I'm Losing My Mind a Little....

So I have to apologize to pieces because today's post is nothing new, nothing original, and nothing by me! I'm so behind on a bunch of things, and yesterday was a crazy day that added a load of extra work (which I'll be telling you all about later). So today, today we're just going to enjoy some music and laugh a little.


One of my writing songs :-) Just because :) Dance!!! Ok, I'm out! Love ya all to pieces!!! (Don't you love seeing all the crazy that's driving my life right now? haha) 
Hugs, Valia

Fears and Genius

A friend of mine recently sent me this speech and I have watched it far more than I would like to admit.  This was one of the most inspiring speeches I've heard thus far about writing.  It has really helped me push on.  Without further ado, check it out before you read the rest of the blog.

First off, we will start with fear.  Elizabeth talks about the fears after her big hit Eat, Pray, Love.  Now I'm assuming you all watched the video, if you didn't, shame on you!  Didn't they teach you to listen in school?  Anyway, assuming that you watched it, she also brings up the fears she had before Eat, Pray, Love existed.  There will always be fears.  It doesn't matter if you conquer one, there will always be another to come and take his place in line.  Now this may seem as if you are never going anywhere but really you are.  Think of a time where you had trouble with something and were scared it would never happen. Now do you remember what it felt like when you over came that fear?  It felt wonderful didn't it?  I know for me, it feels like you are soaring high above and looking down on everything else for one small moment and in that moment, everything is perfect.  

I have fears just as much as any other beginning author.  Currently I am settling in at "are these crappy words ever going to come together into what I see in my head?" Or the well known one that Elizabeth brings up "You should just stop because you are writing the worst book ever written."  A part of me though says, yes that very well may be to someone else but to you, it won't be.  It will be this magical, wonderful little thing that you worked your butt off to make.  You will always have people who don't agree with you but you shouldn't let that stop you.  If everyone thought that way, nothing would ever get done and it wouldn't be the world that we have today with all the amazing stories, gadgets, etc. Can you imagine if the guy who created the internet was told he was crazy and never went for it because he was scared of failing?  I wouldn't be writing this post to any of you today if so.  *thank god he did because I'm far too addicted to the interwebs*

Like her, I also write with a barrier put up.  I don't do it because I'm trying to quiet the wants and needs of readers because who am I kidding?  No one knows who I am.  I do put one up to quiet out myself and the outside world. When I am at home, I put on these huge gaming headphones that drown out everything around me (and also make me look like an idiot).  The moment those go on, I feel focused.  It is almost as if it shuts everything, including me, out.  What is left is just the story hanging in the air and moving my fingers across the keyboard.   

I truly believe what Elizabeth says about the story being outside yourself and your "genius" or "daemon" or even "muse" is the one feeding you the information.  I would like to think it is all me but honestly, I never really feel like it is me that comes up with the ideas that I do.  I do believe that the story is out there and already exists and all you have to do is find it.  My ideas are always random.  It is similar to the story we were told of when Newton was hit over the head with an apple and he created the Law of Gravity.  Now I'm not saying an apple falls on my head every time an idea shows up, but it does happen at the strangest times.  Once, a major part of my story line for #ClassifiedNovel came to me as I cooked a Turkey Burger. #nolie  

  

The days that they don't show up are the hardest.  That I have felt in the last few months but unlike Elizabeth, I didn't keep writing.  Since my "Genius" didn't show up, I didn't either.  After watching this and also from reading a few other blogs with a similar theme, I have learned: 

1) It isn't always going to be easy.  There will be moments that the words just don't come. 

2) When the words don't show up, write anyway. They may not be the best words you have ever written,    but at least you will have something to show for yourself.  

3) Tell your "Genius" whose boss.  If they want to get any sort of credit or recognition, they better step up to the plate and do their part.  

I hope you all liked the video and at least got something informational from my ramblings.  If not, well there is always next time.  Don't forget to feed your "Genius" until then! *pssst* I hear they like music and good art. *wink*

Staying Motivated

Writing has always been what I love most.  In my lifetime of flux, writing is the one thing I can honestly say has never wavered.  This doesn't mean I have always lived the life of a writer who is determined to make it big in the publishing world.  And, even though I love it, grown up life gets in the way and I lose motivation to sit all alone and peck keys on a keyboard. After a hard day I want to be social or active.  Often, I want to read about everyone else and their day on Facebook or Twitter.

