Otherwise known as rejections or the big “R”.

As a writer, I know rejections come with the territory. Writing is such a subjective art that to expect anyone else to ‘get it’ is presumptuous at best, arrogant at worst. But to hope… well, that’s another story.

As a writer, I’ve written stories that intrigue me. I’ve developed characters about whom I care. I’ve given them twisted backgrounds a company of therapists would vie to take on. And I’ve allowed those characters to find themselves, face their pasts and forge new outlooks and relationships in the form of happily ever after. I’ve upped the stakes for them, hoping to challenge them in every way possible without tipping to farce, in order to show how life, from th

e outside looking in, is much easier to live than from the inside looking out.

Too bad I can’t apply that same vision to myself. For now, I sit with a long-in-coming rejection. One I’d imagined would never arrive. I thought this was ‘it’, the big break, and that from here my writing path would be free of at least one obstacle. I would like to look in from the outside but, when I try, I only see hours, days, months, years of working toward a dream that has yet to come true. I can only wonder whether I’ve invested too much to stop now, or whether I’ve invested too much to bother investing more.

I always pose this question when a rejection comes through. And I always seem to overcome it with new energy, new determination. New characters and stories. Now? I don’t know. I guess I can’t speak for what will happen or how I’ll think in the coming months. But at this moment, I can only say it’s time to turn over, fluff the pillow and find myself a new dream.

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I confess… I prefer to ask questions of people in the know rather than thumb through a book searching for an answer on my own. Now, I understand how that might seem lazy to some people but, in my defense, I have to say it’s not that at all. It is simply my inability to realize when I’ve researched ‘enough’. Yes, the Gemini in me comes into play when I research.

“But why…?” “And how…?” “So if she does this then shouldn’t he…?”

Sad but true. I am the Question Diva.

Take recently while I was researching hiking and backpacking for a new story. There is an extraordinary amount of information out there on the subject. I borrowed books from the library. I followed unending links online. I questioned fellow writers who have experienced this first hand. I even went to sporting goods stores to handle gear and determine precisely which items my inexperienced heroine might use as opposed to those which my seasoned-hiker hero would use.

And then what? I became hooked. I wanted to know more. And more. I contemplated a backpacking trip with my family to the very mountains where my story was set. Me. Backpacking. The girl who won’t even stay in her own yard long after the sun goes down because of mosquitoes, slugs, raccoons and… whatever else might lurk in the darkness of an urban backyard.

We never did go on that trip – no surprise there – but I wish we had. I wish I’d had the guts. Why? Because after all that research, I wound up sabotaging myself, thinking I could never know enough about this subject to write it like a pro. If I’d experienced it myself, I could write it from my own perspective. I would have learned all I needed to learn in order to write about my heroine’s first experience with hiking/backpacking.
There’s a line Barbra Streisand sings in a song from Yentl – “The more I live – the more I learn, the more I learn – the more I realize the less I know.”

I love that line. It sums up life – and research – so well. We can never know all there is to know but if we respect and acknowledge our limitations, especially as writers, we can share what we’ve learned in a way that whets the appetite of others. Then, perhaps, they will become so energized by what has been shared that they will go out and take that backpacking trip.

Now, how wonderful would it be to receive a note from a reader saying how a story you wrote made them ache for the adventure your characters experienced?

Bliss.

But now, my research has taken me to some other place. A place I don’t want to visit. Weaponry. Fortunately – or not, depending how you look at it – there are plenty of people knowledgeable in this area. And these people are willing to share what they know. In fact, many are thrilled to answer questions, no matter how dark or sinister they might be. Why? Because they’ve done their research and they’re proud to share their knowledge, and… most importantly… they don’t worry if they can’t answer every question. In fact, they know they can’t.

I have finally realized something… I don’t have to handle or shoot a gun in order to write about my hero or heroine doing so. I have only to take enough time to understand how they would feel doing it – what it sounds like, what the recoil feels like, how it affects them emotionally when they hit someone. Or miss.

My stories are about characters. About the way they see the world and interact. Whatever research I do, has to be with my characters in mind. They ARE taking that hiking trip. They ARE shooting that .38 Special. And it has to be with my readers in mind, because they are taking that trip or shooting that gun right along with the characters. And I want them to feel every delicious and decadent second of it.

