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Mary Rosenblum
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Good morning all.
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Mary Rosenblum
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I hope you had a very fine
weekend.
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Mary Rosenblum
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I thought we'd talk about
working time today. One of the things that emerged during my chat
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Mary Rosenblum
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with Chynna Laird, my
freelance writer guest last week, was just how full her life is...yet she
is still managing to write every day.
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Mary Rosenblum
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'I don't have time' is a real
part of writing life.
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Mary Rosenblum
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Life does tend to expand to
fill that 24 hour day.
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Mary Rosenblum
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Much of that life is really important
-- your kids, your spouse, the day job that pays the rent.
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Mary Rosenblum
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Some of it is more of an
'elective' -- TV, lunch out with coworkers, computer games.
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Mary Rosenblum
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Writing seems like an easy
life, from the outside. Write a couple of stories or articles a year, get
published, and woohoo.
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Mary Rosenblum
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But in reality, becoming a pro
is a LOT
of work, and nearly all pros do it, at least for the first few years,
alongside a day job.
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Mary Rosenblum
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Much of what writing is all
about is ...big surprise...WRITING.
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Mary Rosenblum
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Sending work out, getting
acceptances, editing accepted work, researching...that's part of it, too.
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sandyhoja
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What if your day job takes
almost all your time?
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Mary Rosenblum
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It usually does.
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Mary Rosenblum
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So you have to look
realistically at the things that fill your day and ask yourself, 'okay,
what can I eliminate to make a hole for my writing'.
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Mary Rosenblum
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You might realize that you are
spending two hours in front of the TV at night.
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Mary Rosenblum
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You might decide to set the
alarm a half hour earlier, grab a cup of coffee and sit down for that half
hour
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Mary Rosenblum
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before you begin your regular
morning routines.
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Mary Rosenblum
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You might decide to go to bed
a half hour or hour later, or bag your lunch and spend your lunch break at
the day job working on your writing.
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Mary Rosenblum
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The reality is, writing is
going to mean cutting something else out of your life. If you're going to
be a pro.
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Mary Rosenblum
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That really is the dividing
line between those who go on to be pros and those who don't.
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Mary Rosenblum
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The people who want to be a
pro gave up things that didn't matter as much -- going out with friends a
lot, watching TV, playing games on the computer, sleeping late on weekends.
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Mary Rosenblum
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You have a ton of folk who
write occasionally, or work on that novel once or twice a month.
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Mary Rosenblum
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There's nothing wrong with
that.
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geezer
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My problem is the more I learn
"about" writing, the slower I get at it. Some writers set a goal
of 1000 words a day. I'm doing good for a fraction of that.
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Mary Rosenblum
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Goals like that are deadly, in
my opinion.
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Mary Rosenblum
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What good is 1000 words of
dreck? I'd rather write ten good words.
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Mary Rosenblum
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I just sweated over about one
page of scene this morning. That's about 250 words.
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Mary Rosenblum
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That's all I'm going to
actually write today, most likely. I have students to do and some outside
chores.
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Mary Rosenblum
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But those 250 words sorted out
a tough scene that was giving me trouble. That's a good day's work!
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Mary Rosenblum
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The day before, I did about
2000 words in the same period of time.
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Mary Rosenblum
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Everything was working.
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Mary Rosenblum
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it's not how much you do in a
day. It's that you DO something.
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Mary Rosenblum
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Even doodling notes about how
to plot out a particular story is writing.
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Mary Rosenblum
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Words on the screen or page
are only one facet of working.
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Mary Rosenblum
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You can do a lot of work while
you're doing other things. Most of my writing goes on in my head and I'm
doing something else with my hands.
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Mary Rosenblum
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Traffic jams are great places
to plot. :-)
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sandyhoja
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Oh thank you, that really
helped.
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Mary Rosenblum
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I think there's a lot of
misconception about what 'writing' is.
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Mary Rosenblum
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Numbers of pages or numbers of
words are handy yardsticks but they're misleading.
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unicorn
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I set a time frame for writing,
plug in my water fountain, shut off the phone and write for that hour or
two.
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Mary Rosenblum
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That's an excellent way to do
it, unicorn.
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Mary Rosenblum
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Especially shutting off the
phone! LOL.
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Mary Rosenblum
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Headphones and music make a
nice office.
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Mary Rosenblum
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When I was first breaking in,
I was a single mom with two young kids.
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Mary Rosenblum
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My 'office' is an alcove off
the main living area in our small house. So I was in the middle of life,
where I could keep an eye on my kids. I used headphones and music to create
my 'virtual office'
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Mary Rosenblum
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and was still accessible to my
kids.
