Romance novelist Jennifer Crusie admits she prefers hobbies that don't require a lot of thinking, such as "...crocheting, painting furniture and anything else that'll keep my hands busy while I plot." Her reasoning is simple and makes perfect sense: "When you write, it's completely cerebral. You're either looking into a computer and typing or you're staring into space and thinking.... You can't do anything that takes any thought. If I have to think about following a pattern in crochet or what I'm going to put into a painting, then that gets in the way of thinking about the plot....." Crusie also gets to know at least a little about any hobby one of her fictional characters enjoys -- that's one way to establish a rapport with them and bring them to life on the page. One of Crusie's hobbies, crocheting, isn't really mindless: crochet patterns can require a considerable amount of concentration. But once you get good at it, it's possible to crochet and do other things -- such as watching TV -- at the same time. Here are the basics of the chain stitch, the foundation of all crochet stitches: - Start with a slipknot. Make a loop of yarn around your finger, then pull the end through and tighten (figure A).
- Insert the hook into the loop, tighten the loop slightly and bring the yarn around the hook (figure B).
- Catch the yarn with the hook and bring it through the loop to form the first chain (figure C).
Web extra: Jennifer Crusie's book list: Faking It
Fast Women
Welcome to Temptation
Crazy for You
Tell Me Lies
Anne Rice: A Critical Companion
Trust Me on This
The Cinderella Deal
Anyone But You
Charlie All Night
What the Lady Wants
Strange Bedpersons
Getting Rid of Bradley
Manhunting
Sizzle.
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