Wow, I haven't blogged in over a month. I keep meaning to put up a post then get distracted. Lot happened over the last month. Went to a funeral in Wyoming, worked, spent a lot of time on a writing web site, worked... a lot yet not much going on at the same time. I have a novel at the end of an editing round and others waiting to go. No progress so far on weight loss despite walking more but haven't given up either.
I haven't even posted goals since June, that's unusual. Better get back to work considering some of my goals the past month or so has been to blog more.
August Goals
Finish reading 2 books.
Write short story (10-15k).
Research agents and rewrite query letter.
Edit 2 chapters in SG.
Get car soon.
Also, today is once again the Insecure Writer's Support Group (check it out here). So, the topic of goals actually works because I make goals all the time and part of the time I don't reach them. I made it a goal to finish reading 2 books last month on a different site and I didn't finish reading two. I almost had one finished and instead started another but haven't finished reading the first yet. The issue of not reaching a goal set is something I've seen elsewhere too.
On this writing web site I'm on, there is a forum where we can post on Monday with goals for the week, and we get points for posting goals then and on Friday if we post how we did. Well, one posted this last week goals but also made a comment about how she was tired at failing each week on the goals she set.
Which is understandable. Especially if you post and read so many other people posting and it seems they are almost always reaching their goals. It's hard to then look at yours and go, why didn't I succeed when others have. Sure, we should focus on ourselves and not what someone else did, but it's hard at times.
However, another post replying to the lament over failing made a good point. Maybe we need to reconsider the word "fail". Because there are many levels of not succeeding when it comes to a goal and while it's not a success not all of them are a complete fail. Did you try at all in the goal?
I mean, really, unless you had many opportunities and instead went to bed all the time or decided to watch Jerry Springer or such instead often, then maybe it's not quite a "fail". Like my book reading goals that I often don't reach. Is it a complete fail if I didn't finish two books? No. Why? Because while I didn't finish books I am still reading and that's something. Sometimes we forget about the something.
That's my tip of the day: Don't forget the little somethings when reaching for your goals.
Do you make goals?
What do you think about ones you don't quite succeed on?
August goals anyone?
Showing posts with label insecure writer's support group. Show all posts
Showing posts with label insecure writer's support group. Show all posts
Wednesday, August 7, 2013
Wednesday, July 3, 2013
Late IWSG
Yep. I forgot about Insecure Writer's Support Group. I knew two days ago that I had to do a post then but figured I didn't work today so no big deal. Well here it is, almost midnight my time and I'm late. So yeah, enjoy the little song from Alice in Wonderland.
Speaking of late. I can state "running out of time" as a fear because I have self imposed deadlines and oh so often I procrastinate. I am one of those. I will do things at the last minute almost every time. But it's even hard without a deadline because then I won't get anything done.
Do you worry about being late on deadlines?
Are they self imposed or did someone else make them?
Wednesday, June 5, 2013
Beta Reader Edition of IWSG
Yep, it's that time of the month: Insecure Writer's Support Group bloghop time. Make sure to check out the others over at the blog hop. Blog Hop Link
For those that have followed by other blog, Dawn Embers, I had a post recently where I discussed beta readers. And I'm getting closer to needing a few. I'm finally on chapter 18 of the novel edit with the hopes of finishing the process by the end of the month. It's a challenge because with each chapter edited the novel gets a little longer (or in chapter 17's case, 1000 words longer). After I'm done I will take a break and focus on something else for a few weeks but the trouble is now I'm almost ready for some readers and I don't have any. Not for the huge favor I need to ask.
How does one get a few readers to read an entire book within a month or two and provide overall feedback for a 60,000 word novel? The word count is a guess, might end up a tad long though last draft was 51,000. But that's aside from my general point. It's bringing on a different level of uncertainty because I'm reaching a point I've never been at before. I've been working on this novel since 2007 and while I know it's not going to be perfect and I want to hear the truth, it's nerving wondering what anyone would say to reading it because the story makes perfect sense in my head. But what will a reader say? I don't know.
The novel is essentially about a young teen boy who has a genetic mutation and has to report to a government agency when he sees anyone who might have abilities from a mutation for identification. He starts to question his role of a tattle when one of his few friends turns out to be a mutant too. Then when the new kid in school befriends him, he becomes faced with a bigger struggle. As his life starts to crumble around him and he begins to question his own identity, he has to decide whether he should tattle on a rogue mutant boy hiding from the government or end his role as a tattle tale, risking his own freedom in the process. It's supposed to be YA but borders on MG.
