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Viewing: Blog Posts Tagged with: finding inspiration to write, Most Recent at Top [Help]
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By: Taffy,
on 5/21/2012
Blog: Utah Children's Writers (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: dreams, Writing, taffy lovell, finding inspiration to write, Add a tag
Blog: Utah Children's Writers (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: dreams, Writing, taffy lovell, finding inspiration to write, Add a tag
By: Taffy,
on 3/19/2012
Blog: Utah Children's Writers (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Writing, luck, taffy lovell, finding inspiration to write, Add a tag
Blog: Utah Children's Writers (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Writing, luck, taffy lovell, finding inspiration to write, Add a tag
Can you create your own luck?
Thomas Jefferson said it best: "I'm a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work, the more luck I have."
An open writer goes to a writer’s conference and sees the potential to make new friends and contacts with the possibility of getting in touch with an agent or editor. A closed writer sees competition and shuts down.
Luck is what happens when you open yourself up to chance. Chance meets optimism.
You’ve worked on your manuscript, loved it, and now you feel the time has come to introduce it to the world. You hold you story out the window and wait for the Agent Fairy to fly by and pick it up. If only that’s how getting published worked!
Luck is what happens when you sign up to pitch your story to an agent, find the perfect outfit, wear an extra layer of deodorant, prepare and deliver your one-minute speech. The next minute you’re being asked to send the full manuscript to the agent. Preparation meets opportunity.
I’m sure you’ve heard many authors say they were in the right place at the right time for their book to be sold. Does that mean they stood around at writer’s conferences, waiting for an agent to spot them and ask for their story? Do they mean once they typed the words “The End” the journey was over? Did they land a book deal on the first query? Most likely not.
Luck is what happens when you write and write and edit and on query number 189 you land a book deal. Discipline meets perseverance
One hundred eighty nine rejections. That is a lot of “no thank yous” or “your story is a right fit for us.” A lot of soul crunching pain, wondering if your dreams are worth the trouble. Each time the backbone gains a little more strength, scar tissue interweaves
2 Comments on Luck is all you need!, last added: 3/19/2012
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By: Virginia S Grenier,
on 3/18/2012
Blog: Utah Children's Writers (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: VS Grenier, writing fiction, finding inspiration to write, Types of Fiction Writing, Add a tag
Blog: Utah Children's Writers (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: VS Grenier, writing fiction, finding inspiration to write, Types of Fiction Writing, Add a tag
I loved how the ICL broke down what fiction is to a writer when I first began my journey down the world of ink. They say, “Fiction is something made up—a story that originates in the mind of its creator and is then set down in writing. The whole idea is to use language in wildly creative ways, invent incredible worlds and develop wonderful—sometimes crazy—characters and plots.”
Simply put, fiction is based on facts or circumstances from our everyday lives. You can use memories, real events or even elements of facts you have learned in school, from an article, documentary or book, however, fiction only has touches of truth. The rest of fiction is an altered reality that seems real, but isn’t. Things happening can be plausible or not even possible as long as you can get your reader to believe in what is happen and suspend their disbelief.
Types of Fiction
When you begin shaping your story, keep an eye on the end product—genre of fiction. Is it an adventure? Sport story? A mystery? Comedy? Fantasy? A mixture?
- Real-life fiction—Contemporary characters coping with problems, from everyday concerns to serious moral and social issues. Can be set in any historical backdrop to present day.
- Multicultural fiction—Ranges from contemporary stories with ethnic elements to folktales and stories set in other lands.
- Adventure—A quest, a flight, a challenge and plenty of obstacles along the way. The emphasis is on the fast-paced action.
- Sports—What it takes to win, what it means to lose—in the context of a specific sport, specifically presented.
- Mystery and Suspense—Puzzle solving in all its forms, from small backyard mysteries to real-world crime; though without depictions of actual violence except at the older teen to adult level.
- 4 Comments on What is Fiction with VS Grenier, last added: 3/21/2012
By: Virginia S Grenier,
on 4/24/2011
Blog: Utah Children's Writers (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Renee Hand, beginning writer, finding inspiration to write, plotting a storyline, Add a tag
Blog: Utah Children's Writers (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Renee Hand, beginning writer, finding inspiration to write, plotting a storyline, Add a tag
I wanted to share yet another guest post with all of you that will help get those juices flowing as we come to the end of the 30 days/30 stories. I’ve been touring award-winning author Renee Hand this month and asked her for some insight on how she crafts her storylines for her two award-winning series. Here is what she had to say.
