Today’s blog is about changing things up. I’ve decided the next 12 months (it’s my birthday this month- so as good a time as any!) are going to be about change.
I’m going to increase my awareness of things in my life and nudge them on track- or where needed- a new track ;).
My writing is something that will be under the microscope- I need to build a better and more constant routine. I’m prepping for NaNo and intend the prep and the event itself to be my “Great Get Back in Gear” period.
But I also want to change things up.
On the Castles & Guns blog (check it out if you never have- lots of amazing writers there! And not just because I’m there every other Saturday ;)-Link is in my list of blogs to the right)) I posted recently about going from pantser to plotter. JUST for Nano though! LOL.
Part of my thinking is that with NaNo being so insane, a guideline for the new book might be a good thing- at least for the tattered remains of my sanity ;).
But also I see NaNo as a time for experimentation. Last week I talked about habit- but it was the getting into the habit of writing everyday (good) as opposed to being stuck HOW we write (which could be bad). I see writing as a fluid practice. Who we are at the moment we are writing (or editing) influences how we write and what we write about. As we grow, our writing should grow and change too. But just like it’s not good to do the exact same exercise routine for weeks on end, writing the same way for book after book is going to leave flabby writing muscles.
So, I’m pulling in plotter techniques into my NaNo project. The ones that work, I’ll keep after NaNo. I recently asked one of my hard-core plotter friends for help- and it was WAY more intense than anything I could/would do. Talking to her did help though- I need to pull in new ideas (new exercises for the old writing muscles) but I need to keep true to my own way of creating/writing. And I like the idea of cards…just not colored ones (yeah, ya lost me there Melissa- ;)).
So what about you- are you stuck in a writing rut? How often do you change up YOUR routine?
I"m too busy with the day job and several concurrent WIPs to participate officially with NaNo but I will share that with my newest novel (a prequel to a trilogy requested by a publisher) I have turned into quite the plotter...
ReplyDeleteweird really.
That's a great reason to have to go into the plotter zone though Liz! Have you found that plotting is becoming easier?
ReplyDeleteThanks for coming by!
When I'm having trouble with my writing, I'll change the location of my writing. Writing in a cafe or some place different helps change it up for me. Also writing a different genre can do the trick. Stretching as a writer is a good thing, I think. It helps keep me on my toes.
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