Archive for Writing Wednesday
Welcome back to Writing Wednesday! Today I’m following up on my last post about motivation.
In the book Around the Writer’s Block: Using Brain Science to Fight Writer’s Resistance, Roseanne Bane describes three habits we should be cultivating each week: Process, Self-Care, and Product Time. I gave myself goals for these habits, and promised to check back and post my progress.
I was derailed from the start with another nasty cold (my second of the spring), but this past week has been much more productive.
I went on a writing date at a pub with one of my friends (See?! Photo evidence!!), and I managed to get my beat sheet/outline done. That’s my handwritten outline and my project open in Scrivener, where I managed to jam out 500+ words even after a Bloody Mary!
The one part that has been difficult for me is the Process time. I haven’t really devoted any time to this creative energy, so that’s something I need to focus on for next time.
For any of my fellow writers out there, how has your process been going? Are you struggling to make time for your writing or other hobbies?
Process:
- Check-in
- My goal: 15 minutes per day, 3 days per week
- Goal met? No. I didn’t do any process work.
- Commitment (next two weeks)
- 10 minutes per day, 3 days per week
Self-care:
- Check-in
- My goal: 30 minutes per day, 5 days per week
- Goal met? Not quite. I did get 4 days this week, 3 of which were well over 30 minutes.
- Commitment (next two weeks)
- 60 minutes per day, 5 days per week
Product Time:
- Check-in
- My goal: 15 minutes per day, 3 days per week
- Target tasks
Outline Hannah plot/beat sheet- Explore Sexy New Idea
Write Hannah catalyst scene- Goal met? Almost. 2 out of 3.
- Commitment (next two weeks)
- 15 minutes per day, 3 days per week
- Target tasks
- Set Hannah on quest
Welcome back to Writing Wednesday! Today I’m talking about motivation.
I recently read a terrific book on this very subject, called Around the Writer’s Block: Using Brain Science to Fight Writer’s Resistance by Roseanne Bane. In it, she explains why our brains get in our own way, how we can recognize our individual forms of resistance, and offers three simple habits to allow us to push through our blocks and get creative. The book was incredibly fascinating and I highly recommend it.
One of the strategies she mentions in the book is developing a reward system, and she describes how a client of hers used dollar store gold star stickers to give herself an immediate visual reward when she crossed off a bit of writing from her to-do list. Brilliant! As someone who benefits from accountability, but struggles to find ways to actually implement it, I really took to this idea. I picked up a few packs of sparkly stickers and drew a chart in my paper calendar where I could stick them.
But as Ruby recently pointed out, our best laid plans when it comes to organization don’t always come with the requisite follow through. Originally, I wanted to get a piece of poster board where I could hang this chart in my hallway and publicly shame myself into putting up the stickers (or not). I couldn’t find what I wanted at Office Depot, and settled for the calendar/planner method.
Which I used exactly once.
I’m not giving up on the gold star method of motivation. I just need a better way to showcase it so that I actually use it. And then it dawned on me – what better place than a public blog?
In the book, Roseanne Bane describes three habits we should be cultivating each week: Process, Self-Care, and Product Time. For each of these items, every week, we need to set aside and commit to time spent on each activity, and then track our results. She provides a number of handy charts to use, and encourages writers to check in with each other, either through existing critique groups or forming groups with others who use her method.
When I put together my new weekly recap post, I considered adding these elements to it for my weekly check-in. Then I thought maybe I should use Writing Wednesday for those check-ins, but I had envisioned this feature being every other week. I’d like to start tracking the number of words I’m writing, as well as the time I’m spending on my writing, in order to better gauge my progress over time and to help me figure out the amount of time each week that I need in order to move my project(s) forward. Whether this needs to happen weekly or biweekly on the blog is up in the air.
For now, I’ll start conservatively, and leave my check-ins on Writing Wednesday every two weeks. I’ll discuss my progress, map out what I’d like to accomplish in the next two weeks, and record my numbers. If any other writers want to join me, feel free to post your own progress/numbers in the comments or on your own blogs.
Here’s my plan for the next two weeks. I’ll be back on the 17th to let you know how I did!
Process:
- Commitment
- 15 minutes per day, 3 days per week
- Choices
- Morning pages/journaling
- Coloring books
- Sketching/drawing
Self-care:
- Commitment
- 30 minutes per day, 5 days per week
- Choices
- Masters swim
- Running
- Bikram yoga
Product Time:
- Commitment
- 15 minutes per day, 3 days per week
- Target tasks
- Outline Hannah plot/beat sheet
- Explore Sexy New Idea
- Write Hannah catalyst scene
Welcome back to Writing Wednesday! Today I’m talking about my first submission to a writing competition.
The last four Mondays in October, I took a class on writing sci-fi and fantasy at my favorite local writers’ space, StoryStudio Chicago. Each week we developed a different aspect of our world, both setting and characters, and our final assignment for this past Monday was a 2,000 word short story that incorporated all of our elements.
I’ve never written a short story before. I’m not good with succinct phrasing. My plotting skills could use some work. I panicked about creating a believable arc in only 2,000 words. I must have drafted 15 different story ideas while pounding away on the treadmill last week. But which one to choose?
Eventually, I ran out of time. I had a deadline, and I was up against the wall. I sat down and just started typing. I worked with it for several hours, teasing out certain plot points and randomly steering this crazy ship to some kind of conclusion. When I ran out of words, I tied things up, then went back and edited it down to what I hoped would pass as a first draft.
In class, I got some excellent feedback, and our instructor, Robyn Okrant, pushed us to consider submitting our work to the Writer’s Digest Popular Fiction Awards Competition, which had an extended deadline through 10/31. Today.
Although the class was over, she offered to take another look at anyone’s work before the deadline. Never one to miss an opportunity, I emailed her a draft last night after a round of revisions, and she got back to me right away with comments. All of the feedback from Robyn and my classmates helped me make some important changes to the story that made it stronger. The emotional arc of my protagonist was coming through much clearer and because the competition has a longer word limit, I was able to go back and fill in some areas of the plot.
So after making my final revisions last night, I submitted it to the competition. Even the act of formatting it into something resembling a professional submission made me feel accomplished. After laboring so long with two different novels that keep stalling, this class and short story exercise pushed me to create a full beginning, middle, and end – and to do it quickly. Though my chances are slim, I’m proud that I took the step to even try entering. I feel like I’ve added a notch to my writing belt.
The joy of creating a new world without the pressure of filling hundreds of pages or needing all of the answers was incredibly freeing. In a short story, you don’t have to answer every question. There’s no time. I am struggling to find the words to describe how revived I feel with my writing. I still have a lot to learn, but I plan to write more short fiction and see where it takes me. I’d love to submit some pieces to sci-fi magazines and see if I can get published. If I sell three stories, I can join the Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America. Plus, it’ll help me build an audience. Wicked awesome.
In the spirit of freeing my creative subconscious, I’ll also be embarking on NaNoWriMo tomorrow. I think to keep me going, I’ll post funny snippets on this blog so you can see what terribly bad things I come up with during the month. Look for that each Wednesday in November.
As for the contest, I won’t know anything until after the end of the year, but I’ll keep you posted. Fingers crossed!
A lover of words and sparkly things.
