Hiatus

I'm taking a few days off and I'll be back next week.

Puzzling

Since I was a kid, I've always enjoyed jigsaw puzzles. I have a standard method for putting them together: I start with the edge pieces, then I pick out pieces by color and work on assembling small sections, eventually joining the sections together.

Outlining my novel is kind of like putting together a jigsaw puzzle. Except I don't have a picture on a cardboard box to follow, and I don't know exactly where the edges will be. Sometimes I change my mind about which pieces go together. But it's very satisfying when the pieces fit.

Progress

One month ago today I started my blog, so I thought it would be a good time to check on my progress with the goals I set for myself. I’ll address them one by one:

Post at least 5 times per week (except when I'm out of town).
I surprised myself by actually posting every single day. I did give myself a few days off by writing some posts in advance and scheduling them to post automatically.

Learn to silence my overactive inner critic.
I'm still struggling with this goal. I know blog writing doesn't have to be perfect, but it's hard for me to loosen up and not nitpick everything. I don't want to present myself as a writer with sloppy blog writing. But I also can't invest too much time in writing perfect posts when I should be working on my novel.

Build discipline by writing posts even when I don't feel like it.
I definitely wrote posts even when I wasn't in the mood, and it wasn't easy making sure I had something to post everyday. Some posts were short, and I know they weren't all interesting or original, but I think I've made a good start. I hope I can keep it going. I'm a creature of habit, and blogging is starting to become a habit.

Develop my writing skills.
I have been developing my writing skills apart from the blog. I'm not sure if the blog is directly helping me to develop my writing skills. But it does make me more aware of my writing process and help me stay relatively focused.

Share what I learn from the writing process.
I've written a little about my experiences writing and I've shared some useful links. I hope to share more as I learn more.

Poetry

Jim Holt's essay about memorizing poetry makes me want to dig out some of my old anthologies and start learning poems by heart.

Home Improvement

I'm working on redecorating around my house this week. I hope that while I'm busy applying elbow grease I'll get a little inspiration.

Nice Rants

One of my favorite literary agent blogs is Pub Rants by Kristin Nelson. She shares her publishing-insider perspective along with loads of useful advice for aspiring writers. She has been blogging regularly since January 2006 and her archives are filled with helpful and interesting posts.

Among the many topics she has covered, here are some of my favorites:

• Writing a query pitch like back cover copy (also see Agent Kristin’s Blog Pitch Workshop on her sidebar)
  
• Actual queries that worked (also see Agent Kristin’s Queries: An Inside Scoop and Submission Pitch Letters to Editors on her sidebar)
  
• Beginning writer mistakes
  
• Stories behind the covers
  
• Choosing the right title

For added fun, Kristin shows her eclectic taste in music by saying what's playing on her iPod at the beginning of every post.

Financial Literacy

I read a lot of blogs related to writing and publishing, but I also follow blogs about many other topics. My favorite blog about money matters is Get Rich Slowly. It promotes “sensible personal finance” and practical frugality by offering advice related to saving money and eliminating debt.

In honor of Financial Literacy Month, Get Rich Slowly is featuring stories about the fundamentals of personal finance. Yesterday’s post The Financial Literacy Compendium links to past advice on basic money skills, investing, and more.

Writing is rarely lucrative and it is important for writers to be financially literate, especially during the current economic climate.

TV

The last episode of ER airs tonight and I think I will have seen every episode. I missed some during the early seasons, back before I recorded all my favorite shows on VCR and then DVR, but I later caught up with them on DVD.

I've always been a committed TV watcher. I prefer the serial format with continuing story lines over formulaic self-contained episodes. Once I decide to follow a TV series I want to see every single episode, so I don’t miss anything. If I get bored or frustrated with a show, I give it up cold turkey. It’s all or nothing for me.

I hate when a TV series ends before I’m ready to give it up, especially if the show-runners don’t have a chance to wrap up the story. But it can be satisfying to see a series end when the time is right.

Over all these years, I never lost interest in ER and tonight I will find out how the story ends.

