Any Writers Here?

[MissyLouWho?]

Anyone like to write, either just for fun for yourself, or to publish?  I love to write and have self-published 3 books so far.  Even my oldest daughter loves to write and has been compiling notebooks of short stories for the last year  .  I'd love to connect with other writers and share inspirations and tips!  Maybe even help each other become motivated and expand outside our comfort zones and write about different subjects that normally don't interest us. 

I came across a book of short stories in which every single story was comprised of a certain number of words, like 432 words or something.  I thought that was a really cool exercise to sharpen writing skills.  And to make matters harder, they were horror stories in those exact number of words.  I thought maybe we could do stuff like that (keep our actual writing to ourselves, but just use posts to say stuff like I am having trouble, or I did it or share tips and strategies or things like that.)

I don't know anyone else who writes and I am having trouble staying motivated now that I actually HAVE time to do it.  I'd like to learn how to go about finding a literary agent, what traps to avoid, and how NOT to have my writing stolen. I'm so afraid of that.  I also am having issues with brain fog and my fingers locking up and my joints hurting.  I keep a notebook and pencil by my bed because I find as I drift off to sleep, my mind will come  up with some really good scenarios or ideas for illustrations.  I will also wake up in the night with a thought and I know I will forget it in the morning so I have to jot it down or it will enter The Nothing, never to be seen again  !

So anyone here write too?

[WildThing]

I'm a journalist but off sick for over a year now.  I'm in the UK so I don't know how good my sources would be to you but we have a book here out annually called  The Writers Handbook.  Very unoriginal title but useful book.  Gives you hints and tips plus lists all publishers and periodicals.

[Joe S.]

I used to do a lot of writing if you consider computer programming writing. It can be hard to focus on it when you are doing it on your own. I have a rough draft that is 572 pages long of complementary alternative medicine. It took 8 years to pull all of the information together.

To state the obvious, writing takes longer with auto immune diseases.

Mom translated some letter from her family into a book "Letters to Ida". They are from 1912-1914 and have life on the great plains.

[tracyj]

Hi,

I am writing a novel at the moment.  About a 1/3 of the way through.   Its something I have always wanted to do, sjogrens has given me the time to do it, by curtailing my other "work" options.  (Something positive from my point of view.)

Would love to chat, feel free to email me.

Tracy

[season]

Hi Missy. I suppose you could say I'm a writer-wanna-be. Writing has always interested me and journalism.

I have very little time to write and don't feel good most days anyway.

A few years back I challenged myself to write a complete novel. It took me a little over a year and I loved doing it. I sent it to a publisher who was soliciting manuscripts. I was to contact them 3 months later if I hadn't heard anything by then which I did. I was sent an e-mail that my manuscript had been lost. I was so disapointed and haven't tried since.

I did take a course in writing and it was rewarding too. So I am hoping that one day I can get back to it.

I wish you the best of luck in your writing endeavors.

Season

[A66eyroad]

I was a journalism and English major and worked for years as the features writer of a small-town newspaper.

I loved my job! Sadly, though, as you probably already know, small local newspapers don't have the money to pay their writers a living wage. After my divorce, as a single mother, I needed more. I found a job with a financial institution and have been here for 15 years this month.

I miss writing, but I don't have the energy for both writing and working. I keep thinking that when I retire in seven years I'll be able to take it up again.

Meanwhile, I'd love to support you in your writing adventures!

I'd sure enjoy hearing all about your self-publishing experiences and exploits! Have you written anything I could buy?

[MissyLouWho?]

This is great, so many responses! 

WildThing~ I am going to check that book out, thank you!

Joe~ what a lot of work!  I was very impressed with your website about the tones.  That must have taken a long time to research and put together.  Fascinating stuff too!  I want to buy your mom's book.  Where can I get it?  I love books like that.  The Little House series was my favorite as a child and I still have them all .

TracyJ~ it really is true that every black cloud has a silver lining, isn't it?  Are you working regularly on your book?

Season~ was that your only copy?  I hope not!  Was the company legit?  I had a similar experience with an invention of mine that got 'lost'. I got a letter stating the company was shutting down, and 4 months later I saw it in a baby magazine  .  I am so afraid of having my hard work stolen again.

A66eyroad~ Thank you for the support!  I understand about not having enough energy to be able to work and write.  All I wanted to do while working was quit and write.  Now that I'm not working, I'm not able to focus and have clear thoughts!  

Some helpful tips I have come across:

1. Make sure you save copies!  My computer crashed and I never saved anything.  Had a friend extract my files (by the grace of God they were able to be extracted) and restore my computer.  First thing I did was copy everything to cd.  Then email copies of everything to myself on my email account that can be accessed from any computer (for some reason, my outlook express email can only be accessed from my desktop, so I never send anything there). 

