• Home
  • Books
  • Bio
  • Blog
  • Links
  • Events
  • Contact
Katie Van Ark
Passion on the page

Everything I Need to Know About Writing, I Learned From Figure Skating 

1/24/2014

2 Comments

 
During my recent residency at Vermont College of Fine Arts, a classmate kindly lent me her ice skates so I could use the outdoor rink on campus. I hadn't skated on pond ice in years and it had been about that long since the borrowed skates had seen a sharpening, but I was desperate. Life doesn't always come with Zamboni smooth ice or sharp blades, and the experience was a potent reminder of how much I've learned about writing from skating.

Skating outdoors in Vermont brought back favorite childhood memories of building a backyard ice rink with my father. Our city yard was tiny, and our rink was about six swizzle pumps wide and only a little bit longer. Bumpy at best and treacherous at worst, it was ice. That my father cared enough to help me with this time-consuming and, in fickle west Michigan weather, often futile effort, gave me the seed of the idea that skating was something I could do. It's the same for writing. Even one frozen drop of water can be enough if you really want it. For me, this was when I dared to show my mother, a writer and librarian, the beginning ramblings of my first book. She had lots of advice and areas to improve but, “Sure, this could be a novel,” were the words I took with me as my droplet of hope.

However small your start, you must put in the time. It's about repetition. With good daily practice routines, the elements on ice come. With good daily writing routines, the words flow. Listen to your coaches, aka your trusted critique group, because whether you like it or not, they're right most of the time. Accept criticisms with a “thank you” and give yourself time to reflect on them. Use whatever advice you can to make your writing stronger, but know that sometimes you have to follow your heart. I once completely changed programs three weeks before a competition, much to the chagrin of my coach. That new program won me a national gold medal. So go ahead, re-write that novel in first person. Cut those scenes. Start over with a blank page. And take comfort in the fact that least in writing you can save all your old versions on the computer and pull out an old routine with the click of your mouse.

On the ice or on the page, you will fall down. A lot. All you can do is pick yourself up, the sooner the better. You must try again. It took me almost five years to learn a lutz. I'm still working on that Axel and I won't even tell you how many hours I've worked at writing but I try to remember that everyone is afraid sometimes, that everyone struggles with some things.

Take advantage of camps, clinics, and retreats. Fresh opinions can help you get over a rut. I had been struggling with a loop jump for months when I attended a skating camp in Aspen. New phrasing and the trick of jumping out of a backspin helped me master the element that week. Likewise, I am forever indebted to the help and encouragement I've received from my fellow SCBWI members.

Just like skating, writing is also about acting. To make your characters real to your audience, you need to feel them, get inside their heads. Wear your heart on your sleeve and keep a box of tissues nearby for the tears and runny noses. Because in skating, you only need to do one character per program but in writing you're going to need to do them all.

And finally, sweat the small stuff. Yes, pay attention to details in your routines and in your novels but don't forget about life outside the rink and off the page. I used to have one of those t-shirts proclaiming that “figure skating is life, the rest is just details!” I gave it to Goodwill. Skating, writing, whatever your passions – life is in the details, and not the sequin-covered, rhinestone-studded variety.

2 Comments
Paige Wilkins link
7/12/2022 12:18:17 am

Great blog you have herre

Reply
Isabella Lucas
11/11/2022 03:02:07 pm

My ex-husband and I had always managed to stay friendly after our divorce in February 2017. But I always wanted to get back together with him, All it took was a visit to this spell casters website last December, because my dream was to start a new year with my husband, and live happily with him.. This spell caster requested a specific love spell for me and my husband, and I accepted it. And this powerful spell caster began to work his magic. And 48 hours after this spell caster worked for me, my husband called me back for us to be together again, and he was remorseful for all his wrong deeds. My spell is working because guess what: My “husband” is back and we are making preparations on how to go to court and withdraw our divorce papers ASAP. This is nothing short of a miracle. Thank you Dr Emu for your powerful spells. Words are not enough.
Email [email protected]
Phone/WhatsApp +2347012841542.

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    Reflections on Writing

    Picture
    I love few things better than a bottomless to-read list of books and firmly believe the world has room for all the stories we want to share. This blog is intended to provide resources and spark discussion about improving writing. Opinions are my own and not intended to discredit anyone else's work, only to open conversation. Thanks for reading!

    Archives

    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    March 2020
    January 2018
    July 2017
    April 2017
    August 2016
    October 2015
    September 2015
    April 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014

    Categories

    All
    Blog Hop
    Character
    Craft
    Craft Analysis
    Description
    Donald Maass
    Fantasy
    Figure Skating Championships
    Heather Demetrios
    Interview
    Jennifer Comeaux
    Jenny Elliott
    LGBT
    NaNoWriMo
    Premise
    Presentation Skills
    Rainbow Rowell
    Setting
    Skating
    Stakes
    Voice
    What To Read This Weekend
    World Building
    World-building
    Writing
    YA

    RSS Feed

Proudly powered by Weebly
Photos from diongillard, BLMOregon, ebbandflowphotography, French Tart, photographerglen, York College ISLGP, apalca, VinothChandar, 4Neus, ♔ Georgie R, anokarina, martinak15, photosteve101, revjett, Skley, Peter Werkman (www.peterwerkman.nl), Rusty Darbonne, JoshArdle Photography, ashraful kadir, Guillaume Paumier, ChrisL_AK, ryantron., koadmunkee, Jim Larrison, JMR_Photography, ulazarosa, jfingas, Hamed Saber, kyz