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Take a pencil to write with on aeroplanes. Pens leak. But if the pencil breaks, you can’t sharpen it on the plane, because you can’t take knives with you. Therefore: take two pencils.
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If both pencils break, you can do a rough sharpening job with a nail file of the metal or glass type.
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Take something to write on. Paper is good. In a pinch, pieces of wood or your arm will do.
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If you’re using a computer, always safeguard new text with a memory stick.
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Do back exercises. Pain is distracting.
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Hold the reader’s attention. (This is likely to work better if you can hold your own.) But you don’t know who the reader is, so it’s like shooting fish with a slingshot in the dark. What fascinates A will bore the pants off B.
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You most likely need a thesaurus, a rudimentary grammar book, and a grip on reality. This latter means: there’s no free lunch. Writing is work. It’s also gambling. You don’t get a pension plan. Other people can help you a bit, but essentially you’re on your own. Nobody is making you do this: you chose it, so don’t whine.
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You can never read your own book with the innocent anticipation that comes with that first delicious page of a new book, because you wrote the thing. You’ve been backstage. You’ve seen how the rabbits were smuggled into the hat. Therefore ask a reading friend or two to look at it before you give it to anyone in the publishing business. This friend should not be someone with whom you have a romantic relationship, unless you want to break up.
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Don’t sit down in the middle of the woods. If you’re lost in the plot or blocked, retrace your steps to where you went wrong. Then take the other road. And/or change the person. Change the tense. Change the opening page.
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Prayer might work. Or reading something else. Or a constant visualization of the holy grail that is the finished, published version of your resplendent book.
My favorite? Number 7!
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BOOKS BY LAURA LEE:
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"If you plan to read one book this year, I encourage you to consider Find Your Reason to Be Here." Jed Diamond
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- “If you truly want to have more love in your life, you couldn’t find a better gift for yourself, a friend, or a lover...” - Jed Diamond
FIND YOUR MAGIC:
- Midlife Magic is now available as an e-book at Smashwords.com!
- Becoming an author in midlife Believing in yourself as a writer Blogging Buy Local - Fort Collins Fort Collins author Fort Collins writer Freedom of the press Learning how to become a writer Making a living as a writer Marketing your book Marketing yourself as a writer Publicity for writers Stresses of authorship Stresses of becoming a writer Stress Management for Writers the need to be heard the process of writing The psychological challenges of becoming a writer Uncategorized Why self-publish? Why stress management is essential Writer's anxiety Writing and authenticity Writing and loneliness writing and meaning Writing and personal growth Writing and self-discovery Writing and Self-worth Writing the truth Writing to learn more about yourself
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