December 31st, 2011 by Theresa
No, it won’t be the end of the world.
It will be a beginning, a reset button if you will. This is the time where we as North Americans make New Year’s Resolutions to be better people, quit smoking, shed unwanted pounds and a whole host of other quirks we don’t like about ourselves. As many of us know, we last about a month in the new year to give up changing for the better. I am indeed one of these people. Next year, I’m going to do something different.
My only true resolution for 2012 is to work S.M.A.R.T.E.R.
In that way of thinking here’s what I endeavor to achieve:
- 1. 12-15 new blog posts next year – one a month and a few extras just in case something cool happens!
- 2. Three manuscripts to cross the finish line – critiques, revised, submitted. One every four months. (See the Million Word March Meter)
- 3. More chatting with you! Be it email, Twitter, Facebook , Tumblr or Google+ weekly. This will include pictures as I can!
- 4. Connecting with new readers and authors throught the year. Posting on the various forums I’ve joined in the past year at least twice.
ANNNND those are the smartes goals I can make. See you next year!
Theresa
Critique, goals, Million Word March, pressure, WIP, working, writing
July 27th, 2011 by Theresa
Photo by Jef Bettens www.iamjef.be
“I’m proud of you for doing this.†Those were my Dear Husband’s words to me the other day. Stunned and confused I scratched my head wondering what was there to be proud of.
I’d just finished “The Captain’s Man.†I had locked myself in the Writing Wroom and worked until I typed “The End.†Exhausted but proud I moved on to edits for my first completed novella “Azrael.†I picked up the manuscript to discover the words I had lovingly put on the page were all crap. I have to rewrite the whole darn thing.
Downtrodden and crushed, I trudged on to fill out my schedule for rewrites, edits and work on new ideas as well as blog posts. I just kept on going. You know what? It just kind of hit me. That was it. That is why the DH was proud of me. I didn’t and haven’t given up.
Now as we all know. Being a writer isn’t easy. First of all, self-discipline is king. If you can’t depend on yourself to write a certain number of words a day or week, you can kiss those dreams of writing for big bucks goodbye. There are target dates to meet, deadlines to overcome and lots and lots of unspoken rules and regulations to learn. Commit a faux-pas in an elevator pitch to the wrong agent and you’re screwed. But you have to do it, learn it, live it and breathe it to succeed.
Next, you have to have skin thicker than the earth’s crust. Forget critique partners, I’m harder on myself than my English teacher father. You’ve got to dig through your own mistakes and not only correct them, but teach yourself new ways of writing. Then you realize that it doesn’t end. You are constantly learning through critiques, reading other novels, classes and the like.
Even then, there is no guarantee that you’ll sell that giant manuscript. It could languish for months or years before it’s ever picked up. Sometimes it isn’t picked up and you’re faced with either letting it go or self publishing. You just have to keep going. You have to keep writing. You have to keep your dream alive knowing that the creation of a story is what really makes you happy.
And that’s what I’m doing. I’m keeping on keeping on. That is truly something to be proud of, for me.
DH, goals, pressure, working, writing
March 14th, 2011 by Theresa
Photo by http://www.sxc.hu/profile/channah
Critique is a four letter word. Just got some back FIVE of them. Ladies and gents, I am not quite crushed but I got a lot of changing to do! I’m going to take this time to finish my MarNo and let the critiques for BMW stew for a while.
BMW, goals, pressure, WIP, writing
March 8th, 2011 by Theresa
So after a crazy weekend and week, I realized that my writing goals need to change. It’s a good thing I’m flexible! SO instead of trying to crank out 7K words in a weekend, I’m shooting for 1K a day. It’s taking a lot of the pressure off. YAY!
I got an extension on my screenplay and with the new goals, I can actually get to the MarNo Project and git ‘er done. Lucky Lucy may not be done until the fall, but it will be a very good story. What can I say? I’m slow but I’m good.
Please leave a comment! I love your feedback!
goals, lucky, lucy, MarNo, pressure, time, WIP, writing