2. I MAKE time to write.  When my toddler is in the tub, I sit on the floor in the bathroom and write.  Far enough away from the water, close enough to watch.  Add bubbles and toys, and I've got a good hour to write!

3. Inspiration can come from anywhere~keep a notebook or something close to jot down ideas.  With our brain fog, we are very likely to forget we even HAD a good idea, let alone what that idea was!

4. Read a few key words on synopsis of things like movies and books, news articles and such, and then come up with your own ideas using those words.  I often misread the synopsis and when I reread it and realize I was wrong with what I thought it was about originally, I think it's a shame because what I originally thought it was about was a better idea (to me).  Bingo!  Another great story idea.

5. I self publish on lulu.com.  It's free.  If you only sell ebooks (nothing that costs money to print) you don't pay anything.  They take 25% of the total price of the book (you set your price) and they deposit your earnings into your account every month.  I like them personally.  Easy to use and lots of newbie tools for dummies like me    I don't actively sell anymore, but once in a while I'll get an email saying lulu just deposited money on my account.  Nice!

That's all I can think of right now.  Now for my questions: 

1.  When you write a fictional story or novel, how do you go about it?  In school we are taught to come up with an outline and then build upon each section evenly.  But when I write, I get an idea, write the scene(s) that immediately come to me, then think of a way to build it into a bigger piece.  Usually, I start at the beginning and just write through, with the occasional "go back" where I change or insert something.  That way, I end up swirling all over, ending up with a story that has no clear direction.  I'll spend a long time on one moment, and skim over others.  Not very balanced.  So how do you approach your piece from the beginning?

2.  How do you go about getting published?  Do you need a literary agent?  I read somewhere that most big publishers won't talk to anyone who isn't a literary agent because they do the prescreening so to speak.  Is this true?

3.  How do you make sure your stuff doesn't get stolen?  How can you be sure the stuff you wrote isn't something plagiarized from someone else's stuff you read and remembered, though not intentionally?

That's all I can think of at the moment 

[Joe S.]

MissyLouWho there are no copies for sale at this time. I am planning on converting one of my copies to make an electronic version. My cousin uses it for her grade school class and they love it. Women like the love letters in.

[A66eyroad]

I've never written fiction so I don't know really how to go about it. My thought would be to write a short story and then consider that the first chapter. Or maybe to write a short story then expand on the characters and the story.

I only know how to write features --- a cooking story, a spotlight on an artist, or covering a meeting of the museum guild. My only tip is --- slow down your narrative. Take a lesson from Stephen King who can make a minute go on for five pages!

As far as keeping copies, here at the office I back up everything on a thumb drive every Friday. That's just in case the office burns down over the weekend!     

Thanks for all the great ideas! I never heard of lulu before, that sounds like a great resource.

My grandfather was an inventor who had his first invention stolen --- the double-necked guitar.  After that, he would protect himself this way:  Write your idea down, draw pictures, everything you can think of. Then seal it in an envelope addressed to yourself. Be sure and write the name of the idea on the outside of the envelope. Send that envelope to yourself via certified mail with return receipt requested -- this is now a document that's been sealed and dated by the U.S. Postal Service -- an agency of the U.S. government. (Just stand at the window of the Post Office and let them hand it back to you after they date stamp it.) File it where you can find it, and don't open it unless and until someone has taken your idea and made a boatload of money!

(Another of his inventions was foam insulation in a can. After burning his house down while testing it -- losing all the photos of his kids and grand-kids -- the invention made him lots and lots of money!)

[WildThing]

Miss Lou:  heres the book I was on about


amazon.co.UK/The-Writers-Artists-Yearbook-2012/dp/1408135809/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1331849115&sr=1-1

also this looks useful although I have never read it:

amazon.co.uk/Writers-Artists-Yearbook-Getting-Published/dp/1408128950/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1331849273&sr=1-3

As for copyright I know how it works in journalism but not 100% sure how it works for a novelist.  However I can tell you from experience that if you publish your work on-line you run a very high risk of getting it ripped of.  I wouldn't recommend it.  There is very little protection out there for internet plagiarism.  As for accidentally plagiarising someone else...again very little can be proved as anyone can have an idea this goes for journalism too.  There's no way of proving that you didn't think of it first or just had similar ideas as long as its not word for word then something really is up!

[tracyj]

Hi Missy Lou,

Yes, I try to look at the positive side of this illness.   Just a bit about me - I always wanted to write from the time I was in primary school.   I majored in English and History at University. (Honours in English - still not quiet sure how I managed that ), but financial and life pressures meant that I had to get a "real job" and I was never interested in journalism. (Sorry to those journalists who wrote in - don't take offence!)   I have numerous auto-immune problems and have battled fatigue all my life, as a consequence I never had enough energy to write when I wasn't working!

