Every year I create two sets of resolutions. The first is a general life list posted prominently on the refrigerator. The second, my writing resolutions, get tucked inside my desk drawer and don’t often see the light of day. The refrigerator list has changed over the years and boasts columns and bullet points, action plans and recipes, inspirational pictures and doodles. Meanwhile, the writing resolutions need none of this because they are uncomplicated, and I’ve committed them to memory. But I still write them down fresh each and every year as a reminder of how to get the job done.

Write every morning.

Read twice as much as I write.

Starve the rejections; feed the victories.

While none of these are revelations, the three of them together have helped me persevere both professionally and personally. And their brevity contributes to the bigger picture that writing is a profession and passion about action.

Write every morning – I’ve made several blog posts about writing rituals, but for me I am freshest in the morning and most optimistic. In those first few minutes, if I can avoid the news and other potential pitfalls by getting up before the rest of my household has roused, the day is nothing but a blank slate. I feel rather invincible, not to mention what happens once coffee is added.

Read twice as much as I write. – Stephen King said it best. “If you don’t have time to read, you don’t have time to write.” In theory, you are writing because you love the written word, and it would only make sense that you want to carry all of them in your arsenal. And not just the meanings and spellings of words either. Every time you read, you’re actually studying your craft and observing how other authors assemble those words into radical new patters. So read, read, read.

Starve the rejections; feed the victories. – This one is my favorite and simultaneously the hardest to adhere to throughout the year. Whether it’s by email, by phone, by post, or by owl, I give the rejections no more than a moment to invade my brain. Even the big ones. I might have slaved over a project for months only to have it shot down in the eleventh hour. That’s life. And as a writer, rejections are frequent. The worst are the days where it feels like editors or agents collaborated and all decided to say no at precisely the same time. You need to starve the heck out of those days. Don’t entertain negative thoughts. Instead, feed the wins. Maybe it’s a publication you’ve been waiting for or simply a well done from your critique partner on a particularly sticky scene. Throw a handful of confetti in the air. Dance your best Beyoncé when no one’s looking. Or go to the local bakery and buy an obnoxiously expensive piece of cake. But make those victories count because one is fantastic. Two, even better. And if you press your energy towards the light, rejections sting less than a band-aid being pulled off. They will no longer have the power from stopping you from making good on your first resolution…to keep writing.
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Happy New Year!

     Some days, I love the internet. Specifically, when I need a cupcake idea for my daughter’s third grade class, Pinterest is my savior. Or when political news grinds my nerves to nubs, I require two otters holding paws on Facebook. In these instances, the internet is my friend. When it comes to writing, though, we are typically mortal enemies.
         And I’m not even referring to all the distractions. (That’s an entirely different post.) Instead, consider the speed with which authors can race from idea to submission to publication. There have been mornings where I drafted a poem, submitted it over lunch, and even received word that it was accepted all in a twenty-four-hour period. Awesome, right?
          Yes…and no.
         That lightning process conceals a few fatal flaws. Nowhere in a sprint to publication is there space to reflect, edit, walk away, and return fresh. In a world where submission buzzes at our fingertips, are we skipping essential steps to better our writing?
      I am not eschewing the process but instead offering a brief checklist of considerations to make a squirrelly writer take pause before hitting send or submit. Here I offer a few warnings for falling for the sprint instead of pursuing the marathon.

     1. Editing matters. And it rarely happens well within twenty-four hours. The piece is so fresh in our minds that even glaring errors are camouflaged by our own mental copy.
     2. Editing in a vacuum is dangerous. Rarely do critique partners exist who can turn around a piece in hours, and without an outside eye, the writing solely lives within our tastes and judgment. It’s not a bad place to be, but it certainly shouldn’t be the only place.
     3. Did you find the right home? Unfortunately, fewer writers take the time to read online journals and get a taste of what they’re searching for. Instead many are lured by the siren’s call of fast and free submission windows, often jumping right out of them and submitting to the wrong places.
     4. Submitter’s remorse is real. I have submitted pieces that found a home when they weren’t nearly ready, but perhaps the journal was new or the editor saw a glimpse of brilliance and kindly accepted. Looking back years or even months later, I see changes I’d like to make because those few pieces don’t represent my best voice, and as we all know, the internet preserves things forever.
     5. Avoid looking unprofessional. As an editor for a literary magazine, like a shark smelling blood I can usually tell if a submission was dashed off without proper care. Perhaps they spell the journal’s name incorrectly, or my name, or yes – their own. We might receive a document that still shows original edits or someone else’s comments throughout. Even if the piece is wonderful, I rarely stick with it when so many glaring errors turn me towards more professional submissions.
     6. Self-publishing can rob you of collaboration. Many authors, frustrated at rejection, post their own works on a blog or website. The problem with this is that they lose the opportunity to enjoy an editor’s help to polish the piece, and they may not consider why it was rejected in the first place. Persistence is a writer’s lifeblood, but not with blinders on. Every rejection or critique should move a writer to a better place. Not just a different platform.

