Mom said, "I don't know why you haven't been widely published by now."
"Well," I answered, "they tell me you have to submit to sell."
"Oh."
So, yesterday I mailed a short story to a nationally circulated woman's magazine. The writer guidelines say four months for reply. Of course, my hope is that they will open it, read it and say, "Hey, this is great. Can we send you a contract for the sale of this piece? And we'll send you a check straight a way!"
When I returned from the post office I reached into my pile for another project. Something longer. A novel of about 24,000 words. About 1/3 done. Seems like a good idea. Well, I need to work on some short pieces, too, to get more manuscripts circulating out there. I nearly asked DH how many hours a day he thinks I should be writing. Then I stopped and thought, "What?"
I do have a tendency to spend way too much time with my computer, hidden away in my office. But I love writing. I can hardly think of anything else sometimes. Is writing obsessive?
Friday, July 28, 2006
Wednesday, July 26, 2006
short stories?
Why is it that every short story I write sounds like it really should be a long story?
I've been writing flash fiction. Someone told me (Dej) that I had a good flash fiction piece awhile back. I looked for some flash fiction markets and guess what? I found them. They are out there. $20 or $60 or $100, seems like a good start to me. I'm working my way to having 50 manuscripts circulating at all times so I can watch for the checks to start rolling in and keep coming.
So, what are you writing today?
I've been writing flash fiction. Someone told me (Dej) that I had a good flash fiction piece awhile back. I looked for some flash fiction markets and guess what? I found them. They are out there. $20 or $60 or $100, seems like a good start to me. I'm working my way to having 50 manuscripts circulating at all times so I can watch for the checks to start rolling in and keep coming.
So, what are you writing today?
Tuesday, July 25, 2006
Melancholy
UUUGGGGHHHHHHHHH!!!! Let me get it out of my system for a minute.
My first impulse is to just forgetaboutit. My second is to sit and bawl my eyes out. But my ultimate is to be realistic. Why do I want to forget it or sit and cry? Especially when I know that the sun is still going to rise again tomorrow. There are always going to be problems. And one way or another things will all work out, and everything will come out with the wash.
SIGH!
Ah, the writer's life. If there weren't crises and problems and crazy people and all those idiots out in the world that don't have brain one, what would a writer have to pen about? So, I won't complain. Not today. Well, I'll try not to complain much.
What am I writing? My Sunday article is finished. Just waiting for approval. When I talked to Mary Ann today she said, "I want to tell you, before we get started. There is a 76-year-old woman who comes to see me. She's the sweetest thing. She said you saved her life with the articles that you wrote about depression. She didn't realize she had a problem until she read my articles. She has said a number of times, Cathy Brownfield saved my life. So what you're doing is working. It's helping people."
I was stunned speechless. It chokes me up to think about it. I hate to sound cliche but it truly did humble me. Something I did helped someone else. I've been pretty hard on myself of late. And it all proves that "just one person" can do something that will make a difference somewhere along the line.
So, I guess I'll keep writing...and building my platform. Do you know about platforming? Did I write about that in an earlier entry or was that somewhere else. I talk about writing rather a lot with writing friends.
Platforming is getting your name out there, however you can--articles, essays, public speaking, community service...Get people interested in you and they'll read what you write and when you publish a book they will buy it. "Build it and they will come."
So what on earth have I been waiting for? Well, I've been waiting for all the crises and problems to go away. That's not going to happen. I've been waiting for perfect moments to write. There are no perfect moments. There is only THIS moment. And if you are a writer and you are reading this thinking, "She's talking about ME!", well, what are you doing there sitting reading this? Get busy writing! I'll make it easier for ya. Let's BOTH get busy writing.
Cathy
My first impulse is to just forgetaboutit. My second is to sit and bawl my eyes out. But my ultimate is to be realistic. Why do I want to forget it or sit and cry? Especially when I know that the sun is still going to rise again tomorrow. There are always going to be problems. And one way or another things will all work out, and everything will come out with the wash.
SIGH!
Ah, the writer's life. If there weren't crises and problems and crazy people and all those idiots out in the world that don't have brain one, what would a writer have to pen about? So, I won't complain. Not today. Well, I'll try not to complain much.
What am I writing? My Sunday article is finished. Just waiting for approval. When I talked to Mary Ann today she said, "I want to tell you, before we get started. There is a 76-year-old woman who comes to see me. She's the sweetest thing. She said you saved her life with the articles that you wrote about depression. She didn't realize she had a problem until she read my articles. She has said a number of times, Cathy Brownfield saved my life. So what you're doing is working. It's helping people."
I was stunned speechless. It chokes me up to think about it. I hate to sound cliche but it truly did humble me. Something I did helped someone else. I've been pretty hard on myself of late. And it all proves that "just one person" can do something that will make a difference somewhere along the line.
So, I guess I'll keep writing...and building my platform. Do you know about platforming? Did I write about that in an earlier entry or was that somewhere else. I talk about writing rather a lot with writing friends.
Platforming is getting your name out there, however you can--articles, essays, public speaking, community service...Get people interested in you and they'll read what you write and when you publish a book they will buy it. "Build it and they will come."
So what on earth have I been waiting for? Well, I've been waiting for all the crises and problems to go away. That's not going to happen. I've been waiting for perfect moments to write. There are no perfect moments. There is only THIS moment. And if you are a writer and you are reading this thinking, "She's talking about ME!", well, what are you doing there sitting reading this? Get busy writing! I'll make it easier for ya. Let's BOTH get busy writing.
Cathy
Saturday, July 22, 2006
Life path fraught with obstacles--or challenges
Man plans, and God laughs.
My mom insists that God has a sense of humor. I surely hope so. It seems like there's ALWAYS something to deal with. I hope I'm passing the test!
Writing...OK. I have to generate faster income with my fiction. So, I sat down to read Kathryn Lay's book, "The Organized Writer is a Selling Writer." She said she has no less than 50 manuscripts circulating at any time. So, I gathered a slew of writer guidelines from magazines that publish fiction. I printed out (from the Works Spreadsheet) a calendar for each of the months July through December. I noted my regular writing work for FRC on Mondays. I decided which market I wanted to write for first and noted the deadline for the piece...and got to work on the submission. I didn't work on anything else until that one was finished.
