Writer, Will You Go Anywhere God Calls You? The Problem IS the Path to the Solution

Thanks to Pixabay.com

Warning: This post is for Christians only.You can read it if you want to, but don't get mad if it's too religious for your taste!

Now, for those of you who are still reading, here's the question that's on my mind: Are you willing to go anywhere God has called you?  (Tweet that.)

I've been reading Erica Wiggenhorn's Bible study of the first twelve chapters of the book of Acts titled The Unexplainable Life (Moody, 2016). In Acts 8:26, an angel tells Philip, who was one of the original twelve disciples of Jesus, to:

"Go South to the road--the desert road--that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza" (Acts 8:26, NIV).

 About this, Erica writes:

For Philip to take the route the angel suggested meant heading into the middle of the desert. With no means of transportation, this could easily mean death. Once Philip obeyed this unexplainable request, he now became led solely by the Spirit. God is so merciful, isn't He? Asking Philip to head out to the middle of the desert was completely contrary to anything logical. Philip was an evangelist. Who would hear the message in the middle of the desert? Was he supposed to preach to the sand? After witnessing such revival in Samaria, I'm sure Philip was eager to go to another largely populated city to see what God might do there in the hearts of the people. But God sends him an angel telling him to head out into the middle nowhere. (page 164)

There Philip meets an Ethiopian who becomes a believer in Jesus and is baptized on the spot. Then Philip is miraculously whisked away instantaneously to Azotus. But that unnamed, probably bewildered, Ethiopian continued on his journey.

Again, from Erica's book:

Look at the incredible intricacy of God's timing. One seeking heart, one page of Scripture, and one willing servant of God resulted in the gospel being spread to an entire nation! God sent Philip completely out of his way to present the gospel to one solitary individual... 

This eunuch's request to understand God resulted in the truth of the gospel being brought to another continent. (pages 164-65)

I'm writing this on a flight to Los Angeles. I never started out to be a screenwriter. That crazy idea came about ten years into my writing journey. It took another ten years after that for me to actually start. Now, another eight years later, I'm flying to Los Angeles to meet with people about my screenplays.

I never would have dreamed I'd be doing this. (Tweet that.) Talk about God doing immeasurably more than I could ask or imagine...

"Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen" (Ephesians 3:20, NIV).

I'll admit some frustration in publishing. I haven't got the books written (yet) that I've wanted to write, let alone not yet getting the book publishing contracts I've wanted to get. I'm not where I envisioned I would be this many years into my writing career. Why? I ask myself that often. I guess "life" intervenes. Plus, there are practical reasons, such as learning how not to constantly under-estimate how long things will take to complete. Or how much time we actually have to write.

I work hard five to six days a week. I'm in my office early and stay late. And  yet... projects remain unfinished.

What about you? Does this feel familiar?

But honestly, part of the reason, when it comes to book publishing, that I haven't written as much as I wanted to is because of this "side" journey of film and screenwriting. But when you get right down to it, this "side"journey isn't really that at all. It's right where the LORD has directed my steps to bring me. When I trace the steps I've walked on my writing journey, I never could have done this or gotten here on my own. (Tweet that.)I could not have orchestrated this. Where I'm at now is more than I could have ever asked or imagined.

I recently discovered an interesting television show on the Sundance channel on Sunday mornings. It's called Close Up With The Hollywood Reporter. Each show is a panel discussion with five or six Hollywood professionals, such as producers or directors or actors or writers. They discuss the challenges of their respective jobs, what they've learned, who their heroes are, etc.

On one episode, Greta Gerwig, writer and director of the film Lady Bird (with five Academy Award nominations) talked about the problems that came up on set as she was directing. (Tweet that.) She concluded that (this may not be the exact quote but it's close): "The problem IS the path."

Interesting. How often do we, as writers or other creative professionals, strive against the problems? Buck against the obstacles? Perhaps, like the characters in our stories, we should see the obstacles in our paths not as roadblocks, but rather as directing us to the right path. (Tweet that.)

What about you? Are you "detoured" too? Or are you right where you're supposed to be, even if you're not where you planned to be? (Tweet that.)

Are you fighting the direction you're going? Or could it be the LORD is directing your path? Are you willing to go wherever the LORD wants you to go, wherever God calls you? Even if it's different from where you thought you were headed?

