Inspiration from the process of writing

Writing fiction has a variety of side effects. Jumping at will out of the head of one character and into the head of another and asking yourself questions concerning how a person feels or how a person might react in a certain situation has made me develop empathy to a much greater degree than before my writing life.  

But I had to reach the half century before I realised how intricate is the relationship between thoughts and words.

"If you've got nothing to say, keep your mouth shut."

"Your writing is sloppy and should never have been written by a university student."

Both of the comments above miss the point. The point is that our thoughts are very often formed in the process of speaking and writing and not before. In other words, we sometimes only discover what we really think and feel in the actual process of writing or speaking. Thoughts come through the pen, the electronic keyboard or are formed in the mouth.

This relationship between thoughts and words  is important for writers because  it stresses the necessity of the rewrite. You often hear writers say, "I don't write books, I rewrite them." This is certainly true for me. I work on my chapters in the same way that a sculptor works with a block of stone. When I have finished a book, I usually wonder how on earth it came into being in the first place. Certainly I never really know what I want to say or argue or present in a book until the first draft is out. Then, I might discuss it with friends and so begins the rewrite.

There is another point here. Discovering ones thoughts through speech or writing can also help individuals discover who they are by expressing them. It is this relationship with others that is vital here. In other words I am what I think I am through my relationships with other people. No wonder we can get hurt when bad reviews come in or people tell you the book was rubbish! It can feel like a very personal attack.

For those readers who want to know more about this most interesting topic I suggest s/he reads the last chapter of Lev Vygotsky's Thinking and Speech (1934). A word of warning, however. This chapter is not for the faint-hearted. It is a long chapter with a complex argumentative structure in which Vygotsky gives his view on the relationship between thinking and speech. As a writer myself, I would not be surprised if Lev wrote innumerable drafts before producing something he was satisfied with. Perhaps, like many creative people, he was never satisfied with what he had written. Capturing those thoughts and expressing them through words or music is a formidable task. 

                 

 

Comments

[Tina]

So true - I call it often "thinking our loud" .