Motivation and the Writing Life

Connecting With Readers

March 11, 2016March 10, 2016Motivation and the Writing Life

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

For years I’ve had the attitude that I was best connecting with readers through my stories. I still feel like that’s true. They’re getting a glimpse inside my head, inside my sense of humor, inside the way I see the world and other people through the books that I write.

For years, also, I’ve struggled with other methods of connecting with my readers in a natural way. Facebook didn’t (still doesn’t) feel natural to me. On other social media, I set up shop to connect with other writers. (If you ever want to find other writers to connect with on social media, just follow my Twitter followers).Continue reading

3 Reasons Your Writing Routine Will Land You On the Floor

February 22, 2016February 21, 2016Motivation and the Writing Life, Uncategorized

by Colleen M. Story, @colleen_m_story

I was working too many hours a day. I knew it, but I had deadlines to meet. As a full-time freelance writer, it’s not like I could tell my clients I was getting too tired.

I kept going. Thirty-something years old, I wasn’t even thinking about my body. Sure, my back was a little sore when I finally shut the computer down for the night, but no pain, no gain, right?

I operated like this for months. Long hours. I still exercised—jogged several times a week and did about 30 minutes of yoga every night. I met my deadlines. But one weekend, while cleaning house, I leaned down to pick something up and lightning hit my spine.Continue reading

Fast Writers and Slow Writers

September 14, 2015September 13, 2015Motivation and the Writing Life

By Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

The prevailing advice for better sales seems to be to write faste file9271237667217 r. I think this may be true. I did find that my self-published sales really picked up after book three so why not get to book three faster, right?

But this is frustrating advice for writers. Some writers have demanding schedules in which it’s tough to schedule in writing time. Some are just thoughtful writers who take either a lot of time to warm up or who are deliberate about their word choice or story direction.

I read a post by Ken Rahmoeller last week on his blog: “Being a Slow Writer in This Day and Age.” Ken expressed his worry about being a slow writer when the trend is to fly through writing and production.

As many before me have pointed out, this business is a marathon, not a sprint.
Continue reading

Writing a New Genre

July 13, 2015July 12, 2015Motivation and the Writing Life, Uncategorized, Writing Tips

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

After a really nice vacation to Alaska (where it wasn’t even close to the 100 degrees F we’ve had here in NC), I had a few things to deal with. A lot of unpacking, a suitcase that decided to hang out in Dallas, TX, instead of following us home, and a book to finish.

I’d hoped to finish the book during my vacation. I did get a lot written, but it wasn’t quite finished. I finally knocked out the last bit yesterday and then quickly cleaned it up to send it along to my freelance editor.

This book was an interesting project for me. It was an attack book…one that forced me to write it. It’s been bugging me for three years. I’ve got several other things to work on right now, but I scheduled time to work on this one.

I’d no idea how difficult it would be to write. I ran a couple of weeks over my self-imposed deadline. I’m happy with the finished product, but…it was a bear to write. Continue reading

Writing When It’s Difficult to Write

June 19, 2015June 18, 2015Motivation and the Writing Life, Uncategorized

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

I pride myself on being a productive writer. I keep to my deadlines, both self-imposed and contractual. I write each day and meet my goals.

It’s rare I get knocked off track. But I sure did this week. We had a water main break. Backhoes trenched from the street to our house to replace broken pipes. We had no water. Gardenia bushes were dug up (right when they were blooming!) Sewer lines were accidentally dinged with the backhoe (ugh). To add insult to injury, the break was on our side, not the city’s side, so the repairs were on our dime.

And we had house guests. :) I felt sorry for them. Heck, I felt sorry for me.

Yeah, I haven’t gotten much done…on the progression of the actual manuscript.Continue reading