The Most Interesting Thing: Cultivating Patience

  "Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience."

--Ralph Waldo Emerson

Have you ever struggled with patience? Honestly, I should have been named after that flower. What's my biggest source of impatience? As you may know, we've been waiting for our house to sell for over a year and at times the thought of staying here one more day drives me nuts!!!  Yes. I know I need to be patient. What choice do I have? There are so many reasons for cultivating this beautiful quality:

               *Patience strengthens character and protects us from committing rash, foolish acts.

               *Patience protects us from all sorts of grief, bringing us peace, stability, and contentment.

               *Patience helps us have a calm, trusting heart.

               *Patience leads to better physical, emotional, and spiritual health.

With all those perks, you'd think we'd all become masters of patience. Maybe you are. I am not. So I'm always on the lookout for helpful tips on cultivating patience. 

When it comes to my writing and publishing life, the greatest tool I've found for exercising patience is to keep busy with multiple projects. 

What about you? What helps you to be patient?

The Most Interesting Thing: The Importance of Rewarding Yourself

"The reward of a thing well done, is to have done it."

--Ralph Waldo Emerson

Okay, sure, I agree with Mr. Emerson on a certain level, but I'm a firm believer in external rewards.

My reward for a good day of writing? Reading

Finishing a draft? A full day of binge reading

Completing a revision? Reading a book I've been dying to read and saving for this particular moment.

I think I may be seeing a pattern here.

Speaking of goals and rewards, if you haven't signed up for March Madness, it isn't too late! Hop on over to Denise Jaden's Blog and at the end of the month, you may find yourself rewarded with any one of a number of fabulous prizes. If you've already signed up, don't forget to update us on your progress. Today's check-in is over at Deb Marshall's.

What about you? Do you reward yourself for meeting your writing goals? How?

The Most Interesting Thing: Are you ready for some MARCH MADNESS?

Do you have a writing or illustrating project you'd like to work on, but are having a tough time getting started? How about a project you haven't been able to finish? Do you need some daily encouragement, incentive, or accountability? If so, you've come to the right place. 

Starting February 29th, you can join us for a little MARCH MADNESS. I'll be hosting here every Wednesday during the month of March. For more details, check out Denise Jaden's explanation here.

We'll be checking in on one specific blog each day to cheer each other on. And did I mention there'll be

PRIZES?

Yes, fabulous prizes, one of which is a first-page critique from my fabulous agent, Katie Grimm of Don Congdon Associates. 

You can participate by commenting each day. Each time you check in and record your progress, your name will be entered into a drawing. The more you participate, the better your odds of winning.

We also meet on Twitter under the hashtag #wipmadness all year long.

So get on over to Denise's blog  for the details and be sure to post your goals on February 29th (it only comes 'round once every four years, right?)

If you have any questions, please feel free to leave them in a comment. 

The Most Interesting Thing--What Do You See?

"It's not what you look at that matters, it's what you see."

--Henry David Thoreau

What are you looking at? What do you see? Are things moving or not? 

 Do you ever get so close to your manuscript that you can't see the flaws?

What do you do?

Do you let your manuscript rest?

 For how long?

Do you give it to others?

How many?

The Most Interesting Thing: Do you Dwell in Possibility?

"I dwell in possibility." - Emily Dickenson

Emily Dickenson's Poem

I want to dwell in the place where all things are possible

The place of my childhood

The place of my dreams

Not just for a visit

But to reside

Forever

Do you have moments when you believe that anything is possible? Sometimes I do. Sometimes I live in a house full of windows and doors. But sometimes I get trapped in the dark basement of impossibility, chained to the walls of defeatist thinking. Shackles of negativity bite into my wrists and ankles. Who decides where I dwell? I want to be the one. Today I choose to dwell in possibility. How about you?

The Most Interesting Thing--How Deep Do You Dig?

"Dig until you hit rock. Then take out that jackhammer and go a little deeper."

-- Allison Brennan

This week I've been digging away, searching for the hard rock of my characters' emotional truths.  I'm getting closer, but they're still not being totally honest with me. Some hard layers still stand in the way. I need that jackhammer, an effective tool, but one that shakes the operator to the core. 

Yes. I'm going to dig deep. And it's going to take an emotional toll on me. Am I ready? Am I prepared to blast my way through my rawest emotions? I hope so.

