This Wheel’s On Fire

Tags

blogging, medication, music, noise, novells, poetry, Time, Youtube

If you’re a writer, I don’t know about you but I can’t just sit down & write. Firstly I have to be in the mood. Secondly I must know that I’m going to be free of interruptions, thirdly I need to know what I’m writing about to an  extent & songwriting is a cakewalk. I’ve been doing it since I was 16. I’ll be 50 in a fortnight..

I say to an extent  in that I’m fortunate enough to be able to write novels, blog entries & poetry. I have too wake up thinking about a novel that I’m working on. The gist of where I’m at won’t grip me during the day.

Writing a blog entry is different.. The idea for that can come to me at any given time. It may be an overheard conversation or it may be due to observing people in the street. I wonder where they’re going or where they have been, what their name are, what their job is. I can run a mile with that. It’s all purely fiction. I try to avoid factual blog entries.

I’m lucky with poetry. I find that it comes to me easily. My poetry is free form and sometimes warped butt if read closely it all makes sense. It is usually 100% imagination. Having said this my poetry makes sense as I take people into my imagination. I also aim to occasionally make the  reader think. Even though I’ve written a trilogy of humorous novels I find writing humorous poetry difficult because I don’t know when to stop.

Songwriting is  easier than poetry. 3 verses & a catchy chorus. Job done. Rock lyrics are generally superficial and not many actually listen to the lyrics, particularly in the live setting and particularly with certain genres of modern music which are nothing more than rapid spoken word pieces put to a bass drum & kick drum. Some of it I can work out but I don’t have the time to sift through it. I’m afraid my genre is classic rock..

On  any given  day I can write for up to 14 hours. These days happen about every 2-3 weeks. I don’t plan them. They just happen. Blog….poem…..Novel….song….& so the cycle continues on days like these. I stop to eat & to have an occasional cigarette. I don’t pay attention to what I eat & I smoke my cigarettes at double-speed. I get annoyed when I look at the clock & it’s time to take my medication. One of the tablets knocks me out cold. No more writing for this lad. I tried to beat the tablet once. I woke up at 2am in the same writing position that I was in when I took my medication. I had to stagger to bed, propping myself up against the walls. I awoke fully clothed. Never again shall I do this. I  could have done myself a mischief.

Even though I don’t like noise when I’m writing, I have the television on at low volume  for fear of dying from sensory deprivation. The strange thing is….every now  & again a song will pop into my head. It can be mine or somebody elses. If it’s mine I’ll go to the relevant site & put it on. If it’s somebody famous I go to  Youtube. Despite not liking noise when I write, I have to don my studio headphones. To me there’s nothing worse than a tinny computer sound. I like the full stereo sound for maximum appreciation.

This only happens on 14 hour days for some reason.

What about  you?

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My Styles Of Writing.

Tags

blogging, poetry, songwriting

I have enjoyed writing for as long as I can remember. My teachers often commended me and I gained top marks for my writing.

When I turned 16 (I’m now 49)  I joined a rock band and soon began writing music for the band. We played classic rock music. By the age of 22 I left the band to focus on a nursing career. I still wrote rock music as I recorded at home for myself. I am a multi-instrumentalist. I also now had the time to write poetry, begin a blog and started making notes for a novel. Each format requires a different approach to writing.

 

• Rock Music

I found writing rock music rather easy. It generally has a set format.  Verse-chorus-verse-chorus-instrumental break-verse-chorus-chorus. Sometimes the last verse can be the same as the first.

The nature of rock music allows for rather superficial lyrics. Not a lot of thought is required but a catchy chorus helps. Lyrics in rock music tend to take second place behind the music of the band and the effects added in the studio after recording.

 

• Poetry

Poetry has always come easy to me. Irrespective of the length of a poem or whether it  rhymes or not, I generally write a poem in ten minutes. If it takes more than that or I have to stop and think about it then the spontaneity is gone and poetry, to me, is the most spontaneous form of literature.

