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I have been trying to figure what do you do when you have so little time to do it. Right now, my creativity is at a peak it hasn't been in a long time. I have several stories that are new to me, coming to mind. I seems to spend a lot of time writing down the basics so I don't forget it. I have had a couple of actual scenes that came to me, had to get them down - not completely sure where they fit, but pretty sure I know the story they belong in.
I have about 20 article ideas that I have been working on - at least a basis to send a query out - this is something new for me, not the query, but writing to offer article ideas.
I have three new story ideas and 3 new shorts I am working out the small stuff on. It's exciting but overwhelming as well - I am trying to prioritize and know that I need to sit down to finish one, but I am afraid of losing the other, so I have been focusing on outlining the new ideas so as not to lose them.
I have not been as disciplined in my writing as I was hoping to be at this point. I was trying to figure it out when I do my best and most writing - it always comes down to situations when I am supposed to be doing something else and can't do what normally pulls me away from writing (damn you television and Internet, for being so much fun). Now I am sure for most of you, this would be a 'duh' moment. For me, it was an 'aha' moment. I know what I need to do, so I have put a little extra effort into getting that writing space ready. Next it's going to be important for me to schedule the times - I read an article recently (I think on a writer's blog and wish I could remember who it was because I would like to give him props.)
The basis of what he said was that for him, it became more important to write something every day, not focus on getting 10 pages done a day, but to write something whether it was 3 paragraphs or 3 pages. Hmmmmm...I love this thought - he went on to say that by the end of the month, he had something like a 30,000 (or was it 60,000) book written. Time to start writing, I say it again.
Showing posts with label writing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label writing. Show all posts
Tuesday, July 08, 2008
Sunday, June 22, 2008
New Additions...
TO THE FAMILY - Please meet SUNNY AND SHARE (aren't they beautiful). They joined our little family or menagerie yesterday.
I have to say on a brief note, whatever happened that camping trip - I love the creativity it has caused. So far I have written the basics of 3, count them, 3 new short stories. Maybe a little get away to doing nothing is going to be needed more often.
Monday, June 16, 2008
On Writing
Initially, this weekend I was struggling - getting re-aquanted with old friends and lots of reading. I was struggling where to pick up in my writing - what I wanted to work on. Thursday night was spent getting re-aquainted. Friday we spent much of the day at the different sites in Nebraska City. Saturday - I finished reading my book and opted out of doing more site seeing.
After finishing the book, I decided it was time to really focus on some writing - the weather was on our side and just encouraged free thought and peace. So I was looking through my notebooks and found, not one but two chapters of different books I had written. My book about the the group of friends which centers around a tree house - and another story that I know how it is going to go, what happens in it and how it ends, but have not really been able to get it on paper - I haven't found the voice.
For the tree house story - I found a chapter that points me in the direction I was hoping the story would go. I just had been stuck. I was able to pick up the pen to paper and start writing again - I think I finished another two chapters - I have to get it transferred to Word to see really how much I wrote, but I did good. I have even figured out how I am going to go from the part of the book I am currently writing to the next and I feel good about it. It's nice to have direction.
The other story (I am not sure how long it is going to be if it is a novella, novel or short story.) It was actually an idea that I had developed for a screeplay, but that is such a different style of writing - I was spending so much time on learning to write screenplays that I didn't write as much. I also had always pictured the main character as a young me (I am not sure how many others do this in there story, but the stories are all going to be me in one way or another). Anyhow, I knew that when this story actually translated to script - the main character is going to have to be female for it to sell - so I thought, why not just write it like that. I had forgotten that I had a good start on the story, but found it all when looking for paper and pen. So I believe I once again ow C&M a thank you.
After finishing the book, I decided it was time to really focus on some writing - the weather was on our side and just encouraged free thought and peace. So I was looking through my notebooks and found, not one but two chapters of different books I had written. My book about the the group of friends which centers around a tree house - and another story that I know how it is going to go, what happens in it and how it ends, but have not really been able to get it on paper - I haven't found the voice.