So, I'm nervous about how to find the right beta readers who have the time and with what they will have to say if I find them. And while I know a fair number of writers, it's hard finding the ones for the exact role of beta reader. It's a challenge and I worry if it will affect my submission goal because I want to at least send to 1 person this year because I've never done that with a novel and it's time. Yep, got some insecurities going on in here.
How about you? Insecure this month or have a confidence to share?
Let us know.
For those that have followed by other blog, Dawn Embers, I had a post recently where I discussed beta readers. And I'm getting closer to needing a few. I'm finally on chapter 18 of the novel edit with the hopes of finishing the process by the end of the month. It's a challenge because with each chapter edited the novel gets a little longer (or in chapter 17's case, 1000 words longer). After I'm done I will take a break and focus on something else for a few weeks but the trouble is now I'm almost ready for some readers and I don't have any. Not for the huge favor I need to ask.
How does one get a few readers to read an entire book within a month or two and provide overall feedback for a 60,000 word novel? The word count is a guess, might end up a tad long though last draft was 51,000. But that's aside from my general point. It's bringing on a different level of uncertainty because I'm reaching a point I've never been at before. I've been working on this novel since 2007 and while I know it's not going to be perfect and I want to hear the truth, it's nerving wondering what anyone would say to reading it because the story makes perfect sense in my head. But what will a reader say? I don't know.
The novel is essentially about a young teen boy who has a genetic mutation and has to report to a government agency when he sees anyone who might have abilities from a mutation for identification. He starts to question his role of a tattle when one of his few friends turns out to be a mutant too. Then when the new kid in school befriends him, he becomes faced with a bigger struggle. As his life starts to crumble around him and he begins to question his own identity, he has to decide whether he should tattle on a rogue mutant boy hiding from the government or end his role as a tattle tale, risking his own freedom in the process. It's supposed to be YA but borders on MG.
So, I'm nervous about how to find the right beta readers who have the time and with what they will have to say if I find them. And while I know a fair number of writers, it's hard finding the ones for the exact role of beta reader. It's a challenge and I worry if it will affect my submission goal because I want to at least send to 1 person this year because I've never done that with a novel and it's time. Yep, got some insecurities going on in here.
How about you? Insecure this month or have a confidence to share?
Let us know.
Wednesday, May 1, 2013
IWSG Can't Keep Up
Okay, if you were looking for my post earlier. I forgot. I knew today was the first of the month but I forgot it was also the first Wednesday and thus meant Insecure Writer's Support Group. Though as long as I get it posted in the next 55 minutes it'll still be Wednesday my time. lol I will go and comment on posts tomorrow before work.
Bloghop Link: http://alexjcavanaugh.blogspot.com/p/the-insecure-writers-support-group.html
Can't Keep Up
This is a concern of mine, not just with writing fiction, but with social networking. The struggle through A to Z challenge (using 2 blogs) along with the past year of sluggish blogging and slowed twitter exposure has heightened this concern. I wonder if I can keep up with the needed social networks along with work and my other online interactions, oh and there is that novel writing thing I need to make time for (still editing novel).
I have 3 blogs. This one, Dawn Embers and a book review blog. I need to add someone to the reading blog and search for another to add. I need to post book reviews. I need to remember to blog on Dawn Embers this month. Need to do posts later on this month on this one and not just forget about it. I need to finish editing that pesky little novel and find test readers. I have to work and make money.... So much to do.
Plus I'm not on twitter much anymore. I use it more to communicate with a co-host for a contest I run on WDC and on occasion my sister. I post maybe twice a week what I'm doing. And it will be less if I can't get the new tweetdeck to work.
I'm already getting offers and suggestions on this blog that I don't know how to answer. I need to figure out my ethical boundaries when it comes to who I will promote and what I will accept. I am also going to consider how to monetize the blogging but don't know enough about that in order to make any decisions.
There is so much to do that I wonder if I can keep up with it all.
Do you worry about keeping up with social networking?
Any tips on how you manage?
Bloghop Link: http://alexjcavanaugh.blogspot.com/p/the-insecure-writers-support-group.html
Can't Keep Up
This is a concern of mine, not just with writing fiction, but with social networking. The struggle through A to Z challenge (using 2 blogs) along with the past year of sluggish blogging and slowed twitter exposure has heightened this concern. I wonder if I can keep up with the needed social networks along with work and my other online interactions, oh and there is that novel writing thing I need to make time for (still editing novel).
I have 3 blogs. This one, Dawn Embers and a book review blog. I need to add someone to the reading blog and search for another to add. I need to post book reviews. I need to remember to blog on Dawn Embers this month. Need to do posts later on this month on this one and not just forget about it. I need to finish editing that pesky little novel and find test readers. I have to work and make money.... So much to do.
