Monday Motivations

27 07, 2015

Enduring to THE END

By |2015-07-26T15:49:28-05:00July 27th, 2015|Monday Motivations|0 Comments

I wrote writers’ two favorite words last week—THE END.

FINALLY! Book 2 of the Fitzpatrick Family sweet romance series is now with my copy editor.The book is a novella.It should have been a fast write.

Novellas generally run 20,000-50,000 words with 30,000 words average. With a writing schedule of approximately one thousand words a day, a writer could/should finish a novella in a month. Even if a writer produces fewer words per day, writing a novella is usually quicker than a writing a novel, which runs 50,000 to 100,000 words.

WHEN LOVE RETURNS took months! But, there were legitimate reasons Becca and Ethan’s story took so long to finish.

My normal writing schedule blew up when I fell playing Pickleball and broke my right wrist last November. The nasty break required surgery to put it back together. Operating with my left hand for months was hard. Trying to type one-handed was next to impossible, so I quit writing.

When I was finally able to use both hands on the keyboard, Ethan and Becca quit talking to me. No matter what I did, the pair refused to cooperate. (We writers call this writer’s block.)

To overcome the problem, I abandoned my usually seat-of-the-pants writing style where the story evolves and constructed an outline and forced out page after page. My strategy worked. I finished a first draft.

Unfortunately, Becca and Ethan came out of hiding and started yelling in my head, “that’s not the way it happened.”

I started over. Only this time, the words flowed and THE END came quickly.

WHEN LOVE RETURNS will be released soon and today I’m revealing the cover.WLR_cover_560x840You can be the first to know the exact release date when you sign up for my newsletter here. Don’t worry. I won’t spam your inbox or sell your email address. I promise…
• You’ll only receive a newsletter when there’s something worth hearing—like release dates or book cover reveals. There are even giveaways and contests for subscribers only.
• And, you always have the option to unsubscribe at the bottom of each newsletter.

It’s been a long haul to THE END for this novella. I’m off to start the next Fitzpatrick sibling’s story and, hopefully, there will no roadblocks, accidents, or uncooperative characters for their love story.

23 03, 2015

Write a Book Review? Why?

By |2015-03-23T06:00:45-05:00March 23rd, 2015|Monday Motivations|2 Comments

I can see your cringe and your wrinkled brow on the other side of the computer screen when you read today’s blog title. I hear the muttered protest, “I’ll read, but please don’t ask me to write a book review.” I guessing you have one or more of the concerns I read in a recent post by Joan Reeves about why readers don’t write reviews. • Readers may not know exactly what to say or how to say it • Readers are wary of attacks from other readers with different opinions • Readers don’t want to hurt the author’s feelings or invoke the wrath of a popular author’s loyal readers • Readers are concerned that they don’t have the writing skills necessary to write a review. All are legitimate reasons, but also reasons easily overcome if you truly want to support your favorite authors. You can write a book review. Really. A book review is simply a conversation about a book you’ve read. A good book review talks about the story and tells others why you did or didn’t like the book. There are only two no-no’s when you write and post a review: • Never include “spoilers” (elements of the book that should surprise) • Don’t allow personal prejudices or attitudes about the author or anything not related to the writing to intrude into your review. Now, consider the benefits of writing a book review. • A good book review helps readers decide if a book is for them. • A good book review helps authors improve their writing. Authors recognize not all readers will love their “baby” as much as they do. Even bad reviews are valuable, if they are constructive. Most important, when you write (and post) a book review to sites like Amazon and GoodReads, you help increase an author’s visibility. The more reviews a book has, the more likely the author and their book will be noticed in the great sea of available books. readerNow, go finish reading your book and then write a review. You can do it. I know you can.

20 01, 2014

Ideas for Change on MLKJ Day

By |2014-01-20T06:00:07-06:00January 20th, 2014|Make Me Think Monday, Monday Motivations, Uncategorized|0 Comments

Martin Luther King, Jr. preached about justice, empowerment, love and peace. MLK

Dr. King believed life’s most persistent and urgent question was

‘What are you doing for others?’

Through his nonviolent activism during the civil rights movement, he changed things for others.

Today offers an opportunity to reflect on the past, think about the present, plan for the future, and reminds us of what is truly important.

 Here are some ways to honor Dr. King and impact change in your community.

Find other ideas here

Check here for  MLKJ Day projects in your specific area.

You can also check out Todd Goldfarb  50 Ways You Can Be The Change here.

Whatever you choose to do today, I leave you with one of my favorite King quotes:

“Everybody can be great…because anybody can serve.

