Tag: Write 2 Be

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NaNoWriMo Day # 13: Is the Excitement of NaNoWriMo Starting to Taper Off?

November 13, 2012 jcladyluv

Hopefully you haven’t gotten to that point in your NaNoWriMo experience where the excitement of doing a first draft in 30 days has weaned and the everyday responsibilities of life have once again consumed you. But if you have reached that point (although that doesn’t usually happen until after you’ve passed the middle of the month) and you are starting to get blocked or starting to procrastinate, perhaps you just need a little motivation to get you going again.

If you’re a music lover (and you can actually write to music—I usually would just end up singing instead of writing) then maybe you could start thinking of music to inspire you to write. Perhaps you should give your book a soundtrack as if it were going to become a movie (who knows, maybe it will be) and think of the songs that would fit your book and its characters. The music that might be playing in the background of a dramatic scene could push your story forward even further.

If you are more of a television person maybe watching a little T.V. can get those creative juices flowing again. If you are writing a drama, perhaps watch a drama show, or if you’re writing something a little more comedic, then watch comedy. Perhaps watching the style that you are currently writing in can give you ideas for scenes, or dialogue, or an interesting plot twist you can throw into your book.

You might even think about watching an inspiring movie that could give you more ideas for your book. Perhaps watching a movie that resembles what you want your book to look like on film (not a carbon copy of course but a generalized idea) can give you more of an inspiration to finish what you started this month. Movies are usually what gets my creative juices going again and gives me an overwhelming amount of new ideas (too many new ideas—usually before I’ve finished working on the old ones) and has me rushing back to my computer (or to my notebook).

If none of those things inspires you to keep writing then do something that does inspire you or do something that can help take the pressure off of you to finish the novel. There’s nothing wrong with going out for a couple of hours, having some fun with friends or family, and releasing that tension or anxiety you are feeling about getting your novel done. That may be just what you need to get back into the swing of things. No matter what you find to inspire you to keep writing, just keep writing!

Jimmetta Carpenter

Writer/Editor

The Diary: Succession of Lies (Now Available)

Writing as “Jaycee Durant”

http://www.facebook.com/people/Jimmetta-Carpenter/1069480310

http://www.passionatewriterpublishing.com/thediary.htm

NaNoWriMo Day # 12: With NaNoWriMo Comes a Sense of Discipline

November 12, 2012 jcladyluv

I don’t think that there are any writers out there that will disagree that writing anything, whether it is a novel, or a movie or television script, or a play, or even a song, takes an incredible amount of discipline. You can’t just will the material on the page (if only we could do that—I’d have over a dozen books published already) and then wave a magic wand and make it happen.

You have to actually designate the time and weave writing into everything else in your life. More importantly, you have to actually follow through. In the many years that I have done NaNoWriMo there are so many things that this event has taught me about writing, not the least of which is discipline. Here are a few things that you can take away from the NaNoWriMo event, whether you finish your novel or not (but you will finish).

1) NaNoWriMo makes you have to focus more on the important aspects of your novel. You have less time to get caught up in all of the nitpicky things about you novel and just concentrate on the plot and the characters and the setting that will make your readers fall in love with your novel.

2) NaNoWriMo gives you that deadline that frankly some of us need in order to really sit down and get the task at hand completed. Some writers just work better with deadlines that they absolutely can’t miss.

3) NaNoWriMo makes us set a time to write in order to get the work done. It gives us more of a routine that we can schedule things around so that we come out on the other side of our efforts with a finished product.

4) NaNoWriMo provides a network of other writers that can understand your goals and aspirations where your writing is concerned because they have the same goals and aspirations. Writing can be such an isolated career so sometimes it is good to have that group of writers that you can reach out to for critique or advice.

What are some of the things that you take away from the event of NaNoWriMo?

Jimmetta Carpenter

Writer/Editor

The Diary: Succession of Lies (Now Available)

Writing as “Jaycee Durant”

http://www.facebook.com/people/Jimmetta-Carpenter/1069480310

http://www.passionatewriterpublishing.com/thediary.htm

NaNoWriMo Day # 11: Mid-Month Crisis Help a Few Days Early!

