Say Goodbye to Frenzy in Your Writing Life by Judy Christie

Judy Christie

How has 2013 felt for you so far? Have you organized, set goals, and found time to relax and smell the roses? Or have you felt caught up in a whirlwind with no escape? No matter how organized I am—how many calendars, spreadsheets, or lists are made—the unexpected can still step in and wreak havoc on my best laid plans.  But I don’t want to live a frenzied life. Do you? Today on Seriously Write, author Judy Christie shares valuable tips for leaving chaos behind. 
~ Dawn

Say Goodbye to Frenzy in Your Writing Life

by Judy Christie

When I was fifty, I gave myself a book for my birthday: I committed to write my first novel. In the past six years, I’ve had six novels published, am working on edits of the seventh and plotting the eighth.

Whew!

I’m thankful—and always struggling to stay focused and organized. And to avoid the enemy of frenzy.

Since embarking on this fiction journey, I’ve found writing requires a special kind of balance, woven between the other parts of life. As someone who loves to hurry less and worry less (I even wrote a nonfiction series on that topic), I like to take a step back at the first of each year and look for new ways to slow down and enjoy my writing life more. 

This helps me avoid frenzy, which too easily sneaks up on writers.

 Sometimes being overwhelmed is the result of poor planning, and sometimes it arrives through no fault of our own. An illness strikes. A tragedy occurs. The family tangles. Friends struggle.  Some seasons of time are tough, no matter how positive our attitude, organized our schedule or loving our heart.

For many writers, frenzy comes to call more than we would like. It arrives as we work to be published and are anxious when a book debuts, when we seek time to write and have deadlines to meet, as we manage royalty checks and the lack of royalty checks. It sneaks in when we’re tired and when we’re trying too hard and when we take our eyes off what’s most important.

If you, along with me, want to take a fresh look at your writing life and get rid of frenzy, try these tips:

** Remind yourself why you write.

** Write regularly, even if time is short; a few words strung together here and there may add up to your best story ever.

** Don’t be afraid to say “no” to something else to say “yes” to writing.

** Take a fresh look at the Big Picture of your life. Are times of frenzy rare or regular? Do you need to make minor tweaks or major course corrections?

** Identify your next best step. You need not make the entire journey today.

** Just do your best. You don’t have to be perfect.

May you have a great year of writing with little frenzy and lots of fun. I’d love to hear your comments on how you slow down and enjoy writing more. 

Click to reach Amazon.

Judy Christie writes fiction with a Louisiana flavor, including “Downtown Green,” book 5 in the Green series of novels, and the award-winning YA novel “Wreath.” She entered the world of writing with her diary at age nine and as the editor of The Barret Banner in elementary school.  She loves primitive antiques, walking in the park near her North Louisiana home and visiting on her vintage green Kitchen Couch.

You can find Judy at www.judychristie.com , www.facebook.com/judychristie  and www.Twitter.com/judypchristie.  For free tips on how to slow down and enjoy each day, check out her podcast at http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/hurry-less-worry-less/id435253514.

A New Year, A New Plan by Myra Johnson

Myra Johnson

I’m not much into making New Year’s resolutions, but January always starts me thinking about my hopes and dreams for the upcoming year. In particular, I consider areas of my thought life that need to be addressed in order to improve my outlook and increase my success potential in every area.

A few years ago, while searching for some inspiration, I came across a great little book that’s full of big ideas on how to stay motivated and prioritize your life: 100 Ways to Motivate Yourself: Change Your Life Forever, by Steve Chandler. Here are some sections I found especially helpful:

#4. Keep your eyes on the prize. Chandler points out that a huge obstacle to success is letting our worries and fears distract us from our real goals. As writers we can allow fear of failure to keep us from either completing a manuscript or taking the risk of submitting it to an agent or editor. 

#40. Find your soul purpose. You’re not going to be much good to others unless and until you’re happy with yourself and excited about your work, so take the time to discover what really makes you happy. That may mean you need to write the book of your heart instead of chasing market trends.

#59. Upgrade your old habits. According to Chandler, bad habits can’t simply be broken. You have to replace the bad habit with positive action. Like eating a healthy snack instead of one heavy on calories and fat. Like doing a workout video instead of watching TV. Like exchanging web browsing time for a concentrated period of work on your manuscript.

#68. Get up a game. Competition can be healthy. It forces us to reach deep inside ourselves, helping us grow and improve. The real victory comes not from besting someone else, but from bringing out the best in ourselves. Is there a manuscript contest you’ve thought about entering? This may be the year to give it a try!

#73. Use the 5% solution. “Great things are often created very slowly,” Chandler writes. What if you brought 5% more purposefulness into each day? What kinds of changes would you see in your life? How many more words could you write in a day?

#74. Do something badly. We’ve all heard the old adage, if something is worth doing, it’s worth doing well. But what if that isn’t necessarily true? Can you let go of perfectionism long enough to draft the next scene, or perhaps begin that new story you’ve been dreaming of writing?

#101. Teach yourself the power of negative thinking. This one might well be my favorite. Saying no can be a powerful thing. It means standing up for ourselves and our beliefs, taking a stand against things we simply won’t tolerate. Ask yourself what you really don’t want in life, and experience a burst of energy to turn that into positive motivation!

A Horseman's Hope

Grace Lorimer is too busy for a relationship. And love is definitely out of the question while she works her way through college to earn her occupational therapist certification. Besides, her mother’s string of failed relationships and broken promises prove romance is not worth risking her heart—even when she begins to care deeply for single dad Ryan O’Keefe.

