm a lizard with strong hermit crab tendencies. When I'm really in the writing groove,commotion around me is welcome or at least not negative. On the other hand, when I'm creating or plotting, or thinking through a big revision (as in now),then I'm more hermit crabbish. Of course, there are the days when even my own breathing is a distraction and then I'm 100% hermit crab, with emphasis on the "crab." At those times, even if I was a blind hermit crab with earplugs, I would be distracted by the chocolate chips and empty teapot beckoning. Oh, and btw, thanks for the distraction!

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  3. I'm a lava lizard. I listen to music and I don't mind people's voices (as long as they aren't too loud).

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  4. If I'm at home, I need to be alone. But for some reason I can work in a cafe or library. I suppose it's because nobody is paying me any mind and I feel alone but comforted by the lovely environment.

    At home, the awareness of family nearby interferes with my ability to be totally into the story. I feel caught between two worlds.

    But then again, put me in a car with hubby driving and I can write with him 2 feet away. Something about the drone of the road and the fact that he doesn't talk much while driving. I can get a lot of work done in the car - not internet distractions.

    I'm probably mostly a crab. In more ways than one!

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  5. I need my own space, but I do play music related to my novel. By the way, I'm still working out of a corner of my kids playroom--what a view!

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  6. Great post! I'm definitely a hermit crab. But maybe I should try the lava lizard approach during those hard, doubtful times when the inner critics tend to be loudest. A little white noise might help.

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  7. oooh I like the sound of being a lava lizard. I definately like a bit of noise. I get distracted if things are too quiet and wonder, Hmmm what's going on?

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  8. I started writing with kids running around making lots of noise :) Not so much now. I miss that!

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  9. 100% hermit crab. I guess I'm just too easily distracted.

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  10. I can consider myself as a mood writer, well it depends as well. Sometimes I can write straightly with the facts all together. I'm not the typical literary writer. Sometimes I talked about traveling, cooking politics and even eyelid surgery. New Jersey is a good place to write. I'm a freelance writer and I handle my own time. If things are too tight, I actually go out and find my place. Now, my topic is restylane; NJ be good to me.

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