BLACKWATER WRITINGS

     Everybody has the right to write but if you're a little too thin-skinned and if criticism is something that is hard for you to take then perhaps you should just stick to diary writing and shopping lists. In other words, don't go online or expose your writing to the big bad world.   All of the posts I've uploaded are from the mind and the experience of an amateur writer. What I do works for me at this moment in time and even though my output is nothing compared to that of a professional, my work is out there and there's every possibility that crisitism could come my way... and it will, but I can rest easy knowing that I am mentally prepared.  As an amateur writer I know that I'm bound to get more criticism than praise, and I'm fine with that. Of course, we would all like the latter, but if you accept criticism, you'll grow as a writer.  In my experience as a writer I'm fortunate, or should that be unfortunate(?), that I haven't received much cris...

      The last day I talked a little bit about freewriting and today I would like to expand on that. What is freewriting? Freewriting is a fantastic writing exercise that can help increase your writing stamina. I guess freewriting can be approached in different ways, and many people like to do it their own way, so I will explain how I do it and what works best for me. I have been using freewriting for many years. I was introduced to it in various writing courses that I studied. As I mentioned in a previous post I try to write every day, even if that is just writing things in my diary. I am happy as long as I am getting something down on paper, even if it is writing about what I did that day or my plans and ambitions for the following day.  Anyway, let's talk about freewriting and what it is. For me, I get  the stopwatch on my phone and begin writing, with no plan, after deciding how long I wish to do it for, but 20 minutes usually works for me, but I have previo...

     In my last post I shared my approach to "writer's block" and today I would like to talk about comfort and routine. Getting out of your comfort zone is essential, as I've said previously, but it's also highly important to be comfortable so we'll talk a little about that today.  I also want to state that any advice I give may or may not work for you so don't take what I say as gospel.  It's true that if we want to write anything (that's worth putting out there) we need to get out of our comfort zone, but we also need to be comfortable.  I'm not saying that it's necessary to have the best pens, paper and computer equipment (sure, those things do help, but they won't write your masterpiece for you), but what I am saying is how important it is to have your work area in order. We've all heard of writers who have scribbled down ideas on restaurant napkins, and that's fine when an idea hits us, but you'd be amazed how many wri...

Hello again, I don't have any plans to turn this blog into a travel one, but I would like to take this opportunity to recommend visiting where it is I am connecting from  and that is the beautiful town of Cazorla here in the south of Spain. Even when it's raining cats and dogs, like it was yesterday and will be today, Cazorla is a magical place with many postcard views to enjoy.  I'll try to keep this week's post short and to the point and what I'd like to talk about today is: trying to keep yourself inspired.  I don't really like the term "writer's block", but I do know that inspiration comes and goes and when it goes, it can be a god-awful feeling... if you allow it to be.  Writer's block, or whatever else you want to call it, doesn't have to be all doom and gloom. In fact, when it hits me, and it does, I embrace it and remind myself of what it is: part of the journey. I also remind myself that it's a state of mind.  Instead of moping...

     Hello everybody and welcome to the first entry in this new series of posts which I am calling Blackwater Writings .  My name is Craig Robinson. I was born in Dublin, Ireland and I live in Toledo, Spain. To put bread on the table and to pay the bills, I teach English as a Second Language. I am very fortunate that I love my job. Not only does it allow me to meet some really interesting people and learn about their backgrounds, but it also gives me enough time to focus on my real passion which is writing.  When I was at school English was my favourite subject and at an early age I loved creative writing. Films would later become a huge part of my life so combining the two, I decided to study screenwriting at the New York Film Academy and in 2005 was awarded a diploma for my efforts.  I have very recently published my first novella, BLACK WATER VALLEY, and it can be purchased on Amazon in both kindle and physical format (see picture and link. Sly plug, I k...