I had lunch the other day with Chad Allen. Chad is the editorial director for Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing Group. I know Chad from our dealings at work as well as his participation in the first Jot Conference. And I figured that if anyone could give me some advice on becoming the type of person that a publishing house needs, it would be Chad.
After arriving late, I explained to Chad that I was considering an MFA program in order to be qualified for a job in publishing. He echoed some of the comments from my post on the topic that very few of the folks at Baker Publishing have MFAs, so it really isn’t a prerequisite.
He asked what my goals were. I gave him some vague notions of working on the creation end of the book process rather than the distribution end. I…
Snow has fallen in piles over the last few weeks in southern Michigan. We had an ice storm. Power outages. It was a cold and white Christmas.
As winter comes and snow falls my mind wanders to certain writers, books, and characters.
Michigan Winter
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes pacing his study on Baker Street while glancing out the window at the bleak snow covered London streets comes to mind.
I think of curious Lucy Pevensie walking through the columns of fur coats in a wardrobe when she suddenly hears her feet crunch on the powdery snow of wintry Narnia in The Lion, Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis.
Anything that has to do with Charles Dickens. The Tale of Two Cities, Great Expectations, and of course, A Christmas Carol.
And lastly, and most importantly, chapter 2 (NIV translation) in the Gospel of Luke telling of Christ’s Birth.
It’s not often I get in a reading mood. More often than not I’m in a writing mood. But now I want nothing more than a cup of peppermint tea and a nice steady snowfall coupled with a blanket and my comfortable couch illuminated by the white Christmas tree lights.
So readers, I turn to you. What sort of books, authors, and characters do you think of during this time of year?
This past Saturday night I sat down to check another chapter revision off my list. I even had my good friend Ben studying next to me for accountability. All told this would be a great night of writing. The stars were aligned. It was then I was struck with a grand plan. I was going to insert a new chapter. I could not believe I did not think of the idea sooner.
After struggling for an hour and a half and moving on to try and rewrite another chapter, I deleted everything I just created. That rabbit trail ended with — a dead rabbit.
Now, this could be considered time wasted. Would I like to have that hour and a half back to work on my simple plan of editing a chapter? Sure.
I do not believe this writing time was wasted. I just found two ways not to write my book. Writing is a maze. Some days the work is easy, other days let’s just say you end that writing time looking forward to making it up to your novel later.
Keep Writing. Be honest about your work. If you think a portion of your book doesn’t fit quite right, don’t just let it be. Sharpen your sword, grab a dozen red pens, and have at it. Blaze a new trail and don’t give up fighting (editing) your way through your book.
I was going to start off today with a quote. This quote would set the tone for our week. It was going to be a springboard to great achievement and the key to our lackadaisical effort we give to our books. It might even act as a profound subliminal message and cause you to turn, grab your laptop, and finish it.
Not every day. But every other day? -Wikicommons
Unfortunately, the love of writing cannot be turned on like a switch. It’s not something that can hinge on emotion and wait until we feel like it. Why? Because I feel like pizza every night for dinner and that would cause some health problems.
Writing is about showing up everyday. Whether you write well or poorly, it doesn’t matter. What matters is coming to the desk or table or wherever, and doing it again and again and again.
I work best when I have a plan. Not a super detailed one, but one that helps me not get ambushed by a really good TV show and two hours later think, oh no! can I have a do over? Can I go back to where I saved my life last and relive those last few hours like this is some sort of game? I write better and get less distracted and am less cranky when I see that time to work on my passion is coming. Also, it helps prepare my mind.
This week, don’t wait to write until you feel like it. Don’t write because someone else told you to do so. Write because that’s what is in you and that is what you do.
Yesterday my fellow Weakling Josh Mosey wrote a blog mentioning his article in a online magazine called Catapult. I don’t toot my horn often but I wanted to mention mine. You can read it here. It discusses the shuffling of priorities that occurs when you become more serious about a passion. Hockey is a big love of mine that is now regulated to watching the Detroit RedWings a few times a week. I used to play all the time and I loved it. I hope to again someday.
Olde Hansa. It’s in Estonia so it has to be Olde. – Courtesy WikiCommons
However, when it comes to having kids, serving God, and wanting to be the best husband I can be – all while trying to begin a writing career; there is only so much time in a day. It was a hard lesson to learn, but I don’t want to follow the olde adage, “Jack of all trades, master of none”. Yes. Olde is spelled with an ‘e’ when you mention olde adages. Or at least it should be.
