Stream of consciousness is a
technique used when a writer wants to illuminate the internal world of a
character by showing their thoughts as they pass across the mirror of
the mind.
Just as an exercise, write down -
even for 10 to 15 seconds - your thoughts as they arise.
pale grey sky light blue clear in the distance they’re up what colour for the bathroom leaves moving should I wear the blue or the purple what should I give him faint breeze town or country blog edit poster
nothing tired spacing out better look lively ouch traffic grey green lush
forest
As you can see, my mind is more
like a bubbling pot that splashes hot water all over the stove, and even with punctuation wouldn't have much coherence. So when a writer uses stream of
consciousness they are using it with intent and every word is deliberate and
serves a purpose relating to how they are portraying a particular character.
Virginia Woolf in Mrs. Dalloway and James Joyce in Ullysses are two of the most well known
exponents who have used stream of consciousness successfully. The advantage is that
there is an immediacy (okay, maybe not in my example) to the writing as the
reader experiences exactly how a character reacts to circumstances and
events. The disadvantage is that it can
be difficult to write and to read.
There are a certain number of
people who never finish Joyce’s book in particular because they find it hard to
read. In a famous 1933 US court decision, Ulysses was labelled dirty,
blasphemous, and unreadable. Others, including the playwright Samuel Beckett,
and poets Ezra Pound and T. S. Elliot, declared it brilliant. This is a long
book, and takes time to read – there are even guides and lectures – but I’d put
it on a to-be-read list any day for aspiring writers.
Writing Update
I’ve had a break for about a week
and I’m rediscovering the importance of routine. I have the greatest
admiration for writers such as Mrs. Gaskell, a 19th century rector’s
wife, who wrote many of her novels and short stories while sitting at the kitchen
table with her children under her feet, as I find it’s taking time to re-establish my writing rhythm.
I remind myself
endlessly of the importance of details – not the how many times has she had
breakfast today kind of detail – but the 2/3 and even 4 word repeated phrases
that ProWrite picks up. And I’m getting faster but it’s painstakingly labour
intensive work. However, the task is not without pleasure and the reward is a tighter piece of writing, which is good.
My activity on Google+ has
reduced and I didn't write a post for my blog last
week. It felt like I was neglecting a child. Writing posts takes time out of the editing marathon but I do enjoy writing them and I did miss it! So, I’m working on getting back into the Googlesphere and reciprocating
with the many supportive writers I’ve met there.
So thank you for visiting.
Your reading this blog is important to me (yeah, I know I sound like one of
those voices on the end of the phone) but I mean it!
Today’s Haiku
single raindrops race
downwards to join with others –
burbling with laughter
Useful Links:
For anyone wishing to investigate
self-publishing, the following link gives a straightforward overview of the
process.
For those who have not attempted
Joyce’s Ulysses, this post is a good
starting point. http://biblioklept.org/2010/06/16/how-to-read-james-joyces-ulysses-and-why-you-should-avoid-how-to-guides-like-this-one/
Reading
Recommendations:
http://amzn.to/18SbSaG
Gold Dragon Haiku -
my first attempt at publishing poetry!
Join me on Twitter at: teagankearney@modhaiku
To all story lovers out there, good reading, and to those of you who
write, good writing.
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Interesting article Teagan. Sometimes it's difficult to juggle everything. I'm in the process of moving out of my house. I'm packing boxes now. I'm also editing my novel "Lilith" as you know. I have to tell you I'm finding it very difficult to keep up with Google+, Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads and my blog. It's getting to be a bit much. I guess I have to prioritize. Good luck with it all.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your comments, Vashti. They're always appreciated. They say moving house is one of life's most stressful events, so to have that on top of everything else is a lot. I'm finding that there are times when life makes me step back a bit from social media but as long as I can write/edit that's the most important thing. Best of luck with the editing (and the move!).
ReplyDeleteGreat post, Teagan. I love writing stream of consciousness particularly to highlight the psychological effects the situation is having on the character, the crazier the better. To me it is writing without rules or boundaries, unfortuanately it has many detractors.
ReplyDeleteI recieved a copy of Ulysses for christmas and it is sitting on my shelf making me feel a little guilty. I still haven't read it but it is quite high up on my to read list.
Hi Ben. I'm glad you enjoyed the post. I can see the attraction of stream of consciousness and at its best it can have the beauty of prose-poetry, but it also has an intensity which can be demanding on a reader - that's when it's comprehensible - the other main disadvantage! As for reading Ulysses, well it's always good to have something to look forward to...
ReplyDeleteI just stumbled upon your blog and this is really inspiring. I love how you structure you blog posts to give a glimpse of your writing process every time you post here. I'm looking forward to be reading more of it!
ReplyDeleteWow, thank you Marit. This is just the kind of encouraging comment I imagine every blogger would love to hear, and I'm glad you enjoyed reading the post.
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