writingforyourlife

I recently finished The Memory Keeper’s Daughter by Kim Edwards, a favourite amongst book clubs.

In the 60’s, a doctor is forced to deliver his own twins during a snowstorm.  His wife is unaware that one of the twins is born with Down’s Syndrome. The doctor tells his wife the child died, and convinces his nurse to take the child to an institution.  Instead, the nurse keeps the child and raises her as her own.

While I really enjoyed this book’s premise and plot, I thought the quality of writing was mixed.  It started strong and faded near the end.  It’s a classic choice from which to draw writing dos and don’ts.

• Do create a fascinating premise: One healthy baby, one with Down’s Syndrome, separated by 1960’s intolerance and a thrilling family secret.  
• Do create suspense:  When will the mother discover her daughter didn’t die, but was hidden from her for over 20 years?
• Do hook your reader:  Chapter one features strong writing and the premise is set quickly.
• Don’t tell… Show! :  The story covers such a long period of time, Edwards often resorts to carelessly inserting major plot events by simply saying they happened rather than showing them.
• Don’t write sloppy endings:  There is so much build up to the climax, the ending is sweet but feels rather thrown together.
• Don’t exhaust your reader:  Character development is one thing, but piling on inconsequential details can get old, fast.  Be selective.

Please don’t let my criticisms stop you from reading The Memory Keeper’s Daughter .  A writer must look at reading selections from a critical perspective in order to learn from them!

It’s worth a read, and I do recommend it to anyone who enjoys mainstream literature.

New Year’s Day is all about making resolutions (and breaking them before February 1st).

Maybe you want to lose weight, quit smoking or spend more time with family.  Resolutions aren’t easy to keep, but the best way to be successful is to be specific and write them down.

Here are my writing goals for 2009:

• Write every day for at least 30 minutes
• Use Duotrope Digest to find more markets for my articles and short stories, and be more targeted with submissions
• Maintain 3-5 blog posts per week
• Finish the first draft of my book

The key to setting goals is to be realistic. Saying “I’m going to have my novel published within the year,” is unrealistic because there’s only so much control one has over the publishing process.

A more realistic goal would be to say “I’m going to submit my finished novel to at least 5 publishers this year.”  You are in full control of submissions, and the greater number you make, the better your chances of getting published.

When setting goals for your writing this New Year, remember to write them down, make them specific, and be sure they’re truly achievable.

Merry Christmas (only 4 more sleeps)!

My gift to you, loyal reader, is a new blog template, so you don’t have to look at the old one anymore.  I was getting a little sick of it.

Guaranteed, I will be tired of this new template by New Year.  But hey, they’re easy enough to change.

In terms of writing, I reached the 40 000 word mark today.  Still, I feel it’s only the tip of the iceberg.  I’m really looking forward to the new year and the challenge that lies before me.  By this time one year from now, I hope to have a solid draft, preferably one that’s had a good rewrite.

I wish you all the best this season.  Check back soon for new writing tips and resources.

I see the notion of talent as quite irrelevant. I see instead perseverance, application, industry, assiduity, will, will, will, desire, desire, desire.

~Gordon Lish

It’s officially close enough to Christmas that I’m sure you’re feeling as overwhelmed and busy as I am.  Also, my internet has been down for 2 weeks (which is why my recent posts have been few and far between).

In any case, if you’re like me, you haven’t had as much time lately to work on your writing.  Between the last minute shopping trips, wrapping gifts, and planning excessively extravagant dinners, there’s little time for anything else.

However, what’s the next best thing to actually spending time writing?

… Spending time composting!

No, not composting your kitchen scraps (although you should do that too), but composting ideas.  For the most part, Christmas preparations are fairly brainless and routine, so you can use that time to focus your brain power on your story.

I’ve spent quite of bit of the last week composting ideas for my novel, and I’m better off for it.  It’s perfect timing as well, because I’m at a major transition point in my story and I could use a little thought time.

So, don’t despair if you don’t have time to write this holiday season:  compost ideas instead.  When you come back to your work, you’ll write more efficiently because of it.

When I woke up early yesterday morning, the sun was shining.  So, I decided to take advantage and get out for a walk.

Automatically, I strolled down the hill to the boardwalk along the ocean’s shoreline.  You get the best scenery there, plus a nice breeze.  Music played through my headphones and I was enjoying the sun on my face and the extra boost of energy from the exercise.

Just as I neared the end of the bay, my eye caught something out of place.  Two women were wading in the sparkling green water, and with them were two horses.  The women were splashing water on the horses, more in the manner of cooling them off than washing them.

I was taken aback by this scene in the middle of town.  It seemed so utterly out of place.  I was glad I didn’t miss the opportunity by opting out of a walk.  It also made me wonder how many interesting and unexpected inspirations I miss every day.

I’ll be taking more early morning walks from now on.