Do or do not...the story behind the stories

cj Sez: I’ve been saying for a long time . . . way too longa time . . . that I’m trying to learn how to write a mystery. In fact, sittingin front of my keyboard staring at my WIP, I said it just the other day. Then Isaw this meme:

  It reminded me that it has always been my habit that if Iwant to learn how to do something and have set an achievable goal, I have done what’snecessary to reach it. In other words, if I really want to do something, I willdo it.

  I once had a wild hair thought and decided I wanted to gowhite water rafting. When I was 50, I took six weeks of swimming lessons andthen
spent 5-1/2 days sleeping on the ground with 12 strangers on an OutwardBound rafting trip on the Yampa River between Colorado and Utah. I had a greatadventure, made some interesting friends, and still don’t know how to swim. (Thatadventure is part and parcel of my novel “Choosing Carter” which I revised/re-edited/self-published as DEATH ON THE YAMPA.)

  When I first wanted to learn how to write, I enrolled in acreative writing class at a local community college. I flew to San Franciscoand spent three days immersed in Robert McKee’s Story screenwriting workshop. Igrabbed a bunch of how-to books. I read mystery novels and read some more of all genres.

  Over time, I discovered I was drawn to the books of RobertB. Parker, Elmore Leonard, John Grisham, James Lee Burke, Robert Ludlum’sBourne series. You know the kind, heavy on the action and adventure with a smattering of sex. When I relocated from Detroit to Mobile, I took a continuingeducation class at the University of South Alabama (“Storming the Walls of thePublishing Industry”), wrote seven paragraphs based on a prompt from theinstructor, and, with a positive response written on the paper, decided I wasready to write. (Those seven paragraphs eventually became “Deadly Star”, which I revised/re-edited/self-publishedas THE DAWGSTAR.)

  Writing in vacuum doesn’t work. I thought my premise waswonderful, the words and structure perfect. I wrote crap. There was no brilliantbeginning, middle, or end. There was only a quasi-beginning, a sagging middle,and an unsatisfying end. And I couldn’t even edit out all the punctuationerrors because I would read right past them.

  So, I joined a writers’ group and a critique group – a coupleof critique groups, in fact, in order to get the kind of varied writer/readerresponses I would get should my novel be on a library shelf. I went toconferences and writer retreats and workshops. My first short story waspublished in an anthology 2008, my first novel in 2013.

  At first, my stories and novels were traditionallypublished, but understanding that the publication world is a fickle place, I tookan intensive class in self-publishing and bought tons of back-up/how-toreference materials. And you know what? It feels very good to know that I preparedmyself for the option because I requested my rights back from Simon and Schusterthen re-edited and renamed the novels and self-published them in 2021. I continue to submit my short stories to publishers.

  The point I’m trying to make is that, whatever it is youwant to do, you have to make your “want to” a real goal in order to succeed. To be achievable, perhaps the goal is a first step. Forme, that means reassessing my want-to. I must own the task. I will either do or do not.

  Reader or writer, today’s lesson: Set a goal and write itdown. You might be surprised at how far you can go.

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  Readers: This fourth installment of the Mobile Writers GuildPIECES anthology series is a perfect complement to the first of the upcomingholidays. .  . 18 pieces of work by 17 authors.

   “Once in a Blue Moon” is a paranormal short story that wasmy first effort in that genre.

  The book is readily available in paperback or ebook—Kindleis $1.99.

§§  Writers: National Novel Writing Month is on the horizon. Getmore info here: https://nanowrimo.org/  

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  Okay, that’s it for today. You-all guys keep on keeping on,and I’ll try to do the same. Raising prayers for a happy and safe you.

cj

Now a note from mysponsors:

  THE DAWGSTAR and DEATH ON THE YAMPA arefast-paced, thriller/suspense stories with sassy banter and a smidgen of sweetromance. (Perfect diversions for a quick weekend getaway.)

  The books are available on Amazon or throughyour favorite eTailer and bookstore. Got a library card? You can read theebooks free from Hoopla.

  Little note: TheHaunted Book Shop has some signed copies of my books in stock. TO ORDER,contact: https://www.thehauntedbookshopmobile.com/contact-us  If she happens to be sold out, I have a smallstash. Angela Trigg, the awesome owner and a RITA Award-winning author in herown right (writing as Angela Quarles) will be happy to ship you any book(s) byany author of your choice.

➜ Follow me on . . .  ➜ Amazon:    AmazonCentral Author Page➜ Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/CjPettersonAuthor➜ BookBub:   https://www.bookbub.com/authors/cj-petterson➜ Goodreads: https://bit.ly/3fcN3h6