Have you ever been revising a novel and realize you've only scratched the surface? How do you know when you've finally hit bedrock? Do your hands shake? Maybe your stomach sickens? Will you go deeper?

The Most Interesting Thing: Research--How Much Is Enough?

"If we knew what it was we were doing, it would not be called research, would it?"
-- Albert Einstein

When the idea for a story set in Occupied Paris first hit me four years ago, I didn't think about research. I only thought about how much fun it would be to write a young adult novel set in that particular place and time.

Before I started writing the first draft, I spent three years reading everything I could get my hands on that had to do with life in Paris during the war. I kept a notebook and jotted down interesting bits and significant dates and other random stuff. While writing the first draft, I did not refer to my research notes. Instead, I worked on crafting the story without worrying too much about the details. But I did make about 100 notes on the draft: RESEARCH THIS!

As a huge fan of historical fiction, it's important to me that an author has done the research. But sometimes an author will include a note to readers in the back of the book that explains where the author has "deviated" for the sake of the story. That doesn't bother me.

Now that I'm revising the novel, I find that I can search for an answer to one of those questions for hours and still come up empty. At that point, I have to change direction and come at it from a different angle. Though I love doing research, sometimes I wonder, how much is enough? When writing historical fiction, must I stick 100% to historical accuracy and check every minute detail?

What are your thoughts on the matter?

The Most Intersting Thing--The Joys of Revision

"Sit down and put down everything that comes into your head and then you're a writer. But an author is one who can judge his own stuff's worth, without pity, and destroy most of it."

--Colette

Revision is bliss.

Maybe some of you read that and shake your heads. "Is Angelina crazy?" 

Perhaps.

But I love the process.

Love getting feedback.

Love hitting the delete button.

Love ripping apart a story, then piecing it back together. 

Love focusing on every word, every sentence, every paragraph.

Love reading a manuscript out loud, red pen in hand, slashing through the printed pages.

How about you? If you're revising this month, are you enjoying the process? If you're drafting, do you look forward to revision? Any revision wisdom you'd like to share?

The Most Interesting Thing: Reading Poetry

"Always be a poet, even in prose."--Charles Baudelaire

While eating my way through Ray Bradbury's thought-provoking Essays on Creativity from Zen and the Art of Writing, I took to heart a suggestion about reading poetry every day. Not a difficult task for my poetry loving soul. So I've been reading two poems aloud every morning and loving it. The only challenge I face is the odd behavior my poetry reading elicits in my Persian. Something about the rhythm of the words provokes him to jump on my chest and place his furry face inches away, giving me the creepy stare. Despite my annoying cat, I feel encouraged and invigorated by my new poetry habit.

Any of you like to suggest a favorite poem or poet? Do you think reading poetry feeds the creative spirit?

The Most Intersting Thing: Changing POV

Every time I begin a new novel, I write in third person POV. Sometimes I reach the end and realize the story should have been written in first. One would think that after the third time this happened, I'd learn my lesson. But no.

Why do I keep doing this? Because I don't outline. My first draft is an exploration of both story and character. By the time I finish a draft, I have a solid grip on who the MC is and what the story is about. I start hearing the voice. And sometimes that voice is screaming to be written in first person.

And honestly, I love rewriting a story from third to first, getting deep inside the MC's head and discovering what she's really thinking and how she feels about everything that's happening. What fun! Anyone else ever do this?

Have you ever revised a story from a different POV? Have you ever rewritten the story from a different character's POV?  Which do you prefer writing, first or third? Past tense or present?

The Most Interesting Thing: Coping with Blog Fatigue

This week I read an interesting article on blog fatigue over at Shrinking Violets Promotions which coincided with my own feelings of blog fatigue. When I checked to see how long I've been posting here, I was surprised to see that it's been 2 1/2 years already. At the same time, the list of blogs I follow has also grown tremendously. Thankfully I got dialed into Google Reader a while back which helps. But lately my enthusiasm for blog reading has waned. I've become overwhelmed with trying to keep up with all the posts on my blogroll. And so I've been leaving fewer comments.

As for this blog, I finished the "Partners on the Path" series (love you all dearly!) and have been posting fewer author interviews. Which leaves me with this one feature, "The Most Interesting Thing". Posting once a week feels good for me.

