Much buzz has been made about the movie version of Kevin Kwan’s novel Crazy Rich Asians. The movie is significant as it is the first major studio film in the U.S. with an all-Asian and Asian American cast in 25 years (since 1993’s The Joy Luck Club). Of course, it is joined in this category now by the sci-fi thriller Searching starring John Cho and the Netflix original movie To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before, based on Jenny Han’s novel of the same title.
Crazy Rich Asians tells the story of Rachel Chu, an NYU professor who agrees to join her longtime boyfriend, Nick Young, on a visit back to his home in Singapore to meet his family and attend his best friend’s wedding. Little does she know that the Youngs are one of the wealthiest families on the island, and she is thrown into a world of extravagant opulence, the complete opposite of her experience being raised by a single immigrant mother and now living on a professor’s wage in New York City. The main conflict comes from Eleanor, Nick’s mother, who disapproves of Rachel and spends the novel plotting to break them up, going to extremes to prove to Nick he shouldn’t be with Rachel.
At its heart, the novel is a lush romantic comedy with a theme of family relationships, not an uncommon plot point in stories about Asian families. The movie holds true to this core, with changes that improve on the book in certain aspects, but shortchanges some of the characters, leaving the audience wanting more.
What it got right
The movie embodies the over-the-top feel of the novel, especially in scenes such as the bachelor party and wedding that, while different than Kwan’s description in the book, still display the enormous wealth of these families and illustrate this strange world Rachel has been thrown into. The book is notable for its use of phrases and conversations in languages other than English, such as Malay, Cantonese, and Hokkien, which are translated and explained in footnotes throughout the book. The movie incorporates similar conversations and uses subtitles.
A few of the characters particularly stood out to me as perfect on-screen representations of their book counterparts. Constance Wu (ABC’s Fresh Off the Boat) plays Rachel and does a stunning job depicting the independent and stubborn Chinese-born American woman who refuses to give in to the intimidation she faces from Nick’s family and friends. Oliver “Ollie” T’sien (Nico Santos) was one of my favorite characters in the book, and is spot on in the movie, becoming an immediate ally to Rachel and the ever-flowing source of family gossip and drama. The Goh family, specifically Peik Lin (Awkwafina) and Wye Mun (Ken Jeong) were different from their more refined depiction in the novel, so while it caught me off guard at first to see them as such a loud wacky family, I warmed up to it and appreciated the decision as it provided a comedic contrast Nick’s regal “old money” family.
What it got wrong
My biggest problem with the movie was the way it handled Astrid, Nick’s cousin who is more like a sister and one of Rachel’s few allies in the family. Played by Gemma Chan (who weirdly reminds me of Rachel Bilson?), her plotline feels forced and underwritten. Chan does a wonderful job of capturing the refined spirit, determination, and kindhearted nature of Astrid, but the movie just wasn’t able to give her the attention that the novel could. This lack of space in the movie is evident in other areas as well—the set up feels a bit rushed, as does the climactic reveal of Eleanor’s final attempt to break up Nick and Rachel. The typical complaint with movies based on books is that they leave out too much, but I felt myself wishing that Crazy Rich Asians had actually decided to cut some parts so that it could expand more on what it kept in, rather than trying to cram in the various plotlines that the book weaves together.
The movie also faced a hard spot in that Crazy Rich Asians is actually the first in a trilogy, so the book can leave some loose ends. The movie isn’t guaranteed a sequel, so it was forced to walk the line between having a happy ending for the audience, while still leaving some questions that could launch a sequel if this first movie does well.
What is just different
In the book, Nick’s mother Eleanor (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon’s Michelle Yeoh) plays the stereotypical part of the conniving mother-in-law, plotting to force her son to follow what she defines as happiness and success. She is the villain we to love to hate, rooting for Nick and Rachel to end up together and for Rachel to “beat” Eleanor. In the movie, she does play the antagonist force, but it fleshes her out and gives her a fuller, more well-rounded character. We see some sweet moments between her and Nick, and are reminded that she’s not just selfish or solely concerned about her family’s status and wealth; she truly cares about her son and wants what is best for him. She goes about this the wrong way sometimes, but we see her as a multifaceted character with complex motivations, rather than the one-note adversary from the book.
Keeping with the change in Eleanor’s character, the ending is notably different from the book. This also results from the potential-but-not-guaranteed sequel. It still fits with the story, so I didn’t dislike it, but know that if you’ve read the book, it comes with more of an “all tied up with a bow” feel than the book does.
Ultimately, it’s a rom-com, and while it’s important because of its diversity, it doesn’t need to be anything more than that. The fact is, one single movie shouldn’t be responsible for determining if it’s “worth it” to make more movies with diverse casts; that should be a given. It captures the spirit of the book and, generally, the characters are well-casted and fun to see come to life on the screen. Crazy Rich Asians is a feel-good movie that will wow you with its depiction of the lavish lifestyles and have you leaving the theater laughing.
Want to read the book before you see the movie? Click here to buy it!
(FYI–This post includes affiliate links. I promise to never recommend anything that I haven’t loved and think you should try!)
Like this post? Pin it to share it and save it for later!