Whenever someone (a non-writer) finds out I am writing a book, the first thing they say is, "I could never do that.  I wouldn't have the patience to sit and write all of that."  To be honest, I used to think the same thing.  I loved writing stories, but stuck to poetry because I didn't think I was a "distance writer."  I have since learned the secret.  

Authors work together!  That's how they get it done.  The support structure that Twitter and Facebook, Skype and others, offer to authors is incredible.  With these tools, writers can teach each other their strategies, offer emotional support and encouragement, celebrate together and even virtually work together.

Tonight, in fact, Nova Lovette and I wrote in 30 minute sprints together.  Her from her house and me from mine.  She would set the timer and tell me when to start via Facebook or Twitter.  Then she would tell me when to stop.  We shared our word counts with one another and even brainstormed our way through some sticky plot points in between our sprints.  Several times I wanted to quit, but knowing I was reporting to her and that she wasn't quitting, kept me honest and motivated.  By the end, she exceeded her goal of 2000 words and I had over 2500 words to show for it.  Plus, we built a closer friendship.  No loss there.

I'm so glad I stuck it out.  I worked through a scene that I have been stuck on for a month.  I've clarified some of my plot and character actions.  Without one another, Nova and I may not have been as successful as we were tonight.  Follow us on Twitter or Facebook if you want to join us on some writing sprints sometime.  As of right now, they aren't at scheduled times (hard to do in the summer months), but if you catch us in a sprint, you can always join in.

Don't think writing a novel has to be done in some wooded cabin, isolated from all distractions.  All you need is a writing partner who is as determined as you are, but honest about their motivation--and maybe some caffeine, cheese balls and a kick-butt playlist.  Good Luck and Happy Writing.

#StayGroovy  

Supplies Necessary for Writing

Writing in the 21^st Century requires so much more than paper and pencils.  Each writer has their own necessities which almost always include some sort of munchable and drinkable.  Despite the obvious need for sustenance, one might ask what are the required working materials for a modern day scribe?

Computer- this tool is required for the actual construction of literary greatness, the caliber of which will change the history of publishing and bestseller’s lists for eternity.  With the limits of typewriters, (do they still make those?) authors must upgrade if they want to remain competitive.

Paper- must be blank on at least one side for printing your fine, history-making best seller upon.  Be sure to use a good marker (you know one that won’t bleed through) to X out your kid’s homework on the other side since you ran out of printer paper again.

Internet- The Swiss Army knife of writing.  Permits a Google search at a moment’s notice, can carry on no less than four Facebook chats about how you aren’t getting your work done fast enough for that deadline next week and follow five Twitter conversations about how to write “Hit Lit” so you can make more money than Twilight and retire to Fiji while you are still a smokin’ hottie, all while writing a blog post about writer’s block.

Music- For listening to that carefully crafted mood-setting playlist.  You will also need knowledge for building new ones.  This will eliminate the risk of finding yourself without means to set the appropriate mood and tone when no teenagers happen to be nearby.

Pens- of various colors so when you revise and write all over that heartfelt manuscript the edits look like a rainbow and therefore make you smile instead of feeling convinced your life’s work permanently belongs in a slush pile.

Caffeine- Seriously?  I'm not even going to insult you with an explanation!

Tissue - THE most important supply for a writer.  Why tissue?  Tissue for those dark, private moments when you open those letters from publishers or contests knowing it will be yet another “thank you, but...” letter.  Because, even though you’ve heard, “If you haven’t received at least three rejection letters this week, you aren’t trying hard enough,” you still don’t want to add another one to your collection.

Tissues for those moments when you are sitting at your computer, bundled up in blankets with your hot tea or coffee, waiting to die from the Avian Flu you probably caught from that snot-covered kid at the grocery store last week.  But there you sit anyway, writing—and, constantly wiping and blowing your bright red nose, hoping you finish before death comes calling.

And tissues for those scenes that sneak up on you.  The ones that make you ache with anxiety or tremble in fear as if you were your character.  Scenes that make you sob with happiness, blurring the screen as you continue to type.  Scenes, so heart-wrenching they haunt you until finally images explode into words, bringing with them so much relief that tears flow silently as you sit oblivious to the world around you. 

