Summer is Winding Down

You know when the beginning of  a new school year is just around the corner, when school supplies start appearing in stores.  Because I'm big sucker for all things that can be stuffed in an office, I've been scoping out what's available in the Back-To-School aisles for a couple of weeks.

Grandkids have spent the summer confiscating my pens, so trying to find a tool to jot down a note or make a simple list has become an effort in futility.  I've already replaced two of four of my favorite pens that "disappeared" and decided to buy a pack of ten inexpensive ones for .99, hoping they'll last more than a week.    Use a pencil, you say?  Have you tried to sharpen a wood pencil lately?  The lead breaks off before it can be used.  I suspect they've been made less sharpenable so people buy the more expensive automatic pencils--the click kind.  I've managed to hang on to a few of those--nice ones--but it's time to buy more lead.

Then comes all the rest of the wonderful things that can be found.  Not that they'll always be used, but what the heck!  If it fits in a drawer or a plastic bin--don't get me started on those--I "need" it.  I use plastic sleeves in my 3-ring notebook "bibles" to keep book information in one place.  (see my blogpost Taming the Series Beast)  Because I ran out a few weeks ago, a trip to Wally World down the street was a must.  I did get a good deal on them and will have enough to last a while.  Unfortunately, the notebooks I use aren't on sale right now, but I did pick up a nice 1" 3-ring binder in purple, although for the life of me, I don't remember what I planned to do with it.  Last night, in addition to the pens, I found plastic pocket folders with brads for 50 cents.  I bought purple (yes, I like purple---Go K-State!), blue, neon orange and neon green.  I had a purpose for one.  The rest?  I'll find a reason. ;)  I controlled myself and didn't buy dividers, although it was tempting.  Oh, yes, there's also a new ream of copy paper.  I'm a bit OCD about printing, evidenced by the need to purchase a new printer cartridge two weeks ago when I ran out of ink while printing 3 copies of a 20 page contract.  And before anyone asks, I recycle paper.

Scissors, Sharpies, white board markers, highlighters, index cards, paper clips, binder clips, rubber bands, push pins, magnets, sticky notes and non-sticky notes, scratch pads, legal pads, notebooks, spiral notebooks...  The list is endless.  A few years ago for Christmas, a friend gave me a set of binder clips in different colors that say crap on them.  I love them!  I blame my mother for all this stuff.  She owned her own business when I was growing up, and she always had all kinds of things I could use to play "office."

I'm in heaven at this time of year. No need to make a stop at Office Max or Office Depot.  A good thing, because when I drop in to buy one, small item, I end up spending $50 or more.  "Oooh, look at this!  I need it!"

What are your must-have office supplies?

The best part of this time of year is that school will start.  Thirteen days and counting.  Quiet time, at least for a few hours each day, meaning I don't have to stay up until the wee hours of the morning to make word count for the day.

Oh, and that 20-page contract?  It's for the last of my Desperation, Oklahoma, series.  For those who have asking if Erin, the sister of the two heroes of A NANNY FOR THE COWBOY and DESIGNS ON THE COWBOY, will have her own story!  Then one more to wrap up storylines and answer questions--Just why is Esther chasing Vern all over town? and Will Aggie and Hettie have their own HEAs?--and then Desperation and its characters will ride off into the sunset.  Or will they?

"Dream on, dream on, dream until your dream comes true..." --Aerosmith

Anything Is Possible

First, a quick note that Bestselling Author Kathie DeNosky (Harlequin Desire) is giving a workshop on Harlequin's website this week.  It's part of Camp Wannabe, created especially for those who aren't attending RWA's Conference in Atlanta.  Kathie's topic?  How to Plot Your Book the Easy Way.  Those participating are raving about it!    

Yes, it's true.  Anything is possible.  There's a catch, though.  It takes hard work and something else:  A goal to work toward.

I've been working on a new project, while waiting for word on a proposal I submitted a few months ago.  One of the things that bogs me down, when it comes to writing, is the waiting.  Write and write, then wait, and wait, and...  The waiting, not the writing, is the hardest part.  I tend to do little jobs during that waiting time.  Things like rearranging my office, sorting papers, playing spider solitaire, working on websites and wondering what else there was to do, besides waiting.  I'm smart enough to know that this downtime means getting out of the habit of writing.  When the muse goes into hiding, getting started again can be torture.  The muse refuses to be found.  This time I decided to try something to tempt the muse.

