Making To-Do Lists

I'm not sure how I ever functioned without to-do lists.

On days when I don't make them, I get very little done. On days when I DO, life--and especially writing--moves forward at a healthy pace.

Today's to-do list includes answering email, editing articles for clients, formatting Seasons of an Irish Hermitage, blogging, writing newsletters, researching literary agents, designing a new Web site, planning a road trip, and revising Burning Light. It is broken into bite-sized time chunks: I can easily accomplish all this in a day, provided that I stay focused.

Furthermore, each item on the list is a bite-sized chunk from a bigger list: the list of projects and commitments I need to finish this summer. Each morning, I refer to that list and make sure that every project is moving ahead at the pace needed to finish on time. Of course, a few things will end up cut from the list entirely--I'm not superhuman. But having everything written down helps me prioritize.

A to-do list provides me with direction for the day, a record of what I've accomplished, and peace of mind--I know when I can take a break and when I can't, because I know exactly what needs doing and what can rest for now. As a self-employed writer/editor/writing coach, I know I couldn't function without one.

Lists are one of the major tools in my writer's arsenal. How about you? What tools and techniques keep you on track?

The epic begins. All over again.

With the teaching semester behind me, I am really and truly settling in for this summer's work. Chief on my list of projects? Seriously revise Burning Light, the sequel to Worlds Unseen. I want it ready for release in December.

A little history: I wrote Worlds Unseen in 2001. Almost immediately thereafter, I sat down and banged out Burning Light. It took maybe three months. It was a milestone for me: the best thing I'd written to date and my favourite.

I liked it so much that I never really wrote a proper second draft. So while Worlds went through four incarnations before it saw print, Burning Light has never really changed. The time has come.

Over the past few months I've outlined each chapter in Burning Light, summarizing every scene and marking places where changes should be made. I've flagged all the major plot lines that need work. I've made lists (and checked 'em twice).

And what am I doing now? Blogging, obviously. The adventure is about to begin, if only the author will quit procrastinating.

more Boundless on writing

And the series continues. I would have been more on-the-date with these, but I just spent a weekend in Chattanooga, Tennessee, far from home and my handy wireless connection!

"Writing Without Inspiration" shares one of the great secrets of productive writers, who can't exactly wait for the miraculous muse to hit before cranking out work on deadline: the practice of thinking through your fingers. I can attest that this works, because I do it all the time. (In fact, I'm doing it right now.) The author is Susie Shellenberger, the editor behind Brio, Focus on the Family's magazine for teen girls. The article is also an interesting behind-the-scenes look at a magazine.

In "A Moment to Write," Jenny Schroedel shares advice and anecdotes from professional writers who helped her reach her own dream of becoming a writer. Advice is given in four areas: Begin Where You Are, Set the Stage, Invest in Tools, and Find a Friend With Gentle Eyes. She closes with a lovely section on why we write, encouraging us to write in a "simpler, childlike way" through a story about Vincent Van Gogh.

P.S.

Chattanooga was warm, green, and beautiful, thank you; although I can't believe it's muggy down there and it's only the first week of May!

Boundless on writing

Boundless Webzine, regular home to my own articles, is featuring a series on writing this week. I've enjoyed both articles so far and thought I'd share them with you.

Yesterday's article was "On writing" by Andree Seu. Though her "reach out and throttle you" writing style took me a minute to get used to, her rapid-fire advice is excellent, pithy, and an entertaining read.

Today's article, Thomas Jeffries' "Writing by the Book," examines many of the literary devices used by the Bible writers, from the prophets to David to Paul. Not only can writers learn a few techniques and principles by studying the unique style guide we call scripture, they might stumble across a few truths, too. This article is for anyone whose interest is piqued by writing or literary studies.

The Creative Art of Conflict

I'm cleaning up superfluous blogs from my past and so am about to delete the "Little Dozen Press" blog. There are a couple of posts I want to keep, so I'm moving them here. This was originally posted December 2005.

Writers and readers all, weigh in on the discussion... leave comments!

The dragon pulled itself up to its full scaly height as the knight tightened his grip on his sword; the homesteaders barred their doors as the sound of war whoops filled the air; the little boy looked defiantly into the face of the bully. The mother prayed for her child as she fought the ravages of smallpox, and the family hid the Jews away while the Nazis pounded on their door.

Cliched? Probably. But if you're a reader, you know what moments like the above can do to you. They make your heart pound and your palms sweat. They keep you up reading until two in the morning. They make you skip your dinner.