Finally, we need tissues for those moments when all our sacrifice, all our fretting and editing, all our hand cramps and caffeine buzzes come to fruition.  We need tissues because, if we did it just right, our work, our words, our worlds, touch somebody’s soul— making a difference in someone’s life, making someone smile when they are sad, or making someone weep because they are finally understood.  Our writing, can give them the hope that passion and dreams can come true for the "every man".  At the very least, we give someone the escape they need on a rainy day.  This is why writers need tissues.

    

I write this blog entry in preparation for what I anticipate will be a very difficult weekend for me.  I have been struggling with a key scene in my WIP for over a week now.  It is an uncomfortable scene for me to write for a number of reasons (I can’t get into them all now, it will ruin the book.).  Each time I sit down, I get anxious, my shoulders twist up into knots and I start editing before I even type.  This has created one crabby and frustrated Christine.  Therefore, this weekend, I will need all of the above—especially tissue—because I am not leaving my writing space until the scene is finished!  No matter what!  So someone—PLEASE—bring me a fresh supply of caffeine sometime Sunday morning.  Thank you!!!

Help me out!  Just in case my weekend lock-in doesn't work:  How do you make it through a scene that is difficult (for whatever reason) for you to write?

Stay Groovy,

Christine Benson

Nova on Being One

I've recently been reading alot of blogs and watching vlogs on writing, which of course has been taking me away from my own writing, but in the long run I have learned some interesting things.  I was trying to find the exact link to this particular post to share with you all, but I can't seem to locate it.  That'll teach me to start bookmarking valuable websites.  Anyway, this post talked about Method Writers.  How some writers have to put themselves into a certain mind set of their characters in order to experience everything the character does. Now, of course not all writers do this or Stephen King would be one crazy person to watch out for, but there are writers out there who follow the same path as Method Actors.

There are actors out there who have to get into their characters shoes by living parts of that characters life.  This includes maybe visiting/living in a place their character is from, doing certain skills or activities of that character, putting themselves in certain situations to see how their characters would react, etc.  Some writers have to do this as well and some need it in order to "Be One" with certain characters.  Lately I've been having trouble getting into my lead characters head.  There is just something about her that I seem to be missing and it is making the writing more difficult and feeling pushed.  I'm not so sure why I am not connecting and that is a huge deal because if I'm not connecting, then my readers won't connect.  This thought alone is making me slightly worried.

In the book No Plot? No Problem!  for NaNo, it talks about using certain items to trigger your mind that it is writing time, including wearing a certain hat your character, putting on a piece of jewelry, or maybe just sitting something on your desk that ties your character to you.  I believe that this is something similar to method writing.  Currently there are items on my desk that remind me of my characters but since I don't seem to write much at my desk, they have just become decorations.  Which leads me to putting myself into my characters shoes aka becoming one with HER.  I have been to the setting of my book which does help vastly but I need to find HER voice.  I have heard of writers looking into the mirror before they begin a writing session and tell themselves to become the character.  Looking into the mirror and saying such things kinda weirds me out, but I can see where they are going with it.  Maybe to find HER I need to BECOME HER.  I'm going to give it a try at least, I mean it couldn't hurt right?

Do any of you try this Tactic? I'm just curious if it has worked for any of you before.

Nova on Pushers

No I'm not talking about Pushers as in the book or movie, but about people in your life that push you along to finish your goals.  You see, I don't have problems staying on task--really I don't...ok that's a lie but I try my best anyway.  There are times that I get side tracked with how many things I have to do in a given week or even in a given day.  I'm not making excuses because most of the time it's my paying job that takes up so much of my time.  It isn't like I have any normal job either.  What I do for a living currently gives me crazy hours and not so much down time.  I love what I do but sometimes I wish I had more time to just sit and write.  While I'm working, I dream of sitting at home in the quiet, with the smooth feel of keys under my fingers.

There are times when I'm off work and have every plan to write, but for some reason the words don't come or something else comes up.  I know you are suppose to make time for writing and trust me I do, but there are times that I need a nudge, or on worse days, a shove.  My family and friends are my pushers.  There are some who are far harder on me than others.  I would say that I don't like it but really I do.  Having them push me makes the reward of hitting each word count goal that much sweeter.

