That magical quality of a story you have already written...does it scare you?

I just received AAs (Author Alterations) on my November Presents which is the second one in the duet The Sensational Stanton Sisters.

While I appreciate the chance to catch any errors that the copy editor and I could have missed, what I love about this activity is getting to read my own book after being away from it a few months. And whenever I struggle with a current WIP, which is almost always, reading through a book that I had already turned in, even the ones that are languishing on my hard drive, I have found is both encouraging and discouraging.

Encouraging because I know I got stuck before and I moved past it and discouraging….why?

Every time I read through something I have written, there are elements of the story that I recognize immediately- these have come from brainstorming before I began writing, or are a result of analyzing the story and realizing what was missing.

But there are also elements to the story that almost have a magical quality to them, as in they arrive in the story through no conscious effort, they just do. And almost always, it’s these particular elements that make the story memorable, that push it from being “not bad” to “wow, that was a satisfying love story.”

And reading back through something I have written and finding these magical elements, scares the hell out of me.

Will I find the magical quality again in the current WIP? Will my subconscious, or the well of creativity or that unknown, unnamed source from which these came, will it work again?

These questions scare me, and I tell myself I have to trust that it’s still there, that it will work again, that I have to push on. Something it comes in the first draft stage, sometimes in revisions, sometimes when I am reading through chapter 6 for the millionth time...I just have to trust that it will...

What about you? Do you find those magical elements in your story too or am I just being delusional? And if you do find them in something you have written, does it scare you to know wherever they came from, it’s not something you can control?

Late late resolutions!

So far this year I have mostly sulked, fretted, refreshed my inbox and wondered what on earth I keep punishing myself for. I have not done much writing or actually had any enthusiasm to do any. The spreadsheets that I downloaded at the end of last year, ready to fill with my wonderful daily totals, are there in Excel but other than share them with my Minxy friends I haven't done a thing with them.

Something occurred to me after we Minxes had one of our wonderful Skyping sessions, during which I was given several gentle kicks up the rear. For the last couple of years at least I've worked so hard at writing within the boxes that category romance requires. I've tried to venture out of the box a few times, or at least bend the sides a little, but that didn't seem to work.

But there's something I haven't done. I haven't kept going with the next ms while one is away. I've sat and found other things to occupy me. Fast tracks, pitches, contests. If I see any of those words I'm totally there. With bells on. Even if it's a genre I don't usually write. When really I need to work on a ms and see it through.

So my resolution as we are heading towards the second month of the year is to spend the next 11 months ignoring anything that promises* a shortcut to being published. I have had a long talk with myself (I do this a lot, please tell me I'm not alone) and convinced myself that by working hard and writing the stories I want to write I have a much better chance of success.

What do you do when it all seems so hard and it would be easier to quit writing and do something much easier instead?!

*these opportunities DO NOT promise a quick way to publication but somehow that's how my brain interprets them.

How do you keep going?

As the minxes and some other friends in the writing community know, I have a full time job (well at least more than 32 hrs/week most weeks), two demanding princesses 4 and 1, and oh yeah, a husband. How sad is that the poor guy is the last one on the list? :-)

But actually, it's writing that comes the last for me, literally, at the end of the day around 9 pm at which point I'm exhausted.
When I had revisions requested by an editor, somehow, I kept going even though it was the same exhaustion, kept working until I had them done.
Only that motivation is kinda lacking now.

I'm still working on the next WIP, but it's just a little bit harder to sit in front of the computer or look at the laptop and get some words done...Instead, at the end of the day when I'm tired, I want to read a book, watch may be a little mind numbing tv or just even get to bed early and catch, OMG, I don't know maybe 8 hours sleep....
And I have trained myself to think it's ok to give in now and then...or else the guilt is enormous, trained myself to give myself a break, that I will pick up the slack the next day..

And you know what?

I did, motivating myself came easy after a day off or a bit of a reading or catch up on tv....

What about you? Care to share some ways you keep yourself going when writing is the hardest to do?

Another truth I've accepted. On some days, writing is the hardest and I've given myself A-Ok to take a break that day and get refreshed....

Today's inside tip on how to get published

Do you want to be a better writer? Do you want to be published?

Then READ.

The editors at Harlequin / Mills & Boon frequently suggest that aspiring writers read the books they publish. The cynical might believe this is so they can sell more books. But think about it.

Would you trust a tax lawyer to defend you in a criminal case? Would you want the world's top cardiac specialist operating on your foot? So why would anyone buy romance novels written by someone who doesn’t like to read romance? Will this writer understand the conventions, and know how to keep them interesting?

Only when you’ve read enough vampire/angel/witch stories will you understand what makes some merge together into obscurity, and makes others stand out. Only when you’ve read enough ‘secret baby’ stories will you be able to put your unique spin on it. When you know what has already been done, you know what hasn’t yet been done. And that is what you need to do: write the story that hasn’t yet been written.

And that’s today’s inside tip on how to get published:
Read, read, and read some more.

If you don't believe me, check out Scott Eagen's recent blog post on what you can learn from reading.

So what are you reading today?

Time

So last month I wittered on about my domestic failures and lots of you took pity on me and said any writing is good writing when you're a busy mother. Thank you for that! I also received lots of great tips to help me be more organised so thank you so much for those :-)

This month I thought I would blog about a related subject. I'm presuming the organisation has taken place and you've carved out some time in your busy lives for writing. I'm wondering when that time is? Do you fit it in early after dropping children off at school? Over lunch time when little ones are taking a nap? At night time when the children are all in bed? Or are you one of those people I really really admire who get up before anyone else in the house and write while everyone is asleep. [As an aside, I am in awe of anyone who regularly gets up before 7am. Those people have my undying admiration.]

I've read advice that suggests you should work out when you are most productive and make sure you schedule your writing time to coincide with that time. So some people work really well first thing in the morning and some later at night. This month I'm specifically wondering when your time is? Maybe we could have a little unofficial Minxy poll? When do you write? Do you guard that time with the ferocity of a momma bear? And if you do ensure that time isn't disturbed--how do you do that?!

Read or Write?

I haven't finished reading a single book yet in the new year and we're almost through January. This is because I've been concentrating on getting some writing done and I haven't yet figured out how to do both in a given day.

 Reading is a bit of a weakness for me..or a big one actually...I start reading, and if turns out to be engrossing...I can't put it down...I've slept only a couple of hours countless times and got up to go to work because I'd spent yet another night unable to stop reading....and faced the day looking like a ghoul...
And since I want to make a head start into the year and get some much needed writing done, I've been kinda scared to start reading something that I know will suck me in...

And time's really limited, so at the end of the day- it's coming down to read or write? and I've been picking write over the past three weeks..But I have no doubt the long clutches of my TBR pile will suck me in and will surrender to the reading one of these nights and pull an all nighter...

How about you? Do you read when you're in the midst of a writing binge? Or is  reading a good book your reward once you've achieved your writing goals?

PS - Don't forget you have up to Friday 27 January to win a copy of Once A Ferrara Wife by Sarah Morgan. Just leave a comment in the reivew post telling us the best book you read in 2011. Good luck!