A New Leaf

A quick post today:

I'm always a day late and a dollar short, so I imagine most of you have read the book I'm reading now--No Plot? No Problem by Chris Baty, the founder of NaNoWrMo. You know how I like motivational books and talks so this one really speaks to me. Why did I wait so long to read it? Baty says so much I can identify with:

Example: A rough draft is best written in the steam-cooker of an already busy life.

I know this from experience. I wrote and sold my novel when my daughter was little and I was shuffling her from school to soccer to Sylvan, plus getting up at 5 a.m. to pack hubby's lunch for work, not to mention moving every year. You might remember me saying I wrote my book in Luling, LA, sold it in Port Neches, TX and did rewrites in Sugar Land, TX. Busy is a good thing because we recognize time is precious. We seem to make better use of our time when we have less of it.

Example: The key to writing a novel is to realize that you are in the greatest hands possible: your own.

I love this. I'm going to try harder to tune out all those voices that beat me down. My hands are very capable. When did I forget that?

Example: No matter what your talent level, novel writing is a low-stress, high-rewards hobby.

Really, there's nothing more enjoyable than creating fiction or writing poetry. I've forgotten just how much fun writing is for me. That sense of accomplishment/enjoyment/satisfaction is coming back.

Example: The single best thing you can do to improve your writing is to write. Copiously.

How many times have I told my daughter that 'you learn by doing' and not to worry about the experience she doesn't have? We can learn anything, can't we? And the best way to learn something is to just do it...again and again and again.

Example: What you need to write a novel, of course, is a deadline.

We all know deadlines rule. I'm used to writing with a deadline and during the past year--ever since the magazine folded--I've been whining for a deadline. I wonder why I think my own self-imposed deadline isn't as good as an editor's deadline?

I'm devouring No Plot? No Problem and will probably have more quotes from Chris Baty. Needless to say, a new leaf for me?