Lori L. Robinett's Blog, page 12

Blank to 50K: Why write your novel in 30 days?

If you’ve always wanted to write a novel, but can’t seem to get it done . . . National Novel Writing Month may be for you. But there is a caveat to that. You don’t HAVE to sign up for NaNoWriMo. You don’t HAVE to do it in November. The things that make NaNo work for so many people can be tweaked for your personal situation to help you reach your goals.

Quantity over Quality

Don’t get hung up on this point. The idea is to take one month to get your first draft finished. Your goal is to have a beginning, a middle and an end. If you get too focused on crafting perfect sentences, you’ll never reach those two magical words: The End.

Write Wherever

NaNo teaches you to write wherever you’d like: at your desk, at a write-in, or in short little bursts wherever you happen to be. I’ve been known to work through lunch at work . . . but take 15 minutes to send myself an email with a few hundred words for my work in progress.

Support

If you sign up for NaNo, you’ll have overwhelming support from the entire NaNo community – from the Office of Letters and Light, your Municipal Liaison, and your Region. If you don’t sign up for NaNo, you still need to elicit support from friends and family, as well as the writing community. Find a writing group or at least a critique partner.

Take the Time

The biggest hurdle writers face is finding the time to write. Give yourself a deadline, tell others you are writing a novel . . . then DO IT.

If I Can Do It, You Can Do It

Both of my novels were drafting during National Novel Writing Month. Check them out and see what is possible, and support a fellow writer at the same time:

Denim & Diamonds

Blank to 50K: Why you should let me help you write your novel

In the past few weeks, I’ve talked about the fact that everyone wants to write a book, asked why you want to write a novel, and advised you to write what you read. But I missed an important step . . .

Why should you listen to me?

I’ve done it, plain and simple. I have participated in National Novel Writing Month eight times and finished every single time as a winner.

My 8th National Novel Writing Month WIN!!

Even better than that – I self-published my first draft through Lulu and sold twice as many copies as most self-pubbed authors do. Then I took that (very) rough draft, rewrote and polished it, submitted it . . . and I happily signed my first publishing contract with CaryPress. It was released in 2014.

I’ve been published in Well Versed, “The Storyteller,” “The Heritage Writer,” “Writing for Dollars!”, and “Secrets & Strategies.”

I led my National Novel Writing Month region to Top Ten status (number of words / writer) every year I served as Municipal Liaison. I helped others finish the first draft of their novel in 30 days or less . . . and I can help you do the same thing.

Rev your engine up. Let’s go.

Are you ready?

Blank to 50K: Write What You Read

Obviously, you want to write a novel. And you know WHY you want to write a novel. Now the question is: What do you want to write?

Well, what are you reading? And don’t EVEN tell me you aren’t reading anything because, let’s face it, you can’t be a writer if you aren’t a reader. I tend to be a bit of a book slut. Right now I’m reading a thriller (An Unlikely Hero by Tierney James), just finished a rom-com (Frisky Business by Tawna Fenske) and before that, I read horror (Dr. Sleep by Stephen King). But there are still commonalities in what I read, and I tend to go to a particular section of the library and the bookstore every time I go in – the mystery section.

So, think about your habits. What section first draws your attention?

What about the characters that appeal to you? Do you like strong female protagonists? What about those characters we love to hate? Sometimes I find myself rooting for the bad guy, like in the movies Gone in 60 Seconds and Ocean’s Eleven.

In essence, write the story you would want to sit down and read. Write the words that would draw you in and keep you reading into the wee hours of the darkest night.

If the idea of getting a second chance appeals to you, pop over and check out one of my books.

Denim & Diamonds by Lori Robinett

 

Blank to 50K: Why do you want to write a novel?

In all seriousness, think about this question and it will help you find your way. There are all sorts of reasons – and you have to identify them in order to make your dreams of writing a reality.

Move past WANTING to write a novel.

Let’s discuss why you want to write.

WHY do YOU want to write a novel?

To entertain people?
To inform people?
To get rich?
To get famous?
To get the voices in your head to shut up?

Take twenty minutes and free write your answer. Bonus points if you do it in longhand with an elegant fountain pen in a worn leather journal. Then let me know in the comments what you discovered.

Have you signed up for my mailing list yet? If not, pop over to the box and enter your email. I don’t send many newsletters, but I offer freebies a few times throughout the year.

 

 

Blank to 50K: Everyone wants to write a book (#MondayMotivation)

Everyone wants to write a novel.

