Tuesday, November 27, 2012

Tuesday's Inspiration ala Flannery O'Connor - More on limitations #amwriting


Once again, this is about limitations. "There is only one answer....and that is one writes what one can." Flannery O'Connor.

When I read this I wondered what it meant and the answer I found for me was that's exactly what I do. There are some books I won't write. Horror stories, science fiction unless it might deal with ESP, highly technical action adventure. That's because my mind doesn't work in that direction. I do read most of these types except horror.

Another way this limitation works for me is that I'm most comfortable in the 50,000 to 80,000 word length. I can and have written shorter stories but they're harder to write. Longer stories, perhaps once and that's because it's a trilogy all in a single book.

The third way this limitation works for me is that I don't like dismal endings. This means that I write genre novels that can have a positive ending.

How about you, do you see your limitations as holding you back or are they for you the canvas upon which you write your stories?

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