Four years after his girlfriend, Shana, became pregnant, Ryan still can’t believe he’s a father . . . and can’t imagine being anything else. His daughter is the light of his life. Now if only Shana could embrace motherhood and the three become a real family. . . .

Then Ryan receives shocking news about Shana, and his world is torn apart as he faces losing his daughter. Suddenly old feelings for Grace resurface, but is a whirlwind marriage of convenience the answer?
 

Purchase Link

 

About Myra Johnson: Award-winning author Myra Johnson is a Texan through and through, but she has no regrets about recently making the move to the more temperate climate of the Carolinas. She and her husband of over 40 years are the proud parents of two beautiful daughters who, along with their godly husbands, have huge hearts for ministry. Four rambunctious grandsons and two precious granddaughters take up another big chunk of Myra’s heart. The Johnsons also enjoy spoiling their very pampered oversized lapdogs. Myra writes inspirational romantic fiction for Abingdon Press and Heartsong Presents. Her latest release is A Horseman’s Hope (Heartsong Presents, January 2013).

Micro-conflict: A Quick Way to Pump Up Your Paragraphs

 

 

Happy Wednesday, my writing friends,

 Nothing new and exciting about conflict. We've heard how important layering tension throughout our stories is. But, I’m not talking about just any old conflict, but something called micro-conflict. Basically it’s the idea of injecting conflict into every sentence. Well, at least every paragraph.

Does it seem impossible? I tried it, and it really gave life to otherwise slow, bland scenes.

I first found this concept on Camy Tang’s blog, StorySinsei. I’ll read you her example.  

Before tension is added:

Wow, she was having lunch with Dr. Devon Knightley. How cool!

“Are you sure this restaurant is okay with you?” Devon peered at her over the top of his menu.
“Yes, of course.”

After tension is added:

Lunch had so not been a good idea.

Aside from the fact Naomi couldn’t scrub Jessica’s waxen face from the backs of her eyelids, Aunt Becca had embarrassed her worse than when she’d crashed Naomi’s eight-grade sleepover.

“Are you sure this restaurant is okay with you?” Devon peered at her over the top of his menu with wary eyes.

“Yes, of course. Why wouldn’t it be?”

I’m sure you can see the huge difference.

So how do we do this? I go through my manuscript, paragraph by paragraph, hunting down blah-ness and asking, “How can I inject more tension?”

Here are some suggestions of elements to add:

Offensiveness, embarrassment, confusion,  misunderstanding, mispronounces or forgets a name, interruptions, sarcasm, cynicism, self deprecation, guilt, fear, ambition. Your character does something odd, can’t finish a simple goal, can’t finish a sentence, has a snarky, rude, or too sweet, tone of voice, is disappointed, can’t stop obsessing about something in her past …

Try it! Then share how it went. I’d love to hear.

God bless and happy writing,

Ocieanna

Keeping up with the Tweets and Posts by Lara M. Van Hulzen

Lara M. Van Hulzen

The New Year's here and we're going to finish our novels, query every editor and agent we know and then cover every social network like there's no tomorrow!

Maybe not ...

So how do we prioritize (and re-prioritize)? Here's some thoughts from Lara M. Van Hulzen. ~ Angie

I’ll be honest, I’ve been discouraged lately. Writing is a tough business. And when I say business, I mean truly the business side of it. I read a lot of advice about writing and there’s quite a bit said about writing because you love it, because you’re called by God to do so, because you’d wilt and die if you didn’t – and don’t think about publication or an audience per se all the time. Write because it’s what’s in your heart, in your soul. But that’s not as easy as it sounds. When you are trying to get published, sitting down and working on a manuscript can come from the heart, but to push your head out of the way feels close to impossible. How can you not think of whether an editor or reader will like it or not? Especially when you’ve had rejections and the negative voices swirl around in your mind as you work.

I’ve noticed a trend lately. I love being on Facebook and Twitter. I really do. But I’ve discovered that I can’t read them on days when I am not hammering away at my computer on a manuscript. If I do so, it seems as if the entire world is out there working and writing 24/7. Truly. I read tweets and posts at crazy hours of the night and think, “Is it really something we have to do ALL THE TIME to get published?” I feel like I’m in a race and I am always behind. As I read tweets and posts, it’s like I can see these people at their desks, their fingers tapping away at all hours and they never leave. Is it really all they do? Does no one ever take a break to read or journal or go for a walk or paint? I have to do those things or I lose touch with my creativity. Am I the only one?

I’m a wife and a mom and I love being both. I’m one of those that wanted to grow up and get married and have a family. I love all that it brings to my life and all that I get to give because of it. And being a wife and a mom takes time, effort and energy. I love writing too. But I fear that if I try to keep up with the tweets and posts, I’ll miss out on the hugs, the laughs, the tears, the events and the life. I’m not saying I can’t do both, but I don’t like feeling that I won’t make it as a writer because I want those things too.

So here’s my current stance. I am a writer who would love to have a book published. I will put my behind in the chair and do what it takes to get words on the page and get the job done. I will do it with heart and soul and I will wait on God’s timing. But I won’t do it at the expense of missing out on living life. If I did, I wouldn’t have a single thing to write about anyway.

What's your stance on social networking? How much time do you devote to the Twitter, Facebook and Google Plus? Which gives you the most "bang for the buck?"

Lara M. Van Hulzen received her BA in Journalism from Point Loma Nazarene Universtity in 1994. Her first published article was when she was a senior in high school. She has worked as a book reviewer for the past 18 years with various organizations such as Crossings Doubleday, YouthWorker Journal, and www.radiantlit.com. She is represented by Diana Flegal at Hartline Literary Agency. She lives with her husband and three children in Northern California. Connect with Lara on her website: http://www.laramvanhulzen.com/.