Foolish

I have a hard time loosening up and writing freely. Some days are harder than others, and today is one of those days when it is almost impossible to send thoughts from my brain through my fingers onto the page. I second-guess every idea. My backspace key is getting quite a workout.

I think this struggle is related to perfectionism. I like everything to be perfect, so it’s hard to push myself when things don’t feel right. I should be inspired by today’s date to be a little foolish and let myself make mistakes.

Music

When I’m using my laptop for work or pleasure I like to listen to music. In the past, I mainly listened to iTunes music through my laptop speakers. I have thousands of songs loaded in my iTunes account, but I get bored hearing music that I've selected.

Everything I have in my iTunes is there because I put it there, even if I rarely or never listen to it. I like the element of surprise when listening to music. Shuffling adds randomness, but you still have to decide what is going to be included in the shuffle.

Lately, I've been listening to Pandora, an online music discovery service based on the Music Genome Project. I like it so much I've been listening to it more than my iTunes music. (Since I've had some international visitors recently, I should mention that Pandora is not available outside the United States because of licensing issues.)

Basically, you customize your own radio stations based on music that you like. You start by selecting a seed—either a song or an artist—and Pandora will start playing songs with similar musical attributes. You can add variety by selecting additional songs and artists. With each song played, you can click thumbs up or thumbs down to indicate whether or not you like it, further tweaking your preferences. Whenever you select thumbs down, the song stops playing and Pandora starts a new song (you are limited to six skips per hour).

I’m amazed by the amount of music available through Pandora—from old standards to the latest hits. Last night my personal radio station played a wide variety including Etta James, Jim Croce, Gnarls Barkley and Taylor Swift. I have another radio station customized to play relaxing classical piano music. I listen to this when I’m trying to concentrate and don’t want to be distracted by lyrics.

I enjoy giving the thumbs up or down for songs, but it can be addicting and distracting. Also, Pandora occasionally plays audio ads between songs (unless you pay for ad-free service). This happens very rarely for me (I can listen for hours without hearing an ad) but this might be because I frequently click on songs to give thumbs up or down and therefore see visual ads on the website.

There are many additional features in Pandora like the ability to share stations with friends. One feature I like is the ability to bookmark a song, so I can remember a new song or artist I liked.

Some people will find it frustrating that you can’t play songs on demand (you will only hear a particular song when Pandora decides to play it), but if you like variety and discovering new music it’s worth checking out. And for some reason the music I play on Pandora through my laptop speakers sounds better than music I play from iTunes through the same speakers. I don’t know why that it is, and maybe it’s just my imagination.

Newbie

Yesterday I joined the party and I was pleased to get some thoughtful and supportive comments. It’s encouraging to be welcomed into the community of blogging writers.

I’m a newbie as a writer and a blogger. As such, I have to balance self-confidence with humility. I recognize that I have a lot to learn, and I’m so grateful to everyone who offers wonderful writing advice online. I hope I will be able to pay it forward by contributing my own advice someday!

In the meantime, I will work and learn and share my musings along the way. And it’s nice to have company on the journey.

Party

Jane Smith is hosting a Pitch Party today, for bloggers to promote their blogs. Welcome to anyone who found their way from there to here.

I love finding new blogs to follow (even though I already spend too much time reading blogs) so I enjoyed checking out the other blogs that were pitched. Here are my three favorites:

• Isaac Espriu’s Place - a very welcoming blog by someone pursuing a career as a full-time writer
  
• Help! I NEED a Publisher! (And Maybe an Agent ...?) - advice about getting published from an award-winning author (and self-proclaimed crabbit old bat)
  
• Writing Advice for the Absolute Newbie - tips and resources for new writers (perfect for me!)

I subscribed to all three RSS feeds and I look forward to reading what these bloggers have to say.

Accountability

Yesterday I wrote about feeling pressure to rush the creative process so I don’t lose momentum. I think an important factor in keeping up momentum is accountability.