I have noted various markets, my self-imposed deadline, and when I finish a piece I give it a red note on the date it is finished.
I was cruising along nicely when Life entered the picture. My parents needed me. My children needed me. OK. My pattern was broken, and all needs were legitimate. And I feel like I'm always going to write, but my family is always going to take priority. Does that mean I can't write for a living?!
I sat on the swing on the patio the other day. And it occurred to me that it might be time to finish the novel I've ignored for the better part of seven years. Seems like I know the conclusion of the story now. But first, short fiction that will bring me some income to pay for the trip I'm taking to Maine in the autumn of the year.
There's no time like the present.
My mom insists that God has a sense of humor. I surely hope so. It seems like there's ALWAYS something to deal with. I hope I'm passing the test!
Writing...OK. I have to generate faster income with my fiction. So, I sat down to read Kathryn Lay's book, "The Organized Writer is a Selling Writer." She said she has no less than 50 manuscripts circulating at any time. So, I gathered a slew of writer guidelines from magazines that publish fiction. I printed out (from the Works Spreadsheet) a calendar for each of the months July through December. I noted my regular writing work for FRC on Mondays. I decided which market I wanted to write for first and noted the deadline for the piece...and got to work on the submission. I didn't work on anything else until that one was finished.
I have noted various markets, my self-imposed deadline, and when I finish a piece I give it a red note on the date it is finished.
I was cruising along nicely when Life entered the picture. My parents needed me. My children needed me. OK. My pattern was broken, and all needs were legitimate. And I feel like I'm always going to write, but my family is always going to take priority. Does that mean I can't write for a living?!
I sat on the swing on the patio the other day. And it occurred to me that it might be time to finish the novel I've ignored for the better part of seven years. Seems like I know the conclusion of the story now. But first, short fiction that will bring me some income to pay for the trip I'm taking to Maine in the autumn of the year.
There's no time like the present.
Tuesday, July 11, 2006
Hatching a plan
I get very frustrated some days. I want to write my novels. But I need to generate income. This morning I remembered a writing plan my friend, the late Bea Sheftel, came up with. Unfortunately her 'plan' is in my deceased PC. But the essence of the plan is still in my brain. Or is it just my own thinking that's motivating me this morning?
I know my writing 'voice.' So I'm looking for markets that use 'my voice/style.' And I'm thinking, "How much money do I need to bring in each month?" This monthly market pays $100-$400 for fiction. And this one pays $1,200 or more for each romance short story or mystery short story. That's not a shabby start. IF I can crack the markets.
So what am I waiting for? I'm not exactly waiting. I think it's mind set. Is my mind set for success or failure? Is it called writer's block? Sounds an awfully lot like Stephen King's character, Mike, in Bag of Bones. Have you read that one? When I sit down with pen and paper do I think, "I can do this," or do I think, "This is stupid and nobody is gonna want to read it?" Self-fulfilling prophecy. I think there's something to it.
I know my writing 'voice.' So I'm looking for markets that use 'my voice/style.' And I'm thinking, "How much money do I need to bring in each month?" This monthly market pays $100-$400 for fiction. And this one pays $1,200 or more for each romance short story or mystery short story. That's not a shabby start. IF I can crack the markets.
So what am I waiting for? I'm not exactly waiting. I think it's mind set. Is my mind set for success or failure? Is it called writer's block? Sounds an awfully lot like Stephen King's character, Mike, in Bag of Bones. Have you read that one? When I sit down with pen and paper do I think, "I can do this," or do I think, "This is stupid and nobody is gonna want to read it?" Self-fulfilling prophecy. I think there's something to it.
Wednesday, July 05, 2006
A LOT of work
It's nearly midnight. I have had my behind in my chair at my desk in front of my computer for more than half of the day today...I mean more than half of a 24-hour period. At one point I stopped to think about how I was at the computer, then in the chair beside the window with paper and pencil to work out writing issues, back at the computer, over to the loveseat with paper and pencil again, to work out more writing issues. I even went so far as to put a note on the door, "Do not interrupt creative process except in case of an emergency." I shut the door and closed myself in this room.
Why am I doing this to myself? It's called a deadline. I have to have my revisions done by tomorrow for my friend and editor so the story can be submitted by Friday.
How many times did I think, "I can walk away from this for the day. It's past 5 p.m." Or, "Molly is never going to know if I don't work on this." Only Molly would know because I would never make the deadline. And then she would think I am not serious about writing.
So, I kept my nose to the grindstone all day. Now the house is still. The dogs have been out. Everyone else in the house has gone to bed and shut off their lights. And here I am, still at the computer, almost finished with those revisions. And grateful to have someone to make me be accountable. Yes!
Why am I doing this to myself? It's called a deadline. I have to have my revisions done by tomorrow for my friend and editor so the story can be submitted by Friday.
How many times did I think, "I can walk away from this for the day. It's past 5 p.m." Or, "Molly is never going to know if I don't work on this." Only Molly would know because I would never make the deadline. And then she would think I am not serious about writing.
So, I kept my nose to the grindstone all day. Now the house is still. The dogs have been out. Everyone else in the house has gone to bed and shut off their lights. And here I am, still at the computer, almost finished with those revisions. And grateful to have someone to make me be accountable. Yes!
Monday, July 03, 2006
Thinking it through
I've had some difficulty thinking stories through before I write them. It always seems to work better when I apply seat to chair, fingers to keyboard or pen to paper and write. Write it all the way through. Then go back and make sense of what I've written.
So, I wrote this 12,000-word story thinking it'd be a simple thing to do. Take me a few days, no longer than a week. I mean, it's not like I haven't written stories before AND SOLD THEM. But here I am, three months later, still wrestling with this story like Jacob wrestling with God from dusk to dawn.
Molly asked, "How can we help?"
"I can't think of a thing," I wrote back, "unless you want to read this story for me and see if it makes sense to someone besides me."