November 11, 2012 jcladyluv

Okay I found another youtube NaNo Video clip for you guys. It’s a video that I particularly enjoyed and that I could’ve used last year when I hit the mid-month meltdown that I experienced. I thought that I would share it with you a few days earlier because maybe it can eliminate the possibility of you even having a mid-month crisis if you start thinking of some of these tips now rather then later. Hope you all enjoy it as much as I did. Keep up the good work! Oh and if you’ve fallen behind, you still have plenty of time so don’t beat yourself up about it.

Jimmetta Carpenter

Writer/Editor

The Diary: Succession of Lies (Now Available)

Writing as “Jaycee Durant”

http://www.facebook.com/people/Jimmetta-Carpenter/1069480310

http://www.passionatewriterpublishing.com/thediary.htm

NaNoWriMo Day # 10: Follow the Story!

November 10, 2012 jcladyluv

Is your story taking an unexpected detour? You may have started out with the most detailed outline for your novel but sometimes your characters may be leading your story in a different direction. Now while I am all for sticking to an outline, it is, after all, the foundation of the story. However, if your story is taking on a life of its own (as stories often do) and it is pulling you in one direction, it is completely counterproductive to resist that pull.

Your characters will always be the one’s responsible for telling the story that you are trying to convey. A lot of times the story you thought was going to be told in the beginning changes into a completely different story, possibly focusing on a different character as the main character then you had originally intended. Don’t fight wherever the story is leading you.

If you resist the pull your readers will more than likely be able to see the struggle and it will leave them wondering if the story they read was the story that should have been told. Follow wherever your story is taking you and just enjoy the ride!

Jimmetta Carpenter

Writer/Editor

The Diary: Succession of Lies (Now Available)

Writing as “Jaycee Durant”

http://www.facebook.com/people/Jimmetta-Carpenter/1069480310

http://www.passionatewriterpublishing.com/thediary.htm

NaNoWriMo Day # 9: The Deeper the Character the Better the Story?

November 9, 2012November 9, 2012 jcladyluv

Perhaps by now you are discovering that there is more to your characters then you initially had thought there would be. Maybe in your outline you didn’t think it necessary to go into grave detail about every aspect of your character’s personality or description. If you are looking for ways to further develop your character try using a few of these suggestions to bring them to life:

1) Create an online profile for your character(s). Think about just how detailed you have to be with an online profile and how much more developed this would make your characters.

2) Get a poster board. Visualize your character in your mind and perhaps clip pictures out of magazines of people that resemble what you want your character to look like. Clip out material possessions that your character owns such as cars, types of clothing that they wear (example of their style of dress), house that they live in, pets that they have. Clip out pictures of the kind of lifestyle that they exhibit and perhaps items that symbolize what their career is. Having that visual board in front of you as you write about your character(s) everyday can help give you more insight into your character as you continue your novel.

3) Talk about your characters to the people you share your story with as if they are real people. The more real you make them in your mind, the more real they will come out to be in your novel as you write it. Yes they may think that you are a little nutty but if they are writers as well then they will understand all too well the lengths that writers have to go to in order to make their characters and their story believable.

4) Create a separate blog for your story and its characters. This not only help you to better develop those characters but it also gets other readers interested in your story and invested in the characters of that story. This can provide an immediate response to your characters and let you know whether readers feel anger towards your character or empathy for your character, or whether your characters are even likeable enough.

Hopefully some of these ideas for character development can allow you to get an even deeper sense of who your characters really are and what story they really want you to convey for them. I have an idea or two that I am planning to use for the development on my next novel. Happy Writing!

Jimmetta Carpenter

Writer/Editor

The Diary: Succession of Lies (Now Available)

Writing as “Jaycee Durant”

http://www.facebook.com/people/Jimmetta-Carpenter/1069480310

http://www.passionatewriterpublishing.com/thediary.htm

NaNoWriMo Day # 2: Let the Nay-Sayers in the Crowd Fuel Your Drive

November 2, 2012 jcladyluv

So this may be the day where you have one of your so-called friends (you’ll understand why I say so-called in just a second) call you up just as you’re sitting down to write and say “so you were serious about doing that? What do you really expect to get out of this?” This is when you shoot them a look through the phone (as if they can actually see you) and say “of course I’m serious, I take my writing very seriously and what I expect to get out of this is a first draft of a book that will one day be on someone’s best-seller’s list” (sorry I’m projecting my response) and you ask them as politely as possible why they would say something so negative to you.

