Writing in a temper – creativity versus rage!

Now, on the whole I’m a very even-tempered person. By all accounts my mates describe me as very laid back, often too much so. However, I am also a perfectionist who worries a lot and gets incredibly passionate and fired up about people and things who are important to me.

The one thing that gets my goat, is injustice. People being treated badly and situations which are completely unfair, really jar with me, as I’m sure they do with you. Now, trying to be diplomatic about things and biting your tongue gets you so far…but when you witness someone behaving badly and with total impunity, the urge to set things right can become overwhelming. So, what do you do when you absolutely HAVE to vent but know you can’t?

Well…I write, furiously and in a fury! Often frenzied, words spilling out and crashing about the place like truculent teenagers. BUT, apart from the cathartic release you get from venting on paper or on screen, does writing in a temper actually enhance or detract from your creativity?

Tricky question!

Certainly writing in a temper will inject your prose with passion and fire, and of course, while you are in that raging vein, you are not self-conscious (the killer of creativity!). But does the content of what you are writing become better with a proverbial axe to grind, or merely more ‘in your face’?

Re-reading passages of White Mountain that I knew I wrote in a rage, made me chuckle, as I remembered not only the cause of my anger but still took ENORMOUS pleasure in seeing the literary results! Bad, I know…but why not immortalise those who have irked you or caused you pain, into caricatures of themselves?

Poetry I find is particularly best when ‘written in rage’…it’s fresh, powerful and uninhibited…just how I like it! BUT, the flip side of course, is that you are incapable of reflection and introspection in moments like that. Any scene which requires subtlety and ‘stillness’ simply cannot be achieved if you’re in a personal lather.

So…my recommendation to all writers, particularly those that have action in their books…is don’t write a battle scene, fight, murder etc in a calm mood, wait until you’re juiced up on rage and injustice! But ensure your calmer literary scenes are written with peace of mind and a clear narrative of thought…time to breathe! 😀

Author Bio – Me, Myself & I?

I love talking about my work, my passions, my experiences, and most especially my writing…but I HATE talking about myself. So here goes…Originally from a sleepy village north of Bristol, I currently live in the Cotswolds with my family and my four enormous white wolves!

I am a writer, traditionally trained fine artist and am an illustrator for HarperCollins, Penguin Random House and other publishers. I am also a shortlisted nominee for the 2018 British Fantasy Awards in the Best Artist category! Yay!!!! 😀 I have a BA (Hons) Degree in Fine Art with a specialism in painting, sculptural ceramics and photography and a Post-Grad in teaching. I was a full-time teacher for 16 years and am now a librarian. However, my first passion has always been for painting and writing stories and poetry, which I have done since I was a child – basically as soon as I could grapple with a pencil!  I am a painter and artist, and divide my time between writing, teaching and my artwork.  I adore travelling (when I get the chance), and have a deep affinity and profound love of landscapes, particularly those of New Zealand and Dartmoor, which I find incredibly inspiring.

I enjoy stargazing, playing chess, watching films (especially sci-fi & fantasy) and buying yet more bookcases for my growing library!  I would describe myself as a ‘lover of wild places and the written word’ and am a bit of a self-confessed nerd! I have wildly eclectic tastes in music from opera to heavy rock, classical to Motown. I love exploring museums and art galleries and am interested in ancient history, archaeology, astronomy, anthropology, fantasy, chess, films, natural history, science fiction, etymology, geology, geography, photography etc etc etc! In fact, when asked what my interests are, I usually smile and reply, “EVERYTHING!”

My motto for life is: “First, do no harm!” – Having unfortunately known some truly evil people in my life who destroy everything they touch, it’s a very good motto to live your life by!

Accordingly, my advice for life is: Avoid toxic people – life is too damn short to do anything else! 🙂

Unusual facts?: I’ve nearly died at least three times, once by drowning, once by near decapitation (obviously it was a close shave, so to speak, but I’m still here!), and once in a motorway crash.

I am somewhat of a walking contradiction, loud, quiet, bubbly, shy, social yet a hermit, intelligent about everything but not what’s important, complicated, simple, a perfectionist but messy, fiercely brave in protecting others but a coward when sticking up for myself, a tigress, a doormat, an optimist, a cynic…What can I say? A blend of very silly and sensible!

Without getting too personal here…I’ve witnessed a lot of violence growing up, which has certainly influenced the darker elements of my work. However, my fiction tends to be pure fantasy escapism, my saviour in bad times. When you cannot claw your way out of your reality, you can grow wings and soar instead!

So…that’s me! 😀