Writers Need This Trait

Our quote today is by Octavia Butler, who is a science-fiction writer. She didn't sugarcoat her thoughts in this one. The reason I like the quote is that she highlights one of my two keywords for writers--persistence. 

When we start writing, our work doesn't look professional yet. It isn't usually an example of strong writing, poetic prose, or scintillating sentences. We shouldn't expect it to be any of those things when we begin our writing journey. 

If we're persistent and keep writing week after week, day after day, we can become a better, stronger writer. If a newbie writer writes something every other month, or even once a month, it's not enough. Cliche that it may be, the saying "Practice makes perfect" can be applied here. 

A sculptor starts out making simple pieces of art, and he/she learns along the way. With each new sculpture, the artist improves and most likely learns something, too. A carpenter who is just starting out cannot be classified as a master carpenter, but after years as an apprentice and then on his own, he perfects his trade. If you've ever read any of Julia Child's books about the art of cooking, especially French cuisine, you'll know that she was not a born chef. She learned from her many mistakes, but the most important thing was that she persisted. She was a very determined woman. 

Determined is what writers should also be. Persistence is what helps you continue with determination. Most poets don't write prize-winning poems with their first or second try. They pen scores of poems before they reach success in winning a prize or achieving publication. 

Persistence in writing means writing something every day. You needn't write an entire story daily, but do write a few paragraphs, a journal entry, or a writing exercise. Write a letter to a friend! But write each and every day. 

Persistence means not giving up when a writing project doesn't go well, or when rejections arrive. Keep going, keep learning.

Persistence means reading about the craft of writing. It means attending workshops and conferences to continue learning.

By now, you may have remembered, or guessed, my other keyword for writers. Patience. That persistence which I recommend takes patience. They go hand in hand, and each one can benefit new writers, intermediate writers, or the highly successful ones. 

Octavia Butler knew what she was talking about!

 

A Tip on Writing Personal Essays

Personal essays relate some kind of experience you had, but they also show a lesson you learned, or exemplify a universal truth of some kind. Like 'Crime doesn't pay' or 'Money doesn't grow on trees'. 

Today's poster says: Forget what hurt you in the past. But never forget what it taught you.

That's pretty simple advice, and they are worthy words for personal essay writers. 

Not all personal essays portray something that hurt you. Many show other experiences, perhaps something exciting that occurred when you were traveling. Or, an experience you had at a new job, or something that took place in a classroom. There are so many types of situations about which you can write a personal essay.

What the experience was is secondary to what you may have learned. Your aim in writing the personal essay is to share that lesson or universal truth with others. Some readers will be shaking their head in agreement while others will be surprised at what you learned. But, most likely, they will remember it long after reading your essay. 

If all you do is write about an experience you had but add nothing about what you learned, you're less likely to get the piece published. An editor will read it and ask him/herself 'what is the lesson here?'. Without that, you're basically reporting something that happened to you. Even if it's entertaining, editors are looking for more. 

Before you ever start the first draft of a personal essay, know where you going as far as what you learned or some universal truth your experience illustrates. You don't necessarily have to spell it out in words, although that's fine and often done, but it must at least be inferred. The reader must have something to take away.

Pick up a book of personal essays at your library or a bookstore. Read through ane ask yourself what you learned from each one. Reading many personal essays will help you write your own. 

 

Determination and a Tough Hide for Writers

 

This is a repeat post, but one I think worth a second look.

Mr. Turtle in today's photo has some determination, something all writers should own, as well. They should also master developing a tough hide like his. Two good qualifications among others that would benefit writers. Let's look at each one.

Wishy-washy writer or one that is determined? Which one do you think will be more successful? Which one are you? Or are you a writer who bounces back and forth between the two? A lot of writers fall into this latter category.

If you try a new writing project and give up when it doesn't mesh together nicely, you're not going to move very far on your writing journey. You'll start myriad new writing projects and probably finish very few of them. 

I thought about my daughter when she was a toddler learning to dress herself. I'd let her try for just so long and then try to help. She'd immediately say "No!" Then, she'd try again (and again) until she was successful. Determination was an inborn trait with her. She ended up using that trait all through her growing up years and into her career. 

