Practice Makes Perfect

Or at least, deliberate practice makes you pretty darn close. If you stick to it long enough.

That's the key to life, isn't it? Sticking to things. Making habits. Keeping habits. If you want to become something, do something, you have to stick to it long enough that you can actually accomplish something within it.

I suppose that's what school is supposed to be about. Teaching us daily so that we can learn things through incessant drills and annoying schedules. We grow to dread the stuff so much, we hate growing up and learning that we're going to have to do the same mindless stuff to make a living, too. And to learn things outside of work? More annoying schedules forcing us to do dreaded drills.

But if it gets me to my ultimate goal of becoming a world-renowned writer? I'd do just about anything.

In that vein, I'm designing a schedule for my writing, to improve myself. And I need some honest opinions to help me along. What would you say, from this blog, are my weakest points? What skills would it benefit me to study in repeated drills to become a better writer? What would you say I'm the worst at?

I really need honest opinions here. Criticism would be wonderful. I just want to know where to start on my journey to becoming a better writer!

Writing quote of the day/month/year: “One day I will find the right words, and they will be simple.”
― Jack Kerouac, The Dharma Bums

Out of Balance -- Life and Writing

My life tends to be either very calm and boring, or very exciting and chaotic. Rarely do I make it to a nice, even middle.

When is it, do you think, that I do the most writing? Of course, it's when life is calm and boring. Whenever life gets chaotic, I don't have the time or health to write. Am I alone in that horrible trait: allowing your writing to fall to the wayside?

I believe that the truly successful writers are those who don't allow their writing to ever fall by the wayside. If only I could be one of them. Somehow, I have to find a way to make do with what I was given. This time, I'm determined to finish this book and get it published. But...my writing WILL fall away into unimportance when life gets hectic again.

I'd like to take this time to thank all those who took the time to encourage me to continue writing (I still shudder when I think of that Twilight/Harry Potter crossover fan-fiction) and to tell you I have gotten some writing done. Just not as much as I would wish. But progress is progress, right?

However, I have another plea. Am I the only one who finds the act of writing easy, but the work of writing hard? Once I sit down and write, the words flow like magic. It's the sitting down and writing that I have such trouble with. Sometimes, I am not mentally able to handle the work of it. Other times, I'm not physically able to sit in the chair for long hours. More often than not, I'm distracted by other problems. Does anyone know of a way to get work done every day, no matter what? To force myself to work?

My life is out of balance. Whenever my writing is doing well, my life sucks. Whenever my life is doing well, my writing sucks. Is there ever a way to make the see-saw level out?

Thanks for listening, and for any advice you may care to offer. Here's our beautiful writing quote of the day:

"Capture your reader, let him not depart, from dull beginnings that refuse to start." -- Horace

Happy writing!

The Sweet Smell of Success!

 So, I did it. I turned off the internet and wrote over 3000 words yesterday and today. And it felt GOOOOOOOD!

I'm so happy to have done it! I accomplished what I set out to do. Okay, so only two days are done and there are twenty-eight left (it's so depressing when I say that), but I did it for two days! I am officially 6000 words richer than I was just yesterday when I posted on this blog. So, no matter what happens in the future, I have still come out the better for this exercise.

And let me tell you, to successfully finish something important is the biggest high ever. I feel like I could run a marathon right now. I'm skipping, I'm twirling, I'm happier than I've felt since I was knee-deep in my book two months ago and loving it.

I have to say, I think this idea rates among the best I've ever made. Even if I don't finish the book by the end of the month (which I still am going to try to do), this has made me love my work again, and that is no small fete!

The challenge feels exhilarating, to say the least! So my (unasked for) advice of the day is: if you're having an attack of the doldrums, can't seem to discover that inner spark that you had just a little while ago, challenge yourself with the almost impossible and watch yourself blossom with success. It worked for me (so far).

I've come up with a work strategy to help me write every day. I start by setting up an area on a desk of some sort for my laptop to sit on with the notebooks I've made outlining my idea nearby, preferably open. I have to pull up a comfortable chair with some sort of pillow to keep me nice and relaxed. Then, I play light classical music in the background, to help me think and drown out the distractions of the world around me (they say classical music improves your brain function, and after much experimentation of my own, I believe it). After that, I shut off the internet and pull up my book on the computer. While I work, the urge to pull the internet back up to look up some fact or do some research on some moment in the book overtakes me at least once or twice. But I persevere and refuse to allow the treacherous heart to lead me unto temptation.

I'm sorry if I sound all braggy. But I'm just so excited! Do you know how many personal goals I've set and failed? And, so far, I've done what I set out to do on this one, and the success has me feeling like I could fly!

Well, thanks to all my readers for tuning in for another installment. Sorry it came so late in the day, but I wanted to get my 3000 words done for the day first.

Here's some questions for all my readers: Have you ever set a challenging goal for yourself and found yourself exhilarated by the work? Have you ever set a challenging goal for yourself and failed miserably? Did that make you feel depressed (it has me)? What kind of challenge would you relish in your life right now?

Here's a video that had me dying laughing the first time I watched it. I could NOT get over this chair! Hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

And, to finish, the writing quote of the day:

A synonym is a word you use when you can't spell the other one.  ~Baltasar Gracián