Gems From The Other Man In My Life...(and, yes, my hubby knows about him!)

PERSEVERANCE   per`se`ver´ance

n.

1.

.steadfastness in doing something despite difficult or delay in achieving success

That’s how Merriam-Webster describes it.

This is my definition.  The little guy in my life.   Besides being ridiculously cute, he personifies the word.

He’s learning to walk.  Forget the fact that his chubby little legs are more wobbly than a sailor on shore leave.  He wants to get from here to there in warp speed, and crawling just doesn’t cut it anymore. 

At this point, his aspirations outweigh his abilities.  After four or five steps, he falls down. 

And picks himself up and tries it again.  And again.

There’s no “I give up.  I can’t do this.”  Or  “I think I’ll try again tomorrow.” Or next week.  Nope, it never even crosses his mind.

He is driven.  Determined.  Single-minded in purpose. 

Despite my best efforts to keep him safe, there will be some bumps and bruises along the way.

Just as there are the inevitable bumps and bruises along a writer’s journey.   Writer’s inertia (sounds better than writer's block), rejection, a bad review, to name a few.

We can let them defeat us.

Or we can do as any tenacious would-be toddler does.  We can pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and persevere until we reach our goal!

Check out the blogs of my accountability group as they share their stories:

Alexia Reed Angeleque Ford  Kristen Koster  Kimberly Farris

All I Want For Christmas...

Kristen Koster's wish list is a tough act to follow.  I'll take some of that butt glue if she has any to spare!

If Santa (the real one or my own personal Santa aka hubby) is looking for ideas, I jotted down a few.

At the top of my list is a Swing Chair for all of those long hours at the computer (when the butt glue kicks in.)   I test drove one at MacOutfitters .  Pricey, but, oh-so-nice!

Speaking of MacOutfitters, they also have iPads.  (Hint, hint!)  Let's just say I wouldn't be adverse to finding one of those under the tree either.

More practically speaking, though, all I really want is to enjoy the holidays and experience the wonderment and excitement of it through the eyes of the little ones in my life.

Wishing you and yours a blessed holiday season!

Check out the wish lists of my Accountability Group.   (Peaking allowed!)

Alexia Reed Angeleque Ford  Kristen Koster  Kimberly Farris

Even Siri Doesn't Know

As we're looking ahead to 2012 and a clean slate--a brand new set of goals, the question du jour posed to my Accountability group is:  Where are you now? Where is that, in comparison to where you were six months ago? A year? Five years, ten? How have your goals changed? What would you do differently?

I asked Siri (on my new iPhone) where I was, and she didn't know either.  Of course, it might have been during one of her periods of unavailability.

Or it could be that I don't know either.

2011 has been a rough and emotionally devastating year for me, one that began with a newborn little baby fighting for her life. My heart and mind were far, far away from Regency England, and getting words down on paper didn't seem all that important to me.  

And just as this little one faces her challenges each and every day, I am struggling to get back to where I was, writing-wise.  Writer's inertia (I won't call it block) is difficult to overcome, lost momentum, equally hard to gain back. 

So, to answer the question of where I am, the answer is not where I would like to be.  I've made only modest gains on my manuscript this year.  But it is nearly complete and I am hoping to cross that finish line early in 2012.

When activated, the iPhone's Siri asks, "What can I help you with?"    My question is "How can I help myself?"

For that answer, I'll take inspiration from that strong little girl and her loving parents by:
       1.  Focusing on what I can do, rather than on what I can't or didn't do.  
                                              and
       2.  Celebrating every achievement and hard-fought milestone, no matter how small  or seemingly insignificant.
   
To find out where my Accountability Group members are in their individual journeys, check out these links:

Alexia Reed Angeleque Ford  Kristen Koster  Kimberly Farris

No Means No...Except When It Means Maybe?

...or, in other words, do you know where your Crazymaker is? 

The Artist's Way's author, Julia Cameron identifies Crazymakers as  "those personalities that create storm centers. They are often charismatic, frequently charming, highly inventive, and powerfully persuasive. And for the creative person in their vicinity, they are enormously destructive. You know the type: charismatic but out of control, long on problems and short on solutions."

And--I speak from  personal experience--every family has at least one Crazymaker.  (Or rather only one, if you're lucky.)  Some of you must have misplaced yours because I seem to have more than my share! Please retrieve them!

My DD is my Crazymaker.  She has grown into a wonderful woman, but her organizational skills (or lack thereof) and tendency to overcommit lends itself to chaos.  Chaos that spills over into my life, and all too often, my writing time.  

Because I allow it to.  Julia Cameron is right.  And oh-so-smart.

Why do I allow it?  Why does no turn into maybe, and eventually--inevitably, yes?  