"Send it to me!" she answered. So, I did.
The part about her initial comments to me that got my attention was: "profound tale of faith."
Whoa! Hold on! Back up! Someone else was seeing just exactly what I was writing! How exciting! And when she said, "Hold the gratitude. Before we're done with it you may want to punch me in the nose!" well, I was on Cloud Nine, almost. :) I am SO excited to have a knowledgeable writing friend who will give me some guidance, be my sounding board, help me toward my goals. Punch her in the nose? Oh, no. Uh-uh. Not when I'm getting a learning experience of a lifetime. I have alligator skin in the criticism respects.
This morning I've studied my Bible a bit.
"The Lord God took man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. And the Lord God commanded the man, "You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die.
"The Lord God said, "It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him."
Faith is grace. And everyone needs both.
Cause and effect...I took my cup of tea, notebook and pen to sit beside the window. It overlooks our backyard and the old, oak tree there. I listed causes and effects for this world, this humanity that I'm a part of. It is a fitting tool of procrastination for the day. Or is it procrastination? Now I will sit down with Sam's story and determine the causes and effects of his story so that it will be depicted accurately and clearly.
Virginia Woolf, in A Room of One's Own, said that women should write as women, free from the worries of the day. I have the room of my own. Just moved to a new one twice the size of the one I've been in for the past five years. It's comfortable here, and now that the children are grown, I am less interrupted when I write these days.
But still, I need to think through the stories to get them in perspective, filled with the right emotions and dialogues and settings and motivations. My biggest fear is that when I've done editing it, I'll have purified it too much. God bless Molly!
(c)2006 Cathy Brownfield
So, I wrote this 12,000-word story thinking it'd be a simple thing to do. Take me a few days, no longer than a week. I mean, it's not like I haven't written stories before AND SOLD THEM. But here I am, three months later, still wrestling with this story like Jacob wrestling with God from dusk to dawn.
Molly asked, "How can we help?"
"I can't think of a thing," I wrote back, "unless you want to read this story for me and see if it makes sense to someone besides me."
"Send it to me!" she answered. So, I did.
The part about her initial comments to me that got my attention was: "profound tale of faith."
Whoa! Hold on! Back up! Someone else was seeing just exactly what I was writing! How exciting! And when she said, "Hold the gratitude. Before we're done with it you may want to punch me in the nose!" well, I was on Cloud Nine, almost. :) I am SO excited to have a knowledgeable writing friend who will give me some guidance, be my sounding board, help me toward my goals. Punch her in the nose? Oh, no. Uh-uh. Not when I'm getting a learning experience of a lifetime. I have alligator skin in the criticism respects.
This morning I've studied my Bible a bit.
"The Lord God took man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. And the Lord God commanded the man, "You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die.
"The Lord God said, "It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him."
Faith is grace. And everyone needs both.
Cause and effect...I took my cup of tea, notebook and pen to sit beside the window. It overlooks our backyard and the old, oak tree there. I listed causes and effects for this world, this humanity that I'm a part of. It is a fitting tool of procrastination for the day. Or is it procrastination? Now I will sit down with Sam's story and determine the causes and effects of his story so that it will be depicted accurately and clearly.
Virginia Woolf, in A Room of One's Own, said that women should write as women, free from the worries of the day. I have the room of my own. Just moved to a new one twice the size of the one I've been in for the past five years. It's comfortable here, and now that the children are grown, I am less interrupted when I write these days.
But still, I need to think through the stories to get them in perspective, filled with the right emotions and dialogues and settings and motivations. My biggest fear is that when I've done editing it, I'll have purified it too much. God bless Molly!
(c)2006 Cathy Brownfield
Sunday, June 25, 2006
Believe it or not...
OK. I started writing this 12,000-word short story. The specs say to send it, especially if you think they'll never buy it because ya might be surprised.
So, I sat down to write a 12,000-word story. I've written and sold 8,000-word stories. What's 4,000 more words? I picked two names out of the air just to give me a starting point, and I began to write. When the pace slowed, I threw another elephant in the room. And I added some more characters here and there. All of those characters had to have names so I decided to surf to one of those websites that has baby names and their meanings.
Did I say I snatched names out of the air?! I checked the meanings of the names for the characters that I had. And the meanings of their names all fit with the characters! I kid you not! Mind you, I checked the meanings AFTER I had the first draft nearly finished!
This story has gripped me. I have written others that I didn't finish. I walked away from them. But I can't walk away from this one. It won't let me go! Research. I need to research.
Avian flu. Check. Uh-huh.
Pandemic. Check. OK.
Dreams. Check. I didn't know that!
So I wrote some more. But there was something missing. Research. I need to do MORE research.
Black Death. Check. I knew that stuff, but it's good to refresh.
Physical and spiritual death. Check. I knew that, but I'm puzzled about some of it.
Dreams...are they in the wrong sequence? Yes. But moving them around...UGH!! What a challenge! Am I leaning too heavily on dreams? Should they be blended into series of dreams rather than separate dreams?
More research. I need more research! Meanings of terms that I've got to understand to make this story work.
A closer look at the theme of my story.
Research. We're born, we die. When we die we go to Paradise or Tartarus until Judgment Day when we are directed either to Heaven (if we're good), Hell (if we're not.) The sermon was at church. But it sounded an awful lot like mythology to me. More research.
The Bible...Old Testament, to study about the main character's namesake. The Annals of the World to help me comprehend the times the namesake lived in.
Why can't I just write a good story?
My mother suggests that God is trying to direct it. He intends me to write it.
Update coming soon to a blog near you. (Well, it'll have to be this one.)
So, I sat down to write a 12,000-word story. I've written and sold 8,000-word stories. What's 4,000 more words? I picked two names out of the air just to give me a starting point, and I began to write. When the pace slowed, I threw another elephant in the room. And I added some more characters here and there. All of those characters had to have names so I decided to surf to one of those websites that has baby names and their meanings.
Did I say I snatched names out of the air?! I checked the meanings of the names for the characters that I had. And the meanings of their names all fit with the characters! I kid you not! Mind you, I checked the meanings AFTER I had the first draft nearly finished!
