When Not to Force the Muse: ROW80

Thanks to some GI issues lately, I will have a colonoscopy tomorrow. Fun stuff for a blog post, right?

Today is prep day. Thanks to weeks of GI upset, I've been relegated to pretty much eating chicken broth, grits, rice, and other bland foods. It's making for quite a cranky girl.

Guess what I've discovered during this process? I don't function well on an empty or hurting stomach. I'm hoping whatever they find will set me on a better path.

For now, I'm writing and keeping up with my one-hour-a-day rule. Yesterday, I scrapped everything I'd written the day before (the food fog took over from the Muse and left me with unusable material). Today, I'm not even going to attempt to write. Maybe not even tomorrow, depending on how I feel after. I need a fresh brain and calm stomach.

Do you ever feel like you force the writing, ending up with words you simply delete? 

Sometimes, I think I should walk away from the computer and admit it's not a writing day rather than force it. But, then I wonder if it's better to write anything to keep up the habit. In Stephen King's On Writing, he said he writes every day, come Hell or high water. Hmmmm.

I've been kicking butt on editing and knocking out other action list items. So, it's been a productive week so far. My goal is to still finish Chasing Forgiveness by 10/31 and to participate in NaNoWriMo to get book three written. So that's my A Round of Words in 80 Days (ROW80) update for mid-week.

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For fun, I have to share a picture of my oldest daughter from this weekend. It's from her freshman Homecoming dance. She's growing up too fast. *sniff, sniff*

Fickle Muse: ROW80 Update

Years ago when writing a book was an unfulfilled dream, I thought I would sit down one day and a flurry of words would rush out. Then, the next day and the next until a book was done. 

After all, if the idea was there, what would stop me from writing?

Many of my writer friends have other full-time jobs, plus kids, plus spouses. I would read their ROW80 updates and cringe. They were doing all of that AND staying on top of their wordcount goals.

I could have cleared a whole day, managed to get all my kids to school, be healthy... and still no words. *sigh*

The older I get, the more I'm trying to accept who I am. And I am someone who needs a deadline. The worst thing someone can do is give me an assignment and say, "Just get to it whenever you can." Whenever quickly turns to never when faced with a pile of commitment. At least for me. I have too many fires to put out on any given day.

As soon as I get through the June 10, 2013 publication date for Chasing Memories and my summer move to California, I'm going to set some deadlines for Book 2. Then, I'll get it to my editor. Once I do that, she'll keep me on task. 

How do you motivate yourself to just keep writing?

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A Round of Words in 80 Days (ROW80) Update

* Totally focused on the upcoming publication of Chasing Memories

* Working on marketing materials

* Planning promotions

I could still use some help with my cover reveal tour for Chasing Memories. Dates are available 5/23-30, and I will send you all the details. 

If you can help, please visit the sign up form here.

Muse? Oh Muuuuse? Guest Post by Kim Switzer of Musecraft

Who doesn't need to coax their Muse out from the shadows occasionally? You sit down to write, and nothing. It's frustrating.

Today, I am thrilled to welcome Kim Switzer. I've come to think of her as the Muse Whisperer.

I met Kim as part of A Round of Words in 80 Days (ROW80) and then worked one-on-one with her this summer. She motivated and inspired me with her simple and effective ideas. Since then, my Muse has been more accessible. So, I asked Kim if she would share with us some of her techniques for encouraging our Muses.  

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Muse? Oh Muuuuse?
by Kim Switzer

Source

Did you ever have your Muse take off on vacation in the middle of a story? Or even at the beginning, or worse, before you even get started? Yeah, me too. It’s normal; it happens to all of us at one time or another.

I have a few things that can help us get her back, though.

• Take a shower, wash dishes, go swimming.  There’s something about combining water and physical activity that seems to call the Muse out of hiding.
• Grab a hula hoop, dance in the middle of the living room, color, let your inner child out to guide you.
• Buy her flowers. Muses love beautiful things and gifts. Remind your Muse and yourself that you and your writing are important and worth giving time and attention to. Sometimes just knowing that you are paying attention can get your Muse to let the words flow again.
• Keep a list or file of things you’re interested in learning. Include things you want to research, classes you might like to take (online and in-person), tutorials you'd like to try, workbooks you’d like to go through, etc. When inspiration feels low, try one of the tutorials or classes or workbooks, learn something new or an advanced version of something you already know, and let the new information stir your creative juices.
• Immerse yourself in other people's work. Spend time with work that is similar to what you want to create. Let yourself imagine how you would have done the same piece of work
• Get absorbed in things that are different from what you do. Just as above, immerse yourself in other people's work, but this time choose things that are different, even opposite, from what you want to create. Pick non-fiction if you're a fiction writer and vice versa. Pick things that aren't even writing--attend a gallery opening, peruse photography websites, read about sculpting. Imagine how you might incorporate some of these things into your own work.
• Schedule in regular downtime--daily if possible but at least 2-3 times a week. Your creative mind needs that space. Your Muse needs time to dream, and she needs quiet space to whisper into and have you actually hear her. 
• Find a couple of good blogs and communities to be active in online. Don’t overwhelm yourself by trying to follow dozens of them. Two or three will let you actively participate and really be part of the community, so browse around and find some that really call to you.
• Go to Amazon or another online bookseller. Read descriptions and samples of books you love and books similar to what you're trying to write. Let others' ideas inspire yours. 
• Set a timer for 15 minutes and freewrite about your story. Don’t write any of the actual story, just write about what kind of story you want to write, what feeling you want people to have when they read it, what elements you want to put into the story. If you are trying to figure out how to get from Point A to Point B, write about what sorts of things might need to happen in the middle to get you there.
• Freewrite about why you think you’re stuck, what is holding you back and causing you to stumble.
• Write yourself a letter from your Muse. Let her tell you what she’d like from you, what kind of writing set-up she’d like to have. Invite her to tell you anything at all, even if it’s not about your writing. Then try out some of her suggestions.
• Have coffee, lunch, drinks with a sympathetic friend who will listen to you talk about your story. Tell her about being stuck—voicing your frustrations is okay; you need to get them out. But then tell her everything that is good and exciting about your idea, all the reasons you wanted to write in the first place. Remember that you love to write.
• Finally, if you are still having a hard time getting back into your work, take a hiatus. Give yourself time off from writing, at least a week, but take as long as you need. The only rule here is to pick a date when you will return to your writing. Put it on your calendar, and when that day comes, give yourself a block of time to spend with your writing even if it’s just to read over what you’ve written and take a few notes.

