tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post2166499388917829528..comments2023-10-11T09:22:33.136-04:00Comments on Paperback Writer: Waiting to InhaleUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger16125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-7469699347000307162009-03-07T22:41:00.000-05:002009-03-07T22:41:00.000-05:00I needed this tonight, and thanks.I needed this tonight, and thanks.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-31794827906004806212009-02-19T12:52:00.000-05:002009-02-19T12:52:00.000-05:00Ver Good. You Scare me even more now. You write so...Ver Good. You Scare me even more now. You write so well and I am just like a kid putting her toe in the water. I got the writing metaphor straight off. Two thing spring to mind. One having just finished Stay the Night and feeling thoroughly depressed that you write so well and I dont I am alone in this. It scares me. But you are also right. When I was a Kid we lived in South Africa a long way from the sea. When we did go I used to go in with my Dad. He was my anchor. Years later I went with a friend. I spent 2 hours floating up and down in the waves and the warm water. Riding up and down thinking my own thoughts in my own bubble I was free. That is what it can be like when I get a writing stretch it is like I am floating there and dreaming. <BR/>Just once in a while though I would like to be part of a water polo team and have someone in the water with me to help me achieve the goal.<BR/>Thanks for thrilling and depressing me all at the same time.AngieShaw10https://www.blogger.com/profile/13161286793961289716noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-2830613601847100012009-02-18T23:46:00.000-05:002009-02-18T23:46:00.000-05:00Wow...lol. I never likened swimming to writing un...Wow...lol. I never likened swimming to writing until now, even though I've said a million times that I'm drowning in edits/deadlines/etc.<BR/><BR/>Definitely some parallels, though. :)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-86718293170917257422009-02-18T23:41:00.000-05:002009-02-18T23:41:00.000-05:00Delurking to thank you for this post. I find all ...Delurking to thank you for this post. I find all of your posts enjoyable, informative, and useful, but this one really touched me and, maybe, we'll see, helped me. Thank you.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-41423672461146972632009-02-18T13:52:00.000-05:002009-02-18T13:52:00.000-05:00This post sings to me. I feel the same about the ...This post sings to me. I feel the same about the ocean and swimming - and loved the extended metaphor on writing. Thank you PBW for the inspiration.Pandababyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13181377360157289102noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-78187720594697153322009-02-18T12:41:00.000-05:002009-02-18T12:41:00.000-05:00Lynn, I took swimming as part of my GS badge thing...Lynn, I took swimming as part of my GS badge thingy when I was very young. The instructor we had was a twit. I'd never had a swimming lesson, never paddled around in the water, had no idea how to float, wore coke bottle glasses that of course, I couldn't wear in the water, and her idea of learning was for each of us to just jump off the diving board into twelve feet of water.<BR/><BR/>After the ambulance left and my mother had given this woman a piece of her mind for almost drowning her kid, it took me years before I was comfortable enough to get back in the water. I forced myself to learn how to paddle around, as long as I can keep my head above water, but that's the most I'll do. To this day, I won't even get my face wet in the shower. The best thing to ever happen to my daily routine was the disposable pre-moistened face wipes! :lol:<BR/><BR/>It's funny the things we fear. I'll drive a quarter-mile car down the dragstrip in nine seconds at 130mph or more and yet, when we go to the beach, I'm the one sitting in the sand working on my tan.<BR/><BR/>For me, writing is sitting in that car at the light, revving the engine and watching the tree, then pulling the best light I can. When the car launches, it's me, the car and the finish line. And for 8 or nine seconds, I'm on the ride of my life. That's what writing is for me. And it really does correlate to swimming because either way, it's just one lone person who, for a few seconds, is caught up in being a part of that car, or the water you're in...because I too hold my breath, waiting to burst through the 'other end.'<BR/><BR/>Love the analogy. :)<BR/><BR/>theonightsmusichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05984119792540771870noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-69349819216361514882009-02-18T09:52:00.000-05:002009-02-18T09:52:00.000-05:00Beautifully stated! I am also a Pisces in all aspe...Beautifully stated! I am also a Pisces in all aspects. My mother once commented that if there was a way for me to swim underwater all the time, that's how I would have done it.<BR/>I remember slipping under once at a lake when I was very little. I was surrounded in a yellow-green murkey world, and remember seeing my own shadow and waving, knowing it was probably my shadow, but believing, somewhere deep inside, that it could be another little girl spirit. When my feet hit the bottom, I realized I had no idea how to get up, and I tried unsuccessfully to jump and flutter my feet to the surface.<BR/>Fortunately, my dad was right there and I remember the feeling of bursting through the border between worlds and finding air. I have no idea how long the moment lasted, probably less than 10 seconds, but it still seems timeless 40 years later.