You don’t have to have a college degree to serve. You don’t have to make your subject and verb agree to serve.

You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love.”

23 09, 2013

Are you a Pogo Writer?

By |2022-09-11T16:14:26-05:00September 23rd, 2013|Make Me Think Monday, Monday Motivations|0 Comments

A writing career is different from other occupations. A writer has to make up their route to success. There’s no policy and procedure manual, no checklist for success. What to do and how to do it is solely up to the individual author.

Each day brings unchartered waters especially in the current, ever-changing face of publishing. There are good days and bad. Success and rejections. The emotional wave is like a roller coaster ride. Up one day. Downhill fast the next.

More than any other job, at least as far as jobs I’ve ever had go, writers control their destiny. At the same time writers can become their own worst enemy.

By that, I mean we tend to sabotage our success.

1970-pogoposterOr, in the immortal words of POGO, “We meet the enemy and it is us!”

Not familiar with Pogo Possum?

He’s the anthropomorphic comic strip animal created by Walt Kelly in 1948

The poster pictured on the left was created by Mr. Kelly for the first Earth Day in 1971. To read more about POGO and Walt Kelly, click here.

Why do I believe POGO writers can be their own worst enemies? I see signs, and I’ve seen writers who exhibit these characteristics and fail.

You’re a POGO writer if…

1. You spend too much time and energy focused on mimicking the writing and style of some other author.

We’re spinning our wheels and wasting our words when we do this.  The publishing world already has Janet Evanovich, J.K. Rowling, Steven King, and Nora Roberts. Their success is their success. You can’t copy and get there! Every writer has his own path to carve.

2. You obsess with following THE RULES.

Don’t get me wrong. THE RULES are important.

Once you understand the basics—things like POV, dialogue, setting, character, plot, theme, etc., you have to trust your instincts and what works for your story.

Rules are very important guidelines. Writing, on the other hand, is an art form that entails experimentation, innovation, and expansion. Don’t be so hung up on THE RULES you lose your own sense of story.

3. You buy into every new way to write or plot that a writing expert suggests.

Learning the craft, and studying with writing experts is important. I’m not arguing it’s not necessary to study writing craft.

Heaven knows I’ve spent a fortune learning from some of the top teachers in writing craft, and I improved my writing skills by leaps and bounds.

I’ve also learned that all the classes and workshops in the world are wasted if I’m not producing.

More importantly, I realize that writing experts don’t always know what’s right for me or my writing process.

Once you find the process that works best with your personality and lifestyle, you need to stick with it. 

Btw, if you’re interested, I’d be delighted to share the names of those experts I highly recommend, just email me.

4. You’re unable to take criticism or the flip side-believe everything anyone says about your story.

Either of these positions can be fatal. Critiques and reviews are an essential part of every writer’s life.

No denying bad critiques or reviews hurt. Surviving a brutal criticism or review of your work definitely isn’t for the fainthearted.

You have to develop an elephant hide and learn to weigh the opinions expressed for exactly what they’re worth then make up your own mind.

It is YOUR story, after all.

Strong writers survive…and often produce better stories from hard critiques or bad reviews.

5. You’re not writing.

This sign is the most telling of all.

Who doesn’t struggle with the procrastination parasite from time to time?

But a successful writing career requires disciple and focus. Whether moved by the muse or not, a professional goes to the keyboard or grabs a pencil every day.

I know what you’re thinking. Authors have to promote and develop reader relationships, which cuts into writing time.

Very true, but I would argue that the key to gaining recognition and readership (aka success) is writing the next story.

Do you recognize POGO writer signs in yourself? If so, now that you know, you can defeat the enemy.

Close this browse and get back to writing!

25 02, 2013

Eight Things I’ve learned about blogging

By |2013-02-25T07:20:12-06:00February 25th, 2013|Monday Motivations, Uncategorized|2 Comments

I celebrated my first blog-iversary yesterday. (Isn’t that the coolest word my fellow WANAmate, Liv Rancourt, made up?)

Today I want to talk about eight things I’ve learned about blogging over the last year.

1.   You don’t have to be an expert on something to blog.

Be yourself.

Write as if you’re sitting on the front porch talking to your best friend.

2.   Blog often.

It’s a cliché, but blogging is like gardening. Think of your blog as a plant in that garden.

For a garden to thrive, you must tend to the plants daily. And water.

If you only water a plant once every two weeks, it will shrivel. Unless, of course, your garden is a cactus garden and then maybe water once a month will work.

It doesn’t work for blogging.

