writer at play
Posted in motivation, writing process on Jul 7th, 2010
It is HOT in here. Muggy hot. Stuffy hot from drawn shades and closed windows. Outside, it’s my-steering-wheel-is-going-to-burn-my-hands and the-pavement’s-going-to-melt and the-metal-is-going-to-take-off-my-skin HOT. Yes, folks, we’re having a heat wave of temps in the mid-90s up here in Vermont. I’ll wait while all you Florida and Arizona and other southern state people stop laughing. Remember, [...]
Posted in motivation, quartz on Jun 23rd, 2010
One of the great things about summer is the lack of a schedule. One of the bad things about summer is the lack of a schedule. With no school routine to anchor us; with plenty of one-time playdates and field trips to juggle; with all these one-week trips and camps to prepare for and keep [...]
Posted in motivation, personal on May 15th, 2010
Do you ever feel that you can never fully immerse yourself in one project without fretting about all the others you still need to get to? Does the shadow of all the other things you could (or should) be doing darken your enjoyment of what you are doing? Do you feel guilty for blogging when [...]
Posted in motivation on Jan 19th, 2010
Blog reader Megs introduced me to the blog Procrastinating Writers, which is full of tips to help overcome that particular demon. It’s a smart idea to blog on this topic–there’s quite an audience for it–but it makes me a laugh a little, too. And think. Why am I (and presumably hundreds of other writers) so [...]
Posted in motivation, personal, piano, writing process on Sep 3rd, 2009
Yes, I know this is a boring title, but it’s hard to come up with something witty and pithy for a serious subject. I’d like to point you to Glenda Larke’s post on what defines a successful writer, which came on the heels of a long dry season in my writing life. This drought lasted [...]
Posted in motivation, piano, writing process on Aug 10th, 2009
I haven’t talked recently about playing the piano, but let me reassure you that it is still happening. Sir I. and I started taking lessons over a month ago, and we both enjoy them, including the time we share together driving to and from lessons. Our teacher lives way out in the country–about half the [...]
Posted in goals, kai, motivation, short stories on Feb 16th, 2009
So far this month, I have: Got a total of 9K words on the new book Revised and submitted a short And am in the process of revising another short My plan was revise and submit three shorts this month. One was to be the latest Elinor story, but I think I need to write [...]
Posted in challenges, money, motivation, news, self-promotion, short stories on Dec 27th, 2008
I know that writing fiction does not generate much income. I know that most novelists do not support themselves on their royalties and advances. Then I read articles like this one and I really know it. It’s not the lack of money more than it is the lack of readership that bothers me. My husband [...]
Posted in motivation, short stories, writing process on Nov 19th, 2008
I admit it, I’m one of those moms who gets twitchy every time one of my kids colors outside the lines or decides that orange lettuce and purple tomatoes make an appetizing-looking salad. I was very uptight about the whole “place your sticker correctly in the space, properly aligned” and “follow directions to a T” [...]
Posted in motivation on Oct 30th, 2008
National Novel Writing Month is almost upon us. This year November had the good sense to begin on a Saturday so all the eager novelists can get off to a flying start. I, unfortunately, will not be among them. I have a soft spot for NaNoWriMo, which gave me 50K-plus words on my first (and [...]