More on Writer's Block

Writing Tip #4

I found another reason why I am not a believer in writer’s block:

I am sitting on my back porch. It’s about 85 degrees. At least that’s what it was. It might be cooling off a bit. Storm clouds are creeping across the sky just starting to blot out the pinks and golds of the sun setting behind the trees. A large bird – a Great Blue Heron, now that I look closer – is lumbering westward. I remember someone saying once that birds don’t fly at night. He must be looking for a place to roost for the night. The clouds are a slate blue and turning inky at the edges. I don’t care what the forecasters say, it is going to rain tonight.

Okay? I had nothing to write. But I did.

Look around! Write something! It may not be the something you intended to write, but it might be useful at some point!

I remember seeing a video about Basho once. If you don’t know who he was, he was probably the most revered haikuist ever. He said that if you stood in one place you were supposed to be able to write something like 200 haiku just from looking around yourself. Then, he added, if you ran out of things to write about, you should look down at your feet and write about that!

Find Your Writing Process

As a writer, you have to find your own writing process.

I never knew about the writing process. When I went to school – back in the day -- we outlined and then wrote. My mind didn’t work that way, so I usually wrote and then crafted my outline from what was written. I got As, so it wasn’t a big deal.

Then I became a newspaper reporter. Lead paragraphs had to be a suscinct 20 to 28 words. That was a problem for me. How did I know where I was going until I was there? So I’d sit at the keyboard and type the story – beginning with the second paragraph. Undoubtedly, by the time I was about halfway done with the story, I’d realize what the lead needed to be. I’d go back and add it in – thank Heaven for computers. Unbeknownst to me, I’d taught myself to write using the writing process.

The writing process is described as cyclical – you brainstorm, draft, rewrite, edit, and publish. Some writers believe that any of these steps can be repeated as necessary until the publishing step. I’m one of those writers. I brainstorm, draft, rewrite, draft, rewrite the whole thing, edit, rewrite some more. Then more brainstorming might happen, which results in more drafting and rewriting.

It doesn’t matter how it is done, just do it!

 

The Mythical Writer's Block

Writing Tip #3:  I truly don't mean to brag, but I rarely suffer from writer’s block.

Maybe I don’t understand writer’s block. I feel like it's a myth -- I always have something to say.

Sometimes I don’t know how to get from this point of the story to that point of the story, but eventually it happens. I usually just concentrate on the part of the story I can see at that moment. I end up with lots of pieces I then put into an order. Then I work to bridge the pieces. Sometimes the pieces don’t fit, and I reorganize. Sometimes pieces don’t fit, and I either ditch them or rewrite them.

Some writers don’t write this way – they write straight through from beginning to end. But this is the process that works for me.

You have to find your own process.

Tentative August Release

I am anticipating an August debut of Relic.

There is a multi-pronged effort at this point:

·         My marketing team is working on back cover copy.

·         A graphic designer is creating the cover.

·         I am crafting the map and floor plan to augment the story.

·         My application for a Library of Congress number is being completed.

Although it makes me crazy to have nothing finished, all of these things have to be happening at once. They all hinge on one another. The back cover copy has to be completed before the cover can  be completed. The cover needs to be completed before I can order a proof. The map and floor plan need to be added to the manuscript so that I can tweak the final layout. A proof has to exist before the Library of Congress number can be assigned, but the number and information has to be added to the back of the title page before the book can be released for final printing.

And some people think that writer’s block is a problem!

Author Page Photo

With only a day or two until the layout of  Relic is complete, I thought it about time to consider a photograph of myself for the “About the Author” blurb.

I have always been one who is more comfortable behind the camera taking the photos than in front of the camera. While on assignment as a newspaper reporter, I often had to take my own photos of news events.

Over the past several years, my husband and I have noticed that our oldest daughter has quite an eye for photos. So, Saturday morning, since I was feeling in a relatively photographic mood, I asked her to take some photos of me. The one here is the one we chose. Normally, a very unhappy  photo subject, I'm relatively happy with this one!

 

Thanks sweetie!

 

Summer Reading

With summer upon us, there is plenty of time for reading. Since this time last year, I kept tabs of what titles I read for the year. As would be expected, I read a lot of young adult and middle grade, but I do turn to adult books every now and then. Here are the titles, in no particular order.

For young people:

Deep Blue by Jennifer Donnelly
Rogue Wave by Jennifer Donnelly
Amber House by Kelly Moore, Tucker Reed and Larkin Reed
The Family Romanov by Candace Fleming
The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
Museum of Thieves by Lian Tanner
Something Upstairs by Avi
Lily Dale Awakening by Wendy Corsi Staub
Lily Dale Believing by Wendy Corsi Staub
Lily Dale Connecting by Wendy Corsi Staub
Lily Dale Discovering by Wendy Corsi Staub
The Search for Wandla by Tony DeTerlizzi
The Battle for Wandla by Tony DeTerlizzi

A Hero for Wandla by Tony DiTerlizzi
The Giver by Lois Lowry
Gathering Blue  by Lois Lowry
House of Secrets by Chris Columbus and Ned Vizzini
Chinese Cinderella: Secret Dragon Society by Adeline Yen Mah
The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate
Grace, Gold & Glory by Gabrielle Douglas
The Ghosts of Tupelo Landing by Sheila Turnage
Shaking the Foundation: Charles Darwin and the Theory of       Evolution  by Sylvia Johnson
Messanger by Lois Lowry
Son by Lois Lowry
Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card
Seraphina by Rachel Hartman

For Adults:

The Silkworm by Robert Galbraith
Still Falling by Martin Wilsey

I am currently reading the sequel to Seraphina – Shadow Scale, and I am eagerly awaiting the third in the Jennifer Donnelly series, and the next Robert Galbraith (aka JK Rowling) detective mystery.

It’s summer! Kick back and read a good tale. What is your favorite this season?

 

So Many Decisions

"It’s never too late to be what you might have been."

                                             -       George Eliot

 

I’m sorry that I haven’t been around, but remember my first job is teaching. The end of the year is a busy time.

I have squeezed in some time to play with the page layout of

Relic – just enough to make me anxious and excited to get rolling full speed. I’ve had time to play with font styles for chapter numbers, chapter titles, and possible drop caps.

I’ve realized my paragraph indents are too big for a small page. I’ll have to hand adjust each one unless I can find a quicker fail-safe way. I’ve also started to drop in photos at the beginning of each chapter, but that has only impressed upon me how many more photos I have to take.

Plus I have to find time to finalize the map of Willowbend and the floor plan of Hydrangea Hall. I’m spending a lot of mental time trying to figure out what style I want them to be. Should they look like a young person drew them? Should they be a pencil sketch? Marker and water color? Should they be child-like, or drawn by a person with some artistic talent?

So many decisions to be made….

I can’t wait!