To Write or Not to Write

Well, let’s face it…I’m good for a post a month. It’s a very sad reality that I write so little and so infrequently these days, but in a lot of ways it’s for a very good reason…

See that, I was just gone for 20 minutes because I was asked for a smoothie, a snack, and to read the directions on some homework. In my deluded years, I was under the assumption that when my kids grew a bit I would be gifted with some free time. I thought that if I wasn’t changing diapers, then I must, I must have all sorts of extra time for me. Boy was I wrong! I sit down less now than I did then.

Since writing takes an enormous amount of time–at least it does for me–then I can safely say that it is firmly on the back burner these days. That doesn’t mean I don’t do it all, it only means that I don’t have large blocks of time like I once had before. Oh nap time, how much do I miss you? But, The Novel is in the process of yet another rewrite, which I think is both a good idea and a bad idea for various reasons.

Anyway, that’s my gripe. In the meantime, I’ve done an enormous amount of reading–it’s something I can take with me wherever and whenever. In the last month I’ve read: Maggie Stiefvater’s, Blue Lily, Lily Blue, Stephanie Perkins’s, Isla and the Happily Ever After, Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander and Dragonfly in Amber, and Rick Yancey’s, The Infinite Sea. I’ve also been on a bit of a short story kick so I’ve also read Stephen King’s, Just After Sunset, and Roald Dahl’s, Tales of the Unexpected.

All of these books are phenomenal in their own ways, but a couple did stand out–Isla and the Happily Ever After is a story I will gladly read again and again. I loved it that much! I laughed, I cried,and I couldn’t stop thinking about the characters for weeks after. The same happened with Outlander. When I finished it, I watched the new series on TV. It’s turning into a little bit of an obsession right now. And the books average 800 pages a piece. I may be on them for a bit. Whenever I read Stephen King I feel a little like I’m being schooled. Stephen King was one of the first authors I ever really got into to and I never fully appreciated how well they were written until now. I love picking apart his writing–the pacing, the characterization, the settings that totally come alive–and learning something new every time.

So what do you all read when you don’t have time for anything else?

Writing the Unpublished Novel

If your ultimate goal is to write the “published” novel then you’re probably asking yourself why you should bother reading this post? Well, I’ll tell you why…
writing the unpublished novel is as important as writing the published one. It’s the stepping stones, the learning curve, the I’m-not-ready-but-I-have-to-do-it-anyway process. I’ve read countless books on how-to write a novel. Some were great. Some were not. I’ve read agent blogs and writer blogs and every book blog I can find. They all say the same thing: KEEP WRITING. It’s true. The more you write, the more you learn.

I look back to the first book I attempted to write. It was about 5 years ago and was about witches living in Fairbanks, Alaska. I have no idea what it was really about, but I did finish it. I excessively edited it, all the while realizing that it was simply no good. Before long, I started book number 2, which was about a girl who could feel the emotions of others. I actually kind of liked that one, but still it wasn’t great. Then came number 3, a book about a fallen angel. Yeah, I know, been there done that. And I knew that. Still, I queried it for all of 2 weeks and let it go because of that. Ok, now I’m on book 4. That book flowed out of me in a matter of 2 months. The editing process was much longer because of working full time and life with kids, etc. I’ve also started number 5. And though it is still a daunting task, I learned enough to understand basic plotting structure and to PLAN.

I’m a planner. There is no way around it for me. The first 2 were written by the seat of my pants and though it was exciting, they were awful, awful. Editing them pained every part of me. I also gained several critique partners and beta read for several more. I had my own beta read and critiqued by people that weren’t family or friends. I took workshops and participated in contests. I put myself out there to be poked at. And believe me when I say that some of it was a brutal experience with a very sharp learning curve. Thankfully, as a former art student, I am no stranger to criticism. I took it and continued writing. I looked back at some of my older writing and I felt so good. Try it. It’s awesome to see your own growth!

The moral of this long post is to find what works for you, but never stop learning.