When You're Stuck...

Tell me if you've been here: You're writing's clipping along at break-neck speed. You're meeting all your deadlines, even exceeding them. Ideas are flowing from your brain to your typing fingers as effortlessly as a rushing mountain stream. Then you hit "the wall". Your well dries up. Your brain feels like oatmeal mush. How could someone like you even begin to think you can write a book (or article or story) worth reading?

I'd venture to guess just about every writer on the planet has been in this wilderness before. But you know what? You don't have to stay there wallowing in frustration. Here's a tip I'm learning: If I want to write deeply, I need to live life. Sometimes it's very easy as writers to hole ourselves up in our offices and draw from our creative wells time and time again without ever refilling. We need to get out and live life!

I'll admit it. I'm an introvert. I'd rather take a walk by myself than go to a party. My idea of fun is sitting in a comfy chair reading a good novel. I don't mind being alone in a room all day long staring at a computer screen. But I need to learn how to get over some of these tendencies. Break out of my shell. Never be afraid to ask questions. Constantly strive to learn new things. I know I won't truly enjoy life if I don't get out there and do things my introvert self would rather avoid.

A couple years ago my local airport was having an "open house". I read in the paper they were offering helicopter rides. That sounded very cool to the more adventurous part of me, but it was quickly squelched by the cautious part. It took some prodding from a family member, but I finally overrode my hesitance and went for it. I plunked down my $25.00 and climbed on board a two-person Bell helicopter. I'm so glad I did. What an amazing experience. My creative juices were flowing through the entire five minutes (what if someone got on board expecting a five minute ride and was instead kidnapped ... what if a helicopter pilot and one passenger crashed in the wilderness and had to survive ....)

Don't be afraid to do something out of your comfort zone today. And while you're at it, try not to think about how you can use the research in your writing, like I did. Just enjoy the experience. It will be like adding buckets of water to your creative well.

Step Away From the Computer...

"Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy."—Exodus 20:8

I'll be honest, until a couple of months ago, the whole "Sabbath day" commandment isn't one I'd exactly given a lot of thought to.

I guess I always figured that as long as I wasn't taking God's name in vain, coveting my neighbor's stuff, stealing, lying, murdering or worshipping any other gods, well, I was doing pretty well.

I was wrong.

My a-ha moment, or at least the moment when I started giving the matter some serious thought, was when I was reading A.J. Jacob's The Year of Living Biblically. See, Mr. Jacobs doesn't necessarily consider himself a believer, but in the spirit of his wacky social experiments, he decided to follow the Bible's tenants word for word (yes, even the crazy ones from the Old Testament) and see if/how it would change his life.

While he didn't convert to Christianity after the project was through, he said that observing the Sabbath is still something he does today. In fact, other than learning to express gratitude, it's probably the greatest takeaway he had for the experience. So that, of course, got me thinking about my own Sabbath practices, which usually involved going to church, watching a little football and, well, working like every other day of the week.

Now granted, I love to write, and sometimes when you're in the midst of a book deadline, you really need all the time you can get. So Sunday afternoon seemed like the perfect solution by offering me a few additional hours.

But as time wore on, burnout (with writing and my life in general) really started settling in, and I was beginning to resent my Sundays as much as the typical Monday morning. That, of course, made me wonder if there was a better way to be living. What if I trusted God enough to help me get everything done in six days rather than seven and actually took a day of (gasp!) rest?

So that's what I've been doing ever since...I've stepped away from the computer and actually started enjoying my Sunday (morning, afternoon and evening) work-free—as difficult as that is for me. And I can't even begin to tell you how that's re-energized my life, not to mention my writing. Once Monday morning rolls around, I feel so much more refreshed and ready to go—all because I didn't spend my entire weekend in front of the computer.

I guess God knew what He was talking about when He commanded that, huh? Now I know...

R E S P E C T

There's been a lot of drama lately. In my family life, in my personal life, and especially in my writing life. For example, recently on public forums, there has been a lot of debating on e-publishing vs. self-publishing vs. traditional publishing...

It's exhausting to watch, because all parties share equally compelling points and I can relate to all sides. I've been e-pubbed and print-pubbed by a small press, which paid no advance but standard royalities, and actually made a little money through them. Now, I've been multi-pubbed by a traditional house and see that side of things.