For the tree house story - I found a chapter that points me in the direction I was hoping the story would go. I just had been stuck. I was able to pick up the pen to paper and start writing again - I think I finished another two chapters - I have to get it transferred to Word to see really how much I wrote, but I did good. I have even figured out how I am going to go from the part of the book I am currently writing to the next and I feel good about it. It's nice to have direction.
The other story (I am not sure how long it is going to be if it is a novella, novel or short story.) It was actually an idea that I had developed for a screeplay, but that is such a different style of writing - I was spending so much time on learning to write screenplays that I didn't write as much. I also had always pictured the main character as a young me (I am not sure how many others do this in there story, but the stories are all going to be me in one way or another). Anyhow, I knew that when this story actually translated to script - the main character is going to have to be female for it to sell - so I thought, why not just write it like that. I had forgotten that I had a good start on the story, but found it all when looking for paper and pen. So I believe I once again ow C&M a thank you.
Thursday, June 05, 2008
Write One Thing 2
I did well the other night after writing my post. I started a new story, I do no know the direction it is going, but I believe it to be a type of ghost story (which I don't think I have every really done before). It always feels good and exciting for me to start something new. I have to admit that is is falling out of my pattern though - I have a tendency to start write a chapter of one of my novels and then fall into writing a short. I don't know if that is good or not, but it is my pattern.
I have been thinking of putting some of my shorts together in a collection. They all have a type of theme that they go with, but I am not sure it is a theme that others would be interested in - I know story-wise, the stories and the idea are good. We will have to see.
I am setting a goal for this month to write a page a day towards one of the novels. My writing group is great at encouraging me to read - I feel very supported in this group. I know many read in order of what they are writing. I am not sure I will be doing that. Sometimes I wonder if it is the actual story that is being critiqued or the writing - I know that we have to address both in a writer's group because if the story doesn't grab the reader they can help me with the direction and the interest. Now I can't say that has honestly ever been a critique I have received (the dreaded 'I just didn't care, aaarrrrggghhhh!!! that would be horrible). But I have hard some that this was my thought.
Sometimes I have read part of one of my short stories - I sometimes feel bad because I can only read half of it (we are only supposed to read about 5 double-spaced pages each critique) and because there were too many holes or it fixed what I was looking for, I don't necessarily go back and read the rest of the story. Only a couple of times have I heard disappointment in not hearing more. I have one story I wrote several years ago that I really see eventually being turned into a script - I read a portion of it to my group and even though I think the response would have been differently if they had been privy to the whole story, there was still a lot of attention given to the things that either bothered or did not work for them. I haven't gone back to the story for it's edit since that read, but it has been calling me and I believe that often after a critique like that and time, the story only comes out better once I adjust it.
Yesterday I did not meet my goal (as I just made it up today, lol). I did however, edit one of my stories to read last night (although I didn't end up reading yesterday). I felt good about the changes. Even the fact that I pretty much cut off the end of the story - we will have to see how it actually works into the novel this way. It's supposed to be the prologue, but it might be a little too long. Speaking of too long...
I have been thinking of putting some of my shorts together in a collection. They all have a type of theme that they go with, but I am not sure it is a theme that others would be interested in - I know story-wise, the stories and the idea are good. We will have to see.
I am setting a goal for this month to write a page a day towards one of the novels. My writing group is great at encouraging me to read - I feel very supported in this group. I know many read in order of what they are writing. I am not sure I will be doing that. Sometimes I wonder if it is the actual story that is being critiqued or the writing - I know that we have to address both in a writer's group because if the story doesn't grab the reader they can help me with the direction and the interest. Now I can't say that has honestly ever been a critique I have received (the dreaded 'I just didn't care, aaarrrrggghhhh!!! that would be horrible). But I have hard some that this was my thought.