Ms. Cameron's theory is that we use our Crazymaker as an excuse not to create. To be honest, this is not something I do every time, at least not consciously, but, looking back, there are instances I've done just that.   

So now I've identified the enemy--myself (for the most part) and diagnosed the problem, what can I do about it? 

• Learn when to say yes, and when (and how) to say no.  Repeat the mantra above.  (A tincture of tough love may be needed here.)
• Examine my reason for saying yes.  Is it something I really want or need to do, or am I avoiding the blank page?
• Find someone to help me be accountable to myself. 
• Respect myself and honor my writing time.

It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year

Right up there with the first day of school, and, oh,...yeah, Christmas.

NaNoWriMo is upon us.  That very special time when masochistic writers everywhere embrace 30 days of literary abandon in the pursuit of 50,000 words.  To the exclusion of all else, including friends, family, and, all too often, personal hygiene.

I am not among the faithful flock this year due to various factors.  The kidlets need fed, the Thanksgiving fare prepared (whose idea was it anyway to schedule Turkey Day during NaNoWriMo month?), and, last but not least, the Federal jury system has concluded that I have nothing better to do with my time.

But I plan to unofficially join my ACers and other crazy,...um, committed writers and write more this month than I ever deemed possible.

How do I like to reach for my daily word count?  After hubby leaves for work, I like to have my morning cup of coffee, check my email, then open Scrivener and get settled in.  I prefer to work in quiet solitude,  Or while listening to High Focus through my noise-cancelling headphones.

These ideal conditions rarely happen.  My days are often fragmented by interruptions and family obligations, otherwise known as Real Life.

So I've learned to (cliche alert) roll with the punches.  I'm fortunate to have several options.  I may write on my laptop in the evenings while hubby is watching television.  Or I may grab my Alphasmart Neo (as I'm doing now) and make use of snippets of time.  Flexibility is the key.

Most importantly, you have to find out what works for you.

Take a moment and check out how my Accountability Group likes to work.  Here are the links:

Alexia Reed Angeleque Ford  Kristen Koster  Kimberly Farris

Research

As with many writers of Regency-era historicals, I love to research.  I find the time, its mores, and double standards fascinating.  So much so that I can often procrastinate,...um, waste time, searching for obscure facts I'll never use.

Which may lead you to ask, is all that extensive research necessary?

Well, yes and no.  Readers of Regency are extremely knowledgable about the period, and they expect a well-written, well-researched book.  And they have every right to do so.

But, at some point it time, an author actually has to begin putting words on the page.

The method I've found to work best for me is to:

1)  Read enough about the time period and location you're writing about to get a general feel for it.  If you're well read in the sub-genre, such as Regency, you've probably gleaned a wealth of knowledge already.

2)  If you're lacking a specific fact that is is pivotal to your work-in-progress, then you should probably take the time to find it before you go on.  Otherwise, mark it and keep writing.  You don't want to lose hours or days searching the internet for some obscure piece of information that really isn't all that important to the development of your plot, or worse yet, ends up getting edited out.

3) Obviously you'll want to sprinkle in bits of research to flavor your novel.  But, as with any seasoning, too much of a good thing doesn't make it better.  As tempting as it might be, avoid the urge to use a fascinating fact/description/whatever if it doesn't fit.  Like a subtle perfume, research shouldn't overwhelm the reader.

Thanks to the books I've purchased and the wealth of information available on the internet, I do most of my research at home these days.

Which is probably a good thing since it would take forever to cross the Atlantic on an ocean liner (I don't like to fly) and my library really frowns on my work attire of jammie pants and fuzzy socks!

For more research advice, check out the links below:

Alexia Reed Angeleque Ford  Kristen Koster  Kimberly Farris

Books-A-Million

No, not the store, but rather what's on my bookshelves.

Well, maybe there aren't quite that many.

I keep a bookshelf in my office, filled with my reference materials and books on the craft of writing itself.  Not to mention the usual writerly fare of dictionaries and thesauruses.  Downstairs I have another bookshelf filled with even more research books.

Now for my confession.

I have stashes of fiction, much like a guilt-ridden dieter with a secret reserve of snack food.  In the end tables in my living room.  Under the couch.  In the basement,

And, yes, even in the bathroom.

Don't laugh!  One never knows when the opportunity for a Calgon-take-me-away moment will present itself.

And there are the ebooks on my Nook.

I resisted--even fought--the e-reader evolution.  Argued to anyone who recommended one that I like the feel of a "real" book in my hands. (I still do.)

But it only took a couple of page-turning swipes before I was hooked.  A great read is a great read, no matter what format it comes in.

And that's a good thing.

Since I'm running out of stashes!

Take a moment and check out these links:

Alexia Reed Angeleque Ford  Kristen Koster  Kimberly Farris