I've had no experience with self-publishing, but I know others who have, and while that's not an investment I would be willing to delve into, I still have respect for those who do.

That's what it comes down to. Respect. If you read my personal blog last week, you might have seen my post on how upset I was by a specific author who felt the need to (in my opinion) bash an entire publishing house and all of its readers and authors. Supposedly, that is not what that author intended to do and this author posted an apology on his/her site explaining as much, but the damage was already done.

As writers, we should know by now that our words matter - whether typed or spoken. Whether created in fiction or spoken from the heart. Whether tearing down or building up, they count. As authors, we should be the most careful of what we speak and write, more so than anyone else. So let's show some respect.

For instance, the debate right now on e-pub vs. self-pub vs. traditonal. Just because someone else feels led to take a path you wouldn't personally take, why are we bent on trying to change their mind? Why do we (as humans) feel compelled to change someone's opinion?

I'm working through that myself right now in a lot of areas. Sometimes, if its someone we love and we see them making a bad choice, we feel compelled to intervene out of concern and wanting the best for that person. That's understandable. But in the industry, it's different. In the publishing world, we need to respect each other as writers in all regards, and agree to disagree. Not everything has to be dramatic and a big showdown all the time. Not everyone has to agree on everything all the time. I wish our society today could learn how to disagree and still get along.

I'm so tired of the fighting. I'm so tired of the division. I'm so tired of the drama.

Let's move away from the cartoon boxer at the top of this page and move toward peace. Let's encourage each other in the Lord and in the goals He's given us as writers for His kingdom, and realize that sometimes those goals are going to vary. What's planned for me might not be planned for you and vice versa. What I feel led toward might be different from where God is drawing you.

In the words of Ms. Aretha...

R E S P E C T

How to Advance Your Writing Career

It's amazing how quickly apartment-life ages a person. When I moved into this complex seven months ago, I was active, healthy, and 23-years-old.

Now I'm lazy, fat, and just scored 73-years-old in one of those "find your true age" tests online.

Is it just me... or am I graying prematurely?

Despite the stress of loud parties in the apartments beside us, robberies in the apartments beneath us, and Krispy Kreme Doughnuts in the store across the street, I've discovered that apartment-life is actually good for one thing: my writing career.

Here's why:

• I can't sleep -- because when our 19-year-old-neighbor is not having parties, he's banging nails into a log outside our window (I'm not making this up). What is he doing -- anger management? The only thing I can possibly do to manage my anger at 2 a.m. (besides ring his neck) is -- you guessed it -- write.
• I can't exercise -- because it's not like I'm going to go jogging around the complex when there are armed robbers on the loose. So I -- you guessed it -- write.
• I can't clean house -- because it's a small apartment and you can only scrub the porcelain so many times before the acid in the cleaner eats away at the potty seat and your husband falls in. So I -- you guessed it -- write.
• I can't eat -- because according to my physician's scale, I weigh 7 pounds more than I did seven months ago. That's one pound per month for my math-impaired readers. I can't afford to gain any more weight or people will start asking me when the baby's due. So I -- you guessed it -- write.

So even though I'm lazy, fat, and 73-years-old, my writing career is advancing.

I just hope I live to see the rest of it.

Aiming for Uniqueness

Have you ever had one of those lightning-blot-light-bulb-stabbed-with-something-electrical moments where you just think: "OH MY GOSH - this book idea would make me the next Stephen King and would be the biggest major motion picture opening since Spider-Man?"

So, you excitedly sit down and pump out 47 pages of a novel that is so enthralling, so incredible, so completely and utterly unique that you can hardly breathe as you're writing.

Then your husband gets home. And reads the opening chapters. And says, "Hey, didn't we see a movie with Harrison Ford that was kind of like this?" Then he leaves to go change out of work clothes and you fight tears as you delete all 47 pages realizing that yes, it does sound an awfully lot like The Fugitive.

Ever had that happen to you?

Trying to find a unique twist on things has to be one of the hardest jobs as a writer. When I was first starting out, there was a whole huge news story about a girl who copied pages from another book and then published her copy of it. She got in major trouble.

And I didn't sleep for about a week. What if Miss Match was exactly like something I'd read or seen years ago and didn't remember reading or seeing? What if I was just a big copycat?