Sometimes I have read part of one of my short stories - I sometimes feel bad because I can only read half of it (we are only supposed to read about 5 double-spaced pages each critique) and because there were too many holes or it fixed what I was looking for, I don't necessarily go back and read the rest of the story. Only a couple of times have I heard disappointment in not hearing more. I have one story I wrote several years ago that I really see eventually being turned into a script - I read a portion of it to my group and even though I think the response would have been differently if they had been privy to the whole story, there was still a lot of attention given to the things that either bothered or did not work for them. I haven't gone back to the story for it's edit since that read, but it has been calling me and I believe that often after a critique like that and time, the story only comes out better once I adjust it.
Yesterday I did not meet my goal (as I just made it up today, lol). I did however, edit one of my stories to read last night (although I didn't end up reading yesterday). I felt good about the changes. Even the fact that I pretty much cut off the end of the story - we will have to see how it actually works into the novel this way. It's supposed to be the prologue, but it might be a little too long. Speaking of too long...
Monday, May 12, 2008
Writing - Wishes and Pockets
On Saturday, I went to a new writer’s group that is primarily for Children/Juvenile writers. I believe they are a critique group sponsored by the SCBWI group. It was interesting. It’s one of those opportunities that allow me to be thankful that I am in the primary group which I am in.
This new group had some very talented and interesting people. It is a little less structured than my primary group, and there is a tendency to get off topic. I really like the structure of the current group I belong to, though I will return to this group in the future. I did read – which I know I stated in a previous post that it would have been helpful to attend a couple of meetings to learn the dynamics of a group before reading – this group only meets once a month, so it’s a different approach and I jumped right in. However, I got raked over the coals a little. It was interesting to read the same story which was so well-received by one group and then with the group who is more along the lines of children’s writers – not as much.
First of all, after I had read, there was an awkward silence which even prompted me to go, ‘the end.’ LOL. Then someone jumped in with ‘well the thing I didn’t get at first’ and then other comments about its length and the material being stuff children would be interested in. It was a very humbling experience to say the least. A couple of questions were brought up that I had not really looked at. Many of the suggestions were very good. One woman suggested it might even be better for a parenting magazine because it does offer a suggestion for parents to handle a behavior their own children might be showing.
I left the meeting a little disheartened, not because I believe the story is a bad story, but because I have a feeling this might be why it has not been picked up by a publisher. Of course, I learn this the week that I have sent it out to 10 different publishers, lol. It did give me another direction to go with whom to submit it. As with any of the critiques I have gone through – I will sit on it awhile before picking it up again to review it.
This new group had some very talented and interesting people. It is a little less structured than my primary group, and there is a tendency to get off topic. I really like the structure of the current group I belong to, though I will return to this group in the future. I did read – which I know I stated in a previous post that it would have been helpful to attend a couple of meetings to learn the dynamics of a group before reading – this group only meets once a month, so it’s a different approach and I jumped right in. However, I got raked over the coals a little. It was interesting to read the same story which was so well-received by one group and then with the group who is more along the lines of children’s writers – not as much.
First of all, after I had read, there was an awkward silence which even prompted me to go, ‘the end.’ LOL. Then someone jumped in with ‘well the thing I didn’t get at first’ and then other comments about its length and the material being stuff children would be interested in. It was a very humbling experience to say the least. A couple of questions were brought up that I had not really looked at. Many of the suggestions were very good. One woman suggested it might even be better for a parenting magazine because it does offer a suggestion for parents to handle a behavior their own children might be showing.
I left the meeting a little disheartened, not because I believe the story is a bad story, but because I have a feeling this might be why it has not been picked up by a publisher. Of course, I learn this the week that I have sent it out to 10 different publishers, lol. It did give me another direction to go with whom to submit it. As with any of the critiques I have gone through – I will sit on it awhile before picking it up again to review it.
Monday, May 05, 2008
I am so proud of myself
Can I just say that the day is only halfway through and explain was a highly productive day I had. I woke up nice and early this morning - didn't have to be to work until 10 a.m. since I am working late tonight. I did a little more research for another job at Careerlink, and found a few to apply for. I have to work on that tonight before I go to bed.
