Writing isn't always fun

I've been heavy into background work for the collection lately, working on character biographies and scene sheets and research.

I'm excited about the progress I'm making with the collection, even though I'm not doing a lot of actual writing yet. And, really, the excitement of knowing I'm making progress even if it doesn't look like it is what keeps me going on all this background work.

I love writing. And there's a lot of this background work that I enjoy. It means creating a world and populating it with people. It means crafting a story and reactions to what happens to the people. But that doesn't mean there's some tedium that comes along with all this background work. Research and outlining and scene sheets are not always exciting or fun or anything other than work, but they have to get done, particularly for this project.

All projects have aspects that aren't fun. Whether you dread background work or find the type of task that makes you want to rip your eyeballs out, writing can't always be flowing words and staring out windows. You have to put as much sweat on the page as you do heart. Often more.

But if you hang on and push through, you'll find that the story-telling parts will help get you through the eyeball-ripping parts. And all your readers will see is the heart.

Happy writing (or editing or researching)!

Renew Your Spirit Sunday with Freedom, Beauty, Truth and Love

Those who know me know 2012 has been a difficult year. I've had personal and professional challenges, and while things are significantly better than they were (especially in comparison to this time last year), I know there are still a lot of challenges ahead of me.

And yet, I am in a better place than I have been in a long time.

Despite these challenges, I am doing well, I am happy, and am continuing to move forward to achieve my goals. 2013 is going to be a good year.

I didn't always feel this way. For a while I really felt I wasn't making any progress, and that anything that could go wrong did. It was frustrating, and the longer it went on, the more frustrating it was. And the more frustrating it got, the longer it seemed to last.

But, thankfully, things are different now. I know a lot of it has to do with changes I made in myself. I have a much better understanding of who I am now, what I want out of life, and where I'm going. I'm actively working to focus on the positive aspects of my life. Call it hippie-dippy if you will, but it's made an outstanding impact on my life. Sure, there are still days in which I struggle. Though I strive to be positive, I also look at the world realistically. There will always be bad days, but the way I react to those days is different.

Life is too short to waste my energy on anxiety and anger. So instead, I use my energy on things that matter.

There is a cliche that says "Attitude is everything." While I don't necessarily completely agree, I do think attitude makes a big difference. And I've noticed that, in my own life, if I take the effort to smile and laugh on bad days or when facing a particular challenge, eventually I forget about the negative feelings I had and I'm able to carry on with a good day.

Only I am in control of whether or not I have a good day. And if I'm going to have a good day, I won't let anyone take it from me.

I strive for freedom, beauty, truth and love. And in striving for those qualities, I managed to find myself full of peace, and in harmony with the world around me.

Viva la vie Boheme.

Your writing prompt, should you choose to accept it....

Now that November is over, are you having trouble writing? Here's a little story to get your creativity flowing. (I don't know if the story is true; I found this image on Memebase.)

Editorial calendars

As 2012 draws to a close, part of my day job involves creating an editorial calendar for the department for 2013. The calendar will outline the marketing team’s plan for the year, focusing on projects (and their deadlines) and messaging throughout the year.

As I’m working on this project at work, I’m also working on creating a personal editorial calendar for 2013, focusing on blogging and the collection. It will likely be more flexible than the one for work, but it will help me stay focused throughout the year and meet my goals.

There are different ways to use editorial calendars in writing. You may have one for a particular (large) project, or for blogging, or for whatever else you need to organize and track. Your calendar may be simple, outlining themes each month, or it may be more complicated, listing weekly (or daily) tasks and projects.

As is my advice with lots of things in the writing world, you have to find a method that works best for you.

The editorial calendar I’m creating right now is a month-by-month overview for blogging and fiction-ing. I’ll have specific goals for each month, and my blog will have a general theme for the month (that may not be the theme for every single post that month, but gives me a starting point as I work).

In addition to this overview, I will take time at the end of each month, beginning with December 2012, to create a more in-depth editorial calendar for the following month. The in-depth calendar will be a daily calendar, outlining the blog posts for each day, specific deadlines for writing, and what tasks for the collection I have each day.

I know this is a lot more involved than many of you need (or want!), but it’s what works for me. Because of the craziness of my life, I have to stay organized and keep meticulous lists to stay on top of everything. It’s worked well in 2012, so I’m continuing it in 2013.

There are a lot of advantages to using an editorial calendar. It can allow you to look ahead to and prepare for upcoming content (and events, such as NaNoWriMo), it can show you when your busy months and weeks are, and on the days you simply have no inspiration, you can use your editorial calendar as a sort of writing prompt to give you a starting place.

The difficulty in creating and implementing an editorial calendar really depends on how involved you want the process to be. If you simply come up with content themes for your blog each month (which is done for you if you participate in NaBloPoMo), it takes little time and effort. However, if you want to come up with blog post ideas and specific writing goals for each month/week/day, it’s going to be a bit more difficult. It’s up to you to determine the best way for you to proceed.

Will you be creating an editorial calendar for 2013?

Renew Your Spirit Sunday with Discovery

My family and I are definitely renewing our spirits today! After church service this morning, we're spending the day full of discovery and childlike wonder. We've talked to Puck a little about what we're going to do, but he doesn't know what it is, so it's hard for him to really understand and get excited about it. No matter--I've been excited enough to cover his lack of excitement.

I've wanted to take the kids to this place, and it worked out well to be able to today. In fact, Nanny, EddaMae, and Bug are able to go, too! It's sure to be a great family day.