Thanks for reading. Look ahead to your weekend and elbow out some time to write. If you don’t feel like it, do it anyway. Though writing can be a thrilling and energizing task, in the end, it is simple hard work.
Life happens to all of us. We are called away, get busy and sooner or later wind up spent.
Earlier this month, I drove from my home in Grand Rapids, MI to Rochester, NY and back to MI. Then got up, flew down to Frisco, TX for a work conference and then flew back to MI. The next day I drove to NY and two days later drove back home – all in eight days.
This whirlwind did not make me excited or energized as you might think a trip or time away from the office might. I grew more and more exhausted as the days went on. I anticipated that I would have time to sit down and put words on the page. Instead I rushed from one thing to the next and tried to force some fiction only to delete most of it.
It was then I knew I arrived at a place we all come to now and again – the roadside of life. Okay, this might seem a bit melodramatic, but I am a writer after all. But we’ve all been there – the place where a basic task seems akin to moving a mountain. In the words of Jim Gaffigan, “I should probably get the mail. But then I’d have to put on pants.”
Coffee Not Helping?
If you’ve been there or are there now you know there are two directions you can go. Further down the path of the exhaustive rut or with a little effort, we can start to turn things around.
But how do you turn things around if you are stuck in the same life sucking rhythm?
Well, let’s start with stating the obvious. The current rhythm does not work. That and we’ve either lost or forgotten our passion. I stopped traveling and instead of sleeping in and getting rest, I knew I needed to stick my heels in. So, I decided to get up between 5:15 or 5:30 a few mornings. I got up and stretched those writing muscles and worked on a couple of new short stories. I knew that if I started something short, something doable, I could use that momentum to face longer projects, like my novel.
How about you? Have your wheels fallen off? What project do you need to do but do not have the energy to get it done?
My writers group, The Weaklings, met this past week to discuss our upcoming writer’s mini-conference, Jot.
You may have seen some announcements go out on Facebook or maybe you noticed my re-blog of the event schedule. Or maybe you have no idea what I’m talking about. In any case, you are reading this now and soon will have no excuses for ignorance. Sorry about that. Excuses for ignorance can be great things indeed.
Here’s the deal with Jot. It is a free writer’s mini-conference, which makes it considerably less expensive than every other writer’s conference out there. Heck, it’s even cheaper than the pony rides at the grocery store. Jot is a one-night event, featuring five short sessions of guidance and encouragement for writers of all kinds. Our speakers represent the gamut of writing genres. Matthew Landrum is a poetry editor. Bob Evenhouse writes long-form fantasy fiction. Jessie Clemence just…
I have goal to be a published author. But I have trouble keeping on task. Why? Because of the expectations of today’s authors.
Let’s see.
– You need to have a social media presence by writing a blog, utilizing Twitter, Facebook and the like.
– It’s also helpful to be in a writers group and attend conferences.
– Also make sure you are a part of a Goodreads book club and post reviews.
– In the meantime write short stories and articles, comment and like blogs and follow websites.
And this is just the tip of the iceberg.
Then after all of this is done, use the last thirty seconds of your writing time to squeeze out a sentence or so of your work in progress.
This sounds a bit embellished but that is what writers do, they exaggerate, right? I wish I was.
So, through all of these perceived expectations, how do novels ever get written?
Keep Going, Friend
One way. By constantly reminding ourselves of our goals.
On Monday I posted tips for reviving your blog. Most of these tips discussed time and how to use it. Writing time is not unlimited and cannot be cheapened. You are creating art and good art at that.
As you struggle on your path to authorship, be sure to place guideposts along the way. You could spend a year or more working on something that does not fit into your plans. Or you could get distracted and forget where you are going.
Make yearly, monthly, and weekly goals. Be sure to carve out enough time to make them possible. This will help you remember where you are going.
My writers group the Weaklings is launching another mini writers conference in Grand Rapids, MI. More information to follow. If you are a local author or wannabe writer, this event is not to miss!
You read it correctly. We’ll be having another JOT: GR Writers Mini-Conference on Friday, September 13th, 2013. We’re working on the outline for the evening now and will be posting updates here as we get things finalized. Here’s what is set in stone:
What: We’ll be focusing on the same three key goals we focused on for the first JOT conference – Meet. Learn. Write.
Our first goal is to provide writers with an time to meet each other and strengthen the Grand Rapids literary scene through a fun community event.
Our second goal is to provide excellent content for writers to learn something about the craft or the industry.
Our third goal is provide busy writers with space and time to actually write and not just talk about it. We’re all busy, but by attending JOT you…
PART-TIME NOVEL 