What I learned at the Writers Workshop...

I am very excited today!

Not because my cold is starting to dissipate, or because I've just caught pink eye from one of my lovely chillens, but because I just returned from an Awesome Writers Workshop!

Yes, this blog is going to be about writing, so before you tune out I just want to say that I feel very hopeful about my future!

It was an interesting workshop. Eight writers, including myself, in two cabins for five days, writing. Sounds fun right? My husband said he'd rather hang himself, but to each his own.

Anyway, it was great and I mean that. I met an agent who told me my story sounded old-fashioned and she didn't know where she'd put it on the shelf, and I still think it was a great experience. In fact that's what made it so positive. I didn't go away with my head full of myself, but with a plan. A foundation to take me to the next level.

So this is the latest plan of attack. I'm going to read like crazy. Pick a genre and read the heck out of everything being spewed from the publishers mouth so I can figure out where I belong. I'm also going to be practising these writers drills so I can find my "voice". That's what they all want. A clear, strong voice and someone that knows for sure what genre they are writing in. So the next few months for me are going to be soul searching. What the agent reiterated was that you have to find your "niche" and stick with it. Only when you are famous can you hop around and hope to have any sort of a following. After all it is a business. Somewhat grudgingly I'll accept this, though I really don't like being labeled or pinned down, but I get what she's saying.

Any writers out there want to share how they picked their genre? Or maybe you could pass along some favorite books for me to read.

I always love your thoughts.
Until next time

Writing Made Easy

“Writing is easy, you just sit down at a typewriter, open up a vein, and bleed it out drop by drop.”-- Red Smith.

I remember staring at a copy of this quote in English class years ago. It’s the truest statement to what writing is really like I’ve ever seen. And if you haven’t at least felt like you have done just this in your writing, then you need to go back and try again. To really write well you have to be willing to bleed yourself out; reach deep into your inner soul and pull out the smells, sights, sounds, feelings. Ugly, hot, sour, whatever.

But I’m getting ahead of myself. All of us must start at the beginning: an idea. A story, whatever it is that interests you. You see a dog on the road that has been hit, moaning and in great pain and you take it in, or you wonder what would happen if the money you have stashed away behind your desk drawer could take you on a journey; escaping from your humdrum, or maybe painful reality. The possibilities are endless. I happen to be interested in love and so my stories generally are about love and all that goes with that sometimes wild ride. And then I sit down and begin writing.

The best advice I ever received was to not be afraid of writing badly. A first draft is generally pretty awful and not something you want to share with a lot of friends, but still you must “bleed out” the ideas. Get them written down the minute you think of them. I like to keep a pad of paper by my bed and in the car for any ideas that come my way. More often than not we forget the inspiration that comes to us, though we don’t think we will. We are all busy and easily sidetracked. So write down those ideas.

Some writers are disciplined enough to start with an outline. For me that is paralyzing. I have to just start writing and let it take me where it may. It’s like a rollercoaster ride sometimes and even I don’t know what is around the bend half the time.

So don’t be afraid to spill a little blood. It will only hurt for a minute, and the reward of having something written down forever is priceless.