Reflection of a Writer

Writing is one of the best forms of therapy out there, I believe.  That said, I really and truly believe that what we write reflects a story of ourselves as writers.  There are things that can be learned about us, if one were to want to look at the things we write.  How characters relate, the things they yearn for, and the things they run from.  I think that is part of the appeal to writing for me.  That little bit of sharing or maybe I should say baring of the soul!

Deep down, I think that is part of the challenge of writing.  Not so much the sharing, but the facing things that reflect me through the veil of someone else.  There is a safety in it, but when you can’t lie to yourself, when life makes you see through things, it actually can make it that much harder.  Facing ourselves through our characters, becoming someone new, transformation… These are all reasons I love to write, and I think fear it at the same time.

 

What about you? What kind of reflections do you see when you write?  What is the challenging part of writing to you?  Who do you see in your characters?  In their challenges?

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Keeping Goals

I find it funny how life can get so off track.  How, when we struggle through as best we can, setting goals, trying to maintain, that one little slip off the tight rope and we never seem to jump back on!

NaNoWriMo has just gotten rolling and I am already slipping behind, after my amazingly great start the first day.  I often ponder why I always seem to be slipping, falling behind on my goals and dreams.  Question if they are really important to me, or if I am just afraid.  That is one of the biggest reasons I participate in NaNo every year, and why I chose to become an ML.  It gives me a responsibility.  To help encourage others to write, and to meet the goal myself.  I have always loved a challenge, and NaNo gives me a great one every year!

I keep pushing through, with all the things that seem to crop up in my life to try to kick me off track.  This year, it was my mom getting breast cancer.  Thankfully it was so early that she wont even have to go through chemo, but it has left me feeling decidedly unmotivated to write.  I know that writing will get me through, and I will persevere!  But it is slow going…

 

What about you?  Do you face challenges that push you from your goals?  Allow fears to slow you down?  What gets you back up and pushing onward?

Surviving NaNo

Today is the first day of NaNo 2014!  I hope you have your novels prepped, and your word count already creeping up!  I am sitting at around 2k right now, and hope to get at least a thousand more before bed.  That said I figured I would share a few thoughts on making it out the other side, with your completed 50k!

First things first, have some ideas for your story.  Now, I am not saying you need to have this beautifully laid out plot, oh no! I am just saying, have some possibilities lined up.  I am a pantser all the way, and I never know what why my story is going to turn, but I do lay out some possibilities as I get started to help the words keep flowing.

Keep going and don’t look back!  Do I mean you shouldn’t look at what you have already done at all? No, but it is best if you look at it as little as possible to keep that inner editor locked up.  With that in mind, remember not to erase words, use strike-through, or have a different area to keep the words you no longer want to use.  You don’t want to loose hard earned word counts!

Heap the words on at the front end!  Sure you may think you have a whole month, but things come up, not to mention Thanksgiving floating around towards the end of the month.  Take time in the beginning while you are still excited to hammer away at more words.  Not only will it build the excitement that much more, but you will find yourself less stressed about the challenge and more apt to win!

 

Well, there you have a few things I try to use to make my way through NaNo.  What about you?  What are your tips and tricks for making it through NaNo and coming out the other side?!?  Please share!