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sss1208
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do you use a tape reocrder to
record your thoughts while in a traffic jam, what i write in my head goes
in one ear and out the other by the time i get to my computer
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Mary Rosenblum
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I do, sss.
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Mary Rosenblum
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Like, you, good ideas just
evaporate as soon as I get distracted.
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Mary Rosenblum
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I either have a small tape
recorder with me or a pad and pen (not in the car!).
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unicorn
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I used to set word goals but
found it frustrating. You are always checking your word count and then
panic if you don't reach them in the allot time.
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Mary Rosenblum
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I started out with word goals,
unicorn, and like you, found them frustrating.
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Mary Rosenblum
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It takes some time and
practice to realize that you are indeed 'working' even when you can't say
'I did my thousand words today'.
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Mary Rosenblum
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But you're less likely to
drive yourself into a case of writers block driven by a sense of 'I'm
failing to meet my goals, I should just quit'.
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fiction_scribe
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Have you ever tried NaNoWriMo?
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Mary Rosenblum
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No. I don't need the time
pressure to turn out a novel. :-) I do that quite frequently. But it's a
good venture for novice writers
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Mary Rosenblum
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who really aren't sure they
CAN write a complete novel.
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builder guy
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finding time to write and
running my jobs were giving me problems. Now if my client is someone of
intrest I interview him or her about their field. It's a great networking
tool especially if they think you really do give a crap about their life.
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Mary Rosenblum
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What a great idea, builder!
Now that's an excellent way of combining your day job with writing.
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Mary Rosenblum
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Hmmmm....think about a
collection of personal essays about interesting people you've built things
for.
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sandyhoja
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How do you work through a no
brain activity period?
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Mary Rosenblum
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I'll do something, sandy. If
nothing else, I'll simply write a rich, descriptive scene, or a really
dynamic telephone conversation...some kind of writing exercise.
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Mary Rosenblum
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But I've found that if I have
three projects going at once -- sometimes more -- one of them is usually
beckoning to me. :-)
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Mary Rosenblum
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So if I'm stale or blocked on
project A, I'm fresh for project B.
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Mary Rosenblum
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Right now I have...let's
see... three novel projects (although one is just in the plotting stage)
and two short stories in progress.
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unicorn
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Journal writing gets me
motivated and through the "no brain activity".
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Mary Rosenblum
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That's a good way to keep
going. Any writing is goo.
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gonnabe
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Do you recommend having several
different writing "projects"
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Mary Rosenblum
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I do, gonnabe.
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Mary Rosenblum
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I bog down in any project
eventually, where it starts to feel 'dull'. It generally isn't dull, I've
just been living in this world so intensely that I've lost the 'big
picture'.
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Mary Rosenblum
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But if I work on something
else, pretty soon I'm dying to get back at it. I'm always lusting after
something I'm not working on right now. :-) That's a nice feeling.
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sss1208
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i was in a restaurant waiting
for my order, when my pen gave out,while i was scribing a story. no back up
pen and no order
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Mary Rosenblum
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Ah, that's frustrating,
sss1208. Been there a couple of times! I try to always have three pens with
me. LOL
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Mary Rosenblum
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I'm not kidding !
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sharons
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I keep a notebook on my bedstand
for those late night ideas
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Mary Rosenblum
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Me, too, sharons. :-)
Sometimes those midnight scribbles are hard to read in the AM, but sometimes a
scene wakes me up and I sit up and work for an hour or more.
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unicorn
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I have participate in NANO. It
requires discipline and the ability to turn off your "muse" to
get the 50,000 words.
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Mary Rosenblum
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It does and it's good for that
-- for giving you the confidence that you can DO it, that you don't have to
wait for the muse to hand you words.
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Mary Rosenblum
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And that's part of writing professionally.
You cannot wait for the muse to be in the mood.
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Mary Rosenblum
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You write with her or without
her. :-)
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Mary Rosenblum
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And you know what? Some of my
stories that I DRAGGED myself through, feeling that every word was wooden
and the whole project was total waste of everyone's time...
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Mary Rosenblum
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have turned out to be very
popular and very well received. So don't assume your feelings at the time
are accurate.
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gonnabe
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Forgive me, NANO?
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Mary Rosenblum
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National Novel Writing Month,
gonna.
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Mary Rosenblum
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People register and the object
is to write a 50,000 word novel draft between November 1 and November 30.
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Mary Rosenblum
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It's a very fun writing
exercise.
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sandyhoja
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My work writing interferes with
my own writing. Any tips?
