This issue is more writing focused than perhaps any issue I’ve written. How meta. From writer’s block to flow state, we’re tackling it all today.
Plus, get a glimpse into David Lynch’s favorite diner that inspired Twin Peaks (and his extremely sugary go-to order).
I hope your week is just as sweet. 🖤
Getting Real About Writer’s Block
Time to get candid. Up until now, I’ve been pleasantly surprised by how writing the rough draft of my novel has been going. However…
This week, I’ve been battling writer’s block. I think it’s likely due to a mix of the following for me:
Getting further into my novel = psyching myself out about every decision I make within the text
Impostor syndrome is creeping in. Who do I really think I am to be writing this thing?
Creating daily videos of my progress is starting to get tiring. I go back and forth about wanting to change up the cadence so it doesn’t feel too repetitive
Despite a recent book haul, it’s taking me forever to read literally any book now? I’m not sure if that’s because I’m simultaneously writing one or what, but I’m getting on my own nerves
I haven’t been sleeping well
The world seems to be on fire constantly???
It has me feeling like SpongeBob in that one episode where he procrastinates writing his boating school essay.
Anyway, this is all to say, I’m not giving up. Writing can be a lot of fun. It can also be a total slog at times. I’m doing my best to relish the good days and take the bad in stride.
It’s all a part of the process, or so they say. Onward and upward.
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Twin, This Is Peak: How David Lynch’s Favorite Diner Fueled His Writing Habits
@theweirdgirledit According to several sources online, David Lynch’s go-to order was a chocolate milkshake and multiple cups of coffee with "lots of sugar" ... See more
I ended up visiting Bob’s Big Boy in Burbank, without immediately realizing it was THE famous Bob’s location that inspired David Lynch and the iconic diner in Twin Peaks. It’s a relatively unassuming place, and if it wasn’t for the framed photo of him up on the wall, I wouldn’t have known.
If you’re not familiar with Lynch’s work or the show Twin Peaks, the best way to describe both would be a surrealist dive into all things Americana and liminal—an unhinged limbo between the comforting and the deeply strange.
It turns out, life really does imitate art, and vice versa. According to the restaurant’s website:
“David Lynch would lunch late at 2:30pm while enjoying coffee and chocolate milkshakes at Bob’s Big Boy Burbank. The resulting buzz from the sugar and caffeine would lead to many of his ideas, which were jotted down on Bob’s Big Boy napkins.”
It’s rumored that his frequent visits to Bob’s Big Boy inspired the show’s character BOB, as well as it's numerous diner scenes. Speaking of, who can forget this bizarre, lovable moment between Gordon Cole (Lynch himself) and Shelly Johnson?
Possibly embarrassing myself here, but I was so enamored by the show as a teenager that I dressed up as Shelly Johnson for Halloween one year. Can you blame me? It was my first foray into Lynch’s universe, and when I’m a fan of something, I go all in. See the evidence below.
LOL the pose... It was the 2010s. Enough said. Btw, I went deep into my tumblr archive to dig this relic up. You’re welcome!
I’ll leave you with this final anecdote, since it also relates to a previous newsletter in which I wrote about my experience rewatching Blue Velvet.
“One day, while presumably enjoying coffee and milkshakes, Lynch would see a man approach the Bob’s Big Boy Burbank counter, ‘Seeing him came a feeling, and that’s where Frank Booth came from.’ Booth, played by Dennis Hopper, is the main antagonist, and arguably the greatest on-screen villain ever in Blue Velvet (1986).”
Maybe I should look to Lynch to get over this writer’s block of mine. Milkshakes and coffee never hurt anybody, right?
The irony is that I’m mostly lactose intolerant at this point in my life... but shhh. Let’s ignore that.
Genuinely Reaching Flow State Thanks to Heated Rivalry
@theweirdgirledit This concept genuinely helped me reach flow state today as I worked on my novel🫦 I think I’m due for a rewatch of Heated Rivalry 😭 ugh if... See more
I finally got around to watching Heated Rivalry, which I mentioned in this recent novel update video. Let me just say, the hype is 100% justified. The show had me on the edge of my seat from start to finish, and I tore through it in just two days. It was one of those viewing experiences where I just needed to binge it before I could resume my life as normal again.
Without spoiling anything, the romance between Shane and Ilya was absolutely simmering, and just when I thought the tension couldn’t possibly build any more between them…BAM. It somehow did. And who can forget episode five? I’m regarding it as one of the best episodes of television ever made. Yeah, I said it. I ugly cried.
It inspired a silly concept for me to ease myself into a flow state, a productivity hack of sorts. I invite you to try it out: Pretend you have a hot rival doing the same task as you, and this is your ~moment to shine~ in the TV montage.
If you know, you know. If not, watch the show and it’ll all make sense! Aside from the show’s entertainment value, it had me intrigued to check out the book series by Rachel Reid. I’ve decided I may read the series as a research project of sorts. After all, the project I’m working on is full of tension and yearning.
Heated Rivalry has taken the world by storm for good reason. I also came across this heartwarming post on Instagram about all of the real-life good that has come out of it, and it only reinforces my love for everything about it.
Weird Girl of the Week: Yah Yah Scholfield
The horror genre is having a major renaissance at the moment. I can’t seem to keep up with all of the amazing debut novels coming out recently, and Yah Yah Scholfield’s debut On Sundays She Picked Flowers is no exception.
While I haven’t read it yet, it went straight to the top of my list after I saw it featured in my friend Michelle’s brilliant newsletter, Scare Me!. Here’s a quick synopsis from the publisher’s website:
“In this sinister and surreal Southern Gothic debut, a woman escapes into the uncanny woods of southern Georgia and must contend with ghosts, haints, and most dangerous of all, the truth about herself. Haunting and thought-provoking, On Sunday She Picked Flowers explores retribution, family trauma, and the power of building oneself back up after breaking down.”
In the meantime, I’ve been reading Yah Yah Scholfield’s newsletter before I get my hands on a copy of the novel. The amount of talent in the horror community has truly been a bright spot in the midst of everything going on lately. There’s no denying that it’s a powerful genre.
Note: Yah Yah Scholfield uses they/them pronouns. While “weird girl of the week” is a phrase I use to categorize this section, it’s meant to highlight talented individuals regardless of their gender identity.
Speaking of the“weird girl” label, they wrote an excellent piece titled “WHO GETS TO BE A WEIRD GIRL?”, which I highly recommend you check out!
That’s it for today. Want more weirdness?
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The Weird Girl Edit is a weekly newsletter written by Maya Rector, and it gets published every Wednesday. View past editions here. If you haven’t already, subscribe for the latest wacky musings in literature, media, and pop culture each week!