But the thing I am most proud of is getting my story out to some publishers. I got 5 queries/manuscripts out to a few different publishers and also sent one to an agent. For me that was a productive day. I had gone through the Writer's Market about 1.5 months ago and identified about 20 companies who accept non-solicited stories as well as simultaneous submissions, but had not done anything with them. So now my plan is to get at least five of them out a day, until I have the list completed. I can't get published if I am not submitting.
But the thing I am most proud of is getting my story out to some publishers. I got 5 queries/manuscripts out to a few different publishers and also sent one to an agent. For me that was a productive day. I had gone through the Writer's Market about 1.5 months ago and identified about 20 companies who accept non-solicited stories as well as simultaneous submissions, but had not done anything with them. So now my plan is to get at least five of them out a day, until I have the list completed. I can't get published if I am not submitting.
Monday, April 21, 2008
Scheduling, Research and Queries
I have been working at scheduling my writing. This weekend I spent a lot of time researching different companies to submit my Wishman story too - I think I have officially changed the name to Wishes and Pockets, which I think might make it more appealing as opposed to the longer title of They Called Him the Wishman. Then I was researching query letters - I have written a couple, and the initial companies I sent the story too, would not take simultaneous submissions, so I then had to play the wait game. I did not like doing this - then there was no helpful hints. I know they receive a lot and don't have the time - the one company I submitted it to had a 12 week wait period and if I didn't hear from them in that time, I can safely assume they have decided to pass on it. Again, not liking this, but I thought I had a really good chance with this company as I had checked out other children's books they have, but I move on. The agent I submitted to responded fairly quickly - to the negative. Still it would have been nice to know if it is a good query or not.
The thing is I would like to sell the book on it's merits alone. I have even played with doing the art myself and selling it on iuniverse.com or something - who knows, that might still be coming. I actually have some ideas for art, even though my drawing is not good enough, I have been playing with some of my photographs and think that there are programs out there which would allow me to work them into the story. But first I am gonig to try what I wanted to do from the beginning which is to first send it to all the companies which will take simultaneous submissions (ss), then if no one bites, I can work with sending it to the companies that do not accept ss. It's like Josh Stolberg said when I saw him at the Omaha Film Festival - he sent out 75 copies of his script at one time, and only one responded with an offer - but that's all it takes, right?
Right now I am trying to figure out more of a writing routine - I want to at least completed some writing every day, this weekend I had a lot of writing time planned and it really seemed like the research of it all became my focus - in addition to getting my house back in order for company both tonight and tomorrow. I think that whatever writing time I have scheduled, is good, but if I have to do some research, I will have to set a specific time to allow me to get back to the writing.
I am excited to have gotten a bit farther on 2 of my stories though - one is a psychological thriller that I have hit a few roadblocks, mostly when it comes to presenting it to my writers group. I have become so aware of some of the critiques that they catch, that I find myself trying to fix those before reading at the meeting - which I honestly believe is the right thing to do, instead of reading it and thinking, 'I knew they were going to say that.' The other story is one that I really believe I am writing for a screenplay, but not having written one before, am thinking I should write it in story form first. This one is a little exciting to me, when I was thinking of the story, the main character was always a male. However, when I was thinking of it as a script, I know it only works and is more marketable if the lead is a female. Well, I realized that if I know this, I need to make the main character a female and go from there - so much has come together with this story since doing this. Now, I need to have some time to write, lol. This is becoming less of a problem as writing becomes more of a priority for me.
The thing is I would like to sell the book on it's merits alone. I have even played with doing the art myself and selling it on iuniverse.com or something - who knows, that might still be coming. I actually have some ideas for art, even though my drawing is not good enough, I have been playing with some of my photographs and think that there are programs out there which would allow me to work them into the story. But first I am gonig to try what I wanted to do from the beginning which is to first send it to all the companies which will take simultaneous submissions (ss), then if no one bites, I can work with sending it to the companies that do not accept ss. It's like Josh Stolberg said when I saw him at the Omaha Film Festival - he sent out 75 copies of his script at one time, and only one responded with an offer - but that's all it takes, right?
