Do's and Dont's

DO: Know exactly what your protagonist wants

DON'T: Let your protagonist have it right away.

DO: Eliminate all distractions before you write.

DON'T: Literally eliminate the distractions, especially if they are your loved ones.

DO: Read your story aloud to see if it sounds right.

DON'T: Read your story aloud while you eat to see if it sounds right. (It never will.)

DO: When you think you're not a good writer, imagine yourself as a good writer and just do what that person would do.

DON'T: When you think you're not a good writer, imagine yourself as a good writer and just write what that person already wrote.

DO: Remember that E.L. Doctorow said, "Writing is like driving at night in the fog."

DON'T: Forget that E.L. Doctorow was using this as a simile.

Random quotes on writing

Here are some random quotes from people who have successfully walked the path of writing. I started to
categorize them, but then realized they would no longer be random.

• Your intuition knows what to write, so get out of the way.
  (Ray Bradbury)
  
• You can't wait for inspiration, you have to go after it with a club.
  (Jack London)
  
• If the doctor told me I had six minutes to live, I'd type a little faster.
  (Issac Asimov)
  
• The writer’s job is to get the main character up a tree, and then once they are up there, throw rocks at them.
  (Vladimir Nabokov)
  
• If you want to be a writer, you must do two things above all others: read a lot and write a lot.”
  (Stephen King)
  

• Fantasy is hardly an escape from reality. It’s a way of understanding it.”
  (Lloyd Alexander)
  
• You can fix anything but a blank page.”
  (Nora Roberts)
  
• A writer who waits for ideal conditions under which to work will die without putting a word on paper.
  (E.B. White)
  
• "You can make anything by writing."
  (C.S. Lewis)
  
• I went for years not finishing anything. Because, of course, when you finish something you can be judged.
  (Erica Jong)
  
• If you write one story, it may be bad; if you write a hundred, you have the odds in your favor.-
  (Edgar Rice Burroughs)
  
• "Writing is not necessarily something to be ashamed of, but do it in private and wash your hands afterwards."
  (Robert Heinlein)
  
• There’s no such thing as writer’s block. That was invented by people in California who couldn’t write.
  (Terry Pratchett))

Resolution and Goals Update

How are those resolutions working out for you?  Has anyone lost any weight?  Given up smoking?  We're not quite a week in yet.  Don't tell me you've blown it already!?

Good for you if you haven't.

I'm thrilled to be at 5500 words so far this month/year.  Last night, I almost took the night off.  After all, there's a day off built into my 6000 words a week goal.  I felt like I could use one.

Guess how many words I'd have written if I took a night off every time I felt like it?  Remember, I love the process of writing as much as the result.  Go on, guess?  That's right.  0.

However, I'm convinced that the vast majority of successful writers are successful because of their work ethic.  It even says so on pages 3-4 of my Christmas present (Crafting Novels & Short Stories.)  "What usually separates good writers from bad ones (and often, published writers from unpublished ones) is a strong work habit.  That's it.  That's the real secret.  Real writers work hard."

So I wrote, and that was even before I read the above quote.  As usually happens when sitting down reluctantly for a writing session, I managed to break through a scene problem.

All that to say, I'd encourage you to continue pursuing your goals.  Especially your writing goals.  Don't regret not working towards fulfilling them.

By Writers, For Writers

Some writing quotes, readily available in a google search near you, and why they help:

1. "I only write when I am inspired. Fortunately I am inspired at 9 o'clock every morning." William Faulkner

Put another way- the muse is a myth.  William (can I call him William?) reminds me that doing the work brings results.

2. "All through my career I've written 1,000 words a day--even if I've got a hangover. You've got to discipline yourself if you're professional. There's no other way." J.G. Ballard

Again, discipline, consistency and work ethic are the keys.

3. "The writer's duty is to keep on writing." William Styron

Write on!

4. “Writing a novel is like driving a car at night. You can see only as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.” E.L. Doctorow

This is true for any story I think, but especially the novel.  And it gives me hope.

5. "You have to finish things- that's what you learn from, you learn by finishing things." Neil Gaiman

This tidbit, along with the other similar quotes by Neil, is what propelled me to actually finishing the manuscripts that didn't seem to be working.  And, much to my surprise, doing so taught me how to finish stories.

6. Planning to write is not writing. Outlining--researching--talking to people about what you’re doing, none of that is writing. Writing is writing." E. L. Doctorow

This one hurts.  It's where so many people fail though, or at least that's my perception.  I've spent so much time over the years thinking about it, reading about it, talking about it, even blogging about it and yet... hmm.  I'd better get back to actually doing it now.