Have you seen the movie or read the book? What did you think? Let me know in the comments!
In today’s climate, it seems like everything is infused with politics and strong views. It’s hard to have a conversation without some crazy news story coming up. So, when you’re writing fiction, should you follow this trend? Especially if you’re claiming to write modern or contemporary fiction, it can seem hard to leave out any current events since it seems to seep into every aspect of our lives, even if we didn’t always pay attention before. This can also be true if you’re writing a period piece set during another highly political climate, like the Vietnam War protests. So what’s a fiction writer to do?
Here’s my advice: Avoid politics, but don’t avoid the issues.
What do I mean by this? Naming specific politicians or groups will quickly root your piece in a certain time period. If you’re trying to paint the scene for a historical novel, this may be exactly what you want. If, however, you’re trying to write a book that can be considered contemporary for a longer period of time, keep in mind that an outdated reference can easily jar a reader out of a story. Additionally, someone may be in the news all the time now, but it’s hard to tell if anyone will remember them in ten years.
Instead, consider the issues that are underlying your views on certain people or organizations. Write about those. If you’re passionate about it, you should definitely include it in your writing! Taking a side on a heated topic may alienate some readers who disagree with you, and you should be okay with this up front if you decide to take this approach. But including issues that you care about and are being widely talked about is less likely to date your book, as many of these issues have been around for a while and will continue to be discussed. Using this approach will likely be more interesting to readers than you putting a certain politician on blast.
If you have strong opinions on immigration, gun rights, or some other subject, it’s okay to work that into your writing. Just make sure you’re not being “preachy.” Whether or not readers agree with you, they’re probably not coming to a fictional work to get a lecture. One good way to avoid this is to have a character who has the opposite view and has good reasons for believing this way. Rather than having one character monologue, either internally or while talking to another character, create a true dialogue and conversation that could actually happen. This interaction is much more interesting to read, and gives you an opportunity to create stronger characterization.
Have you included politics in your writing? Maybe you’ve read a piece of fiction that was political and you hated or loved it? Comment below!
If you liked this article, pin to share it and save it for later!
Every other Friday, I’ll post a snippet of my own writing for what I’m calling “Fiction Fridays.” Here’s the first installment, featuring a section from the beginning of my current work-in-progress, a contemporary fiction novel titled Chaos Theory. The scene describes the initial meeting between the main character, Meredith, and an important secondary character, Jeremiah. I’d love to hear your feedback, but do keep in mind it’s still a first draft!
October 2013
The pounding of her shoes against the cold pavement reverberated throughout her body, like standing too close to the speakers at a party and being able to feel the music as a solid force. Meredith made her feet to keep time to Beyonce’s “Countdown” as it blared through her headphones. Her breathing came steadily, the late fall air feeling refreshing against her skin but crisp in her lungs. She realized the sunscreen she had applied to her pale, freckled skin was probably unnecessary, but years of painful sunburns had taught her to be cautious. The pond at Railroad Park passed along to her left, seeming noticeably empty since the ducks had left for warmer weather. She followed the trail winding around the pond and the perimeter of the park, the yellow grass contrasting against the grey sky on the horizon. The ducks weren’t the only ones who had decided against the weather; in spring and summer she was often dodging children, other runners, even skateboarders who came to the urban park. Today she seemed to have the park mostly to herself. Until, that is, the bike slammed her from behind.
Meredith went sprawling, barely managing to avoid slamming her head on the ground as she threw her hands out in front of her. The fall had yanked her headphones from her ears, and she turned in outrage to see what careless biker had been so preoccupied they hadn’t been able to avoid the only other person at the park. Prepared for a cavalier teenager, she was surprised to see a young man, around her age, still struggling to get up from under the bike that had collapsed on him in his half of the collision. Meredith helped him lift the bike up, and he scrambled to his feet.
“Crap! Crap, crap, crap, are you okay?” were his first words to her. Meredith’s anger melted slightly at the truly concerned look in his face as he examined her, not in the way men did when she went out to a bar, but checking for—what? Broken bones protruding from her skin, joints at inhuman angles, blood streaming from scrapes? She had none of these injuries. Her hands stung from scraping along the pavement, and one knee of her legging now had a hole in it, which was annoying but not a physical injury.
“Um, I’m fine,” Meredith said. “Are you—”
“Did you hit your head? You could have a concussion and not realize it,” he said stepping closer. Meredith instinctively stepped backwards. He paused, seeming to realize he was intruding on her personal space. “Sorry. I was trying to see if your pupils seem dilated. I—I read in an article somewhere that’s a way to tell if someone has a concussion. If their pupils dilate when they don’t need to.”
“I’m fine,” Meredith repeated. “I didn’t hit my head. Are you okay?”
“Oh, yeah, I’m good. Didn’t hit anything important in my fall,” the man said, waving off her concern for him.
“Maybe I meant before the fall, because if you don’t have some sort of medical excuse for running me over like that, then I might have to get you arrested for negligent driving or something,” Meredith said. The man paused, eyes widening slightly, until she allowed a small smile to escape her lips. He laughed, his relief evident in the sound.