A bit about me: I’m a professional Muse, practitioner of whimsy, and certified Kaizen-Muse™ Creativity Coach.  I’m the owner and head Muse at MuseCraft™.  I’m a writer—mostly paranormal and urban fantasy stories.  I have a bachelor’s degree in psychology and a post-graduate teaching certification in English Language and Literature, but mostly I love sharing the feelings of joy and pleasure and excitement that come from engaging with your creative dreams, which is how I became a creativity coach.

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Wonderful advice, Kim. Thanks so much for stopping by today and sharing it with us.

What do you do when your Muse isn't cooperating?

Write Me, Maybe (NaNo): ROW80 Update

I want to be finished

and this is crazy

But just join NaNo

and write me, maybe?

Clearly, I'm influenced by my kids' music. This song is always in my head, but lately my newest WIP has been begging me to commit and write.

Could NaNoWriMo be the answer?

My idea for a Young Adult novel is fleshed out in my head, and I've made quite a bit of notes, but I've only written disjointed scenes. Is this the kind of piece you take to NaNo?

I'm still working on the Depression Cookies follow-up with Mom, but it's hard to write while I'm waiting on a chapter from her. If I write ahead and she throws me a curveball, I have to rework. That gets frustrating. Even though we have a plan, we let the story unfold as our Muses dictate.

But I'm also afraid to continue to put my other WIP on the back burner. I don't want to lose the feel for the story. I'm balancing that fear with the fear of attempting 50,000 words in a month. Something I've never even come close to.

So, I ask of my writer friends, both those who have done NaNo and those who are considering it for the first time, to give me some encouragement to just sign up. Or, tell me I'm crazy and to focus on the WIP that's already 50,000+ words in.

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A Round of Words in 80 Days (ROW80) Update

Writing: Since I just sent a new chapter off to Mom, I turned to outlining my YA WIP. I wrote a few scenes and a character interview (trying to flesh out how my YA character in this is different from Krista in Depression Cookies, a character I know inside and out). This is what got me thinking about NaNo, because I'm excited about this story. What if I can't maintain that feeling through November?

Editing: Contacted my client and set up a schedule to keep us both focused. Excited!

Blogging: Keeping to my less-hectic and more doable schedule of Sunday, Monday, Wednesday, Friday. Tomorrow, I'm excited to host a guest post by fellow ROW80er, Kim Switzer. Please stop by. She's sharing ideas for keeping the Muse engaged.

Social Media: Of course I wish I could visit even more blogs and leave more comments, but I'm finding balance.

Reading: Thanks to a rainy and cold weekend, I made some headway in my reading commitments.

Yeah for progress. Hope everyone is enjoying some round 4 progress.

Finding my Rhythm: ROW 80 Check In

Setting goals, creating to-do lists, and planning... I admit it, I'm Type A. Yet, I've found my best writing comes during unplanned, chaos-free times. With three kids and writing and editing freelance jobs starting to pick up, these moments are hard to come by. I'm trying to have set times of day to work on paid projects and social media while also finding time to work on my two novels. It's a delicate balance, and I must admit I haven't quite found my rhythm.

Plus, I've really missed dedicated reading time. Not only does consistent reading help my writing, it's also something I love to do and a major stress-reliever. One of my priority goals for ROW 80 was to make reading a priority. Again, this requires time.

Finding a rhythm really equates to carving out time into workable chunks. I'm getting there. Slowly, but surely.

My progress this week:

Depression Cookies blog
Results: Blogged every day
Reaction: Oh, yeah!

Mom in Love with Fiction blog
Results: Two posts
Reaction: So close. Want to do 3 posts per week. Still, major progress from the attention this blog was getting.

Writing
Results: Some research and outlining for my YA novel. Received Mom's chapter and need to write my response. I've been stewing a bit over it, and the words haven't flowed.
Reaction: Reserved. This is where finding my writing rhythm is so important.

Reading
Results: So close to finishing Valhalla. A fun, interesting read by one of my Blogathon cohorts, Jennifer Willis. Will review soon.
Reaction: Love making reading a priority again!

Can you plan writing time? Or must you let the muse decide when it's time to write?

I hope my writer friends, especially those participating in ROW 80, are achieving their goals and finding their rhythm. Please check out some great writers below: