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Archive for the ‘Novel Writing’ Category

I tried to write like Enid Blyton once because I love Enid Blyton books….I love them when I was five and I still love them today. There’s something very endearing about gnomes, pixies, brownies (I thought they were the edible kind at first) and also those naughty little boys having their faces frozen mid-scowl when the wind blew – mind-blowing. You remember that one? Yeah, it’s fantastic and out of this world. The world could end and Enid Blyton books would still be selling like mad cakes out of the oven.

I also tried to write like John Grisham because he’s really up there and I am a law graduate. I understood (sort of) all the procedures and lingos that he was using in all his books. I got all of those stuff covered. And then when I do that, I sound like a half-baked college student trying to impress her teachers and school mates and the next door neighbor’s dog.

Avid readers of love stories would definitely, positively try to write a romance novel. Those Mills and Boons stuff? Yeah, you’ve got to try writing them….but after a while, you’re afraid that you don’t know enough about all those ‘stuff’ to write them and when you try to get it published, people will laugh their faces off.

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Can you think of one instance whereby you’re just staring at the keyboard and willing yourself to type something….ANYTHING out?! You’re just staring at it and wishing that there was something you could do about that empty page on the computer.

I know. It’s horrible, that feeling.

But here’s the secret to writing even when you’re stuck…just write anyway. Anything that comes to mind. Just think about a recent movie you’ve seen, the cup of coffee in front of you, your favorite actress, a man standing at the altar being abandoned by his bride-not-to-be….etc. The obstacle is you. You can’t get started because you’re facing something writers are most afraid of….writer’s block! Oh, how I hate that word too!

Over the years of being able to write despite facing devastating and career-destroying mind blocks, I’ll share something with you and that is to get yourself chugging anyway.

You know, November is my favorite month of the year because that’s the month whereby I have to force myself to write despite not knowing what to write. I participate in something called the National Novel Writing Month….in short, it’s affectionately called Nanowrimo. It’s an incredible process, I’m telling ya!!

The purpose is to force yourself to write a novel (or a really long short story – haha) of at least 50,000 words within that month. The reward….nothing. Yeah, you don’t anything from completing the process but you know what? That’s not true. At the end of the month, when you’ve finally succeeded in writing those 50,000 words, you’ve got half a novel finished and a story.

Sometimes the story is good, sometimes they suck – but you’ve got material to work on now, don’t you?

So, the essence of what I am trying to say today is this. Even if you’re stuck there staring at your keyboard, write anyway. Write about how you hate your hand lotion, how much laundry you have to do, write about world war II….just keep at it until the engine chugs to life.

Good luck!

p.s. If you’re still stuck, head on over here for some REALLY NEAT writing prompts! Have fun. No, seriously, HAVE FUN!!!

by Susan Gabriel

There is a statistic I’ve seen in a couple of places that says that 99% of all writers who submit their work never get published. At best, this statistic is discouraging. Yet it floats around out there as if a tool to flog ourselves with mercilessly.

So why would someone do something that has such miserable odds? I wonder that myself, since I’m one of those people plugging away. I have been writing for 14 years. I have gone to what feels like a zillion conferences, taken creative writing courses, and worked out stories in writer’s groups month after month, year after year, for years. I have done this while piecing together part-time jobs and child-support to make ends meet.

In the process, I have written at least four viable manuscripts (two of which my agent is marketing), one now in print, and have a new one I’m working on. This new one will probably be revised a dozen times before I send it to my agent, probably a year or so from now. Folks, this is definitely not a get-rich-quick endeavor.

A whole industry has grown up around people who want to write. They are often called “wannabes” or they want-to-be a writer someday. And they, like me when I started out, are incredibly naïve about what it actually means to be a writer.

On the other end of the spectrum are the “I used to write” camp. These are the people that gave it a go and for whatever reason, usually having to do with paying the bills, gave it up. I don’t blame them one bit. I understand completely. And at the same time, I fight daily to not become a part of this camp.

This is not something you do for fame or fortune. Writing is something you do because you have to do it. You have to do it or else you will explode, implode, or be very unhappy. You have to do it or life as you know it will end. It feels like life or death. Being creative-writing, painting, sculpting, dancing, whatever-is not something that can be chosen lightly. It is a responsibility. And every time we pick up the pen or paint or learn a new dance position we are defying the odds.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Susan Gabriel is an author of fiction for adults and children. Her latest book, Seeking Sara Summers, is gaining acclaim in diverse circles.
More info at http://www.susangabriel.com
Gabriel works and plays in Colorado.