I survived my Book in a Week marathon and did pretty well, if I may say so myself. Not surprisingly, though, I broke some rules AND I did not write the entire first draft. I’m not sure I expected to. Not really. Though I had hope.

I noticed something vital about myself and my writing during my marathon week. I need the details. I need character reactions. I cannot just write the story without all the layers, the angst, the passion, because those layers and passion are what drive my plot. The way a character responds to a given moment, leads me in the direction s/he needs to go.

That’s not to say my story gets away from me and winds up in the fickle hands of my fictional characters. No. It means, I have direction and will get there, but whether I take the highway or the scenic route is up to ‘them’ not me. Forcing the story out is like driving through a torrential downpour. Yeah. You’ll get there but only because you wanted it to be over. Not because you were enjoying the ride.

When I give my characters a chance to absorb what I’d thrown at them, they reward me with texture I could not create on a second pass. Well, maybe I could, I don’t know. What I do know is how the freshness of the moment, of the reaction, drives my story forward. And so, BIAW might not work for me as it works for others, but then, everyone’s process is unique and I find it rewarding to have found just a little bit of magic in mine.

I never have a problem coming up with story ideas. Never. I have a folder full of them on my desktop. Why? Because ideas are everywhere. They’re in overheard conversations, news reports, billboards, TV commercials, movies. Even a slogan on a t-shirt can prompt an idea. Thing is, ideas aren’t stories and so… while I have tons of ideas, I have only a few stories. So far.

Several of my ideas have grown into story blurbs. I’m excited about all of them and cannot wait to dig in to each blurb and flesh it out. That’s the fun, creative part of writing – it’s also the most frustrating.

Imagine reading a book and you really get into it. It’s gripping and you cannot wait to see how the tension escalates, how the hero and heroine overcome their conflicts and make love. So you turn the page… but it’s blank. Turn another page. Again… blank. Frantically, you leaf through the rest of the book and finally spot some words on page 82. But they’re just a tease – an overview of what’s about to happen. How did the characters get to that spot? How will they get out of it? You want to know all this but no one is around to tell you.

Welcome to the creative time in a writer’s life – both thrilling and frustrating at the same time. Thrilling because we get to decide what and how things happen. Frustrating because we’re eager to know but first must form all the pieces from nothing, then fit them together. It’s the hair-pulling time in a writer’s life. It’s also the most thrilling time because when each of those pieces fit, when the hero shakes the demons from his back or the heroine sees her own worth for the first time and they come together as equals in love, it’s the most gratifying moment a writer can imagine.

Unless, of course, you count the moment a contract is offered.

Speaking of…

I am now awaiting word from a publisher regarding my last story. Of course, I hope they love it as much as I do and offer that contract, but I won’t know… until I know. So in the meantime, I’m doing what a writer is supposed to do. I’m challenging the ideas in my folder, seeing which one can stand the plotting test, and I’m forging ahead, hopeful, eager to torture a new hero and heroine just long enough to make them see their strengths so I can, once again, provide a happily ever after.

I haven’t been keeping up with my blog. Used to be, every other day I was here posting and every day I was visiting other blogs. I’ve fallen out of the blog routine… but for pretty good reason, I think. I’m plotting.

I’ve chatted here often about the various workshops I’ve taken and how they inspire me. Storyboarding, W-Plot, Character Diamond, Fatal Flaws and Book-in-a-Week. Well, I’ve sorted those workshops into a specific build-upon order and as I work through them, I review what I’ve already done so I keep true to the characters’ personalities, needs, desires, downfalls.

That brings me to the Fatal Flaw. Laurie Schnebly-Campbell gives this class and it is one I cannot recommend enough. I understand everyone plots differently and what works for me might not work for you. BUT… what I find about this particular set of lessons and assignments is that they build the character in astonishing ways. Showing the needs they have and why they have them. Showing how the character will react to overcome those needs or to fulfill them. It brings out their quirky habits and explains them in a way so logical, you can’t help but remain true to the character as you plot out the events in the story.

