Five Ways to Get Your (Writing) Groove On by Marie Wells Coutu

Marie Wells Coutu

The holidays are over and, if you’re like me, you took a few days off from writing. And you’re finding it difficult to get back into your writing routine.

Or maybe you finished your WIP two weeks ago and took a much-needed break.

Now it’s time to get back to work. But you can’t seem to get your seat in chair. Perhaps you’re stuck for an idea of what to write next. Or you’re in the middle of your novel but the characters won’t talk to you. Or the weather has frozen your mind.

Sometimes all it takes is to open a document on your computer and start typing, and the thrill of seeing a story come to life returns. But other times, the blank page staring back at you causes brain freeze.

Here are some ideas to help thaw those creative juices:

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• Pick a minor character from your favorite TV show or movie and write his/her backstory.
• Take your favorite writing craft book (one that gives writing exercises) and turn to Chapter 5. Whatever the writing assignment is, DO it (don’t just read about it, as I frequently do).
• Look through a magazine or newspaper and find a photo with two or more people. (Don’t get sidetracked reading the articles!) Write a scene about what happens next with those people.
• Think about your life in the past two weeks and pick an event that had the potential to be tension-filled. Change one action or line of dialogue and write about what would have happened.

Now that you’ve gotten words on the page again, keep writing. Maybe even try this:

• Challenge yourself to your own NaNoWriMo. Write the first draft of a novel in 30 days. Sign up for the Novel Track: Writing loop for members of ACFW for encouragement along the way from fellow writers. Or just grab one accountability partner and root for each other.

The important thing is to get started today.

You’re a writer, so write something.

About the Author

Marie Wells Coutu began telling stories soon after she learned to talk. At age seven, she convinced neighborhood kids to perform a play she had written. She wrote her first book, “I Came from Venus,” in eighth grade, but studied journalism in college. After a career writing for newspapers, magazines, governments, and nonprofits, she returned to her first love—writing fiction—at the age of fifty-five. Her debut novel, For Such a Moment, won the Books of Hope Contest. Thirsting for More, the second book in the Mended Vessels series, released in April 2015. Books in the series are contemporary re-imaginings of the stories of biblical women, including Esther and the woman at the well. Marie retired after 15 years with the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, and she and her husband now divide their time between Florida and Iowa.

Thirsting for More
Northern transplant Victoria Russo moves to the charming southern city of Charleston, South Carolina, from cold Connecticut, hoping to renovate her career, her life, and an old house. Instead, she faces animosity, betrayal, and calamity. Will she repeat the pitfalls of her past mistakes, or find the freedom and restoration she seeks?

Are You a Ready Writer? by Terri Weldon

Terri Weldon

When I sat down to write this post I didn’t have a clue what to write. It’s late enough in the month that all the great posts about the New Year have already been written. Valentine’s Day is approaching, but I couldn’t work up any inspiration for that topic. I asked my Westie, Nolly Grace, what she’d like for Valentine’s Day. I didn’t get a bit of help.

So I decided to turn to the Bible to see what I should write about. Psalm 45:1 seemed to leap out during my search, “My heart is inditing a good matter: I speak of the things which I have made touching the king: my tongue is the pen of a ready writer.”

The part of the verse that touched my soul is the pen of a ready writer. Am I a ready writer? Is my pen, or computer, prepared and ready to go?

Christian authors either feel called to write or they write as an offering to the Lord. Giving to Him from the talents He has blessed us with. Either way we are writing for God. So what exactly is a ready writer and how do I prepare to become one?

To me a ready writer is always prepared – meaning they listen for the stories God gives them to write. Whether those ideas come to us while reading, dreaming, or through a good friend who says, “Have I got the perfect story for you.”

A ready writer spends time writing. They hone their craft. They put their backside in a chair and their fingers on the keyboard and get busy writing. Sounds easy, I know, but I’ll tell on myself. My sister is my accountability partner in many areas and she just had to ask me if I’d been writing my blog post or staring at Facebook. Whoops – busted!

And last but not least, a ready writer doesn’t make excuses. She doesn’t say that she’s tired or doesn’t have time, or she’s working out a story issue not napping. A ready writer is professional, whether she’s published or not, and makes time – tired or not. I have a friend with two young sons who gets up an hour early in the mornings and writes. Now that’s a ready writer.

Since I’ve confessed all my lazy ways to you, how about sharing some habits you’ve honed over the years to make you a ready writer. Because after reading this post a second time it is obvious I need them! Oh, and in my defense I will say I’m telling you all my bad writing habits. Surely I have one or two good ones, but that’s a post for another day.

Terri Weldon is a lead analyst by day and an author by night. She enjoys gardening, reading, and playing in the hand bell choir. One of her favorite pastimes is volunteering as the librarian at her church. It allows her to shop for books and spend someone else’s money! Plus, she has the great joy of introducing people to Christian fiction. She lives with her family in Oklahoma. Terri has two adorable Westies – Crosby and Nolly Grace. Terri is a member of ACFW and OCFW, a local chapter of ACFW. Her dream of becoming a published novelist came true in November 2013 when Mistletoe Magic, released from White Rose Publishing.