If one has to think about a poem or plan it, it becomes contrived and this is obvious to the seasoned poetry reader.

If you aren’t at your keyboard and have a poem spring to mind, remember where you were when you had the inspiration. It works.

 

• Novels

Novels are a whole different thing. The trick with writing is to relax your way through it. There’s no rush. You have plenty of time to proof read it.

When I’m writing a novel I begin by writing what I call a ‘skeleton.’ This is the bare bones of the story and is probably the hardest part to do. I do it in point form, ensuring that things run in chronological order. As a character appears I give a full description of them.

After completing the skeleton, I begin from the start and begin writing the novel proper, expanding on each point as I go. If you get the skeleton right then writing the novel itself should be a stimulating experience.

I then go back and check the skeleton and compare it with the novel proper as I go.

It’s a long process and you can find yourself changing the skeleton at odd hours….but what’s the hurry?

Arty Functions

Tags

Facebook, fake, functions, photographs, poetry, strangers

I very rarely go to social outings these  days. At my age, I’ve been  there and done that. I find them tedious and fake.

One day, however, a few months ago, a friend rang me and invited me to a function. “There will be lots of writers and people who want to meet you,” they excitedly said. ‘Oh, great,’ I said to myself. Irrespective, I decided to go.

When the night came I got dressed in my usual formal wear. A black leather jacket, black shirt, black dress trousers and crocodile skin winkle-picker shoes. An hour prior to leaving home I downed four valium to keep things on an even keel. On the way out the door I put my Ray Ban sunglasses on as valium makes my eyes go red and I wouldn’t want people thinking that I had been smoking cannabis. (For the record, I don’t smoke the stuff). So what if it was night-time.

On arrival I looked around the room and sighed to myself as I was confronted with men wearing berets and scarves while the women were wearing too much make-up and reeked of cheap perfume. It was one of ‘those’ gigs.

Luckily I was approached by a friend of mine who I had known for years. We talked about everything except writing. Then he said the inevitable. “Come with me, Bob. There are some people dying to meet you.” He led me to three girls who looked to be about eighteen.. One of them spotted me and said to her friends, “Look. Here comes Bob Findlay.” I introduced myself. They asked if I would mind having my photo taken with them. I said, “Why?” I’m not exactly famous. I’m barely known at best. I obliged anyway. I was then pleasantly surprised when I started talking to them. They knew my work well and the works of the great poets.

I was then shuffled off to meet someone else. I recognised their face from Facebook  but couldn’t remember their name. I pointed at them and said, “Facebook.” She laughed then told me her name. We got on rather well, probably because we didn’t talk about writing. She too asked for a photo. Obviously I obliged.

As I was shuffled from group to group, generally being bored senseless by talk of writing. After several discussions I needed to  go outside for a cigarette as it is almost illegal to smoke a legal product anywhere these days. I had no sooner put my cigarette in its holder than an elderly couple approached me. The lady asked if I would mind not smoking. I asked her if she would mind going to 99% of the other places where there is no cigarette smoke. She took my point and laughed. I noticed that she was carrying one of my poetry books. She asked if her husband could take a photo of the pair of us and would I sign her book. “Certainly,” I said. As she held the book up I put my arm around her. I then signed the book, dedicating it to her and her husband.

After my cigarette, swearing to leave in fifteen minutes….which turned out to be the perfect time. One person started talking about my poetry, rabbiting on about my imagery and the painting that I create. Luckily my sunglasses stopped her from seeing my eyes glaze over. Imagery. Landscape. Give it a rest.

Just as I was about to leave, one of the first three girls that I had spoken to came running towards me. She said, “Bob. I meant to ask you. Where do you get your ideas from?” I paused for quite some time before telling her that I don’t know. I don’t plan a poem and irrespective of length, it takes me no longer than ten minutes to write a poem. If it’s going to take longer than that or if I have to stop and think about it then the spontaneity is gone and off all the forms of literature, poetry is  the most spontaneous. I thought that this was a very deep question from one so young, especially because I had to give the answer some thought.