This story has gripped me. I have written others that I didn't finish. I walked away from them. But I can't walk away from this one. It won't let me go! Research. I need to research.
Avian flu. Check. Uh-huh.
Pandemic. Check. OK.
Dreams. Check. I didn't know that!
So I wrote some more. But there was something missing. Research. I need to do MORE research.
Black Death. Check. I knew that stuff, but it's good to refresh.
Physical and spiritual death. Check. I knew that, but I'm puzzled about some of it.
Dreams...are they in the wrong sequence? Yes. But moving them around...UGH!! What a challenge! Am I leaning too heavily on dreams? Should they be blended into series of dreams rather than separate dreams?
More research. I need more research! Meanings of terms that I've got to understand to make this story work.
A closer look at the theme of my story.
Research. We're born, we die. When we die we go to Paradise or Tartarus until Judgment Day when we are directed either to Heaven (if we're good), Hell (if we're not.) The sermon was at church. But it sounded an awful lot like mythology to me. More research.
The Bible...Old Testament, to study about the main character's namesake. The Annals of the World to help me comprehend the times the namesake lived in.
Why can't I just write a good story?
My mother suggests that God is trying to direct it. He intends me to write it.
Update coming soon to a blog near you. (Well, it'll have to be this one.)
Friday, June 23, 2006
I've been sorted
Can't walk away from this one
I can't walk away from this one. I can't put away my tools (or are they toys?) and let the folder get lost among all the others. I started this one to be a 12,000-word submission to a particular market that advises that writers should send to them the stories they've written that they don't really think fit any market. (Paraphrased.) I thought I could write 12,000 words in no time and submit it and make a minimum of $700.
Oh, I wrote the 12,000 words in no time. But I saw some things in the story and thought, "This is much bigger than I thought!" I've been working with it, reshaping it, moving things around to get them in the proper order, with a self-imposed deadline of today to finish it and submit it before 5 p.m. Yet here I am, still not prepared to submit it today. Maybe by Monday.
"I can't believe this!" I grumbled to DH. "I've never written a story that drove me just about crazy the way this one is doing!" Of course, DH thinks I'm never going to make big-time publishing. But when I do, he's going to say, "I knew you could do it." That's just DH.
So, I'm writing longhand in my new office and still have Internet/computer in my old office. At least I don't have to run up and down stairs, although that would probably be healthier for me since running up and down stairs is considered a great cardiovascular workout. Maybe I'm getting more accomplished because I can't at a moment jump on the Internet and use it for a distraction. It's easier for me to say, "No, I can't do that right now because I have to walk across the hall and to the other room.
I have committed to a weekend writing marathon. By Monday I will have this story completed and I will submit it. And I will pick up one of those other folders and I will stay with it until the story is complete, fini, and submitted. And I will do that with each one of my folders, piling them one on top of another until I have them finished and can stand them up on their spines to fill an entire bookshelf or an entire file box. Then I will pull out my idea file and write new stories to add to the old.
A friend told me I'll be the next Nora Roberts, only lately I think he believes that I'm only playing with my writing and won't achieve such lofty goals. We'll see, I guess.
Oh, I wrote the 12,000 words in no time. But I saw some things in the story and thought, "This is much bigger than I thought!" I've been working with it, reshaping it, moving things around to get them in the proper order, with a self-imposed deadline of today to finish it and submit it before 5 p.m. Yet here I am, still not prepared to submit it today. Maybe by Monday.
"I can't believe this!" I grumbled to DH. "I've never written a story that drove me just about crazy the way this one is doing!" Of course, DH thinks I'm never going to make big-time publishing. But when I do, he's going to say, "I knew you could do it." That's just DH.
So, I'm writing longhand in my new office and still have Internet/computer in my old office. At least I don't have to run up and down stairs, although that would probably be healthier for me since running up and down stairs is considered a great cardiovascular workout. Maybe I'm getting more accomplished because I can't at a moment jump on the Internet and use it for a distraction. It's easier for me to say, "No, I can't do that right now because I have to walk across the hall and to the other room.
I have committed to a weekend writing marathon. By Monday I will have this story completed and I will submit it. And I will pick up one of those other folders and I will stay with it until the story is complete, fini, and submitted. And I will do that with each one of my folders, piling them one on top of another until I have them finished and can stand them up on their spines to fill an entire bookshelf or an entire file box. Then I will pull out my idea file and write new stories to add to the old.
A friend told me I'll be the next Nora Roberts, only lately I think he believes that I'm only playing with my writing and won't achieve such lofty goals. We'll see, I guess.
Wednesday, June 07, 2006
A Room of Her Own
I got a post from a friend. It was about a foundation. About how they give away grants of up to $50,000 over a two year period to help a woman writer to write her genius unhampered by financial restraints. Well, that certainly spoke to me. I've printed out the application. I'm working on the essays and setting aside a dollar or two between now and the deadline so I can make the $35 entry fee.
The experience of reading, researching and writing these essays is a lesson in studying my craft, determining what I have to say, how to establish my voice, which words I need to say and which do I need to omit to lead my readers to do their own thinking, their own philosophy, their own interpretation. Are these the qualities that will establish my writing and give it longevity? After all, my ultimate writing goal is to write long-lived stories, not the here/read today and forgotten tomorrow when some other piece of fluff comes along to take its place.
I've read again the book, and taken notes on the points that struck me as I was re-reading it. Points that I will incorporate into my essays that will reflect: genius needs freedom; without money there is no freedom; and, money must come as a windfall or legacy. Essentially, that life is comprised of making decisions, taking action, living with the consequences of those actions that lead to other decisions and actions that lead to consequences. We make choices what is priority in our lives and we have to live with that until we can effect the changes that allow us to reach for our individual gold rings.
I am excited today...about writing. I'm excited by the book I have just read. I'm excited by the anonymous card from a Secret Friend who also writes. I'm excited by the anticipation of writing from the heart, writing my thoughts, being myself and grasping onto my freedom so hard fought for and hard won. But am I free? Is anyone? I am free to write what I think, what I feel, what I believe. I am free to write what I want to write. To pursue those goals, those challenges, that I want to achieve. To overcome the big fish in our little pond who would prevent me achieving my destiny if it was dependent on them, but is not.
