Why do you write?

I subscribe to some great writing blogs like Seth Godin’s, Mridhu Khullar Relph’s, WiseInk, and a few others. These writers generously share their struggles and practical tips with the world. They make my writing life that much more fun.

But this morning, there was something special that totally blew me away.

1/3 inspiration, 2/3 common sense, this Renegade Writer’s blog post totally hammered home why I need to revamp my thinking about success. I like it so much I’m gonna print it out and keep it taped up right in front of me.

Here’s a little excerpt.

“Whether you call it positive thinking, a positive attitude, or a winning mindset, it’s the strategy of having a dream, creating a plan, projecting the positive results of that plan, and taking the necessary actions to accomplish your writing goal.

Part of positive thinking is the importance of determining your true motivation. In other words, what is your purpose? Why do you want to succeed? And, what do you want to succeed at?   All this matters.

You need to know and be focused on what you want, what success means to you, and exactly what you want to succeed at. You also need to know your motivation, your purpose.”

The post goes on to detail 7 steps every writer should take, steps like:

• Ask yourself what you want to succeed at, and why?
• Make a plan on how to achieve it
• Give yourself a reasonable timeline
• Don’t just talk the talk (guilty!)

The rest of the steps on this fabulous post is here.

Encouragement

Encouragement is a wonderful thing–especially when you’re pounding away over the weekend trying to meet a deadline. Here’s something that’s putting a fire under my backside, courtesy of the WiseInk blog.

“You are smarter, braver, and more capable than you know.

This very simple statement allows us to leave the space where we only measure ourselves by our proven skills, and move INTO a space where we are fully aware that there are heights and depths and mountains and canyons that we CAN reach.

While the rest of the world might measure you by your proven achievements, YOU must measure yourself by the achievements yet to be had. Without living in the presence of your full potential, you won’t seek to reach it. You won’t even know it’s there!”

Check out the entire post here.  You won’t be sorry.

Unexpected help

Image courtesy of Stuart Miles / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Every once in a while, writers get some unexpected help.

Writers struggle to be taken seriously. Family members wonder why we spend so much time clicking away on our laptops instead of focusing on a real career that actually might make us some money.

Co-workers may be polite to your face but behind your back, roll their eyes when you come up in conversation. “Oh puhleeze! Did you know Sylvia’s been writing that (insert pantomimed finger quotes here) book for almost a year now? Like it really takes that long. Say, did you catch last week’s NFC game?”

We writers learn the hard way to hold our publishing dreams close to the chest.

But then every once in a while, we catch a break. A gloriously unexpected, inspiring confirmation that yes, there are other people out there who take our work seriously and will help.

Let’s take expert sources as an example.

When I request expert sources for freelance articles, my Gmail inbox is flooded with people eagerly offering their wares. It’s quite the opposite when I ask for guidance on whether I’ve buried the bones correctly or whether the DNA trace is still viable.

My inbox? Dry as a withered up old apple hanging limply on a tree branch in the grey dead of winter.

Really, it’s quite understandable. I mean, let’s look at it logically. A freelance article gets my sources out in front of thousands of readers. I’ve secured publication with an editor. I’m a known quantity.

Not so with a novel. I may or may not get published. If I do succeed, any acknowledgement won’t happen for a couple of years. When it does, it’ll be buried in the back part of the book. Why should a source waste his/her valuable time answering questions when there’s a real chance nothing will come of it?

Luckily for us, there are experts out there who don’t always think logically.

Last week, I called around to several forensic anthropology experts asking if they might spare 15 minutes to answer (literally) five questions about old bones. I explained who I was, emphasized that I was writing a novel, it was fiction and in no way, was I looking to obtain confidential information. All I needed was a few facts to make my plot more plausible since I’d gone as far as I could with my own research.

I got zip response on my voice mails and one expert telling me sniffily that he’d have to check with his PR department to confirm protocols before saying anything more, thank you very much, I’ll call you, please don’t call me, goodbye, click!

I’m betting the response would’ve been completely different if my name was Tess Gerritsen, David Baldacci or Gayle Lynds.

And that’s when I caught the break.

