Often times, you may hear that to be successful in your creative endeavors you need to “think outside the box”. This is sound advice. There is nothing more infinite than what is outside the conventional. There is also nothing more boundless than the blank page. Sometimes, creativity may need to be reined in so as not to be overwhelmed. What better place than a box to give your inspiration some form? A small box.
Back in my early adulthood, I sat in a workshop where the instructor beat us over the head about setting goals. Right now I can’t remember much of what he said, but I do remember I thought long and hard about goal setting, but not so much about how I might actually reach a goal. I don’t remember the instructor teaching us the practical steps of working at a goal.
It is my belief that every writer should go to a writer’s conference at least once, whether it’s in your genre or not. There are plenty of people who go to the RWA Conference who are not “romance writers” per say.
You’ve finished your first novel, sent it through the wringer of your critique group or chosen beta readers, and tweaked it again and again. Nerves rioting, you’ve decided set it free into the reading world. You’re standing in the open doorway and the paths before you are numerous. You notice a passing author out for a stroll with their third, or was it tenth, book at their side. You clear your throat and timidly ask, “Which road is the one to Publication City?”
Structuring genre novels and Hollywood movies is simple. (It’s the writing that’s hard!) They’re built on only three basic elements—character, desire, and conflict—and have a plot structure that consists of six basic stages. These stages help you build tension and conflict into your story and strengthen its emotional impact.
Urban Legends are the sturdy children of ancient myths and legends. We love to believe the story about the hook on the car door, or the dog drying in the microwave, or the car following a driver in the middle of the night and honking because there was a killer in the back seat. We love these stories, we believe these stories because we heard it from a friend who heard it from their aunt who swore she knew the victim, or at least heard of the victim. No names are ever exchanged. But even so, the story must be true. Preposterous, but deliciously true.
When I quit a day job last January to write full-time, it was a challenge, at first, to focus writing at home. Up until that point, my writing sessions had been on coffee breaks, sitting outside at a picnic table, or scribbling furiously with a notebook pressed up against my steering wheel while waiting in a drive-thru line or secretly in a bathroom stall whenever inspiration hit in the middle of an important meeting. 🙂
So, it’s getting to be time for that age-old question: How did you spend your summer? As the long, hot days begin to wind down, have you been working hard on a writing project, meaning to work hard on a writing project, or just enjoying some fun summer reading?
I was stuck thinking today, as I am most days and I realized that when I began writing I could have really used a tutorial, someone else’s experience – kind of like a step-by-step guide. I had plenty of seasoned writers trying to help and I’m so grateful to all of them but the beginning is just plain hard. So I wanted to write a guide for those of you who are about to start or who have just started or who want to start and are afraid or lost or confused or all of the above….
Like many writers, my ultimate goal is to write full-time and earn a living. Thanks to a corporate reduction, I got half of my wish. I no longer have any excuses for not taking advantage of my suddenly empty schedule, and have filled it accordingly with word goals galore. While my recent status change can be viewed as an unexpectedly blessing, I discovered I harbored a dirty little secret—I didn’t consider writing a job.
I’ve been talking about goals a lot lately and their importance to us as writers. In last month’s WFZ article, I mentioned how amateurs are different from professional writers in that they show up and do the hard work required of them every day, even if they experience boredom. This time, I want to discuss the importance of actually accomplishing something, whether it be in writing or in life.
Coming from Ireland as I do, even the slightest bit of sunshine brings excitement. We have a lot of rain – It’s why we have our ‘40 shades of green.’ I remember as a kid, when on vacation at the beach, it didn’t matter what the weather was like. Sun, rain, wind, arctic temperatures – we didn’t care. We were in the sea, building sandcastles, chasing beach balls as they blew away.
‘Yay, no saggy middle issue’, the words every author hopes to hear from their editors upon receiving revision notes. But how do we avoid it when we have three hundred pages to fill? Believe me, I feel the pain of that middle section of every book I write, just like everyone else…I’ve just learned a few techniques to ‘get around it’. At every writing conference I attend, I always choose to sit in on the workshops that tackle this issue and the following are various tips I’ve found to be the most helpful.
Do you ever shy away from certain topics in your writing for fear of what people will say or think? As a writer and/or artist you have power and the ability to influence others through what you create. Why not use that power to challenge assumptions and to try and get closer to the truth? Is it because the truth can set you free, but can also get you fired, killed, or at the very least into arguments and trouble with your friends, family and associates?
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