He snorted. “Negligent driving. That’s a good one. Can you call riding a bike driving? I guess so,” he meandered.
“It was all I could think of on the spot,” Meredith replied. “So … if there’s no medical explanation, then am I to assume you hit the only other person in the park on purpose?”
He shook his head vehemently. “No! Of course not! I … well … the thing is … this is my first time riding a bike.” He shoved his hands in the pockets of his jeans and glanced away as he admitted this.
“Like … ever?” Meredith asked, brow furrowed. He nodded. “Well … the good news is, you can only go up from here.” He looked up from the ground to see her smiling again, and he started laughing. Meredith laughed, too. It wasn’t that funny—she knew this—but something about his laugh made you want to join.
“Well, that’s one way to find a silver lining,” he said, grinning. He stuck out his hand. “I’m Jeremiah, by the way.” He had sandy blonde hair that flopped about passively, except where it curled at the ends, framing his tan face. His hazel eyes were nothing remarkable, but lit up in a particular way when he smiled, as if all he desired in that moment was for someone to join him in the smile.
She returned the handshake. “Meredith.”
“Nice to meet you, Meredith,” he said, still shaking her hand. She finally broke contact, as it seemed like his hand might linger forever on hers if she let it, which she might be inclined to do, but she was also distracted by how he was looking at her now. Still not the full body examination like other men, but he seemed to be somehow appreciating her more, like how a first-time visitor might take in the Venus de Milo. It wasn’t unwelcome, as much as unexpected, and she looked down, shifting her weight as she cleared her throat.
“So, are you a student?” she asked, to break a silence that wasn’t awkward, but she still felt obligated to say something.
“Yeah, a senior at Beeson University,” he said. “You?”
“Same,” she said, smiling. “Journalism and mass communications.”
“Nice!” he said, in a way that seemed to actually mean it, and not just an obligatory response. “I’m business.”
“I hear business majors are renowned for their bike riding skills. That why you’re trying to learn before you graduate?” She smiled.
He laughed. “No, I don’t think bike riding is a requirement for graduation. Golfing, maybe, but I’ll save that as a project for next week.”
She nodded in mock seriousness. “I’ll be sure not to visit the driving range then. I might not fare so well if I get run over by a golf cart.”
He snorted. “I’m not going to live this down, am I?”
She shook her head. “Not while I’m around, anyway.”
He caught her eye. “Well, I suppose it’s a small price to pay if you get to stick around.” She looked away, unsure of how to respond. He decided to spare her the effort, and continued. “How about you keep mocking me as I get you a drink at Good People? It’s just across the street.”
“I know,” retorted Meredith. She had lived here for nearly seven years, she knew the city inside and out. Then she relented. It was not his invitation that riled her, it was…
“Well, then you know that their seasonal beer right now is their best seasonal of the whole year,” Jeremiah said, undeterred by her short reaction.
“No way,” she replied, distracted. “Spring seasonal is the best there is.”
He shook his head. “See? These are things we should debate at Good People, not standing out here in the cold.”
She laughed, and then paused. One drink couldn’t hurt. “Fine. But you’re walking there, not riding your bike.”
A regular feature I’ll be posting is something I’m calling “Shelf to Screen reviews.” These, simply, are reviews of movies that are based on books. It’s less of a critique of the book or movie and more evaluating how true the movie stayed to the book, whether in spirit or in actual plot line. Of course, some critiquing of the movie itself will come into play as well.
As book lover who has cringed through many a movie rendition, I’ve come up with four categories that all movie versions fall into, which I’ll be using in the Shelf to Screen reviews. These are as follows:
Category One Just…forget the movie ever existed. The book may have been great, but the movie picked out all the worst parts, added in some of its own terrible flair, and ruined it. Just go back to reading the book and continuing to petition for a movie version as if the original movie never happened. Example: Eragon (seriously, don’t get me started on this movie)
Category Two The movie was pretty great. So great, that it’s basically identical to the book, which was also probably pretty great. I’m not gonna come out and say “Just watch the movie and don’t bother with the book,” but if you’re short on time, the books with Category Two movies are the ones to skip (#sorrynotsorry). Example: The Help
Category Three These movies held to the spirit of their source material remarkably well. They cut some scenes or plot lines, but in general it’s understandable why these changes were made, and overall the movie still feels like the same story as the book. That being said, definitely go read the book because there’s probably a bunch of stuff you’d be missing out on. Example: Harry Potter
Category Four Alright. This is the category that every author hopes the movie version of their book will end up in. The book was amazing, and the movies did an amazing job with it. Just, all around amazing. Meaning that, yes, there were probably some changes because the book packs so much in, but the movies took the spirit of the book and made it its own. It doesn’t feel like a mere reproduction of the story, but is a reinterpretation of the story that takes advantage of what movies can offer to make the most of the new medium. Example: The Lord of the Rings
Now, Category Four sort of requires great source material, but other than that, most of the categories focus on how well the movie adheres to and interprets the book. For example, the Harry Potter series is Category Three, but so are the first book of the Maze Runner series and Pride and Prejudice. But obviously these are all very different types and levels of literature. So even if I personally disliked the story, I can still judge the movie based on its connection to the source material. (For the record: I like all three of those examples. But I still consider them very different.)
