Hot Air

When I first thought of buying a digital voice recorder (see yesterday's link regarding the Olympus DS-2300), I envisioned using it to capture the scenes that pop into my head while driving. I tend to have whole conversations between two (or more) fictional characters, but I always forget what the thread was by the time I get home. I thought having a recorder would be a useful way to capture those scenes in the moment.

It turns out that having a recorder made me absolutely unable to picture a scene. I spent the entire trip talking, of course, but it was mostly talk for the sake of talking. I think eventually I'll get the hang of it, and won't feel so much pressure to spout prose, but I was shocked yesterday at how un-imaginative I felt. Hopefully it doesn't last, because I'm getting excited about this book. More than any other literary venture I've started, I feel a connection to this one, and a desire to not only write the book, but to get inside it. It's scary!