If you've had this fear too, fear not. At a writing conference, one of the speakers gave an entire room full of fiction writers a basic plot and told them to come up with a story. In an entire room full of people who do this or want to do this for a living, you'd think there would be at least one duplicate story, right?

Wrong. Every one was different. Every person took the same plot and came up with a totally different story.

And I started breathing a little easier. Unless you are actually copying something straight from the pages of another book, the odds of you writing the same story are very small.

Still, that doesn't mean that things don't sound scarily similar. Noticed the huge variety we now have of vampire-themed books?

Mm-hmm. Aim higher. Be unique! Find a story that resonates with you, not with Stephanie Meyer. Did something happen in your childhood that would make a great teen story? How about something that happened in your grandmother's childhood? Explore different times, explore different genres.

And let us know what's happening! We ScribbleChicks love to celebrate and we definitely love celebrating writing success! :)

The Editing Letter

I admit it. My brain is having the hardest time coming up with something to say here today. Ever had one of those days? Yeah. I so relate. But . . . I can't leave my fellow Scribble Chicks in the dust! So I give you this hilarious video entitled "The Editing Letter". I dare you to watch it and not laugh.

Sometimes, Plan B is Just Better...

Anyone who knows me well knows that I looove to talk. In fact, my husband says I have the gift of gab.

Unfortunately, my junior high English teacher described it another way, namely with a visual I'll never forget. Without any regard for my fragile junior high emotions, she said I had diarrhea of the mouth.

Ick, right?

But as much as I love to talk, I'll be the first to admit that I don't exactly love public speaking. One-on-one? I'm in. Small group? Fine by me. But talking to a large group makes me nervous, really nervous...even if I have the material down cold.

Since public speaking often goes with the whole author gig, I've learned to make the best of these situations, even if I feel like I'm going to throw up beforehand. I find that once I'm actually introduced, I kick into speaking gear and feel totally comfortable in front of a crowd. But like so many things in life, the waiting is the truly the hardest part.

I was reminded of all of this on Monday night when I spoke in front of about 75 people at the Minnesota Christian Writers Guild's monthly meeting. A friend of mine kindly asked me to be the event's keynote speaker, an opportunity that a new-ish author certainly doesn't pass up. So I said "yes," even though I knew what that entailed...feeling sick and flu-ish before finally calming down.

Like any good speaker, I did my preparation beforehand and tried to memorize my spiel so I could simply refer to my notes, rather than using them as a crutch. After all, eye contact is crucial for success, so I wanted to be ready for anything.

So I wrote something I was happy with, a few encouraging thoughts on writing in what's certainly a volatile time with all the magazines closing, newspapers folding and book publishers becoming increasingly more picky about what they chose to publish.

But then something weird happened only moments before I was supposed to step up to the podium. I wasn't feeling my speech at all...not one bit. For whatever reason, I didn't think it was right for the audience, but what was I supposed to do? I didn't have any time to write something else. I certainly couldn't bail on these sweet, sweet people, but I also didn't want to look like a fool, delivering something I wasn't passionate about. So in my moment of near panic, I suddenly knew what to do. I would share my own story...the ups and downs of my journey as a writer along with a few of the practical tips I'd written down beforehand. And hopefully, if I told the story just right, well, there would some sort of takeaway value.

Thankfully, as nervous as I was, my gut instinct worked just fine. And low and behold, I was actually having fun doing something I normally hate...public speaking. Even better were the reactions as I looked out at the crowd. There were lots of approving glances, nodding heads, and my favorite part of all, plenty of laughs as I talked about my obsession with Judy Blume's writing while growing up in small-town Wisconsin, my journey to Nashville with one month's rent and an extra $100.00 in my pocket when I was 22 and how I've continued to sustain my freelance writing in our difficult economy today.

I guess I'm sharing all of this as a reminder to trust your instincts, especially in your writing. While critique groups and other people's proverbial two cents are definitely helpful in improving your writing, sometimes you just have to go with your gut when something doesn't feel right. And who knows, maybe just maybe, you'll have a small victory like I did this week. But even with that, I'm thinking that I'll still probably feel sick the next time I'm speaking in front of a crowd.