Not everyone is fortunate enough to be born with the trait of determination. Some have to work at it and develop the trait over many years. It's worth working to achieve that status if you want to be a successful writer. Giving up is easy. Pushing on and continuing isn't. A lot depends on how much you want your writing world to be fruitful. 

If your newest writing projects are filled with bumps and potholes, it's discouraging. We can all admit that. The important part is how you handle it. Do you dump the whole project with the first couple of bumps, or do you put it away for a short while, give it some thought, and then work on it again? I hope it is the latter choice for you. 

I've used an example many times about the story of The Little Engine That Could. We all know the story of that train engine who kept repeating "I think I can! I think I can!" until he was able to pull the big engine. I think I can might be a good mantra to use when things aren't going well. 

Like the turtle, writers also need to have a tough hide. They need to learn to let the rejections bounce off that hide, rather than pierce straight through to the heart. Learning to accept both criticism from other writers or readers or editors, along with full rejections from publishers, is not easy. The first thing we should do is to remember that the criticism is not a personal attack against YOU. Sadly, many writers take it that way. The criticism, or rejection, is about what you have written. Let's face it. Not every story, article, poem, or essay is going to be a masterpiece. Especially not with the first, or even second draft. There will be some fine parts and other areas that need work. 

When someone gives you the exact spots that bothered them, feel happy that you know where you have to do some revision. It's so much better than an overall criticism where you don't even know where to begin to revise. If you put your writing up for critique in a group, you'll benefit a great deal. When more than one person picks out the same area that needs work, believe it. Then do something about it. A simple rejection from an editor will not always be sent with a reason. I appreciate the ones that do give me an inkling of why the piece didn't work for them. 

Work on not taking criticism personally. Think of it as something to help you improve on your craft and become better at it. 

Make an attempt to develop Mr. Turtle's Try and Stop Me attitude. You'll accelerate your writing journey that way.

A Thought for Writers

Today's quote is one that writers might copy and refer to every now and then. "To write means more than putting pretty words on a page; the act of writing is to share a part of your soul with the world." That line is worth a second reading. 

Poets might be in full agreement with the quote, but it works for all kinds of writing. Whether you write fiction, creative nonfiction, essays, children's stories, or more, your aim should be that part about sharing a part of your soul with the world. 

The writer who does that will more than likely be the successful writer, one who has a long list of published works. We need to pull from within to share the real us with our readers. 

Writing without soul, or emotion, generally ends up being rather stiff, probably boring. I started a book on my Kindle Reader the other day. I read three pages before I deleted the entire book. I could tell there was no emotion, no soul in the writing and that the writer must have been new to the writing world. She broke several rules in those first three pages, which made me decide I would not read any farther. 

When we write for others to read, we're sharing a part of ourselves. We're offering a small piece of our soul in what we've written for others. If we do so with little to no emotion, the reader will drop the piece in a hurry. 

When you write for others, your aim is to share something of yourself with them. For the reader to feel something, the writer must feel something as she/he writes. 

Give some thought today to how you write. Do you give something of yourself to the reader? If not, why not? 
 

Writers at the Corner of Hope and Despair

 Have you ever found yourself at the crossroads of Hope and Despair? Maybe it's a corner in your hometown. Or perhaps it's farther down the road. It's possible that many writers find themself here. Which way should they travel? 

Robert Frost's famed poem, The Road Not Taken, ends with these lines: 

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—

I took the one less traveled by,

And that has made all the difference.

What if you, the writer, happened upon these two roads--Hope and Despair--and had to make a choice? What if you were depressed over the lack of success in your writing world? Which road would you take? 

If your writing world was filled with many rough spots in the road, it's very likely you'd choose Despair and continue on the same rugged path, the one that offered few rewards. It's probably the easiest one to take because you're quite familiar with it. 

But wait! Why not steer your weary feet to the road called Hope? You could just as easily choose it as that miserable one called Despair. The road called Hope is smooth, and it's well-lit. There's something good at the end of this one. The Hope you carry with you helps you traverse this road with a smile on your face.

Does this all sound too fanciful? Maybe, but the fact is that Hope brings us much more than Despair does. Hope means we're going to keep trying, to keep learning our craft, to keep submitting. Hope means we're going to write with confidence. Despair only pulls us down to the probability of failing. 