     Instant gratification exists, and it’s intoxicating. But some wins are hollow ones, and not all pieces are ready for publication. Good writing takes time, and good submissions represent that effort. Give your writing the space it needs to thrive, and I guarantee you’ll love the results. In the meantime, head to Pinterest for a yummy lunch idea.
Happy writing!
            

I’ve read, and even written, many posts extolling the virtues of writing through any hardship. A heartbreak, a loss, a tsunami, a zombie apocalypse. The act can be a healing one and often helps us sort out our feelings or minimally allow our minds to escape whatever chaos has firmly lodged itself in our lives. But I would also argue that there is a space and time when for some, we need permission not to write.

From about the age of ten on, I started a firm routine of writing in the morning. Every morning without fail. Back then it was loose-leaf pages in a worn neon Trapper Keeper that survived three years of middle school far better than I did. And during my wild college days I still managed to jot down things as the sun rose even if I’d only slept a few hours the night before. My morning exercises have found their homes on the back of Target receipts, across paper towels, and everywhere else all because once I’d read that Hemingway followed this routine, and he turned out to be a fairly decent author (understatement intended). His daily practice also seemed more palatable than Vonnegut’s push-ups to spur creativity.

Of course, in this sort of mandatory writing situation, not everything I write during those early sessions is good. Although even out of bad pages, I can often resurrect a few good sentences. Once, seven pages of junky writing yielded a title that I used years later and somehow, that seemed like a huge win.

However, there were a few moments in my life that tossed up some rather large blockades and writing felt like a miserable chore. It was painful, and after some Herculean trying I learned that as an author, there are absolutely occasions that make it ok to put the pen down.
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1. Emotional distress – Sometimes an event or a feeling is so raw it’s impossible to write about it with any reason. And if you’re trapped inside of the fray, you can’t possibly see the forest for the trees. Or rather you’d like to burn the forest down. Become a lumberjack and head to Scandinavia where it’s too cold to hurt, or write. In those cases, writing can keep you trapped in feelings that aren’t good for you, so pen down.

 

1. Physical exhaustion – Sleep matters. New parents and high school students may disagree, but medically our bodies don’t do well with less than seven hours of sleep. And if you don’t believe me, look, it’s science HERE! Just because your fingers are tapping doesn’t mean you’re doing what’s best for your body so perhaps close the laptop, steal a catnap, and do double duty during your next writing sprint. Besides, you could pull a Stephenie Meyer and dream up your next great piece. (As long as it’s not Twilight. Anything but that.)

 

1. An empty writing well – One of my favorite authors, Laurie Halse Anderson, gave a brilliant analogy that’s been used often but was new to me as I listened to her speaking at a local SCBWI event. “Creativity is like a pitcher, and if your pitcher is empty, you can’t give…or write.” Is your daily routine squeaking out the chance to read a good book or watch a favorite film? Has it been too long since you’ve stood in front of a real live painting or listened to an orchestra at full blast? I’ve read more often than not to write through writer’s block, but I also think that actively going out to seek inspiration is an excellent way to recharge. Consider skipping a writing session and instead walk to a local gallery or put on your headphones. Curl up to listen to beautiful music or a podcast. Who knows, you might even fall asleep (see tip #2) and wake up both physically and mentally recharged.

 
Ultimately every writer has different challenges and strengths. Unique routines and mechanisms to carry them from Once Upon a Time all the way to The End in their manuscripts. While this blog might make sense to some, it could be a totally wrong fit for others. But at core I think most writers tend to be the toughest self-critics. We rake ourselves over the coals when we’re not writing enough, not publishing enough, not doing those writerly things that make us authors. So, if nothing else, I hope the takeaway is to be kind to yourself. And if circumstances are so that you find you’ve got to put the pen down, that’s ok.

As I bask in the glow of a completed manuscript currently battling it out with others in the #PitchWars Twitter contest, I find it so easy to lounge. I wrote a book! Time to take a break…or not. At least for me, I find that if I don’t jump feet first into the next project, a week of leisure can become a month, even a year between major writings.
But jumping in isn’t quite as easy as it sounds. Where do I start? How do I select an idea out of the dozens hopping up and down like strays at the pound looking for a home? Should I continue with a similar genre, or should I head off into waters unknown? And even after all of those questions, the big one looms.
How do I start?
Starting a novel is terrifying. It’s not like giving over a few days to a poem, essay, or story, knowing that it’s easy to pull the plug. If a shorter piece fails, you’ve only invested a few days. Mere hours on the writing spectrum. But a novel, it’s a commitment. It’s taking an idea and locking in as if you take the hand of your first date and say What the heck, let’s go get married in that chapel around the corner. It’s a spiritual and emotional mortgage, cementing you to an idea. Once you’ve made that jump, though, it’s essential to get going because again, waiting too long can take the shine right off of your idea. So, I’ve assembled a few tips that have helped me move forward in the past, and one of these tips will hopefully help me put pen to paper tonight as I sign off on my new endeavor.
 