I have written many poems over the years and can recall every single one. People ask me about a poem that’s five years old and I can explain it to them instantly.

With that being my arty outing several months ago, I have sworn I won’t be attending one in 2017. They’re to samey and fake. I’m not into insincere pats on the back from total strangers, name dropping and the likes.

I’d just as soon stay at home.

Mornings And Days

Tags

anxiety, blogging, cigarette, Lifestyle, news, poetry, writing

Greetings dear reader. I hope this finds you and those close to you all well and in good spirits. This is a brief but very difficult entry for me to write. I’ll explain why at the end.

My mornings start at 6.15am irrespective of the time of year, be it dark or already daylight. I don’t need an alarm clock.. I bolt out of  bed and switch the television to catch the news. I don’t watch the news for the remainder of the day as it’s the same thing all day. After a few minutes, this is when it starts.

When I say ‘it’ I am  referring to racing thoughts. My comprehension of news stories diminish and my hands begin to shake. I go and clumsily put a cigarette in it’s holder and deeply draw my way through it. This helps but not for  long. I become  restless so have a shower and a shave, missing the rest of the news. I then check my emails. This can take anything from ten minutes to an hour. Being a writer and online recording artist I get a lot of spam emails. Once done with my emails I visit my parents who live nearby.

I return home and have a quick browse through Facebook. By this time it is around 9am. If I have to do anything in town I have to do it there and then, despite my  anxiety, or it won’t get done that day.

I  then sit down and start writing. I gradually feel my anxiety leave me but it never really entirely leaves me for the day. I take several cigarette breaks. I usually write all day, bee it blogging, poetry or my latest novel. I consider myself fortunate in that I can easily swap from genre to genre.

As I mentioned at the beginning of this entry that it is a hard one to write. It is difficult to write as the writing of it has reminded me of my anxiety, particularly my anxiety.

Forms Of Writing

Tags

blogging, Bob Dylan, classic rock, novelist, poetry, songwriting, The Beatles

I am a songwriter, novelist, poet and blogger. I have enjoyed writing for as long as I can remember and try to write at least something every day. It relaxes me.

My approaches to writing the above genres vary and I write in each genre depending on what mood I’m in.

• Songwriting

I have been songwriting for the classic rock bands that I have been in since the age of 16 (I am now 49). I find songwriting for this genre to be somewhat superficial and the format is generally the same; verse-chorus, verse-chorus, etc.

The lyrics are not as ‘important’ or predominant in classic rock music. There’s the sound of guitars, the beat of drums and also effects to compete with; all of which tend to push the lyrics to the background. A catchy melody helps overcome this. The Beatles were the masters of this. As far as pushing lyrics to the forefront, you can’t go past Bob Dylan.

• Novels

Don’t let any writer tell you that writing a novel is easy. It’s not.

Firstly it takes that initial spark. ‘What can I write a novel about?’ From there….and this is just how I do it….I take rough notes, developing the main plot and main characters. From here I go through the notes and expand upon them, making sure that everything is chronological. It is during this stage that I introduce side stories just to fill the novel out and make it more diverse for the reader.

I then sit down, sift through all of my notes and begin the novel proper. Once completed I proof read it to death. I give manuscripts to friends who provide me with constructive criticism. I weigh up this constructive criticism and decide if its’ worth reacting to or not.

Then I begin to write the novel proper, still referring to notes and constructive criticism.

• Poetry

Without boasting, poetry has always come easily to me. I think that it’s a spontaneity thing. To me, poetry should be largely spontaneous. If it is not, it tends to become somewhat contrived and it shows.

My poems are written as they spring to mind. They are generally done in 10 minutes flat. I’m not one for long poems. I also don’t go much on poems that consist of one word per line. Firstly, I get lost (maybe I’m just thick). Secondly I find that I can’t get a handle on the phrasing of the piece. Phrasing a poem is of paramount importance, whether they rhyme or not.

