« Nancy, look at me. If you believe in this story, finish it. »
Welcome back, writing mojo.
Can I hug you?
We’ve been apart, well, a solid two years.
Time flies, time flows.
The whys and hows of the matter are pretty mundane. Burnout, sickness, death.
In short, life happened.
Time flies, time flows, and then, without warning, on a day much like the day before, a little sparkle of hope and joy and confidence started to shine again in my writer’s heart.
Here I am, months later, a whole bouquet of sparkles glowing up my way, ready, yet again, to get some writing projects done.
Both with your excellent company – big thanks for being here – and the support of our amazing writing community.
And a plan.
A kind of stick-to-it-or-don’t-do-it kind of plan.
Dust Off the Keyboard Friends!
Hey girl, there are oh-so-many surprises down this writing road! Gotta be careful there.
This time around, I feel safe. Confident. Wiser too – the perks of growing up.
I’m going back to stories that, through the years and to these days, have stayed with me.
Joy! Relief!
And all that mixed emotions jazz, dear fellow writers.
Fantasy Worlds and Old Friends
The characters are as familiar as old friends. Of course, they’ve evolved through my own learning process.
Characters still can surprise you after a while for sure (looking forward to it in fact!), but knowing them so well makes the writing process… I wanna say comfortable, in a way.
As for the stories themselves.
I can’t wait to re-read, re-write, and reconnect with the stories.
From all the novel ideas I’ve written down (my brain is wired on stories), I decided to choose… none, in order to focus on finishing what I’ve started.
You’ll see in a second, it’s gonna be a fantastic ride.
That’s Gonna Be Some Writing Adventure, Mama!
The challenge: finishing three writing projects, all fantasy, within 365 days.
Writing project « Will they kiss » is outlined already. It’s a re-writing too, making it less aaahhh.
It’s a YA 70 to 75K words novel. And yes, I’m cheating And no, I’m not blushing: I’m halfway there already.
Writing project « She’s not gonna kill him, is she » is the most extensive, and scariest.
This one needs heavy rewriting, a cleaner timeline, a few etceteras.
I’m setting big -yet realistic – goals for this project.
Heck, I’ve been toying with this story for more than 10 years. Time for the paper, pals!
It’s two books in one kind of project, a 100K words YA? Adult? novel.
Writing project « Don’t go in there » is my oldest one. It started at University.
First version was rejected, we’ll see about this new one.
The main characters evolved as the story shifted through the years. Now, at very long, looong last, I have it all figured out, for good.
It’s an MG novel, 45K words, almost all new.
How is all this gonna work? Let me share the details with you.
The Big (a tat ambitious I’ll admit) Plan
The only way to get it done, I mean really done, while keeping the writing mojo up is: to get organized. And stick to the plan.
- Practice
Yep, practice writing.
It’s like getting back to running. If you try to go full speed like you use to do, you’ll quickly discover you simply can’t hold on. And I want to avoid that kind of disappointment with writing.
Therefore, practice!
I still have my business blog plans so I’m able to work on ebooks and blog posts. It took a good month to get back to a decent 1k words a day. My hope is to reach 2K words a day before September 1st. - All the Writing Goals
Daily, weekly, monthly.
I’m setting specific writing, revision, and editing goals for each writing project.
Now, I’m a wonderful pen&paper vintage kind of mama, but there are a bunch of apps that can help you schedule and organize your day in order to meet your writing goals. - Productivity Dear, We Can Do This
Agatha Christie holds the key to this. So do several other great authors. Even if you don’t feel like it, even if what you write sounds crappy, you gotta glue your wonderful bottom on that chair and write anyway.
Sticking to it is always the real challenge. Been there before however so I’ve learned a few tricks.
– Break away from any kind of screen for a full hour between writing session
– Respect refill the well times even if you’re on the writing roll
– The only reason to go online shall be for research, not for Christmas shopping
– Take good care of yourself
Favourite Writing Season
Autumn in the North of North America.
The crisp air, the coloured leaves, the extra blanket ready on the couch, my official 5am Writer’s Club spot.
And yes, my proverbial mug of Earl grey tea at the ready.
What’s not to adore?
This fall however is the beginning of a new era. School, lunch, day job.
Indeed we’re as prepared and organized as can be, but… but still, the unknown awaits.
Thanks for tagging along with me for some new writing adventures. I dearly hope to brighten your days and simply share the joy of writing with you.
I’m very grateful you’re here. Until next time, be kind to yourself!
Marie Alice Writes & Reads 