Who are your pushers?  Do you get on yourself more or do you have someone in particular who pushes you to be better?

Also I would like to officially say on record that I have made a first draft deadline of March 31st.  If I do not reach this said goal then a punishment is made--vlogbrothers style.  I will record myself doing the punishment for the world to see.  If you would like to add to the list of punishments, leave a comment below or tweet me @novalovette

TIME STARTS NOW!!

For the World to See

I have returned from my trip, and despite being jetlagged and overtired and hungry at odd hours, I do think I'm making a good deal more sense than I was last week.

Since I got back late Friday night, I have been pretty darn productive. I unpacked, did laundry, cleaned my apartment, went grocery shopping, made new To-Do Lists and tossed old ones, and finished the third draft of the novel. (That last one's not as impressive as it sounds. I only had two chapters left.)

And then, my friends, I sent it off to my group of beta readers.

That's right. A whole group of people! Who are going to read a book. That I wrote.

Ruh roh.

I was talking to a dear writer friend about this stage of the process, and how both exciting and nerve-wracking it is. I mean, you want people to read your stories, right? That's why we write them! But at the same time, it removes all plausible deniability you might have had, from your friends or family or coworkers or casual Facebook acquaintances. You can't be all like "yeah I write sometimes there's this story that maybe someday IDK just give me the vodka".

Now you're all like, "Yeah. I wrote a book. That's a thing that I did. Shit."

There's a lot of reasons that's a good thing. There can be a few drawbacks, though. If your friends are anything like mine a bunch of them will be lining up going, "Oh oh oh when can I read it!" and you want to be all NEVER but then you'd feel bad and also, maybe they'll buy it when it's on shelves someday. But I'm not going to e-mail my book out to all 300 people who send me pleading Facebook messages.

My beta readers are writers - published and non - or book reviewers or avid readers in the genre that I write or, ideally, some combination of the three. The same way a painter would not be expected to make 3,000,000 photocopies of their own work and stick them in just as many envelopes to mail out to their friends, so too should writers not be expected to provide ON DEMAND access to our work.

Like, I want to sell that shit someday, yo. You want to read it, pony up.

But one way or the other, if we're successful, these people are all going to have the ability to read it someday.

And that's pretty cool.

How do you feel about sharing your work with the world? Does the idea excite you? Terrify you? Are you close to having to consider it as a Really For Real-Reals Possibility, or are you not yet to this RIDICULOUSLY TERRIFYING portion of the publishing journey? Please share!

Thankful - Author's Who Inspired

I don’t know about you but I’m stuffed like a turkey on a Thanksgiving day. Oh, wait. Anyway, now that my small attempt at humor has failed let’s move on to the actual part of the post. 

Thanksgiving. 

Predictable, I know, but I wanted to take a few moment’s and talk about author’s that I am thankful for. The list is beyond long, but there are a few who have shaped my writing, and my life.

Jules Verne. While most of the kids were reading superhero comics (don’t worry, I did as well) I fell in love with the worlds this man created. One of my favorite books of all time is a three story collection of his lesser known works.  The Begum’s Fortune, The Barsac Mission, and Robur the Conqueror.

Agatha Christie. I read pretty much everything by her. Murder on the Orient Express, And Then There Were None, and so many others. I loved mystery growing up, acting out my own detective games with friends. 

Carolyn Keene. Yes, I know there’ve been quite a few people writing under the pseudonym of this name but I loved Nancy Drew growing up. So many great mysteries, written with a clear voice that could be understood by those of every age. 

Honestly, I can’t even think of all the books I read as a child. Moby Dick, Jane Austen, Mark Twain, Alexander Dumas and many more. I have always been a reader, and now I have the privilege of being a writer. I was a science fiction/mystery junkie, what about you?

What are some of the authors you remember reading as a child who made an impact on your life?

Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving! 

Valia 

When You Knew

Lots of writers have always wanted to be - or indeed, always have been - writers. In some way or another. They'll talk about how they were born with a Marble notebook and ballpoint pen in hand (which, God bless your mother!) or how they sat daydreaming story ideas in sixth grade or accidentally entered a Poetry.com context when they were 9 and it seemed like a brilliant idea at the time.

