Sketching some of my characters – here is a sneak peek of the ringmaster. There are so many more but I don’t want to spoil the
surprise! Keep your eyes on the blog for more info …
Erin
Sketching my novel
Category: erin
Frustrated with disability
Good morning –
Today I begin with my frustration. Let me begin by saying I am and always have been an optimist but since 2009 of May this wonderful characteristic of mine has declined greatly and unfortunately it still declines daily. I never mentioned this on my blog because I didn’t think it needed to be talked about or was relevant but since this is my blog about my writing and artistic struggles I think it does need to be mentioned.
I need you to know that I am writing from my bed.
I am doing this because I have a major spinal disorder that prevents me from sitting up for long. Not only does it prevent me from sitting up but it also prevents me from running, walking, swimming, driving, and basically anything under the sun with ease. It hurts to put it mildly. I have been writing and drawing from my bed since 2009 of May because that is when my inherited disorder showed itself.
I think its important to tell you this because it is the number one reason I have been struggling to finish my novel. Although the ideas are coming fast and furious and I can’t seem to get them down as good as I used to. When I write, I tend to pace and walk then sit to write then get up and do the same thing all over again. It’s a very physical process for me. I have even gone so far as to lay on my living room for and have my friend help me set up all of my artwork and inspiration materials around me. I have attached a photo below.
I want you to know I am by no means complaining. I am just giving you a glimpse into my daily life because that is what blogging is all about. Please know that I will never stop writing until my hands don’t work anymore and even then, I will probably talk – type. I love writing and all that is involved but also please know that I am struggling to do it.
Thank you so much to all of my readers who have purchased my work in the past. I hope my new work lives up to your expectations.
Erin T. Whalen
Sunday dinner with loved ones
Today was absolutely perfect. Sure I was exhausted from staying up all night with my little girl and her earache. Sure I was exhausted from having to run her to the doctor’s office on Sunday all while cooking a chicken. However, I find exhaustion is best tolerated when shared with loved ones. As a matter of fact, I believe that through tired eyes and a slowed brain that has lacked a bit of sleep, everything around you tends to go in slow motion. It is not until then that you realize how special your family and loved ones are. Did you ever notice when you are extremely tired it almost feels like you are watching a movie instead of watching actual people around you? I did that today. I sat around a table and listened to my family joke back and forth and chatter endlessly but because it looked as though I was watching a movie i could really pick up on how much everyone really cared about each other. I guess you could say I was living in the moment. Why am I telling you this? Well, I am telling you this because I learned something today – something that applies to writing.
Slow down and be in the moment. When you do this you will catch all of people’s true mannerisms, dialogue, quirks, and quite frankly, the truth that is sitting right behind their shiny eyes.
With this Sunday dinner in the back of mind, I look forward to watching my characters in my mind tomorrow while putting some more words down on my computer. I don’t want to just rush to get to the end of my novel and publish it, I want to sit with my characters and enjoy them like I did with my family today. As a matter of fact, I am going to be quite sad when all the words have been written and bound into pages. It will be then that I have to say goodbye and seek out my new cast of characters to sit and eat with but until then, I will enjoy the characters I am with and savor every moment of it!
Erin
Carnival Clown arises from the garbage heap in my novel!
Well here he is, the clown that rises from the garbage heap in my upcoming novel that is still without a name! I have to say this piece was lots of fun to do and I really stepped out of my normal comfort zone and tried new things for this guy but in the end I really enjoyed the finished piece. So much is going on in this novel I can’t wait to hand it over to my readers. I only hope my writing meets their expectations. Going from a children’s picture book series into a middle grade novel is quite a transition and it has been a long learning curve and exciting adventure! Enjoy meeting this guy while I race to finish his story.
Has it really been that long???
