An "aha" Moment.

There are so many things you are told to do once you've decided to write at more than just a hobby level. Write everyday, just let it flow, get structured, write for what you love, write for the market, don't let the muse dry up. . . the list could fill page after page and still you (and I) would be left completely in the dark.

I get caught up in the "to do" list. How many words can I get in a day? 1500? 5000? Does it really matter if I'm just filling a quota?

I've been thinking a lot about the creative process the last few days, as I've struggled with getting back into writing my second book that is tentatively called "Priceless". Ruminating on the way I've been trying to make my writing work and realizing that I'd forgotten that no matter what part of the process you're in, it should be enjoyable. If it isn't then maybe there's a reason for that, maybe you're headed in the wrong direction. That's not to say each step won't be difficult, a challenge can be a fun thing too.

All this leads up to is that I've gone back to the drawing board for "Priceless". In just spending some time on the outline, fleshing out the world and motivation for the characters, I've fallen back in love with the story. How many words did I write? Lots. How many counted towards the completion of the book? All of them. Even if I didn't keep track. :D

Writers Retreat Wrap-Up

Writers Retreat via Mt. Washington was a success, a smashing, fantastic success! I finished ALL my revisions for Gluttony AND I was able to do research for my Untitled ms. These two tasks alone would have taken me a number of weeks at home.

Lots of laughter abounded(when we could drag ourselves away from our work) and lots of familial love. Cause that's what my writing group is becoming, my other family.

A few things I learned while at the retreat and who I learned it from in brackets are as follows

• Just because you hire an editor, doesn't mean he/she is always right about your work. (Sandy & Kathie)
• Critiquing isn't painful if its done with a group who actually cares about you and your success. (Kathie, Sandy, Jim, Poul, Charity & Clive)
• Being away from home DOES mean you can get more work done. (Shannon)
• Reclusive writer's need friends to turn to that can understand their angst of the moment.(Charity)
• The hot tub is very hot and should be used with caution. In other words, get out before you pass out. (Shannon)

Three days of nothing but writing, writing discussions, more writing and re-writing left me with only one thought. I can't wait till I get to do this again :)

The Past

Okay, so here's my first attempt at a picture that worked. That's me to the left, a few years younger when I was doing nothing but dreaming of becoming an author. As you can see, I was already practicing my messy, artistic hair look, along with the glossed over eyes of a person seeing a world that hadn't yet been created.

When I look at this picture I see all the possibilities of a future that I had no idea were even truly within my grasp. I wish I could go back and tell her that its okay to dream, to write and to believe that no matter how crazy your ideas are that there's nothing wrong with them.

So for all of you young ones, keep believing in the impossible, its there, just around the corner if you're patient and willing to wait.

Writer's Retreat

I am so looking forward to the next three days. Mt. Washington, fellow writers and nothing but time on my hands to do what I love.

That would be writing, not hanging out in the hot tub.

When I get back, I'm going to do another blog, telling you what I managed to accomplish, what I learned and what I'm going to do about what I learned.

What I'm hoping to accomplish is finishing revisions for Gluttony and 10K words on my Untitled ms. That's a tall order, but I think if I buckle down, I can make it happen. I hope. :S

Hair Pulling

That's what its come to.

Too many people, too many opinions, all of them showing validity of some sort or another. Being directed to so many different ways of writing is a more than stressful, its frustrating. Do I trust the professional who I've hired to help me, even when I feel that perhaps she's outdated on some of her information? Do I go with the writers who are in the trenches with me, struggling along, trying to make it and giving me their thoughts on how they would write the novel? How about the agent with the vague feedback?

Like I said, they all have validity, they all make good points and I trust them all for their area's of expertise. But trying to please all of them is impossible.

I suppose I should say something like "But the person I trust most is myself, so I will listen to my heart." Yeah right. The whole point of having others read my work, is to get feedback. But now the process is filtering what will work with my ms and what won't, what makes it better and what bogs it down.

That is my goal the next few weeks. Filtering out what is best for me and my ms and trying to ignore the rest. Harder than it sounds.

Viewpoints

Loving the new blog scheme! It's fun to change things, stir the pot or otherwise, just look at a project in a new light.

A slightly different perspective can make the flaws apparent and the view a whole lot better. And sometimes it's like having a closet full of shoes. A new pair for every occasion. Which isn't bad either.

Okay, so I was going to add a picture to add to the ambiance, which blogger won't let me. Then I thought I would add an appropriate video. Which I spent over an hour waiting to upload. So I cancelled it!

Can someone give me some help on this? I would really like to add some more depth to my blog posts, but seem incapable on my own. Thanks!!

Hows that for a rambling blog??

Again, Again!

This week is going to be a full week of writing, something I'm VERY excited about! What I'm even more excited about though is, I won't be working on my new novel (as yet Untitled), but I will be doing revisions on Gluttony.

Yes, you read that right, I'm excited about revisions!

I've had a couple of people read the ms and have given me pretty much the same feedback. Feedback that after writing all the suggestions down and mulling them over for the last week, I can see the huge benefits of redoing some of the work. Okay, it looks like I'm going to be adding a fair bit to the ms, I can see another 20k words going into it. But that's okay, I really am excited.

Not really what I expected at this point in the process, but these revisions will add to the depth and character of the story and, hopefully, make it just that much easier to flog, um, I mean sell, to agents and editors.

So keep up the good work, all those who read my blog, ms, twitter me and facebook me. I couldn't walk this very long road without all of you, cheering me on from the sidelines. And for those of you on the same road as me, thanks for keeping pace.

Twitterpated!

That's right, I've taken one more step into the social media and twittered today for the first time. A new learning curve and for those who are in the know, they know that all of this social media stuff is very important for the burgeoning writer.

So tweet me.

If you dare!