I must say I am enjoying the break from the self-improvement stuff … reading the ebook version of State of Fear right now, and really enjoying it.

With the iPod, I also listen to lots of podcasts as well.

Sorry about my tendency towards wordiness. I’ll keep an eye on it in the future.

Thanks for giving a writer’s point of view, and for putting in a few insights on managing the creative process.

I don’t consider your comment to be self-promotional … just descriptive, and interesting. A bit wordy maybe

Neat idea on using mindmapping software to help write.

Good luck with your reading list, and thanks again for contributing your thoughts.

For some reason I let that derail my creative efforts for more than 15 years. I am trying to get back on the horse.

You mentioned having visited my Web site, which is devoted to a comic-book I am in the process of writing, and plan to draw and publish. I also have a blog devoted to the project.

Writing is a wonderful but very odd and sometimes painful endeavor. There are techniques and principles you can learn, but there is no process or formula that will guarantee that your story will be a good one. Things are further muddied by the fact that all analyses of stories are, despite what some will claim, subjective. You can write a story that some will declare crap and others will declare the best thing since sliced bread. Who is right? Who is wrong?

Ultimately it’s a balance between following your heart but trusting your head enough to help you see where you need to improve.

Because I have ADD, ideas come to me with ease but giving them form and structure is more challenging. I’ve learned that for me, the best way to begin is to determine the theme of the story. If I can articulate the theme in one sentence, I can use it as the foundation to create a sound structure to hold my ideas and make them worth reading.

On a more practical note, I am experimenting with mindmapping software to make the process of outlining and structuring my story a bit easier.

If any of the above is too self-promotional, feel free to delete the post. It’s your blog and I won’t hold it against you.

As for reading, I am way behind. I learned the GTD methodology by stuff I cribbed off the Web but recently bought the book and am in the process of reading it. Also in my “to read” pile: Tales From the Buffalo Bills by Steve Tasker, Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand, Presumed Innocent by Scott Turow, and Dante’s Inferno.

Yes, I know. I’m odd.