Tag: Writing Tips

How to Start Your Writing Project
The Writing Process

How to Start Your Writing Project

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You decided to write a book. The ideas were there, but disappeared the moment you opened a new Word document. Now the only thing standing in the way of you being the next New York Times bestseller author is actually start your writing project.

What to do?

Turn off the computer and return to talking about the book you’re going to write someday. It’s way easier. Or take a deep breath and trust the process.

The process

We want to believe inspiration or muses are necessary for the words to flow on the page. But inspiration is a temperamental, and muses are unpredictable. The writing process — planning, writing and revising— is steadfast and dependable. Do the work, and the words will come.

Back when I taught composition and advanced writing, I’d start the semester by writing a boiled-down version of the process on the board — pre-write, write, and re-write.

Pre-write – explore and research the subject you what to write about. Write – draft your take on the information you collected. Re-write/rethink your understanding based on feedback and expanded information brought up by your discovery through the writing process.

Each step is necessary to write well. But to start a writing project you have to pre-write or plan. Failing to prewrite is one of the quickest ways to derail your writing before you even get started.

So, what is pre-writing?

Prewriting builds a blueprint for your project by collecting the necessary information to start writing. Begin by examining your intentions. What question are you trying to answer? What problem do you want to solve? Is there specific information you want to share? What do you want readers to learn or think? What related experiences have you had or heard about? What’s the current buzz? Do you agree or disagree with the popular thinking? What’s your take on the subject?

This is the point of the process where I start a dedicated notebook to jot down ideas. A lot of what’s in this notebook never makes it to the story, essay or blog. The notes are there to help me sort out my thinking and figure out what I know and what I don’t know.

Research

That leads right into the research portion of planning. Start a list of questions that need to be answered. Read what others have written on the subject. Be careful not to get lost in the research or hung up because other writers seem to know more.

If you’re writing fiction, research can include learning about your characters. You can discover a ton about by interviewing them. It may seem weird, but pretend the two of you are having coffee. Ask questions. Are they forth coming? Or reluctant to share? How are they dressed? What do they do for fun? Do they have any pet peeves? Where did they grow up? Some suggest finding out what’s in their refrigerator, but honestly that doesn’t work for me. I couldn’t tell you what’s in my own refrigerator. The important thing is to answer questions help you discover who the characters are.

Research can help you develop your setting and various plot points. Maybe you need to investigate the time period or the city where the story takes place. Recently, I researched the Greek mythology of the muses for a short story. I learned that there were nine muses and that they were the product of a nine-day “relationship” with Zeus and Mnemosyne. I didn’t use any of that in the story but it helped me to think more broadly about the plot.

Another part of pre-writing and planning is what I like to call playtime. For fiction, I write vignettes with my characters to see how they react in different situations. Often these vignettes turn into larger scenes. For non-fiction, I take the raw information and do a forty-five minute free-write to see where it goes. During the process of free writing, you may discover how much you have to say on the subject. You might also discover the piece isn’t about what you thought it would be.

So while prewriting may seem tedious, it gets you one step closer to your goal of being that best selling author.

Now, close this blog and start.

Five Easy Steps to Write Fearlessly
The Writing Process

Five Easy Steps to Write Fearlessly

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What’s the biggest obstacle to writing? 

The writer. 

Sitting down to write often means coming face to face with our doubts and fears. I’m not a real writer. I don’t know enough. How can I possibly say anything that hasn’t been said better by the experts? What if I get it wrong? Does my idea even make sense? What if my mother reads it? What if she doesn’t? What will people think of me? What if it sucks? And on and on.

I totally get it. In fact, I’ve lived it. A great idea will strike. I optimistically jot down notes. Doubt creeps in as I do my research and it is on full tilt by the time I write the first sentence. If I manage to get beyond that round of fear, a more powerful version kicks in as I make my way through the first draft. It manifests as is-it-any-good and/or what-will-people-think. One of two things happen. I either edit out the parts that made me fearful or I stop writing.

