When Life Gives You Lemons, Or Some Such Thing

Before the kids got out of school in June I had started to feel as though I was hitting my head against a brick wall when trying to write. So I decided to take a break - to read more and to relax. To spend more time focused on the kids while they were home, and on Heli Dad, and on myself. It was a good summer and exactly what I needed.

When I started sitting back down at the computer on a regular basis in August, I still wasn't ready to wade back in to the projects I'd hit pause on in June. But I started writing.

I finished a fan fiction story I'd begun years ago - to the delight of many long time readers who'd still been waiting to find out how it would end. And when that was done, I still had more to write so I started another, one that had been sort of simmering on a back burner in my head for a couple years, just waiting.

I needed the break.

The full stop.

The mental rejuvenation.

I've needed this chunk of time where I've essentially just been writing for fun again. This grace period where I haven't had to worry about all the gritty details. I don't have to build the world, or create the characters... I can just let the words flow while I tell a story.

The crazy thing is that before the break, I was struggling to write 500 words a week.

In the last month I've written roughly 45,000.

And there are more. I don't sit down at the computer and wonder what to write. I know what I want to say and how I want to say it. I know where the story goes, how it ends, and how to get there.

As the words simply spill out of me for this fan fiction story, I find my mind is also working on the ideas and plot points, and all the little details that I'd been struggling with so much in the Spring. I jot down these random bits and pieces every day. I'm connecting dots that I hadn't even realized I needed to connect. In my mind, I'm finally getting all the various puzzle pieces of the story (my original works story) sorted out. I'm figuring out where and how all the disparate details fit together to create the big picture.

Somehow I simply know that when I switch back the words I need will be there. While it may not be as free flowing as this fan fiction writing has been, I won't be beating my head against that brick wall anymore either.

Writers -- have you come up against this before?

To clarify, I'm not talking about writers block. Not really. I could still write. The thing was, I was forcing it, hard, and you could tell.

So what did you do? What do yo do?

Did you keep attack the brick wall, pumping out words that sort of, but not really fit with what you wanted to say? Do you redirect? Take a break?

What do you do when your story is dammed up inside your head and you just can't find the right key to open the floodgates?

New Year, New Goals and a Brand New Logo

NaNo2018 was an epic failure on my part. Sort of, not really, but yes a failure. I did write more in November 2018 than I did in the rest of 2018 put together - so win! - but still, I fell ridiculously short of meeting the 50k goal. 

So what happens now? 

It's a New Year -- 2019!!! -- and after a lot of thought, and I mean a LOT, I'm going to change things up a little bit. I'm going to goal set differently, more specifically but perhaps also in a way that won't constantly make me feel like I'm falling behind and failing. Here's where I start...

Goal #1 -- Write Every Single Day (on a WIP)

I know, God do I know, that not every day is going to be a good writing day. One day I may get in 2500 words. Another day I may add 5. And that's okay so long as I write. Eventually I'll finish what I've started and I'll have what I need to take the next step. 

Goal #2 -- Write a Blog Post Each Month 

Sort of like an accountability check-in. I've seen other writers do this - both the indies just getting into the industry, as well as well established traditionally published authors that I've read/loved/followed for years. But more than simply holding myself accountable to my craft, I've missed writing blog posts, missed this avenue of interaction with other bloggers and writers. Now, January didn't get a blog post but you'll see a little bit further down what I was busy with last month. Going forward though I'm going to write (at least) one blog post here each month - and at least one blog post for each of my other blogs too.

Goal #3 -- Finish Something 

Here's the thing: right now I have 4 projects on the go. One of them is and always has been intended as a stand alone novel/novella. Two of them could be the launch points for a series or other multi book/story set, I can see other possible storylines that could come from them, or they could just end up as stand alone novels too. The fourth project is absolutely the beginning of a series - I know pretty much everything that will happen in the first three books/stories, how much further the series goes after that is still up in the air. 

So the goal is to evaluate them, pick one, focus on that and FINISH it. 

But which, which, which one will it be? 

Goal #4 -- Set Periodic, Quantifiable Deadlines  

This is one that could be tricky. Or it could be super easy. These would be goals like: finish one chapter this week, or write 5000 words by the end of the month. Which, like I said could be simple or could be hard. I hope that over the course of time, having those quantifiable deadlines will increase my productivity. 

I'm also hoping that with time those quantifiable goals will become more lofty - 10k words in a month, then 5k words per week, etc, etc, etc. Eventually, assuming this works the way I want, I'd be able to set goals more along the line of This Novel done by March and That Novel written by August; you know deadline deadlines. 