I'd always written. I was one of those babies who needed to be delivered via C-section because Five-star binders full of wee toddler stories just weren't designed to pass through certain places, know what I'm saying?

In first and second grade, in my first school back when I still lived in NYC, every year each kid would get a hardcover, totally blank white book. About A4 paper-size, maybe 20-30 pages on the inside. We got to write and draw our own stories as an assignment. I imagine you would respect me a lot less if I told you it was about a distinctly self-insert character who lost his pet hedgehog just before the school show-and-tell fair. But I just accidentally told you anyway, so there's that.

I'd always written. But I never thought of myself as a writer, even though I wrote constantly and weaved stories out of every single thing and took Creative Writing classes in middle school and read like books were oxygen and I was gasping for air. It didn't occur to me that this was A Thing I Could Do, Like For Reals until maybe halfway through high school.

But I should have.

A year or so ago, I was going through a collection of my things that had been boxed up and put in storage when I moved away to college. I'd been far from this storage space ever since and hadn't gone through my belongings there in five years or so. Going through my collections, I found that first hedgehog story from when I was but a wee young lad.

But it wasn't the sad saga of Ricky the Missing Hedgehog that made me realize I was destined to lead the life of a writer whether I liked it or not. It was the inscription I'd written on the inside of the front cover, that read something along the lines of:

(C) 1994 RICHARD LIPMAN. This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to persons living or dead is purely coincidental. If you purchased this book without a cover, you should know it is stolen property and the author received no payment.

I cracked up when I discovered the wily ways of my 7 year-old self, and immediately showed my mother. We decided I was stuck on the writer's path, pretty much, come hell or high water.

So. When did you know - know for sure - that you were a writer? Share your stories in the comments!

Your subtleties They strangle me I can't explain myself at all

_{title courtesy of It Ends Tonight by All-American Rejects}

So this week has been a little depressing. Anyone else have weeks like this? It happens, and not just in writing world, but in the ‘real’ world as well.

My mind is an abyss of depressing things and that’s been my writing lately. Not only depression, but like crazy gory and insane. Have you seen The Walking Dead show? You know the part in every zombie movie where the hands of the undead reach through the closed doors or windows and your whole body shudders in fear? Yep, that’s me, writing.

But this is not what my post is about. It’s actually about laughter. Ha, you didn’t see that coming huh? I think we as writers, often forget to laugh. Especially during the revising stages. That’s what Im talking about here. Revisions and laughter.

Sometimes, I think, I forget to laugh while I’m revising. I sit there, staring at my pages, screaming “WHY AM I SO HORRIBLE AT THIS?” Right before I start screaming, “NO ONE IS GOING TO READ THIS CRAP!” I’m a failure. I’m a nobody. Why did I write such stupidity?



This is where I need to unwind (which I talked about last Friday) and laugh. A lot. Writing is hard work. It’s WORK. Those who don’t write don’t understand how incredibly hard it can be. But we as writers, sometimes forget how much fun it can be. So here is some fun and laughter for all of you wonderful people out there.













You’re welcome. I accept book and coffee gift cards as offerings of gratitude. *Bows*

Have a wonderful weekend lovelies! Hope your day is filled with laughter!

Much love
Valia

The Importance of Unplugging

There is absolutely no science to support what I'm about to say. (Since when has that stopped me?) But honestly, the older I get, and the more time I spend on the computer - for work, for entertainment, for social networking, for a dozen other things - the shorter my attention span becomes. The more anxious, sometimes, I become. And like many folks, sometimes I get internet fatigue.

This is mildly alarming, since the internet and I have been BFFs for quite a long time now and 99 percent of the time, if you tried to take Twitter away from me I would clobber you over the head with a frying pan. But every once in a while, I stare longingly at the "off" button on my wireless connection, wishing I had the willpower to turn it off voluntarily.

That would, of course, never happen.

So I did the next best thing: I went camping this past weekend. Anyone who knows me should probably take pause at that sentence. I do not do the whole communing with Mother Gaia Earth Outdoors Thingy particularly well. I'm pampered and spoiled and my idea of 'unwinding' usually tends to involve more cabana boys bringing me fruity drinks as I lay by the Puerto Rican shoreline and less 'Nature! Nature IN MY FACE!'

But I did it anyway.