Yeah, me too. I'll see you out there ... on the journey.

New Year Planning to Get Your Writing Done This Year

I was talking with my friend, Sherry, recently when she asked me if I make goals for the new year. She's a home-schooling mom with fewer kids to school for the first time in many years and she was planning what she wanted to accomplish with her writing this coming year.

As it happened, I was just thinking along those same lines, so we had a conversation about what I do which seemed helpful, and even fun, for Sherry. So I thought it might be helpful to you too, or at least inspire some new ideas and fun ways to keep your writing goals ever before you this year. (Tweet that!)

New Year Planning

Her original question was: "So do you plan out a writing schedule and what projects you want to complete each year? That's what I'm in the process of doing."

Yes, at the first of the year I plan what I want to accomplish during the year. I don't so much make a schedule, just a to-do list.

Back when I was freelancing more magazine articles, my annual goals looked more like submitting or querying a certain number of magazine articles monthly. But several years ago now as the magazine market began to dry up--at least the paying, print magazines--or shifted to non-paying online markets, my querying and submitting to magazines waned.

That shift led me to more book writing and delving into screenwriting. With bigger projects in the works that take longer to develop and produce, I needed a place to write down which projects I wanted to work on. I needed to ask myself just how much I could accomplish in one year? And of all the half-baked ideas, or half-written projects, which one(s) did I want to focus on this year? Which could I complete? (Tweet that!)

With all the other stuff that gets in our way as writers -- the email and the social media to build our author platform and/or to promote our books or whatevers that are already out there for sale -- plus the correspondence and the workshops we need to prepare to teach and the conferences we're going to attend... Actually accomplishing the writing part of our jobs can get edged out, take a back seat, be put on hold until we have a block of uninterrupted time without all this small niggley stuff nipping at us. (Tweet that!) Time when we can actually concentrate and get some writing done is hard to trap. It's not just me. Or you. For most writers I've talked to, the deeper into this journey we get, the less time and energy to write we have. (Tweet that!)

What helps me: The List. Seeing that list of what I want to work on, and hopefully complete, this year.helps me stay on track.

Usually the list is longer than I can accomplish. But it helps me hone down to what's really important to me to do. And also to focus in on which projects are the most ready to write or to complete.

I Use a Big White Board

Several years ago I purchased a large white board. Originally I used it to map out the first stories I was working to develop. But I learned that didn't work so well for me because I couldn't take the story off to reuse the board again without losing everything I'd worked on! So that white board was out of commission for several years with a story I never completed figuring out and so never wrote.

I finally took a photo of all my work on the white board in order to preserve it to use later if I wanted to, and then I could feel free to erase it all. I won't do that again.

Now that my white board is free again, I've used it for several years to list what I want to do each year. My white board is also 2' x 3'. And if you're going to go buy one, spend a little more money and get one that's magnetic.

Some of the magnates I've found.

Besides being great fun, you can do a lot with magnetic boards. You can buy multi-colored magnates to hold notes. (Sherry said she uses sticky notes but sometimes they stick to the cat and get carried away.) You can also get magnates with clips to hold multiple papers or other items. I even found some magnates that are small cork boards with one pin in each of them. There are all kinds of fun and colorful magnates to use on your white board.

While you're at the store, pick up a multi-pack of different colored dry- or wet-erase markers. As creative people, we like multiple colors. They inspire us. So splurge a little and get whatever inspires you. For the best price, pick these up during the back-to-school season. This year I found a package of "2 in 1" with each of the four markers having two colors, one at each end.

Also get some white board cleaner because even the dry-erase doesn’t come off easily after it’s been there a while.

Here's What I Put On My White Board

I use different colors for different categories. For example, since I want to write both film screenplays and books, I use different colors for each of those categories. I might use blue for screenplays and green for novels. I use a different color, like maroon, for the list of e-books I wish to complete this year.

Pay attention!

On my white board I also note important dates as they become available, such as deadlines for submitting writing projects or entering screenplay contests.

For really important items that I want to be sure I don't miss, I use a bright, alarming color -- such as red -- so that note doesn't blend in with everything else.

Blues and greens and even maroons give me a sense of calm. Red makes me pay attention.