And yes, that’s the part I’m up to. Plotting the events. I’ve got the characters down – and am thrilled and amazed at how everything fits. The hero is one way and is headed down a certain path. The heroine is another way and headed down her own path. Those two paths cross every now and then. Sometimes hero and heroine just breeze by each other (in scenes of understanding) and other times they smack into one another (conflict) and neither will give up the path without a fight. Thing is, the individual paths they’re on will meet further down the line and continue as one. Whether they walk side by side on that path or fight for the lead is up to them… and me. And the Fatal Flaws.

Knowing the characters this intimately will, I hope, help me form the events in their story in such a way as to challenge them, keep the reader intrigued and fulfill the needs of all as they grow, change and find love.

Yes. I, myself, am falling in love. With my newest characters… though I do still love the one I just left behind. Ah. Such is the fickle life of a romance writer.

As I work on the query and synopsis for my completed story, I’m also working on the next one.

It’s actually quite exciting. In the past I’ve struggled with “starting”. It seemed the story I just finished – and its characters - had taken hold of my heart and mind and wouldn’t let go. I’d try to work with my new characters but hear the old character’s voices.

So… starting this new work immediately after finishing the first had me a little on edge, wondering if I could do it so quickly or if I had to let some time pass. Well… so far, so good. I think I’ve finally worked out a system that blends the needs of my muse, me and story.

I was a workshop diva – signing up for every and any workshop that came my way. I’ve modified some of them, taken parts of each that ‘spoke’ to me and blended them into a method of plotting and creating character that I enjoy. For my past work, I was a true pantser. Just typing away as the story came to me. I’m very happy with those stories. And I love the memory of writing them. The thrill of hearing the character’s voices in my head, seeing them move and interact, then rushing to the computer to get it all down. So exciting.

But I spent a lot of time revising those stories. A LOT. Pantsing like that just wasn’t working for me the way I thought it was. I, apparently, need some direction. My Gemini spirit is too flighty and must be guided – though not restrained.

And so… I now work with Laurie Schnebly Campbell’s Fatal Flaws, Sue Viders Character Diamond, and Karen Docter’s W-Plot (the latter of which, closes by incorporating a subdued ‘storyboard’ that, when properly done, transfers beautifully into a synopsis). I highly recommend each of these workshops. For me, parts of each of them make the characters come to life. With a little work, their deepest desires are revealed along with the conflict they’ll face trying to achieve those goals. Finite details are not disclosed, that happens during the writing process. What’s left is a planning stage that’s not only fun (for me), but also edges me closer to writing the story.

My synopsis and query are nearly ready to go. And this time, while I wait for a response, I’ll be doing what I love most – writing the next story with my notes there to help keep my excited Gemini muse on track… or at least close to that track.

I have successfully completed five synopsis versions. Note, I did not say I have completed five successful synopsis versions.

I’m happy with the final one, though I’ve gone according to the 1 page per 10,000 words rule. I’m going to let it sit for a couple of days then get back to it… mainly because I’ve signed up for some one-on-one synopsis help with the wonderful Mary Buckham (who gives wonderful in-person and online workshops), and am waiting for feedback from her.

Not one to simply kick back and wait, I figure it’s time to look ahead to the next project. I have an “Ideas” file loaded with… well… ideas. There are stories in there waiting to be written, characters eager to be brought to life on the page. And then there’s me - just a little gun shy after having completed a book only days ago. 

I’m not exhausted. If anything, I’m energized from the ride of the last story. I’m not numb creatively. I have new and interesting scenes playing out in my head.  

I am however, torn.

Which story do I work on next? The ideas pull me in all directions. I want to write. I want to get back to what I was doing just a week ago, and hammer out the story, feel the very last rush of words spring off my fingers and onto the page.

Alas… that’s called “finishing”. 

This… is called ‘starting’.

Plotting – whether in detail or denial – is a long process. I’m in denial right now – insisting I’m a pantser through and through when actually, I desperately need a balance of plotting and pantsing.  So, while I’d rather sit here and type away, showing my family how busy I, as writer, can be, I’ll be thinking and no doubt convincing them I’m simply goofing off.

