From Fault to Advantage
July 4, 2020
Last year, I would no doubt have been watching tennis on TV and feeling a little guilty about not writing. From the French Open to the end of Wimbledon, I find it hard to tear myself away. I tell myself the season is short, and it'll have to last me all year, but I still get twinges unless I get a morning's writing in before the matches start. Of course, in England I can usually rely on plenty of rain breaks to catch up with the things I should be doing.
Binge-watching tennis isn't all bunking off work though. Writers are lucky (or cursed) in that they rarely switch off for long from searching for things to write about. With tennis, I've found some great characters for fantasy stories. There's the young pretender pitted against the experienced warrior who's neither as fast nor as strong as he once was. Or the brash upstart whose recklessness threatens to lead her to disaster. There's usually a no-hoper who arrives from nowhere, but is blessed by the gods for a day to topple the giant. I needn't go on, you get the picture.
Tennis fans will probably be able to put a few names to those suggestions, and the same probably holds true for other sports from athletics to bowls. With so many tournaments in all disciplines on hold this year, particularly the Olympics, you might have far more time to write, but if you're feeling withdrawal symptoms, it can be hard to settle. Don't fight it, create a diversion by turning your sporting heroes into fictional ones instead.
Those with absolutely no interest in sport might be pleased to know that the Smashwords Summer-Winter Sale is on throughout July. Visit http://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/ksdearsley to download Discord's Child, Discord's Apprentice and Artists and Liars FREE!
Binge-watching tennis isn't all bunking off work though. Writers are lucky (or cursed) in that they rarely switch off for long from searching for things to write about. With tennis, I've found some great characters for fantasy stories. There's the young pretender pitted against the experienced warrior who's neither as fast nor as strong as he once was. Or the brash upstart whose recklessness threatens to lead her to disaster. There's usually a no-hoper who arrives from nowhere, but is blessed by the gods for a day to topple the giant. I needn't go on, you get the picture.
Tennis fans will probably be able to put a few names to those suggestions, and the same probably holds true for other sports from athletics to bowls. With so many tournaments in all disciplines on hold this year, particularly the Olympics, you might have far more time to write, but if you're feeling withdrawal symptoms, it can be hard to settle. Don't fight it, create a diversion by turning your sporting heroes into fictional ones instead.
Those with absolutely no interest in sport might be pleased to know that the Smashwords Summer-Winter Sale is on throughout July. Visit http://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/ksdearsley to download Discord's Child, Discord's Apprentice and Artists and Liars FREE!
Posted by K. S. Dearsley. Posted In : Inspiration