A blog needs lots of consistent attention to thrive and grow.

3.   Change things up.

Unless your blog has a very specific target market, offer a smorgasbord of content.

But maintain consistency. If you normally blog on Mondays, don’t skip.

Your readers expect certain things on certain days.

For example, guest blogger posts from Chicken Wrangler Sara about life on the Miller Farm on Fridays.

4.   Try your best to spell words correctly and use proper grammar.

I have misspelled words and posted typos over the course of the past year. Not on purpose, though. I happen to be my own worst copyeditor.

I’m never offended when someone catches a mistake. You shouldn’t be either.

I thank them profusely and sing praises for the day they were born.

That’s the beauty of electronic publishing. Mistakes are easily fixed.

WordPress provides a handy button called edit for fixing the mistakes when a reader emails alerting me to a typo.

5.   When writer’s block happens, push through and blog anyway.

Sometimes the muse hides and no amount of pressure can coax her out of hiding. A what am I going to blog about? panic creeps in.

You can’t let it stop you from blogging.

Grab a chocolate bar or a handful of M&Ms. (It helps!)

Then head over to YouTube and do a topic or word search.

Or do a Google topic or word search for graphic images.

No words necessary when you post videos or graphic images.  

That’s what I do and those posts prove to be some of my most popular blogs.

6.   Let your topics set themselves naturally.

I’m talking about the writer’s pantster vs plotter argument for bloggers.

I started out with a plan for what topics to post on what day. (I tend to be a little on the OCD side that way.)

Didn’t work.

Instead I’ve discover I’m most comfortable rambling about the same things I’d talk to my friend about. (See #1 above)

7.   Treasure every person who takes time out of his or her day to stop by your blog.

Respond to their comments.

Acknowledge their tweets or FB comment about your blog post.

Tell ‘em you love ‘em. Regularly.

8.   Relax and have fun.

It isn’t only about vast numbers of readership.

Whether you have a small group of regular readers or zillions, I found that if you blog like nobody’s watchin’ (kinda like dancing like nobody’s watchin’) – you really can’t go wrong!

me blogging-webpage

Me blogging when I THOUGHT no one was watching except Toby. He’s the humpback whale looking object reflected in the mirror.

Now you go blog and join the fun.

28 01, 2013

The book’s finished so why am I sad?

By |2013-01-28T09:51:39-06:00January 28th, 2013|Monday Motivations|17 Comments

I finished Love in the Morning Calm, the prequel to The Pendant’s Promise and turned the manuscript over to the editor. 

MorningCalm_6 for webpgs

Now I’m sad.

I know I should be happy. IT’S FINISHED.

There is a sense of relief and exhaustion considering the amount of energy and focus required to “birth” this particular novel. I’ve been working on Lily and Alex’s love story for years.

My very wise book editor suggested I split the original manuscript into two books, which added a year to the writing process, but keeping the tale as one book would have made James A. Michener’s multi-generational works look like short stories.

Really, I am excited that I’m finished.

Except for this lonely feeling that keeps creeping in–sort of like postpartum blues.

Sigh.

I found comfort in knowing I had Lily and Alex’s romance to resume every morning and think about at night.

I already miss the arguments trying to persuade them to follow my outline. Then sometimes settling for something close to what I planned, but perhaps better and more interesting.

Other authors have shared that they experience the same sluggishness, a lack of motivation, and energy when they finish a book. I know my feelings will subside. Lily and Alex have, after all, found their happily ever after.

It’s time to do the next thing — start a new manuscript. I began that process this weekend.

I’m looking at two quotes as the new story’s theme. One fromTruth About Forever a Sarah Dessen novel: “There is never a time or place for true love. It happens accidentally, in a heartbeat, in a single flashing, throbbing moment.”

 The other from Lao Tzu: “Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage.”

Once my new friends, Darcy and Andrew, and I have done that dance of the first 50 or 60 pages they’ll begin to talk to me then my real work will begin.

I can truly bid Lily and Ace farewell.

YOUR TURN:  Do you get the postpartum blues when you finish a book? What do you do about it when you do?

21 01, 2013

Moving ahead. Claiming your Dream.

By |2024-01-07T07:30:24-06:00January 21st, 2013|Monday Motivations|2 Comments

So are you moving ahead on the New Year goals you set? Did you implement my plan or devise one of your own?

Whether you use my plan or any plan, I hope you’ll let 2013 be the year you claim your dream!

I found several suggestions on blogs to help us achieve writing success using a theme for the year.