So many thoughts...so many feelings...so many beliefs...so many characters...so many tales to tell, and only one lifetime in which to do all of these things!
The experience of reading, researching and writing these essays is a lesson in studying my craft, determining what I have to say, how to establish my voice, which words I need to say and which do I need to omit to lead my readers to do their own thinking, their own philosophy, their own interpretation. Are these the qualities that will establish my writing and give it longevity? After all, my ultimate writing goal is to write long-lived stories, not the here/read today and forgotten tomorrow when some other piece of fluff comes along to take its place.
I've read again the book, and taken notes on the points that struck me as I was re-reading it. Points that I will incorporate into my essays that will reflect: genius needs freedom; without money there is no freedom; and, money must come as a windfall or legacy. Essentially, that life is comprised of making decisions, taking action, living with the consequences of those actions that lead to other decisions and actions that lead to consequences. We make choices what is priority in our lives and we have to live with that until we can effect the changes that allow us to reach for our individual gold rings.
I am excited today...about writing. I'm excited by the book I have just read. I'm excited by the anonymous card from a Secret Friend who also writes. I'm excited by the anticipation of writing from the heart, writing my thoughts, being myself and grasping onto my freedom so hard fought for and hard won. But am I free? Is anyone? I am free to write what I think, what I feel, what I believe. I am free to write what I want to write. To pursue those goals, those challenges, that I want to achieve. To overcome the big fish in our little pond who would prevent me achieving my destiny if it was dependent on them, but is not.
So many thoughts...so many feelings...so many beliefs...so many characters...so many tales to tell, and only one lifetime in which to do all of these things!
Thursday, June 01, 2006
Always new beginnings
OK. It's months later since my last post to this blog. My fear of blogging is that I'll use everything I feel so deeply in blogging and have nothing left for creative writing...that I can sell...and make money. Oh, that I could be another Nora Roberts. Oh, I don't want to write a lot of steamy, sexy scenes, but I do want to publish stories that will have meaning to readers, that will be long-lived! But I keep getting stalled.
The children are all grown up now. It's not like I don't have time now. Well, but there are SO many things demanding my attention...aging parents with health issues, a husband who requires a little attention here and there, grandchildren...There's the publicist gig that helps me to pay my bills, the historical gig that makes me a little cash on occasion. There are the crochet projects, the books to read, the studying I need to do, the research that is important to my stories, writing my stories...I don't think one lifetime is long enough to accomplish all of the things I want to accomplish!
But I am focusing on one story at a time. Every time I get an idea for another story, I jot down the specs and file it away, hoping that I'll find a place and time when I can work on that story's development. Well, hope springs eternal.
What I'm finding is that when I focus on one project at a time, I make more progress. It's like that in anything I do. Deadlines help productivity/production. I don't need someone else to set my deadlines for me. I set them for my self as much as I can. The afghan had to be finished by Wednesday because my friend was going to deliver it for me on Thursday to save me shipping costs to California. The bookmarks have to be made by Friday night for the Saturday ladies breakfast at Karen's. I was trying to finish the short story and submit it so I would be able to pay for Word software. I wanted to have it submitted and hopefully sold before May 31 when the two-month trail ended. (The trial assured me I could still access my files after the trial. I hope I understood that right.)
There seems to be a certain path for writers, set at our individual paces. We all pass the same way in our growth to successful writing. We just don't get there at the same time or reach the plateaus that become steps in our foundation. I am encouraged by that. And the further along I go on my individual writing path, the more intent I am on achieving my goals, of getting more focused, of getting from here (point A) to there (point B).
The children are all grown up now. It's not like I don't have time now. Well, but there are SO many things demanding my attention...aging parents with health issues, a husband who requires a little attention here and there, grandchildren...There's the publicist gig that helps me to pay my bills, the historical gig that makes me a little cash on occasion. There are the crochet projects, the books to read, the studying I need to do, the research that is important to my stories, writing my stories...I don't think one lifetime is long enough to accomplish all of the things I want to accomplish!
But I am focusing on one story at a time. Every time I get an idea for another story, I jot down the specs and file it away, hoping that I'll find a place and time when I can work on that story's development. Well, hope springs eternal.
What I'm finding is that when I focus on one project at a time, I make more progress. It's like that in anything I do. Deadlines help productivity/production. I don't need someone else to set my deadlines for me. I set them for my self as much as I can. The afghan had to be finished by Wednesday because my friend was going to deliver it for me on Thursday to save me shipping costs to California. The bookmarks have to be made by Friday night for the Saturday ladies breakfast at Karen's. I was trying to finish the short story and submit it so I would be able to pay for Word software. I wanted to have it submitted and hopefully sold before May 31 when the two-month trail ended. (The trial assured me I could still access my files after the trial. I hope I understood that right.)
There seems to be a certain path for writers, set at our individual paces. We all pass the same way in our growth to successful writing. We just don't get there at the same time or reach the plateaus that become steps in our foundation. I am encouraged by that. And the further along I go on my individual writing path, the more intent I am on achieving my goals, of getting more focused, of getting from here (point A) to there (point B).
Monday, January 02, 2006
Begin at the beginning
Writing a book is like living. You need to start at the beginning, write through the middle, til you get to the end.
Oh, I thought I had it all figured out. Maybe it's a process every writer goes through. Every writer just doesn't take as long to do it as I'm taking! I wrote scenes as they came to me. I wrote a lot of words that way. But then it came time to weave the loose ends together and tighten up the writing and the story line. Frustration set in. Maybe it was the interruptions from my family life that made the work harder. I just know I finally had to put away that manuscript and go to work on something else.
