Heather Wright's Blog, page 17

Planning for 2013

Time Disappears in a Good Book Photo by Jenny Kaczorowski WANA Commons

The writing challenge that I set myself 22 days ago is progressing well. I haven’t missed a day, though I pulled couple of late nights to make sure that I kept to my commitment. I’m looking forward to reading all the crazy things I’ve written when the challenge is over. Writing whatever comes to mind has been a very “interesting” process.Today, and for the next couple of weeks, I’m focusing on making plans for my freelance writing business for 2013. I’m looking for ways to grow my services by developing a training course in clear writing for local businesses and by expanding my creative writing workshops into more schools, and by … Well, you get the idea.

The task of setting business goals is a lot easier with some guidance from other experienced writers. Here’s a link to Paul Lima’s chapter from Everything You Wanted to Know About Freelance Writing. Whether you are in business or not, answering the questions that Paul poses here will help you create a plan that will help you reach your goals.

Another link that certainly helped me get my goals in perpective is from Kristi Holl at Writer’s First Aid. Here she talks about small goals that she believes will make a big difference to her writing output next year. http://kristiholl.net/writers-blog/2012/11/simplified-writing-goals-for-2013/ Also have a look at Set Goals NOW for 2013, and with Kristi’s and Paul’s suggestions enjoy New Year’s Day knowing that you’ve done good work to make 2013 your best year yet.

Do you take the time to make yearly plans for your business or your writing life? Do you have any resources or suggestions that help with goal setting and planning?

Filed under: writing Tagged: 2013 resolutions, business goals, business vision, Heather Wright, setting goals, setting writing goals, writing challenge, writing daily, writing life

December Writing Prompts and Challenge Update

Yesterday, I completed Day 14 of my daily writing challenge. There were a couple of days last week when I really just wanted to forget it and have a nap, but I was very happy that I persisted–not because I created a particularly riveting piece of prose, but just because I wrote something instead of nothing. Yup. That was all it took to put a smile on my face for the rest of the day.

Here are some writing prompts for you for December, and if you don’t find these inspiring, I’ve just posted another 20 at http://wrightingwords.wordpress.com/writing-starters/ Have a creative December!

1. December brings the year to an end, and if the Mayans were right … no, I really don’t believe that. Here are some song titles  that might inspire a story: End of Night, End of the Road, My Endless Love, End of Time, Last Waltz, My Last Breath, Last Child, Last Time, The Last Night.

2. Use one, some of all of these words in a story: pine, snow, wind, crack, red, dead leaves, flame.

3. Here are some opening lines:

A dead battery was the least of my problems that morning.

Jim said he’d checked the cottage yesterday. It wasn’t like him to forget to lock the door.

Beth put her mug down with a thud and jumped up from the table. She really had heard it. It wasn’t her imagination.

Dry leaves scuttered across the driveway.

I hated it when snow fell horizonally.

Chris woke to the sound of crying. It was 3 o’clock in the morning and he’d been alone when he went to bed.

4. Use one, some or all of these words in a story: chimes, midnight, window, stone, willow, song

5. Try one of these “seasonal”story titles: The Holly and the Slimy, In the Creep Midwinter, Siren Night, Shiver Bells, Snowfall Blues, Black Ice, Gifts, Holly’s Heart, New Years and No Tears, Ribbons and Robin.

Filed under: writing Tagged: December, Heather Wright, song titles, writing challenge, writing prompts, writing starters

Writing Workshops for K-W Teens

Once again, I am offering a free series of writing workshops for teens through the Kitchener Public Library. The workshops begin on Wednesday, February 6, 2013 and will be at the Forest Heights’ Branch from 4 to 5 pm.  I’ll be working with teen writers to help them  develop story ideas, write dialogue, create characters and add action and  suspense to their writing. Check the KPL website for registration details.

Filed under: writing Tagged: characters, dialogue, Heather Wright, Kitchener Public Library, story ideas, suspense, writing workshops, writing workshops for teens

Day 8 Writing Challenge Check-In

For someone who for months has been despairing that any creativity she professed to own had the life spark of mud, the fact that words have been hitting the page for seven days is a small miracle. Maybe they’re being written because I’ve left the laptop unopened, and I’m using paper and pencil instead. Maybe the words are coming because I have committed to writing something every day–not something great, long-lasting, or toward a goal of publication–just something. Whatever is going on is just fine with me.

I’ve been totally surprised at the workings of my brain. (Okay, that might be a surprise to a few people.) What I mean is–where do these stories and people come from? I just start writing and things happen. So far, though, all the protagonists have shared one thing–isolation. They start out alone or apart from others. In one story she is fairly content where she is–until she meets ‘him’. In two others, she is curious about something strange in her environment and that leads to a suprise (in one case a corpse.) In another, he is desperate to finish a manuscript that holds a secret, knowing his life is in danger. In the story that I’ve been working on for 3 consecutive days, she is a grumpy tourist who leaves her group long enough for them to be all gunned down. (Of course, I would continue the one with the highest body count!) Do you have a pattern to the beginnings of your stories? What do you do go get the creative sparks lighting? Do you write only on the computer? With pen and paper? A combination of the two? Do you find yourself suprised by stories or ideas that seem to come out of nowhere? I’d love to hear your surprise stories and how you tap into your imagination.