All of my poems tell a story. Occasionally there’s a message in my poems. I keep these messages positive.

• Blogging

The manner in which I blog is simply writing down what has been on my mind. Sometimes I blog daily. Sometimes I may not write for a few weeks.

I enjoy blogs that are light and positive in nature. I also enjoy humour and blogs that give away a little bit about the writer. Travel blogs with appropriate photos particularly appeal to me.

Blogs pertaining to politics, religion or business I do not follow. None of these topics interest me or affect my life. I’m also not one for lengthy, rambling blogs. I lose interest too quickly. Having researched the subject, the best blog length should take no more than 5-7 minutes to read (occasionally I’ll make exceptions).

• Brief Overview

This has been a very brief overview of my personal writing styles. My likes, dislikes and opinions. I do hope that you have found it to be an interesting read.

 

 

When I’m Not Writing

Tags

blogging, boredom, Facebook, Lifestyle, music, poetry, reading

When I’m not  writing I do very little. Writing is my ‘thing.’ I do the necessities such as housework, groceries and paying bills. Fortunately my house is low maintenance and local amenities  are nearby so these activities don’t occupy much of my time.

For whatever reason that I’m not writing….I’ll get to that later….I get bored  very easily. Television holds little  interest to me. There seems to bee too much repetition and violence. Despite being a writer, I’m  not a prolific reader. I  read to research a current project that I’m working on but to relax I like to read autobiographies and biographies.

I rarely socialise when I’m not writing. I find that it  becomes mundane after a while and inevitably ends upturning to gossip; something that I don’t like. I’m not one for ‘playing the game’ either. I find it both fake and futile.

I don’t like to talk about my children online as do some people on Facebook who harp on ad nauseam about their children as if they are some sort of trophy. My children don’t live with me  but I see them often and spend a lot of time thinking about them in a positive manner.

I also write and record my own music and have been an online musician since 2007. Having said this I have done nothing musical since mmid-2015 as writing has taken over my life for the time being. I have no doubt that I will return to music in the future. I enjoy it too much.

The two reasons that prevent me from writing are either writers block or if I’m feeling unwell. Writers  block is frustrating and drives me nuts. Feeling unwell is also frustrating and also drives me nuts….but in a different way.

My solution to these two obstacles is to have several projects going at one time. Currently I  and this blog have two novels, a poetry book a poetry blog and this blog on the go. This way I can jump from one project to another if I find myself stuck for words.

So to sum things up, it’s a rarity for me to be not writing.

 

Writing and Isolation

Tags

blogging, isolation, poetry, socialising

Greetings dear reader and thank you so much for dropping by. I’d like to tell you a bit about what it’s like to live as a writer. I am a writer myself. I publish novels, poetry and blogs, depending on my mood. I am always able to busy myself with writing.

Writing and isolation lend themselves to each other. When I am writing I require no distractions such as the television, radio or music. I find them very distracting and have even been called a recluse. I can live with that….because it’s partly true.

I’m not anti-social but have found myself caught short when I visit friends and an idea comes to me. I have to prematurely excuse myself in order to get that idea on paper. On rare occasions that idea has left me before I arrive home. This is particularly frustrating.I find that when visiting friends I am often hit by an idea as conversations with them become stale and ‘samey ‘(if there is such a word) and find myself drifting off into my latest project.

Visitors pose little problem. After they leave, all I have to do is re-read the last few paragraphs that I have written in order to get back into the swing of things. When the phone rings, however, I still find myself jumping as I am so engrossed in my work.

Appointments throw me off big time. If I have an appointment I become distracted tot the point where I can’t get into the swing of writing. The same applies to shopping, paying bills and so forth. If I don’t do these things early in the day then they don’t get done. I also find these activities incredibly distracting. The only exception to this is if I encounter an interesting situation, conversation or comment that may spark the idea for a poem

As mentioned at the start of this blog,, writing lends itself to isolation. I like this isolation and have seen days vanish in what feels like a matter of minutes.

