Always Inspiring Darren Daily Podcast

Someone at work turned me on to this series of podcasts from Darren Hardy.  Always good advice on motivation and getting what you want out of life. 

Something, I think, as writers, we struggle with. Writing is a lonely business. Friends and relatives might not understand that getting a book launched off your desk and published is a lot of work. Hours taken from your home and family as you huddle over the computer, covered in ink stains, guzzling coffee, killing off  characters you put a lot of work into creating. Oy! And then comes the editing and more editing and finally your beta reader who hands it back to you for more editing... need I go on? 

So here's two minutes of inspiration; 

Write on my friends...you can do it! 

Writers, Slacking, & Motivation

Confession: I'm a slacker.

My writing habits have tanked in the last few months. Two separate manuscripts sit on my desk right now and I haven't touched them in...weeks. (Insert sad face here) I don't know what pushed me away from my desk or why I'm ignoring projects that I love, but it's time to bring the  hammer down. I'm bringing back the basic writer rules.

1. 1. Ass in Chair. The simplest of writer rules and the hardest one to follow. I know if I just walk into the little office on the side of my house I'll write. Getting there is where most writers fail. 
2. Turn off the Distractions. No facebook, twitter, TV, or phone. Another super simple rule. A writer needs a cave. A place to shut out the world. Stephen King once said he wrote in the laundry room of his trailer when he first started out. If he can go into a laundry room, I can go to my cave, too. 
3. Just write. Good or bad, as long as the writer is writing, amazing things can happen. Believe it. 
4. Be religious about your writing time. Carve out those hours and don't let anything interfere with it. It's a job. Go to it. 
5.  Seek other writers. Visiting their blogs, reading articles about writing, and going to writing groups keep a writer motivated. Being with your people centers a you, encourages you and can bring you back to productivity. 

So those are my writer rules. For the next eight hours I have to go to the day job, but tonight I go to my cave. 

Write on, my friends, protect your writing time and get your ass in the chair. That's my plan. 

Writing Time and Motivation

Even when I have time to write I'm getting little done. I'm scattered. I need a kick in the pants to get going. Unemployment is a weird state to be in. Although I make sure I'm up and ready to face the world early every morning, I get very little done.

I think, after being a stay at home mom for a lot of years before taking a full time job, I viewed the house as my job. When the kids were in school I'd clean, cook, wash, scrub and make sure everything was running like a well oiled clock. Then the kids grew up and I got  a job and life went on. Now back at home full time I find myself falling back into the stay at home mom job. Instead of looking at writing opportunities I'm cleaning! WTF!

I must be insane.

I've begged the universe to give me writing time and here it's handed to me and I blew it. Sheesh!

And today I got an interview. An opportunity to return to the real world. Why am I so bummed at the prospect of going back to 9 to 5?  Did I miss something I should have done? Am I subconsciously sabotaging myself?

Maybe.

But hey, an interview is no guarantee of a job. Perhaps this is my kick in the pants?

Who are the Characters in your life?

Ever meet people- you know,those exuberant, enjoy life (or hate life) , type of folks who you'll always remember-and then find them in your book?
Sometimes when I look back over my work I recognise people, or at least, pieces of people who I know in real life. Their personalities have worked their way into my writing and turned into characters. Maybe they're not exactly like the real life person but their spirit is there, dancing on my pages. And I never saw it happen.
I didn't sit down at my keyboard and say I'm going to put Kevin in here, or I'll make Scott into this tall, suave executive or hey, Sean would make a great artist type...
No, I didn't see them hop between the pages and come to life. But I guess the essence of their life has so impacted me that a part of my subconscious built entire characters around them.
My latest WIP (or at least one of them) started with a car accident. My car got hit from behind. I drive a bright yellow car and never thought anyone would hit me....how do they not see me? The car practically glows in the dark! But they did, slammed me good. So this made me think...what if someone hit someone from behind on purpose? Motivation? Other motivation? Ultimate outcome? Who's the winner here? What if the tables turned suddenly and the hittee becomes the winner? Or the hittee planned all this from the start?
So guess who's in my WIP now? Or at least a piece of him.
Do you see real peeps in your characters? Or at least a little bit of them?