Right now I am trying to figure out more of a writing routine - I want to at least completed some writing every day, this weekend I had a lot of writing time planned and it really seemed like the research of it all became my focus - in addition to getting my house back in order for company both tonight and tomorrow. I think that whatever writing time I have scheduled, is good, but if I have to do some research, I will have to set a specific time to allow me to get back to the writing.
I am excited to have gotten a bit farther on 2 of my stories though - one is a psychological thriller that I have hit a few roadblocks, mostly when it comes to presenting it to my writers group. I have become so aware of some of the critiques that they catch, that I find myself trying to fix those before reading at the meeting - which I honestly believe is the right thing to do, instead of reading it and thinking, 'I knew they were going to say that.' The other story is one that I really believe I am writing for a screenplay, but not having written one before, am thinking I should write it in story form first. This one is a little exciting to me, when I was thinking of the story, the main character was always a male. However, when I was thinking of it as a script, I know it only works and is more marketable if the lead is a female. Well, I realized that if I know this, I need to make the main character a female and go from there - so much has come together with this story since doing this. Now, I need to have some time to write, lol. This is becoming less of a problem as writing becomes more of a priority for me.
Monday, September 17, 2007
Getting to Know Me...
I have done some blogging in the past and have one that is a little more risqué – sharing a little more about myself than I really want my family and co-workers knowing about. (If you are really interested – you can email me for it and I might share with a select few – it’s just been a while since I have posted on it - for a numerous amount of reason - so I hesitate to get you intrigued by it). Anyhow, I am starting this blog that focuses on the arts – both mine and what I am interested in.
I am trying to become more disciplined in my writing, so this blog for my writing website (http://www.writebrainit.net), will ideally aid in this. I hope to do a few things with this blog – share some of what has captured my interests at the moment and share how my own writing is progressing.
The website is on hold for awhile – at least until I figure out what I want to do with it and learn how to design it. I had a website – writebrainit.com with a couple of friends/co-workers in the past – where we showcased some of our writing and attempted to promote some other writers, contests and websites. The buddy that was the webmaster of the site let the domain expire and we have had hell getting it back, they are no longer interested in running the website together, but I thought of the name and loved it, so I am hoping to maintain it. However, I have just recently learned that the way contests and publishers are going – the majority of them are now considering that anything published online, is considered published. This frustrates me to no end because now much of what I have written in the past, is limited in the markets I can present it to. Oh well, it’s all about the learning isn’t it.
I have a lot that I have planned to write for the blog, but will probably spread it out a little as I don’t want to set up potential readers to expect daily blogs…but 'wouldn’t it be lover-ly.' (Name the movie).
I am trying to become more disciplined in my writing, so this blog for my writing website (http://www.writebrainit.net), will ideally aid in this. I hope to do a few things with this blog – share some of what has captured my interests at the moment and share how my own writing is progressing.
The website is on hold for awhile – at least until I figure out what I want to do with it and learn how to design it. I had a website – writebrainit.com with a couple of friends/co-workers in the past – where we showcased some of our writing and attempted to promote some other writers, contests and websites. The buddy that was the webmaster of the site let the domain expire and we have had hell getting it back, they are no longer interested in running the website together, but I thought of the name and loved it, so I am hoping to maintain it. However, I have just recently learned that the way contests and publishers are going – the majority of them are now considering that anything published online, is considered published. This frustrates me to no end because now much of what I have written in the past, is limited in the markets I can present it to. Oh well, it’s all about the learning isn’t it.
I have a lot that I have planned to write for the blog, but will probably spread it out a little as I don’t want to set up potential readers to expect daily blogs…but 'wouldn’t it be lover-ly.' (Name the movie).
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