One way I've made myself accountable is by committing to this blog. Every day when I write a new post I think about were I am in the writing process.

Also, I've told some family and friends that I’m working on a novel. They occasionally ask about my progress, and I want to always be able to say something positive.

Brainstorming

Sometimes I worry that because I’m not writing 1,000 words per day (or whatever arbitrary number), I’m not really working on a novel. I feel guilty that I’m not forcing myself to sit down and write for a set length of time each day, even if the words that come out are meaningless.

I think there is value in that approach, but I don’t think I’m ready for that yet. I’m still in the brainstorming phase. I have a lot of ideas, but I’m not ready to put them all together yet. I do have an outline, but it needs a lot of work.

I've been feeling like I need to rush my creative process so I don’t lose momentum. But as long as I’m brainstorming every day—and feeling like I’m making progress—what’s the rush?

It’s hard to know if I’m taking the right approach since this is my first serious attempt at writing a novel. If I’m able to make a go of writing I’m sure my creative process will change over time. But for now, I’m going to try to enjoy the brainstorming phase and not feel guilty about it.

Books

Yesterday I wrote about reading. I have four ways of obtaining books to read: borrow from the library, borrow from a friend, buy used, or buy new. All but the last provide no money to the author.

There are various factors involved in buying new books. I would like to support local independent bookstores, but I don’t have one near me. I used to live in a neighborhood with a wonderful independent bookstore and a chain bookstore both within walking distance of my apartment. I always went to the indie first, but sometimes I had to go to the chain to find a specific book.

Now I buy online unless I absolutely need the book right away, usually because it’s a sequel that I can’t wait to read, but occasionally because I’m buying a book as a last minute gift. When I buy a new book online it is almost always from Amazon. When I need to go to a brick and mortar store, if it’s a popular book I will buy it from a big-box like Target or Walmart. If I’m buying a less popular new book I will go to a chain bookstore.

I decide what books to read based on recommendations and personal interest. I decide whether and how to buy books based on price and convenience. Although I often choose to read books in a way that doesn't directly support the author, if I get hooked I might buy their next book as a hardcover pre-order.

Reading

I've always loved to read, but I read differently since deciding to write a novel. Instead of losing myself in the story I start to analyze how and why it works. Doing this might dispel some of the magic, but I more fully appreciate the work and talent behind the words.

Although I want to learn from authors I admire, I don’t want to be too strongly influenced. I hope to avoid this by reading a variety of authors and genres. I try not to feel too intimidated, especially when reading literary fiction. It would be easy to give up writing and bow down to the masters.

As an aspiring writer I also think more about where I get my books. I’ll write about this tomorrow.

Humor

Knock, knock...

No one’s here.

This isn't a complaint about my lack of visitors. It’s a reflection on the lack of humor in my blog posts so far. I’m afraid I’m not showing my true personality.

Like most people, I think I have a good sense of humor (although not all of us are right). Humor is subjective and doesn't always translate well in writing. In trying to find my voice, I must figure out how much humor to include in my novel. I’m learning that I also need a voice for my blog, and I’d like it to be at least a little bit funny. I think my inner critic is especially picky about humor. I’ll have to work on that.

Individuality

One of the challenges of working on my first novel is discovering my voice. What makes my writing style unique? Should a writer’s voice come naturally, or can it be developed? Am I in danger of creating an artificial voice in my attempts to be interesting and different? Or am I writing the way I think I’m supposed to write—possibly ending up bland and clichéd? If I want to be a writer I have to address these questions, even if I can’t find the answers.

Intimidation

Yesterday I had some new ideas for improving my outline. I haven’t reread it yet, but I’m already thinking about how to make it better.

The problem is that my ideas are a little intimidating. I worry that when it comes time to write these scenes, I will have a hard time getting them to work. But I don’t want to play it safe. I have to push myself—challenge myself as a writer.

So maybe it’s not a problem. Writing is an ambitious undertaking, and I shouldn't allow myself to be intimidated.

Typing

My efforts to get organized and clear my mind have already been paying off. It’s much easier now to reference and add to my notes.

