Desperate Writer Seeks NaNoWriMo Writing Buddies

I did it!  I signed up for NaNoWriMo.  I am now an official participant.  During the month of November I will be writing a 50,000 (or more) word novel.  I realize signing up is only part of the process.  As soon as the calendar flips I will need to sit down and write too.  This is where it always gets tricky for me.  I can do this though, but I may need a little help from my friends.  If you catch me playing on Facebook or MySpace please don’t indulge my irresponsible and easily distracted side, not unless there is proof that my word count is increasing.  You can verify my count by visiting my personal NaNoWriMo page.  If my number is going up I can play.  If my number is staying the same chatting with me is off-limits.  This is one goal I really want to achieve.  Not only do I want to be added to the hallowed “Winner’s Page”, I want to experience that happy little high writers feel when they complete a project.

Are you a NaNoWriMo participant too?  If so, I would love to be your writing buddy.  We only have a couple more weeks to procrastinate and then we have to strike those keys and fill our blank pages with words, because that’s what writers do … we write!

Do Goal-Oriented People Have More Energy?

The world needs dreamers and the world needs doers.  But above all, the world needs dreamers who do.  ~Sarah Ban Breathnach

It finally hit me. My stories are not going to write themselves.  I need to treat my writing career as a real job if I want to realize my dreams.  I have been out of the paid workforce for so many years.  As a stay-at-home mom I have met deadlines, prepared meals, dispensed medications, managed finances (although I failed miserably at that task), served as a chauffeur, resolved problems, assisted with homework, and tried to create order out of chaos.  All that role shifting should have prepared me for the future, but I am finding it very difficult to bring my stories to life on paper.  ADD is one of my issues, undefined goals is another one.  I need to get tough with myself and set some clear-cut goals.  I have operated on a flex schedule for the past 19 years.  Writers need to be flexible because we never know when that big story is going to hit us, but we also need to be able to work through our “blocks”.  Sitting behind a desk in a real office with co-workers holding me accountable may have been a good experience at some point.  I would have learned to be productive when I am bored silly.  As it is, when I get bored I log-on to my computer and mingle with my cyber friends.  I am not about to give up that guilty pleasure, but I do need to manage my time better.  I need to set some goals. 

 

I have heard that goal-oriented people have more energy and more fun … I wonder if that is true.

 

My Writing Goals for this Week:

 

• Complete my character studies.
• Outline the plot.
• Break the plotline into scenes.
• Refuse to the let the pre-writing interrupt the creative flow.

Only a Writer Understands a Writer

Today I am reflecting on the first writer’s event I attended. It was a DARA club meeting. The speaker for the day was Shelley Bradley who also writes under the name Shayla Black. She was talking about writing sex scenes. Her presentation was outstanding, but the comment that really stuck with me wasn’t sex related it was her utterance of the words, “Only a writer understands a writer.” I have since heard that comment many times. There is a lot of truth in that statement. It takes a creative mind to understand a creative mind. For years I tried to fit into the dull and uninspiring side of mainstream society and while I managed to blend in most situations, I often felt displaced. That feeling disappeared the minute I befriended fellow writer types. A writer, like other artistic minds, views the world differently. We see the extraordinary in the ordinary; we can create entire stories based off an image we see or a brief encounter with someone new. When we patio dine we aren’t really there for the cocktails and cuisine, we’re watching all the potential characters around us. The first time I met a group of writer’s at a bar I was in a state of nirvana. To an outsider the topics we discussed would have seemed completely insane, but to me the conversation shared made complete sense. After spending most of my life thinking I was a little “off”, that night was reassuring. I am “off”, but so are all of my writer friends. If we were any other way our readers would be bored.

Stimulating My Muse with Exotic Dance

How do you stimulate your muse?  I take mine dancing.

In a previous post I referenced my night at the boutique hotel and the quote that inspired me to pursue my writing dreams.

There is only one admirable form of the imagination: the imagination that is so intense that it creates a new reality, that it makes things happen. –Sean O’Faolain.

