So, the Pens are back (plus Mysti and Ruby!)...we're all
really excited to be here. Seriously, excited.
To writers, talking about writing is almost as good as doing
it. I'm a perpetual student. I have a fairly extensive library of books on
writing. Writing novels, writing short stories, writing screenplays. Three act
structures, Hero's journey, scene and sequel. How to make good writing great.
Books by famous authors about their career paths and how
they did it and continue to keep doing it. Books on mythology, archetypes, symbolism. Books on editing once the draft is done. Books on style.
Books on marketing.
There is always more to learn. Which is true of any
profession or passion. There is always
more to learn.
I thought for my posts perhaps each month I would highlight
a particular book. Of course, I may change my mind which is definitely the
point of this newer, less-structured format. This month's book was supposed to
be a highlight of
Self-Editing forFiction Writers by Renni Browne and Dave King.
It's an excellent book chock full of tips on how to make
your writing cleaner and more concise, and how to avoid common mistakes. I
refer back to the information frequently. But when I sat down to write this
post, I kept getting distracted by what's been going on in my own writing life
lately and decided to share my personal tips this month instead.
So what I want to talk about is actually getting your butt
in the chair and writing. One of the hazards of being a writer is that talking
about writing is almost as good as doing it. I know you've seen that line
before, right at the beginning of this post. But it's true.
It's really easy to talk about writing, about learning the
craft, about structure, about heroes, heroines, villains, about plot points,
black moments, returning for the elixir. The list goes on and on....
But at the end of the day (week, month, year) what matters
most is whether or not you sat down at your computer or with a notebook and
pencil and actually put words on the page. Because that's what writers do. They
write.
So here are my tips (in no particular order):
1. I keep a spreadsheet. A practice I learned from the
absolutely amazing Suzanne Brockmann at a workshop years ago. She mentioned
lawerly billable hours and keeping track of her time. I started doing the same.
I keep a year long spreadsheet, and I put in all my work whether it is 20 pages
of editing or 652 new words written or even research.
2. I also delete nothing (or almost nothing) from a work in
progress until the draft is complete and I've gone through two or three
revision passes. Then I take all the leftovers, which I move to the bottom of
the manuscript, and dump them into a leftover file doc. I do delete a few words
or notes here and there but if the edit is longer than four or five words, it
goes at the bottom of the document.
3. If I am having trouble diving into a scene, I will do
some of these: Write in 15 minute increments. Write the scene in first person.
Switch the scene point of view. Write or Die (www.writeordie.com online for free). Start a word war with a
friend. (Adrienne Bell and I are getting to be pros at this. I lost September
so I have to buy lunch this month :) )
So those are my words to get you started. I'll leave you
with this:
Just write. That's what we do.
Lisa
ps. Some Pens and friends have a holiday anthology coming October 20th! We are pretty excited about this collaboration. More later in the month....
Love on Main Street: A Snow Creek Christmas
Where love begins on Main Street and ends happily ever
after....
Christmas, the most magical season, is almost
upon the small mountain town of Snow Creek. For seven couples, holiday wishes
mean more than just gifts or parties. Can Snow Creek pull off its annual
holiday miracle of bringing love to town?
