Last January, my local SCBWI chapter held a discussion on writing goals for the new year. At the time I had been processing a quote from Brenda Ueland
Regular readers around here will know I’ve blogged about Smart and Not Scared writing throughout 2015. I’m still learning what this sort of writing looks like in my own life and will continue to do so in the year to come. Here’s a recap of the blog posts I’ve run and the topics I’ve covered. I hope you might click through to read them and join me in learning what it means to approach creativity in this way.
5 Ways I’m Learning to Write Smart and Not Scared
- I want to be aware of the work beneath the work
- I want to be proactive instead of reactive
- I want my work, even when it’s hard, to bring about joy and satisfaction
- I will not be afraid of anxious vanity
- I will learn to mentally thumb my nose at the jeerers, critics, and doubters
An Update on Writing Smart and Not Scared
- Discomfort will always be part of my process
- My deepest satisfaction comes from the work itself
- “No” is often a gift
- Choosing a challenge is ultimately satisfying
- Breaks feed my creativity
One way I’m choosing to free up the overwhelming creating-something-from-nothing phase is to do a little mental word play. Much like I trick myself into steady work by focusing on the story’s present moment (rather than reminding myself I’m writing a whole darn book), I’m going to claim two words from Elizabeth Gilbert’s Big Magic:
I’m not going to write right now. I’m going to make. I’m going to create.
Writing Smart and Not Scared: More Words from Isabel Allende
I find it interesting that Allende has only recently learned to “go easily with confidence” when it comes to her writing. “If I sit long enough, it will happen,” she says. She’s twenty-one novels in, but only recently has she realized she has a skill. Now she knows “If given enough time, I can write almost anything.”
I love this post. While very personal, it is universal to those of us who want to write but are in a constant argument with that subconscious nay-sayer. Thanks!
Glad to hear it!
Very timely post for me as I attempt to get down first draft words of my WIP!
Here’s to blazing through those words.
Thanks and ouch and ahhhhhhhhhh. You do know how to get to the heart of things!
🙂
I truly appreciate that quote from Isabel Allende. It’s amazing how long it can take for us to realize that we are actually good at something, especially creative somethings. Funny that I’ve never really second-guessed my cooking skills, but writing and art are a different story!
Yes! It was incredibly encouraging to hear her say it, especially after reading her right out of the gate masterpieces. Transparency is always encouraging.
“If given enough time, I can write almost anything.”
So true! Unfortunately, deadlines often prohibit us from writing that “almost anything.”
I finished reading BIG MAGIC a few days ago and absolutely adored it! A book about the creative life and how to be positive that I wish I’d read 20 years ago. Ah, well, never too late/old to learn right?
I love this: “I’m not going to write right now. I’m going to make. I’m going to create.”
I *think* I’m getting better at this. Course, I might change my mind during the drafting of the next humongous YA novel! 🙂
That’s why I keep talking about this. I’ll never be done learning (and will always need reminders). I’m intrigued about the next humongous YA novel. Care to share??
It’s merely all HOPE that I will be privileged to write another trad pubbed YA novel. 🙂 Working on proposals for both MG and YA and awaiting first editorial letter from Harpercollins for 3rd book – that I thought was going to kill me, but hey, I’m alive to tell the tale! And I drafted a 130 page novella during January for the Spring in Snow Valley Romance Collection which launches March 1st.
“No is often a gift”
How true. I am often struck by how powerful and purposeful each no I have received has been. Especially where it applies to writing.