A few years ago the writing bug returned and I wrote furiously on my holidays.  I was still trying to work part time at that stage.   All this did was frustrate me because I could only write on the holidays!  Eventually I gave up work due to Sjogrens etc.  Now I tutor a few students in English and was learning intermediate Latin.  (Although I loved this,  I've put it on hold to concentrate on the writing.)

The current story I am working on began by dreaming (yes, I know it sounds cliched) just one scene.  I have very vivid dreams and this one played on my mind for days; it would not disappear and fascinated me.  From there began a massive plot outline for a book.  Then I thought to myself, "Well,  how did all events in this book originate?  What was the background to this book?"  From these question I generated a partial second book outline. (It which will actually be the first book of the two).  This has been much more challenging, because I didn't develop the entire outline in detail and because now that I am writing I must develop a believable, engrossing world.  The devil really is in the detail as they say .   This has involved copious research.  (I thank God I like history and that my Husband is a military historian!)

I always have a note pad with me, even beside the bed!  When I am walking the dogs I have a voice activated recorder with me. (I must look strange walking along talking to myself  )  I am always working plot developments through in my head - always! (Obsessive much?  )

I have two friends, whom I call my "Beta Readers".  I picked them both for their honesty.  One I chose because I classed her as more of a "general public" type reader and spent quite a bit of time quizzing her about the story, in order to gauge whether it was working effectively.   (I had my doubts about a couple of points) As a result I did a significant redraft of the first five chapters.   The second reader I chose because she is a dedicated fantasy reader with an extreme eye for detail!   I was worried about her reaction.  (Writing is a craft which must be practiced regularly to keep your skills sharp.  It had been such a long time since I had written and I knew that I was not writing as well as I had in the past, therefore my confidence was quite low.)   She loved it, telling me that if there had been a sequel she would be rushing out to the stores to buy it!  I know she is only one person, but it boosted my confidence and determination!   It may never be published, but after all this time I am finally doing what I had dreamed of!    I will finish it, even if it is just for my sake and one other reader!

WildThing is correct - be very careful about publishing on the internet.  You will need a literary agent.  You are correct many publishers will not consider manuscripts unless they come from an agent.  (They use the agents to filter out the rubbish)   Your agent should have good industry connections and be able to "sell" your book to the publisher.   Some agents and publishers are also not interested in anything which has been published previously ie self published on the net.

Oops...I seem to have rambled on...
I will finish with this.....KEEP WRITING!

Cheers

Tracy

[MissyLouWho?]

Tracy that is so exciting about your books!  I know what you mean about walking around talking to yourself, my mom wants to buy me that dragon thing that when you speak it types the words you said?  I don't think I'll use it though.  I seem to formulate my thoughts faster in type than in speaking or writing with a pen/pencil.  She keeps insisting, but at $300+ (she wants to get the one that is a wireless earpiece so I can do housework while I write) it's just too much $$.  And not to mention I am in a tight financial bind and hate the thought of wasting money, no matter who it comes from and how good her intentions are  .  She means well, but... . 

I think I am going to try your approach.  I like the outline/plot idea, but have never tried it for a novel (or two  ).  If it is working for you to keep your thoughts organized, I will try it too.  Or at least some sort of timeline.  Thanks!

[tracyj]

Hi Missy Lou,

The other thing I have found absolutely invaluable is a package called Scrivener.  Its cheap to buy and is fantastic for longer writing projects.    As my writing grew I found that word processors were not adequate for the job.   Everything just became too cumbersome.  The tutorial for Scrivener takes a little time, but it is worth doing.

  Thanks for the encouragement re "my books"      Nobody may ever publish them!  But, hey its fun!

Cheers

Tracy

[Nymph]

Hello everyone,

You may not believe that I can even form a sentence today as I am locked in a migraine. For some reason computer work is the only thing I can manage today as light and sound are driving me batty!

However, slowly but surely, I am working through the research for a book I want to write someday. At this point I'm only writing notes. The book is a biblical theology of hope. It is ever so slowly forming itself in my mind and notes, but it's a huge task. I don't have much time for it these days as I work. Next year, though, I'll be studying part-time in another country and thus can't work -  Am I looking forward to that! Of course, I won't have all the resources there, so I have to read like crazy until then. As my research comes along I plan to submit articles to journals in the field. The articles will be academic but the book will be directed toward a more general audience.

I also occasionally write a few pages of fiction when inspiration strikes, but I never follow through. I started something that I quite like a few weeks ago. Perhaps I'll look at it again soon. There is so much to work through within myself right now. Stories - told to an imaginary audience inside my head - were always my way to do that as a child. This story may be of that kind. I should give it a chance.

Thanks for showing me this thread, Abbey!

[lostone]

I loved to write,,oh youmean like writing a story,, thenno, I never did that much,, I thught you meantloved to write,, well I did like to write,, but I cant hold onto the pen anymore,,darn thing keeps fallingout of myhands,, and what ink i do get to paper,, it looks like a preshoolerfirst attempt at drawing a cow,,,,,