I don’t attend social functions as I find the conversation very superficial and fruitless. It all feels like being in the same scene of a movie over and over again.

Some writers are able to balance a social life with writing. Not this writer. I much prefer my own company when working as I become too easily distracted.

 

How I Got To Blogging

Tags

author, Communication, Facebook, Internet, music, poetry, Sharing, writing

I began many moons ago online purely as a recording artist. I recorded and released my music on every site that I could find. For the first two years it was a really exciting time as I received accolades and even set up my own website.

As time went on, however, I began  to get bombarded by requests from fellow musicians to review their music as I am an experienced sound engineer and  multi-instrumentalist. I simply didn’t have the time. I can’t just listen to a song and critique’ it. I need a good few listens before I can give an accurate assessment of a piece. My days would be filled with listening to other peoples music instead of concentrating on my own. I ended up having to send out a (polite) mass email saying that I was no longer doing song critiques.

After approximately seven years I felt that I needed a break from music so I took to writing. I began writing short stories, which have been published. I am currently working on my first novel.

Amidst all of this I would mess about on Facebook from time to time….but not often. I enjoy the free speech aspect of it but don’t go much on the way that people believe everything they read. I also don’t go much on people posting pretty pictures with poignant messages. No originality or imagination of their own. Now don’t get me wrong, I like photos of cute babies but I can’t understand why people post these people post another photo two hours later. How much more cute can a baby get in the space of two hours? Facebook is a handy backup for boredom. Just a few minutes here and there is enough. Sometimes it can even give me an idea for my writing.

Having spent a few years writing my short stories I felt that I needed a writing avenue that would allow me to write my thoughts down as they presented. I saw an advertisement on Facebook (of all places) for WordPress in 2015 so I looked into it. It took me no time at all to get the hang of it and began this very blog. I can write down and publish my thoughts as they present and share them with anyone who cares to read them. A few months after commencing this blog I commenced a poetry blog.

Of all of the sites that I have been involved in over the years I have found this blogging site to be the most conducive to good vibes. People acknowledge your blogs and provide any criticism in a constructive manner with sprinklings of humour never too far away.

I have discovered (fortunately) that bloggers do not plead for accolades or riches as is the case with many online music sites. They do not treat blogging as a competition. Bloggers merely wish to share their ideas without fanfare. Musicians could learn a lot about how to conduct themselves from bloggers.

Bloggers just go about their business. This is how I conduct my life so I cannot help but be drawn to this attitude.

I think I shall continue blogging and writing my poems and short stories.

Creative Blogging

Tags

blogging, Lifestyle, poetry

Several months ago I entered the world of blogging purely  with aim of sharing my thoughts and hopefully providing entertainment to anyone who cared to read. I thought it wise to do some research on blogging first. My wise(e)dom only served to see me swearing loudly at my laptop, rolling my eyes frequently and temporarily increase my cigarette intake.

For days all that I was confronted with during my searches was ‘how to’ blogs. Keyword density, SEO and so forth. They were all so full of advertisements that distracted the reader from the actual content….which was all pretty much the same anyway. Very cold and clinical. Not a sign of creativity at all with the exception of the occasional nerdy joke which isn’t my cup of tea anyway.

Then….then….purely by accident I discovered a creative blog post hosted on WordPress. I read the post and found it very enlightening so I ‘followed’ the site and went as far as to leave a comment. I then received blog updates from that site.

I’m not very computer minded so I decided to check out WordPress and found it to be very easy to use. Now here I am. Right before your very eyes. My posts on this blog stem from random thoughts that I have from time to time. They can be one day apart  or weeks apart. As time progressed I began to gain more followers. I find this gratifying and humbling.