An assistant to the one expert I didn’t think would respond, called. “I gave her your message and she’s in meetings all day until late tonight,” he said. “But if you email your questions to her, she’ll try to get back to you as soon as possible.”

All right, I still have a chance!

I ended up emailing her at midnight, figuring it might be a while before she responded.

Boy, was I wrong.

By 9.30 AM the next morning I had all my answers, plus some extra to make the plot even better. You can bet I sent her a very thankful, appreciative email. You can also bet that her name is going to be one of the first I list in my acknowledgements.

But it’s more than just an appreciation for her answers. I appreciate that she took me seriously.

That’s a big thing for any writer.

Coffee, tea & writing

I’ve had so much coffee and tea this week my back teeth are floating.

Not that I had much choice. I had no idea my first chapters were so incoherent but I guess that’s the result of relentlessly plowing full speed ahead (just write the damn book!) back in the fall.

Just like last week, revisions are still coming slowly, almost painfully, but the words are finally emerging. I need to submit 27 pages of sparkling, innovative intrigue (plus a one page summary) for the contest and as of last night, I finally hit 21 acceptable pages. Only 6 more to go!  Fire up the coffee pot one more time for the final stretch!

Obviously I’ve discovered this is all a lot more work than I expected but I really like what’s taking shape–especially since I ended up trashing the original prologue in favor of something more fitting. The first chapter got tossed, too. Alignment with the main plot and all that.

Oh, and I’ll probably rip up the third while I’m at it.  Yeah, the first chapters definitely needed some serious re-working. They remind me of when I first started to ride a bike–all wobbly until my muscles finally learned the necessary push and pull to make the bike fly.

And floating back teeth notwithstanding, I like what I’m seeing.

The dialogue is more sparkly, the tension higher, more hints of intrigue–everything is moving faster, more smoothly. I’m going to be proud to put my name to this submission.

But now, if you’ll excuse me, I gotta pee again.

The snail’s on a mission

Wow. Getting back into the writing swing of things after a month and a half off is a lot harder than I anticipated.

Actually, it’s a lot like squeezing out the last bits of toothpaste from a well-crumpled up tube. There’s a generous amount left for just one more brushing, it pops in and out like a child sticking out his tongue, but no matter how hard you squeeze, it slurps right back in.

Ugh. Not what I was expecting.

Guess I have to go back to the old tried and true of using a timer. Talk about echoes of childhood. “You’re in a 45 minute time out, missy. Go sit in the corner!”

Funny thing about timers. Now that I’m an adult, they work. Thirty minutes is too short, one hour is too long, but forty-five minutes is just right for settling down. By the time the beeper goes off, I’m usually well into a groove and will often continue until the creativity spark peters out.

Still doesn’t mean the words won’t take their own sweet, constipated time but at least it makes my life seem a little more controllable.

Back in the saddle again

Image courtesy of Rosemary Ratcliff / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

I’m very excited about 2013.

Excited and actually a little nervous because there are so many things to do this year. I gotta finish editing this book, submit it to the PNWA contest, begin shopping it around, and start researching the next novel.

Oh, I suppose I should plan for some fun, too. After all, that long overdue vacation made me realize all work and no play turns my creativity into a dry, cracked river bed.

Seriously, I was amazed at the number of plot tweaks (and even new book ideas!) flooding my mind as I wandered around different cities with absolutely nothing else to do but enjoy museums, meet new people or just sit outside a cafe watching the world go by.

Vacations – a definite must for battery recharging for the new year.

So yes, the 2013 To Do list of things is now hanging on the wall directly across from my laptop, giving me the gimlet eye.

Yup, I’m one of those people who does New Year’s resolutions. And I do them because I’ve learned that they work. When I write things down on a list and stick that list where I see it often enough through the day, somehow I manage to get them all done by the end of the year.

Granted, they’re not always expertly tied off in pretty packages but they are respectably completed.

First up on the list: Revise the first two chapters and write-up the summary for PNWA contest submission. Luckily, part of my vacation included spending a week in upstate New York near where my novel is set so I was able to rewrite the prologue.

But I still have yet to revamp the second chapter and attack the summary.

The deadline looms. I gotta get going.