(I'd cross my fingers in hope but that may make it more difficult for me to type. Cross 'em for me??) 

Goal #5 -- Become a Better Writer

One step to attaining this goal, one that will help tremendously all on its own is simply to write. To write and keep writing, and then write some more. Another part of this will be to read, of course; I've always felt that to be a good writer and to continually better yourself, you must read. (In general, the reading thing has never been a real problem for me. 😉 ) A third thing I'm going to try to do is find some online writing courses - creative writing, or novel writing, or maybe even an editing course. I've actually discovered a few through my local library that look promising, so I've got somewhere to start. 

I'm sure there's more that I can do and if, and when, I discover those things I'll let you know. 

via GIPHY

Now remember earlier in this post when I alluded to what I'd been busy doing this past January? Number one on that list was to completely redesign and launch a new website for my mother's massage therapy business - at which I'm more or less in charge of all marketing and advertising these days. The redesign is done, the site is launched and now, except for weekly/month maintenance to keep the site dynamic and up-to-date, I'm able to direct my creative energies elsewhere. 

Number 2 on the list of things I did last month came about in the middle of doing the website redesign. And it was the development of new logos for each of my blogs, and another logo which incorporates aspects of the other three to use as a social media profile photo. The logo for Inside My Mind is simple, clean, and while it may not be my forever logo, for now I really love it. 

What do you think? 

Interested in seeing the other logos? Pop over to my Facebook Page where three of the four have now been launched! The fourth will be coming in the next little bit.

Building Characters & Giving Them Life

Creating characters that are full of life, personality, well-rounded and real is far harder to do then you might think. It’s more then describing them, more then giving them names, history and physicality. It takes more then rich colorful language and a strong handle of how to use it.

Photo: FreeImages.com/JasonAntony

And honestly, characterization is one thing that I have often struggled with. Creating diverse settings that pulse with a life of their own – that I’m generally good with, it doesn’t faze me. But doing the same for my characters… simply not the same.

One trick I have learned is to not sweat those descriptions during my first draft. (Simply put: during that first draft it’s perfectly fine to simply say “she has green eyes” or “he has dark brown hair.”) If you’re like me and struggle with your characters, in the first draft just focus on getting the story down first. Once you’ve got that done then you can go back and add more. 

With story down on the page you can go back and focus on the characters – describe their looks; give color and depth to their personalities. (“His rich brown hair was so dark, in moments of fantasy it sparked images of having dipped him in lush dark chocolate.”) Give them quirks. (“I discovered that she had this annoying habit of lifting her dark brows and opening her brilliantly green eyes wide, making them appear even more like highly faceted emeralds set into the fine setting of her face.”)

Photo: FreeImages.com/StefanHellwig

Once you do that you’ll discover that suddenly they’re alive and you’ll better connect with them. Then you build them emotionally – give them strengths, weaknesses, fears and dreams. And that’s when you find that now they have that pulsing life that you need from them. 

That’s when they become real.

It takes time. Patience.

But the more you write, the more often you’ll find that without even focusing effort on creating real, life-like characters that you’re writing that spark into them thoughtlessly. Some characters will grow easily, organically on the page and some are frustratingly more difficult.

The bottom line is to find a method that works for you, whatever that may be. But also remember that sometimes your method will change, with certain stories or characters you may go about their creation differently. And that’s okay.

So what are some methods you use for creating, building and bringing your characters to life?

Why Do You Write?

Writing.

You do it because you have a passion for words - for the way you can craft them, twist them and use them. You write because you’ve got a story within you that simply must be told. Sometimes you have just one story to tell and some times there are simply dozens of stories waiting to be shared.

Writing.

Taking an idea, even the barest fragment of one, and nurturing it. Giving it time and love and attention. You feed it. Then the idea grows and you develop it in to more. It becomes characters and settings and a plot line. And you feed it more. You give it your heart and mind and sometimes even your soul. You give it everything you’ve got, and then you give it more.

Writing.

Crafting your tale, not only in such a way that it tells the story you imagine but also in such a way that other people can enjoy it too. You don’t just need to catch the eye with a beautiful cover (even though that is important) but you need to catch the mind with an intriguing start, hold the reader with an interesting plot and satisfy the heart with a fulfilling finish. Sometimes there’s a happy ending, sometimes there’s not. Sometimes the story you tell simply ends with your characters right back where they started – in neither a better or worse position than at the beginning, but having had a grand adventure.