This is the friend that either has no ambition themselves and doesn’t understand a thing about setting goals and sticking to them, or they are simply jealous that they don’t have the same drive that you do for something that they wish they could be doing. Either way, it’s not the support you really need during the month of November as you complete your first draft. OR IS IT?

We all know that it is wonderful to have the positive people around you, supporting you, rooting for your success every step of the way. But what we may take for granted is how it is just as important to have those people who don’t believe in you and who are rooting for you to fail as a motivation as well. That in now way means that you convince yourself to listen to those nay-sayers because they are wrong for not believing in you and they are wrong to doubt you (and when you do hit the New York Times Best-Seller’s list they will really be kicking themselves) but let their discouragement be your motivation.

Let it be the fuel for you to get up early in the morning (or whatever your designated time to write is) and write those words everyday. Let it drive you, if nothing else, to prove them wrong. And when November 30^th gets here you will have the satisfaction of knowing that not only do you have a new novel in the works to edit but that you can also be satisfied that you never gave up like your non-supporters all thought you would. Keep going and forget what anyone else has to say!

Jimmetta Carpenter

Writer/Editor

The Diary: Succession of Lies (Now Available)

Writing as “Jaycee Durant”

http://www.facebook.com/people/Jimmetta-Carpenter/1069480310

http://www.passionatewriterpublishing.com/thediary.htm

7 Ways for You to Get Ready for National Novel Writing Month

October 17, 2012 jcladyluv

So as I stated in my last post I will not be doing NaNoWriMo this year, at least not in the traditional sense, but I thought for all of you out there who are planning on participating in the crazy notion of attempting to complete a novel in 30 days that I would make a few suggestions on getting ready for the month of November. Obviously the first thing that anyone getting into the novel writing spirit needs to do is to sign up by registering on the National Novel Writing Month website at http://www.nanowrimo.org/. That’s the easy part. Other things to better prepare for this month are:

1.) Brainstorm a clear idea for your novel: Hopefully you already know what you want to write about but if not that is the first thing that you need to figure out.

2.) Know the most important details of your novel upfront: You may or may not be a person that likes to outline. If you are an outliner, this is what your next move needs to be. Outline the major points of your novel so that you know where your story is going to start, and where you think it might end up. If you are more of a detailed person then you will want to detail ALL of the major and somewhat minor parts of the novel in this outline. If you are not a person who likes to outline, at the very least you will want to know that major plot points in your story.

3.) Get to know your characters: Some might consider this to be a part of outlining but I see it as being totally separate but just as complex as creating an outline. You have to know who your characters because if you don’t know who your characters are your soon to be readers won’t know who they are either.

4.) Research now rather than later: Do as much research for your novel that you can do before starting your novel. Once you get started writing, you are not going to have the time to really go back and do extensive research so get most of your research out of the way now.

5.) Begin mapping out a workable plan: Come up with a schedule that works for you to write during the month of November. If you are a morning person then you will want to make time available so that you can write in the mornings and get your best work done. Whatever time of day works better for you, you are going to want to maximize to produce your best work. This is also when you will want to let the people around you know that you may not have as much time as you normally do because you will be busy…Writing.

6.) When November 1^st comes around, be prepared to start writing and be prepared to be very busy for those thirty days.

7.) One final thing: If you should happen to get stuck or have a bad day and are not able to write, don’t be too hard on yourself. Putting extra pressure on yourself to write only makes it harder for you to produce good solid work.

I hope that these tips were somehow helpful to anyone who is getting ready to embark on their 30 day journey into novel-land. I know that following these steps helped me last year when I participated and all of the years prior to that. I will be cheering all of you NaNo-er’s on from the sidelines but don’t think I won’t be getting some writing done on my part. I just have to focus on the business end of things right now, as well as putting my Write 2 Be Magazine together for its launch in January 2013. I wish all of you well in November!