Shortly after discovering that quote under my pillow, I enrolled in an exotic dance class and pushed my imagination even further.  The benefits have been many.

I meet most of my friends through social networking and this “interest” of mine generates a lot of questions from both men and women:

• Do you dance for an audience?
• Do you strip in class?
• Are there men in your class?

The answer to the first question depends on your definition of an audience.  I do not dance in a strip club.  In fact, I’ve only been to one strip club and that was years ago.  The night didn’t go well and my date got a little more than he bargained for with my shenanigans.  I have danced for my classmates and privately, although I will admit, dancing for others still makes me nervous.   The answer to the other two questions is “no”.  We wear an over-sized shirt for the striptease routines and men are not allowed in the room.  The classes I take are for fitness and for my own personal pleasure.  The students range in age from 20 to over 60.  Our backgrounds are diverse and we are all at various stages on our journey.  The older women inspire me the most, not only are they embracing their sensuality in spite of their increasing age, but they can also dance.  The confidence they exude is beautiful.  To those of you who think sexy stops in mid-life … you couldn’t be more wrong.

How does this help with my writing?

Any time a writer pushes themselves outside of their comfort zone it improves their writing.  Exotic dance allows me to express my passionate side in a creative way and I bring all that energy back to the computer keyboard.  Getting in touch with my own sensuality helps me add depth to my characters.  It also inspires story ideas.

Too Close to Tell it Well

They say to write what you know … but I wonder; when are you too close to the story to tell it well? 

This is a question every fiction writer struggles with at some point in their career, usually early in their careers.  It is one I am struggling with now.  My story file is filled with prompts jotted down late at night as I lie awake in bed reflecting on life and pondering “what if” scenarios.  While it is usually easy for me to fictionalize my adventures and misadventures, occasionally I get this nagging urge to tell it like it is.  Fiction and nonfiction intertwine and our real life experiences create a rich tapestry of material we can pull from.  Deciding how to handle those experiences in a fictional work is challenging.  If we elect to write about something near to us do we wait until we have fully processed the event or do we write about it while it is raw and our emotions are high?  How much do we change?  Bleeding on the pages opens you up to a lot of “talk” and you run the risk of unintentionally hurting others.  If your readers can easily figure out who or what you are writing about is it still a work of fiction?  Finding the right balance is important.  I spent the entire day yesterday writing a short story that mirrored an event in my life a little too closely.  At the end of the day, I read what I wrote and decided my personal bond was a hindrance.  I was trying to tell the story well, without revealing too much.  Cutting out key details to protect myself and others killed the story.  The real life story is a powerful one, the edited one is weak.  Since I am not writing a memoir, I filed that one.  I may pull it out another day and see if I can rework it or I may let it sit in the file indefinitely.  I am still trying to find that balance.

What Genre and Sub-Genre Do You Write In?

I get asked this question frequently and while I try to reply with a sophisticated answer, the truth is I don’t know yet.  I’m a new writer, an aspiring writer, and until I figure out which genre fits me best I plan to experiment.  Basically, I’m following the stories wherever they lead me.  I enjoy writing fiction, nonfiction, short stories, and poetry.

In my last blog entry, I touched on my interest in writing erotic literature.  This is not my primary interest; however, it is something I want to explore.  The psychology of relationships has always fascinated me.  My stories will uncover the sexual journey of characters and how that journey impacts them as individuals. The characters and plots will be well-developed since I have no interest in writing stories that are designed to sexually arouse the reader and nothing else.  In other words, I won’t be writing porn.  I may or may not write a happy ending.  The happy ending is what differentiates Erotica and Erotic Romance.  In Erotic Romance the HEA (happily ever after) is required.