Of course, this is all based on my opinion, and I’d love to hear your views on what I decide. Comment on the review posts, or find me on Twitter @chelseap_14. And let me know what book-inspired movies you love, hate, or love to hate!
I am unapologetically a podcast junkie–ask anyone. They’re a great way to expand your knowledge of the world, get advice from the pros, and listen to some great stories. This makes them a valuable resource for writers, and I’ve rounded up my top ten to help you grow in your skills and knowledge.
88 Cups of Tea features interviews with authors, discussing everything from going through rejection, drawing inspiration from family stories, and the struggles of querying an agent. The host, Yin Chang, can be a little long-winded at times, but it gives you valuable insight into the lives and habits of published, well-known authors.
Run time: 40 minutes to an hour
Hosted by the quirky and lovable Kirsten Oliphant, Create If Writing includes insight both on the craft of writing and on building your platform, that ever ambiguous goal of the writer. Episodes can be Kirsten discussing a topic on her own or she sometimes brings on a guest to have a more in-depth conversation.
Run time: 30 to 40 minutes
Write or Die is a newer podcast, but it’s already one of my favorites. It’s primarily interviews, both with authors and members of the publishing side of things, such as literary agent Suzie Townsend. Host Claribel Ortega is charming and insightful, incorporating stories from her own writing journey and asking the questions you really want to know.
Run time: 30 to 45 minutes
Sadly, the 10 Minute Writer’s Workshop recently aired its last episode, but it’s worth listening to the backlog. Featuring short interviews with writers such as Dan Brown, Salmon Rushdie, Celeste Ng, and many others, the episodes are refreshing and encouraging. Virginia Prescott cuts to the chase so that you get the wisdom of beloved authors distilled into a bite-sized episode.
Run time: 10 minutes
If you don’t know who Levar Burton is, I don’t even know what to say to you. The beloved actor is on his third season of Levar Burton Reads, with each episode featuring a new short story. The stories vary in genre, style, and when they were published, but each one is an example of brilliant storytelling that’s sure to inspire you.
Run time: 1 hour
From the New Yorker, The Writer’s Voice is another source to find stories you’ll wish you’d written. Each episode features a story published in a recent issue of the magazine, read by the writer. Even if you read the stories in print, it’s a special experience to hear the writer read their own work.
Run time: 30 to 50 minutes
While not specifically focused on writing, The Accidental Creative has great advice and insight for living a creative life. It’s easy to let the craziness of life get in the way of writing, or any sort of creative act, but these short episodes are helpful reminders of how to prioritize your writing and make sure you’re always in a good headspace to do your best work. The host, Todd Henry, tends to plug his own books frequently, but it’s not so annoying that you’re distracted from the information
Run time: 10 to 15 minutes
Podcasts can also be a source of inspiration for stories, even if they’re not directly writing-related. These next podcasts are chock-full of fun facts sure to give you all sorts of story ideas (and be the life of the party!)
This podcast, hosted by the always lovely Flora Lichtman, spends each episode investigating topics that range from the genius of birds to plastic chairs to underwater tunnels. Every episode of Every Little Thing is fascinating, featuring interviews with experts and usually personal stories from listeners who have called the ELT “help line” to get their question answered.
Run time: 25 minutes
Another podcast from Gimlet (basically I love anything Gimlet does), Reply All, generally, is a podcast about all things internet and technology. But since these two topics pervade through nearly every aspect of our lives (that’s a whole other post), it’s really a podcast about exploring the modern life and what connects us. Hosted by PJ Vogt and Alex Goldman, it’s full of wit and humor, and you’re sure to finish every episode laughing and having learned something.
Run time: 40 minutes
If you’re familiar with podcasts, you’ve probably heard of RadioLab. It’s one of the more popular ones, and it’s the reason I got into podcasts (take that, Serial!). It typically gets categorized as a science and technology podcast, but their newest tagline really says it best: they spend each episode “investigating a strange world.” They often group a few episodes together in a mini-series (recent topics include gender & sexuality and immigration), but they just as frequently spend a single episode doing a deep dive into a topic.
We have conversations of all sorts every day, and yet including them in our writing can be challenging. What’s interesting to the reader? What is too boring or too confusing? One of the key parts of writing when characters are talking is dialogue tags, and they can make or break your conversation.
So what are dialogue tags? They’re pretty simple: it’s what tells you who is talking. They’re the ‘he said’ or ‘she whispered’ or ‘Jill yelled’ after a direct quotation in writing. They can also be called dialogue attribution, since it tells you to whom the dialogue is attributed. Believe it or not, these little words can be a source of big debate in the writing world, and they hold a lot of power when it comes to writing dialogue. But this means if you master them, your dialogue will only improve. Below are a few tips on using dialogue tags.
When in doubt, use ‘said.’
Take a look at the following conversation:
“What do you think you’re doing?” he exclaimed.
“I’m taking what’s rightfully mine!” she hissed.
“But I won it fair and square!” he shouted back.
“Too bad!” she declared.