I’ll spend the next couple of weeks turning scenarios over in my mind, picturing the worst obstacles I can throw in my new hero’s way, measuring how high my herione can leap and building hurdles twice that height. I’ll be plotting without paper. Watching the story develop. Seeing the sway of my heroine’s hips, the swagger of my hero’s purposeful gait. And I’ll be dreaming, hearing their voices. Eager for the moment a blank page turns into the first page of a brand new chapter.

Imagine the horror to his poor roaming eyes as she tossed her head. Where did she toss it? And did she first holler, “Catch!”?

Roaming eyes and tossed heads – otherwise known as wandering body parts. Keep those parts attached to the body and the image won’t be quite as grotesque as a tossed head or worse. And yes, there are worse.

I’ve been writing now for… a long time… and those wandering body parts still tend to show up in my work. On first draft. A fresh phrase isn’t always easy to find, especially when you’re on a roll with story details you didn’t realize you knew. Yes… that happens. Scene basics and dialogue sometimes spew forth from my fingertips to the keyboard to the page so quickly the precise wording has not yet been uncovered. It’s when polishing time comes that those nasty little things are noticed – hopefully. Nasties, such as wandering body parts.

Just before I came here to blog today – in fact it’s the reason I’m here blogging about this very thing – I proofed a scene that I’d just written. It’s the opening scene of my final chapter. A chapter long in coming. My heroine has been through a lot.

A. Lot.

Poor thing.

But she’s been made stronger because of it. All of it. However, this scene brought on her breaking point. It was hard for me to write… or to start. I knew the emotional investment would be high. The heavy scenes wear me out. This one was heavier than expected for some reason. Maybe because I’ve become friends with my heroine and have decided she’s someone I’d like to finally see happy. But to get there, as I mentioned in another post, she’d have to suffer through the tough times in order to make her happily ever after that much more rewarding.

Well, I proofed the scene so I could finally consider it done and move on, when much to my amusement, my heroine did something totally unexpected. She lifted her face to the ceiling. Now, I don’t know about you, but… first of all, I’m not 8 feet tall, so lifting my face to the ceiling would be tough for me without a ladder. Second, did she take her face off and hold it there against the ceiling or did she just kind of, stand on her toes and press it to the plaster? Hmm? And why… please tell me why… would she lift her face to the ceiling in the first place?

In defense of my heroine, she is rather distraught. But while she might have thought (because I told her) that she lifted her face to the ceiling, what she actually did was simply tip her face up toward it. Ah, see? No wandering body parts, no horror-scene flashes. Just a little effort on phrasing and my heroine is once again a normal human being instead of some shape-shifting creature who can stretch her neck to insane lengths or remove parts of her body at will.

I have reached Chapter 14 in my newest story and must say, I am quite worried for my characters. I’ve done all I can to prepare them for what’s to come, indeed for what they’ve already faced. And yet they still hesitate, as if worried they haven’t the ability to survive. My words to them, if I could speak directly to them – and have them actually listen to me for once – would be that my idea of a satisfying romance includes a happily ever after ending. That bit of information would, if they’d care to hear it, comfort them and give them that sense of ability they seem to lack at this moment of no return.

Ah… but then again, if they knew this, if they’d taken the time to read my notes as I have, they might not feel the anguish they need to feel in order to make that happily ever after ending a reward they’ve earned and deserve.

I will confess… I have tortured these poor characters more than any other characters I’ve created. I’ve given one of them a harrowing past filled with fear, grief and confusion. I’ve given the other a past wrought with responsibility beyond his means, his age. They’ve survived those pasts and have become strong, independent characters because of it. They should thank me, don’t you think?

Instead, they fight me. They keep secrets from me. My hero, for instance, informed me – well into Chapter 12 – that he speaks Spanish. Well golly-gee. Shouldn’t he have told me that sooner? Like before I’d written a scene where the villain was speaking Spanish and none of the ‘good guys’ were supposed to understand him? Sheesh. Fortunately, that scene didn’t include the hero, so no harm, no foul. Still… it would have been nice to know.

I suppose what’s fair is fair. I mean, after all, I’m not really giving them the heads up on what challenges they’ll have to face. I’m merely asking them – expecting them – to trust me and know they can indeed get themselves past those obstacles. What good is a happily ever after ending without the tension of possibly not reaching it?

