writing – Page 3

Learning Curves

I’ve been doing a lot of reading on the craft of writing these past few weeks. There have been quite a few “freebies” on Amazon/Nook and I must admit I’m a sucker for “those who bought this book also bought…..”.

Taking a break from the task of actual writing and examining the craft of writing is both a benefit and a curse.

The benefit is that I can now begin creating patterns in my writing. No matter what we write, I’m finding out, there is an underlying structure that works its way through the storyline. In fact, we are all writing the same stories over and over again, simply with different characters and situations. It’s okay, though. People love familiar structure. For example, Jaws, Alien, Panic Room and Fatal Attraction are all the same movie. Not the same plot, characters, etc, but if you screen all those movies, you will find the same types of scenes. Try it.

The curse is that I clearly see all the mistakes that I have made in my published stories. Things I’d love to go back and change.

But I can’t. And as a constant “fixer-upper” I’ve learned to let of go that. Almost. I think. Sort of.

However, I don’t have to make those same errors moving forward, right? So with my little Index Card app on the iPad, I’m creating a database of terms and scenes and reference sheets that will assist me in creating the super-perfect story that everyone will love. Right? Right????

Or at least a story with perfect, underlying structure.

Truth is, I thrive on discovering new concepts and tips that will assist in making me a better writer. The learning and the self-improvement never stops. It’s like a shark – stop learning and you sink to the bottom of the pile.

Blogtoberfest – Kitty Wishes

Given that it is Evernight’s two year anniversary, I wanted to take this time to pause, take a breath and reflect. My first book, Kitty Wishes was published a year ago this month. My first foray into the heady world of e-publishing.

Black Cat — Click the picture for Kitty Wishes
image courtesy of http://freedigitalphotos.net

I’m not a prolific writer. Piecing together a cohesive narrative with fully fleshed out characters is a painstaking process for and often as not, I’m dissatisfied with the final output. But I’ve learned to live with it, know that it’s NEVER going to be as good as I want to to be. Heck, I could go on tweaking the same paragraph forever.

But I don’t. I have to let the little stories out into the world where you, the reader, can enjoy them. And I hope you enjoy reading them as much as I’ve enjoyed writing them. I must admit, it IS fun. I wouldn’t endure the torture of creating if it wasn’t, you know?

I’ve been asked many times if there will be a sequel to Kitty Wishes and I’ve demurred on an answer because I truly did not know how to continue the story of Sakaria and Desmond. I mean.. SPOILER ALERT they’re together at the end right? Then I started thinking about it and with the help of a wonderful support system of author friends, I have begun tentative work on a sequel…..of sorts. Let’s just say Ms. Sakaria will be making an appearance.

For those of you who haven’t experience the magic of Kitty Wishes, here’s an old Six Sentence Sunday excerpt:

The setup is that our heroine, Sakaria has been cursed to be a shapeshifting cat, and needs a fella to break the spell for her. Luckily, she is dating a nice guy, but isn’t really sure how to up the ante so that he does what he’s supposed to do to break the spell, and she’s running out of time. Her friend Julie gives her a bit of tricky advice that Sakaria is reluctant to take.

Sakaria looked into her glass, the milky ice cubes staring blankly back at her. “It’s not bad at all,” she said, grinning. “But it just seems so…” she hitched her shoulders quickly. “Dishonest.”
“Once you’re blowing him, he’s not going to care.” Julie turned her glass up to get the last drop.

There you go, folks. And if you simply can’t wait to get Kitty Wishes in your hot little e-book readers, then mosey on over to All Romance e-Books. It is on sale for TWO DOLLARS. You can’t do better than that. TWO DOLLARS, right? Pick it up. I promise you will have fun with it.

Dahlia

Move like Jagger? How about Write like Peyton?

Those who follow my blog regularly will know that I’m a big football person. I play fantasy football (and get cursed out by guys who don’t know that I’m a gal, or know and don’t care) and I watch the games on television and online. I’ve been known to watch three games at once, following the scores and the sacks and the bad calls by the replacement refs.

Last year, football was boring. Why? No Peyton Manning calling plays at the line.

Say what you will about Peyton, from his commercial hustle to his pouts and tantrums during the game, (search on YouTube for Peyton Manning/Jeff Saturday and you’ll see him cursing out the former Colts’ center to the point where one of the O-line dudes told him to ‘go sit down’) but he knows what he wants from the game and goes after it. Mind you, football is not a one-man show, as much as we would like to think it is. If he throws the ball and no one catches it (I’m looking at you Eric Decker and Jacob Tamme), then he really has no recourse. Peyton is a perfectionist and you can see it on his face every time something goes wrong.

On the other hand, writing IS a one man show. No matter how you slice it, at the core of the craft, it’s you, your pencils and notebook, or you and the computer screen.

It’s. Just. You.

There’s no Eric Decker to blame if you don’t make your word count. Didn’t finish the story before the deadline and want to blame someone? Look in the mirror. Don’t garner excuses for your lack of performance on the playing field of being an author. Catch the balls. Run your routes correctly.

