6/16/11

It's Good to Dream

 
I was making progress on my WIP last night, but 25 more pages into it I had to stop. My head was killing me, and the ideas were not flowing. The blinds were banging. Kids were screaming outside. The TV was going. The dogs were barking just because they've mastered the art. I need it quiet when I write. I finally stopped what I was doing, stuck in a pair of earplugs, and went to bed.

Here's where it got good.

I had a dream. It was an awesome dream in which I was writing. Normally if I were to dream about work, I'd demand that someone pay me overtime, except that I don't consider writing work. If anything it's my way of unwinding after I get home from a long day of sifting through paperwork, solving problems and occasionaly thinking in a different language.

In my dream I wasn't only writing my current WIP, I was in it.

Surely, every writer out there has wanted to play a key role in their own novel, be the protagonist, the lover, the villain, etc.

Haven't you?

We all love to pretend.

"If they ever make a movie, that'll be me," I joke to myself. Dreams are what keep the ideas soaring.
I've fallen asleep at night and prayed, "let me be in my book tonight, oh pretty please. It would be so much fun."

Last night it happened.

I was on Pantheas. That's where Craven lives. He wasn't always called Craven. I've known him since I was 10. Our relationship has evolved drastically during the years. Characters tend to change as we grow older. Anyway, he was showing me around his home, making me privy to all of their projects, pointing me out to his people. I sat on the council with all the world leaders, stared into their eyes. There was a sense of belonging. My characters were so vivid, so real, as only a dream can make them.

When I'm in the process of writing, I imagine these people, the way they look and act, how they reason. I know everything about them, what moves them, how to make them forgive or kill, laugh or love. (Wouldn't it be wonderful to know so much about our fellow human beings?) Craven looks fabulous wearing nothing but a string of emeralds...just a warm up game we play. His best friend Damon is the most flirtatious and crass character I've ever created, yet somehow they function perfectly together.

I've asked my co-workers countless times what their version of heaven is, specially when the whole rapture thing came around. Some say it's fishing or golfing. Others speak of eating and drinking. More still bring up men, women, sex.

My heaven is on Pantheas. It always has been. It's the one place in the entire universe where I will never be judged.

Maybe that's why I write the most, to share my heaven with others.

What's your version of heaven?

11 comments:

  1. Bummer, I've never dreamed I was in my own story.

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  2. Alex, nice to have you here. Being in your own story is the best experience ever. I've only done it a couple of times. Sadly, I can't direct my dream world.

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  3. I can't say I've ever dreamed about being in my novel. I CAN relate to the movie thingey, though. It's always fun to imagine who you would have starring in the film version of your blockbuster hit!

    My version of heaven? I experienced this once. Best day of my life, bar none. Check that. Second best, after the day my bride married me.

    Recipe for nirvana:

    (1) Secluded beach
    (1) Rope hammock-big enough for my best friend, my lover, my better half
    (1) Gorgeous sunny day
    (1) Newly released thriller
    (1) Extremely attentive waiter or waitress providing unlimited refills.

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  4. Oh, gosh. I should have clarified. The "best friend, lover, and better half mentioned above are all one and the same. :)

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  5. I kind of did it the other way around. I had relentless nightmares for years & couldn't get them to ever leave me alone. So I wrote a story around them & viola! I had a novel. Perhaps that was why it was so easy to write it. And the payoff's been that I no longer have those nightmares. But then again, there goes my inspiration.

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  6. LMAO. Bryce, thanks for the clarification. I was starting to wonder about you, and trying to figure out if they make a hamock large enough to hold that many people. That was real good. Your heaven sounds like my best vacation. I miss the beach, secluded or not. Although, with all the flooding I might see the ocean outside my window soon.

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  7. Nancy, dreams are awesome for inspiration. That's where I came up with my zombie story I'm thinking of sending to a magazine. You seem do have done really well writing your first book. I'm sure your inspiration has not evaporated. Have you considered a sequel?...maybe a draft or outline to help you with creativity? I'm a panster, but I had to toss in a little bit of order in the form of an outline when I was writing my paranormal romance to prevent writer's block. It helps.

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  8. I've never dreamt I was in my story either. Can't say which character I'd be. Maybe the serving wench down at the pub.

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  9. L.G....a serving wench? Hmm, that could actually have posibilities, as long as she's cute. In my paranormal romance there's a lesser character I take a preference to. I think I'd like to be her.

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  10. Beautiful post. It must be nice to dream and see yourself in your story.
    My heaven is comfort and chocolate! LOL

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  11. Desert Rocks....absolutely. Heaven isn't complete without chocolate, specially when it's dark chocolate covered almond.

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