I'm doing this one differently. I started at the beginning. Strong beginning with a very good hook. Draw the reader in and don't let go of him/her. Six thousand words later I finished chapter one. I made some notes to myself...three generations of women in one family. This is their story. And how will I set it up? Somewhat like Andrew M. Greeley did in St. Valentine's Night. I haven't read a lot of Greeley's work, but I did enjoy St. Valentine's Night. It proved that you can--sometimes you must--go back home. If troubles started there, ya have to go back to resolve them because they're always gonna be there until you finally face them down.
Begin at the beginning. Make each chapter be everything I want and need it to be as I write it. When I finish the last sentence in the last chapter, I want the manuscript to be finished and only have a read-through to do to make sure the formatting is correct, there are no typos and it's ready to submit to a publisher...or to print myself. POD is sounding pretty enticing at this time. I'll be gathering information as I write so I can make an intelligent decision about publication when the novel is completed.
Oh, I thought I had it all figured out. Maybe it's a process every writer goes through. Every writer just doesn't take as long to do it as I'm taking! I wrote scenes as they came to me. I wrote a lot of words that way. But then it came time to weave the loose ends together and tighten up the writing and the story line. Frustration set in. Maybe it was the interruptions from my family life that made the work harder. I just know I finally had to put away that manuscript and go to work on something else.
I'm doing this one differently. I started at the beginning. Strong beginning with a very good hook. Draw the reader in and don't let go of him/her. Six thousand words later I finished chapter one. I made some notes to myself...three generations of women in one family. This is their story. And how will I set it up? Somewhat like Andrew M. Greeley did in St. Valentine's Night. I haven't read a lot of Greeley's work, but I did enjoy St. Valentine's Night. It proved that you can--sometimes you must--go back home. If troubles started there, ya have to go back to resolve them because they're always gonna be there until you finally face them down.
Begin at the beginning. Make each chapter be everything I want and need it to be as I write it. When I finish the last sentence in the last chapter, I want the manuscript to be finished and only have a read-through to do to make sure the formatting is correct, there are no typos and it's ready to submit to a publisher...or to print myself. POD is sounding pretty enticing at this time. I'll be gathering information as I write so I can make an intelligent decision about publication when the novel is completed.
Sunday, January 01, 2006
The Real Writing Challenge
I didn't finish my novel for the novel challenge. I didn't even participate in the actual challenge much. I read the subject lines of posts that others made and that helped me to remain motivated to keep writing. There are more than 60,000 words in the manuscript now. But I've set it aside for awhile because it's been driving me crazy!
I didn't want to put it aside. I slavishly worked at it thinking that I had to finish it before I moved on to something else. And that project would have to be finished before I started on something else. And on, and on, and on...
While I'm not working on that novel, I've started something new. It's a Christmas story. It's about family and working through problems and challenges together. It's about individual independence and familial interdependence. We should handle our own problems, but we should be supported by family and friends who love us and will share their wisdoms with us when we really need them most.
Chapter One has nearly 6,000 words, all written yesterday, New Year's Eve Day, Dec. 31, 2005.
Instead of writing scenes as they come to me, I've started at the beginning. I will write this one from beginning to end, thoroughly writing and revising each chapter before I move on to the next one. Perhaps I'll have better luck this time 'round.
I didn't want to put it aside. I slavishly worked at it thinking that I had to finish it before I moved on to something else. And that project would have to be finished before I started on something else. And on, and on, and on...
While I'm not working on that novel, I've started something new. It's a Christmas story. It's about family and working through problems and challenges together. It's about individual independence and familial interdependence. We should handle our own problems, but we should be supported by family and friends who love us and will share their wisdoms with us when we really need them most.
Chapter One has nearly 6,000 words, all written yesterday, New Year's Eve Day, Dec. 31, 2005.
Instead of writing scenes as they come to me, I've started at the beginning. I will write this one from beginning to end, thoroughly writing and revising each chapter before I move on to the next one. Perhaps I'll have better luck this time 'round.
Saturday, November 12, 2005
The only thing that's constant is change
Geesh! I've GOT to get some things organized so I'm posting regularly. By the time I walk away from my work at the end of the day I'm falling into bed and never giving the blog a thought!
Here's the deal with my novel:
I am not NANOing, though I know that many of my writer colleagues and friends are. I'm having trouble keeping up with the activities at the MWNovel Challenge! I'm not participating much in the activities, however, being on that list helps keep me motivated to write. I'm being more accountable to myself.
Then there is a writer friend, Jay. He set a Thanksgiving deadline for my novel. He is so sure that I can do this that I don't want to disappoint him, so I am writing this novel. This week has been a bust, however, with one thing and another: Election Day was Tuesday. Family stuff, too. A meth lab training session was held Wednesday for the agency for which I am publicist. I attended that and spent the second half of the day writing articles about the training for the newspapers because it is so important that the public be informed/educated about methamphetamine labs which are growing in number every day and are a serious problem. Columbiana County Prosecutor Robert Herron advised, "Metamphetamine is a plague that's coming."
Friday I went to the Carnegie Museum of Natural History in Pittsburgh to view the Bog People Exhibit. Wow. It fit in perfectly for a story I wrote that took third place in a writing contest and which I'm converting to a Christian fantasy novel. If the bog people exhibition comes to your area, it's worth the $5 extra for admission. If my Christian fantasy novel ever comes to your area, buy it. :-)
Today I have cleaning to do. We're finally having the floor replaced in the downstairs bathroom. YES! Tomorrow is Sunday. Monday I have to go with my dad to see his new lung specialist. And Tuesday I have an appointment an hour from here. If I'm going to do any writing before Wednesday, I guess it'll have to be on the run or late at night when DH is working or sleeping.
That's going to make finishing my novel by Thanksgiving tight. Only a week...
Here's the deal with my novel:
I am not NANOing, though I know that many of my writer colleagues and friends are. I'm having trouble keeping up with the activities at the MWNovel Challenge! I'm not participating much in the activities, however, being on that list helps keep me motivated to write. I'm being more accountable to myself.