Plus I'm not on twitter much anymore. I use it more to communicate with a co-host for a contest I run on WDC and on occasion my sister. I post maybe twice a week what I'm doing. And it will be less if I can't get the new tweetdeck to work.
I'm already getting offers and suggestions on this blog that I don't know how to answer. I need to figure out my ethical boundaries when it comes to who I will promote and what I will accept. I am also going to consider how to monetize the blogging but don't know enough about that in order to make any decisions.
There is so much to do that I wonder if I can keep up with it all.
Do you worry about keeping up with social networking?
Any tips on how you manage?
Wednesday, April 3, 2013
C is for Confidence
I remembered at last minute but think this post will work for both A to Z and the Insecure Writer's Support Group blog hop. Since every first Wednesday of the month is IWSG day, I decided to post C related to that aspect and came up with Confidence. Other times I've posted about struggling to finish novels or not getting distracted, and I think I've done something similar as this post but that's okay. It's a good topic.
Check out some of the other blogs with IWSG here: http://alexjcavanaugh.blogspot.com/p/the-insecure-writers-support-group.html
Confidence
Sounds like a topic for insecure writers, doesn't it? We need confidence, or in some cases maybe could go with a little less confidence, but it's a strange concept in general because of that. We need confidence and while a rare few have too much, many writer's tend to lack confidence. Why is that? Why are we such a shy group? That is the stereotype related to writers and I've been to a few conferences. Many writers are shy people and struggle with confidence and communicating. Yet in order to get published we need those very tools.
Quite the little situation we have isn't it?
I sometimes wonder if I have too much confidence in my writing.
Hear me out. I have nothing published yet. I haven't done much sending out at this point so that's understandable. I am rather shy in person (yep, I'm one of them). Yet when I am reading my own writing, while I see there is room for improvement, I don't ever have the "wow I suck. This is terrible. What the heck am I doing?" reactions ever. On occasion I will say to myself, "hmm that won't be going anywhere, oh well, but I like that part." That's it.
So many of my friends struggle to write because they will write something and then thing it's awful and not finish it. They read over the draft they wrote a few months ago and say how bad it is. I know many artists and writers who are their worst critics.
I don't do that. At the other time, I don't feel quite like I have a lot of confidence. I am not sitting here thinking "oh, I'm so awesome that people would be fools not to publish my stuff" so don't worry on that. But it still makes me wonder. Do I need more confidence? (To send work out and such.) Or do I need a little less confidence? (To say the draft is horrible and I suck before coming to terms and finding ways to rewrite and edit.)
I'm not sure.
Do you have enough confidence or too much?
Check out some of the other blogs with IWSG here: http://alexjcavanaugh.blogspot.com/p/the-insecure-writers-support-group.html
Confidence
Sounds like a topic for insecure writers, doesn't it? We need confidence, or in some cases maybe could go with a little less confidence, but it's a strange concept in general because of that. We need confidence and while a rare few have too much, many writer's tend to lack confidence. Why is that? Why are we such a shy group? That is the stereotype related to writers and I've been to a few conferences. Many writers are shy people and struggle with confidence and communicating. Yet in order to get published we need those very tools.
Quite the little situation we have isn't it?
I sometimes wonder if I have too much confidence in my writing.
Hear me out. I have nothing published yet. I haven't done much sending out at this point so that's understandable. I am rather shy in person (yep, I'm one of them). Yet when I am reading my own writing, while I see there is room for improvement, I don't ever have the "wow I suck. This is terrible. What the heck am I doing?" reactions ever. On occasion I will say to myself, "hmm that won't be going anywhere, oh well, but I like that part." That's it.
So many of my friends struggle to write because they will write something and then thing it's awful and not finish it. They read over the draft they wrote a few months ago and say how bad it is. I know many artists and writers who are their worst critics.
I don't do that. At the other time, I don't feel quite like I have a lot of confidence. I am not sitting here thinking "oh, I'm so awesome that people would be fools not to publish my stuff" so don't worry on that. But it still makes me wonder. Do I need more confidence? (To send work out and such.) Or do I need a little less confidence? (To say the draft is horrible and I suck before coming to terms and finding ways to rewrite and edit.)
I'm not sure.
Do you have enough confidence or too much?
Wednesday, February 6, 2013
February Insecure Writering Post
Hello there. For anyone that does find this post, you might come upon a slight surprise if you have visited my blog before. Yes, my blog is in the middle of a revamp and I have done something big. I have changed the name and the link for the blog. It's In The Book DE blog is no longer.
Welcome to Fiction & Fitness
I will do a more official post explaining the change, but today is the day for Insecure Writer's Support Group and that is what my post is about. I have all kinds of insecurities when it comes to writing and health, so time to put one up for the month.
