Still In The Game

Hello, readers. Obviously, it has been quite a long time since I posted an update. Don't worry. I am still in the game. In fact, I'm more motivated now than I have ever been. I gave birth to a beautiful baby boy in January. My focus has been dedicated to my brand new family and my new identity as a mother.

Becoming a parent completely altered my perception. Things that once mattered to me have now become nothing and things that once were nothing now mean the world. Caring for a brand new human being that relies on me for just about every single need has really put life into perspective.

My family comes first. My writing comes second.  Everything else is obligatory. I've cut out people, places, and things that don't jive with my current priorities and energy. I want to be the best woman I can be as a role model to my son. This includes following through on my passion for story-telling and becoming as successful as my talents merit.

I am currently working on two novels and a short story that I am entering into a genre contest this autumn. I recently attended a 90-minute seminar on creating an e-book. I have plans to build a website. Unfortunately, this blog falls to the wayside quite easily. Since I don't yet have anything to offer besides my personal insights, it doesn't seem quite as urgent.

I plan to post some free stories very soon. I will likely be revamping more of the design of this virtual space in the very near future. It is all very exciting! There is a lot to do and I have the greatest motivation that life can provide--a son who has already developed a fun and dynamic personality that I love beyond measure. 

Trust The Process

I recently had a lovely conversation with a writing pal of mine about the genesis of stories and how they evolve over time. We agreed that most, if not all stories, begin as simply as tiny kernels of information or emotion. A snippet of a dream, a character's face, an emotional theme, a scent. I decided to look back at my original short story drafts for what has become The Bloodsong Swords. 

I wrote the original draft in my first fiction writing class back in 2005. It was the telling of a dream that I had six years earlier. This dream was so unusually vivid, emotionally intense, and completely terrifying that I remembered every detail. A few years after graduation I resolved to focus on my passion for creating fiction and dug up some old short stories that I could edit and submit. One of them was this particular original draft which I entitled "Thirst."

I began my rewrites by fleshing out the formless parts and trimming down the ones full of fluff. One passage describes people climbing out of a limousine one by one until there are almost a dozen standing around the vehicle. I only had three of these people physically defined and only a basic idea of their significance and depth. I asked myself a simple question, "who are these people?" Just like that, an entirely new world, previously unimagined, emerged and absorbed me. I suddenly had more material than necessary for a short story. I had more material than necessary for a single novel! I never intended "Thirst" to be a novel but after that day it demanded to be written. Most of the specific details that subsequently developed arrived after I'd written half of the novel during last year's National Novel Writing Month.

Here we are on the first day of November and another NaNoWriMo.  I'm still weaving through the various interconnected threads of the same story. The lesson for me is to trust in the creative process. Trust that you have the skill it takes to complete your novel. Trust that your characters know who they are and will not lead you stray. Trust that your vision will coalesce into a readable draft. It may feel awkward or strange or the quality poor but there's a lot of value in what you learn by simply doing. However, I'm also an advocate of having some sort of outline of events, a road map of sorts, however vague. For me it all works best having a balance between these two philosophies and certainly neither is right or wrong, simply different strategies to the same end. 

5 Keys To An Effective Writers Group

I helped to form a writers group a few months ago. I and two other writers gather biweekly to discuss our work and cheer on our progress. We even created a group on an online writing community site to keep in touch between meetings and lay the hammer down on each other if needed. This has become a powerful and invaluable motivator for me to reach my writing goals. Here are five insights into what I find makes a group work:

1—Keep it small:  You want to be able to read work from every member and give reasonable feedback to each person. This will become complicated with too many members. Reading the work of others will inform and improve your own writing. Remember to read as a writer. You want to notice the craft as well as the story. You might find a key technique to unlocking a scene you have struggled with. You may find a point of view you haven’t attempted that would fit perfectly for a story or chapter you are stumbling over. 

 2—Have a variety of topics:  In my group, each member has some formal training in fiction writing but none of us has published in a prominent way. We all strive toward publication in the near future. It does not matter if every member is writing the same genre or to the same audience. In fact, it’s often helpful to read something dissimilar to what you’re working on. If you all worked on a story about talking animals for 2^nd to 5^th graders, the group can become competitive and therefore useless.

3—Keep clear guidelines:  We strive to send out at least 1000 words for each session. This number gives a focus and everyone is clear on expectations. This is a small enough amount to easily complete over a two-week period yet large enough to make good forward progress. We also have a simple policy of no excuses and no disclaimers. Everyone has a busy life these days. We work multiple jobs, have families, and other obligations that get in the way of our goals. Make sure the group guidelines are fair to all the members. You should want every member to succeed!

4—Focus on the writing:  Everyone works at their own level. We don’t care if you’re producing a novel, short story, creative nonfiction, graphic novel or children’s book as long as you’re writing and submitting something for the group to read. I often hear horror stories about people leaving groups because the critiques turned into bashing sessions.  This is unnecessary. Critiques should apply to the craft and your gut reactions to the story. This keeps personal feelings out of the mix. What passages did you find effective? What confused you or caused you to stumble? What stuck with you after reading? Some aspects of craft to keep in mind are movement, sense of place, dialogue, sensory and character descriptions, voice, tone, point of view and vantage point.

5—Have fun:  The odds are you will quit a writers group that bores or shames you. You’re likely taking things far too seriously if you’re not having fun. A writer’s group should be a safe place to experiment with story ideas and craft. You should never feel that your work is under par or under valued. Keep the tone light but constructive. Meet somewhere lively like a coffee shop or restaurant where you can talk, giggle, and not disturb other people. If you’re having fun, you are likely to stick with it and with each week, closer to achieving your writing goals.