Category: The Writing Life

The ethereal part of writing.

A Reason To Love Monday

On By Robert EvenhouseIn The Writing LifeLeave a comment

It’s Monday. Most greet it with a resounding Ugh. But do we have to?

This is what I love about an unspoiled week. We can have a new outlook and a new opinion just because the calendar says so. Change can be had and we shouldn’t waste it.

This week can be the most productive writing week you’ve had in ages.

This week you can update your resume.

This week you can arrange a get together with friends and share life.

You can do whatever it is you long to do.

There are a billion possibilities out there and opportunity is ripe for improvement and growth.

It’s up to us.

What sort of week do you plan on having?

Cheers,

Bob

Sunrise 2

Learning to Write Again

On By Robert EvenhouseIn The Writing Life3 Comments

I made an elementary writing mistake these past two months, one that many writers make from time to time. I was entirely drained after work (December and January are horribly demanding) and I didn’t feel inspired to write, so I didn’t. This lull led to suffocating self-doubt and a thousand questions.

I started to question my art and ability to write.

Then the questions left and a certainty filled me.

I am not good.

I cannot do this.

It’s over.

The absurd thing about all of this was that I doubted something I no longer practiced.

I’m an avid hockey fan and I know that when a player suffers a leg fracture or broken foot it can take months to get back to “game speed”. They’ve been off for a bit and need to undergo proper conditioning to attain “game speed” once again. In other words, they have to put in the work to get to a place where skating and playing the game feels natural.

Conditioning is the key word there. It means to break in. Ever run a 5K on a new pair of shoes? Ouch.

This is where I am at now. Learning to walk again. Learning the writing drive again.

Now comes the hard part. Now comes the march onward to becoming an everydayer.

There were times in the past when I could not stop myself from writing. The thrill of it filled me enough that I cast sleep aside and was lost in what I was doing. About the time I finished this post I felt that again. A small flicker of it anyway. A spark. Now I need to figure out how to give it more fuel.

That is what becoming great at anything is. Before you can be great, you must put in the work.

Let’s roll up our sleeves today.

Cheers,

Bob

Doing Not Comsuming

On By Robert EvenhouseIn The Writing LifeLeave a comment

Earlier this week I wrote about my televisional escapade when, I was spectacularly unsuccessful at chasing my dream of publication.

Part of me was okay with unplugging for a bit. This is the busiest time of the year for me at work. These next eight weeks make or break my sales year. Also, I work with two computer screens in my face for at least eight hours each day and I need to relax, right?

Yes and no. I need inspiration but I know the point when I have watched an unhealthy amount of television or not. The same can be said for eating or shopping. We know when we are merely consuming things and not doing things.

For me, there is nothing more I would rather do with my scant free time than write. It relaxes, fulfills, and challenges. When the television stays off the night moves slowly and there is even time for conversation, straightening up the house, reading a book, playing a game, and more writing. I find myself doing something and the stress of activity is soothing. I feel a sense of accomplishment, that I’ve spent my time well.

I despise mindlessness, where a week or days are used up and we wonder where our time has gone and what we did with it. I am thoroughly guilty of this. I hope that as the waves and currents of the Christmas and New Year holidays come that I live intentionally.

I want to be satisfied with what I’ve done, not looking back wistfully.

We only have one life.

Cheers,

Bob

Writing As Play

On By Robert EvenhouseIn The Writing Life2 Comments

The very first error I made with my novel was thinking it was a linear process. Write one scene and the next until finished. This may be true for the first draft, but not the rest of them.

Part of the fun of writing a novel is seeing what lay down the road of each possibility. What if the character didn’t follow when they should have? What if they were killed? How can this portion be even more gut wrenching? – and then writing that scene to see where it goes.

Many of these pieces will never be read by anyone but the author and may be considered by some to be wasted time and energy. Not I. This is part of the joy and play of writing.

As writers we must turn over every stone, make the road long and necessarily weary, before we can stand confidently on our finished book. Through the struggle I admit I lose some of the fun and playfulness. There should be joy and it is work. For me, they are intermingled and confused all too often.

Every now and again my kids remind me of this. They have so much joy in what they do where I take things too seriously. It is a refreshing reminder to pull my head out of the ground and see the sun. I love my children for this and so much more.

Cheers,

Bob

 

Become An Everydayer

On By Robert EvenhouseIn The Writing Life2 Comments

I love hockey. Not just watching it on TV, but reading about it on obscure blogs, watching Youtube clips in the offseason, listening to sports talk radio, and rehashing stories with friends at work. It’s a passion and I’m an evangelist.