Filed under: writing Tagged: creativity, daily writing, Heather Wright, pencil and paper, writing, writing challenge, writing on the computer

Writing Tips and a Writing Pledge

Image courtesty of Laura Ritchie WANA Commons

I just found this link a few days ago and want to pass it along. CBC Books is a website containing all things writerly created by the Canadian Broadcasting Company. (I can’t tell you how lucky I feel to live where a national broadcaster promotes reading and writing.) Within that site is a set of pages called Canada Writes, which contains a series of writing tips from Canadian authors. I’ve only had a chance to read a couple of them and I’m already printing and saving them to read again. So if you’re looking for some great writing tips, check out Writing Tips at Canada Writes.If you’re a mystery writer, you also might want to explore Louise Penny’s five-part series on writing mysteries. Here’s one to explore: http://www.cbc.ca/books/canadawrites/2012/05/louise-penny-master-class-things-i-wish-id-known-before-starting-my-first-book.html

You can tell that the muse/creativity/inspiration and I aren’t on speaking terms at the moment because that’s when I read about writing rather than do the writing. I’m hoping that our separation doesn’t last too much longer, but in the meantime, I think it’s okay to fill the cup with some reading, too.

I have a friend who does daily writing exercises, whether they are about her book or not. I admire her enormously, and I think she’s absolutely on the right track. I also believe that it’s something I should be doing, too. If I want to keep calling myself a writer, I feel that I should be writing every day. I have writing gigs with deadlines that help pay the bills, but my creative writing has stagnated for a long time—and I miss it. So, I’m going to pledge to write every day for a month and keep you posted on my progress. If you want to join me, we can keep each other motivated, and I’d love the company!

Filed under: writing, writing time Tagged: Canadian authors, CBC, CBC Writes, daily writing, Heather Wright, Louise Penny, mystery writing, writing tips

Time Travel Tips

Image courtesy of Lynn Kelley WANA Commons

I am in the process of rethinking a current project and looking for a way to solve one of my major problems with the character. The book is set in medieval England, and my young hero just lacks the spark he needs to connect to the reader. In a brain blast, I realized that the way he spoke was a barrier to young readers–and to me, trying to bring him to life. But if he was a modern kid in a fish-out-of-water situation, I could use the language I want to write, and I think the story would be more fun for the reader. Time travel was the solution I came up with. A bit of The Time Machine and a bit of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.

But …

I don’t know very much about time travel except for reading the two books mentioned above. I would love to hear your suggestions for time travel novels (for readers of any age) or how-to-write books that would help me research this framework for my story.  I don’t want to copy anyone, but I do want to understand what the conventions are–does present time move in synch with past time, for instance, or is present time ‘on hold’ until the traveller returns? That sort of thing.

All help will be welcome. I look forward to your suggestions–and some great reading!

Filed under: writing Tagged: Heather Wright, medieval England, Narnia, The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe, The Time Machine, time travel, writing tips

Does Your Character Have a Secret?

 

It’s no secret that I would love to visit this place again–Peggy’s Cove, Nova Scotia

Two weeks ago I had the great fun of spending three days at Ridley College, working with the Grade 11s who were writing short stories. Because I was there last year, I didn’t want to go in with exactly the same material I used on that visit, even though the focus for my workshops was basically the same. To prepare, I did more reading about writing, focusing on character and dialogue, and found some great tips that I could pass along.The students’ imaginations went into high gear when I suggested that their character should have a secret. When they were asked to think about their own secret, it was clear that we had struck a chord. We all know something about ourselves or our families that we don’t want other people to know. The students also talked about short stories that they had read previous to my visit; they had no problem defining the characters’ secrets and how they added to the conflicts in the stories.

I challenged them to complete the following sentence from their character’s point of view: “I would die if anyone found out that I ….” We played with a couple of examples and saw how adding a secret gave a character one more challenge to face before he or she reached her goal. The secret upped the conflict and involved the reader.

I wish I had thought of this idea myself, but I got my inspiration from Lee Martin in his chapter, “Subversive Details and Characterization” in Naming the World: And Other Exercise for the Creative Writer, a fabulous book edited by Bret Anthony Johnston. I offer my heartfelt thanks to my friend Heather who suggested I read it.

Do your characters have secrets? Does the threat of revealing them motivate their actions or motivate their reactions to situations and other characters? Think about your favourite books. What secrets motivate those characters? Drop by the comment box and don’t keep your answers a secret!

