Category Archives: Writers Write

Friday Reads & Writing Progress!

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Happy Friday, everyone!

No one, and I mean NO ONE could be happier that it is Friday than I. NO ONE I SAY! It’s been a long, trying couple of weeks week for me at day job and I’m just really happy that I get a few days to myself. I have plans to read and write, eat good food and laugh with my girlfriends. Let’s get this party started!

But first… let’s talk about what we’re reading! Yay.

Friday Reads: Week of January 30

This week, I blew through Betty White’s fifth book, Here We Go Again. It was a wonderful trip through the beginning of television, told with Betty’s self depricating and cherished humorous voice. I really had no idea she had such a robust career in radio and TV… and I’ll tell you what– back in the day that it was LIVE, those folks worked hard! Five and a half hours a day each week, on air, live. I can’t even believe it! I wish she’d told more Golden Girls stories and I wish the end of GG wasn’t all on Bea’s shoulders. Estelle also had some issues with her dementia, not able to remember lines, etc. I hardly believe one pony stopped that show, but… she refuses to dish dirt so I guess we’ll never know.

I started listening to Getting to Happy by Terri McMillan but I’m not far enough along to give it any kind of opinion. I never read Waiting to Exhale, but I’ll let this one stand on it’s own two feet.

I’m also re-reading, by way of audiobook, Lisa Genova’s Still Alice. I really enjoyed this the first time around, but since one of the characters in my novel has Alzheimer’s Disease, reading it has brought up all of the questions I need to ask about him and his condition, his mannerisms and habits and behaviors and also how his daughter relates to him, both before and after the disease. Besides that, it’s just an enjoyable book from a scientific, intelligent standpoint. The main character is a beloved, brilliant Harvard Linguist. When she develops early onset Alzheimer’s, her entire world is turned upside down, but life has to go on. HOW it goes on is the problem. Soon, Alice feels abandoned and crippled by a disease that she is too young and too healthy to be cut down by. All valid emotions and experiences that I can use as reference for when I am writing Bernard.

I started a couple of books and decided not to continue reading them. I don’t even remember what the titles were. I’m just not into forcing myself to read something just because I once thought it sounded interesting. My To Read list is already out of control. No pity adds!

Shut Up And Write 2012

This is my mantra (along with PERSIST) for the year. And I am certainly doing some writing. Not as much shutting up as I’d like. I feel like I’ve told everyone that I started writing a book and I will soon regret that decision. So the best thing for me to do is to just Shut Up and Write.

I CAN tell you that it is going well so far, and after this weekend I should be on a  good track. I’ve been writing on my lunch hour and for two hours at night. Between this and audiobooks, my TV has been off more than it has been on, which is a great feat for me. I waste a lot of time with TV, and now when I watch, it’s like a treat!

How was your week? What did you read? What did you write? 

Writing Wednesday: Fat Guy in a Little Coat

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That has nothing to do with anything, it’s just funny to me and it came to mind this morning when I woke up.

It’s February 1, and today I start writing my new project.

Well, to be clear it is my new OLD Project and I am REstarting it. I tried to be one of those hip, cool writers that just write scenes and then put them together later and I had about 4 scenes written that were just directionless blather and I was lost and gave up.

And then I took a month off from reading and writing because I was so frustrated.
Six months later, I’m going at it again with something that resembles a plot and, knowing that I am a linear writer, I am starting at the beginning and writing my way through.

I’m nervous about it, if I’m honest. I have a history of getting to the end of Chapter 1 and then thinking…….well, now what? Hopefully that’s where the plot comes in. It’s like knowing what a book is about but not what happens in it. I can’t plan every page, but I know my major beats… it’s getting TO them that’s the challenge.

And if you need something to laugh at, watch Chris Farley bust out of a too-small wool coat. It eases the tension!

Anyone starting something new, digging up something old to bang on, working on something today? Please share in my excitement!

Monday Morning Warm Up- A quote that gives you hope

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Monday Morning Warm-Up (courtesy Jo Knowles): Share a quote that makes you think and feel hopeful.