“You’re a monster!” he cried.
What do you notice? Did you say that it seems a little repetitive, but also somehow over-the-top? It’s because of the dialogue tags. Using “fancy” dialogue tags like exclaimed, hissed, shouted, declared, or cried are okay, but only every now and then. Instead, stick with using “said.” It’s like a little invisible word. The reader will note the name or pronoun of whomever is talking, but it won’t bog them down as they read the conversation. “Asked” is the same way when the person is using a question. Both of these words are used so much in writing that readers can skim through them, in a good way.
Pin me!
Of course, sometimes those fancy dialogue tags are helpful. The more you read and write, the better you’ll get at deciding when you should use another word in place of said. Before you use a fancy dialogue tag, ask yourself if there is another way to express that emotion while still using “said.” This goes along with that classic writing advice “show don’t tell.” Instead of telling us “he declared,” try showing us his confidence or forcefulness through his actions. This brings us to…
Action beats are your friend.
Actions beats are the little descriptions of actions in between dialogue. Consider the earlier conversation, but now using action beats.
“What are you doing?” He stared at her, mouth open.
She picked up the crown. “I’m taking what’s rightfully mine!” She held the crown aloft, letting the jewels sparkle in the flickering light.
“But I won it fair and square!” He lunged for her, swiping at the crown, but she spun out of the way.
“Too bad!” She ran to the window, stuffing the crown in her bag and getting ready to climb out.
“You’re a monster!” he called after her, but she had already disappeared into the night.
Okay, still not the best (consider it a first draft) but it’s already loads better than the first rendition. Exact same words, but instead of having the repetitive structure of the dialogue tags combined with the over-the-top nature of the word choice, we get a much better idea of what’s going on in the scene while still knowing who’s talking and how they feel, all while keeping the reader far more engaged.
Notice I still use one “fancy” dialogue tag (“he called after her”), but it’s been balanced by replacing all the other dialogue tags with action beats. In most scenarios, you can paint a far clearer (and more interesting) picture by using action beats rather than dialogue tags. Again, the more you write and read, the better your sense of when to use dialogue tags vs. action beats will be.
Sometimes, less is more
There are also conversations where not having dialogue tags or action beats may be the best choice. In a scene with more tension and action like the example above, this probably wouldn’t be a good strategy. But in a short, more casual conversation between two characters, it can work well.
“Are you going to the store?” she asked.
“Yep.”
“Will you grab some milk?”
“Was already planning on it.”
Okay, not the most riveting conversation, but you can see how limiting it to just the dialogue keeps the pacing up and keeps the story moving forward without bogging the reader down in a lot of details. Use this style sparingly, as more often than not, it’s better to have description, but there are instances where you’re better doing without.
Remember how I mentioned earlier that dialogue tags were the cause of heated debate in the writing world? That’s because, ultimately, it’s up to your taste as an author. Some writers say absolutely only use said. Some say that’s horrible advice and prefer to use lots of fancy dialogue tags. Yet others say only use action beats. Dialogue tags, with action beats, will end up being a key part of your voice as a writer, so in the end it’s up to what sounds good to you (and, let’s be honest, what your beta readers think). So keep reading and writing, and trust your author’s gut.
If you liked this article, pin it to share and save it for later.
What do you think about dialogue tags? How do you use them in your writing? Let me know in the comments!
Do you ever spend all day running around, whether it’s working, going to school, or just doing errands, then come home in the evening and feel like you’re incapable of writing? You have the time, maybe you’re even sitting at the computer, but the words just won’t come. If this happens over and over, it can even cause us to doubt ourselves as writers. Maybe we’re not cut out for it. Maybe we’re not as good as we thought we were. But there’s a more likely culprit: you’re spending your creative energy elsewhere.
Pin me!
Creative energy is what gives you that spark and motivation to create something, whether it’s writing or painting or crafting a good business strategy. Everyone has it, but everyone also chooses to spend it on different things. A teacher may use it on creating a good lesson plan that engages their students. A doctor may use it to decide on the best course of treatment. People who do creative work for a living (or wish they could) tend to use it on more “typically creative” projects, like writing a novel or designing a graphic logo.
These are all examples of people putting their creative energy to good use, and making it work for them and in their careers. But there are lots of other things that try to use up our creative energy as well. Trying to decide what to make for dinner. Figuring out if you should just buy that thing at the store now, or if you should spend some time researching and looking for a better price. The actual act of researching and looking for a better price! You may notice a pattern—a lot of these drains on creative energy come from having to make a decision. This is sometimes called decision fatigue.
I recently listened to an interview with author and comedian D.L. Hughley, who had a great metaphor for this. Your creative energy is like the water in your house. It can be used for lots of different things—washing dishes, taking a shower, doing the laundry. But if you try to do all these things at the same time, you’re likely going to end up with low water pressure. There’s just not enough to go around. If you use all your creative energy on other things, when it comes time to actually create something, you’ll only get a trickle of creativity, rather than the gushing fountain you were hoping for.