Writing.

Because whether you’re sharing parts of your day, parts of your dreams, your hopes, your likes or dislikes, you’ve got something to share, to tell, to say.

Writing.

In the good times and bad. When you struggle to find the words. When you just can’t find the right way to say what you need to. When you know exactly what to do and simply don’t have the time. When the story flows like water from your fingertips, slipping to the page as if by magic. When the story is there on paper and you just can find anyone to read it.

Writing.

Don’t stop. No matter why, no matter what, keep writing. Because, well, just because.

Everyone has there own reason for writing…

What’s yours?

Writer's Nerves

For the last month I’ve been working on a new story. Well, it’s actually probably closer to two months now but the last month has been spent focused exclusively on this story. In any case, I’m nearly finished the writing part of it and will be moving on to the personal edits and proof-reading phase soon, and then trying to find a couple beta’s to read it. I’ve got my fingers crossed that I’ll be able to have this story into the hands of a special few by the end of the month.

Which sort of has my stomach in knots.

This specific story came at me from out of no where. Unlike almost all my other writing projects (of which there are many – all at varying degrees of completion, and all waiting for this story to get out the way so I can move back to them) this isn’t one that I dreamed of for a protracted period of time. When I sat down and started writing I really didn’t know all that much about my characters. I didn’t know their histories, their secrets and desires, or their dreams, and I had absolutely no idea what these characters were going to tell me.

 

And the result is something completely different from anything I’ve written before.  I’ve always written with some shade of paranormal, magical or mystical basis to the story line. Some of what I’ve written before uses mythology as a springboard for the plot. This story has no magic. No myth. There’s nothing paranormal, mystical or fantastical about it.

Instead, this story is a contemporary romance. 

 It’s about second chances, and love and family.

It’s about doing the right thing for all the right reasons, no matter how hard that may be, and then living with consequences – no matter how wrong that may feel. It’s about forgiveness. Not just forgiving others but learning how to forgive yourself too.

All of which boils down to me being nervous of the outcome, the final product.

But you know, as nervous as I am… I’m pretty excited too.

Writing... Why?

I’ve been writing for years. I have a hard time expressing myself in spoken word (not to mention that I get stage fright anytime I have to open my mouth and speak in public) but give me a pen and paper, or a computer and keyboard and I can put exactly what I want to be said, and explain everything that I want to be understood, into written words with little problem.

I’ve always told stories. I remember being in Jr. High School and getting on the bus in the morning and telling my friends about the dreams (even then they were incredibly vivid dreams) that I’d had the night before. Sometimes I’d write them down in a notebook or my diary, sometimes I wouldn’t.

In high school I wrote several short stories that my teachers told me were wonderfully imaginative and well written. In university I heard the same kinds of comments for my writing.

It wasn’t really a surprise (to me, anyways) when I finally decided that I wanted to publish. The journey has been long and has had many detours and road blocks that have crept in the way. Through it all though, writing was one thing that I knew no one could take away from me. Other’s could make me feel horrible about myself, to the point that I found it difficult to even write, but no one could take away my ability to tell a story. Not completely anyways.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I’m back to focusing on writing (and promoting of other authors’ works as well) nearly full time. I don’t know what’s different this time but I just know that this time I’m actually going to get to the point where I actually do publish. Whether I make a name for myself, whether I make money or make enough money to support myself by writing isn’t important – I really just want to publish. I don’t know whether I’ll end up publishing by traditional routes or via self-publishing, but I want to publish and I’m going to do it.

I want to be able to tell people that my books can be bought on Amazon, or iTunes, or Kobo, or Smashwords, or whatever. I want to be able to say “yeah I’ve got 3 published novels”, or “I have 17 novellas available for purchase.” The money hardly matters, though yeah, it sure would be nice. But making money isn’t the reason to be writer. It’s not the motivation behind it, or it shouldn’t be.

Honestly, really, I just want to tell my stories. They’ve been mine so long and the characters just want to be given the opportunity to make you love them as much as I do. So I have to write them. I have to publish them.

Yes, I hope you like them. I hope you love them.

Yes, I hope I make at least a little bit of money – you know maybe enough to pay the bills and feed my kids.

But the truth is... Whether you like my stories and characters or hate them, whether I never make a dime and or break even in the process of publishing, I’m still going to write.

And maybe that’s the difference this time around. Rather than worry about creating something that everyone else might like or might pay for, I’m making sure that I’m creating something that I love and something that I can be proud of.

Because in the end, that’s what’s really important.