Writing It Forward In 2016

-


Image courtesy of FreeImages.com/stockers9

2015 is in the books. I experienced successes and rejections with my writing. That's to be expected. What I didn't expect...

In late August, my husband and I accepted custody of two of our grandchildren, ages four and eight. It slowed us down...a LOT. My routine did a complete 180. I had to step back and re-evaluate how I might achieve my goals, and I re-evaluated my priorities.

My writing resume for 2015 looked great up to that point: 

  • I taught workshops at two writing conferences and enjoyed combining my training career with my writing career.
  • A writer I met during a conference the year before hired me to edit his book, Locked In, which was published late in the summer and has done well.
  • A short story I wrote at the last minute to enter a contest gave me a lot of mileage on the contest circuit including winning 3rd place in the HubCity\Emrys writing contest, making it to the semi-finalist level in the Faulkner-Wisdom writing contest, winning First Place in the Carrie McCray contest, publication in The Petigru Review, and a Pushcart Prize nomination.

These successes kept me going as I struggled with the drastic shift in our lifestyles, but excitement fizzles without continuous work refueling the drive.

So where am I?  I have four great ideas for novels, two that I'm excited to work on. I’m plunging into 2016 with a renewed drive to get things done.  I will find a way to do it.

I just need time to write

Enter #Write365, a Facebook group of writers who have agreed to write every day of 2016. (Yes, I’m aware 2016 has 366 days. We all need a one day pass, don’t we?)  It never hurts to have a group gently looking over my shoulder and encouraging me. The good news?  I have successfully found time to write every day of 2016 so far.  Granted, on January 1 and 2, I managed fifteen minutes each day, but I wrote something.  Today, school started back, so I got a lot of writing done.

So, I look forward to getting on with the year.  I will persevere (my word for the year).

What are your successes in 2015?  How are you staying focused and on track?

Comments

womenswrites said…
Wow, two young kids and writing too! You're my hero! Congrats on your successes, I wish you many more!
January 5, 2016 at 8:50 AM
Barbara V. Evers said…
Thanks! But look elsewhere for heroes, I'm not sure I can handle all of the pressure that goes with the role.
January 5, 2016 at 2:19 PM
Bob Strother said…
Maybe some of us no-longer-empty-nesters should form a support group.
January 6, 2016 at 8:27 AM
Unknown said…
You are so inspiring! It can be difficult to concentrate with kids around, they demand so much attention. You've got the right attitude, though. Keep focused on the positive aspects and continue to persevere - even if it's just fifteen minutes a day! You are a great example for those kids. Not only are you a wonderful caretaker, you are working daily to fulfill your dreams.
January 6, 2016 at 4:44 PM
Barbara V. Evers said…
Bob, the thought has crossed my mind. I know our conversations lately have helped my sanity and let me laugh about the situation. People who aren't in this boat really don't get it.
January 6, 2016 at 11:09 PM
Barbara V. Evers said…
Irena, thanks. I don't feel very inspirational at the moment. I wish I was your age with your energy!
January 6, 2016 at 11:10 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Skin Tone: Describing Your Characters

-
Image
When you write about character's of different races, how do you describe their skin tone? If you've never thought about this, then consider this question: How do the authors you read described persons of color? A few months ago, I attended a webinar about writing diverse characters. The guest was Eliana West of Writers for Diversity . The information she shared felt fresh and valuable, especially related to describing a character's skin tone. I get really tired of seeing African-descended characters described in terms of the goods that drove, and still drive the slave trade--coffee, chocolate, brown sugar. There's some weird psychosocial baggage attached to that.    -- N. K. Jemisin As this quote from author, N. K . Jemisin , indicates, historically, writers have described people of color using food-related descriptors. Many people of color find this offensive. This surprised me, at first, but she has a point, especially when you view it through the quote above. My fir...
Read more

Character Development: Using the Johari Window

-
Image
In my last post, Character Development: the Johari Window , I introduced the Johari Window as a tool for developing your characters. It's important that your character not know everything about their situation. These unknowns can lead to an intriguing story and create possibilities for conflict within the story. How do you use the Johari Window? In this post, I thought I'd provide a simple example of the Johari Window with a character most people know:  Harry Potter. Below, I have filled out the Johari Window as it might appear within the first few pages of book 1, Harry Potter and The Sorceror's Stone . The Johari Window based on Harry Potter and The Sorceror's Stone Three of the quadrants in this window reveal what Harry doesn't know about who he truly is and what happened to his parents. I could add a lot to the quadrants representing what he doesn't know, but I hope this gives you an idea on how a Johari Window might be used. What do you d...
Read more

He Said, She Said, Who Said? Punctuating Dialogue

-
Image
Courtesy of Morguefile.com I've been focusing my posts on workshops and panels I taught or participated on at the Imaginarium Convention. Although this serves as a poor substitute for the real thing, I can share some highlights. This week, we're going to explore dialogue punctuation. The first thing writers need to learn is how to properly punctuate dialogue. I've discovered, over the years, that many don't know how. Notice in the first example below, the dialogue starts at the beginning of the sentence, and the speaking tag (he said, she said, Paul said, etc.) follows it.  A few points to notice: The first letter of the quotation is capitalized. What the person says is a sentence, so it must be capitalized. A comma comes directly after the quote and INSIDE the quotation marks. You can, also, have a question mark or exclamation point here. There is a space AFTER the closing quotation mark followed by the speaking tag and a period at the end of the sentence. In the next ...
Read more