A friend of mine is reading this story as I write it. She’s just returned Chapter 13 to me with these words: “This plot is so thick, I don’t think you can stir it anymore.” That made me laugh aloud. I love the sound of it, though I do hope, with just a little extra effort, I will indeed be able to stir this plot just a little bit more… like maybe three chapters and an epilogue more.

The summer has slipped by with nary a word from my in my work in progress.

I know… I’ve been busy. I’ve had a great time traveling and visiting family. I’ve solidified our newest homeschooling curriculum and I’ve entered three writing contests – that’s two more than I’ve entered since I started writing years ago. And so… my muse has taken a hiatus and now I must coax it back.

My new goals… to write something, anything, on my story each and every day. I don’t care if it’s one paragraph or one sentence. As long as it’s a NEW paragraph or sentence and not one I’ve decided to tweak, I will have accomplished my goal.

Of course, as you can see by some of my posts on this blog, one paragraph tends to grow quickly when I actually sit down and write. My only hope – not goal – is the same will happen for my story.

I’ve hit the proverbial brick wall. I need to back up, take my characters out of the situations I’ve left them in and rewrite them into new situations. Situations that will help me move my story forward. See, part of the reason I stopped writing in the first place was because I’d somehow veered off the track I’d set for this story. I allowed the characters to have their way and like unsupervised children, they’ve done some things I’m not happy about. And so, I’m going back in with sleeves rolled to the elbows and I’m going to straighten things up… with their desires in mind. A neat compromise should do the trick of getting us – myself, my muse and my characters – back on track.

So my new goals are to write each day no matter how little. To walk away and do something else when the words stop flowing – rather than sit and stare at the blinkin’ cursor. And to explore even the most far-fetched ideas my characters and muse introduce.

What is writing fiction if not playing with ideas and “what ifs”.

What if… I actually finish this story before this year is out. Now THAT’s a goal I’d like to reach.

“See it as PLAY!”

April Kilhstrom said that in our interview  and never could it be more appropriate to use, I think, then while writing the love scene. Maybe I’m trying to convince myself of that so I can shake some of the… shall we say… performance anxiety involved in writing that scene.

A love scene is not just about the act of making love. It’s about the issues each character brings to bed with them. It’s one of my favorite scenes to write because you can really break the character down and get inside their minds. They’re at their most vulnerable point. They’re guarded at certain moments, totally raw at others. And while in life we might give in to wild abandon, in fiction, we must make it seem so while maintaining or exaggerating the issues our characters will carry into the morning… and beyond.

The love scene, I’d always thought, was the ‘ahhhh’ moment. It’s not. It’s the ‘uh-oh!” moment. It’s the moment when the characters let down their guard and then regret it because this involvement has complicated their lives in more ways than they could have guessed.

My hero is concerned about kidnapped family members. He needs to save them. He can’t. Not yet. Not until he receives the next orders from the kidnappers. He’s frustrated, a hero unable to act heroic. My heroine is involved in his life by accident. She was minding her own business, clawing her way out of a hostile past to face a future somewhere new, without ties to bind or hurt. Hero can’t save his family just yet, but he knows he can save her from her frightening past. Heroine can’t afford to believe in the possibilities hero describes and knows while she needs his affection this night, tomorrow… tomorrow she will run since running keeps the past far behind.

That’s a lot to keep in mind while thinking of what touch makes her swoon and what position makes him shudder.

In romance, the love scene isn’t just about sex. It’s about emotions. It’s about fears. It’s about change. With all of that, we (I) sometimes forget, that most of all, it’s about giving the characters grief, causing them both pleasure and pain. Creating their hell, dangling rewards just out of their reach, then making them suffer until they work it all out and reach their happily ever after.

Playing has never been such fun.

“The Acknowledged Mistress of Book in a Week”

I have taken some amazing online workshops since I started writing. Each of them has helped me tread easier along the writing path. The most recent workshop I attended was one offered by April Kihlstrom, titled – Book in a Week.

I truly needed the class because I am a slow writer. In fact, a single chapter can take me a couple of months to complete. I tend to procrastinate, and I’m a perfectionist. So… unless I know precisely what I am going to write, I stall. Not on purpose, yet through my own sabotaging efforts.

