Twenty-two days and counting

December 22, 2015 confidentwriterLeave a comment

Day 22.

I count the days much like I did when I quit smoking. Three days since my last cigarette. Ten days since my last cigarette. Twenty-two days since my last cigarette.

Counting reminded me of how far I had come. It helped strengthen my willpower when I wanted to quit. Did really I want to start at day one again?

That’s the question I’m faced with as I face today’s blog. I’m tired of trying to figure out what to write. There is so much I need to do to get ready for Christmas Day. Not to mention the fact that I desperately need a day off. It’s like having unfinished homework hanging over your head everyday.

I gave up cigarettes for lent in 1994, and for forty days all I thought about was smoking. I kept telling myself all I had to do was make it to Easter Sunday. If I wanted one after that, then I could have one. Though the craving was intense at times, I perserved. By the time Easter came around, I no longer had a desire for cigarettes. Shortly after that, I stopped counting.

But then my husband and I decided to spend a week with our families between Christmas and New Years. By New Year’s Eve my stress level was off the charts. Eight months of being smoke free no longer mattered. I wanted and had a cigarette.

It tasted horrible and did nothing for my stress. I started my count again.

Coming up with a new idea to write about everyday is challenging. It would be a lot easier to build on an existing idea. Your brain could focus on how to expand or develop what you already have. Ideas percolate overnight and pour easier on the page the next day.

Thinking about this concept makes me wonder why it’s been so hard to finish the revisions on my novel. Something to consider for a future blog.

In the meantime, I’ve made through another day. The counting continues.

The Writing Process

Seven days and counting . . .

December 7, 2015 confidentwriterLeave a comment

Today is the seventh day of my December blogging challenge. Though I should be celebrating a small victory, I’m worried about what lies ahead. The next twenty-four days tend to be the busiest of the entire year. How do I complete everything on my to do list, write a blog and still have time for fun? In addition to the logistics of getting the work done, what do I write about? I don’t want this to turn into thirty-one days of navel-grazing. It has to be more than words on a page. It needs to inform, inspire or entertain. It should leave the reader with something to think about.

The problem with a lot blogs is that they’re more about the blogger than the audience or the message. But writing is a transition between the writer and the reader. Both have to feel as if they have gotten something out of the interaction. That’s what keeps readers reading. So as a writer we have to ask ourselves, “Who am I writing for?”

Personal blogs can be tricky. Generally the purpose is to express your feelings, thoughts or ideas. They become our personal platform. But a platform with no one to listen, is like screaming into the wind. So knowing and considering our audience is important. As is the age-old advice of Strunk and White:

Write in a way that draws the reader’s attention to the sense and substance of the writing, rather than to the mood and temper of the author.

The Element of Style

All of that to say, it feels as if I have been cheating the last seven days. Each of my post have been sort of extension of my personal journal. I have been thinking more about me and my challenge than you and your time. And the reality is, that type of writing doesn’t isn’t interesting.

It’s got me thinking about how to shape the next twenty-four days so that readers look forward to my daily post. A tall order, I know.

The key to writing a reader-centered blog is to focus on one particular thing. That way the writer can zoom in on a specific audience and write for them. Also the writer doesn’t have to reinvent the wheel everyday.

One idea that came to mind for my particular blog is to use the next few weeks as a testing ground for a new book on grief. Another idea was to write inspirational/devotional post. And yet another idea was to talk exclusively about the writing and books. I thought it also might be fun to do a review of the books I’ve read this year.

This is one of those instances where I could really use your help.

What would you like to read? Would it be better to focus on one of the above ideas? Or is there a combination you might find interesting?

Before I sign off for the night, I want to personally talk those of you who are chugging along with me through this process. Knowing you’re out there, warms my heart and keeps my bum in the chair.

Until tomorrow. . .

The Writing Process

Five Tips for Writing on the Fly

December 5, 2015 confidentwriterLeave a comment

“Do you home work first, ” was my mother’s constant refrain. As a child it annoyed me, but I obeyed. However, the older I get, the further I move away from that sage advice. My rationale being that I work better under pressure. A fancy way of saying I’m a procrastinator.