One of my friends forwarded a quote to me late last year and it has become my mantra, chiefly the word PERSIST.

I don’t know why, and I suppose I am not the only one, but I am encouraged when I hear about people who are famous for their craft struggling, like I do, to create. It makes me feel more normal and human and less like a talentless hack. I guess in some ways I seek validation in that, in knowing that I’m not the only one doesn’t know what to write after the end of Chapter 1.

The only difference between a failure and a success is persistence. People who persist eventually end up somewhere with something to be proud of.

If you haven’t seen this post at lettersofnote.com, please take a second and visit the site.  Austin Madison of PIXAR, who penned the note, wrote:

PERSIST on telling your story. PERSIST on reaching your audience. PERSIST on staying true to your vision… the next time you hit writer’s block, or your computer crashes and you lose an entire night’s work because you didn’t hit save (always hit save), just remember: you’re never far from that next burst of divine creativity.

Work through that 97% of murky abysmal mediocrity to get to that 3% which everyone will remember you for! I guarantee you, the art will be well worth the work!

That gives me hope. It makes me feel like all this hard work, laboring down here in the salt mines will someday be worth it.

PERSIST

#FridayReads -The Grapes of Wrath + It’s almost time!

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Courtesy campfirechicblog

This Friday Reads finds me at the tail end of a great book, The Grapes of Wrath. Yes, I did just call this a great book. I was thinking this morning, as I was driving through the pre-dawn morning traffic, that this story is so wasted on the youth. I have no idea why teenagers are made to read it. I never had to, but I can’t say I would have enjoyed it or understood it better than I understand it now. It’s eerie how it’s so relevant to today – families being forced out of their own homes due to the economy with no choice but to pack up and go where the work is. Only when they get to what is supposed to be the promised land, they find they’ve been sold the same dream as so many others, and there’s only so many pieces of the dream to go around. So much work and sacrifice, sometimes for nothing—and all you can do is keep going.

Yes, I’ve really enjoyed this book. It’s been slow going though, since I’m reading via audiobook. At night I follow along with my e-copy. I’ll probably read more Steinbeck. Continue reading →

Monday Morning Warmup: Your favorite alone time

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Thanks again to Jo Knowles, who posts these each Monday. Today I’m doing an archived exercise:

Describe your favorite quiet and alone time. Where are you? Inside? Outside? Is it cold? Warm? Is there an animal nearby? What do you see? Hear? Smell? Why does this time matter to you?

I’m single and a bit of a loner. While I do get together with friends now and again, I’m mostly at home with the books and the appliances and the heater. Always the heater. It’s where I am comfortable and it is conveniently also where I keep all my stuff.

So for me to have a specific time of quiet is a big deal. I’d have to say that this is Sunday morning. My Saturdays can be ragged, but Sunday morning is glorious to me. I’ve had a great night’s sleep, I’ve awakened when my body is ready, I have the day to do as I like, which usually involves a lot of reading and minimal TV.

I love a quiet Sunday morning, whether it is sunny or rainy, whether I can hear the birds chirping outside my window or the dogs across the street barking or the neighbor kids outside playing– yeah, I find that endearing. The kids in this neighborhood play outside.

On a Sunday morning I’m usually still snuggled down in the bed, all of my electronic dearhearts near to me– phone, eReader, laptop. I might venture downstairs or out for a cup of coffee and a a breakfast sandwich, but until around 2:00, that time is mine.

And I love it.

 

What’s your favorite quiet time? 

#FridayReads, the OMG YOU READ A LOT edition

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A few weeks ago, I met some friends at our local Bahama Breeze for drinks and a rousing game of “keep the toddler from climbing over the tops of the benches and pulling the hair of the patron behind us.” It was some unexpected cardio and a really good time, because I’ve missed this particular family since they moved to Florida.

“So,” my friend S says to me. “I have questions. You read a lot. What’s that about?”

