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We haven’t been writing.  And we haven’t been blogging.  Both Cheryl and I have been terribly negligent in our duties, and I apologize. 

I have some exciting news, however.  Cheryl and I are having a kick-butt party.  No, there will be no alcohol involved.  No calorie laden foods either.  And no guests.  Sorry.  A kick-butt party is when you get together with a writing partner and give each other no excuses for lack of motivation, failure to write, or basically sucky performance as a writer.

Cheryl and I have set aside an entire day, December 4, for our party.  We’ll listen to each other gripe for a while, then we’ll call a halt to all excuses and commit ourselves to getting on with our work.  We’ll brainstorm, set goals, write, and maybe scrapbook some story “books of wonder.”  (If you don’t know what a “book of wonder” is, let me know.  It’s a fabulous tool that every fiction writer should try at least once.)

What about you?  Need a kick-butt party?  Schedule one with your critique/writing partner, decide ahead of time what you will do (drink – not drink, write, brainstorm, research, eat – or not, play music, scrapbook…), find a quiet place, and let us know what happens. 

In the mean time, have a great Thanksgiving.  Among our many, many blessings, we are thankful for you, our readers, and the great craft we share.

Wishing you all the best,

Mary

Okay, a hacking, unrelenting cough is not exactly a life-threatening disease, but it’s laid me up for a few days.  I haven’t done any writing, including the articles I owe Mary (sorry) and preparing for this weekend’s writers meeting.  But, in the middle of the night, while trying to sleep sitting up, I thought of a few things I could do to keep my finger in the writing pie.

The secret to writing while ill is to not have high expectations.  Thoughts are not going to stay for any length of time and disorganization is the rule.  But here are some things you can do to stay active.

• Research.  You’ve put off running down the facts you need.  Hopefully, you have a list and an idea of where to start looking.  Your attention span is low, so why not use the random click method of research?  I’ve found out more than I could have hoped by clicking on links that send me to other links that turn up a nugget of information I can utilize.
• Quick and dirty editing.  The mind on drugs (prescription not illegal) has a different perspective.  A quick read through of a section of your WIP might uncover a “huh?” or a “why did she do that?”.  Jot down your concern and revisit it when you’re more lucid.  Edit short sections to avoid drug induced glazed eyes (not because you’re an boring writer, we all know how talented you are.)
• Write off plot.  Put your two main characters in a scene outside of your book.  Pick a location and topic from a random book or today’s newspaper.  Write for 5 minutes (set a timer).  They may surprise you with new layers of motivation.
• Catch up on your reading.  If you’re like me, your TBR pile stretches throughout the house.  Some of these nuggets might not be worth reading despite the back cover blurb.  Open one up and start.  If it doesn’t keep your attention, move it to the donation pile.
• Collage or scrapbook your characters.  I have folders of pictures torn from magazines.  Males, females, couples, villains, and weird stuff that took my eye.  Get out a glue stick and sift through your materials.  Putting these elements together might spark a new plot point.
• Watch an old movie or TV show.  Every plot has been written, right?  By studying old scripts, a fresh new twist could jump out at you.

Or, you could do like I did today and sleep way too long then watch an old Julia Child show and Rachael Ray.

All in the name of research, of course.  Julia had the habit of tossing things on the floor. . .hey, that could be an interesting character quirk -

Bundle up, winter is on its way.

All the best,

Cheryl

Our writing group (http://bit.ly/GRRWG) has a book exchange every month.  Books for Bucks.  Contribute a book you no longer need (ha! like that’s likely in a group of writers) and buy someone else’s for a dollar.  All money goes to the treasury.

Every month I send out a reminder and pick a handful of paperbacks to take along to the meeting.  It’s like drawing blood from one of my children.  It hurts.

Yes, I know I have too many books.  Too many bookshelves.  But the world is conspiring against us bookaholics.  There’s always a library sale.  And the bookstore’s discount table.  And don’t even get me started about www.paperbackswap.com! Everywhere I go, there’s a book begging me to take it home.

I grit my teeth, think of DH’s disapproval (not really) and remember the towering TBR pile spread across the house.  Sometimes, I’m successful in resisting the temptation.  Sometimes, I’m not.

How do you resist the urge to “buy one more”?