Especially if you’re only able to write in your free time, it’s important to be aware of these drains on creative energy and mitigate them as much as you can. This starts with just being aware of what is draining your energy. Spend a day or even a full week just being mindful of what you’re doing and what is causing you decision angst. Keep a note on your phone and write it down when you notice it. Is it deciding where to get lunch? Responding to that email at work? Whatever it is, write it down.
At the end of your observation period, look at your list. Divide it into two categories: Decisions I can modify, and decisions I can let go. For example, you may get decision angst over what to wear in the morning, but it’s still a choice that exists and you can’t get rid of it completely. But there are other choices you may be able to completely remove from your life, or at least reduce their frequency, such as when and if you should exercise. (No, the solution isn’t to stop exercising completely—just keep reading!)
Now, take a look at your first category, decisions you can modify. Go through the items and decide what you can and are willing to do. This second part is important. For example, if you get decision angst over what to wear in the morning, you could buy ten of the same outfit and wear the exact same thing every day. Some people do this and it works fine for them. But this might drive you nuts, and you’d give up on it after a week.
Pin me!
So maybe instead, set a time limit—you have ten minutes in the morning (or, even better, do it the night before!) to decide what to wear, and when time’s up, that’s what you go with. The same thing can happen with deciding what to eat—maybe you don’t want to eat the same meal every single day, but you can decide on a schedule: Friday is pizza night, maybe on Monday you always make pasta, etc. Setting parameters for a decision can simplify it while still giving you some expression, without draining your creative energy like it used to.
But you’re not done yet. There’s the second category of decisions you can let go. I mentioned exercise as an example. Yes, you could decide to just stop exercising, but I am not recommending that! Instead, make the choice once and let it go. Just like it’s a foregone conclusion that you’ll brush your teeth every morning and night (I hope…) treat exercise like that, choosing the days and times you want to exercise and then letting it go. Then, when it’s Wednesday afternoon, you’ve already decided that you’re going to the gym and you don’t have to agonize over it. Making a decision once and then acting like you have no other option takes practice, but it does get easier, and it’s worth it.
There are also probably some decisions that you can let go of, period. For instance, this blogger talks about how their membership to Costco caused her decision angst because she could never decide when was the best time to make the trip and if they were wasting money on the membership, and so they just got rid of the membership, removing the decision completely.
Once you’ve modified or let go of decisions in your life, not only will you be able to harness your creative energy for actually creating, you’ll likely find you have more time and less stress. It’s amazing how a small change can revolutionize your life, and I challenge you to see how decreasing decision fatigue can change yours.
Like this post? Pin it to save it for later and share with others!
Have you experienced decision fatigue? What do you do to combat it? How do you protect your creative energy? Let me know in the comments!
The computer is both a blessing and a curse for any writer. It makes writing faster and research easier, but it also opens the temptation to wander down internet rabbit holes and waste hours away on social media. To help keep you focused and remind you that you should be writing, here are seven backgrounds for your computer to inspire you.
I wrote this story in my sophomore year of college. It was originally published in Wide Angle Journal of Literature and Film. Enjoy!
This was country dark—the kind of dark where you were so far away from cities and street lights that you could put your hand just inches away from your face and still not see it. That’s what he kept saying, anyway, sitting in the driver’s seat next to her. He had repeated it at least three times in the two hours they’d been in the car so far, traveling south on I-85. And she supposed he was right. It was a thick, dense darkness outside, and the ribbons of raindrops sluicing the sky didn’t make things more visible. Only the headlights illuminated the framework of trees crowding the road, like fractures around the edge of her vision. Unannounced lightning sometimes cracked open the sky in a bright slash, causing her to jump and make a small, surprised sound. He had begun to chuckle whenever it happened.
“Storm a little scary, Mel?” he joked when it happened again. Melissa shot him a glare, though a small smile belied her irritation. The muscles in her stomach clenched when he used his nickname for her. Like they were newlyweds again.
“I’m just not expecting it, is all,” she insisted, tucking a piece of hair, brown just starting to grey, behind her ear.
“It makes sense to be scared. These woods are perfect for who-knows-what to be hiding in.” His voice had adopted the low, story-telling tone he used to speak in when he told their daughter, Cassidy, a ghostly story that would keep her up for nights on end.
“Nate, I have enough of an overactive imagination of my own, I don’t need your help!” She yanked the sleeves of her jacket down from her elbows to her wrists and folded her arms across her chest. A small smile crossed her face, though.
“You sure? You know how good I am at ghost stories. I bet I have a couple even you haven’t heard yet.” He lowered the volume on the radio, and Melissa worried he was preparing for telling a story.
She shook her head. “I doubt it.”
“Is that a challenge?” She could hear the grin in his voice and knew what was coming.
“No, that’s not what—”
“Perfect! Have you ever heard of Mothman?” He said, his voice shaking off the smile to take on a spooky quality, low and quivering as if it was struggling to bear the weight of the story. His eyes stayed focused on the road, as if he gathered inspiration from the murky darkness ahead.
“Mothman? You’re not serious,” she scoffed, but her hands fidgeted, and she uncrossed and recrossed her legs.
Nate caught the movement out of the corner of his eye, and his mouth formed his crooked smile. “Oh yeah. Big myth up north. Heard it all the time when I grew up in Virginia.”