One day I gained a follower who is a poet. I enjoy poetry and as a songwriter I figured that I could give it a shot as I perhaps had a head start on most. This proved to be partly true. I decided to broaden my horizons and start a poetry blog.

I find writing poetry to be much deeper than songwriter and much more rewarding. When writing poetry ones’ imagination can run riot but must be put in a way that  rolls off the readers mind.

After all is said and done, I’d like to think that people feel better after reading a blog post or poem of mine than they did beforehand. That simple.

Poetry And Poets. An Insight.

Tags

blogging, independent poets, poetry

There are many outstanding independent poets in the world. It’s a matter of finding them. Poets to not receive the acclaim akin to that of musicians and actors. To be honest I don’t think poets seek  it. They are a different breed of artist.

Poets want to be  understood.

To be understood the poet has to be acknowledged. Many independent poets have blogs. This is an excellent way to be acknowledged and thus understood by those interested in poetry. By blogging the blogger can attract followers, some of whom are fellow bloggers. Readers may choose to follow their poetry blogs thus increasing their acknowledgement.

Everybody can write but not everybody can be a poet. As a songwriter I find writing comes to me easily. I have been doing it for over thirty years. Over the past few months, however, I have found myself leaning towards poetry. Song lyrics only need to rhyme and I find the content rather shallow. I want to challenge my mind. I wrote poetry when I was younger but that gave way when I joined a rock band in my late teens.

Daytime now throws me off. There are too many distractions, mainly from people. Their idle chit-chat bores me to tears. I call it brick-wall conversation. It is futile. It ends up going nowhere leaving my mind empty. I never noticed this with songwriting. Writing poetry takes real thought.

I find that writing poetry comes easier to me under the comforting blanket of night-time. Much less noise and my imagination seems to come alive. Sometimes I can’t keep up with myself as I make notes. I make notes during the night and put them into poetic prose during the next few days.

Some people have asked me if writing poetry isn’t a lonely gig. This, for me anyway, couldn’t be further from reality. When my mind is firing on all cylinders, I’m a thousand miles away from loneliness. I’m in a world full of productive thought and imagination. The television is switched off and the phone is off the hook. My only distraction is a visitor during which time I struggle to focus on their conversation.

One of main the main attractions that I have found since commencing writing poetry is that it can take your mind wherever you decide. The decision is totally that of the poet. I can be in a ‘flat’ mood and yet find myself writing an upbeat poet.

One of the major aspects that I enjoy about poetry is that the sentiment and message is totally in the hands of the poet. Having said this, a poem can be interpreted in a totally different way by the reader. I once went to a poetry recital many moons ago and the same poem was recited by two different readers. Each rendition was recited with a totally different meaning. I found this stimulating. Thought provoking.

Getting back to the difference between songwriting and poetry….

As I said, songwriting is generally formatted. Verse-chorus-verse-chorus, etc.There is less room for interpretation in song lyrics. Less for the reader to ponder and truly absorb. I exclude Bob Dylan from this statement.

I find that when writing my poetry, however, one must be very selective with word placement, flow and so forth. It must roll off the mind. I want my reader to truly capture my imagination as I believe that I have an imagination that is worth sharing.

If you are interested in checking out and following my poetry, click here.

 

 

Cool Truth

Tags

poetry, truth

I’m not alone as I notice

Your demeanor as you walk in the door.

The air is warm

Your tone is smooth.

It leaves me flat on the floor.

You’re so decidedly jaded

With disposition so cool.

Armed with the truth, you shoot from the hip

You’re so casual as you discard the fool.

The sycophant and his chronies

Blindly pave their way into hell.

The smoky anvil of justice smiles

At the hammer of truth as it fell.

You despise them for what they’re worth

As you cast an apathetic gaze

At the jokers and clowns that speak with no sound.

You leave them to their ways.

Ever since I met you I have found

It’s your cool truth that leaves me on the ground.

When you  speak I hear no other sound.

It’s your cool truth that keeps my world going around.