Friday, July 25, 2025

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? 


Thursday, July 17, 2025

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.                                       







Sunday, July 13, 2025

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.

Wednesday, July 9, 2025

Discipline and Determination for Writers



 The quote today is by Pearl Buck, a prolific writer of many years ago. The daughter of missionaries, she grew up in China, and the majority of her books are set in that country. She won many prizes and awards in the literary world. One of her best-known books was 'The Good Earth' which was made into a movie.

Her quote, "I don't wait for moods. You accomplish nothing if you do that. Your mind must know it has got to get down to work." is some no-nonsense advice to other writers. In the movies, writers are sometimes portrayed looking and waiting for inspiration to hit so they can write the Great American Novel. In real life, it is a bit different. We don't have days, months, and years to sit idly waiting for inspiration. Another famous writer, Jack London said, "You can't wait for inspiration. You must go after it with a club."

What the quote comes down to is that writers must be disciplined enough to work steadily on a regular basis. What if you're having trouble with a chapter or an essay? Put it away and start on something new. The advice given to us to write every day is right on. You don't need to work on the same project day in and day out. It's good to take a break now and then. Find something else to work on, either a new piece or work on revising an old one. 

If you can manage to carve out a certain time of the day that is writing time, discipline yourself to stay with it and make it a habit. I know that is not always easy to do. Those writers who make a full living writing can probably do it. Those who write only part-time or as a hobbyist writer have to fit it in around another job or household needs. Even then, it is wise to set aside a portion of your day for writing.

Determination goes hand-in-hand with discipline. The desire to write must be strong to be successful. If you have a namby-pamby attitude about writing, your results will show the same. It's beneficial to acquire the outlook that you are going to write and submit and get published. 

Discipline and determination are two qualities writers should have. How about you? Where do you fall in developing these two helps for writers?



Saturday, July 5, 2025

Google Your Writing Name

 


A fellow writer mentioned googling his name on a Facebook post today, and it made me think of times I have done the same with some interesting results.

What about you? Have you ever googled your name? Your writing name? Many writers use a variation of their given name to use as the one they use on their writing. I added my maiden name because I discovered there was a mystery writer by the name of Nancy Kopp. I definitely do not write mysteries and would not want to be confused with her, nor would she like to be mixed-up with me, I'm sure.

Back to googling your writing name. This is a great exercise. It can do a few things for you.

A. It can boost your ego a bit when you see what of your published works pop up. Not everything will, of course, but a good many. Most likely, the things that pop up will be of recent times, not something you published ten years ago.

B. It will allow you to learn if any of your writing has been used by others without your permission. I've had that experience a few times. People like something you've written and want to put it on their website or blog, so they snatch it, along with your name as writer, but they neglect to contact you and ask permission. To me, that is akin to slipping in your bedroom window and whisking away something you've written in the dark of night. 

When I discovered my work on other websites or blogs, I've contacted the owner and expressed my dismay in a nice way, not threatening or mean. One man accused me of taking his earnings away and a great deal more. His thought was to turn the tables and make me the bad guy. 

If this happens to you, there are a couple ways to handle the situation. You can thank the person for using your work and attributing it to you but also suggest that the next time, they ask permission. Or, if they get nasty, ask them to take it down immediately. 

And certainly, if they use your work without giving your name as author, then you have every right to be angry and let them know. And ask to have it removed. Lawsuit? Probably not gonna be of much help in a single situation like this. 

 C. It's also very interesting to see where your work is being highlighted. I used Google in the title of this post, but try two or three different search engines to enter your writing name.

As your writing exercise for today, put your writing name in a few search engines and see what comes up. You might be surprised. 

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 ...