I took a nap this afternoon and while I was half-asleep I found a lot of new ideas floating around in my head. I got up and added these thoughts to my new master notes document on my laptop right away, instead of scribbling the key words on a scrap of paper like I sometimes do.

I can keep up with my thoughts when typing much more easily than writing by hand. I don’t mind hand-writing when I’m taking notes in a meeting or class, but it feels very slow and frustrating to hand-write my own thoughts.

I don’t know if I could write a novel if I had to do it with a quill or pen or even an old typewriter. Having to literally cut & paste instead of Ctrl+C & Ctrl+V seems so tedious!

Organizing

Today is the first official day of spring. The air is crisp and the sunshine is encouraging new growth.

I don’t like spring cleaning, but I do like organizing. Finding solutions for controlling clutter. A place for everything and everything in its place.

Yesterday and today I organized my writing notes. I had several different word documents that had grown into a complicated mess. A mix of writing advice and research in the form of links and copied text, and my own random thoughts and preliminary writing. I really needed to straighten it all out.

No organizational system is useful unless it is easy to use. (“Keep it simple, stupid.”) I decided to combine everything, because one organized document will be easier to maintain. But I needed to group like things together. First I made copies of each original document, in case I accidentally deleted anything during all the necessary cutting and pasting. Then I went through each document, quickly reading just enough to identify chunks of text and label them. At the beginning of each chunk I typed a few characters (a tag) that I would be able to search on, for example *R* for a chunk related to research. I used the asterisks so the tags wouldn’t be confused with regular text (the word “research” might be used in a chunk of writing advice).

Then I went back to the beginning of each document and used the Find function to search for each tag. I copied the chunks and pasted them into the appropriate section (corresponding to the tag) of my new word document. Whenever I pasted in a new chunk, I edited the text, making sure it was concise and in a consistent format. I used bold and underline to highlight key phrases.

At the beginning of each section I inserted a bookmark, and at the top of the document I inserted hyperlinks to the corresponding bookmarks. These links should make it easy to go to each section of the document when I want to add another note or read previous notes. I deleted the old documents to avoid confusion going forward. Now I have one master document (49 pages) of notes for my writing project.

Having all my notes in one organized document relieves the stress of worrying that I might lose track of something important. It frees my mind for new ideas.

Chore

Writing is my hobby, but it can also be a chore. It requires discipline. Choosing to write, even when it's hard, proves to me that I want to write. No one else is making me do it. I could quit at any time. But I know that if I keep at it, I will get a flash of inspiration or a feeling of accomplishment—one of those moments that make the effort worthwhile. And instead of sweeping with my broom I'll be flying on it.

Hobby

On Monday I referred to my writing as a hobby. This might create the impression that I’m not dedicated to writing—not serious or passionate enough. The truth is that I’m committed to developing my writing ability and seriously trying to write a novel. But I can’t make writing the top priority in my life, at least not every day. I have responsibilities and other interests that are important to me.

Writing is different from my other hobbies because it has the potential, however slight, to become a career. Other hobbies might have that potential, if I were to change focus and chase another dream. But writing—becoming a novelist—is the dream I have chosen. And until I have some success as a writer, I will continue to think of writing as a hobby.

Blarney

Happy St Patrick’s Day!

In case you couldn’t tell from my name, Shea (pronounced “shay”), I have Irish ancestry. On a visit to Ireland I kissed the famous Blarney Stone. Kissing it requires literally bending over backwards to place your lips against the stone. In exchange, the kisser receives “the gift of gab.” Personally, I didn’t notice an immediate transformation, but maybe it happens gradually.

I’m not a fan of empty flattery, but I wouldn’t mind being more eloquent and persuasive—especially when it’s time to write query letters!

Lifestyle

Yesterday I wrote about why I want to write a novel. One reason has always been the appeal of the writing lifestyle. I’ve always pictured the typical novelist living in a lovely home in a beautiful rustic location. He or she “works” in a room lined with books, by a window with an inspiring view of the lake/mountains/ocean. He or she has plenty of free time (and cash) for hobbies and travel. He or she lives a low-stress, independent, creatively fulfilling life. Who wouldn’t want that?