“It sounds ridiculous. Like a reject super hero.”
“No, no. Mothman. Lives in woods like these. He looks like a normal man, but with big furry moth wings attached to his back. And his eyes—big red glowing bug eyes. That’s how you see him coming—red eyes.” He briefly shifted his focus from the road to Melissa, his eyebrows raised in an eager attempt to be sincere.
“Still not that scary. He just wanders around?” Melissa turned her face to look at him. His normally neatly-parted dark hair was ruffled in the back where it had leaned against the chair. The askew pieces melted into the dark around him.
“There are all these of reports of seeing him by the road late at night. He’ll fly as fast as your car, right next to your window and stare in at you. Sometimes he’ll land on the roof of a car.” Unconsciously, Melissa’s eyes flitted to the top of the car, the tan covering of the sunroof suddenly not sufficient.
She realized what she was doing and shook her head at herself. Ridiculous. Looking back at him, Melissa rolled her eyes. “And what does he do if he catches you?”
“Nothing—that I’ve heard of, anyway. People just have reports of seeing him, outside their car, or standing in their yards, outside their homes. But he never tries to get in—just stands there, watching. Sometimes there are reports—pictures, even—of seeing him a little bit before something bad happens, a catastrophe I mean. Like back in the sixties, this bridge collapsed in West Virginia, and dozens of people claimed to have seen him right around that time. Like an omen.” Nate guided the car gently around a bend in the road.
“But he doesn’t do anything? Then what’s the point?”
Nate was leaning forward slightly as he tried to see through the rain, windshield wipers doing their best to help. The rapid back-and-forth sound reminded her of a clock that had gone haywire—hurried tick-tocks occasionally punctuated by a squeak as the wiper dragged against the glass. “What point?”
“To the story! He doesn’t really exist, so people have made up creepy stories, but if he doesn’t do anything then what is the point? How is it supposed to scare people?” Melissa insisted, now twisted in her seat to face Nate, though he continued to look at the road.
“Maybe it’s not made up to scare people then. Maybe it’s real.” The trees outside his window whisked past his head, blurred by rain. Of course that would be his response.
“Nate. Please.” She turned back toward the front of the car.
“So you’re not scared in the slightest?” He glanced at her, eyebrows raised, daring her to deny it.
“I mean, I didn’t say that…”
Nate laughed and looked back to the road. “See, I knew it. You’re so predictable.”
Melissa smiled at him, but she swallowed tightly. Predictable. That again.
The radio music seemed to swell louder in the void, and Nate noticed her silence. “You missing Cassie already?”
Melissa hadn’t been thinking about her, but now that Nate brought it up, yes, of course she was. “The drive back home is the hardest part.”
Nate shook his head, the left half of his lips curving up into a smile. “She’s been going to camp for years now, Mel. She’ll be back in a month.”
Melissa smiled sadly. “I know. But still.” She paused a moment, looking down as she fidgeted with the zipper on her jacket. “And you’ll be home when she comes back, right? We always have our welcome home party.”
Nate coughed. “Yeah, I’ll try to make sure I don’t have a business trip scheduled. I may have to be gone some weekends or spend a couple nights in the city before then.”
Melissa nodded without speaking, not caring if he saw. Her eyes flitted to his left hand, resting on the steering wheel. He twisted his wedding ring absent-mindedly. He did that whenever he talked about staying in the city, nearer to his firm, for a night, or going on a business trip.
The rain had become more determined, a solid thunk-thunk-thunk on the roof of their car. Nate clicked the windshield wipers into a faster setting.
“Hey, what’s that up there?” he said, lifting his right hand from the center console to point. Melissa looked, and saw two glowing red dots in the distance on the road.
She looked at him, glaring. “No. Don’t.”
His smiled stretched wide. “Looks like eyes to me.”
“Nate, you know it’s not—”
“Big, glowing, red, bug eyes, actually…Kinda what Mothman would look like?” His voice was low again. Melissa was reminded of a camping trip they took one weekend in college. The group had clustered around the fire as Nate brought an ominous looming to the darkness surrounding them through his haunting stories. Melissa sometimes imagined that when people asked him about their marriage when she wasn’t around, he used that same voice to describe it.
Stop it. She wouldn’t let him get in her head. Melissa considered reaching for him, linking her fingers with his on the console where he had rested his hand back down. Instead, she said, “Mothman is some made-up creature, probably something you came up with yourself, by the sound it.”
Nate shook his head, looking serious but his voice was earnest. “I didn’t make it up. And it looks like it’s right there, not too far ahead of us.”
Melissa gripped his arm. He didn’t return with any gesture of comfort, but her breath still caught at the physical contact. She couldn’t remember the last time they had held hands. “It’s creepy.” She tightened her grip, relishing the warmth of her hand on his skin.
“Geez, Melissa, would you calm down, are you trying to cut off circulation to my hand?” He ripped his arm out from under her fingers, placing it on the steering wheel. “C’mon, you know it’s just the taillights of a car.” She swallowed tightly, like a young child who had just been scolded.