 What an enjoyable weekend I had just painting my clown in my art studio by the pond. I have to admit though, I had no idea how long it had been since posting to my sketchblog. Last May and the last posting I believe, I drew this clown. Since then, he has been written into my middle grade novel, which by the way is almost complete, and painted into a wonderful mixed-media piece. There is so much more to this piece and I will actually unveil it sometime this week. I plan to finish the entire work by Wednesday of this week so be sure to check back here to see the finished piece. The novel I have been working so hard on over the past year has inspired me to explore an entirely new genre of art which will also be explained in more detail just as soon as I figure out the details. I have so many wonderful ideas floating – no, more like flying – around my brain right now I can hardly keep up! Its exciting and exhausting at the same time. But just like any proper artist, I cave to my creativity and explore all of my ideas as my ‘domestic’ life falls apart around me. It’s a good thing I have such supporting children who have learned to accept that the kitchen can sometimes become an art studio and that dinner can be fun eating picnic-style on the living room floor! My lovely boyfriend also has a world of patience with me as I get lost in my work and refuse to leave the house for an entire weekend. My family is not only understanding of my creative “condition” but they actually encourage me to paint and write and are excited to see the next piece. I have to say I have been blessed. |
Boy can I get lost…
I have to say WOW, I just looked at my blog and saw the last time I wrote was August 28th and on that day I told you I would post a sketch the next day! So sorry. I can really get side tracked. I am writing like crazy this month and very happy about that. It seems I never want to go on the internet now because I am so into my writing which is a great thing because as any writer knows its usually the opposite. When it flows, it flows right? Gotta hold your hands under the faucet and catch every drop of creativity that is coming out! I have now put my bed in my art studio so I can absorb my project, it helps to see all of my sketches and notes posted everywhere before I go to bed and first thing when i wake up and its great, I don’t have to go far to get back to the drawing board! I just wake up, meander into the kitchen to grab my cup o’ coffee and head back to my lair. It’s wonderful when the writing flows. As a matter of fact, I don’t believe there is anything I can compare it too and only those that have experienced it can understand, all the rest just get to enjoy the literature that’s born from it.
~Erin~
Moving on ahead…
Hello again. I am happy to say that I am BACK in the writing zone! Oh boy that was not a fun bout of ‘the block’. I am also happy to say that I am moving to a perfect apartment. It is over looking a pond. What a perfect way to get up and write and write every day, right? My writer’s dream has come true (and perhaps it removed my writer’s block as well.) I am so excited to set up my new writing studio near the window that overlooks the pond. I will post pictures as soon as I move into the new home!
Sometimes you need to stop and look
I was working on putting up a sign on the outside of a building the other day and heard something in the bushes. This picture just goes to show you how important it is to stop and observe and DEFINITELY always have a camera on hand! Isn’t it sweet?
I have to admit, I am blocked. I haven’t been able to write a word in quite a while. It really hasn’t been that long but it seems like forever to me. You see, I have never believed in writer’s block (or at least never experienced it for myself) I am really experiencing it now. I’m not sure if it has anything to do with my oldest child getting married and leaving the nest – no pun intended 😉 I want to reassure my readers that I am working very hard to get through it. I am filling my non-writing time with photo taking, drawing, and capturing ideas in my writing idea notebook so when writing does come back to me, I will be armed and ready with lots of material.
Oh yes, and for all those writers out there who I never believed really had writer’s block, I DEEPLY apologize. It certainly is real.
Until next posting… Erin.
Great Weekend
I enjoyed a wonderful weekend with my best friend Stacey. We took the train from Providence RI to New York City and saw the play WICKED. It is by far the best performance I have ever seen and I have seen alot. I did see this show before at PPAC in Providence and it was excellent too. The energy is unbelievable in this show! If you haven’t seen WICKED yet its time you did!!!
I did get a new character sketched on the way to NY and I absolutely LOVE him. He appears in my novel and is being written in today. I know I said this novel would be ready to be released in October of this year but because of the turn the story took, I am needing more time. I hope you are not too disappointed if you have been waiting for it but believe me, it is going to be well worth the wait.
Thanks for your support and patience.
Erin
The Ever-Changing Novel
Once again my novel has morphed into something I never expected. I outline and plan and write and then BANG – my story takes me in a different direction. Not a bad thing though, because the story is taking on a deeper meaning for me. I have learned one thing while writing this book, well actually I’ve learned many things 🙂 but the one thing I learned that I am talking about here is how many levels the author can go into a book. The best I can explain it is like a deep hypnosis where you start with one thought and you go deeper into the trance and go down to another thought. While doing all of this you learn so many things about yourself and the issues you are dealing with. It is such an amazing process and that is why it takes so long.
Sometimes you hit a place you never knew existed and you just have to explore it. You can’t ignore it and go back to your original outline. Your story is telling you something, leading you somewhere that NEEDS to be explored and like any good writer – you put on your explorer hat (you know the kind with the little light on the top) and go deeper into the dark to see what your story is telling you. I think the best way to describe writing a story to all the readers out there is that the writer is the first to FIND the story, explore it, take notes along the way, and come back to tell about it.
We don’t make the stories up, we find them and explore them, then come back and report on them. The next time someone asks me what I do for a living, I am going to tell them I am an explorer.
I have to go back to my expedition now… I will report back to you a little later.
Erin
Erin T. Whalen 