I’ve learned that success as a novelist is a lot harder than I originally imagined—even for those talented and lucky enough to be published. I honestly don’t expect fame or fortune. I don’t particularly want to be famous, although a little fortune would be nice. If I ever have a novel published, I expect to continue at my current full-time job while working on the next novel and promoting myself and my work. That would be very challenging, especially compared to my fantasy.

For me, writing is a hobby with the potential to be a career. I would love to make enough money to support myself with my writing. I know it’s unlikely, but the possibility does provide some motivation. In the meantime, I’ll enjoy the writing process and all the steps of my journey as a writer. My life is already pretty good, so I won’t mind if writing a novel doesn’t lead to an extreme life makeover.

It’s nice to have a hobby with the hope of a little success, and the dream of a fantasy lifestyle.

Wannabe

Many people feel that they have a novel in them, but relatively few actually write one. There is a gap between the desire to do something and the doing of it. I have the desire to do many extraordinary things—too many to ever expect to accomplish. Writing a novel is one of the few dreams I consider important enough to put time and effort into accomplishing. Choosing to invest time in writing a novel (and a blog) means passing up on other possibilities. It’s a decision that I must remake daily--not a casual undertaking.

Why do I want to write a novel? In my second post I mentioned two reasons: my love of books and the lure of the writing lifestyle as I have imagined it.

I fell in love with books as a child and reading has always been one of my favorite past-times. When I read a good book, I become completely engaged in the story. I feel like I know the characters; like I am living in the world created by the author. I have felt acute sadness finishing favorite books, realizing I could not continue to live in that world. These are the books I reread because I can never quite leave them behind. They stay with me.

I don’t mean to imply that I live in a fantasy world—I do have a firm grasp on reality despite wanting to be an author! I’m not writing a novel as a way to escape my real life. But the ability to create and share a fictional world is a wonderful gift. I want to have that ability, and I believe I have the potential to develop that ability. I have to try.

Tomorrow I will write about the myth of the writing lifestyle.

Introspection

I've been following many blogs (mostly lurking, occasionally commenting) for quite awhile, and now I’m experiencing a blog from the other side. It has been one week since I started as a newbie blogger. I feel a strange mix of exposure and solitude. With every post I write, I remember that it could be read by anyone, but I know that so far I have no visitors. I’m not expecting or trying to get visitors yet, because I want to establish a track record of blogging first.

Writing a blog with no visitors is rather like writing a novel—you hope that someday someone will want to read it. Since there is no guarantee, you have to make the effort worthwhile for yourself. I’m trying to be very honest in my writing, and there is satisfaction in digging deep to figure out what I really want to say.

Inspiration

This week I've been doing a lot of cleaning. I hate cleaning, but sometimes when doing mundane tasks my mind wanders into an almost meditative state. (I must be in the mood for alliteration.) This state of mind often leads to my best ideas.

Most of my ideas come when I’m getting ready for work in the morning or drifting off to sleep at night. Probably because these are times when my mind tends to wander off on its own, rather like when I’m cleaning. Unfortunately, none of these times are convenient for writing things down, but so far I've managed to hang onto my thoughts until I find a scrap of paper.

Sometimes when I’m in a hurry I don’t want to get distracted by new ideas. But an important part of creativity is being receptive to inspiration whenever it comes.

Status

I started working on my book about two months ago. So far, I have written the following:

• Pages and pages and pages of notes and ideas
• Descriptions of the main characters
• Several openings
• Rough dialogue for key scenes
• An outline of the plot from beginning to end

I'm using an outline instead of writing a rough first draft without planning ahead. My past feeble attempts at starting novels didn't include outlines and didn't work out very well. I’m a planner by nature—very organized and logical—so I feel more comfortable with an outline.