Normally I do link the whole set of people taking part in the post but that takes up a lot of space. So, instead here is the link to the page that has the listing of blogs taking part in this. Go check them out too.
Link: Insecure Writer's Support Group
Now to my actual topic. Last month I was insecure about not finishing anything. My progress editing is still slow but I am making progress. So, now for something else. I'm going to revisit a topic I have blogged about before but not sure if it was with IWSG.
SNI Syndrome - aka Shiny New Idea Syndrome
Now this doesn't sound like an issue for insecurity minus the adding of the word syndrome to the cute title, but for me, it's a big issue that I struggle to overcome all the time. I have way too many ideas and they all sound so nice and great. (Okay this is similar to the I can't finish anything post after all.) And even now, I have a new novella that I'm attempting to slowly write even though I have 4 finished first drafts, 2 novels I'm editing and like 5 novels I need to finish first drafts on. Why is the shy new idea so hard to pass by without writing a little bit of it?
I am easily distracted, if you didn't notice already, and so it's a struggle to focus on anything for a long period of time, or to focus on just one story in general. I can barely focus on one novel during November and manage more because I'm doing intense word counts (last year being the craziest so far). But most of the year I hop for novel to novel and work on them in spurts while adding mini scenes and stories written on the sidelines.
What makes me put this with the insecure post is the connection in part to the struggle to finish but it's really a question of whether it's just my method or if it's a hindering factor in my journey. Does getting distracted often hurt my goal? Or am I just a distracted writer who will work on 20 projects and take longer to finish them? I'm not sure yet.
Do you get easily distracted?
SNI or just a great way to get several things done at a slower pace?
Welcome to Fiction & Fitness
I will do a more official post explaining the change, but today is the day for Insecure Writer's Support Group and that is what my post is about. I have all kinds of insecurities when it comes to writing and health, so time to put one up for the month.
Normally I do link the whole set of people taking part in the post but that takes up a lot of space. So, instead here is the link to the page that has the listing of blogs taking part in this. Go check them out too.
Link: Insecure Writer's Support Group
Now to my actual topic. Last month I was insecure about not finishing anything. My progress editing is still slow but I am making progress. So, now for something else. I'm going to revisit a topic I have blogged about before but not sure if it was with IWSG.
SNI Syndrome - aka Shiny New Idea Syndrome
Now this doesn't sound like an issue for insecurity minus the adding of the word syndrome to the cute title, but for me, it's a big issue that I struggle to overcome all the time. I have way too many ideas and they all sound so nice and great. (Okay this is similar to the I can't finish anything post after all.) And even now, I have a new novella that I'm attempting to slowly write even though I have 4 finished first drafts, 2 novels I'm editing and like 5 novels I need to finish first drafts on. Why is the shy new idea so hard to pass by without writing a little bit of it?
I am easily distracted, if you didn't notice already, and so it's a struggle to focus on anything for a long period of time, or to focus on just one story in general. I can barely focus on one novel during November and manage more because I'm doing intense word counts (last year being the craziest so far). But most of the year I hop for novel to novel and work on them in spurts while adding mini scenes and stories written on the sidelines.
What makes me put this with the insecure post is the connection in part to the struggle to finish but it's really a question of whether it's just my method or if it's a hindering factor in my journey. Does getting distracted often hurt my goal? Or am I just a distracted writer who will work on 20 projects and take longer to finish them? I'm not sure yet.
Do you get easily distracted?
SNI or just a great way to get several things done at a slower pace?
Wednesday, January 2, 2013
IWSG Finish Worry
It's a new year and while there are many going with resolutions and goals (I did my goal post this morning) it's also a good time for an Insecure Writers Support Group post.
Right now in my writing I'm at the editing phase, or at least the trying to edit around work and slacking off phase. And I'm back to a familiar insecurity: can I ever finish?
This is an insecurity that was first faced with just finishing a novel first draft. 2 years of attempts at NaNoWriMo and only getting up to 14,000 words on a single story certainly made me wonder/doubt back then if I could actually finish a single novel. Never imagined I could write a whole novel, let alone doing it in a month. But oh have I changed on that front. Now I just wrote 165k in November and have 4 finished first drafts with 5+ in the middle of with promise of finish. But a finished first draft isn't the end of the process.
Will I ever finish editing? Will I ever get something ready to submit?
I don't know yet because I haven't done it before but like NaNo, I'm going to keep trying until it happens.
Do you worry about this?
Right now in my writing I'm at the editing phase, or at least the trying to edit around work and slacking off phase. And I'm back to a familiar insecurity: can I ever finish?