I laughed, because I can only imagine what it looks like to people who follow me on twitter or Facebook. I don’t party, I rarely eat out, I don’t drink. I don’t wax on about the latest vampire show or singing competition (except for Criminal Minds or Golden Girls. I stan for both of those shows!). What I do is read. I read incessantly. I’m kind of addicted to getting lost in a fictional world, fictional characters for 300-500 pages at a time. I am a member at Goodreads, and when I stop for the moment or the day, I record my progress. If I don’t tweet anything else, it looks like I haven’t been doing anything but reading all day. And on the weekends, you’re probably right, on that one.

Over time I have developed the skill of reading quickly (okay and sometimes if there’s 7 pages of description, I skim. SHHHHHH don’t tell anyone!). So yes, I read a lot. A few books at a time, especially if one is particularly heavy. I need something light to detract from that.
Continue reading →

Monday Warm-Up 1/16:”I want to write something that…”

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Thanks to Jo Knowles for posting these! This is my first Monday Morning Warm-Up…
“Write to the prompt: “I want to write something that will…”

One of my fave music artists once said that he wanted to be a part of a song that lived on forever. Even after his career was over or he was long gone, when people listened to that song, they’d know he was a part of it.

I think that artists- musicians and painters and sculptors and writers want the same thing, to create something that lives on beyond them and bears the mark of their effort, their talent, their dedication.

I want to write something that speaks to people’s hearts, perhaps reminds them of someone or something in their lives. Most of all I want to write something that entertains and brings joy, provides a space for escaping life as we know it and living the lives of fictional characters through my words.

 

The Backup Plan

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Do you have one? A what if scenario that hides in the back of your mind, that gives you an “out” if things don’t go as swimmingly as you hoped?

I’ve made it clear to myself that I am writing a novel this year. And I will put my best foot forward and everything I am doing right now is in preparation of such. After I write the novel, it will be edited and rewritten and primped and primed and I will seek out an agent for representation and try to find a publisher to publish it.

In the back of my mind is the reservation… the what if I don’t? Find an agent? Find a publisher?

I think most people would argue that this is not the time to think about those kinds of things– I can’t even broke chapter 1 yet. I’m just not that way. If a friend tells me they’re visiting next month, I hop right on Open Table and reserve a spot at our fave restaurant. I’m a ‘do it now’ kind of person. So I’m worrying about it now… because if I have to break the glass and enact Plan B, I want to be ready.

What is the backup plan? Well, if you guessed self publish, you hit the nail on the head. I’m a little concerned about that plan though because:

a) If I self publish, my mom won’t be able to go to a bookstore and pick up my book. BUUUUT I could send her a printed copy probably.

b) I bounce through Amazon or B&N every once in awhile looking for a good (cheap) read. Invariably the least costly books turn out to be self published. Sometimes I honestly can’t tell… most times it’s glaringly obvious. If I can’t snag an agent or get a book published, what if it’s glaringly obvious that my book is bad. Will I be self-aware enough to know that the thing is crap and I should scrap it and write another book?

c) And mostly this… I’m not sure if it’ll quite satisfy the achievement of a dream.

But that’s why the backup plan is the backup plan and not the major, primary, workin’ hard for a livin’ plan.

No matter what, this book is getting written. I’ll deal with Plan A or B after that.

Do you have a Backup Plan? What does it entail, other than See Plan A?

UUURRGGGHHH.

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That’s the sound I make when I spend an hour meticulously adding character details into this fantastical character survey (that I shared with friends last night and who ALSO love the crap out of it), and then click on something and then lose the entire thing and then get angry, roll over, pull out the Nook Color and finish reading The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest. Followed by falling dead asleep and oversleeping the alarm the next morning.

SIGH.

REDUX.

This character survey has an undercover purpose– it asks about what role the character plays in the story and their own particular story arc. It’s definitely made me think about each person’s devevlopment and how these stories intertwine, rise to a crescendo and then fall to a satisfying (if not happy) ending. It has also identified some pretty big holes I have in my plot. More work to do.

I’m having dinner with my writing partner friend person tomorrow, so I have some work to do so I have some work to show her.