I always thought being a writer would be my ideal job, because it comes pretty naturally to me, I enjoy it, and I have a never ending imagination!
It's the toughest thing though. Here's why:
1) You are your own boss - no one is going to tell you when to write and what to write, and the deadline. It's up to you. You have to find that motivation, even when writer's block isn't an issue.
2) Creating a GOOD story is tougher than you think - so you have a plot, you have an outline, but now you have to fill in the details. Or you have the details of your characters, and the world they are in but you have to create a good story, that includes growth of the character and change. Etc. etc. etc. It's amazing what Jane Austen, and the Bronte sister's did. Oh goodness! We still have material - social issues in our world to base our stories on, but their characters development was so well done!
3) Its gonna take time, a whole lot precious time - to do it, to do it, do it right! yeah, so as we grow older we find we have less time. Time begins to slip away so easily. Yet when we are children a day seems to take forever. I wish I had that type of time now. Oh and then there are random chores, obligations that need to be taken care of like an oil change, or cleaning! So making time, and committing time to writing is tough as a grown up adult. Like the saying goes- "health is wasted on the young" so is time!
4) Remembering what you wrote yesterday - few chapters in and you forgot the deets from chapter one, and then 30 chapters in you forgot the details from chapter 15! Creating a timeline, or some sort of organization of characters is important. For instance, I know the world well, and I know my characters, but sometimes I forget what I put in her bag. At the time i put the things in her bag I knew what they were and why they were, but then 4 chapters later, I forget. Kind of like, you have a list of things to tell your significant other at the end of the day, and then you see them and you forget half of it. Then you remember it just when you are both about to fall asleep!
5) Setting deadlines and goals - these are hard to stick to, because of all of the above. So kick it out the window. You'll find that once you do that, you'll be able to write more, and then you'll set a goal, 'I want to finish it by the 20th of Jan'. Then once you set it, it get's tough again.
6) Thinking of Publishing? - these thought or worries rather, come and go; for me, more often than not. Self publish, or find an agent, or approach a publisher? Which one is right for you. I say finish writing, have a manuscript. Edit it twice and then worry about publishing. Maybe do some research in your free time, yes that time which is so hard to come by. I will be posting information on that soon! So stay tuned!
7) Worries of failure - you could be the next JRR Tolkien of JK Rowling or George RR Martin, but it's such a competitive world, and you're better off making video games honestly, cause I rather play video games than write cause it's easier :-P kids today rather play video games than read. There are those who read, but I fear those numbers are decreasing rapidly. Then there are those who write for Movies... aaah! Worries of failing will plague the author, but to write knowing the chance of success is very low, is quite comforting. Accept that and write.
8) Atmosphere from noisy to quiet, finding a balance for writing - so I've always dreamt of writing a novel at a cafe, where there's a fire sizzling, and I got me some hot chocolate. I am brandishing my wonderful ink pen, and writing on some wonderful parchment... scratch that. Over full Starbucks, noisy, Christmas music, no fireplace, and yeah the baristas shouting about. Nope, need to find that ideal setting, yet. It's hard to find a perfect atmosphere or ambiance that nurtures writers. The right amount of noise, as to not being distracting, as well as not to quiet to be creepy. Yes silence can distract me, so I find playlists that inspire but also help keep me focused (so different from my running play list, or driving play list!). Then there's the internet, def don't connect to the WIFI, and if you need to look something up use your phone, keep it to the minimum!
9) Prioritizing writing, life, friends, balancing? Maybe not balanced but being smart about it - writing is important, but if you have a different job that sustains you while you are writing, that should take priority. Then there are life things, as in a friend needs you, friendship is very important, don't ditch your friend, then again a good friend would understand. So setting these priorities and working around them. Sometimes you might prioritize and set up a schedule, that schedule will change! Be flexible. I set time to write, but sometimes it doesn't flow well, until my head hit's the pillow at 11:30 pm and then I get mega-inspired. I have to teach at 8 am the next morning, but I go with the flow and deal with it. Its the only way it's going to get done, sometimes I just write it on note-cards, and try to pick it up later. When I do stay up late to write, I suck it up although i am tired, and I deal with it the next morning, and drink tea and look awesome (somehow) and make sure I teach well (tea does the job for me).
10) Word count goals - so publishers have set an average word count for various genres. Fantasy / sci-fi fiction lands at about 80,000 - 100,000 words. So with length in mind, and matter of course, it's good to pace yourself, and build. Setting a word goal per day/ week is good but eventually I've found that difficult to work with.
Lastly: editing, but since I'm not there yet, I'll leave it for the next blog entry. So stay tuned!
And yes I have not really edited this blog!