Puck and Tink will be spending the bulk of December (including Christmas) with Monty, so I'm thankful to be able to spend some time on an adventure* with them. Not only will this be a great opportunity for Puck and Tink to play and discover new things, but they'll be getting some quality time with Bug, too. Since I'm not Bug's daycare anymore, Puck and Tink don't get to spend as much time with her as they'd like, so days like today are precious for the cousins.

How are you renewing your spirit today?











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*Anytime we do something fun, from going to the park to a big trip like today, Puck calls it an "adventure."

NaNoWriMo pep talk: the final stretch

We're in the last week of NaNoWriMo, folks. I can hardly believe how quickly the month has gone (for a lot of reasons).

How's your word count looking these days? On target? Ahead? Behind? Keep pushing! There's still lots of time to hit your writing goal before the end of the month.

And, as I've been saying all month, even if you don't hit 50,000 words by the end of the month, whatever word count you have is that much higher than it was on October 31st. That's a success! So keep writing, word by word, until the very end!

While the focus of this month is to hit 50,000+ words in 30 days, I want you to remember that when December 1st arrives, writers don't just quit writing until November 2013. You are a writer. Keep writing. Sure, whatever you write may not "count" for NaNoWriMo anymore, but this month is just a tool to show you that you can make time to write. You may not be able to maintain the crazy hours writers tend to employ to write for NaNo, but even if you spend 15 minutes a day working on whatever active project you have, you'll make progress. The time exists, and November proves it.

The key is to carry the motivation to use your time differently through the rest of the year. Can you stay up just half an hour later? Can you get up half an hour before the rest of your family? Can you spend half of your lunch break with pen and paper?

The time to write already exists. You just have to remember to keep using it the way you have this month.

Keep making time for creativity. Keep telling stories. And happy scribbling.

Happy Thanksgiving

Whether you're spending the day with family and friends, surrounded by food and football, or taking a quiet day to keep on keeping on, I wish you a happy Thanksgiving. May you find reasons to be thankful today and every day.

NaNoWriMo pep talk: the second leg

I'm sorry I've been absent from the blog. Life has been busy. But whenever I've seen NaNo posts on my Facebook or Twitter feeds, I've thought of you, dear writers, and wished you luck.

We're halfway through the month, if you can believe it! That means you should have about 25,000 words.

If you do, great! That's wonderful! Keep it up!

If you don't, don't worry! Keep writing! You can do it!

Remember that NaNoWriMo is about proving to yourself you can make the time to write. You don't have to prove to anyone else, and it's not a contest. Whether you end the month with 50,000 words or 50 words, you'll have more words on December 1st than you did on October 31st, and that's an accomplishment!

If you're finding yourself slowing down or getting stuck, there are lots of things you can do to jump-start your writing. The folks at NaNoWriMo have been posting prompts on Twitter frequently (for example, add a bottle of vodka to your story with bonus points if one of your characters drinks it). Or jump to another part of the story.

Whatever else you do, just keep writing, one word at a time. You're doing great! Keep it up!

Happy scribbling!

NaNoWriMo pep talk: starting strong

It's the first weekend of NaNoWriMo, folks! Hooray!

Have you started writing yet? Have you met your word count goal for the first couple of days?

The beginning of the month is usually good, isn't it? We start strong out of excitement, ready to tackle a new, fun project.

I have a traditional job, so the majority of my NaNo-ing will be on the weekends before the kids are up in the mornings, during afternoon quiet time, or after they've gone to bed. This first weekend is key for me to set the stage for the rest of the month. I have to start strong. Not only for the momentum to carry me through the rest of the month, but I know that if I start next week behind, it'll be even harder to catch up as the month progresses.

The good thing is that the first weekend of the month is always exciting. Your story is just starting, the month is just starting, and your eyes and mind are full of nothing but the potential of the story. If you want to write ahead a bit, this first weekend is the one to do it. Take advantage of the motivation you feel (and the energy from caffeine and enough sleep) to push through 2,000+ words a day so you'll be able to start next week in a good place.

This is a fun part of the month for NaNo. Since you're just starting out, setting the scene allows for detailed descriptions. Introducing characters includes descriptions and (can include) lengthy conversations. There are no plot holes or writing yourself into a corner. There's no getting stuck on the next step or whether or not you've got enough story to make 50,000 words. None of that matters right now because it's the beginning of the month. All you have is the beginning of the story, and you can let that propel you forward.

Remember, no matter what happens for the rest of the month, whatever you write this weekend will be more than you had on October 31st. And if you start strong, you can use the momentum through the rest of the month.

Happy writing!

NaNoWriMo: here we go!

It's the last day of preparation for NaNoWriMo, ladies and gentlemen. It's the last day to get organized, scribble notes, create characters, and come up with outlines before the crazy, creative adventure begins tomorrow morning (at midnight tonight, really)!

In addition to prepping your story, remember that today is also the last day to prep your life for NaNoWriMo. Make sure your toolkit is ready with the drinks, snacks, music, and supplies you need. Make sure your house is ready to be basically abandoned for a month.

If you still haven't committed to the adventure, I urge you to consider it. There's still time! You don't need anything other than the desire to write a book in a month. And less than 2,000 words a day will get you there.

I'll be right there along with you this month, writing the coffee house book. (Yes, I am aware that it technically breaks the rules to qualify as a NaNo novel, but I'm writing it nonetheless.) I've done NaNo in the past, and I've both hit and missed the 50,000-word count goal. This year, my focus is on finishing this draft of the coffee house book, regardless of the total word count. That is, after all, the spirit of National Novel Writing Month.

Open up a word document (or a new notebook and pick up your pen), brew a cup of really strong coffee, and watch the clock.

Good luck and happy scribbling!