I don’t love it for the fighting, but the grit. When a player battles through a second degree separated shoulder, a broken foot, and a broken finger simultaneously, all for the logo on their sweater and the city they represent, I wonder, how do they do that? Of course they are paid millions of dollars for this, but wouldn’t you throw in the towel at that point? They’ll make their money whether they play or not.

This grit can be explained in a million ways but for those unfamiliar with this glorious game, one of the best and grammatically incorrect is “An Everydayer”. This is a term I hear all the time from the coach of the Detroit Red Wings, Mike Babcock.

What does it mean? That you show up every day and work hard. Whether you’re a professional banker or a professional toilet cleaner, you work hard in everything you do. Period. It’s a cemented mindset that does not change, but this is not from hard headedness, it’s fueled by passion.

I am a firm believer that everything in your life builds upon everything else. If you display patience at home with a troubled teen, chances are that will strengthen your patience for a work situation. If you work hard at work, you’ll have a better chance at working hard as a parent and so forth.

If you are stuck today in anything – your novel, your job, your website – know that those who succeed show up everyday.

They are Everydayers.

What are you?

Cheers,

Bob

Planes, Neil Gaiman, and the Inca

On By Robert EvenhouseIn The Writing Life1 Comment

I take immense pleasure in listening to author interviews and hearing about what inspires them. Occasionally, I take something significant from one of these creative soirees.

In an interview, Neil Gaiman suggested that Tolkien was able to write The Lord of the Rings because he read about Finnish philology. This might not make any sense at all, but it also might make sense absolutely. His writing was born out of what he loved to read and his reading lead him a lot of places. Of course he would invent languages, he studied them. He loved Nothernness and out of that love came Aragon and Elves and Rohan. He didn’t just read fantasy and rehash another fantasy story (I know I know he basically invented modern fantasy, but there was plenty out there).

Mr. Gaimans’ suggestion to would be authors is to read books about all sorts of things. Take a winding path through your local independent bookstore and visit genres and sections you haven’t before. You might be surprised by what you find.

While on a plane last week I read a book titled 1491 by Charles Mann, which Incahypothesizes what the Americas might have been like before Columbus bumped into them. Suddenly, without intention, all sorts of inspiration came to me.

What would it be like it one of the Inca people saw a plane? This might be a common thought, (traveling back in time to meet cavemen for example) but it might not have been as profound if I was not on an actual jetliner reading that particular book.

I’m not sure where this venture into other books and topics might take me, but it’s inspiring. I hope you don’t inbreed your writing or try to imitate an author you like but chase after what interests you. I am sure that out of this pursuit will come a book that is you. Not some cheap imitation.

Read something new today.

Cheers,

Bob

 

 

 

Overnight Success or Steady Eddie?

On By Robert EvenhouseIn The Writing Life11 Comments

I have three kids and for each of them I’ve written in a journal for the first year of their life. I talk about the world, what I hope for them, their birth story, about their family, what they did with their day and the joys and struggles of parenthood. I pause, just before turning off the lights, to write for ten minutes. It’s been my “blog post a day”, but for them. I bring this up because in three days, I’ll finish my son’s journal.DSCN8360

Often I struggle to find time to write, or at least the allotment that I think works best for me. I search for an hour or more when maybe I should be looking for a small collection of minutes, just like his journal. Over the past year, I’ve put about 60,000 words down without worrying about the time, struggling with not-writing, writer’s guilt, or being emotional about not getting something done.

It’s strange how effortless this was. Many times in my writing life I see the overnight success and grumble. I wonder how they got there. I sprint and burn out and if I’m honest I lose the taste for it at times. I suppose it’s not about the book or the sprint, but the next word and the slow plod. Perhaps I should take my time, write every day for fifteen minutes, instead of moaning about never having time for it.

What do you think writer? How do you get words down consistently?

Write today, even for a minute.

Cheers,

Bob

Stalling Is Not Writing

On By Robert EvenhouseIn The Writing Life6 Comments

Yesterday was a good day. Great sales day at work, I mowed the lawn, played with my kids, gave them a bath, did all of the dishes, swept and mopped the floors, and had great conversations with my wife and a friend. I’ve also been deviously tricky and the person I’ve tricked is me.

I’ve been stalling.

All of these things are not fillers. These are things that matter to me for practical reasons (work, the upkeep of my house) and because I love them (my wife, kids, and friend). Earlier today I talked with my wife and we agreed that Monday is a writing night. I planned to write 500 words on my latest work in progress, two blogs, and finish a few writing related emails. Once we got the kids settled I was going to head to my desk around 8:30pm or so. It’s 10:30pm on Monday.

I don’t know about you but occasionally when I have scheduled time to write I find myself doing other things. It’s not because I do not love to put words down on the page, I do. It’s more because I want to be ready mentally. I want to have my mind in the right place to prepare a brilliant meal that agents and readers will devour and beg for seconds. At least this is what I tell myself from time to time.