Like my cork boards where I plot out my stories, I do not mount my planning white board to the wall. It can sit on my table or file cabinet, or even the floor, and lean against the wall. I leave it loose so I can lay it down to write on and carry it around to different work spaces when I need a change of space.

Still on my to-do list.

I cannot tell you the great sense of accomplishment and satisfaction it gives me to put a big check mark on my white board when something listed there is finished! Each check-off is truly something to celebrate.

Again, my list usually has more items on it than I can accomplish. But it challenges me to do more than I would if I didn't have those goals and wishes always before me as the seasons and the calendar days tick away.

In the End...

Have you ever heard the saying, "If it's not on the schedule, it won't get done"? (Tweet that!) My white board makes me look at my projects and consider when I'm going to schedule each one and get down to the business of making it happen. It makes me plan. Without it I drift from project to project without ever finishing any, or I daydream days away wondering what I'm supposed to be working on.

At the end of each year, or the beginning of the year, I update my white board. I can celebrate the erasing of all the check marks -- that is, all the projects I completed.

Then I revise the entire board for the new year. I evaluate if the projects left up there, unfinished, are still priorities. If they are, they are no doubt more developed or more ready to write. With the other priority projects finished, these can move up in priority on the list.

Magnates and colors and fun!
Oh my.

Sometimes there are projects that I've lost interest in, or are lower priorities compared to what has happened in the year I just finished.

Sometimes, like with my e-books, the list stays from year to year with me promising myself I'm going to complete them this year for sure! And yet other priorities take over again. But they are still important to me so they stay on the list. Maybe I'll get them done this year. Again. Maybe.

My board also has helped me get a sense of just how much I can get done in a year and what is unreasonable for me to expect of myself. This has been invaluable. (Tweet that!) I do try to write one new screenplay each year. This requires fully developing the story, which takes time too. And I want to write one book a year -- whether nonfiction or fiction. I know I can do this much, plus some other smaller projects. My white board has helped me figure that out.

I hope your new white board can do as much for you.

How do you plan your writing projects for the new year?
What do you hope to accomplish in your writing this year?

2018 Challenge: Mature as a Writer and/or Storyteller

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On January 1, 2016, I challenged writers to "Go Rogue" and use our power as writers to push the envelope for good. This year I've been thinking about how I might challenge writers for 2018. What's on my mind this January 1, 2018, is for each of us to mature as a writer and/or a storyteller. (Share that.)

I'm thinking about this because recently I've seen comments from writers, people who wish to write, writers who wish to get their books or articles published, as well as screenwriters who'd like their scripts produced, that reveal their work might not quite be ready. I can tell by what they say that their writing has not yet matured to a place where it is publishable or producible because of comments that reveal the don't understand genres or the differences in what publishers publish or producers produce.

Discovering we're not "mature" in what we do is hard to take. I know because I've discovered myself there at times. I can see in my past where I thought my writing had matured, and yet I was not seeing the publishing results that I wanted. Now, looking back with the distance of time, I can see how my writing just wasn't ready yet. I couldn't see it for myself at the time. I thought I was mature. Have you ever thought about why we always think we're mature and then later realize we're not?

Maturity, I think, can be deceiving and elusive -- even for writers. (Share that.) Doesn't it seem that wherever we are in life, we think we're mature?

Think of a young child telling her Mom, "I can do it myself!" and struggling to tie her shoes. Or a first grader who is so much more mature than a kindergartner. What about the senior in high school who is so much more mature than a sixth grader, or a college senior who is light years ahead of that high school senior. By the time we're twenty (or thirty...or forty) we're sure we're really mature now. And we are... comparatively.

But maturing never stops as long as we're on this earth. And writers are no different.

I'm sure wherever we are, we think we're mature. And we are... comparatively. As long as we've continued to grow. But we also thought we were mature writers two years ago and, if we've continued to write, we have matured more. Then, of course, we think we're really mature now! Two years from now, what will we think? That we weren't really as mature of a writer as we thought we were?

So, what's my point? My point is, as writers we need to continue to mature -- in our ability to write well, in our ability as storytellers, in every way -- so that at some point we will cross that elusive line that puts us in the place where we are finally published or produced. (And even then the maturing should not end.)  (Share that.)

How do we get there? I can think of three ways all writers can continue to mature in their writing. There may be other ways to mature in our writing, but without doing these three consistently, I don't believe any writer can mature. (Share that.)