The authors over at Novel Matters declared  Carpe Annum – Seize the Year for their theme.  Check out the details and suggestions here.

Fellow Wana112mate Sherry Isaac suggests we do some Baby Steppin’ That is, we move ahead one baby step at a time. You’ll love the clip she shares.

Whether you choose Carpe Annum or Baby Steppin’ or come up with your own theme. Just having a theme is a great way to focus on success.

If you still harbor some fear about moving ahead with writing goals and think you don’t have the time to devote to your dream, Edie Melson, social media coach and blogger, offers this advice: Want to Do More with Your Writing—Learn to Say No She provides very specific ways to put your writing goals first.

My best advice is summed up here: hey writer

Remember, a book is just a blank page and an eReader is a blank screen until you put your words on it.

blank book

tabletNow go be an unstoppable butterfly and fill those blank pages and screens.

WRITE!

14 01, 2013

Failure to plan is planning to fail — a PLAN for success

By |2013-01-14T07:37:54-06:00January 14th, 2013|Monday Motivations, Uncategorized|4 Comments

No one wants to fail on purpose, but failure to plan can lead to failure. Today we’ll look at the process of goal setting for SUCCESS that I use.

cropped success

My plan comes from Bob Mayer’s WHO DARES WIN, The Green Beret Way to Conquer Fear and Succeed, which is available here.

There are three components:

• Focus
• Strategic goals
• Tactical goals

Experience has taught me when you know where you’ve been and where you’re going, you go farther than when you just drift along.

Creation of a concrete list, imo, is critical.

But no goal setting process is complete without a review of the previous year’s STRATEGIC GOALS. Every time I do this, I never fail to discover I have accomplished far more than I thought. I’m betting you would see the same results.

Not only do I set measurable goals for myself, I also reward myself for my accomplishments!

After my review, I determine a FOCUS for the New Year.

A target.

4455527_thumbnail

In 2012, my focus was epubbing. btw, I accomplished my goal  as you can see on the left  side bar: The Pendant’s Promise, my debut novel, is available to purchase.

 FOCUS is whatever will move you toward achieving your object for the year. Your yearly FOCUS can be studying a particular craft area, networking, or reading x number of books and analyzing the author’s technique.

After FOCUS come STRATEGIC TARGETS.

I give serious thought to these questions in setting my targets for a New Year.

1. What do I want to write this year?
2. What do I want to sell this year?
3. What will I do toward getting my name out there?
4. What writing craft do I need to focus on?
5. What’s on my reading list?

Once I have answered these questions, I set the targets broken into three month, six month, and one year objectives that culminate in two year and three year goals.

These are SMART goals:
S -Specific (and Strategic)
M – Measurable
A – Attainable
R – Relevant (results oriented)
T – Time-framed

For example, a specific, strategic goal might be stated like this:
At the end of the first quarter 2013, I will have two short stories submitted to such and such periodical.

Then I establish a list of METHODS to accomplish my strategic goals. My last year’s list looked like this:

1. Write 100 NEW words per day
2. Spend minimum of 20 hours per week writing
3. Attend two writer conferences

No wishy-washy, weasel-worded methods like I’ll write every day. Too easy to let life interfere and be lax with methods like that.

My methods are:

Specific.   Measurable.   Attainable.

Same with my TACTICAL WEEKLY GOALS which might include:

1. Write three query letters
2. Complete critique partner’s edits
3. Outline two scenes for WIP

Either I accomplish what I’ve set out to do or I don’t. I know where I’m going and whether I’m there at the end of the week.

And, yes I do write out these goals every week and record my progress.

To quote, Pablo Picasso: “Our goals can only be reached through a vehicle of a plan, in which we must fervently believe, and upon which we must vigorously act. There is no other route to success.

I also happen to be blessed with an accountability group to provide additional focus and encouragement toward accomplishing what I’ve set out to do. We share weekly then alternately cheer or bring out the cyber whip based on our goal reports.

I hear you groaning. You’re saying all this takes too much time.

I don’t deny this process takes time, but having a SMART goal plan provides not only focus, but also helps solidify intangibles into something tangible.

I can’t guarantee SUCCESS with my plan. I do promise goal-setting will direct you on the right path because to hit a target you must aim.

Goals set your aim.

I  encourage you to think about a writing plan for the New Year.

YOUR TURN: Have I convinced you? Will you set SMART goals for this year?

