I love reading and hearing other writers talk about writing. I think it’s fascinating. One of my writer friends, Neesha Meminger, is having just this type of series on her blog.

This is what Neesha says about the series:

“I will feature writers who’ve inspired me–writers of color, lgbtq writers, working class writers, women writers and other “other” writers, and their thoughts on writing, creativity, art, activism, politics, feminism, and whatever.”

I think it’s a good thing to hear about writers from various backgrounds and cultures. Writing is the common thread that unites us.

You should go over and check out the Neesha’s Writers on Writing series. You won’t be disappointed.

When I took my afternoon break from the day job, I stumbled across a blog written by novelist Christina Baker Kline. I love reading about how other writers work on their novels.

She also has posted some great writing tips. I love the Writing Tip #1, Use the First Five Senses Right Away.

You should check out her blog, A Writing Year, and the rest of her writing tips.

Your protagonist is given a great honor.

Questions to ask about this scene spark:

*How does the protagonist feel about the honor?

*Are other characters jealous of the honor?

*Does the protagonist deserve the honor?

It isn’t like I didn’t know that writing a novel would be easy. And it doesn’t get better the more novels that you write since each novel is different and has its own challenges.

Right now, I’m in the middle of my novel (again) and it’s really wearing me down. Last night, it took me about an hour just to get started. I stared at the blank computer screen with The Bachelorette on TV (it was on mute but I could still tell that there was some major drama going on).

When I finally got some words down for the Summer Challenge, I felt like it was just in exercise in spinning wheels. I’m already thinking about how to revise my Act 1 chapters and I haven’t even finished writing new draft chapters for Act 2 or Act 3.

Go figure.

One of the craft books I got from the library, Writers Block and How to Use It by Victoria Nelson has been interesting reading. This particular quote stood out:

“Think of tapping your creative gifts as you would establish a relation with another person. If you try to possess or control that person, he or she will elude you; if you form a friendship based on mutual respect, over time, with love and patience, you can forge a secure bond.”

So maybe I should just get a grip and not be so hard on the progress of this novel. It’s obvious that I’m trying to control the outcome. So, I’m going to start to give my novel some respect and let it tell me where it wants to go. It may take me a much better place.

There are a lot of writers doing challenges. I’ve met a few just reading blogs. While I was eating my lunch today, I found another kindred spirit—Inky Girl, a.k.a Debbie Ohi. She’s hosting a year-long writing challenge of either 500 words or 1000 words a day.

Check out my nifty badge to the right. I still have 7 more weeks of the Summer Challenge and I need all the help and inspiration that I can get!

Plus, Debbie’s comics for writers are totally hilarious! I can totally relate to this one…

Unhappy Muse

You should definitely go over and check out the Inky Girl website.