Write

It is impossible to mature as a writer without actually writing. Occasionally I meet a wanna-be writer who is studying and preparing but who thinks he won't write until he knows enough that whatever he writes will be a success. Like riding a bicycle, you can't learn how to do it without actually doing it -- and failing.

www.pixabay.com

Don't be afraid of failing in your writing. It's all profitable because it's all training on the road to success. Rejection of your writing when you submit it is never fatal. (Share that!)

I don't think it matters what you write: articles, books, fiction, non-fiction, screenplays, short stories. Just write. If you're not sure where to start, write something short, like an article, a 1,200-word true story for Chicken Soup for the Soul, or a short fictional story. Write a children's book, either fiction or nonfiction. Any of that is great training for writing longer pieces like novels, novellas, or non-fiction books.

We learn and mature by writing.

Study

Study writing. Study story and story structure and how-to write books.

Study publisher's guidelines and writers market books to learn what they want to publish. Study grammar and good writing.

Take a workshop online or attend a writers conference. Get out some old tapes or DVDs of workshops and listen to them again.

Get a new book about writing (or get one off your shelf you bought but haven't read yet. I have lots of those.). Which overlaps with the next section...

Read

If we want to mature as writers, we cannot neglect learning from others who are ahead of us. Writers must make time to read.

          Read what you want to write.

If you want to write for magazines, read the magazines you want to write for. (Or, if you love reading a certain magazine(s), that's probably a good market for you to write for!)

If you want to write novels, read novels in the genre you want to write in. Learn from them. Pay attention to how the author did things, like how she presented information, introduced characters, gave backstory, grew suspense, did dialogue.

If you want to write screenplays, read screenplays.

If you want to write children's books, you should be reading them.

          Read how-to writing books.

I'm building a collection of writing books and products that I recommend. Find my recommendations in Dianne's Online Store.

          Read blogs.

There are so many great blogs out there it can be overwhelming. Here are a few of my favorites:

On writing books:

• Between the Lines from the literary agents at Books and Such Literary Management

On marketing books:

• Marketing Christian Books from Sarah Bolme at Christian Small Publishers Association

On writing children's books:

• The team at Reading for Research who offer mentor text to study for writing children's books
• Nancy I. Sanders' blog 

Finally, join Goodreads Reading Challenge and challenge yourself to read more this year. I love tracking what I get read each year. That helps me read more. I didn't get nearly as much reading done last year as I wanted to. I want to step it up in 2018.

I hope this coming year is a wonderful year for you of growing and maturing as a writer and/or a storyteller and making your publishing dreams come true.

Tweetables:  

#Writers, here's a challenge and helps for maturing in your #writing this year. (Share this.)

Related Article: 

• January 1, 2016: Calling All Writers, Novelists, Screenwriters: Dianne's Challenge for 2016 and Beyond - Go Rogue!

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Holidays - A Writer's Interruption?

Thanks to Pixabay.com 

It's that "wonderful time of the year" again. December. Christmas is crowding in and crowding everything else out.

I used to get frustrated with holidays - any of them throughout the year. They are such an interruption to writing and usually come when I'm on a roll.

I'm changing my attitude. Holidays are good. God gave us holidays for a reason. (For you purists, yes, I know God didn't give us Christmas in the same way he gave the Israelites Festivals and holidays. But he gave those holidays and set the example.) Holidays are a time to slow down. Or stop. To think. Remember. Remember what is important. Be thankful. Re-evaluate. Re-focus.

Without holidays time just spins past and we risk not even noticing. (Tweet that!)

So December is a time to analyze what we've done this past year and where we're going in the next one. Are we going to get done the goals we set at the beginning of the year? Or is it another year to be disappointed? Goals unfinished. Writing projects undone.

Some of us have been doing this writing-thing for a while. We've seen many Decembers roll around in our writing lives. It can feel like December after December of unmet goals turn into years gone by and the writing projects we set out to do years ago remain unfinished. (Tweet that!)

When I started out in this gig, my big dream was to write a novel. Guess what is the one thing I have not done? (Well, I've written a few unpublished novels. I've learned a great deal from writing those.) I've written more than 300 published magazine articles and short stories, hundreds more online articles, six nonfiction books, contributed to twenty more books, and have written five feature-length screenplays. But not a publishable novel.

