Riley Amos Westbrook's Blog, page 53
March 1, 2016
Day 23 of 90: A matter of… #SupportIndieAuthors #ASMSG #IARTG #IAN1 #Inspiration
Do you believe in yourself? I ask this for an important reason, it’s not just an idle question of fancy. I assume if you’re reading this you’re looking for inspiration for something. I’m a self starter. What I mean is, no matter how much someone pushes me to do something, no matter how much I know it’s good for me, until I want to do something, it isn’t getting done.
In order to get started, I have to believe I can even do it in the first place. Which is why my view of the world has changed quite a bit in my life, especially in this past couple years. I know I have to believe in myself before I can even start a task in some instances.
Self confidence is a very important tool to have in your repetoire. Think about it, if you have self confidence, you’re much more resilient than someone who has low self esteem. But how do you build self confidence? After all, it’s not something that’s going to spring out of nothing overnight.
It takes time and perseverence to gain that self confidence. A continued belief that you can, and will, succeed at whatever it is you want to do. That’s how I wrote my first book, I believed. That’s how I saved my first life with CPR, I believed. That’s how I know you can do it, I believe.
Even if you have no one else in your corner, you can count on me. I’ve watched too many people succeed with a gung ho attitude and an unwillingness to bend under the pressure. Remember, it’s all a matter of perspective.
Filed under: Musings, My books, Resource Tagged: Book, musings, Resources, Riley Amos Westbrook, Support, Support Indie Authors, SupportIndieAuthors
February 29, 2016
Day 22 of 90: Almost spaced it
I woke up today, and I started writing. I was happy, my fingers flying over the keys, the words pouring forth from my head. I didn’t pay attention to it, just letting my mind flow with a purpose of keeping it contextualized in the story. It seemed to run like a waterfall from my brain, and before I knew it, I had almost 1500 words written. I was happy, glowing with exuberation as I looked upon a successful day of writing.
Then I started to read it. I realized that I had forgotten the most rudimentary basics of english, and lost myself in the story. I had told instead of showing, and I needed to go back and fix it. A little bit of a rework, a twist of the context and perspective, and it seems to be working much better.
It’s okay to write an unintelligible pile of drivel that no one else understands, you are after all pouring your heart onto the page. As long as you can go back and edit, it doesn’t matter.
I normally write in what my wife affectionately calls Rilenese. It’s my own language, that I understand perfectly. She has problems with it though. When she’s editing one of my works, she’s constantly asking, “What did you mean here? Did you know this word means this also? Oh my god, awesome league of awesome, too repetitive.”
It doesn’t matter if you write crap, because crap can be cleaned up. First you have to write it.
Filed under: Musings, My books, Support Indie Authors
February 28, 2016
Day 21 of 90: Keeping on! #ASMSG #IARTG #IAN1 #SupportIndieAuthors #Inspiration
I received another review below 3 stars, but I’m not sweating it. I don’t know if reviews sell books, and frankly I don’t care. I do love hearing people’s honest opinions on my works.
The feedback I receive from people who have read my books have helped me grow by leaps and bounds as an author. Every chance I get I read my reviews, both positive and negative, and marvel at the differing opinions of readers. One person calls a character shallow, while another says he\She is the greatest personality in written form.
What one person finds shallow and meaningless, another finds depths even I didn’t forsee.
You can look at reviews in one of two ways. You can look at them as a validation for your writing, fishing for compliments off the sea that is the internet. Or, you can look at them as lessons. Find what works for you and what doesn’t, and hone your voice to perfection.
I was revising a work last week, and it was driven home. A scene didn’t come across as I wanted, and I learned I was deficient in explaining my point of view. I carried those lessons on to my next WIP, and I think I’ve learned from that mistake. Only time will tell, I just have to want to continue to be a better writer than I was yesterday.
Filed under: Musings, My books Tagged: Book, musings, Resources, Riley Amos Westbrook, Support, Support Indie Authors, SupportIndieAuthors
February 27, 2016
Day 20 of 90: Getting started! #ASMSG #IARTG #SupportIndieAuthors #IAN1 #Inspiration #AmEditing #AmWriting
I struggled for a moment on what to write today. I meditated upon it, and realized I can write about getting started.
You see, I struggled today because I wanted the “perfect” subject. I forgot that life isn’t always about perfection, and that you can’t always get what you want.
I know a million different kinds of writers. I know the weekend warriors that only work on Saturday and Sunday. I know the hobbyist, who writes whenever the mood strikes him. Even professional writers who write for a living. They all have one thing in common, the first draft is shit.
Now, that’s not to say that your story sucks, that’s not what I mean to imply at all. No, what I mean is no matter what you write, you’re going to have to edit it.
No story is going to be error free on the first pass, it takes time to clean it up and make sure the dots connect correctly.
