So, I’ve got another flash fiction tale done. One more to go.
I’m not happy with this. I know it isn’t ‘right’ but I’m not sure what exactly the problem with it is. It’s one of those things you just can’t put your finger on, and it will likely annoy me until I can figure it out.
I’m trusting that the Muse and / or Inner Editor likes that story and the reason I feel something is ‘off’ is because one of them knows it is a good story and is trying to tell me how to fix it. I just need to stop struggling and trying to force an answer and let it come to me.
Apparently that is how Lee David Zlotoff used to do it. Who’s he, you ask? He’s the guy behind MacGyver, the character who is the Patron Saint of techies everywhere. MacGyver could deactivate a nuclear reactor with a bar of chocolate, some duct tape, a ball of twine, three bobby pins and a Swiss Army knife.
When he needed to come up with a problem for MacGyver to solve each week, Zlotoff says he’d concentrate on the problem intently then he’d turn it over to his subconscious mind, then walk away. He’d go off and do something completely unrelated to the problem at hand – golfing, or a hobby, or anything as long as he wasn’t working on the problem.
After a while, he’d come back to his office, get in front of a dry erase board, and ask his subconscious what it came up with. Then he’d just start writing down ideas on the board, and within them was the solution to his problem. He said it worked every time.
So, I’m going to give that a try. I’m going to concentrate on the story for a while, then ask my Muse what is wrong with it. Then I’ll do something else, and then see if the Muse has a way to fix the story.
I’ll let you know how it goes, my Hordeling.
If you’d like to support my efforts, why not buy me a chocolate chip cookie through my Ko-Fi page? https://ko-fi.com/jhusum