New Project, New Goal

Like most writers, I have old projects that I started and left behind.  I have projects that were rejected, some because they didn't "fit" the particular publishing line.  2+ weeks after I sent off that proposal, my determination to write during the waiting time hit big time.  I pulled out an old manuscript that didn't "fit" anywhere, and decided it was time to get to work on it, if only to lure the muse back to where she needed to be: On my shoulder, whispering that it was time to write.  Three chapters were already written (as per most full proposal length), the plot was there, so I knew where I was going.  On May 10, I started writing, beginning where I'd left off.  How long would it take to write nine more chapters?  I didn't know, but I wanted to give it a solid try with a rough draft, meaning no going back and tweaking, revising or rewriting.  Just moving forward.  By May 31, I'd written 200 pages.  I finished the epilogue (which hadn't been planned) on June 1.  Surprise!  I'd proven that if I seriously wrote most days (18 of the 21 days left in May), I could actually get a lot of writing done.

Another New Project?
With the rough draft finished, I thought, "Why not try it again with another?"  I took a day to look over an old proposal that I'd already tried reworking once before and decided the conflict was weak.  This new one needed some changes in those first three chapters that were already written, but it gained me 7 pages. I kept going.  By the end of the month, I'd finished almost four more chapters.  Then our local writing group's BIAW came up, and I set my goal at 40 for the eight days.  I wrote all but one day of those eight and ended up with 94 pages.  No, that's not a mistype.  94.  There was only one problem.  I'd planned on maybe 11 chapters, and I was now working on chapter 12, and there were more things to tell in the story.  Okay, 12 chapters would work.  Then it became 13.  I'm now working on the last scene of the book, the last of chapter 14.  I'll stand up and say that not everyone will write 20 pages or even 94 pages in a week, and that's okay.  I seriously doubt I'll repeat my all time high in this lifetime. ☺

Is this manuscript ready to publish?  Absolutely not!  It's rough.  I have the front of my notebook (story bible) covered in sticky notes.  But I know what needs to be done and where, and even how.  That "how" can be a real devil.

My work is cut out for me, but not now.  With an offer on a contract for those two submissions back in May, my attention must be focused on them.  Tonight, once that last 10 or so pages are written, I'll put the new 70,000+ words story aside.  Both manuscripts I've worked so diligently on to write will have a rest.  There's no deadline for them, but there are with book 9 and book 10 in the Desperation series.  I'll be wrapping that up, while another idea for a series simmers in the dark regions of my mind.  I'll take Friday (tomorrow) off, and start in Saturday on The Cowboy Meets His Match (that's a working title).  I won't be spending a lot of time trying to get back into the rhythm, because I haven't lost it.  This is not to say that I'll take a day or three or four break, here and there, until all is finished.  Life intrudes, and sometimes we simply need a break.  There's nothing wrong with taking a short one, then getting back to work.

Everybody needs a little time to do the things that they want to do and still do what needs to be done, whether it's a day job, being a mom or dad, or any other requirement.  Writers don't sleep, eat, and write only.  We're all human and need time to relax and do other things.  For writers, it can be a struggle to get back into writing again, after a long break.  Yes, it's tempting to take several weeks--a couple of months or more--to get away from writing.  After all, being chained to a desk isn't fun for anyone, even if it's doing something we love.  Train yourself to write on a regular basis and set goals.  You won't regret it.

By the way, there's a flip-side to this, too.  If the muse is whispering let's write and here's the perfect story in your ear, but you have other obligations, the frustration mounts.  Relax and adjust.  It's less painful.

Dreams seldom materialize on their own. -- Dian Fossey

So You Want to be a Writer...

Millions of people think of becoming a writer.  Only a small percentage actually do.  There are probably as many reasons for both.  It looks like fun, but the truth is that it's hard work and not for the faint-hearted.  It can be brutal, it can be fabulous!  But there's no way of knowing which and when will happen, because both do.

I'll be upfront and honest and say without qualms that I am not a NY Times Bestselling Author.  I don't have awards stretched along my fireplace mantle.  I don't even have a fireplace, much less a mantle.  I haven't sold as many books as some, but I've sold more than others.  In fact, I have two, very close friends who have topped the charts.  Does that bother me?  Not really.  I focus on myself, not everyone else.  I don't need to be the Joneses next door.  Trying to do that is counterproductive.  I'd drive myself crazy.  Okay, crazy-ER.

It's my opinion that there are four kinds of writers.  Let's take a look at them.

1. People who dream about being a writer and may have even told people about their dream, but haven't written anything.  
2. People who write sporadically, when the mood strikes, but enjoy being around people who write.
3. People who are actively writing toward a goal of being published and continue to learn new things.
4. People who have had a book published--or have published a book--and are actively working on the next.  Learning new things are a must in their life.

#1's are simply dreamers.  They usually love reading and wish to someday do the same.  However, they haven't looked into the process of writing and publishing.  They, like dreamers, dream of someday writing a book...when there's time.  Maybe.  These are the people we hear say, "Someday I'm going to write a book about [whatever topic is being discussed].  There are times when this can lead to actually moving forward and investigating what goes into writing a book.

