%%USERNAME%%    %%ACCWORDS%% %%ONOFF%% |
 |
I’d rather write than talk. Nobody interrupts! Posting monthly or less now--see below. |
My original purpose for this blog, which I started in August of 2019, was to see if I could maintain consistency, to discover what I want to write about, and to find my writing voice. In January, I started a "niche-less" blog at Wordpress.com where I've published weekly. -- Kit’s Kontemplations  . -- I'm preparing to start a Catholic blog on Wordpress.com where I'll post weekly, and another site to put the rest of my writing. I also want to spend more time reading other blogs and offering thoughtful comments, both here on WDC and elsewhere. At most, I will publish once a month at no set time in this blog starting in September of 2020. Thank you to those who have read and rated any posts on this blog. I really appreciate it. I did NOT want to write “about” me on this blog. I wanted to share my interests, discoveries and maybe a few useful insights. If anything I've written helps even one person, whether or not they respond to the post, then this blog has been successful. |
After considering the advice to “write every day” and some other useless tidbits, I want to share what I found most interesting and useful for someone who doesn’t write consistently, who does not want to give up, and who wants to figure out where writing fits into her life plan. After reading a lot of articles, I grouped the most interesting tips I found into three categories:  Staying in the flow Improving your craft Maintaining motivationWays to stay “in the flow” when writing drafts: Put your mobile devices in airplane mode and disconnect your laptop from the WiFi. Turn off spelling and grammar checkers. Prepare a general outline or mind map before starting a first draft. Write TK as a marker for where you need to add or edit something later and move on. Put your editing voice in “lock down”.Removing potential distractions and having at least a general sense of direction when I start the first draft is obvious. The TK tip is something I’d never have thought of. I can search for it when I’m ready to edit. The fact that something will need attention doesn’t have to prevent me from finishing the draft. The hardest part of writing is keeping my editing voice quiet. Writing the TK in places reassures my inner editor that she’ll get her chance later; she can go chill somewhere else until I’m ready for her help. Improving your craft: Become a grammar expert. Increase your vocabulary. Increase your typing speed. Practice writing headlines.I’m reasonably good at grammar and there’s definitely room for improvement. I have the Elements of Style and a workbook to go with it that I’ve not opened yet. I completed a Foundations of Grammar course at Lynda.com (freely available through my local library membership). I want to improve my grammar skills but I don’t aspire to be an expert. There are various style guides out there and they’re massive! I don’t write for an income so I don’t need to be a “Grammar Guru”. Learning new words can be more fun than work. You don’t need to use uncommon words but it’s important to know what they mean so that you don’t misuse them. Since the average reading level is at about the 8th grade, you might wonder why to bother increasing your vocabulary. Because I’m a writer, I’m fascinated with the power and meaning of words. Words are for a writer what flour is for a baker. I learned touch-typing in high school so I don’t really need to work at increasing it unless I decide to do freelance transcription or data entry. There are plenty of apps available to help you learn or improve your typing skill. I’d definitely do it if I were a 2-finger typist so that my fingers could keep up with my ideas. I can type much faster than I write by hand. At the same time, there is a different “feel” to handwriting that works better than typing, depending on what state I’m in. Getting better at writing headlines is vital for a blogger but not necessary for someone who writes fiction or poetry. My headlines definitely need improvement if they are to catch any reader’s interest. It would be absolutely essential if I was freelance writing for marketers, something completely unappealing. Maintain your motivation and momentum by doing at least one of these activities each day: Do research for a future piece of writing. Plan an article or chapter or do a character sketch. Write a first draft for something, or do some free writing based on a prompt. Edit an earlier draft written at least one or two days ago. Read something from your writing genre or about the writing craft. Engage with other writers. Participate in an online writing community such as Writing.com I’ve had series of days where I didn’t do any of these things and I didn’t like the result. The more days I neglected writing, the harder it was to return to it. If, during these “off” days, I did too many “left-brain” activities like Sudoku puzzles, I was less inclined to write than if I did something more creative like colouring on my iPad. I don’t write fiction but even reading a novel is better than Sudoku because I’m still engaging with someone else’s writing. When I read too many articles or listen to too many podcasts by professional writers whose goal is to help you succeed in your writing “career”, I feel drained and start wondering why I’m bothering to write at all. I compare my “drive” with theirs and realize that I’m not part of their intended audience. I want to be a “hobby writer”. I want writing to be a significant part of my life but I never intended it to “be” my life. Either I’ll always be a person who juggles many interests or I haven’t yet found my all-consuming “passion”. I find myself forgetting that it’s OK for writing to not be the sum total of my life. Reflection: Do you know why you want to write and who your audience would be?} Which, if any, of the tips in this article are new to you? Which aspect of writing do you find the most challenging? If you don’t write or do writing-related activities regularly, what helps you to get back to writing? If writing is just a “hobby” for you, is this what you want or do you dream of earning income from it? |
View Portfolio
Visit Notebook
Send Gift Points
Awards
Badges
Send Email
Community Newsfeed
General Discussion
Sponsored Items
Book of Trinkets
Static Items
Books
Groups
Interactive Stories
Audio
Campfire Creatives
Community Notes
Crossword Puzzles
Documents
Folders
Images
In & Outs
Madlibs
Photo Albums
Polls
Product Reviews
Quizzes
Survey Forms
Web Pages
Word Searches
Yes, I know some people do that but I'm a creative writer not a journalist. Poetry sells ... but it's a money-maker for only a few. I write A LOT. Almost 180 pieces since Spring equinox. My goal is 300-400 per year. One year I went over 1,000. I need to do more editing, polishing, sharing, submitting. Writer's block? Who has time for that? I don't.