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Mary Rosenblum
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That's hard, sandy. To be
honest, it's why I don't work as a tech writer or a copy writer.
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Mary Rosenblum
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But I know people who do and
still write. The challenge there is to 'switch gears' and make it fresh
when you do your own writing.
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owlybear_
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Hi Mary.. Long time no see. I'm
still writing my column, but
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owlybear_
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I still haven't submitted to
magazines. It is however nice
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owlybear_
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to have my readers make comments
on my column. They seem to
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owlybear_
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look forwatrd to reading my
articles, which is nice for me.
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Mary Rosenblum
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I bet, and you're a good
writer, Owly, and you write a really good column! Nice to see you, been a while!
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gail
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Do you write (primarily) to a
specific market, or do you write what inspires you and then seek an
appropriate market?
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Mary Rosenblum
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I do both, gail. :-) Don't
forget, I pay my rent with this stuff.
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Mary Rosenblum
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For example, I just got an
invite into an anthology. Deadline is August.
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Mary Rosenblum
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It's a 'theme' anthology, so I
have to come up with a story that suits the them.
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Mary Rosenblum
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For NF I write entirely to the
market. For me NF is a day job. :-)
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builder guy
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When I am writing and I am in
the "zone" my creativity is flowing big time. I start to think
about doing tile muirals, learning a new instrument and it's distracting. has
this happend with anyone else?
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Mary Rosenblum
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LOL, builder!
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Mary Rosenblum
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This is called 'displacement'.
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Mary Rosenblum
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I'll be in the scene and then
I start thinking maybe I could update my website, put in a cool new page,
feature one of my 'backlist' of published stories...
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Mary Rosenblum
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You just have to kind of focus
is all.
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sss1208
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NANO is it for just exercise, or
to get you to write and publish 50000 word novel.
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Mary Rosenblum
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It's whatever you want to make
of it, sss.
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Mary Rosenblum
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You can quit at the end with
the satisfaction of having done a novel draft, or you can go on to revise
and polish that novel and send it out to the marketplace.
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Mary Rosenblum
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What you'll find is that if
you rearrange your life a bit so that you can now fit in a half hour or
hour of writing time every day...
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Mary Rosenblum
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it will become a habit. You'll
find it easier to do it, to say 'no' to distractions, you'll find fewer and
fewer distractions.
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gail
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I have difficulty finding
appropriate markets for most of the fiction I'm inspired to write. Am I
reading the markets wrong, or do I need to bend my stories to fit the
markets?
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Mary Rosenblum
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The fiction market simply
isn't HUGE gail, and you may be reading the market lists incorrectly.
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Mary Rosenblum
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The writers guidelines are all
pretty general.
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Mary Rosenblum
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The best way to get a sense of
what an editor wants is to read the mag.
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Mary Rosenblum
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But it is VERY hard to write
good fiction unless your heart is in it, as a novice.
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Mary Rosenblum
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You really do need to write
the story you want to read and then look for a market for it.
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fiction_scribe
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what do you do when you get
stuck because you need a research answer and can't find it
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Mary Rosenblum
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I usually put in a placeholder
: [insert cultural details here]
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Mary Rosenblum
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Then I move on. I do about
half of my research as I write the novel, usually.
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Mary Rosenblum
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I'll start off with a
foundation so that I can get going, then I answer questions as they arise,
or leave them until later
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Mary Rosenblum
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if they don't affect the plot
line.
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unicorn
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sss1208 if you go to
www.nanowrimo.org it will give you the details.
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Mary Rosenblum
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Thanks for the URL, unicorn.
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fiction_scribe
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and if they do?
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Mary Rosenblum
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If the research detail will determine
where I go with my plot, then I have to go find the answer, scribe.
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Mary Rosenblum
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If the detail is obscure, if I
realize it's gonig to take me a year to find it if ever, I'll redo my plot
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Mary Rosenblum
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so that it is no longer critical.
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Mary Rosenblum
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I often have to do that when
research reveals that I can't do what I had planned, durn it.
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gail
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I live in no-man's-land, where
most of the magazines which interest me are unheard of, and will not be
special ordered for me. They don't appear in libraries, nor garage sales,
nor flea markets. Any ideas for me? :-)
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Mary Rosenblum
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Take a running leap of faith,
gail. Send it out as long as the guidelines don't disallow it (no fantasy,
for example). The worst you'll get is a form rejection and if you're WAY
off
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Mary Rosenblum
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the editor will probably tell
you eventually.
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geezer
|
What do you think of a market
that requires a reader fee upon submission?