What about you? What are your thoughts on blog fatigue? How do you manage? Any tips or suggestions? I'd love to hear from you.

The Most Interesting Thing: Pushing Our Boundaries

"Look. Art knows no prejudice, art knows no boundaries, art doesn't really have judgement in it's purest form. So just go, just go."--K. D. Lang

Have you ever felt like your writing is trapped in a hamster cage, spinning around and around in that little blue wheel, going nowhere? If so, welcome to my world. The moment I let down my guard, I find myself confined again, belly up and miserable. 

How do I get out? I push the boundaries of my art. Challenge myself by writing something completely beyond my comfort zone like humorous MG, third person POV, or historical fiction.

My latest challenge came this week when my teen nephews asked me to create a murder mystery role-playing story for a family gathering in February. Murder mystery? Me? The wheels are already turning. Not that horrible hamster wheel, but the creative merry-go-round that gets me giddy with excitement. 

What about you? Have you pushed your writer boundaries lately? 

The Most Interesting Thing--Back to Basics

"Easy reading is damn hard writing."

--Nathaniel Hawthorne

What was one of the first things you learned about the craft of writing? For me it was show, don't tell. Sound familiar? Yet after years of writing, my first inclination is to tell rather than show. In fact, just this week I caught myself writing this sentence: Overwhelmed by the information I found. . .  Arrgggh! Why does this happen? Because I'm a super lazy drafter. Which means I have to be an extra diligent reviser.

What helps me overcome my telling weakness? I try to picture my characters on a stage, they can't talk, but have to show me what's happening. My job is to write what I see.

What about you? Do you sometimes struggle with the basics? Any tips you want to share about recognizing and overcoming the showing/telling problem?

The Most Interesting Thing: Food for Thought

"There is no love sincerer than the love of food."

- George Bernard Shaw

I've been thinking a lot about food lately. Mostly because I spent the past three months in physical and emotional agony due to something I let slip into my diet--soy. Good riddance! I'm feeling much better now, thank you. 

Then I noticed a lot of my writing partners talking about the benefit of food journals.

And then I got to thinking about how food comes into play in the stories we read and write. Food, or the lack thereof, has been a major issue in my last two novels. In my first novel, I had my MC enjoy all the fabulous treats that are forbidden to me. My latest character has a thing for gummy worms. I've become a gummy bird. Hmmm.

I've also noticed the effect food has on me when I'm reading novels. The mere description of Chinese food sent me racing for the phone to have my husband bring home take-out last week. 

So how does food influence your writing and reading? Do you ever find yourself reaching for the foods in your stories or the stories you are reading? 

The Most Interesting Thing--Sometimes You Just Gotta Read

"There is creative reading as well as creative writing."

--Ralph Waldo Emerson

This week I've been on a reading binge. Five days, five fabulous novels:

Gary Paulsen's HATCHETT

Stasia Kehoe's AUDITION

Anna Sheehan's A LONG, LONG SLEEP

Jessica Martinez' VIRTUOSITY

Christine Fletcher's TEN CENTS A DANCE

Why am I reading so much? Because my creative well needs replenishing. My writing feels empty and dry.  For me, there is no better cure. 

How do you fill your creative well? And if you've read any outstanding novels lately, please share!

The Most Important Thing--The Value of Critique

"Criticism may not be agreeable, but it is necessary. It fulfills the same function as pain in the human body. It calls attention to an unhealthy state of things." --Winston Churchill

You all should be very grateful that I made the loving decision and chose not to post a photo from my skin cancer surgery last January, even though it fit better with the quote. You're welcome. 

Do you agree with Winston on this? This week I got feedback from some of my hard-working betas who care enough about my writing career to have called attention to the "unhealthy state of things" in my story. Without this sort of valuable input from others, I don't believe I would have been able to brainstorm the solutions that have made the story stronger, healthier. 

Giving and receiving critique is a delicate thing. On the giving end, I've learned the importance of the critique sandwich--commend strengths, expose weaknesses, commend strengths. On the receiving end, I know to wait until my defensive spirit has died down and I can approach suggestions with an open mind. 

What about you? What are some of your favorite tips for giving and receiving critique? 