After taking April’s class, I completed – COMPLETED – two solid 12 single-spaced paged chapters in one week. Completed. Two chapters. In one week.

I was so thrilled this enthusiasm and momentum did not let up after the class, that I asked April if she would answer a few questions about the process for me and other writers. She graciously agreed to an interview, and I now happily share that with all of you.

Enjoy… and WRITE ON! 

April, I want to first thank you for agreeing to talk with me. I was energized by your class and thought more people should know about what you offer.

Thank you.

I have to know straight off if it’s really possible to write an entire book – start to finish – in just one week.

Not start to polished final draft! But it IS possible to write the FIRST DRAFT of a book in one week. My last 10 or 12 books were written that way.

Have you always been a fast writer or was there something specific that triggered that desire for you?

Good heavens, no! I was dragged kicking and screaming into a challenge on GENIE (a bulletin board service in the old days). My previous first draft had taken 7 months! I was a slooooow writer–trying to get it perfect the first time around. But once I did the first draft in one week, I loved it. I realized my story was more consistent and more fun. So I kept writing my first drafts that way.

I feel if I haven’t fallen completely into the heart and mind of a character then I can’t write them the way I’d like – with deep POV. What do you recommend as a way of dealing with or overcoming the need for such details in a first draft?

Keep reminding yourself that it’s only a first draft. See what you naturally write. You may be someone who always needs to go back and layer in such things. One of the big lessons for me was realizing that whether I took 7 months or 7 days, my first drafts would essentially have the same weaknesses and strengths so…I could quit worrying about it. I knew that was how my brain worked and I could relax and use it to my advantage instead of fighting to try to make it work differently.

Quality writing time is an issue for many writers. Can you recommend ways to find that time?

First, make sure that writing is a priority in your own mind. If you don’t take it seriously, neither will those around you. Other strategies I’ve used over the years: go out somewhere to write, take a notebook with me everywhere so I can jot down ideas every time I think of them (and keep the story vivid in my subconscious when I can’t be actually writing), hire a babysitter even if I was going to be home so that I could close the door and write, experiment–discover WHEN you write best. Are you better off getting up early to write or is that worthless to you and you’re better off staying up late? Discover that even 5 to 15 minutes at a time can produce pages of material–IF writing is a true priority for you and you’ve got your notes and are ready to go.

How do you prepare for this writing marathon? Is there a certain process you go through to prepare yourself and your muse?

I set things up so I have everything I need handy and try to clear my schedule as much as I can. And I remind myself it’s only ONE WEEK. So what if it turns out to be trash? (It never does, of course.) I’ve wasted more than a week at a time putting off writing out of fear it won’t be good enough! When I sit down to write, I close my eyes and bring up memories of books I sold and how much fun writing has been. You’d be surprised how much power visualization has.

A chunk of writing often causes extreme issues with my wrists. Can you suggest ways in which we can enjoy this writing blitz without causing tingling in our extremities… and our butts.

Alternate writing methods–longhand, typing, maybe even a voice recorder or voice recognition software.

As a self-proclaimed perfectionist (when it comes to my writing), nothing I write sounds good unless I tweak it to death. What advice do you have for taming the ever-present inner editor?

IT’S ONLY ONE WEEK! Seriously, no one’s first draft is ever good enough.

What if a writer needs a specific detail, like say, how many miles or hours it would be from one location to another. Should s/he stop writing and research this information?

NO! Make a note (in colored font or highlighted) to look it up later and keep going.

Can you give us more information about your Book in a Week workshop, including how to register for it?

I expect to offer it again in late May or early June. I have information on my website and a button you can click to get added to my online class notification list. The class runs 5 weeks and it’s all handled by email so you can do it in your pj’s at 3 in the morning if you want! I take students through every phase of planning a book, a week of intensive writing, and a bit about publishing and revisions.

I have some questions from some fellow writers. Would you mind answering those as well?

Happy to answer.

This is from Barbara Atha –

Would you have some “bullet point” type suggestions to keep in mind regarding point of view, first person versus third person or other common issues writers face while trying to write fast?