It's important, as writers, to stretch outside of our comfort zones every once in a while. Writing what you knows gets old - and uninteresting - pretty quickly if you don't know a whole lot. I've talked a bit about this before on my own blog, the phenomenon that my friend Erin calls "replenishing the well". So that's what I took this weekend to do.

It's not just about finding inspiration in the unusual, or the outside world. Sometimes it's about stepping away from the world you know. I had zero cell phone service for close to 48 hours. No phone calls or e-mails or Twitter. I missed Twitter (though truly, I did not lament the loss of e-mail notifications for just about anything). But I needed it. I needed to take a breath.

I'm refreshed now, despite sleeping on the wooden floor of a poorly-insulated cabin and somewhat freezing my tuchus off the other night, because camping in Virginia in the middle of November is what some people would refer to as 'silly'. I'm refreshed in spite of inhaling the ashes of a giant bonfire all weekend, or having to pee in a batch of what I strongly suspected to be poison sumac, or hiking about a hillside looking for firewood and coming up pathetically empty-handed.

I'm refreshed.

I could do with some more time away from the back-and-forth of everyday life - couldn't we all? - though I think I maxed out my enjoyment of forfeiting my memory foam mattress. But the breathing, the action of stepping back, even if just for a day or two, is always so much better for me than I anticipate going in.

(I tend to project worst-case scenarios. Thinking things such as 'But I will be in the woods in the middle of NOWHERE and someone important will call me - the President, what if it's the President? And I can't ANSWER! And also there are BEARS, and since I did not bring my computer it may resign in protest, dousing itself in gasoline like a Buddhist monk and going up in FLAMES and then the President of the United States will think I'm not returning his calls because I ran off with the Prime Minister of Greece when really, I've just been mauled beyond recognition by a bear. HOW DID ANYONE TALK ME INTO THIS?!')

But none of those fears came true.^* And I'm better for the experience. I have a bit more focus and perspective now, and I mentioned on Twitter last week that I was beginning to get a bit down/discouraged about my writing journey. I feel a bit more confident, or at least calmer now. But the demons of doubt reach everybody once in a while, and it's important to be able to run for the hills.

So when's the last time you took a step back to breathe? Really, truly breathe? And how did it affect you - and your writing?

^{* The President did call, but my secretary got back to him in a timely fashion, I'm assured.}

11-11-11: Secret Weapons

Hi there. It’s Friday and I am here to entertain! Come over here. A little closer. That’s right. Take a seat right there. Very good. Now, let talk about writing.

Okay, so I had this whole thing planned out. My first post. I was going to dazzle. This is it! I’m going to make a great first impression. I brainstormed, I typed it, I edited, and it loved me. There was hugging people! That’s some serious love. But it decided to run away and now I am left with this. *looks at the screen sadly*


_{If I had a dog and a cat, this is definitely what they would say. I'm sure my bird thinks I'm nuts.}

This is how writing is for me. I get this fabulous idea, run to my computer, notebook, or roll of toilet paper and jot down the idea. It’s shiny. It loves me. All is well in the world. Then I sit down to actually write it and everything falls apart.

There is wailing.

There is gashing of teeth.

There is lots of coffee consumption (well, there is always coffee consumption, but that’s besides the point).

The point is we all suck. We really do. No matter how hard we try not to, we will have those days that no matter what words we put to paper they will scream obscenities at us. My characters do. Often. However, the funny thing about that is I can sit down the next day, write down the exact same words and receive presents and cookies from the said characters.

This is exactly what I look like when I dance!

Would you like to know how I deal with those times? I dance. Oh, and eat Hot Cheetos (those are seriously addicting).

Just the fact that I can stand up and bust a move (glee version) can and does refocus me. It’s like my characters enjoy the time away from me and when I come back, they welcome me with open arms.

Since it's 11-11-11 I guess I can wish to have super writing skills and spit out novels faster than the speed of light, but where would be the fun in that?

Now, my question to you darlings is: What’s your secret weapon?

Is there something that you do that helps relieve the tension and bring you back to focus? I’d really love to know I’m not the only weird awesome one out there!

Disclaimer: this post has absolutely nothing to do with a friend who had a bit of a down time tonight. I won’t say who he is but he might possibly be on this blog. Isn’t it funny how someone else’s sad time can inspire greatness? That’s right, greatness I said! Now show me some love people!