Four years ago, I started an essay about learning to live with my natural hair. The original essay dove deep into my insecurities about the texture of my hair and myself as an African-American woman. It asked some really poignant questions, and then I backed off. I told myself I needed more research on the history of black hair in the United States. And once I did the research, I couldn’t figure out how the additional information fit into my story. So, I stopped working on it. It’s sad to think about the pieces that have died a slow death because of self-doubt and fear.

But interestingly enough something happened. I discovered my writing only works when I write from a place of vulnerability. As the saying goes, feel the fear and do it anyway. 

I’m not suggesting that writing from a place of vulnerability is easy because it’s not. It’s really hard. There will be tears, and maybe a bit of nausea. But it will be true. It will be real.

I recently went back to the essay about my hair. I wondered what would happen if I just wrote it in spite of my doubts and fears. Here are five practical tips that helped me move from doubting myself to writing fearlessly:

Make room for yourself to write authentically.

Find a place where you feel safe to explore your thoughts deeply. There are times when I write best in my home office. It’s comfortable. I’m surrounded by my favorite things with the added bonus of not having to ask someone to watch my computer when I go to the restroom. Other days I love being lost in the anonymity of a crowded coffee shop. It feels less lonely than my office, and I don’t have to let the dogs in and out twenty times.

Stay seated.

I can’t emphasis this one enough. Keeping your behind in the chair goes a long way when you’re trying to write fearlessly. It forces you to face the challenge on the page. When you have the urge to get up or go do something else, ask yourself what is it about this work that makes you uncomfortable? Sometimes it’s because of the emotions it evokes. Or the approach to the work could be the issue. Either way, don’t let yourself off the hook so quickly. Set a specific time limit or word count and stay seated until you have achieved your daily goal.

Allow yourself to make mistakes.

Nothing stops our work died in its tracks faster than perfectionism. We have a vision of what the work should be. When it misses the mark, we get frustrated. This often happens because we set unrealistic expectations for ourselves to write like someone else. This is a big one for me. I have a ton of friends who are wonderful writers. I worry that my stuff isn’t as good as theirs. Sometimes it is. Sometimes it isn’t. But we will never improve unless we actually do the work. Our mistakes become our guide. 

Own who you are.

Self-doubt can make you question your ability. You may worry that you don’t have the right education or experience to write well. So, you buy more books or take another class. But nothing will makes as big of a difference as accepting who you are as a writer. Even after several books, countless classes, and two master degrees, I still doubted myself as a writer. It took me a long time to realize that if you write, you’re a writer. The world needs our story and we are the only one who can tell it.

Celebrate yourself.

Honor your accomplishments, no matter the size. I love to set a reward for myself at the end of a writing session. Go shopping. Get my nails done. Or lately, watch my favorite Netflix show without guilt.

Making a decision to write fearlessly may result in the best writing you have ever done. It’s worth it to at least try it. 

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Five Ways to Refresh Your Writing

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Nothing kills creativity like being stuck in a writing rut. Circling around the same old tired topics make writing flat and uninspiring. And if you’re like me, you find yourself avoiding your writing time. The kitchen has to be cleaned. The dogs fed. Facebook checked. But there are five ways you can breath new life into your writing.

1.  Take an excursion to some new in your community.

Visiting somewhere new stimulates our senses. I recently went to an art fair in an
Atlanta neighborhood. The architecture of the homes was so different than the suburb where I live.

People hung art on their siding. The houses were painted wild and interesting colors. It made me think about the differences between someone who would live those homes and someone in the suburbs. I started to do little character sketches in my mind. I regretted not having my camera to capture what I saw.

2.  Look at old photos

Photographs are excellent writing prompts. But old photos elicit memories and images of time gone by. I came across on an old photograph of my grandparents’ house. It was taken before I was born. The neighborhood looked different, but the house was exactly the same. As I studied the picture, I was reminded of the generations that had grown up in and around that house. I remembered the warm summer evenings sitting on the porch, rocking back and forth on the glider.