See it as play–writing that first draft. It’s a chance to experiment if you’re not sure which POV will work best. That depends on the material and the genre (readers have different preferences and expectations in different genres). When you go back and reread the material, odds are you’ll be able to see which works better and that’s when you can make it consistent all through the book. In other words, don’t stress out for the first draft.

From Chessie Welker –

How do you avoid burn out and exhaustion?

See it as PLAY! Celebrate at the end of each day, take frequent breaks while you’re writing to get up and move around, eat healthy foods, and do at least 3 things a day that make you smile.

From Louisa Edwards –

How do you recommend structuring your day to get the most out of it? Is it personal choice? Or is it one of those things where it really is true across the board that the hours before noon are more productive than the hours after?

Every person is different. The key is to find out what works for you. And that’s part of the goal of Book in a Week–to discover when and where and how YOU write best. Put a 100 writers in a room and you’ll get 100 different answers about what’s best.

Also from Barbara Atha –

What can you tell us about showing rather than telling?

Think in terms of body language, facial expressions, voice timber and intonation and pace. Think in terms of what your characters do when they are in different emotional states and use those typical behaviors to cue the reader. These may be things you go back and layer in OR it may be one of your strengths and something you find yourself doing automatically.

From Linda Ford –

How do you stay motivated and how do you find the fun in your writing?

I choose to focus my mind and energy on happy memories concerning my writing. I choose to focus on what could go RIGHT instead of what could go wrong. And I keep reminding myself as I write the first draft that IT’S ONLY ONE WEEK! Even if I threw it all out after that week I’d at least have learned what didn’t work. And because it’s only one week, I can let myself go–putting in the things I would have dared risk if I was going to have to invest close to a year before I knew if it would work. And every time I’ve done so, the risk paid off. Stuff I was sure my editor would insist I take out she didn’t. Because it worked. And the books were more fun for me to write because I wasn’t constantly self-censoring.

April, this is such wonderfully insightful information. Thank you so much for sharing your passion and wisdom with us.

You’re welcome!

My thanks to April for the interview and for the class. And to everyone else – Write on, write now!

I had such a great experience with my Book-in-a-Week class that I just can’t keep it to myself. Soon I’ll be posting an interview with the Book-in-a-Week mistress, herself, since she’s graciously agreed to speak with me here. I’ll keep you posted on when that will happen.

Meanwhile, book-in-a-week (BIAW) fever is still soaring for me. Before this latest story, I’d spent a lot of time revising other work. Starting something new after all that time was tough. That’s why I accepted the BIAW challenge in the first place - to fan the fire under me again. Yowza! Did that fire get fanned! 

A lot went into preparing for this challenge, by the way. I didn’t just take the class and have at it. I’m a workshop junkie. I love them. LOVE them. Love the interaction, the push, the praise, the hints on how to make things better. I love it all. What I especially love is plucking out the gems that work for me. And that’s how I see workshops… like panning for gold. You never know when or where you’ll find that one brilliant nugget.

I’ve found quite a few brilliant nuggets. Some of my favorites came from workshops like -

Shelley Bradley’s Storyboarding (scroll down on linked page to find workshop info)

Karen Docter’s W-Plot

Mary Buckham’s …. anything!!!! … Pacing, Sex on the Page, One-on-one Synopsis and more.

Laurie Schnebly Campbell’s … again anything!!! … Fatal Flaws, Plotting via Motivation, Block-busting (putting the joy back in writing) and more.

And now, of course, April Kihlstrom’s Book in a Week.

Nuggets from each of these workshops have helped me set up the structure of my WIP, so when the day came to take up the torch and run, I was ready. I think what’s happened in the past was a blind desire or need to write without the necessary prep-work. I’m a pantser who likes to plot – but only a tiny bit. What I’ve learned over the years is that my needs and methods shift with each new story. For some, I need more plot details before I start, for others the details are like quick sand.

Each story is unique and requires a fresh approach. I like it that way. Maybe it’s the Gemini in me, who knows. Point is, I’ve learned there isn’t one set formula for writing a book. It’s a fully customizable process with handy upgrades. The workshops I’ve taken have taught me about those upgrades and how to apply them when necessary.

Are there golden nuggets in your writer’s toolbox? If so, what are they and where did you find them?