Once again, you're the one in charge. You make the decision which direction to point your feet. Others can try to encourage you, but you are the one to choose which road in your writing life to traverse. 

For me, Hope is the only road I will consider. I already know what Despair is like, but Hope calls me loud and clear. How about joining me on the road called Hope? 

Write With Emotion

 

Emotion is part of our make-up as a living human being. We experience different emotions throughout our daily lives. Writers must make use of emotions to bring their stories, poems, and essays to life. 

Robert Frost said, "No tears in the writer, no tears in the reader. No surprises in the writer, no surprises in the reader." 

If you're a writer who writes without emotion, it will show in your finished product. If there is little to no emotion in your writing, it ends up appearing like a speaker who speaks in a complete monotone. 

We once took a city tour on a bus in Prague. They advertised that the tour would be given in several languages. It turned out the guide could not actually speak those several languages. Instead, he had memorized the complete tour in English, Japanese and a couple other languages. Because he did not actually know the language, there was no inflection on words, no emotion in his voice. It came over as a total monotone. Yes, we learned something about Prague, but it became almost laughable. It was a perfect example for me about the importance of emotion in speaking and writing. 

Writers need emotion in what they write to connect with their readers. The writer must feel something in order to make the reader feel it, too. One of the best ways to do that is to show, not tell. If you write, 'Greta cried.' I know what she did, but I don't feel much for her. If you write, 'The lump in Greta's throat gave way to tears and great sobs. She wiped her cheeks but could not stem the flow.'  Maybe then I will think Oh, the poor girl.   

At certain times, we've been taught to keep our emotions in check, whether by parents or teachers. As a writer, you can let the emotions flow without worrying about what someone will think. If I write a scene about a pioneer woman encountering a rattlesnake in her garden as she is picking beans, I need to use emotion. Saying 'Ellen saw a rattlesnake at the end of the row of beans.' alerts the reader, but there is no emotion. Write something like 'When she spotted the rattlesnake at the end of the row of beans, Ellen stopped, started to shake. She could not pick up her feet, only stared and prayed the viper would not move closer. Finally, she turned and ran to the barn to find Jesse, a scream trapped in her throat.' 

Showing how the character felt and reacted reaches out to the reader with emotion, invoking emotion in them in return. 

Even when writing an essay, let your feelings come through. Do it when writing poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction. About the only thing I can think of where you might not use it is in a technical article. Even then, a few technical writers might conclude with their own feelings about the topic. Not always but a possibility. 

Don't keep those emotions trapped inside. Use them in your writing, and you'll be a better writer.                                       

From First Draft to Publication

 I like the direction given in today's poster. It's so appropriate for writers. We start a thought process, get an idea, then try to write that first draft. This first writing is nothing more than taking the idea and enlarging upon it. We get our main thoughts down, but it's far from finished.

Instead, we redo that first effort, then do it yet another time, and maybe even one more. Each time you rewrite your original draft, you'll bring it to life by adding sensory details, description, and emotion.

Sounds easy, doesn't it? Any good writer will know that there is no easy way to enlarge upon that first draft. In that one, we are merely creating the bones of our story or essay. It's in those 'do and do again, and again' moments that we create a piece of writing that might be publishable. 

When you want to continue working on a first draft, do you start revising and adding to it immediately? If you do, you're shortchanging yourself. Let that first draft sit for a few days or even longer. Then, read it and you'll see more places where you want to add or take away than if you attempted it immediately after writing that first draft. Good writing should not be rushed.

When you've written two or three drafts, let it sit for a few days, then read it, but read aloud. Sound silly? Maybe, but you will be amazed at the little things you'll catch when you hear the words you've written. 

Sensory details bring your writing to life as description does, too. Emotion? Yep, putting emotion into your writing will bring emotion to your reader.  

Writing is hard work. Rare is the writer who has an idea, writes the story or essay once and can call it ready to submit for publication. For most of us, it takes a lot of time and redoing before we can say our work is ready for submission. The more effort we put into our writing, the more likely we will have some success. 

If you have a story or essay published, only you can read it in the publication and know exactly what it took to write a publishable piece. From first draft to publication can be a long road, but worth every step you take.