1. READ – This may sound counterintuitive, but don’t be afraid to carve out time to read in the genre that you’re interested in and feel how the author approaches his or her narrative. Copying isn’t a good idea, but emulating is. Does their opening inspire you?
   
   
2. Don’t Start On Day One of Your Story – First pages are so intimidating. And often as writers we don’t see the beginning of the story right away but rather we’re seduced by an inciting moment or a conflict. It’s ok to start there and feel how the tension plays out on the page. 
   
   
3. Outline – Even if you’re not a planner, it’s ok to throw down events and relationships or try the bullet journal method to craft a skeleton. See some outlining ideas HERE.
   
   
4. Talk It Out – Dialogue is a wonderful place to open a new novel. Think about your protagonist. What could he or she say that perfectly characterizes who they are? 
   
   
5. Location Location Location – Is your setting a character of its own? Forget about the primary story for a moment and build a rich landscape with all the texture you can muster. You might be shocked at how easily the characters come to life with a skillfully drawn backdrop.
   
   
6. Put the Pen Down – Meditate. Run around the block. Take a nap. But think about what is attracting you to the story you want to tell. If it’s the right one, it will put out the siren’s call and goad you to start. But if the story recedes to the caverns of your mind, perhaps go back to those other ideas jockeying for your attention. 
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7. Write Without Judgment – The first pages won’t be perfect. But if you love what you’re doing they will draw you back day after day, week after week, and month after month. And who knows, next year around this time you’ll probably be hunting for critique partners, editing with abandon, and readying your now manuscript for the world at large.

 
Whatever you do, keep writing. And enjoy every delicious, painful minute of it.

Summers for teachers are bliss. While I don’t want to support the ridiculous idea that we don’t review lesson plans and strategize for the following year, June, July, and August do lend themselves to pursuing hobbies, slowing down to cook meals at home and play with the kids more, and write with abandon. Bliss, indeed.
Except when no clock is ticking, writing often slips to the wayside. During the school year I write on a very regimented schedule…and it works. I hit my word count every day, whether it’s brilliant or bollocks. But when I’ve given unlimited time to write, without the urgency I often wait and write when I’m too tired or distracted. This reality reinforces how important, at least for me, it is to maintain a writing schedule and treat it less like a hobby and more like a profession.
In light of this, I thought I’d share a few different writing routines that have worked for me throughout the years.
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1. Write in the morning. Set your alarm an hour early and make sure you’re writing without distraction. A night of good sleep, however, is the only way to make this work. Going to bed at 2 a.m. and writing at 5 is the surest formula for disaster, and possibly some hilarious writing.

 

1. Turn a lunch break into a writing break. In my one and only office job, I sacrificed lunch in the breakroom for a picnic at my desk where I could shut my door and tap away at the keyboard. After more tedious work, the creative break was just as nourishing as my tuna sandwich.

 

1. Bullet plot points and fill them in on the weekends. This was particularly helpful to me during a hectic professional and personal time when I didn’t have an hour to spare every day, but on the weekends I could devote a few late nights without sacrificing the ideas bubbling in my head during the week.

 

1. Schedule writing sprints with online friends just like you’d book a manicure or a doctor’s appointment. Determine a frequency but put it on your calendar, and make sure others can hold you accountable. Most do this based on a time limit, but I’ve also had luck sprinting with a word count in mind.

 

1. Set the mood with a playlist. This will help you ignore the clock and simply write for the duration of five songs, or fifteen. And if you know what you’ll be writing about, selecting music that amplifies the tone you’re striving for may just push your writing to the next level.

 

1. When all else fails, scrap it. And by scrap it I mean write on scraps whenever you feel the inspiration. I once wrote an entire story on the back of receipts, and it ended up being a fabulous piece. I also love the idea of being able to manipulate and move pieces around to try different chronologies, so writing in bits rather than at once may work well too. But in keeping with the routine, hold yourself accountable by trying to him a minimum of scraps per day.

 

1. Mix it up. A writing routine or schedule may be essential, but it doesn’t have to be stagnant. Your life will change. Your job, the seasons, your family. Be flexible and kind to yourself and remember that as long as you’re writing in some form, you are in fact a writer.

 
For more writing routines, check out The Daily Routines of 12 Famous Writers and happy writing!
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