7 01, 2013

To Resolve or Not to Resolve That is the Question

By |2023-01-07T20:34:12-06:00January 7th, 2013|Monday Motivations, Uncategorized, writer|5 Comments

Last week social media was all a buzz about New Year’s resolutions. Facebook status comments offered summaries of people’s 2012 and their goals for 2013. Blogs gave statistics from last year and offered predictions for the New Year.

How about you? Are you making resolutions?

New Year's Resolutions, list of items

I don’t do well with general resolutions like those pictured.

BUT I am a goal-setter. Goals help solidify intangibles into something tangible.

Consider this quote from Mario Andretti, “Desire is the key to motivation, but it’s determination and commitment to an unrelenting pursuit of your goal – a commitment to excellence – that will enable you to attain the success you seek.”

As a former teacher, goals (aka objectives) were an integral part of my world. I watched lesson plan objectives produce learning success for students. So transferring goal setting to my writing career was a logical, easy progression.

For me, goal setting provides the target, and I can analyze why I missed the bull’s eye and adjust as I move toward success.

Knowledge is power. When I know what works, I can do more of it. When I know what doesn’t work, I can do less of it.

Goals work for me.

If you’re not one to set goals or make New Year’s Resolutions, you’ll love Juliet Marillier’s New Year’s blog post where she shared nine gifts for a writer’s focus in 2013.

  1. The wind in your hair, the rain on your skin, the sun on your back, the richness of freshly turned soil underfoot. (If you live in a city apartment, plant up some pots with flowers or veggies. Go for regular walks in the park, and use your five senses to experience nature. If you have a garden, make compost. Get your hands dirty!)
  2. The joy of providing a forever home for a shelter animal. (Not all of you will be able to do this, but it’s a great way to nourish the soul. If you can’t take on a homeless animal, you could volunteer to walk shelter dogs, or help out at a refuge.)
  3. Social interaction and I don’t mean online! (Writers can easily get into the pattern of spending long hours alone, maintaining their social contacts mostly online. This is not great for your physical or mental health. Make an effort – go out to coffee with a friend once a week, join a book club, walk your dog at the park, meet like-minded people in the flesh.)
  4. Writing because you love it; loving what you write. (Because otherwise what’s the point?)
  5. Stretching yourself creatively. (Try a new genre; set yourself      challenges in voice, point of view, vocabulary, structure)
  6. Making a virtue of ‘down time.’ (Try meditation, walking, Tai Chi, swimming, playing with your children or animals)
  7. Learning that the best motivation for getting on with things – your work in progress, your diet/exercise plan – does not come from the note on the fridge, but from deep within you. Changing your mindset; doing the right things not because you ought to, but because you want to.
  8. Being generous with your time, even if you don’t have much of it to spare. (Read to an elderly person; help out at your kids’ school; fill hampers for the needy.)
  9. Breathing. (Step away from your screen regularly. Go outside, look at something beautiful and breathe slowly for a few minutes. You live in the real world; it is the source of your inspiration. Honour and respect it with all its flaws.)

I love her ideas for enriching our creativity. Wonderful words of wisdom. You can read the whole blog here.

But I still believe in goal setting.

As a writer, I see this New Year as a blank book. Remember my New Year’s Eve post? If not, read it here.

We can fill the pages of 2013 any way we want. A goal plan isn’t required, but it might help us succeed.

Next Monday, I’ll share my goal-setting process.

31 12, 2012

What’s your driving MOTIVATION for next year?

By |2012-12-31T11:28:35-06:00December 31st, 2012|Monday Motivations|3 Comments

The last minutes of 2012 are ticking away. I’m eager for the New Year. Are you?

Author Joan Reeves quoted English poet Edith Lovejoy Pierce in a recent blog: “We will open the book. Its pages are blank. We are going to put words on them ourselves. The book is called Opportunity, and its first chapter is New Year’s Day.”

Joan went on to say: If the New Year is an unwritten book and you are the author, then write hard.

Using Pierce’s analogy, New Year’s Eve would represent THE END and tomorrow begins the PROLOGUE or CHAPTER 1.

As we say farewell to the 365 days called 2012 and begin to write our book titled 2013, I plan to focus on

iStock_000004416814Small

Hope fuels the engine of creativity.

A successful writer must be creative and that’s not possible without hope.

Embracing HOPE, we move closer to fulfilling our dream as I fulfilled my dream of holding my debut novel, The Pendant’s Promise, in my hands last year.

As writers, we can never give up. Why?

imagesCACWVFD7

Our characters demand it. So do our future readers.

Enjoy the New Year’s Eve celebrations today and make the decision to embrace the New Year 2013 with HOPE.

You deserve SUCCESS.

Go to Top