Dream A Little Dream by Liz Flaherty

This is one of those fabulous writer weeks. Not because anything happened or even because my writing has been brilliant--it didn't and it hasn't. But I've written every day, the story is nearly done, and it's just been...fabulous. 

However, I haven't written my post for today, so I went digging through old stuff and found something I'd forgotten I'm going to use pieces of. (The forgotten ones are good--that means if you've read it, you forgot it, too, right?) I hope you weigh in with some answers, because, you know, always questions. 

I dream a lot anymore--not sure what that's about--and even though I don't usually remember them in detail, I often wake with a sense of unease because of them. 

But I never dream about writing, even at the most exhilarating times (new contract, new release), the most frustrating ones (no to a proposal, abysmal royalties), or even the most anticipatory times, such as the week before going to a conference (when I had nothing to wear, was fat, and knew no one would want to talk to me).

Then last night happened. When throughout the dream, I was not myself. I was an
annoyed teenager whose mother was intent on running--and ruining!--my life. I didn't recognize anyone in the dream, but it took place in my house. At the end--I don't have cool dreams I remember in their entirety--I was standing in front of the TV, bound and determined that regardless of what my mother had said, I was going to watch the end of the show that was on. It was an episode of Tales of Wells Fargo.

I have no idea what that dream meant, but I've decided I'm going to pretend it was about writing simply because it made me wonder some things.
  1. When you're writing, do you become the person in whose head you're residing, or are you still very much the narrator even though we all know better than to use omniscient POV? 
  2. Are there rules--like the much-maligned POV ones--that you'd like to break just because you like them in prose even if it seems no one else does?
  3. Do you think our stories come from our dreams even if we don't remember them?
  4. To the writers AND the readers, do you like dream scenes in books?
  5. Do you have recurring dreams?
~*~
The covers up there are commercials. Aren't they nice and subliminal and all? Here are the blurbs and links. I hope you try and enjoy them!


A Year of Firsts

Widow Syd Cavanaugh is beginning a “year of firsts” with the road trip she’d promised her husband she’d take after his death. An unplanned detour lands her in Fallen Soldier, Pennsylvania, where she meets the interesting and intelligent editor of the local paper.

Television journalist Clay McAlister’s life took an unexpected turn when a heart attack forced him to give up his hectic lifestyle. He’s still learning how to live in a small town when meeting a pretty traveler in the local coffee shop suddenly makes it all much more interesting.

While neither of them is interested in a romantic relationship, their serious case of being “in like” seems to push them that way. However, Clay’s heart condition doesn’t harbinger a very secure future, and Syd’s already lost one man she loved to a devastating illness—she isn’t about to lose another. Where can this relationship possibly go?

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09S2GRWZN/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i4

Life's Too Short for White Walls

Still reeling from her divorce, Joss Murphy flees to Banjo Bend, Kentucky, where she'd been safe and happy as a child. The family farm is now a campground. Weary and discouraged, she talks owner Ezra McIntire into renting her a not-quite-ready cabin.
With PTSD keeping him company, Ez thrives on the seclusion of the campground. The redhead in Cabin Three adds suggestions to his improvement plans, urging color and vibrancy where there was none.

Neither is looking for love, yet the attraction they share is undeniable. Can the comfort of campfires, hayrides, and sweet kisses bring these two lost souls together?

Comments

  1. Hmmmmm...interesting questions. 1. I'm not sure--maybe, but it isn't obvious to me. 2. Well, the rules are pretty entrenched because of my day job, but I think if they need to be broken to make something work, they should be broken. 3. Hmmmm... maybe. Why not? 4. If they work, dream scenes are kinda cool. If they're filling up pages, not so much. 5. Yes. But they're mostly ones where someone I care about is in trouble and I can't fix it... that's more nightmare, huh? Great post today!

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  2. Hi Liz! I rarely remember my dreams though I think I dream most nights. They sort of evaporate as I wake, so even if I wanted to use them in my writing, I wouldn't be able to. I do occasionally use a dream scene in my books, usually when someone is in emotional distress. I think it helps to show their inner turmoil. But like Nan says, it can't be just to fill up pages (I hope mine aren't!). I don't think I having recurring dreams, but then how would I know since I can't remember them most of the time!

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    1. Actually, I think that's how mine are, although occasionally there's something really vivid that sticks!

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  3. 1) I do try to put myself in the mind of the person I'm writing about. I think it's part of the creative process. 2) Yes, there are definitely times I want to write in prose and get annoyed because of it. lol 3) My stories don't come from my dreams, more like my experiences. 4) Yes, I like dream scenes in books & the character's reaction to those dreams as both a reader & a writer. 5) I can't say I have recurring dreams, but I do have dreams with bits & pieces that match up to other ones.

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  4. Yes, I always become the person in whose head I am writing., as for the rules, aren’t rules meant to be broke? LOL Some stories do come from dreams, bits and pieces. Usually mine come from scenes playing in my head. Dream sequences are ok, if they are done well and made clear that is what they are. I do have recurring dreams that worry me a bit. But I’ve always had night frights since I was a little child. Doctors told my mom it was because I had an overactive imagination. I think they had no idea what caused them. LOL

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    1. One of my kids had night terrors when he was little. He and I would cry together.

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  5. 1). I become the person I read/write about. It's great because I'm thinner, wittier, prettier, and am getting more action! ;) 2) Personally, I don't believe in rules for writing. Writing is supposed to be about creativity and putting rules to it stymies that. 3) I'm pretty sure most of my stories aren't from any sleeping dream. More often they are the stories I tell myself when I'm trying to fall asleep. (Wait a minute...that makes them sound boring. Scratch that!) At least one of my books did come, in part, from a dream. 4) I do have recurring dreams. I dream a lot about being in huge houses where I keep discovering room after room. And the other big one I have is about something being lost, a lot of times my car. Or my kids. My husband always has dreams where he's a hero, or he's found a treasure. It make me mad because I always have problems in my dreams. I think this is because he is a very self-confident person and I have a lot of anxieties. Doesn't seem fair! Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Liz! Have a great day!

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    1. You, too! I love reading your answers! And, yeah, I have one of those husbands, too. :-)

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  6. It seems as though when I'm stressed, I dream more and they're more lucid. The mind is an interesting thing, and so is your take on mind vs. dreams vs. writing. Much food for thought here, Liz. Great post!

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    1. Thanks, Janie, and I think my dreams are that way, too, although I never thought of it!

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