Jimmetta Carpenter

Writer/Editor

The Diary: Succession of Lies (Now Available)

Writing as “Jaycee Durant”

http://www.facebook.com/people/Jimmetta-Carpenter/1069480310

http://www.passionatewriterpublishing.com/thediary.htm

No NaNo For Me This Year

October 11, 2012 jcladyluv

Normally around this time of year I would be preparing for National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) by getting my outline together and doing the research necessary. However, I am not participating in NaNoWriMo this year and really I am a bit saddened by it. I feel in some ways, because I have done it every year since I have heard about it, that I am letting myself down by not doing it but I just don’t think that I can commit to it this year as I do every other year. I don’t have my outline completed for the novel I want to do and I haven’t even begun the research and on top of that, I am not quite finished with the novel I started last year during NaNoWriMo.

So to make myself feel a little better about not being able to fully commit to NaNo this year I have decided that I will use the time during NaNoWriMo to focus more on a novel that I have completed (a couple of years ago) and pitching it to agents and also pitching article ideas around to various magazines and newspapers and also working on my Write 2 Be magazine that is set to launch in January of 2013. I guess it would also be a good idea if I finish up the novel from last year’s NaNoWriMo.

With all of that I think that I will be pretty busy during the month of November even without having a new novel to focus on. If you too are a person who traditionally participates in NaNoWriMo and will also not be able to this year, don’t dwell on what it is you can’t do. Instead come up with another plan of something else within your writing that needs to get done that you can place your focus on. I plan on still making the best out of this NaNoWriMo doing a lot of things with my writing that I have been putting off and just can’t put off any more.

Jimmetta Carpenter

Writer/Editor

The Diary: Succession of Lies (Now Available)

Writing as “Jaycee Durant”

http://www.facebook.com/people/Jimmetta-Carpenter/1069480310

http://www.passionatewriterpublishing.com/thediary.htm

The First Time Around

August 14, 2012 jcladyluv

Ever wonder what might have been different if all of the opportunities that you have been given, you had got it right the first time around? If you had the money to do everything that you need and want to do to become successful would you actually be doing them right now instead of just wishing you could be doing them?

I’ve been thinking a lot about the things that I need to do to get things going the way that I need them to be going and how the lack of money has held me up from actually following through with a lot of those things. I’ve also been thinking about all of the opportunities that I have had that could have enabled me to be in a different place right now that I have just somehow squandered away. What kind of difference would it make if I had got it all right the first time around?

If I had finished college the first time I went and completed my degrees then, instead having to work extra hard to try and finish them up now, so late in the game, then I might already be working in the media industry now as I have always dreamed of. I might have already moved to New York like I wanted to all those years ago so that I can be surrounded by exactly the right people I need to be surrounded by. I could have all the right contacts and connections and I would already have my foot in the door that I am trying hard to kick down now.

I could have learned from the best how to be the best and already be halfway up the ladder by now instead of still being on the second or third rung. I probably would already be on some New York Time’s best sellers list and I probably would have already had about three or four novels out by now because I would not have had any other responsibilities to worry about other then myself and my work. I could have already achieved so much by now if I had only done things right the first time around.

Money would most likely not be an issue (being a New York Time’s best seller and all and working as an editor for a publishing company while freelancing for some of the most prestigious magazines that are housed in New York) so I would not have any problem trying to get my own media empire started because with only myself as a responsibility and my work of course, I could put away money towards that empire and the things that I need to do for it. Life could be so different right now.

But the catch to all of that what if stuff is that if all of that had transpired (so-called) right the first time around, then I wouldn’t have met my daughter’s father and I wouldn’t have my wonderful, beautiful, and intelligent daughter who I would not trade for any amount of money, success, or fame. She is the reason that I get up in the morning and I really have a hard time trying to ever envision my life without her in it. She makes me want to fight harder to get things back on track and to make sure that she never gets off track. But also she is proof to me that sometimes what you think would have turned out better if it had been done right the first time around, might not actually be the case.

I don’t even know if all of that would have come to be without her coming along in my life, but I do know that the possibility is not lost. I also know that she has enriched my life in ways that I think make me a better writer and a better person. We can always wonder what would be different if we had another attempt at doing things all over again but when you really think about it, perhaps what you considered to be right in the first place was all wrong for you. Perhaps for our second shot at things, rather then wishing we could go back and do things differently we should treat our new opportunities as if they are what’s right for us now. Let’s try not looking back at a past we can’t change, but instead looking forward to a future that was meant to be.

Jimmetta Carpenter

Writer/Editor

The Diary: Succession of Lies (Now Available)

Writing as “Jaycee Durant”