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Mary Rosenblum
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I think it's probably making
money for the publisher that way, geeze.
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Mary Rosenblum
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Now some very popular
mainstream mags do this because they are SWAMPED with submissions and
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Mary Rosenblum
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many of them are wholly
unsuitable. They are trying to discourage the real amateurs who simply send
work to every market in the writers market lists.
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Mary Rosenblum
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Check the magazine with
preditors and editors. If it's a scam, you'll know.
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Mary Rosenblum
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http://www.anotherealm.com/prededitors/
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gail
|
:-) Thanks! I'm gearing up for
that leap! :-)
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Mary Rosenblum
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hey, remember that you need to
earn 100 reject slips. This will help you get there, Gail. :-)
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andi
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I was looking up the sf/f they
wanted first NA rights serial rights and option on anthology would i be
able to send it out again later?
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Mary Rosenblum
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Those are the rights I sell to
Asimov's and Analog, andi. I often resell my stories to three or four
anthologies as well as the magazine.
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Mary Rosenblum
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You can resell as soon as you
have fulfilled your NA rights obligation -- usually that's six months after
the issue with your story appears.
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Mary Rosenblum
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The contract will be specific
about the time lapse. Sometimes it's right away.
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Mary Rosenblum
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My recent Analog story Search
Engine has resold to four anthologies so far.
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sss1208
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I live in an area visited by
snowbirds in the winter, they give mags to the libraries slush piles. you
can pick them up for 25cents or free. I saved + on one that i wanted to
write for. still waiting for another sample mag to come in.
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Mary Rosenblum
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Good job, sss! And read as
many issues as you can find. One issue gives you an idea, but it might not
be 'typical' of what the editor normally runs.
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Mary Rosenblum
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The more issues you can manage
to read the better.
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Mary Rosenblum
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The main thing with your work
time is...make it happen.
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Mary Rosenblum
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Say no to that invitation to
go do something.
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Mary Rosenblum
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Get up a bit earlier. Stay up
a bit later.
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Mary Rosenblum
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Spend your lunch break at the
lap top or with that pad and pen.
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Mary Rosenblum
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Keep a notebook with you (and
that extra pen!) so you can write down ideas, bits of dialogue, plots...
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Mary Rosenblum
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Carry a tape recorder if you
spend a lot of time driving or sitting in nasty rush hour traffic.
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Mary Rosenblum
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(Hey, if you live in the Bay
area you can write a novel while they're repairing the overpass!)
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fiction_scribe
|
has anyone tried eBay for copies
of mags?
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Mary Rosenblum
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Oooh, good idea, scribe.
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Mary Rosenblum
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Or put a want ad up on Craig's
List.
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Mary Rosenblum
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I know I'd give back issues
away for postage if someone wanted 'em.
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gonnabe
|
HOW ABOUT JOINING A LOCAL
WRITERS GROUP?
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Mary Rosenblum
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That can be a very good thing
if it inspires you to write more.
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Mary Rosenblum
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A lot of time the positive
feedback you get from a group really helps you shoehorn that writing time
into your life.
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Mary Rosenblum
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Writing is kind a vacuum most
of the time. You work your butt off and don't get a lot of immediate
positive feedback (like none!).
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Mary Rosenblum
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You're writing with the belief
that sooner or later people will get to read this and love it.
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Mary Rosenblum
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A writers group can provide
that positive feedback.
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Mary Rosenblum
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But if all your writing time
is taken up critiquing others manuscripts and you're not writing, then the
value is questionable.
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Mary Rosenblum
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I know some people who get
together at a local cafe, bring their laptops and write together for two
hours once a week.
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Mary Rosenblum
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That's a guaranteed two hour
work block and you have the motivation to get there because your friends
will be there.
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Mary Rosenblum
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Hey, if you work in a large
company, put up a notice on a couple of bulletin boards. See if you can't
find other quiet writers who might
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Mary Rosenblum
|
want to share a lunch hour
writing time.
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Mary Rosenblum
|
But you have to write mostly,
not talk mostly. :-)
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Mary Rosenblum
|
So see where you can shoehorn
that writing time into your life. You really CAN live with that TV show or
limit that game time.
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Mary Rosenblum
|
Make it a habit and it'll get
hard to break.
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Mary Rosenblum
|
Do join us Wednesday for our
casual chat.
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Mary Rosenblum
|
We just get together here to
talk about whatever.
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Mary Rosenblum
|
Meanwhile have a good week.
I'll post the transcript in the usual place; Writing Craft: Forum
Transcript.
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Mary Rosenblum
|
Have a good week, all!
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