I started writing this blog shortly after finishing my outline. Actually, it still needs a lot of filling in, but all of the important stuff is there. I wanted to take a break from it, and then attack it again with a fresh perspective. This blog helps me to keep writing every day even when taking a break from my project. My writing style is obviously different when writing my blog vs. writing my novel, but all writing can be good practice.

Stick-to-itiveness

I’m confident that I have the ability to be a good writer, but sometimes I have doubts about my stick-to-itiveness.

Like most people, I have had grand plans that never amounted to anything. I have started projects without finishing them. I have made promises to myself that I didn't keep.

Why will writing a novel be any different? Because in my mind, this novel is real—incomplete, barely started, but very real. Not just a daydream, but a reality (to me at least, as crazy as it sounds).

And yet I can’t help worrying that maybe one day soon it won’t feel so real. I’ll lose interest and move on to something else. I don’t think that will happen, but how can I be sure?

I just need to stick with it. Every day.

Confidence

As a writer, I am overconfident and underconfident at the same time. Perhaps this is true of all writers.

When I was younger, I cringed at the thought of anyone reading anything I had written. Since most of my writing was for school assignments I had to let my teachers read it, but I avoided letting anyone else see it. Everything I wrote felt extremely personal, even when it was just a book report. I struggled to find the perfect words because it was important to reflect my thoughts as accurately as possible. I still struggle to do that.

I think a lot of my insecurity comes from knowing that I will never transcribe all my thoughts perfectly, and imperfection means that I will be misunderstood. Conversely, when I do come close to “perfect” writing (my personal version of it, anyway) it is scary to share my true thoughts with other people.

Although writing makes me feel vulnerable, I do have confidence in my writing ability. I know I have a lot to learn, but I've always been a good learner. My voracious reading habits have given me a strong foundation and I will build on it by using the plethora of writing advice available in books and online.

I may be overconfident in believing I have what it takes to be a published novelist. But success requires persistence, and persistence requires confidence. Writing this blog is helping me to address my insecurities and get over my fear of imperfection. I’ll take overconfidence over underconfidence any day.

Learning

Yesterday I wrote about creating the idea for my novel and I mentioned using the internet to learn about writing and publishing. I expected to find writing advice and I was not disappointed. But I was surprised to find useful information about the publishing industry. In particular, I learned that when I finish my novel (thinking positive), the next step will be finding a literary agent. I was thrilled to discover several interesting and useful blogs by literary agents, and I have been following them since January. I will share my favorites in a future post.

Although I am nowhere near ready to query a literary agent, I think it is helpful to know what literary agents want. I don't mean which genres, or vampires vs. zombies. I mean what they want to see in a query letter. I think some query letter advice can be applied to writing the novel itself. In order to have a good hook, interesting conflict, and a strong voice in my query, I need to make sure I have those elements in my novel.

I'm glad I started following literary agent blogs at the early stage of my novel, instead of waiting until my novel is finished. And yes, I'm determined to finish it someday!

Ideas

Over the years, I have often thought about trying to be a writer. My primary motivations were my love of books and the lure of the writing lifestyle as I imagined it. I made a few half-hearted attempts at writing novels, but I lacked confidence and was discouraged by the unlikelihood of being published.

About two months ago I decided to take a more serious approach. I started by thinking about what kind of novel I wanted to write. I made a list of story elements that appealed to me and tried to think of a plot that would incorporate these elements. I surprised myself by coming up with an idea that I was excited about.

Instead of immediately starting to write, I decided to let my idea germinate. I spent time figuring out the characters and how the story would unfold. During this time of developing and changing and refining my idea, I turned to the internet to research writing and publishing.

I'll write about what I learned from my research tomorrow.

Goals

I created this blog because I'm an aspiring writer and I want a venue for practicing my writing.

My goals:

• Post at least 5 times per week (except when I'm out of town).
• Learn to silence my overactive inner critic.
• Build discipline by writing posts even when I don't feel like it.
• Develop my writing skills.
• Share what I learn from the writing process.

I plan to periodically evaluate my progress with these goals.