The Most Interesting Thing: How I Got Out of a Rut

"The only difference between a rut and a grave are the dimensions."--Ellen Glasgow

The Rut

Six months of drafting

Six days a week

Drove me

Into my writing grave 

My joy

My creativity

My love of story

Dead

Then along came a challenge

Could I revise a novel 

In three weeks? 

Mais oui! 

Change is good 

Popped me 

Straight out of

The Rut

Has your writing routine ever buried you in a deep writing rut? If so, what helped you get out? 

The Most Interesting Thing--We Have a Winner!

Thanks so much to all of you who entered the BWB Blog Contest.  My good buddy, Kristen Lippert-Martin is way cooler than me and did two live (kind of) video drawings for the winners of the Best Writer-Buddy Contest. You can watch those here and here. As you may already know, I am technologically challenged, but have at least figured out how to use Random.org. Imagine the drumroll. . .

And the winner is:

LynNerd!!! 

Please email me: yascribe(dot)angelina@gmail(dot)com  

In other news, J, over at Concrete Pieces of the Soul awarded me with this:

The only stipulation attached to this award is that I must tell you one thing about myself that makes me feel good. You'd think that would be easy, but I had to give that question some serious thought.

Doing kind things for others makes me feel good.

 Can you do one kind thing for someone today?

AND 

What makes you feel good about yourself?

The Most Interesting Thing--Writing Through the Blues

"I don't need to manufacture trauma in my life to be creative. I have a big enough reservoir of sadness or emotional trauma to last me."-- Sting

 

Yep. Me and Sting. But sometimes, particularly in autumn, the sadness presents a daunting challenge to my writing, to my creativity. The early morning light disappears, the air chills, the garden dies, and difficult memories threaten  to drag me down into a dark, gloomy, unproductive place. 

Any of you ever been there? If so, you have my sympathy. 

This week I've been thinking hard about what helps me write through the deep blues. Here's my list:

*Hot tea

*Lots of naps  

*Gentle exercise 

*Healthy snacks 

*Binge novel reading 

*Writing with emotional honesty 

*A regular writing routine with attainable goals 

*Reaching out for encouragement from my writing community

What about you? Do you ever struggle to write through the blues? What helps? Please feel free to add to my list in your comments.

Hugs around!

The Most Interesting Thing: Tagged

  

"It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are."

~e.e. cumming

I must not be grown up yet, because somehow I've gotten myself involved in a childhood game of tag. This week I've been tagged twice. Thanks Heather McCorckle over at Critique Sisters Corner and Barbara McDowell.  

This means I will now bore, I mean, thrill you, my faithful followers, with ten things you surely don't need to know about me. For everyone's sake, I'm keeping this sharing of personal information in the vein of writing. 

Here they are, in no particular order:

#1 I can't write metaphors or similes to save my life. Clichés? No problem. 

#2 While querying my first novel, I heard again and again that a similar novel had recently sold. This year ANNA AND THE FRENCH KISS hit the shelves and well, need I say more?

#3 On April 17th, 2007, the day I made the conscious decision to write, I bought my first computer, a $100 vintage Mac Clamshell. Bertie survived baptism by cappuccino and chamomile tea, but last February, while I was away on vacation and under deadline, she breathed her last. May she RIP. ***sniffle***

#4 Most days I write in bed, but my best writing happens from the passenger seat on road trips. 

#5 While writing, I take frequent twitter breaks. (see above) Do you see the connection, or rather the lack of connection?

#6 True story. I once found myself without a book and resorted to reading the phone directory. In my defense, the thing had pithy little sayings and famous quotations on every other page! 

#7 My Persian cat snores, chews on his toenails, and insists on being within  inches of me whenever I'm writing. 

#8 My body can't handle stimulants, which means no caffeine or sugar. And yes, that means no chocolate. As a writer, this is catastrophic, so occasionally I cheat. Lately I've been allowing myself one gummy worm per writing session.  #livingontheedge

#9 I write six days a week, but Sundays are computer and technology free. Books are fair game, though. One more reason I do not own an eReader.

#10 Connecting with all you awesome writers makes me very, very happy. 

I don't know what the rules of this game are, but if you're one of those kids who likes to be tagged, let me know in the comments. Give me your name and blog address and I'll edit this post accordingly. Tag. You're all it!