Plotting a Storyline with Award-winning Author Renee Hand
I can honestly say that I have no specific, technical, brain-zapping method in plotting my storyline.
I have been writing for over 25 years and believe me when I say that you can get super technical when it comes down to your writing, but if you focus on all of the technicality, how are you supposed to write, hhhmmmm? So here it is, plain and simple.
Mysteries, which is the genre I consistently write in, has several parts. Most of these elements apply to your basic story as well. These are the things you need to have an idea about when you start your story. If you have this as your guideline, you can improve and develop it from there.
First, you need to gather ideas. What is your story going to be about? What genre? Where is the story going to take place? So on and so forth.
Next, you must think about your main and minor characters. You need to figure out names, ages, how many characters you will focus on, and so on. Some characters will develop as you continue along.
The plot of a mystery is that there must be a problem and the main character(s) must solve it. Is something or someone stolen, missing, or kidnapped? You must have a list of clues, with one being the case-cracking clue; remember I am talking about mysteries here. You can throw in a red herring if you like, or a mislead.
You must have rising action. Your story needs to build up to the climax-where the conflict of the story comes to a head. You should have an idea on how your story is going to end, though in all actuality, your ending will most likely change as your story develops.
Remember that the climax of the story is not your ending. The ending must have a good resolution to the problem and be satisfying to the reader. My advice is to relax when writing. Don’t worry about so much and let your ideas flow.
There are so many rules and methods in writing that we could literally suffocate ourselves with them. Don’t worry about them at the very beginning. Get your ideas down on paper. Once down, develop them from there.
Remember that proofreading, revising and editing are great times to become more technical about what you should and shouldn’t have.
Renee Hand is an award-winning author, educator, tennis coach and various other things. Hand has been writing for over twenty years and
1 Comments on Guest Post: Plotting a Storyline, last added: 4/25/2011
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By: Virginia S Grenier,
on 4/10/2011
Blog: Utah Children's Writers (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: writing tips, VS Grenier, beginning writer, Judy Snider, finding inspiration to write, Add a tag
Blog: Utah Children's Writers (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: writing tips, VS Grenier, beginning writer, Judy Snider, finding inspiration to write, Add a tag
This is the third year Sarah and this blog have done the 30 Days/30 Stories Project and every year it reminds me a lot of NANO in November. It’s a lot of fun and a great way to gain exposure for your writing ability and talent. This is also a great way to inspire writers to who might be staring at a blank computer screen to try and come up with a story to share. I’m not part of the project this year because my workload right now is just too nuts for words, but I saw Sarah’s post on April 2nd and thought maybe one of my World of Ink Guest Authors can share some inspiration with you to help get those muse muscles flexing and ready to write.
How to Find Inspiration to Write
By: Judy Snider
There are days that I want to put blinders on my eyes, so that as I look around I am not suddenly filled with idea after idea for a story. I love to write and it seems odd to me if a day goes by that I don’t write something. Yet, the ideas that float around me sometimes make it hard to select the one that I want to use. I wanted to write chocolate inspires me first as it really does set the tone for my mind to get calm and me to find delight in my writing.
My sister, Joan, who is the co-author of I Love You, Be Careful says, “Everyday moments in my life inspire me!” She is a 20-year breast cancer survivor, a mother, grandmother, wife, friend and sister. She finds that there is beauty all around her and all her good moments and stressful moments inspire her.
I found that my children when growing up inspired me to write funny children’s stories, taking from their everyday adventures. Each age would provide a wealth of tales to tell. My best writing was at video arcades or other places waiting for my children. They would be noisy, hectic, but I seemed to pick up on the lively energy in the rooms.
Joan and I were talking on the phone one day, and our conversations about wanting our loved ones to be safe led to I Love You, Be Careful. No matter whether it was our grown kids, husbands, or other loved ones our love and concern for them inspired us to write this book.
So a few tips to inspire you to write:
1. Think of the funny and stressful things that could inspire you to write.
2. Think
1 Comments on How to Find the Inspiration to Write: Inspiring Authors for the 30 Days/30 Stories Project, last added: 4/10/2011
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Sometimes, I secretly make offerings to the Agent Fairy. **Shh**
So here's a question: I'm going to a writing workshop next month, and I know there will be some "movers and shakers" there. How should I prepare? Should I have a pitch ready? A query? I'm not shy, but I feel a little weird just rambling on about my work...Advice?