The WIP (work-in-progress) that excites me the most right now is my full-length novel.  I definitely don’t want to label a novel that hasn’t been written yet, but at this stage I would call it a mystery and love story.  I’m still in the plotting phase.  I thought I had it figured out, but I took another look at it after the PNWA Conference in Seattle and discovered it has flaws.  I attended an informative workshop by Sheldon Siegel on the last day of the conference, “Key Elements of the Modern Crime Novel”.  Siegel stressed the importance of deciding whose story you are telling.  You should be telling ONE person’s story.  I had two equally strong characters and two minor characters whose prominence I was trying to elevate.  This is a classic new writer’s mistake.  Fortunately, my error was discovered early in the story development process.  The knowledge I acquired at the conference will help me strengthen the weaknesses in my storyline before I start writing.

In addition to the above, I am investigating a nonfiction collaborative work.  I am not ready to reveal the details of this project yet, but I have pitched the idea to several industry professionals and the feedback has been good.  This would either be an article or book.  Time will tell.

My Alter Ego

I have another secret to reveal.  Not only do I have ADD, or something like ADD, I have an alter ego.  My other side likes to write sensual literature, so I adopted a nom de plume. 

French for “pen name”; an invented name under which an author writes.

According to a panel of editors at the 2009 Dreamin’ in Dallas conference, there is a shortage of quality sensual, or rather, erotic literature.  Erotic Romance and Erotica are both hot markets. Readers enjoy sex and they want more of it.  The problem is many writers aren’t comfortable writing it.  There is a tendency to assume what is written between the pages also takes place between the author’s sheets.  That, of course, is rarely the case, unless you’re writing a memoir.  Creative writing involves the imagination.  Mystery writers don’t have to murder someone to write a good story and erotic writers don’t have to engage in unseemly affairs or have wild sex to tell the story well.  However, due to the nature of the subject, most agents and editors recommend using a pen name if you want to venture into this genre.  In fact, they often recommend using a pen name anytime you switch genres.  Readers attach certain expectations to your name.  The last thing you want to do is offend or disappoint a reader.

Life as an ADD Aspiring Writer

I haven’t been officially diagnosed with ADD, but here are my symptoms: 

• I have trouble concentrating. 
• I get lost in conversations.
• I zone out for no apparent reason. 
• I have a hard time finishing projects. 
• I start new projects before finishing old ones.
• I read two chapters of a book and then I start a new one. 
• I am easily distracted. 
• My desk is a complete mess. 
• I procrastinate. 
• I lose the keys to my locking file cabinet on a daily basis.
• I am unable to sit still in my office chair. 
• I feel the need to chat incessantly with my online friends.
• I make decisions on a whim.
• I speak without thinking. 
• I spend WAY too much money on shoes.  (That may be OCD.) 

With all these issues, the path to publication is bound to be somewhat challenging, but I refuse to give up.  I started this journey a little over one year ago, my passion triggered by a random moment of inspiration.  I was spending the night at a boutique hotel.  After dinner I returned to my room, lit an aromatherapy candle, uncorked a bottle of Chardonnay, and began to indulge my chocolate addiction.  As I sat there in a state of total relaxation reflecting on life, I noticed something tucked underneath the pillow on my bed.  A quote card left by housekeeping during their nightly turn-down service:

There is only one admirable form of the imagination: the imagination that is so intense that it creates a new reality, that it makes things happen. –Sean O’Faolain.

The words still resonate with me.  Why not make things happen?  I definitely have plenty of imagination.  In fact, I have one of those profoundly overactive imaginations.  I decided at that moment to pursue the writing dream I had been suppressing for many years.  I got involved in several writing groups, I traveled to the West Coast for continuing education, I started working on one story idea, and then another one, and another one … and then I got distracted and started researching something totally unrelated to any of my ideas.  It didn’t take me long to discover, I am my own worst enemy.  As I continue to network with fellow writers, I realize I’m not alone.  Many creative types share my “issues”.  The secret is to budget your time wisely, to set goals you can realistically achieve, and to enlist a support team of fellow writers who hold you accountable.  Instead of beating myself up for all the things I haven’t accomplished since beginning my journey, I am going to start fresh.  Today is a new day and in spite of my ADD, or whatever I have, I am determined to make my dream a reality.