Then there is a writer friend, Jay. He set a Thanksgiving deadline for my novel. He is so sure that I can do this that I don't want to disappoint him, so I am writing this novel. This week has been a bust, however, with one thing and another: Election Day was Tuesday. Family stuff, too. A meth lab training session was held Wednesday for the agency for which I am publicist. I attended that and spent the second half of the day writing articles about the training for the newspapers because it is so important that the public be informed/educated about methamphetamine labs which are growing in number every day and are a serious problem. Columbiana County Prosecutor Robert Herron advised, "Metamphetamine is a plague that's coming."
Friday I went to the Carnegie Museum of Natural History in Pittsburgh to view the Bog People Exhibit. Wow. It fit in perfectly for a story I wrote that took third place in a writing contest and which I'm converting to a Christian fantasy novel. If the bog people exhibition comes to your area, it's worth the $5 extra for admission. If my Christian fantasy novel ever comes to your area, buy it. :-)
Today I have cleaning to do. We're finally having the floor replaced in the downstairs bathroom. YES! Tomorrow is Sunday. Monday I have to go with my dad to see his new lung specialist. And Tuesday I have an appointment an hour from here. If I'm going to do any writing before Wednesday, I guess it'll have to be on the run or late at night when DH is working or sleeping.
That's going to make finishing my novel by Thanksgiving tight. Only a week...
Wednesday, October 26, 2005
How could I have forgotten?
How could I have forgotten this blog?! Must be all the excitement of progressing on writing my novel. It's not the first novel I've started to write, but I finally decided that I have to finish one before I can work on another. There are nearly a dozen waiting in the wings for me to turn my attention to them.
Self-discipline is a necessary component for a writer. It's very easy to be distracted by children who need something...laundry washed, something to fill that empty place, and husbands who are intimidated by a woman's independence, intelligence and skills with a computer. I mean, really. What does he think I'm doing with this computer anyway?
So, I've set some limits for myself. One novel at a time. The self-imposed completion date is Thanksgiving. Actually, a writer friend, Jay Hudson, set the deadline for me. "I think you can have it done by Thanksgiving," he said. So, Thanksgiving it is.
I've created my own town and county for this story. All of the others will be set in the same place, a series. I made the decision because I read someplace that series sell better to publishers who are looking to keep customers coming back. So I want this first novel to be VERY good, so good that a publisher will want my entire series. It will be a six-book series at this point, I think.
JD Robb (Nora Roberts) move over and make room for the up and coming! Me!
Another writing friend, Janet Elaine Smith, commented on my fiction writing and was I encouraged by her remark! I write occasional little things at jayswritersplace at yahoogroups. She thinks I'm a fiction writer! So I am working harder at meeting that Thanksgiving deadline. It won't be in an editor's hands by Thanksgiving, but it will be by the end of November!
Having a support team is very helpful to a fledgling writer.
I didn't sign up for NaNo, though a lot of writer friends did. I don't know that I could spend the entire month of November writing all the time. My family probably wouldn't stand for that for very long and I would get lost in the shuffle. So like the story of the tortoise and the hare, I'll just mosey along steady and hopefully get the same results as the rabbits that are hopping all over November to get their first drafts done.
Guess I'd better get writing!
Self-discipline is a necessary component for a writer. It's very easy to be distracted by children who need something...laundry washed, something to fill that empty place, and husbands who are intimidated by a woman's independence, intelligence and skills with a computer. I mean, really. What does he think I'm doing with this computer anyway?
So, I've set some limits for myself. One novel at a time. The self-imposed completion date is Thanksgiving. Actually, a writer friend, Jay Hudson, set the deadline for me. "I think you can have it done by Thanksgiving," he said. So, Thanksgiving it is.
I've created my own town and county for this story. All of the others will be set in the same place, a series. I made the decision because I read someplace that series sell better to publishers who are looking to keep customers coming back. So I want this first novel to be VERY good, so good that a publisher will want my entire series. It will be a six-book series at this point, I think.
JD Robb (Nora Roberts) move over and make room for the up and coming! Me!
Another writing friend, Janet Elaine Smith, commented on my fiction writing and was I encouraged by her remark! I write occasional little things at jayswritersplace at yahoogroups. She thinks I'm a fiction writer! So I am working harder at meeting that Thanksgiving deadline. It won't be in an editor's hands by Thanksgiving, but it will be by the end of November!
Having a support team is very helpful to a fledgling writer.
I didn't sign up for NaNo, though a lot of writer friends did. I don't know that I could spend the entire month of November writing all the time. My family probably wouldn't stand for that for very long and I would get lost in the shuffle. So like the story of the tortoise and the hare, I'll just mosey along steady and hopefully get the same results as the rabbits that are hopping all over November to get their first drafts done.
Guess I'd better get writing!
Thursday, September 08, 2005
Character building and plotting
Janet Elaine Smith is a writer with 14 novels to her credit. I asked her about plotting tools that have worked best for her. She advised that people have told her that her stories are character, rather than plot, driven. She carries with her, everywhere she goes, index cards on which she notes items related to her characters...physical characteristics, personality traits...She may see someone doing something that one of her characters might do--at a restaurant, shopping, church, wherever she goes. She never leaves home without her index cards.
This isn't the first time I've heard about the index cards technique. I tried it once before, but I didn't think I was doing it right, so I let it go to the wayside. But yesterday I took out the index cards and started writing. And when I had finished, I posted to Janet and asked, "Is this what you meant? Because I think I tend to make things more difficult than they need to be."
She wrote back an edited version of my index cards, highlighting the things I needed to eliminate. "You are making this more difficult than it needs to be," she wrote. "I don't focus on the issues. I let the characters tell their story. They know where it's going."
So, OK. Just write the story.
Last year in the novel challenge I took a poster board and drew a graph that started at the beginning, expanded through the middle, and, as the threads of the tapestry were woven together, wound back down again. It was a lengthy task. I took it to show my friend Maureen, a writer in Canfield, Ohio. She took one look at it and said, "That's very nice." I was pretty proud of all that work I had done when I left her house that day.
Maureen e-mailed me. "That was a very nice poster. Now put it away and just write a good story."
Now, here are two writers telling me the same thing. So, I'm writing a good story. I don't have a pile of index cards. I have my 'notes' inside me.