OK, not everyone, but about 80% of the U.S. population, according to a survey (by the Jenkins Group). So, it’s a dream for 8 out of 10 people. Lots of people have dreams, though, and very few make that dream a reality. Like, I dream of winning the lottery. I really need to start playing the game if I want to make that dream a reality.

A VERY small percentage of the population actually writes a book.

With the advent of Createspace, Lulu and other business models, the dream of seeing your book in print is greater now than ever, yet it is still a DREAM for most people. Forcing yourself to sit down, write words in a coherent manner, with a well-paced plot and compelling characters is only the first step. Very few people make the jump from wanting to write a book to putting words on the page.

Even after you write the book, there’s still editing, rewriting, proofing, querying, market research, and . . . well, the list is nearly never ending.

Writing takes dedication, perseverance and a bit of insanity.

Seriously.

Dedication? I spent nearly all of last summer holed up in the house with my laptop making changes to a manuscript requested by editors (my publishing house had several editorial changes, so I made changes for each editor). Yup, that’s dedication for me. I’d much rather have been floating in the pool drinking a cold one and reading the latest Tawna Fenske book.

Perseverance? Yeah, all those changes I made for that manuscript? I jumped through all kinds of hoops for that publisher. I polished, edited, rewrote . . . it was a long, grueling process. Finally, my editor emailed with a positive email, saying she loved the changes I made but the manuscript had to go through a series screener (because the manuscript was submitted for an ongoing series) and that I would hear back in a couple of weeks. The following day I received a brief form email. Rejected.

Cue the sad trombone .

Which left me dejected.

That’s where perseverance comes in. I polished that manuscript more, removed all references to the series it was written for, and published the book.

Insanity? Yeah, that applies to me, too. Characters chatter in my head all the time, sometimes at rather inopportune times. When I’m deep in writing mode, everything else falls to the wayside. Laundry? If it passes the sniff test, I’m good to go. Hygiene? Yeah, I’ve been known to wear the same t-shirt through the entire first draft process. It can stand up on its own by the end of the month, but by golly, I’m not going to mess with my groove once the words start flowing.

On a personal note, I’m focusing on getting fit and have been doing the Couch to 5K program. As I run, I realize that it’s a very similar process to learning to write. Going from Couch to 5K is like going from Blank to 50K. 50K is what it takes to win National Novel Writing Month. If you can write a first draft of 50K words, that’s a darned good start. It gives you the bones of a story that you can edit, rewrite and polish.

So, that’s what I shoot for every time I sit down to start a new novel.

50K.

50,000 words.

I’ve done it. So can you.

If you want to make your dream a reality, join my list and we’ll make it happen together.

Here’s proof – this is the book I mentioned above (you can buy it in paperback or Kindle):

#StarTrek Convention: #ChaseMasterson

We are home from the Star Trek convention in Chicago. This was our first time going for the full convention, and it was an absolute blast. We made a mini-vacation of it. Ate well, stayed at nice restaurants, did a little gambling, but the highlight of the trip was definitely the convention.

The first actor we heard was Chase Masterson. For those of you who are Star Trek fans, she played Leeta on Deep Space Nine. Most recently, she played a small part in The Flash. What impresses me the most about her is what she is doing with her bit of celebrity – she has formed an organization about bullying: The Pop Culture Anti-Bullying Coalition. An attendee of the convention was a young woman who is an investment banker, obviously being targeted and harassed at her job. After she spoke, I saw Chase catch her and talk to her. Totally off the record, not in the spotlight.

Have you ever gone to anything like a Star Trek convention? Tell us about it in the comments!

By the way – if you’re in central Missouri, make sure you stop by Village Books in Columbia, Missouri this coming Saturday between noon and 2 for my book signing. There will be prizes!

Returning to the Diamond J

As some of you know, I’ve been working on the 2nd novel in the Diamond J series. The working title is Diamond in the Rough. Though it still needs a lot of revision, it is coming together quite well.

The story takes place in the Diamond J world, shortly after Denim & Diamonds occurs. The male lead is Aidan, who was a ranch hand in the first book. The female lead is Gina, who makes a brief appearance in the first book as owner of the local scrapbook store. Want a peek into what I think the Diamond J world looks like? Pop over to Pinterest and look at my Rough board.

And I’m happy to announce that CaryPress has indicated that they are interested in publishing it.

So . . . help me celebrate this little accomplishment this evening.