Readers can connect with Terri:

Website: www.TerriWeldon.com.

Blog: Seriously Write

Writer's Avoidance, Part 1 by Jerusha Agen

Writer’s block. Everyone’s heard of it—the ultimate enemy of the writer. Or is it? With my own writing efforts (notice the word choice there), I’ve come to realize that my “writer’s block” is a lot closer to writer’s impatience and that neither is really the biggest obstacle to my writing. My nastiest nemesis is—deep breath as I admit this—avoidance. Let’s call it Writer’s Avoidance (gives it so much more dignity, don’t you think?).

At first when I started to see the symptoms of avoidance, I attributed it to the difficulties peculiar to whatever manuscript I was working on at the time. “This one’s just more challenging,” I’d say. “It’s an adaptation instead of a new story.” Or, “It’s a new genre for me, a new length for me.” The list went on until recently, when I started another manuscript in a familiar genre, and the same thing happened.

For me, the avoidance kicks in when I’m in the plotting stage. (You seat-of-the-pants writers out there may not reach the avoidance stage until later on when you lose your grip on those pants and, in a weak moment, wish you’d planned out the ride.) I’m so excited about the prospect of starting a fresh story, but when I sit down to put the plot on paper, I don’t get far before I stall. The reasons are varied, but my response is always the same: I start to avoid working on the novel. After all, I only experience feelings of failure, frustration, or downright panic when I try to make progress, so isn’t it natural to stay away? The avoidance is subconscious at first, and I take a while to admit that avoidance is what I’m actually doing.

I may be the only person who has this impractical tendency. If I am, I give you leave to laugh at my idiosyncrasies, but in case there are other creative, crazy types like me out there, I’m going to give you a checklist of symptoms so you can figure out if you’ve fallen prey to Writer’s Avoidance. (Disclaimer: People with Writer’s Avoidance may not experience all of these symptoms or the symptoms may manifest themselves in alternate ways.)

1. You start eating a lot more chocolate and taking more snack breaks when you’re working on your manuscript.
2. Your house begins to look like a Better Homes and Gardens feature thanks to compulsive cleaning sprees.
3. You keep checking the clock for the approach of the nearest mealtime.
4. Those piles of papers and old mail disappear and get organized. (How could you ever be expected to write in such a chaotic environment? Organizing really could be considered necessary to facilitate your writing.)
5. You eat more chocolate.
6. Facebook and Twitter (or Pinterest) become your new best friends. (You’re only on there to market your books. It’s not a waste of time when you’re furthering your career, right?)
7. You take up walking in the middle of your usual writing time. (You’ll feel more creative if you’re healthier!)
8. You eat more chocolate.
9. You check your phone every ten minutes. (Your agent could be trying to reach you or your smartphone could be trying to tell you about some essential writing-related tweet that you must retweet to your followers.)
10. Yeah. More chocolate.

Any of these symptoms sound familiar? Please share! And join me next Tuesday to find out how we can end avoidance.

Angie here - what do YOU do to avoid writing? Is one of the above your favorite (like the ones involving chocolate)? Leave a comment below and join the conversation.

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Have you fallen prey to Writer’s Avoidance? We have Jerusha Agen's checklist. 

I sit down to put the plot on paper, I don’t get far before I stall. 

Forget writer's block. My nastiest nemesis is writer's avoidance.

Jerusha Agen is a lifelong lover of story--a passion that has led her to a B.A. in English and a highly varied career. A member of American Christian Fiction Writers, Jerusha is the author of the Sisters Redeemed Series, which includes the titles This Dance, This Shadow, and This Redeemer. Jerusha co-authored the e-books A Ruby Christmas and A Dozen Apologies from Write Integrity Press. Jerusha is also a screenwriter, and several of her original scripts have been produced as films. In addition, Jerusha is a film critic, with reviews featured at the website, www.RedeemerReviews.com

LINKS:

Website: www.SDGwords.com

Twitter (@SDGwords): https://twitter.com/sdgwords 

Facebook (Jerusha Agen - SDG Words): https://www.facebook.com/JerushaAgenSdgWords 

To Buy: http://www.amazon.com/This-Redeemer-Jerusha-Agen/dp/1938092562/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1404751823&sr=1-1&keywords=this+redeemer

Not all prisons have bars. Charlotte Davis should know—she’s lived in one for years. She can handle getting slapped around by her boyfriend, Tommy, and even being forced to do things she would never choose, but when Tommy turns on her 10-year-old daughter, Charlotte must try to escape. With nowhere else to turn, Charlotte runs to the stranger her dying mother believed would help her. Looking only for shelter or cash, Charlotte finds a family she longs to call her own and a gentle man she could learn to love. But if Tommy catches up with Charlotte, these strangers could discover the truth about her. 

Will they send her back to Tommy? Or can a Father’s love set her free?