Sometimes, Janet said, she puts herself in the shoes of her characters so she can write the feelings. That reminded me of when I was still in public school. I read a LOT of books. I would choose the character I was most interested in and BE that character throughout the book. So it just follows that I put myself in the shoes of my characters no matter which of my stories I'm writing.
But I have placed a mental block in the midst of my progress. I get to a point where I can't write any more and I can't apply my seat to the chair any longer. I feel the tension in my muscles. I want to write more, but there's this something that prevents me doing what I want to do. And I walk away to come back again another day.
In my e-mail signature I have the line: "Making 2005 mine." Today is Sept. 8. If I've counted right there are 112 days left in 2005. I better be making some tracks.
This isn't the first time I've heard about the index cards technique. I tried it once before, but I didn't think I was doing it right, so I let it go to the wayside. But yesterday I took out the index cards and started writing. And when I had finished, I posted to Janet and asked, "Is this what you meant? Because I think I tend to make things more difficult than they need to be."
She wrote back an edited version of my index cards, highlighting the things I needed to eliminate. "You are making this more difficult than it needs to be," she wrote. "I don't focus on the issues. I let the characters tell their story. They know where it's going."
So, OK. Just write the story.
Last year in the novel challenge I took a poster board and drew a graph that started at the beginning, expanded through the middle, and, as the threads of the tapestry were woven together, wound back down again. It was a lengthy task. I took it to show my friend Maureen, a writer in Canfield, Ohio. She took one look at it and said, "That's very nice." I was pretty proud of all that work I had done when I left her house that day.
Maureen e-mailed me. "That was a very nice poster. Now put it away and just write a good story."
Now, here are two writers telling me the same thing. So, I'm writing a good story. I don't have a pile of index cards. I have my 'notes' inside me.
Sometimes, Janet said, she puts herself in the shoes of her characters so she can write the feelings. That reminded me of when I was still in public school. I read a LOT of books. I would choose the character I was most interested in and BE that character throughout the book. So it just follows that I put myself in the shoes of my characters no matter which of my stories I'm writing.
But I have placed a mental block in the midst of my progress. I get to a point where I can't write any more and I can't apply my seat to the chair any longer. I feel the tension in my muscles. I want to write more, but there's this something that prevents me doing what I want to do. And I walk away to come back again another day.
In my e-mail signature I have the line: "Making 2005 mine." Today is Sept. 8. If I've counted right there are 112 days left in 2005. I better be making some tracks.
Thursday, September 01, 2005
New Beginnings Addendum
Interpreting the instructions for the assignment after I posted to my new blog, I decided to rewrite, in 50 words or less, the barebones version of the plot:
Overwhelmed by the responsibilities of home AND career, she just wants to find leve l ground after betrayal by the man she had deeply loved and trusted. A handyman with a secret past wants to help ease her burdens. (38 words in two sentences.)
Next: The Six-Point Plot
The Goals of both the hero and the villain.
The Crisis--what triggers events
The Obstacles
The Disaster--hero appears destined to fail
The Solution
The Resolution
The heroine's goal: to take care of her responsibilities.
The hero's goal: to find a way to make amends for his failures in war action and to win the heart of the heroine.
The villain's goal: Who is the villain? Does the villain have to be a person?
I guess I need to ponder these things for awhile. Be back tomorrow.
Overwhelmed by the responsibilities of home AND career, she just wants to find leve l ground after betrayal by the man she had deeply loved and trusted. A handyman with a secret past wants to help ease her burdens. (38 words in two sentences.)
Next: The Six-Point Plot
The Goals of both the hero and the villain.
The Crisis--what triggers events
The Obstacles
The Disaster--hero appears destined to fail
The Solution
The Resolution
The heroine's goal: to take care of her responsibilities.
The hero's goal: to find a way to make amends for his failures in war action and to win the heart of the heroine.
The villain's goal: Who is the villain? Does the villain have to be a person?
I guess I need to ponder these things for awhile. Be back tomorrow.
New Beginnings
It's a day for new beginnings. It's the first day of September 2005. It's the start of the MW Novel Challenge. I'm committed to marathon writing this month, as well as returning to the discussion for Donald Maass' book and workbook, Writing the Breakout Novel.
It's also a new start for me as all of my children have grown to adulthood now. No children returned to public school this year for the first time in my life in 31 years of motherhood. One child is now enrolled at Kent State University, a college freshman. Where did the years go? Well, I was advised that I would come to appreciate my newfound independence. It's time to get started on it...with all of the above-listed new beginnings.
I will be working on my romance novel, Debt of Gratitude (title will probably change later). The first assignment is to summarize the plot in 50 words or less:
Responsibility defines Rachel's life...managing the household: mother deceased, father gravely ill, developmentally disabled sister at home; managing editor of a local daily newspaper on the career front. Devin is a handyman with a secret past who wants to help ease Rachel's burdens.
For the market I want to submit this novel to, the emphasis must be on Rachel. It's her story. The hero must be strong, intelligent, and supportive. But the emphasis is on the heroine...her story.
As of noon I have revised the first four chapters of the novel. I've worked on it long enough that the natural chapter breaks are happening.
It's also a new start for me as all of my children have grown to adulthood now. No children returned to public school this year for the first time in my life in 31 years of motherhood. One child is now enrolled at Kent State University, a college freshman. Where did the years go? Well, I was advised that I would come to appreciate my newfound independence. It's time to get started on it...with all of the above-listed new beginnings.
I will be working on my romance novel, Debt of Gratitude (title will probably change later). The first assignment is to summarize the plot in 50 words or less:
Responsibility defines Rachel's life...managing the household: mother deceased, father gravely ill, developmentally disabled sister at home; managing editor of a local daily newspaper on the career front. Devin is a handyman with a secret past who wants to help ease Rachel's burdens.
For the market I want to submit this novel to, the emphasis must be on Rachel. It's her story. The hero must be strong, intelligent, and supportive. But the emphasis is on the heroine...her story.
As of noon I have revised the first four chapters of the novel. I've worked on it long enough that the natural chapter breaks are happening.
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