I also found a picture of me as the flower girl in my aunt’s wedding. My mind drifted back to the days before smart phones and cable television. It made me want to write about that little girl’s world.

3.  Visit an antique store

There are so many interesting items in antiques stores. There have tons of jewelry, coins, furniture, household tools, dishes and clothing to spark your imagination.  You could write about how a particular item wound up in the shop or use as a prop in your story. The Secret Lives of Dresses is a novel about a woman who discovers each dress in her grandmother’s vintage dress shop has a special story.

4.  Eavesdrop

I had mixed emotions about adding this to the list. But to be honest, I have gotten some the best lines from things that I’ve overheard at the grocery store. Of course, restaurants are wonderful because of the interaction between people as they eat. Sometimes I pay more attention to what’s going on at other tables than my own. Some might call that nosy, but I call it research.  In fact, I wrote an entire short story from a conversation I heard while waiting at a restaurant bar for my girlfriends. I was so inspired that I woke up the next morning writing. It was exciting to have a fresh idea to work with.

5.  Change your perspective

We often write from our own perspective. I always look at the story or the issue through the eyes of a woman. However, sometimes I switch perspectives to get a better view of the story. It helps me to see the situation differently. I end up noticing things I wouldn’t have otherwise. I begin to understand what motivates people to do and think like they do. I wrote a story years ago about a woman who left her husband. One of the writing groups I shared it with said she was a complete bitch. I was so angry about their assessment. I ended up abandoning the story after several rejections. Recently, I rewrote the story from her husband’s perspective. Not only did it help me to get a more complete picture of the story, it also helped me to see why the other group thought she was a bitch.

There are a ton of other things you can do to refresh your writing, but I’m going to stop here.

How do you liven things up in your writing?

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The Writing Life

Writing Lessons Learned at Obedience Training

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My new puppy, Maizy (as in Maize and Blue), is as cute as a button, but doesn’t listen. She’d be darn right ‘bad’ if it weren’t for the fact that she has learned a few things from our older dog.  So I signed her up for obedience training.

The first class of training was only for humans. An orientation they called it. I was more than a little disappointed.  I wanted to get her straight. Well, turns out she wasn’t the one who needed to be straightened out. The training and behavior manager at Atlanta Humane Society, Mailey McLaughlin, M.Ed, blew me a way with her humor and matter-of-fact way of explaining dog behavior. I learned a lot.

And surprisingly, the three objectives of obedience training are fundamental to the writing life.

  1. Build a relationship – Obedience training is the key to establishing a bond between you and your dog. You have to spend consistent time daily with your dog teaching her what you want. So it is with writing. When you write daily, you grow in your craft. It’s easier to face a blank screen. You begin to establish a bond with your muse and it learns that it can trust you to be there.  And once you have a strong relationship with your muse, the words flow.
  2. Reduce/remove confusion – Most of the behavior problems we experience with dogs happen because the dogs are confused about what is expected of them.  As their trainers we have to reduce or remove the confusion. We do this by knowing how to communicate with them. We also have to make sure that we are sending the correct message. This is key in writing. Writers need to know their audience, especially when you submit your work. We have to carefully manage our words and tone so that what we write says what we want it to say. It’s our job to remove any confusion so that our readers get the intended message.
  3. Have fun – Obedience training has to be fun for dogs so they are eager to learn. And as writers if we make writing fun, it will be a whole lot easier to do. Sometimes we write stuff that isn’t fun, but we can still enjoy the process. Bask in a well-placed word or a great sentence.  Take pleasure in those moments you pull away for the real world to play in the one you created on the screen.  Entertain yourself with your own cleverness.

Next week Maizy comes with me. We’ll learn sit, stay – also great training for writers.