Did you make a New Year’s Resolution to write a book this year? Great! But as soon as you sit down and stare at the blank screen, you realize it’s a lot harder than it seems (and oh, won’t that internal editor ever quiet down?). We rounded up some of our favorite authors who shared their advice about writing, where they found inspiration, and their best tips about sticking to that writing habit to help you get this year off to a "write" start.
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Find inspiration in books
"It was Little Women by Louisa May Alcott. One of the main characters, Jo March, is a headstrong tomboyish writer. I identified with her at a very young age, and was inspired that she wrote. It made me feel like that was something I could also do, to merge imagination and energy within the written word. From then on I have always written. Even if only a few lines a day."
Work hard if you want to make a living
"I write for my living, which is a good inspiration - no words, go hungry, sell the children off for medical experiments. Inspiration, of course, is everywhere. In things people say, things they do - everywhere. The hard bit is putting it all together in a 100,000 word book that makes sense."
Make time for your writing
"I was able to dig my heels in and just say, "My time is MINE for a while" because it's easy to try to peel off creative time and let it go the minute someone else needs it from you. What i did, secretly, is invented a writing partner named Janet, and put her in my calendar as "Janet writing session." So whenever someone asked me if I could do something for them that day, I'd say, "Sorry, Janet is coming over to write with me." Is that creepy or cool? Who knows."
Get inspired by the things around you
"Well, inspiration can come from anywhere. Any idea that fires the imagination, a like a line of dialog that occurs to me in conversation, an aroma, a moment on the street -- the thing is, you have to write whether you're inspired or not. If I only wrote when I was inspired it would take me ten years to write a book."
Get that inspiration on a page
"I think the things that make me write are a bit like Cheshire Cats popping in and out of my existence. Inspiration in general is usually something I can't anticipate. I take inspiration where I can, and devour it in one piece like I'm starving. Not because I think it's something fleeting that will never return but because I think the best inspiration is the kind that makes you feel urgent. Like you're racing against yourself to get a story on the page while you still remember what that magic feels like."
Allow your imagination to run wild
"We're all trained as kids to stop thinking the ridiculous things and be sensible, and writing is about recapturing the possibility that there are invisible mousemonsters that sneak onto buses and chew the furniture and they are kept in line by a young woman with a magic accordion. It's about permitting yourself to touch the weird in search of the amazing."
Write something—anything—for 15 minutes a day
"Here is my advice: I get out my kitchen timer and set it for 15 mintues. I am not allowed to stand up until the 15 minutes are over. During that 15 minutes, I write something. Anything — a letter, a poem, a list of people you hate, a prayer, all my favorite words, a childhood memory, a dream. Something. I might even sit there for 15 minutes writing, "I don't know what to write!" but I learned long ago that a "bad" day of writing is still a good day."
Take a time-out from distractions
"I take long walks, which means no phones, no one making demands or asking questions, no e-mail, no TV or music in the background. The silence allows my mind to explore, travel, and imagine."
Use music to get yourself in the right mood
"It can be hard to switch gears abruptly from real life to fiction. It's hard to leave a fun breakfast with friends and sit down with a big smile on my face and write a tragic death scene. I use music to trigger and sustain a mood. I have a collection of songs that I use like a painter's palette; I pick a song that fits the tone of the scene I'm working on and play it on loop until the mood shifts. Although anything with vocals will scramble my linguistic center so it all has to be instrumental."
Tap into the joy that comes with writing
"I've certainly experienced writer's block and when I do, I read a lot more, hoping to trigger some inspiration. When I have no other choice, I force myself through the block. I make myself write because I am happier when I am writing."
What advice, inspiration, or thoughts do you have on writing? What's your writing resolution for 2017? Share in the comments below! Browse the list of featured authors taking questions, and ask them for their personal advice about writing.
posted by Cynthia on January, 04
Find inspiration in books
"It was Little Women by Louisa May Alcott. One of the main characters, Jo March, is a headstrong tomboyish writer. I identified with her at a very young age, and was inspired that she wrote. It made me feel like that was something I could also do, to merge imagination and energy within the written word. From then on I have always written. Even if only a few lines a day."
Work hard if you want to make a living
"I write for my living, which is a good inspiration - no words, go hungry, sell the children off for medical experiments. Inspiration, of course, is everywhere. In things people say, things they do - everywhere. The hard bit is putting it all together in a 100,000 word book that makes sense."
Make time for your writing
"I was able to dig my heels in and just say, "My time is MINE for a while" because it's easy to try to peel off creative time and let it go the minute someone else needs it from you. What i did, secretly, is invented a writing partner named Janet, and put her in my calendar as "Janet writing session." So whenever someone asked me if I could do something for them that day, I'd say, "Sorry, Janet is coming over to write with me." Is that creepy or cool? Who knows."
Get inspired by the things around you
"Well, inspiration can come from anywhere. Any idea that fires the imagination, a like a line of dialog that occurs to me in conversation, an aroma, a moment on the street -- the thing is, you have to write whether you're inspired or not. If I only wrote when I was inspired it would take me ten years to write a book."
Get that inspiration on a page
"I think the things that make me write are a bit like Cheshire Cats popping in and out of my existence. Inspiration in general is usually something I can't anticipate. I take inspiration where I can, and devour it in one piece like I'm starving. Not because I think it's something fleeting that will never return but because I think the best inspiration is the kind that makes you feel urgent. Like you're racing against yourself to get a story on the page while you still remember what that magic feels like."
Allow your imagination to run wild
"We're all trained as kids to stop thinking the ridiculous things and be sensible, and writing is about recapturing the possibility that there are invisible mousemonsters that sneak onto buses and chew the furniture and they are kept in line by a young woman with a magic accordion. It's about permitting yourself to touch the weird in search of the amazing."
Write something—anything—for 15 minutes a day
"Here is my advice: I get out my kitchen timer and set it for 15 mintues. I am not allowed to stand up until the 15 minutes are over. During that 15 minutes, I write something. Anything — a letter, a poem, a list of people you hate, a prayer, all my favorite words, a childhood memory, a dream. Something. I might even sit there for 15 minutes writing, "I don't know what to write!" but I learned long ago that a "bad" day of writing is still a good day."
Take a time-out from distractions
"I take long walks, which means no phones, no one making demands or asking questions, no e-mail, no TV or music in the background. The silence allows my mind to explore, travel, and imagine."
Use music to get yourself in the right mood
"It can be hard to switch gears abruptly from real life to fiction. It's hard to leave a fun breakfast with friends and sit down with a big smile on my face and write a tragic death scene. I use music to trigger and sustain a mood. I have a collection of songs that I use like a painter's palette; I pick a song that fits the tone of the scene I'm working on and play it on loop until the mood shifts. Although anything with vocals will scramble my linguistic center so it all has to be instrumental."
Tap into the joy that comes with writing
"I've certainly experienced writer's block and when I do, I read a lot more, hoping to trigger some inspiration. When I have no other choice, I force myself through the block. I make myself write because I am happier when I am writing."
What advice, inspiration, or thoughts do you have on writing? What's your writing resolution for 2017? Share in the comments below! Browse the list of featured authors taking questions, and ask them for their personal advice about writing.
posted by Cynthia on January, 04