This is an insecurity that was first faced with just finishing a novel first draft. 2 years of attempts at NaNoWriMo and only getting up to 14,000 words on a single story certainly made me wonder/doubt back then if I could actually finish a single novel. Never imagined I could write a whole novel, let alone doing it in a month. But oh have I changed on that front. Now I just wrote 165k in November and have 4 finished first drafts with 5+ in the middle of with promise of finish. But a finished first draft isn't the end of the process.
Will I ever finish editing? Will I ever get something ready to submit?
I don't know yet because I haven't done it before but like NaNo, I'm going to keep trying until it happens.
Do you worry about this?
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
IWSG post on Finishing and NaNoWriMo
It's that time again, Insecure Writer's Support Group is up and ready to talk today. The topic I've chosen is the "can I ever finish anything" insecurity that I often have since I write so many novels at one time and have nothing ready to submit after 5+ years of writing. I chose this topic because even though I did basically the same topic, there is a special portion this month because NaNoWriMo is just around the corner and is one where I've both succeeded and failed in finishing novels.
Last time I focused on finishing in order to send out, but let's pull back the reigns a little bit. Writing anything above 50,000 words can be difficult to finish and I'm so easily distracted. When I first started writing the goal for NaNoWriMo of writing 50,000 words in one month seemed daunting and in less than 15 days down right impossible. Back in 2006 I had only written poetry and a few attempts at short stories, nothing much past 1,000 words. So, the task of finishing a full length novel was hard to figure out and it showed in my few thousand total the first year. I haven't finished that story either. But what I've learned from the failed years at NaNoWriMo is simply to keep writing.
Because my third year I not only wrote 50,000 words in 30 days but I also finished the novel a couple of weeks later. I had my first finished first draft ever back in 2008 and it was awesome. I haven't edited it yet but I still love the story. And it proved to me I could finish a draft.
Then I wrote 67,000 words in March of 2010, proving to myself that with the right characters and story, I could do even more words. That novel even is finished and waiting to be edits with the highest word count I've finished in one story to this date (90,000). Woot! Sure, in 2009 I wrote basically nothing but it's okay.
Last year I managed to write 50,000+ words in 13 days. Sure, I haven't finished the novel yet but it's one that I'm writing just for me. Being an epic fantasy novel, I've still got another 50k to go and I plan to but being stalled is okay with me.
And here we are again. NaNoWriMo 2011 starts in less than a month and I will admit, the doubt is still here. Yes, after 67k in one month and 50k in 13 days, I still doubt that I'll finish. That doubt surfaces every year. I wonder if I will make the 50k goal and I wonder if I will finish the story either during the month (which I have never done before) or at least some time after.
Do you have any insecurities with finishing and NaNoWriMo?
Check out the other IWSG members:
Last time I focused on finishing in order to send out, but let's pull back the reigns a little bit. Writing anything above 50,000 words can be difficult to finish and I'm so easily distracted. When I first started writing the goal for NaNoWriMo of writing 50,000 words in one month seemed daunting and in less than 15 days down right impossible. Back in 2006 I had only written poetry and a few attempts at short stories, nothing much past 1,000 words. So, the task of finishing a full length novel was hard to figure out and it showed in my few thousand total the first year. I haven't finished that story either. But what I've learned from the failed years at NaNoWriMo is simply to keep writing.
Because my third year I not only wrote 50,000 words in 30 days but I also finished the novel a couple of weeks later. I had my first finished first draft ever back in 2008 and it was awesome. I haven't edited it yet but I still love the story. And it proved to me I could finish a draft.
Then I wrote 67,000 words in March of 2010, proving to myself that with the right characters and story, I could do even more words. That novel even is finished and waiting to be edits with the highest word count I've finished in one story to this date (90,000). Woot! Sure, in 2009 I wrote basically nothing but it's okay.
Last year I managed to write 50,000+ words in 13 days. Sure, I haven't finished the novel yet but it's one that I'm writing just for me. Being an epic fantasy novel, I've still got another 50k to go and I plan to but being stalled is okay with me.
And here we are again. NaNoWriMo 2011 starts in less than a month and I will admit, the doubt is still here. Yes, after 67k in one month and 50k in 13 days, I still doubt that I'll finish. That doubt surfaces every year. I wonder if I will make the 50k goal and I wonder if I will finish the story either during the month (which I have never done before) or at least some time after.
Do you have any insecurities with finishing and NaNoWriMo?
Check out the other IWSG members:
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Fun
I write like
Arthur Conan Doyle
Arthur Conan Doyle
I Write Like by Mémoires, Mac journal software. Analyze your writing!