:-P
Breathe
(always remember to breathe while writing!)
It's the toughest thing though. Here's why:
1) You are your own boss - no one is going to tell you when to write and what to write, and the deadline. It's up to you. You have to find that motivation, even when writer's block isn't an issue.
2) Creating a GOOD story is tougher than you think - so you have a plot, you have an outline, but now you have to fill in the details. Or you have the details of your characters, and the world they are in but you have to create a good story, that includes growth of the character and change. Etc. etc. etc. It's amazing what Jane Austen, and the Bronte sister's did. Oh goodness! We still have material - social issues in our world to base our stories on, but their characters development was so well done!
3) Its gonna take time, a whole lot precious time - to do it, to do it, do it right! yeah, so as we grow older we find we have less time. Time begins to slip away so easily. Yet when we are children a day seems to take forever. I wish I had that type of time now. Oh and then there are random chores, obligations that need to be taken care of like an oil change, or cleaning! So making time, and committing time to writing is tough as a grown up adult. Like the saying goes- "health is wasted on the young" so is time!
4) Remembering what you wrote yesterday - few chapters in and you forgot the deets from chapter one, and then 30 chapters in you forgot the details from chapter 15! Creating a timeline, or some sort of organization of characters is important. For instance, I know the world well, and I know my characters, but sometimes I forget what I put in her bag. At the time i put the things in her bag I knew what they were and why they were, but then 4 chapters later, I forget. Kind of like, you have a list of things to tell your significant other at the end of the day, and then you see them and you forget half of it. Then you remember it just when you are both about to fall asleep!
5) Setting deadlines and goals - these are hard to stick to, because of all of the above. So kick it out the window. You'll find that once you do that, you'll be able to write more, and then you'll set a goal, 'I want to finish it by the 20th of Jan'. Then once you set it, it get's tough again.
6) Thinking of Publishing? - these thought or worries rather, come and go; for me, more often than not. Self publish, or find an agent, or approach a publisher? Which one is right for you. I say finish writing, have a manuscript. Edit it twice and then worry about publishing. Maybe do some research in your free time, yes that time which is so hard to come by. I will be posting information on that soon! So stay tuned!
7) Worries of failure - you could be the next JRR Tolkien of JK Rowling or George RR Martin, but it's such a competitive world, and you're better off making video games honestly, cause I rather play video games than write cause it's easier :-P kids today rather play video games than read. There are those who read, but I fear those numbers are decreasing rapidly. Then there are those who write for Movies... aaah! Worries of failing will plague the author, but to write knowing the chance of success is very low, is quite comforting. Accept that and write.
8) Atmosphere from noisy to quiet, finding a balance for writing - so I've always dreamt of writing a novel at a cafe, where there's a fire sizzling, and I got me some hot chocolate. I am brandishing my wonderful ink pen, and writing on some wonderful parchment... scratch that. Over full Starbucks, noisy, Christmas music, no fireplace, and yeah the baristas shouting about. Nope, need to find that ideal setting, yet. It's hard to find a perfect atmosphere or ambiance that nurtures writers. The right amount of noise, as to not being distracting, as well as not to quiet to be creepy. Yes silence can distract me, so I find playlists that inspire but also help keep me focused (so different from my running play list, or driving play list!). Then there's the internet, def don't connect to the WIFI, and if you need to look something up use your phone, keep it to the minimum!
9) Prioritizing writing, life, friends, balancing? Maybe not balanced but being smart about it - writing is important, but if you have a different job that sustains you while you are writing, that should take priority. Then there are life things, as in a friend needs you, friendship is very important, don't ditch your friend, then again a good friend would understand. So setting these priorities and working around them. Sometimes you might prioritize and set up a schedule, that schedule will change! Be flexible. I set time to write, but sometimes it doesn't flow well, until my head hit's the pillow at 11:30 pm and then I get mega-inspired. I have to teach at 8 am the next morning, but I go with the flow and deal with it. Its the only way it's going to get done, sometimes I just write it on note-cards, and try to pick it up later. When I do stay up late to write, I suck it up although i am tired, and I deal with it the next morning, and drink tea and look awesome (somehow) and make sure I teach well (tea does the job for me).
10) Word count goals - so publishers have set an average word count for various genres. Fantasy / sci-fi fiction lands at about 80,000 - 100,000 words. So with length in mind, and matter of course, it's good to pace yourself, and build. Setting a word goal per day/ week is good but eventually I've found that difficult to work with.
Lastly: editing, but since I'm not there yet, I'll leave it for the next blog entry. So stay tuned!
And yes I have not really edited this blog!
:-P
Breathe
(always remember to breathe while writing!)
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