Category: Motivation and the Writing Life

There Will Be Typos. (Trust Me On This.)

Motivation and the Writing Life

By Joanna Campbell Slan, @joannaslan ‏

New Release 

March 18 marked the birthday (aka, release date) of my newest book, Second Chance at Faith: Book #4 in the Second Chance Series. There will be typos. Groan. I’m sure of it.

I’m fortunate enough to have several terrific proofreaders who read over my work before it’s available to the public. No matter how many pairs of eyes view the document, I’m always amazed at the different mistakes each person catches.

Nowhere on the Map

For example, one of my readers pointed out that there is no such place as Gibsontown, Florida. It’s actually Gibsonton.

Men, Man, Woman, Huh?

Another proofreader noticed that I kept writing Highwayman when I meant Highwaymen. I can’t explain that. I think it’s because the title is already confusing because there are 25 men and one woman. That’s my best excuse. So are they Highwaymenandwoman? Or Highwaypeople? Discerning readers will want to know.

Birds of a Feather

Another reader noticed that “snowy white egrets” should actually be Snowy Egrets. That’s their name. So, I knew they were snowy. I knew they were egrets. I didn’t know their proper name was Snowy Egrets. All this time, I thought people were being descriptive when they were being accurate. Sigh.

Sven Again?

Someone pointed out that I’d named a character “Sven” in another book, and I’m using the name again. Oh, golly. I’ve never known anyone named Sven. Ever. Somehow, Sven’s the only Scandinavian name that comes to mind when I write. Go figure. Here’s another odd factoid: My sister had our DNA tested and I’m…wait for it…Scandinavian. I had no idea. (My mother was adopted, so all this came as news.)Continue reading

How I Work

Motivation and the Writing Life, Uncategorized

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

I’m a fan of a series that Lifehacker is running: “How I Work.”  In it, various people in different industries describe how they got where they are, what a typical day looks like, and tips/hacks for how they handle their workload.

Every time I go through my blog feed reader, I always stop to read posts where writers describe what a typical day looks like for them.  It fascinates me, although I don’t think I ever adopt what they’re doing, because I know what works for me.

I thought I’d do my own version, edited for space (theirs has lots of helpful details). Keeping their series in mind, here’s my take on it. After writing it out, mine looks a bit repetitive, long, and not as interesting! I think that’s because I’m doing this all day long and not part of a day like some are.

A workday in March: 

Got up( 4:45)  put workout clothes on, came downstairs, took dog out and fed him, fixed coffee and sat down in front of laptop.

Worked on Edit to Death (1st draft) until reached word goal.

Worked on Checked Out (edits) for 30 minutes

Scheduled several time-sensitive tweets relating to publishing news for the day.

Shared my blog post on Facebook and scheduled a Twitter share.

Quickly checked emails and found that there was a problem with Babelcube’s paperback edition to Amazon (actually 2 separate German translations).  Marked on my list to address it later that day.

Had breakfast with my daughter before she headed to the high school.

Went to the gym for a 25 minute workout.

Came back. Responded to comments.

Saw my husband off to work.

Emailed my cover designer about another Babelcube project that is ready to publish: an Italian edition. Asked her if she could squeeze in an altered cover for the translation.

Responded to emails and used my canned response feature for a few requests regarding the blog. Continue reading

How to Survive Rejection

Motivation and the Writing Life, Uncategorized

by John Kerr, @themaltesetiger 

Can we talk about F. Scott Fitzgerald? Author of The Great Gatsby, that American classic we all read in high school. Without a doubt, one of the most acclaimed American writers in history. But, did you know that his follow-up novel, Tender is the Night, was panned by critics?

The book was so ridiculed that Fitzgerald was driven out of the literary world. He fled to Los Angeles looking for success as a screenwriter but found none. Once thought of as a rising star, Fitzgerald was considered a has-been by the end of his career. He died believing he was a failure.

But he was wrong, and today we celebrate him as one of the greatest writers of the twentieth century. Which brings me to my point-

Rejection happens to all of us.

Add it to the column under Death and Taxes. You can’t let it cripple you, though. You must learn from it, and move on. But, how do you move on from something that can feel so personal and cut so deep?

Well, that’s what I’m going to talk about. So, here are a few tips on…Continue reading

Writing on the Tough Days

Motivation and the Writing Life

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

A few weeks ago I’d read an interesting post from Cathy C. Hall about the danger of waiting for ‘the perfect time to write.’   She gives examples of likely ‘perfect time’ scenarios, which are basically anytime but now.  Waiting until life is less-challenging.

As Cathy puts it:

There is no such thing as the perfect time for writing. There will always be something or someone coming along to give us a perfectly good reason not to write. And before you know it, it’s been weeks, months, years, since you’ve written much at all.

Waiting for the perfect time (or, at least, a better time) to write may seem to have an easy solution: prioritize your writing.  But that’s only part of it.Continue reading

Gaining Confidence Through Experience

Motivation and the Writing Life, Uncategorized

 

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

I have a lot of sympathy for writers who get great ideas for other projects (known as SNI…Shiny New Ideas) while working on a book.  When you’re in the daily slog of writing a novel, it’s very tempting to jump ship and start working on a new book that seems more like a sure thing.

But it worries me when I read blog posts by writers who are having trouble finishing any of the books they’re working on.  There’s a lot to be said for finishing a project.  That’s because, after you’ve finished one, you know you can do it.  You know that, no matter what kind of shape that manuscript is in, you have the ability to work your way all the way through to The End.

There are other benefits to having lots of experience writing (whether on one book or multiple books).   It gives you confidence when you face a problem with your story.  I know that, with probably every other book I write, there’s going to be some point when I run into an issue.  It could be a plot hole or a character that seems flat or any number of other problems.

But, when I run into an issue, I always feel so much calmer when I realize: I’ve been here before.  I don’t think there’s a problem that I haven’t encountered at this point.  And it keeps me from getting stressed to know that I’ve handled other roadblocks that have sprung up and turned out a decent book afterward.

Life is sort of like that, too.  With years comes experience and the experiences…good and bad…help us to know how to handle problems when they pop up.

Establishing a writing habit and finishing projects are two ways of gaining this experience as writers.  You’ll just need to find out what works best for you: writing in the morning? At lunch? In the evening? At home? At the library or coffeehouse? At work during a break?  Then make sure the goals you set (as I’ve mentioned before) are reasonable and something that you can easily meet.  It doesn’t help to set goals that make us discouraged.

For more tips for setting up a writing habit and for finishing a book see: 

12 Tips to Get Unstuck and Finish Writing Your Book by Lorna Faith

How to Develop a Rock-Solid Writing Habit by Daphne Gray-Grant

5 Hacks to Create a Good Writing Habit by Joe Bunting

It’s a nice bonus that a writing habit leads, not only to a finished book, but to more experience to handle future projects (frequently in less time).

Have you run into roadblocks with your books that you’ve realized you can work through?  Do you ever have trouble finishing a book?

Gaining Confidence Through Experience: Click To Tweet

 

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