They make or break a story, because conflict is central to every enduring piece of fiction. Think about it--have you ever read a story that didn't make use of conflict? If you have, you've probably forgotten it. Frodo had his black riders. Anne of Green Gables had red hair, freckles, and a desperate need to belong. The Greatest Story of All (that of Jesus and His followers throughout the ages) is riddled with persecution, hardship, and the struggle to keep truth alive.

I used to think that conflict appealed to readers simply because it gives us an adrenaline rush. We thrive on thrills. But nowadays I lean toward another theory. We love to read about conflict because, just as it makes or breaks a story, conflict makes or breaks us. It's the hard times that cement our character, drive us to God, open our eyes. Without the fight, the victory means nothing.

Good stories have the power to encourage those who are struggling, to give hope and remind readers that happy endings really do exist. The use of conflict is not only a literary device, it's a commentary on life and the amazing truths that lurk within every circumstance.

Love is stronger than hate.
Happily ever after is real.
In the end, there is no night so dark that it won't see the sunrise.

Leave a comment. What think you?

Narnian Tears

I'm cleaning up superfluous blogs from my past and so am about to delete the "Little Dozen Press" blog. There are a couple of posts I want to keep, though, so I'm moving them here.

This was one was originally published in December 2005, just after The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe hit theatres.

First off, let it be known that I never cry at the movies. (That "never" is, of course, not meant to be taken literally. I shall now proceed to tell you about a movie I cried at.)

I've seen Narnia twice now, and both times I've cried. The first time I sniffled and blinked back tears; the second time I let tears stream down my face, and I just wiped them away now and again. No, I did not cry when they killed Aslan. I did not cry at the various reunitings among the siblings. I did not cry when everyone else cried.

I cried during the opening scenes. The bombings in London. Farewell at the station. Riding the train through unfamiliar places. The reality of World War II and all that it meant for so many hit me hard, and I couldn't hold back the tears.

Something else hit me, from a writer's standpoint: we write stories like Narnia because we've lived stories like the World Wars. In the previous post, I said that we're drawn to conflict in stories because conflict in real life is so significant; because it makes us who we are. In much the same way, we read and write stories like The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe because they help us understand life. They help us come to grips with Hitler and the Holocaust. They help us understand crucifixion. And if they can't give us peace and total understanding, they have the power to give us something just as important--

Hope.

the love factor

If your life is anything like mine, you have a hard time managing time! I want to live a creative, productive life while bringing in enough money to live on, eating and sleeping on a regular basis, and pursuing the Lord actively.

Easier said than done.

I thought about showing you my to-do list so you can see what I mean, but I won't. Instead, I'll say that I could write a book based on the last few years called 101 Ways to Burn Yourself Out. (Another book! Add it to the to-do list!)

As I strive for a schedule that mixes pursuit of excellence with sleep, I'm learning to pay attention to The Love Factor.

Do I love this topic? Do I really want to write about it? Do I really want to hunt down editors and magazines that will publish it, knowing that I'll likely face rejection before acceptance?

Do I love this book? So much that I'll write it, rewrite it, publish (or pursue publication through someone else) and market it?

Do I love this project/idea/Web site/hobby/cup of tea enough to make it worth the time I could spend on it?

Obviously, every love-worthy thing in life will have loads of little components that you don't love, but you have to do anyway. I don't love putting the kettle on, half-climbing into the cupboard to get the tea bags off the really high shelf where they reside, and waiting for the kettle to whistle. I DO love tea, so it's worth it.

For me, the key is whether the overall project is something I really, truly, whole-heartedly want to do. If not, my attention is probably better focused elsewhere.

why?

Despite the title, this isn't a post of rhetorical questions.

At the moment, my writing plate is full. Angel in the Woods is in revision before I contact agents. Worlds Unseen is still selling, which means that its sequel, Burning Light, needs my attention soon! And events have kicked into gear which mean I'll be publishing Tales of the Heartily Homeschooled, a collection of humourous big family/homeschooling essays, this year.

I'm busy with many other things as well, so sometimes I have to wonder: Why do I do this?

Certainly not for the money. Yes, I'd love it if my writing (specifically my novels) could support me. I'm working toward that end. But as my financial review of the past few days has showed, self-publishing is unlikely to get me there--and traditional publishing may take a while :).

The acceptable Christian answer is something like "I'm doing it to change lives" or "I'm doing it to spread the gospel." Those sound good, and of course I'm thrilled if either of those results flow from my writing. But if those were really my sole reasons, I probably wouldn't write fiction. I'd stick to devotional writing--or at least I'd make my fiction more blatantly evangelistic.

Which brings me back to the original question: Why?

Well, why do birds sing?