#2's are what are known as hobbyists.  There's nothing wrong with being a hobbyist.  Having interest in doing something is good.  Many writing hobbyists are even voracious readers.  There are a few who rarely read, but enjoy listening to others talk about writing and will say they are writing, too.

#3's are writers.  They have done and continue to do their "homework."  They attend conferences, workshops, either in person or online, and keep up with what's going on in the publishing world.  They get together with writer friends and join writing groups to talk about and learn more about writing and publishing.  But most importantly, they are writing...at least once a week, if not more.  They are writers.

#4's understand how important it is to write and continue to learn about all aspects of writing.  In the meantime, they write nearly every day (or night).  They write wherever and whenever they can, whether it's waiting while kids attend activities or even on vacation.  They work hard and have deadlines to meet.  They are Writers.

Which number are you?

Kristen Lamb said in her June 10, 2013 blog post, Traits of the Successful Author--Self Discipline, "If you want to be a professional, careful hanging out with too many amateurs. When I say amateur, I don’t mean unpublished (pre-published) writers. I mean writers who are hobbyists. If you’re in a writing group, and it might as well be a coffee klatshe? Find another group or create one on WANATribe."

Well said, Kristen!

Which number are you?  Are you happy where you are?  If so, that's fine.  If you aren't, why aren't you?  Ask yourself what's keeping you from moving on.  Even multi-published authors can and do ask themselves this question.  The answer?  Each one is different, just as each writer is different.  Know where you are and decide where you want to be.  If you're a #2 and happy, you're where you want to be.  If you're a #1, and do nothing beyond dreaming, ask yourself what's important, dreaming or doing and do something about it, if needed.  #3?  Keep learning and keep writing!  Even when it feels like the odds are against you, keep moving forward.  Keep writing.  The publishing world is changing, and you may find the right place to be and the right (write?) you.

Follow your dream, then live your dream.

Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world. 

 -- Harriet Tubman

Post Holiday Reflections

I had every intention of writing a blog post yesterday, first thing in the morning.  After that, my plan was to write.  And write some more.  But plans often go awry, and I ended up doing updates on a website that took longer than planned, and then I started reading the blogs of other writers.  By the time I started writing, it was late, and the evening was filled with booms and bangs.  Let's face it, except for watching a well-done, aerial fireworks display, I'm not a fan of the noise of firecrackers and the like, and I opt out of the things that sell from a tent.

Instead of sharing my distaste of fireworks for fear that someone might think I'm unpatriotic (I'm not!), I'd like to share some of the blogs I follow on both a regular and an irregular basis.  There's good stuff out there!  Sometimes I'll find something that makes me stop and think or spurs me to write my own blog on the same subject.  Yes, the latter requires thinking, too.

My first blog stop is often at Kristen Lamb's Blog.  She's smart, she's funny, she's spot on.  And she's learning, just as we all are.  Kristen not only shares her trials and triumphs, she shares hints and tips that she learns along the writing and publishing path.  Let's face it.  Writing can be lonely.  Writing can be difficult.  But knowing that others experience many of the same things can make those negatives more easily to except and change.  And you'll love the pix she posts of her son, The Spawn.

The next on my list of blogs to visit is Joe Konrath's  A Newbie's Guide to Publishing.  Joe has been writing and publishing for many years, and he knows the business.  I don't make it to Joe's blog every day, but when I do, I have a lot of reading to catch up on, whether posts from Joe or from his guests.  Experience is the best teacher, whether yours, mine, or the experience of several others, and we can learn from all of it.

If you're serious about epublishing and are considering publishing your own ebooks, JW Manus's Blog is one you'll want to follow.  Jaye shares information on a variety of things regarding formatting your book for epublishing.  Jaye has tips, tricks and how-to's for converting your book to ebook and where to find more information.

If you're writing romance, don't miss Trish Wylie's 2009 blog series, Not at Nationals - Common Writing Mistakes.  ("National" meaning Romance Writers of America's annual National Conference)  It's fabulous!  Unbelievably, I found it last week. SMH  I'm serious, folks.  Trish shares a lot in a little space.  A lot of good stuff.  A LOT!!

Another blog I don't visit nearly as often as I should.  That's probably because I keep forgetting to bookmark or follow it.  Jane Friedman's tag line, Writing, reading, and publishing in the digital age, says it all.  As she says in her blog bio, she's been "working in the publishing business since the late 1990s."  Who better than someone who knows the ins and outs, goods and bads?

Everyone has their favorite blogs.  The above of are some of mine.  But I'm always looking for more, so I'd love to know your favorites.  Maybe I'll add them to my list. ☺

Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hope at all.  – Dale Carnegie