Nodus
Tollens –
When one’s life doesn’t fit into one’s
life story
So
this is a completely made up word given life by a guy called John Koenig, who
aims to fill a hole in the English language, and to give rise to emotions that we
all have but that we don’t yet have words to describe. I
love this phrase because ... it's so damn true! apt! viable in the real world! and it's about time there's word to describe this sort of feeling. Because I’m such the planner, I’m always considering
my next steps, determining if my actions will help me achieve the over-arching
goal of self-preservation, satisfaction and realization of my dreams.
Koenig’s
definition goes on to define nodus tollens, “… there are times when you look up
and realize that the plot of your life doesn’t make sense to you anymore …
either everything seems important or nothing does …” How apropos for a writer
to find this word. There’s truth here, and power too.
The novel that I've been writing this year has taken off on it's own more than once, and the plot lines I thought I'd been tapping have turned out to be completely contrary to what my characters want to do. Fellow writers, I know you know what I mean! Instead of fighting against my protagonist, I've let her run wild and free, knowing that whatever I'm writing can be edited and polished to make perfect, or trashed with the hopes to start again. It's easy to find solace in this because I'm writing characters. Sure, I'm giving them life, but they exist on the page, not in the waking realm of the Nati.
It's much harder when I discover that the plot lines I'm crafting for my life don't match up to my plans. At the turn of every month, I sit down and write out my goals for the month. I group them into categories so that I see where and how I should be directing attention to various parts of my life, and then I tack it to the wall in my bathroom right next to my mirror. That way every morning when the sun hasn't risen and I'm prepping for Dental World, I can look at it and try to find decisive ways to make ... something happen that will follow my plot lines. Then, at the end of the month, I review the list and see what I've managed to do. Often, I hit some marks but not all. When I first started this practice, I was somewhat discouraged that I couldn't do everything every month. It irked me. And then I realized that even if I'm not aware of it, it's all part of the plan. Boom.
The novel that I've been writing this year has taken off on it's own more than once, and the plot lines I thought I'd been tapping have turned out to be completely contrary to what my characters want to do. Fellow writers, I know you know what I mean! Instead of fighting against my protagonist, I've let her run wild and free, knowing that whatever I'm writing can be edited and polished to make perfect, or trashed with the hopes to start again. It's easy to find solace in this because I'm writing characters. Sure, I'm giving them life, but they exist on the page, not in the waking realm of the Nati.
It's much harder when I discover that the plot lines I'm crafting for my life don't match up to my plans. At the turn of every month, I sit down and write out my goals for the month. I group them into categories so that I see where and how I should be directing attention to various parts of my life, and then I tack it to the wall in my bathroom right next to my mirror. That way every morning when the sun hasn't risen and I'm prepping for Dental World, I can look at it and try to find decisive ways to make ... something happen that will follow my plot lines. Then, at the end of the month, I review the list and see what I've managed to do. Often, I hit some marks but not all. When I first started this practice, I was somewhat discouraged that I couldn't do everything every month. It irked me. And then I realized that even if I'm not aware of it, it's all part of the plan. Boom.
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