Song helps them communicate, yes; it aids them in mating, yes; it serves various functions in their lives--but ultimately, why do they sing? Because it's in them to do it. Because God Himself put it there.

Ultimately, why do I write? Because it's in me to write. Because writing--writing anything--is for me an act of praise.

Will my fiction change lives? Will it spread the gospel? I hope so. I hope my writing will bring a breath of heaven into the very worldly world of publishing. But I can't really control the effect my writing has on others. All I can do is write, in praise of the God who made me.

Writing Tip: What's the Point?

It's the final week of the Spring Semester, and I'm marking essays. My students are given a choice of topics and 30 minutes to wax brilliant. I thought I'd address one of the common problems I see in this column.*

An essay should leave the reader with one strong impression. If he reads and then asks, "What's the point?", the essay has failed. If you know this, you'll find it much easier to put an essay together quickly. You needn't address every aspect of a topic or fill your essay with lots of inconsequential facts and anecdotes. You simply need to make a point.

Start by making a quick outline, either mentally or on paper. (Paper is better. Always.) Try for five paragraphs:

Par. 1. What's the point? Use this paragraph to introduce your topic and make a strong point about it. For example, if my topic is winter, I can make the point that winter is inhospitable to life. I can't just ramble on about winter in this paragraph. It needs to get to the point quickly.

Par. 2-4. These paragraphs should support my point. They should not give facts about winter that don't pertain to my point, nor should they ask lots of rhetorical questions or detail my childhood relationship with winter. Rather, each paragraph should look at one aspect of winter that supports my point.

Winter is inhospitable because it's too cold for most creatures. (Look at the way birds fly south and rodents hibernate.) Winter is inhospitable because nothing grows, so there is no natural food source. (This is why people have canned, dried, and salted food since time immemorial.) Winter is inhospitable because it's dark. (People fall into depression.)

Par.5. Here I make my point again, phrased slightly differently, and sum up my argument. I want readers to leave with a strong impression: WINTER IS INHOSPITABLE!

An essay with a clear point will feel solid and unified, and accomplish the purposes for which it was sent.

Incidentally, aren't you glad it's SPRING?




* It's my blog, so I'll call it a column if I want to :).

the ultimate way to honour an author

Develop a theme park around his books. No, I'm not kidding. Yes, it is called "Dickens World."

P.S. The title of this post is sheeeeer sarcasm.

there's magic in the dirt

Why, you may wonder, has Rachel posted a picture of four pots of dirt on her blog?

Ah, but you just think those are four pots of dirt. The truth is something much greater. Those four pots are an herb garden. They are glorious and green. They are healing for headaches and upset stomachs; they are salve to sore throats and aching lungs.

I forget that at times, and then I feel silly for lugging those four pots out into the sun so my herb garden can thrive, and for watering them every night and sometimes praying that my unproven thumb will prove green. But I'm right. There's magic in that dirt.

Have you ever heard a song that melted you or carried you away to some verdant, misty paradise? The song "Perfect Day" does that to me. Every note, every instrument, every word reaches deep into my heart and calls forth a response.

The other day I was typing and I heard my little sisters playing outside my bedroom door. In their story, Keturah was a fairy who sang instead of talking. She sang her whole story: where she had come from, why she had come, what she was searching for. It was rambling and warbly and a little off-key. But there was a seed in it. A storytelling seed, a musical seed, a calling-f0rth-response seed. Someday she's going to reach people with music.


Recently I sat down and faced a blank page. Pushing aside thoughts that I was wasting my time and couldn't possibly pull it off this time, I typed some letters. But they wouldn't stay letters, no, as letters will, they turned themselves into sentences and formed a paragraph. This is what they said:

It was raining in the fields. Cold rain. Taerith stretched out his arms and raised his head, letting the rain hit his face and run down the bridge of his nose. He opened his mouth and gulped convulsively as the liquid trickled into his throat. It was good of the sky, he thought, to give him water. He had been at work with the other men, harvesting late corn, but the rain had put an end to the work for now. The fields were nearly bare anyway. Water puddled around his boots--held together now with string and patches--and turned the trampled furrows to mud.

There's magic in those little ink blots. They're not just letters now, they're a story--a story of a man who is sent away from his family and forms a new one by laying down his freedom to serve a slave girl and a persecuted queen, to befriend an imprisoned priest and fight next to a half-blood warrior. (You can read what there is of that story here.)

Beginnings. Rarely do they resemble what we know, by faith and a sort of passionate instinct, they will become. Off-key ditties don't sound like symphonies. Jumbles of a's and b's and h's don't look like literature. Children don't look like mothers and fathers, prophets and servants, yet there's magic in them. God put something in them that will grow if it's tended, into something green and tall and beautiful.