I do threerevisions on a work before I even think about letting someone, other than my wife, read it.
It’s not because I doubt my skills, but because I find errors even after I’ve cleaned them up. I know I have to write something before I can fix it, and you can’t fix what you haven’t done.
A word at a time, that’s how worlds are built. Remember that as you prepare to write your epic tale, and start putting down one word at a time.
Filed under: Musings, My books, Resource Tagged: Book, musings, Resources, Riley Amos Westbrook, Support, Support Indie Authors, SupportIndieAuthors
February 26, 2016
Day 19 of 90: Forget Doubt! #SupportIndieAuthors #IARTG #ASMSG #Ian1 #Inspiration
I had a friend ask me if I think people can learn to be an author. At first, I didn’t understand the question, I mean after all, authors aren’t born with a story coming out of their ears. It takes time, experiences, and a mind to put them together.
After all, there was a time when Shakespeare was an unknown, a time when King wasn’t a household name, a time when Rowling was stuck on English welfare writing Harry Potter.
We all have a wonderful story to share, though some people do find it easier to tell. I know authors can be made, because I made myself. Years of reading and constantly striving to learn something new every day have led to the point where my collective knowledge handed me a story.
I didn’t agonize over whether or not I should write the book, was it going to be worth my while, was I going to end up losing money? I ignored my inner voices of doubt and set to work. And that’s the key to me. Anyone can learn to be an author. Anyone can find their voice for written works. Anyone can create worlds, populate them with people, and send those people on different quests. But only an author takes the time to put in the work.
Every story you read is written one word at a time, and goes through a ton of revisions before it’s complete. But you will never finish what you don’t start, and you’ll never start if you listen to doubt.
Filed under: Musings, My books, Support Indie Authors Tagged: Author, Book, Resources, Riley Amos Westbrook, Support, Support Indie Authors, SupportIndieAuthors
February 25, 2016
Day 18 of 90: Relaxing #IARTG #ASMSG #SupportIndieAuthors #IAN1 #Inspiration
I was reminded this past few days that you need to stay grounded. If you lose sight of your goals you won’t be able to achieve them.
You need to find the things that matter most to you in life, and fight for them. Without balance you can lose focus, which can affect your production. Stress is also a creativity killer. You need to do something, anything, to help you relax.
Some writers have a drink before they work. This loosens their mind and makes it easier to punch the story out.
I use marijuana, as I find it helps to place me in a different mindset. I’m grateful I live in a state where it’s legal. Unlike alcohol, I don’t find my inhibitions lowering, but more like a kick start that connects my consciousness to my unconscious mind.
Imagery and colors are easier to picture in my mind’s eye, and I think it’s easier to transition between characters in my head.
But I don’t always use marijuana. I use meditation, I use dreams, I talk to those who have experienced a different life than I have. I even read books. I absorb those lessons, and use them on a daily basis.
Stephen King said “If you want to be a writer, you must do two things above all others: read a lot and write a lot.”
I can’t think of another sentence that captures how I feel about writing. Most of what I know, I learned from other people’s examples. There are lots of unwritten rules, and they’re much easier to understand if you are willing to absorb the information.
Filed under: Musings, My books, Support Indie Authors Tagged: Author, Book, musings, Resources, Riley Amos Westbrook, Support, Support Indie Authors, SupportIndieAuthors
February 24, 2016
Bench with a View
Great pic.
This guy’s looking back at my last post like, “Damn, wish I was there right about now!”
Day 17 of 90: Glad to live in the time that I do.
There’s one great thing about being born in this technological age we are, I have tons of mobile tools at my disposal right now. If I truly wanted to, I could write an entire book on my phone while away from the comfort of my own home. If I didn’t like typing on my phones keyboard, I could dictate my book to my phone, and have it transcribed for me. All of this for the amazingly low price of free!
Sometimes I wonder how much different my life would have been if I had been born just 10 years later. Would I have participated more in school? I might have done my homework every night, if I hadn’t needed to write everything by hand.
I can’t help but wonder, and hope, that teachers in our society are embracing this technological age. I hope they’re encouraging their kids to go onto the computer and explore, whether it be exploring Google, or exploring their own imaginations.
I might have done some of their writing assignments if I could have typed them all out, from start to finish. No more writer’s cramp, only have to worry about Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. I might have done homework, I might have had better grades, and I might have gone to college. It could have changed the direction of my life!
Then again, I was a lazy student, maybe I would have complained about needing to type. I guess we’ll never know, and I’ll just have to make up for the lack of writing in my younger years now.
Filed under: Musings, My books, Resource, Support Indie Authors Tagged: Author, Book, Resources, Riley Amos Westbrook, Support, Support Indie Authors, SupportIndieAuthors