<BR/>The water also taught me about people and learning. I learned how to swim a version of the breast stroke, with trial and error and parental help. When I was in formal lessons, the focus was on the crawl, and formation. I didn't progress very far even though I swam pretty well.<BR/>When I was in high school, I taught lessons, and was allowed the flexibility of teaching kids either the crawl, or the breast-stroke. My thought was it was more important to have a child who could propell themselves in the water than children who learned strokes in a rote order. :)<BR/>JulieBAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-85146093169509141702009-02-18T09:15:00.000-05:002009-02-18T09:15:00.000-05:00Excellent post, Lynn. You're so right. We're in ...Excellent post, Lynn. You're so right. We're in this writing thing alone, and no matter who might join us, it's still up to each individual to sink or swim.<BR/><BR/>=o)B.E. Sandersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04336115135400388268noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-26751363358741364172009-02-18T08:34:00.000-05:002009-02-18T08:34:00.000-05:00And this is why I have a picture of Dory from "Fin...And this is why I have a picture of Dory from "Finding Nemo" on my desk. Her line is "Just keep swimming, just keep swimming." I tell myself that when I get stuck on the writing.Margaret Yanghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06464624057491288244noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-39629883198527790962009-02-18T08:04:00.000-05:002009-02-18T08:04:00.000-05:00We had a swimming pool in the apartment complex I ...We had a swimming pool in the apartment complex I lived in when I was little. I learned to swim by, oh, say two so I don't have recollection of it.<BR/><BR/>Great post!S.D.https://www.blogger.com/profile/10637012429541938128noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-78986497172445671252009-02-18T07:42:00.000-05:002009-02-18T07:42:00.000-05:00I understand that fear and love of the water. Exce...I understand that fear and love of the water. Excellent metaphor and exactly how it feels to write...especially when you feel like you're writing in a vacuum. <BR/><BR/>Thank you for that.Dawn Montgomeryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13094479667234469671noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-49570893220745144122009-02-18T03:30:00.000-05:002009-02-18T03:30:00.000-05:00Wow. I was with you on the water even though I li...Wow. I was with you on the water even though I live in the desert now. I grew up half fish. But when I got to the end...wow. That is so true.Margaret M. Fiskhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00537558539259791284noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-57785310127118522192009-02-18T01:39:00.000-05:002009-02-18T01:39:00.000-05:00Applause.Glub.Applause.<BR/>Glub.rainehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04258822737734173873noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-72322574089762458022009-02-18T01:00:00.000-05:002009-02-18T01:00:00.000-05:00It's not just a nice metaphor for writing, it's a ...It's not just a nice metaphor for writing, it's a nice metaphor for life.<BR/><BR/>You mentioned that you might have learned faster with proper lessons. I had them for a few years when I was young--we didn't have a ton of money then either, but a neighbor offered them for cheap--and I felt they slowed me down. Held me back. I learned to tread water well, but holding my body in perfect form for each stroke held me back. Slowed me down. I concentrated so much on being in the absolutely correct position that I forgot to <I>swim</I>. It wasn't until I let go and realized that I would still float even if my limbs weren't at the precise correct angle that I really began to swim well. And now my favorite stroke isn't one I learned in swim class, but one I learned when fooling around on my own, and I'm a lot faster with it than the breaststroke or the butterfly.<BR/><BR/>Other than that, we sound very similar in our feelings about the sea. I thought for most of my life that I would be a marine biologist when I grew up. Though I eventually chose a different path, it's still a private passion. (Well, not really; I talk about it quite often.)Kristin Laughtinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01536556357622503501noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-11975932928770976242009-02-18T00:57:00.000-05:002009-02-18T00:57:00.000-05:00The whole time I was reading about swimming, I was...The whole time I was reading about swimming, I was thinking that a lot of what you said could be metaphors for other things in life, and since I'm a writer, of course I thought of writing. Nice to see I was right in synch with you. :)Number One Novelshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04667243816585032357noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-21109675281722051152009-02-18T00:42:00.000-05:002009-02-18T00:42:00.000-05:00I learned to swim probably around the time I learn...I learned to swim probably around the time I learned to walk. I love the water, it's one of the few places I feel at peace with myself.<BR/><BR/>There's also a great deal of wonder below the waves. <BR/><BR/>( and yes, some scary stuff, but it doesn't quite frighten me.)<BR/><BR/>Writing is definitely much the same. wonderful post. Dive in! <BR/><BR/>Nico..the marine biologist in training...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com