Keep hauling your pots into the sun, watering the dirt, writing those words, playing that piano. Keep investing in the lives of your children and grandchildren and brothers and sisters and friends. What you sow, you shall reap.

I'm not alone!

Sam Torode of Boundless loves words, too! As it happens, I love his words (and his wife's). Intelligent, articulate, and, in this case, all about Winnie-the-Pooh. Go read it.

The lovely ladies of the YLCF also like words. The proof is in the bookshelves.

It's All About the Words

Taking a quick break from work...

I work with words for seven or eight hours every day. I read them, I write them, I correct them. They never cease to amaze me. The fact that we can string 26 letters together and communicate worlds with them, across centuries and cultural boundary lines, that we can form new ideas and challenge old ones, put fears to rest and create upheaval... words are amazing.

I write to create beauty. I realized this the other day. For me writing is not just about communication. It's an art form. That's why I get a thrill out of poetry, or a piece of description that's just perfect. I love a sentence with rhythm; a paragraph with style. I love a line of dialogue that sounds in my head. I love the way beauty itself communicates: with more power and truth than can be in words alone.

I love it when words force me to stop my day for a moment just to absorb them.

I love the vocabulary of Scripture. I like to pull its word out and run them through my head: grace, thanksgiving, great love; awesome, holy, LORD of Hosts. "I call to remembrance my song in the night" (Psalm 77:6).

What are words to you?

So Much for Vocabillary

or, Why Your Friends Should Always Read Your Work First

I'm rewriting an old short story for hopeful publication, and I asked my Wayside girls to read it over yesterday. Apparently, "laconic" does NOT mean something like "sluggish; uncaring."

It means "using or involving the use of a minimum of words : concise to the point of seeming rude or mysterious."

My vocabulary bubble has been burst.

Thanks, Rach ;).

In the Company of Genius

As a writing coach, I've had the privilege of helping over one hundred students become better writers. I love it. I have a confession to make, though: I've never taken a writing course in my life.

That doesn't mean I haven't had teachers. In fact, I've been taught by some of the best. Writers have the unique opportunity to sit at the feet of the masters, because words are deathless. My writing coaches span ages and literary genres: everyone from Shakespeare to Beatrix Potter; from Ray Bradbury to the Apostle Paul.

Writers read. If they don't, they bypass the greatest body of creative instruction in the world.

Here are a few tips for you, O Aspiring Writer:

1. Read through the ages. You may have a poster of Charles Dickens on your wall, but make sure you read things that have been written more recently than 1870. Writing as an art form has come a long way since the 19th century. Become familiar with the styles of past and present, and you can mine them for a style of your own that is neither outdated nor destined to go the way of New Kids On the Block.

2. Read poetry. Read poetry even if you don't understand it. Read it even if you don't like it. Poets use language in ways that will enrich your own writing if you let their work sink in.

3. Read nonfiction if you're a novelist; fiction if you write nonfiction. The styles can learn a lot from each other. Fiction writers know how to pace a story and involve the emotions and passions of their readers--it's a skill nonfiction writers can benefit from. Likewise, nonfiction writers know how to cut to the chase, communicate clearly, and make the mundane sound interesting. Novelists, take note.

(A quick aside: novelists and short story writers will also find that nonfiction books--history, science, biography, social issues, travelogues, and more--are an incredible storehouse of ideas.)

4. Read critically. When something moves you, ask yourself why. When you're bored, ask the same question. What's working? What isn't? Analyzing the work of others will help you
figure out what's strong or weak in your own writing. Keep a journal where you jot down your observations, along with favourite quotes, interesting new words, and ideas.

5. Read the thesaurus. For fun. Seriously. I do this when I'm bored. If you doubt the extreme "fun factor" of this activity, look up "miscellany." Who knew "rumble-bumble" was a word?

And last but not least...

6. Read books about writing. People spend hundreds of dollars on writing courses and conferences, but the library has a host of how-to books that will teach you a lot about structure and pace and dialogue and exposition and everything else you need to know.

something's happening in the northern swamp

The sentence has become a paragraph, and the paragraph a scene: birth of a character with requisite new ideas festooning every line, a hunt for zoological references while "As the dawn was breaking the sambhur belled/Once, twice, and again!" repeated itself in my mind, evening spent sniffling over the unexpected sadness of my own imagination.

I do love to write :). More Taerith shall appear by the end of this week, I hope.

I hope to start posting Writing Tips again shortly. The new semester has begun and I am teaching 55 students: lots of material for Tips!

fruitful

"The earth beneath Taerith's feet sank as he crept over it, the boggy reek of the mud rising to meet the close darkness of branches that hung down from old, spindle-rooted, thick-trunked trees; dripping long strands of black leaves."

