Courtesy of Ernest Hemingway:
Waiting for an important email.
Is there anything more distracting to the process of writing than waiting for an important letter???? No there is not. That’s why, the motto of my day is: take a break! Get the errands done. Stay busy. Don’t think you can be productive when you are distracted!
Give yourself some quiet time
Yesterday, when my writing felt a bit off, I gave myself some quiet time. Such a gift! Quiet time…or still time…often helps me put things in order. Or figure out what isn’t working. Sometimes, I stumble on something (literally) or overhear a piece of dialogue that was just what I needed. Nice view, too. Right?…
Planning ahead
In my writers.com classes, I often (read: almost always) ask the writer to come up with a chapter to chapter synopsis, to analyze the main action and main emotion of EACH and EVERY scene. What this helps me do: pinpoint the places where nothing is happening….and where the emotion is not evolving. NOTE: before I…
Try it!
Are you working on a final draft? If so, let’s be brave. Read your work out loud. Read to a friend or an empty room. Either way, you will hear things that your eyes might have missed!
Getting close to the end of the process
As I start one new WIP, I am finishing another. It is a novel I began a very long time ago. It is hugely gratifying to finish (and humbling, too. Apparently, I am not so good at knowing when paragraphs begin and end!) Each new project offers new challenges, new discoveries, new obstacles. This one…
Not so gentle reminder as I start a new story…
When I worry about getting there….I never start. Two pages a day. Starting today!!
On yesterday’s walk…
(It’s getting cold out here.)
Mining memories
One of the things I do when I am first envisioning a novel is mine for memories. This helps me form a new character and hone in on what I want to say in the book. It helps me figure out the emotional arc…and why the character won’t leave me alone! (that’s me playing Dolly…
Scrolling through pictures,…
I found this. What do you think they’re talking about?