How do you do that?

Be determined. Get off of Facebook. Get off of Wikipedia. Yes, we know you need to “research” but don’t let that cut into your writing time. Set writing goals and MEET THEM. If Manning can come back from four neck surgeries and throw that ball across the field at thirty-six years old, you can get down a couple of words a day in your notebook or in that Word file.

Peyton was so bad off that he couldn’t lift a tray of drinks at a Colts charity function last year. Imagine how that affected him, a four time MVP. And how much balls did it take to get on the field for the first time and take a hit after spine fusion surgery. Certainly, all the best doctors said he would no problem, every thing is fine, but when it’s YOU out there getting hit…all the yakking of all the very best doctors in the world wouldn’t keep me from having some trepidations about getting sacked by a London Fletcher, Brian Urlacher or Ndomukong Suh. That would be enough to keep me on the bench.

Love writing like Peyton Manning loves football. He’s certainly can’t still be playing for the money!

Writer’s Block – Defeated!

As a writer, I’m sure that you’ve heard other writer’s complain about “writer’s block”. You’ve hit that brick wall before. I’m sure you’ve read numerous articles on how to cure writer’s block. And yet, the “muse is silent” or “can’t seem to put ‘pen to paper’”.

Guess what? There’s no such thing as writer’s block, or at least the “writer’s block” that so many writers imagine.

Writer’s block doesn’t swoop down (or up) and sit in your mind and keep you from letting the words flow. It’s not a dam, clogging the words that you so desperately want to get on paper. It’s not a malevolent external force over which you have no control.

Writer’s block is like the Force: It’s in you.

Writer’s block is fear. Fear of judgment by others about the crazy story with too much sex you just wrote. Fear of ridicule about that ridiculous storyline about the talking garbage can that saved children from drowning. Fear of failure: this great story that you just outlined? You won’t finish. Fear of ‘not being good enough’ and/or envy: you see everywhere that writers are finishing their fifth, fifteenth, thirtieth book and you’re still chugging along on your second. Or you’re unpublished and have a stack of “no thanks” rejections to prove it.

It’s in you. Your fears, your shortcomings, your trepidation of….whatever. It’s a mind block.

And guess what? It could also be a physical manifestation of issues.

Brain feel fogged? A while ago I wrote a post on Herbs for Clarity that helped me break through a brain block that I suffered through a while ago. Since then, I’ve paid close attention to my body. Remember that old adage, “Garbage in, garbage out”. Yeah. It’s totally true.

Whenever I feel “writer’s blockish” I immediately get up from the computer and run down my three point checklist, kind of like the twenty nine points of inspection they claim to give you “for free” when you buy new tires. (I don’t believe they check all that, but let’s give them the benefit of the doubt, shall we?)

1. Am I dehydrated?

According to some sources, this past July was the hottest July on record here in the Northeast. Keeping hydrated is important at any time of the year, but easy to forget. Feeling fogged? Have a glass of water. Then, drink another. The brain is 70% water (http://ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/propertyyou.html) . Keep it juiced, folks.

2. Am I eating too much junk food?

Sitting and snacking at the computer while you furiously pound out your next masterpiece is something that too many of us do. It’s easy, it’s quick and it keeps us from wandering away in the middle of a scene. I’m sure if you could get over the embarrassment of wearing an adult diaper, someone would do that too. Anything to keep from getting up.

You’ve heard this before, I know, I know, but in order to keep your body (which by the way includes your brain) in top working condition, you’ve got to feed it the food it needs, which doesn’t include copious amounts of cheese curls and chocolate. Ditto for the take-out fast food that you’re eating because ‘you just don’t have the time to cook’. (This goes for you dolls AND guys out there, because I don’t discriminate when it comes to cooking.)

Feed your body the vegetables, meat, dairy, vitamins, whatever, that it needs. If that means grilled tofu and Brussels sprouts, or a thick steak, potatoes and spinach, so be it. Just make sure you eat right. Keep the chocolate, candy, chips and soda to a minimum.

3. Am I spending too much time on social media?
Let’s face it, if you are in certain communities, everyone is promoting something. It’s the nature of the beast. Too much of that flow on Twitter, Facebook, wherever, can be detrimental to your sense of well-being. Look! So and so is promoting their twentieth book! Jack be nimble has made over 30 trillion sales TODAY of his new book! Amy is going to let you in on HER secret to selling 7 gazillion books in just one month!

Move away, back off. THEY are not YOU. YOU are not THEM. This is a good time to exercise a little tunnel vision, especially when you’re in a low spot in your own creativity. Go you own pace. Stay in your own lane. Stop watching other people. DO what you DO and be happy with that.

Spending too much time on social media means that you’re spending time away from your work in progress, or from doing something that is healthy for you like exercising or pondering nature. Keep it to a minimum.

Best way to beat writer’s block? Keep it from happening. Keep yourself healthy and wise, and do what works for you.