One and one-half hours.

One complete sentence.

It's either writer's block or shocking procrastination.


http://taerith-romany.blogspot.com

Writing Tips: Say What You Mean, Part 2

There's a whole coterie of words out there whose life mission it is to plague our work with ambiguity. Don't get me wrong; they DO have their place. But these pushy little fellows will run rampant all over your writing if you let them.

Their ringleader is ye olde state-of-being verb "seems."

Look at this sentence: "The sky seems to be grey."

Ahem. Is the sky grey or isn't it? Stand up to your writing: say what you mean! No more beating around the bush.

Here's a few more:

"She felt a feeling like anger rise up inside."
"It seems that the answer is found in our human nature."
"The buildings resembled 17th century homes."
"The river is probably the nicest place in town."

All too often, we haul out words like "seems" and "probably" and "like" because we're feeling apologetic or we're not quite sure of what we're saying. If you find yourself doing this, stop. Make sure of your facts. Solidify your opinion. And deliver it whole-hog. Have the courage to say what you mean. It makes for much better writing!

Was she angry or wasn't she?
Is the answer found in human nature or not?
Are the buildings 17th century homes?
Is the river the nicest place in town?

Saying what you mean will make your writing tighter, sharper, and more impactful. Excelsior!


Technorati: writing, words, clarity, writing tips

Writing Tips: Clarity in Word Choice (Say What You Mean)

Never underestimate the power of one little word. A few letters here; a syllable there; but the difference between "Do feed the lion" and "Do not feed the lion" can't be measured. It might, in fact, be the difference between life and death.

Good communication is important. Writers have a high place in the cast of history because they possess the power to communicate: their instructions, ideals, visions, and protests have changed the world more than once. The writing project you're working on may not have the significance of The Declaration of Independence or The Gospel According to John, but if you're going to write it's important that you master the art of saying what you mean.

Two important tools can help you with this:

1. The Dictionary. If you're not sure what a word means, look it up! Did you know that a casualty is a "person or thing injured, lost, or destroyed," or that "taciturn" means "temperamentally disinclined to talk"? I'm fond of "lowering" skies, which are "dark, gloomy, and threatening." Many of us pick up words through conversation or reading that we're comfortable using, but can't actually define. In writing, it's often best to look these up. You may get the joy of discovering just how bang-on the word you want to use is!

2. The Thesaurus. These are even more fun than dictionaries. Maybe you're describing a man who is "sulky," but that isn't quite the word you want. Look it up in the thesaurus and discover a new world of possibilities: perhaps he is glum, sullen, surly, morose; choleric, crabby, cranky, or cross; irascible, irritable, or just plain petulant.

Every word has its own shades of meaning. Choosing the right one will not only give your writing clarity, it will give it power.

Check back next Wednesday for "Say What You Mean: Part 2," in which we discuss the insidious insipidity of "seems" and "like" and other words to be avoided.


Technorati: dictionary, words, thesaurus, writing, clarity

Writing Tips: 5 Secrets of Highly Effective Proofreading

No matter how nitpicky you are, errors in your writing will camouflage themselves. That's why publishing companies spend a lot of money to have multiple people check and re-check the little details in every book they produce. Still, there's no need to fear if you don't have a professional team at work every time you jot down a memo. Here are some tricks I use for effective proofreading:

1. Give it some time. If you've written a short note that you want to check for errors, do something else for five minutes before you read it over again. If you've written an article or essay, eat lunch before you proofread... if a book, wait a month or so. When the words you meant to write are fresh in your mind, you won't see the words you actually did write.

2. Take your time. Don't speedread when you're proofing. Skimmers never prosper.

3. Read out loud! I know, I know, if you mutter to yourself all the time you'll look like a crazy person. But it's worth it. Your ears will often catch what your eyes do not, so read under your breath when you're looking for errors.

4. Check for homophones--"soundalikes." I mark them in my students' writing all the time, but they're just as prone to show up in mine: here/hear, right/write, its/it's, there/their/they're, and all the rest of them. Put your brain on red alert for these, because we ALL type the wrong one now and again, and most of us won't see it afterward if we're not looking.

5. If it sounds wrong, check it. If a sentence sounds wrong to you, chances are there's something off in the grammar. Don't stay in a grey zone on this--learn what the problem is so you don't keep making it. I recommend Strunk and White's Elements of Style for the most common foibles.

That's it for today... I'm off to do email for five minutes, after which I'll come proofread these tips!


Technorati: writing, writing tips, proofreading, grammar