 

Filed under: writing Tagged: Bret Anthony Johnston, characterization, conflict, Lee Martin, Naming the World, short stories, writing

November Writing Prompts

November 1st has arrived and with it my decision to skip NaNoWriMo this year.  Part of me would love to join that crazy writing world for a month. I enjoyed the process a lot and loved tracking my wordcount and watching others work toward their goals. But, I feel like I’m in survival mode with a lot of other work and things on my plate, so no NaNo. On the plus side,  I have a new writing gig to keep me busy and I’m planning more brainstorming sessions for another project I want to work on, so some creative work is ahead for me.

I did something totally different last weekend and put brush and paint to paper at an art workshop.  I’m always fascinated with things medieval and the project was based on a medieval herbal. A sample of my efforts is in the photo. I really enjoyed the day. I used to paint “a bit” many years ago and it was fun to get out the paints and play again. The nice thing was that the final products were very small–something you could finish in an hour or so and they didn’t occupy much work space either. I find it very calming, too. While I’m painting, my brain really can’t cope with anything else but deciding where I’m going to put the brush next. Time passes and the to-do lists and have-tos recede into the fog–and I get a pretty picture at the end. Gotta love that!

Instead of writing prompts this month, here are links to two writing prompt creators that provide endless combinations of ideas to spark your imagination. I challenge you to try each of them just once.

The Writer Igniter: http://diymfa.com/writer-igniter

The Brainstormer: http://andrewbosley.weebly.com/the-brainstormer.html

Have you found any great sources of writing prompts that you’d like to share? I’m always looking for more links to add to the blogroll at my book’s website. There are nearly 80 of my own writing prompts on that site, too. Hope you all have a creative month ahead!

Filed under: writing

Thinking of NaNoWriMo

Just for fun. My picture of “Nemo” from the Boston Aquarium.

I said in my last post that October was a busy month at my house, and that I was thinking of signing up for NaNoWriMo again. I’ve started twice.

The first time, I began a romantic suspense novel that was lots of fun to write—but I got about 23,000 words in and realized that, if I could make time to write for fun, I could write the book that matched my real passion, instead. The finished product didn’t have nearly the excitement or any exotic locations, but that’s when Writing Fiction: A Hands-On Guide for Teens was born. (My son carried on and finished his 50,000+ words on deadline. He was 13.) The next time we sat down to try NaNo, my mother-in-law became gravely ill, and creativity, and a lot of other things, went on hold for a long time as we coped with our loss.

So, it’s been a while since I thought about a 50,000-word November. And thinking about it has made me start looking for resources and NaNo tips that I can pass along, whether you’re thinking of a November marathon or just getting your writing on track.

1)      Here’s a link to Kristen Lamb’ Blog that I recommend you visit soon. For the past 5 Mondays, she’s been writing about structure, which in her words is “critical. Why? Because structure is for the reader. The farther an author deviates from structure, the less likely the story will connect to a reader.” Her weekly tips will keep your story on track and help you make that essential connection to your reader.

2)      Some writing starters might be handy. These are ones that I’ve created. There are some links to other writers with great writing tips and prompts in my blog roll, too.

3)      And to get you started a link to Lucienne Diver’s post on beginnings.

So have I made my decision about NaNo? Not yet. But the more I think about it … Well, I’ll keep you posted. What are your writing plans for November? Do you have a system that keeps you accountable for a daily word or page count? I’d love to know how you meet your writing goals.

Filed under: writing Tagged: beginnings, NaNoWriMo, structure, writing, writing starters

October Writing Prompts

I love October. Where I live, it means rainy and foggy days mixed with days of glorious sun and the bright colours of changing leaves. It’s also birthday month for my husband and me and our anniversary. Lots of excuses not to cook dinner! Who could ask for more?

I’ve created some October writing prompts to keep you busy now, and perhaps thinking ahead to NaNoWriMo. Are you thinking of signing up this year? I might sign up, just to post a running writing record for the month–and not worry about the word count. Just doing the writing at all will be a big enough accomplishment.

Here you go–

1. Try these opening sentences and see what happens.

“Can you see that, too?”
The cellar floor was damp and cold, and after two hours, my body felt the same.
Halloween isn’t for ghost and monsters; it’s for bullies.
The rain drenched my clothes and slapped my hair into my face, but I couldn’t stop now.
The trick would be getting into the party unnoticed. The treat would be finally getting even.

2. Freewrite around one, some or all of the following: moon, apple, paper, echo, scent, running, cat

3. See if you can find inspiration in things orange and black: pumpkins, cats, sunsets, midnight, tigers, Baltimore orioles, paint, licorice, chrysanthemums, warning lights, jelly beans.

4. Here is some dialogue to play with.

“What’s in the bag?”
“None of your business.”
“But–”
“But nothing. You’re safer not knowing.”

*********************

“Let me help you.”
“I’m fine thanks.”
“Everyone can use a little help.”
“Ow! That hurts!”

Hope your October is off to a great start!

Filed under: writing