My wrists staged a mutiny yesterday. I could barely move the fingers on my right hand. They just locked up. This has happened to me before. I have to watch how I sit when I type. I tend to let my wrists droop, sitting more for comfort than for function. And I MUST get wrist guards.

Well, because of the stiffness and pain in my hands, yesterday was a bit of a wash. I managed only a few hundred words – about four hundred, in fact. But… resting my wrists yesterday helped me today. It’s not even 10am and I’m nearly done with this chapter. Already 1425 words this morning and the day is still young. Another 1200 words or so, and this chapter is done, done, DONE!

I’m going to keep this momentum going. I’m not as afraid to make mistakes because I know I can fix them. In fact, I know when I’m done with this rough draft, I can let Nil play/revise/nitpick until she’s giggling with glee. I will confess, however, it’s been a struggle to avoid going back to fix every little thing… like having my heroine lift her car keys and give them a shake to make a point – TWICE IN ONE SCENE. Blah. But, I also know, I can eventually go back in to fix that. This is not meant to be perfect, it’s meant to be fun. Writing fast is supposed to help get the story down without distraction or second guessing. I second, third and fourth guess myself all the time when I write. Writing fast leaves little time for that bit of sabotage so writing fast is a precious and vital thing to master… and so is understanding that this is a first draft. Perfection has no place here.

Wow. I should repeat that until it doesn’t cause me to reach for my inhaler. Yikes. It doesn’t have to be perfect???

Okay. I’ll repeat that – Perfection has no place here in my first draft. 

My first draft is for fun and creativity. My first draft is my time to play. When I’m done in this sandbox, my inner critic can have her chance and clean things up all she wants. After all, without me to make the ‘mess’, what would there be for her to do? She’ll just have to wait her turn. Meanwhile, I will play until my hero and heroine reach their happily ever after and I reach… The End.

TWO DAY TOTAL – 3031 WORDS!

My way of writing seems to involve a LOT of thinking – like sometimes days or weeks – and then I have this manic spurt of writing. And then more thinking. It’s a frustrating process, and I’ve hoped for a more efficient way to unjumble the words in my head and get them onto the page.

I might have found it.

Day one of this challenge gave me three solid, single-spaced pages. I was thrilled but realized three pages a day does not a book-in-a-week make. So… instead of ramping up the typing, I revised what I’d written. How’s that for sabotaging my own work? It seems that perfectionist, nit-picky, inner critic of mine has an intense aversion to speed writing.

This inner-critic, whom I shall henceforth call ‘Nil’ as nil is all it allows me to write - nags me constantly about every little word, every punctuation mark, every thought I dare consider worthy. Nil has forced me to stop the writing flow and do things like research awkward wording, rethink the plot, change the heroine’s name and whatnot.

Nil slices creativity, hacks away at confidence, rewords everything I’ve written while grumbling how awful it all is and then laughs as I slink away from the computer certain I’ll never write another word. That’s what Nil does best.

It’s time I put her in her place. Yes? And I think I know how.

You see… I have learned something fantastic during this process. The best way to keep Nil from messing with the work is not to show Nil the work in the first place.

When you write without looking back at what you’ve written, you fall deeper into the story and wind up with a more flowing and consistent rhythm, tone, mood and voice. It’s when you stop writing to review or revise, that Nil puts on her work clothes and happily tweaks and alters your beautiful prose until it’s barely recognizable. 

Ever hear the term “less is more”? So it is with revising as you go. Less is more. Nil has yet to learn that term.

Day two was yesterday, Sunday, and so there were family things to tend to. However, I managed another three pages… and this happened in just two hours. For me, that is some kind of record. I’m thrilled to have written 3,031 words in two days and cannot wait to get back into it today, Day 3.

Will I finish my book this week? I highly doubt it (my wrists are already planning a mutiny), but I will have a new tool in my tool box because of it. This tool is the privacy screen between the words I type and Nil. If I do not show it to her by rereading what I write as I write it, SHE cannot possibly feel the need to ‘fix’ it.

Not until the end is written will Nil be allowed to have a go at it.

At least, that’s the plan. I have the new tool, now I just need to make sure I use it.

Day three? Here I come… armed and ready.