Book Launch at Village Books

Just a quick reminder – my book signing for Fatal Impulse will be Saturday, June 20 at Village Books in Columbia, Missouri.

There will be prizes. Which leads me to a question – what kinds of prizes do you like?

Chocolate
Tote bag
Pen
Coffee mug
Travel mug
Poster
Other?

Please comment below. I’ll pick a commenter before the book signing to win a prize.

P.S. If you have read Denim & Diamonds, I’d be thrilled if you’d pop over to Amazon and leave a review if you haven’t already.

Family #LifeIsShort

Things can change in the blink of an eye. My sister-in-law and I aren’t close. We don’t call each other often, nor do we know each other’s deepest, darkest secrets. But when my step-daughter called Friday morning to tell me her Aunt Teresa was in the hospital, I couldn’t get there fast enough.

As I waited for Teresa to get out of surgery, wondering if I’d ever get to talk to her again, I reflected on the 20+ years I’ve known her. My favorite memories: dancing & singing along with the band at Little Bit of Texas, eating at Alexander’s Steakhouse (cook your own!), the time we tried to cut up a chicken (what is that? I don’t recognize that at all!), and comparing notes on crafty things we wanted to try (she was one of the few people I trusted with my Cricut cartridges). She was the first person I showed my engagement ring/wedding ring to when her husband proposed.

When they moved her to ICU, I was glad I could sit by her side and offer a tiny bit of comfort at that moment. I was glad I could help her by pushing that call button when she was unable to.

We may have grown apart over the years . . . but don’t we all? I’m sad to say that I talk to very few friends on a regular basis.

But I’m happy to report that I got to hear Teresa’s voice again last night. She’s making progress and doing better than expected. (yea!!!)

Sadly, hers is not the only crisis going on right now. A very good friend of mine is fighting cancer, also at a young age. I hope I am there for her when she needs me. And I hope I am able to make many more memories with both of them.

And that leads me to this post.

Life is precious.

Life is short.

Do not take it for granted.

Take time to call those people who are important to you.

Most of all . . . put that phone down and pay attention to the world around you.

Balancing a Blended Family #HappyMothersDay

My daughters and me at Jodi’s (first) college graduation

Happy Mother’s Day to all the moms and stepmoms out there. I want to send a special shout out to those of you who wear both hats. When my husband asked me to marry him, I knew that it was about so much more than a marriage. It was about becoming a blended family. Take a broken family, add me, and ta-da! Instant family. To make things more complicated, we got pregnant right away. In the beginning, I imagined a storybook situation, where I would be room mother, taking treats to every elementary school party. I imagined that our house would be the cool house, where the kids would have friends over for sleepovers and I’d provide lots of snacks and a sundae bar.

In reality, I struggled to juggle it all.

My pregnancy went south and my daughter was born at 28 weeks, had several surgeries and spent months in the hospital. In my imaginary world of being a stepmother, I overlooked the fact that my stepdaughter had a mother. I didn’t think about the fact that holidays would be fraught with stress. My daughter needed physical therapy, occupational therapy, and lots of doctors’ appointments. Life was not as I imagined it, in any way, shape or form.

But we survived. And this Mother’s Day reinforced the fact that I did the best I could, and that I did something right (though Lord knows I did a LOT wrong). My stepdaughter called first thing this morning and wished me a happy Mother’s Day. She came by and we went to brunch. This afternoon, my daughter called and wished me a happy Mother’s Day, then came by to see us after work. I am so proud of both of them. What I wanted for them was to be happy, healthy, independent women. And they are.

So, if you are about to embark on the wild roller coaster ride of motherhood, I have a few tips for you:

Sometimes you’ll have to work when you really want to take cupcakes to the school party. Don’t beat yourself up. Not everyone can do that, and the kids won’t remember in 20 years which mom made cupcakes.
If you don’t have time to make real treats to take to the school party, it’s no big deal. Buy chips or cookies.
When your kids want to have friends over to spend the night, don’t say no because your house is a mess. Big friggin’ deal. Get over it and let them have friends over.
Don’t worry about your kids keeping up with everyone else’s kids when it comes to clothes, cell phones and activities. Focus on YOUR kids, what they want and what you can afford.
Don’t get a TV for the kids’ rooms. Even if you’re all sitting together in the living room watching TV, you’re doing it together, creating shared memories.
Make memories. It’s not about how much you spend, it’s about the time you spend together. Color Easter eggs. Visit Santa Claus. Go to parades. Make green spaghetti for St. Patrick’s Day. Go fishing.