“Just trying to have a bit of fun. It feels like we never do that anymore,” she said, not even sure he could hear her over the pounding rain.
He had, and his body tensed, as she knew it would. “We have plenty of fun. But sometimes we’re both busy—life happens. You sound like Cassidy when she’s bored, Melissa.”
She leaned her head against the car door. Maybe if she just slept the rest of the way it would be easier. They wouldn’t have to interact that way. She chewed on her lip, remembering all the nights recently she had tried to sleep to forget about him, about the emptiness next to her in the bed. Just like those nights, tonight sleep evaded her. She stared into the oncoming rain, seeing every individual raindrop as the headlights spotlighted it in its onrush towards the ground.
He must have thought she was asleep, though. He turned the radio up, transforming the song from quiet background music to the dominating sound, notes mixing with plunks of rain on the roof. She hadn’t heard the song before, but he had. His voice felt out the words, shaping each one as if he were writing the song himself, in this moment. Melissa remembered that voice, the delicacy with which his lips formed each sound, the way it had when they first met at a karaoke bar in college. The memory seemed cloudy now, obscured not so much by distance as by the fog of other, harsher memories.
The windshield wipers swept frantically back and forth, vainly trying to coax the rain away. Nate was going at least fifteen under the speed limit—twenty five under his normal pace. The thought occurred to her that they might need to stop the car on the side of the road, wait out the storm. She wondered how long that would take, sitting in the car, listening to the rain. Maybe he would sing to pass the time, sing to her. She would like that. It would be like when they had first started dating. And then maybe she would do something else like those first few months. Free herself from the seatbelt, lean over the center console toward him, he would already be leaning towards her, expecting it and wanting it to come. Their lips would touch, softly, then he would push his strongly onto hers, his rough hands grasping for her. His smell, a mixture of sweet sweat and his cologne, would fill her nostrils. Maybe then he wouldn’t call her predictable and call her Mel instead, maybe they wouldn’t notice the rain had stopped until long after the sky was clear, maybe he would hold her hand the rest of the drive back, maybe there would be no more business trips or nights spent in the city.
“Nate, if the rain—”
He jumped. The car jerked to the left, suitcases in the trunk careening to one side in a thunder. “Damn it, Melissa, I thought you were asleep!” He pulled the car back under control.
Melissa relaxed a fist she hadn’t realized was clenched, now relieved they were the only car on the road. She tried to laugh lightly, but he didn’t join. “Sorry. I wasn’t asleep.”
“Well, yeah, I know that now. You were quiet for so long I just assumed.” His face was stony, jaw set and lips tight.
“Oh. I was just thinking.” She pushed the sleeves of her jacket up to her elbows and tucked the piece of hair back behind her ear, looking at the dashboard rather than at him.
“Hope my singing didn’t annoy you. I wouldn’t have done it if I knew you were still awake to listen.” He didn’t sound apologetic as much as bitter at her for hearing, for tricking him into thinking he was alone when she was still right there.
She swallowed. “Nate, if the rain is too heavy, maybe we should pull over.”
“Pull over? Where would we do that? There hasn’t been an exit in miles.” He lifted his hand off the steering wheel slightly, gesturing to the thickness of trees lining the road.
“I know, I meant, just, on the side of the road.”
“In the dark and by the woods by Mothman.”
The corners of her mouth twitched upward. “No, just in the dark by the woods. No Mothman.”
“I don’t think you can decide where Mothman chooses to go.”
She shook her head, laughter breaking the sound of the rain. This time his lips formed a small smile. “Mothman or not, I don’t want you driving in the rain if you can’t see through it. It’s getting pretty heavy and you’re already driving slowly. Maybe it would be best to wait it out.”
Now Nate was shaking his head, eyebrows furrowed in concentration. “No, it’ll be okay. There’s no telling how big this storm is. I’d rather just get back before it gets any worse.”
“Are you sure?” She put her hand on his arm, grasping for him again. “I wouldn’t mind getting home a little later, letting the storm pass.”
He readjusted his hand on the wheel, just barely, but enough that Melissa understood she was to remove her hand from his arm. Fine. It dropped back into her lap. “Alright, I just wanted to make sure you were good with driving. Not falling asleep or anything?” she said, her voice quieter, yielding to him.
“Nope.” The word, so casual, still carried the edge in his voice and settled like a rock in between them.
“Okay, just let me know.”
“I will.” He didn’t look at her, just kept his hands on the wheel, except to turn down the volume of the radio. The song faded into the background again.
She did not reach for him again or ask him to stop. She simply stared ahead at the rushing rain, the trees flashing past, the road reaching out, illuminated for a little bit ahead, then disappearing quietly into the country dark.
front if you decide to take this approach. But including issues that you care about and are being widely talked about is less likely to date your book, as many of these issues have been around for a while and will continue to be discussed. Using this approach will likely be more interesting to readers than you putting a certain politician on blast.
If you don’t know who Levar Burton is, I don’t even know what to say to you. The beloved actor is on his third season of Levar Burton Reads, with each episode featuring a new short story. The stories vary in genre, style, and when they were published, but each one is an example of brilliant storytelling that’s sure to inspire you.
