WRITE WHAT YOU KNOW?

It's been a funny kind of week. A bit start and stoppy, you know the kind I mean? But nevertheless, I've been writing - of a sorts!


I have almost completed two short stories, one for submission to a competition with a theme very close to my heart 'A Foreigner in Italy'.
It's being run by a couple who own the The Watermill at Posara in Tuscancy. They host writing and painting workshops and have created the Posara Prize. 
I started thinking about this submission what seems like a lifetime ago - very unusual for me. And, here we are two days (and counting) from the deadline date of the 28th February and I've filled pages and pages with... words. I've chosen to submit fiction as opposed to non-fiction and I've been writing it in the first person, to try and create a personal kind of view. I've also set it in winter (doesn't everybody think 'sun' when they read Italy) and here in the hidden depths of Le Marche. Maybe I should have chosen Venice and the Carnevale! 


I thought I would be able to write reams and reams but actually it's been the hardest piece of writing I've done in a long time, and most days its hard! It reminded me of the Writers Abroad Anthology last year, where we as ex-pat writers chose the theme of ex-pat life to create short stories from. We all found it incredibly hard to fictionalise it, despite all our experiences of writing fiction. How strange. Maybe it just feels a little too close to home despite the advice to 'write what you know'. 
The second piece, is a lighter piece which started as a Monday Muse (another Writers Abroad thing) and is targeted at My Weekly with a family kind of theme (involving chocolate)..
In my other writing 'moments' I've been pontificating on 'The Promise' and have started to review the outline and overall plot. I've already decided to change the title (more later) but I've got no further than creating a 15 word summary of the book - the first step of the Snowflake method.


Talking off the white stuff, snow is forecast for the weekend and it's so cold here in my office, that I can't feel the tips of my fingers. So I can see myself wrapping up like an Eskimo and locking myself in until the I've ticked all the boxes... I think I'm almost there.


Until Later...

JOURNAL WRITING

Along with working on some of the more technical aspects of writing, like plot, I've made a return to some things I'd let drop.
I've always written a diary, since a young teenager when my main aim was to talk to my secret little book like a best friend. I would spill my heart out, confess my worries and angst and generally treat it like a confessional. Those recordings, unfortunately have all been lost (I think I remember having a ritual bonfire). 
I picked up journal writing again some years later, when I discovered my mum had always kept a diary. I remember seeing her scribbling away but like many things she did, I didn't take much notice then. As she now has dementia and barely recognizes me, her observations back then are probably all the more poignant. I still keep what I call a 'life diary', where every week I record what's been going on, a little like a blog I suppose. I also have a travel diary, much less used these days, for trips away and mementos of happy times spent exploring new places.


Six, or maybe seven years ago, when I finally gave myself the permission to write as I'd always wanted I started a morning journal. This journal recorded dreams, first thoughts, ideas about stories or characters. Little things that filled my mind at the start of the day. For some reason for the past few months, maybe longer, I've let it slip and only came back to it when reminded of morning journals while browsing the web. Well, where else would I come across it! 


For the past week I've picked up my journal, uncapped my fountain pen and sat writing before I've even thought past finishing my early morning brew. And it feels good to be back not only because when I do sit down to write I've cleared out all the clutter, but whilst this tidy up is going on, I make progress on some of the projects I've been working on. This week I've tinkered with seven different short stories of varying lengths and written a new piece of flash fiction. Plus I've begun editing 'The Promise', my second wartime novel.
Three of these pieces are about to be submitted for competitions which is a great way to end the week.


Despite inky fingers, I shall fiercely protect my morning muse as part of daily routine, come what may...

WRITING DECISIONS

Plotting, Submitting and Hibernation
It's not been a bad week. I'm working on several short stories at the moment and sometimes it's hard not to let them blend into one huge story. So every now and then I just put them all to one side and do something different. 


Having skimmed through the email plotting course I talked about last Monday here are three things that I've been playing about with.

• Start with a character. Without a character (at least one) there is no plot! I've made this my starting or returning point for all my stories this week. 
• I've thrown out the stuff written about 'basic plot outlines' - I read somewhere this week that these aren't plots, they are a series of conflicts which help to create and develop the plot. I was beginning to get a bit hung up about that which means no writing. How sad is that. Instead I shall think about the problems my character could have and what they might do to solve them.
• I've also ditched the 3 Act Structure,  again I became caught up in the technicalities. So for a simple soul like me, it's will be Beginning, Middle and End but after I have some idea of my character and their conflicts.  

I've taken this approach with the stories I've worked on this week and I have made great inroads. That's not to say the course I've been reading through is rubbish. I've just made some decisions about how it best works for me and I will continue with lessons 4-7 next week.

I now have three short stories which are coming together plus I've reviewed another short piece of fiction for submission today (part of my Write 1 Sub 1). And I've finally decided to put my first draft novel (All Will Be Well) into hibernation. It's not working and again, I'm tying myself up in knots with it. I just need to forget about it and learn from the process. Maybe in years to come I'll pick it up again, but now just isn't right.

Until Later...

WRITING CHALLENGE

Write One Submit One


Like many writers I try and set myself some daily writing goals that may (or may not) be achieved, but hey at least I thought about it. Lately, having struggled to stay the course on most of my writing projects, I found myself wandering about in the eerie world of the internet, browsing and just generally time wasting. Anyway,  as usual I came away from the screen with several blogs added to my google reader but one has particularly struck a note. It's called Write 1 Sub 1 and is a great concept, built on the approach by one well known writer, Ray Bradbury who apparently finished one story a week and mailed it a market and then got on with the next. This blog is an experiment to 'live in his shadow' for 2011. The end result being 52 submissions in 52 weeks. It also provides you with the option to write one submit one weekly or monthly and lists some links to short story markets. 


Not a bad way to approach the writing wall... managed four in January, but none last week so need to catch up. All of a sudden I'm focused and in the zone...
Until Later...

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LEARNING TO WRITE

Developing a Good Plot
As a writer in progress (and an eternal amateur writer) I am always looking to learn to improve my writing. I thought I'd pick a writing process at the beginning of each month and look for ways, ideas and maybe an on line course to help improve that particular element.


This month's learning exercise will be plot. So I've signed up to a very brief email course from the Email College on 'Creating Great Plots' and as a contrast have signed up to a mini course with Holly Lisle on 'Creating a Professional Plot Outline'. Both of these courses are free and were chosen because of their 'simple' approach. In other words I'm hoping it will do what it says on the can.


I struggle with plot but I'm not sure why. I like to work with my characters first, then the plot should fall into place - right? Hmm, just lately I've not been convinced. Maybe what I really need is help with my characters! What has really led me to consider plotting more is the Writers Abroad challenge this month, one of which is to write a crime short story with at least one murder. And my research has told me that crime stories need to be plot driven. With only 3000 words to play with I know that I need to have a good firm beginning, middle and end and I'm hoping that plotting the story out will help me get to the end. I'm known for my cliff hanger endings which have my fellow writers growling with the frustration of 'so what happens next!'. 


My trouble with plotting I think has been in my approach. I kind of get bored, wanting to get on with the story, then find I run out of steam. Or I refuse to budge from my initial plot thoughts and start arguing with the characters about the next scene. I Now I know that these courses aren't going to help with my rather eccentric nature, but I am hoping that they can give me some sort of structure I can build on and develop my confidence that a plot is better than none. . A good plot outline will give me some sense of the road to be travelled and should allow me a little give if that's what is needed for the story. 


Anyway, will report on my plotting progress next week...
Have a great writing weekend!