After posting my blog last night just minutes before my husband and I had to rush out the door to a holiday party, I vowed to write today’s post earlier. I woke up at 7:30 and grabbed my notebook. But the only thing that came to mind was that I shouldn’t have had that last glass of wine.

I spent the next several hours nursing my hangover.

I contemplated ditching my blog for the day, especially since I had a five o’clock flight back to Atlanta and dinner reservations with friends at eight. But then I received an email from my photography teacher that said not only was she following my thirty-one day blog challenge, but it inspired her.

I panicked. People are actually watching. I can’t just quit when writing becomes inconvenient.

So I came up with five ways to write on the fly:

Plan. It’s a lot easier to compose a piece of writing when you plan ahead. Think about your subject. Read related articles. Jot down notes.
Set aside a specific time to write. The earlier the better so it isn’t hanging over you head all day like the sword of Damacles.
Anticipate distractions and/or obstacles. If you know that interuptions and challenges are always a possibility, you learn to do your homework first. That way if something comes up, your work is done.
Know your priorities. If something is important, we find time.
Be flexible.

Today’s post got written on my iPhone while waiting for my flight to take-off. Not exactly ideal, but writing on the fly is still writing.

The Writing Process

My Writing Process Blog Tour

April 21, 2014 confidentwriterLeave a comment

I’ve been tagged in the My Writing Process Blog Tour by Patricia Grace King. Check out what Patricia’s been up to at http://www.patriciagraceking.com/.

The blog is a relay that involves answering four question and then naming the authors who will follow. So here we go;

What am I working on?

I’m on the third revision of my novel, set during the Harlem Renaissance, called Cora’s Kitchen. I thought I would be done by now, but my role as Editor in Chief at Minerva Rising has made it challenging to find time for my own writing. But now, I’m more determined than ever to get back in the chair and finish my work.

How does my work differ from others of its genre?

Cora’s Kitchen would be classified as historical fiction. It differs other novels in that genre because it is about an African-American woman, who has the opportunity to pursue her dream. The Harlem Renaissance was an exciting period in our history. African-Americans were making great strides in the arts. The majority of the historical novels written about African-Americans focus on racism and oppression, but I prefer to write about the universality of being a woman.

Why do I write what I do?

I’m all about empowering women. That is why I started Minerva Rising and why I love to write about women developing their potential and becoming self-actualized. It’s my hope that someone will read my novel and find hope and encouragement to pursue her dream.

How does your writing process work?

I’ve found that I am the most productive when I start my writing sessions in prayer. It puts everything in proper perspective and sets the tone for my day. Then I spend ten to fifteen minutes free writing to focus my mind. Sometimes just let the pen flow, recording my thoughts. Other times, I try to answer questions that arose from my last writing session. I generally set an intention of either how much time I’m going to spend on writing or what I need to accomplish to be released from my desk.

Lately, I’ve been using this Focus Time app that breaks up my time into twenty-five-minute segments. It’s called the Pompodoro method. It’s really helpful when I’m struggling to keep my butt in the chair. I don’t allow myself to get up until I’ve completed a segment, then I take a five minute break. I often find myself not wanting to stop for my break, but I find I can work longer if I stand up and walk around. It’s as if I’m taking a mental stretch. My goal is to complete four – twenty-five minute segments a day. and start writing, the words

So that’s my process. Here’s who’s up next

Ann Hedreen is a writer, teacher, filmmaker and voice of the KBCS radio commentary, The Restless Nest. Ann’s memoir about her mother’s younger-onset Alzheimer’s disease called Her Beautiful Brain will be available 2014. She and her husband Rustin Thompson own White Noise Productions. Together, they have made more than 100 films, many of which have been seen on PBS and other TV stations all over the world and some of which have won Emmys and other awards. They have two grown-up children and live in south Seattle.

Ann blogs at: http://therestlessnest.wordpress.com/

Emily Shearer is a poet, yoga teacher and the Poetry Editor at Minerva Rising Literary Journal. She has been captivated by a desire to recreate the feeling of awe that poetry stirs in the soul. Her poetry has been published both on-line and in print at sol(e) literary journal, WritingtheWhirlwind.com, Minerva Rising, Mercury Retrograde and literarymama.com.

Emily writes fiction and poetry both, and chronicle her life as a writer, mom and yogini at lineupyourducks.com.