Writing Fuel
Let’s Do This!

Sadly, this cannot be done while on TSN.ca/NHL. Strangely enough, this cannot be done on Facebook, Twitter, my gmail account or anything else internet related.

So today, if you are reading this and you are not done with your novel and this is scheduled writing time, I ask you to stop reading. Stop and get to work. Our stories must live and they cannot do so when we are thinking of the perfect words, messing with our playlists, or daydreaming about a wicked huge contract. It’s time to grab our lunch pail and hard hat and get to work.

Write 500 words today.

Cheers,

Bob

No Writer Can Make It Alone

On By Robert EvenhouseIn The Writing Life5 Comments

I write alone. No one can write for me. That being said, there are countless people involved in my stories. These individuals read my drivel. They listen to me dream about being a writer and manage to do it without a smirk. They encourage me every step of the way and I would not have written a novel, help start a writer’s conference, published in journals newspapers and websites or started this blog without them.

Part of her birthday card to me.

One person in particular has sacrificed more than anyone else: my wife. This week was our nine year wedding anniversary. We’ve “dated” for over 11 years.  She didn’t marry someone who wanted to write. I developed the passion about six months afterward.

I write this blog to tell her, that I am so very thankful for her. I’m not always pleasant. I’m certainly not perfect, but she has always been there sacrificing time, correcting grammar, reading and suggesting. So, thank you baby. Thank you for being there. Thank you for not laughing or telling me I’m not good or that I should focus my efforts toward something more practical. In your quiet strength you help me move forward. I could not be here without you.

If you have some one or a group of people who help you in your writing be sure to use your gift of words to say thank you.

We forget that too much.

Cheers,

Bob

How To Create An Effective Word Count Goal

On By Robert EvenhouseIn The Writing Life6 Comments

Failure

Think about the last time you failed at a goal. Be it to land a job, run a triathlon, swim a mile, write a book, etc. Whatever it is, it weighs on you. It can be a mocking, dark cloud. You might have failed from lack of effort but those usually don’t hurt. I am talking about one that hurts, and hurts bad. Not a mosquito bite, but a side swipe by a car.

I’ve been side swiped on and off for the last seven years. Okay that might seem a bit dramatic but the stings have been there. I’ve gone through spurts where I have written a lot, and not written at all. This is not what a novelist does, I told myself. Novelists write every single day. They get up and write when they don’t feel like it. They write when they are tired and when they have no effort or words left. Still, they keep laying them down one by one.

I’ve read how Stephen King would spend hours every day finishing his daily word count, Hemingway too. These giants keep/kept a pace of writing deities. I used to think with a little bit of effort, I could do five hundred words a day. But then I’d have a bad day. A day where nothing comes together and my emotions are sapped. I’d given all I could to my family and gladly, but I’d get nothing on the page. There was no more time for artistic pursuits. This was a big issue for me. I’m serious about my work. This is what I want, but I keep failing at measly little daily word counts.

A Realistic Goal

I am reading the Art of War for Writers by James Scott Bell. It is an excellent read and I recommend it to any writer I know. In its pages I discovered something so simplistic I could punch myself for not trying it before (actually I did punch myself): the weekly writing goal.

Instead of walking around feeling like a failure five days a week, because I wrote only two hundred words those days, I’ve decided to aim for a weekly writing goal.

Here are three reasons weekly writing goals work

  1. They are flexible. With a life dominated by the sporadic, I could suddenly lose or gain writing time. Instead of being bummed or paralyzed you can be okay with not writing, or staying up late working toward your goal.
  2. It is a goal. Writers need goals. We need to be working for something. Be it a short story, poem, or novel, there needs to be consistent work and effort. Professional writers, like professional athletes, don’t get to where they are by being lukewarm in their pursuits.
  3. It builds momentum. I wrote 2547 words on my novel last week. I wrote 2 blogs (429, 589 words) and in my sons journal every day. It was nice to continually write. If I had a daily goal, I am sure missing one day would let the air of out my momentum and crush another day with ease. I want to stop that failing feeling.

For my weekly goals, I’ve decided to write:

3000 words on my novel.

2 blogs a week.

1 short story submission per month.

I do all of this while keeping track on a notebook. I always count backward to my goal 3000-0. It’s a physiological thing. Do whatever works for you.

Avoid the power of failure. Set an effective weekly writing goal and don’t compromise. Don’t make it 10,000 words if you don’t have the time and vice versa. Maybe you can only get 1000 words done per week. Whatever your goal is, keep striving and keep writing. If you have goal setting tips, please comment below.

Cheers,

Bob