Tag: writing blog

MY Writing Update

On By Robert EvenhouseIn MY Writing UpdateLeave a comment

Writing time is precious. Using it well and not getting lost on social media sites and email is important if you want to have daily traction in your work.

This past week I tried to balance that as I battled to keep my unread emails under 100. The good news is I finished my goal of writing a blog and 1000 words a day on my YA novel. If you were waiting for an email from me now you know why I was such a jerk and did not respond!

typewriter

On Monday, I revealed a hilarious typo I did on my 7000 words in a week challenge. Click here to see what I wrote and why I think it’s wonderful to laugh at yourself and not worry what the internet might think.

Writing a book can be a taxing thing, especially when we have a full life. On Tuesday, I asked if writing gives you joy or sucks the life out of you. It was my most popular post this week. Click here to read.

If you’ve been writing for a while and just feel like you are going no where, click here to read Wednesday’s post. I ask the question – What Do You Need To Take Your Writing To The Next Level?

If you are alive and not a zombie, sooner or later a life challenge will arise. A birth, a job change, a illness, etc. Click here to read What To Do When Life Happens To Your Book.

Self-Publishing carries with it the thrill of entrepreneurialship and for some, the stigma of typo-riddled garbage. Click here to read the discussion of Would You Self-Publish, Why Or Why Not? 

Saturday’s post was my pat on the back. I apologize if you feel I bragged but I was proud I wrote a blog a day and 1000 words a day on my book. At work it was the last full week of the fiscal, we had two of my daughters birthdays, a big birthday party, and had family in from out of town.

This was somehow balanced with a forty hour work week, sleep, and spending time with family. Okay brag over. Click here to read the completion of the My Novel Recomit 7000 words in 7 days challenge. 

If you are struggling with your book know that writing does not come easily. The muse is like a cat and shows up when they want to show up. Our job is to be there consistently and give that occasional magic the opportunity to be applied to the page.

On Sacrificing Sleep

On By Robert EvenhouseIn The Writing Life5 Comments

I want to be good at a lot of things. I want to be a good husband. I want to be a good father.  I want to be a good friend, worker, and man. I also want to be a good writer.

These areas of my life pull me back and forth like a current and are simultaneously in conflict with each other. To be a good husband I have to let someone else be a father to my kids for a few hours while I go out and romance my wife. If I want to be a good worker I have to leave my wife to go to work and sometimes stay at the office a little later than planned. To be a good man I have to be sane and with two kids and one due any day – it can be a struggle.

When writing invaded my life, I told my wife I would never allow it to become something that would take away time from her or my kids. I am not going to come home and then leave for six hours to get a chapter out.

I began to realize that something had to go.

That something was sleep.

Time
Time

Sleep and I have had an interesting relationship over the last few years. Yes, I realize that you need it. I acknowledge it as I slam another cup of coffee. I toy with it and lay down for twenty minutes in the middle of the day. But, our relationship has been rocky at best and though I crave it nearly every second of the day I do whatever I can to fight it off.

Why you ask? Why do I torture myself like this? I already said I wanted to be a writer didn’t I?

As my family grew I began to understand that twenty four hours is not actually a lot of time. In fact I think it is a joke sometimes. Really? It’s 10:30! Come on clock, you’re kidding right? But alas, no, it is not.

Great writing takes time. I once evaluated how many hours I wrote one week and it was not enough to fulfill my writing aspirations. I knew I needed a schedule. Using an excel spreadsheet I evaluated how I spent every single hour each day. When I was finished there was no time left, other than sleep. That is all I have to sacrifice.

So, I plan to get up at 5am every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. This will be tough especially when a newborn enters our family in the next few days.

I want to be a great writer. I want to produce short stories, novels, blogs, and articles. These all take time. By sacrificing sleep I might have enough time to accomplish it all. After all, if this is the life I want I should be living it now. Its time I started to act like it.

Do you struggle to find time to write? What sacrifices have you made or are you willing to make?

Cheers,

Bob

 

 

What Is Your Writing Quirk?

On By Robert EvenhouseIn Writing Tips4 Comments

When I played soccer in high school I had a coach who often reminded us of the definition of insanity. “Boys!” he’d bark, “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, and expecting different results!” I remember being really confused at first, then after awhile it clicked. If things aren’t going well in the game, trying harder might not be the answer. Instead we need to try something different.

As writers we are constantly refining the process of our craft. We try artist exercises or going for a walk. We attend classes and seminars, write upside down, whatever. If you asked every writer you knew they would probably all give different answers as to what helped them get to where they are.

For me, it’s pacing and muttering – Daniel Day-Lewis style (I know). I take on the persona of a character to see things from their perspective. If someone saw me and did not know what I was up to, I am fairly certain they would call some van to take me away.

How about you?

Do you have a writing quirk or habit that propels your craft?

Cheers,

Bob

Guest Posts Wanted

On By Robert EvenhouseIn Uncategorized8 Comments
Happy Early Birthday Girls!

There are times in life when you need a vacation. It could be a vacation from work or from writing. Next week I will be taking a short holiday from my blog. In seven days my family will celebrate three birthdays. Clara will be one! June will be three! And my wife will be more beautiful, even if one year older.

So I need to step it up as a husband and a dad. Daddy daughter dates are on the agenda and a long relaxing date with my wife Cindy. This means that my blog will have to take the back seat. I plan to take some time off from writing as well to recharge.

This is where you come in. If you would consider writing a post to bridge the gap of September 24-28th I would appreciate it. It may be previously published anywhere. I am looking for posts that encourage writers, share insight, or any helpful tip for the new writer. All you need to do is comment below and I will be in touch.

Cheers,

Bob

How Does A Writer Keep Writing?

On By Robert EvenhouseIn The Writing Process8 Comments

The start of something new can be invigorating. Whether it is a new beginning at college, a marriage or a move, there are moments in life that leave us full of energy and full of joy, thinking we might literally fly or perhaps, merely climb Everest.

I have felt like that many times with my writing too.That I could sit down and work through the night. My novel would be done and I can move onto the next project I have swirling in my mind. I admire Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes for his unquenchable energy and vigor or the characters in Jules Verne’s stories or the pace at which Dickens can lay down a story for the simple fact that their prose can move so ferociously fast and be so strikingly precise that you cannot help but be swept along by their current.

But what happens when your mind is not abuzz with ideas? When you are trying to drill down for water that just isn’t there to quench your parched aesthetic tongue? Can you simply pick yourself up by your bootstraps and march on? Not if your boots have been stolen.

So how do you continue writing during the dry times, whether in life or in the writing process? How are you encouraged to press and get to your writing implement to churn out more of your novel?

 

Cheers,

Bob