Can  you relate? Does this feel familiar? What's a writer to do?

How to Accomplish Your Goals

Then the next logical question is what do we do about it? As I look ahead to this next thirteen months - December through next year - here are my thoughts about it at this moment:

1. Make a new plan.

I never subscribed to that "write every day" rule. (Tweet that!) I much prefer to have a large chunk of uninterrupted time when I can concentrate on a big project. But I never get there. I've always thought I needed to get everything else done first so I can enjoy my big special project. But I never get everything else done.

Time for a new plan. I'm going to take the advice I've heard often and try to write every day. I know the word count will add up. I know I'll be chipping away at that big goal.

Does this strategy sound like it can work for you?

2. Reevaluate your schedule

What has cluttered up your time? All that "everything" I mentioned in #1 above is just stuff. Yes, it's stuff that needs to be done. Email and platform-building and marketing, oh my. But you know what? It can wait.

I'm putting my writing first this next thirteen months. Not "everything else." (Tweet that!)

3. Start a New Job

Writing is a job. It's our work. Our career. (Even if you have another one with a paycheck.)

So I'm going to claim my most creative time for my writing. And I'm going to guard it.

My most creative time is first thing in the morning. (That is, after I read my Bible for a bit and feed the cat and give her her insulin.) If I start with Facebook, email, or something else it eats up my time. By 10:00 other things come into my world that demand attention. I need to get writing done before then. Ignore all else. Even the phone.

What is your best, most creative time? How can you block off and guard that time for writing?

One day a week I must go out of town. Okay, that's worked into my schedule. I make up for it on Saturdays.

What must-dos are on your schedule? How can you work around that to still get your writing time?

Like a job you show up for or get fired. That's what writing should be. Honestly, I think most writers should be fired. (Tweet that!) They, or we, are not doing our jobs. Do you want to keep your job as a writer? Then get to work. (I'm talking to myself. Mostly.)

4. Make new goals.

Monthly. Weekly. Daily. We know how quickly the end of the year rolls around. Again.

Do you make yearly goals? I do. But obviously these must be broken down to monitor how we're progressing.

My new "write every day" goal does not have a word count attached. I have no idea how many words I'll write each day and that's okay for now. I'm making progress.  (Tweet that!)

Also without a deadline attached is research. I want to do research for some projects I've had in mind for a long time. I've always felt January is a good time to do that but I've yet to get it done.  This January, I'll try again.

What new or renewed writing goals are your going to make?

5. Never give up on your Dream

Don't they say dreams come true in December? Renew your dream. Your Christmas wish.

For me, I'm renewing my dream of writing a novel.

What's your renewed dream?

Thanks to Pixabay.com 

Let's work harder than ever before through the coming months to make our dreams come true. Let's put words away in a manuscript like savings in a bank and watch them build up. (Tweet that!) Remember I'm right there with you, saving toward the same goal. I hope my Christmas gift to me next year will be a finished novel.

6. Be grateful for what has gone before

All that other writing is not wasted at all. It was learning. Even those unpublished novels I've written were learning projects.

• Articles taught me how to put words on paper and how to communicate thoughts coherently and succinctly.
• The nonfiction books taught me about publishing and the marketplace and selling books.
• Contributions to 20 books gave me confidence and standing in the writing and book world.
• Screenplays taught me story structure and building characters and worlds and, again, writing and communicating coherently as well as telling a story succinctly.

All of this learning has been necessary for me to get to where I know I can write the novel I've always wanted to write. So here I am. (Tweet that!)

It's time.


It has been a long journey - more than 25 years of a writing journey for me. But all of it has brought me here. And now I can't wait for the new year. I'm already writing daily. I've already started my novel. I can't wait to see where this leads in the new year.

But first, I'm grateful for the interruption of holidays.

Related Articles:

• January 1, 2016: Dianne's Challenge - Go Rogue!

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Be Intentional in Your Writing

Someone once told me there are two kinds of people in the world: Those who divide people into two groups and those who don't. Okay, well, if we can have just a little fun with that, based on my observations, I wonder if we can divide writers into two groups:   (Tweet that!)

• Those who write because they love to write. These are the writers who say they "can't not write."

• And those who write because they have something they want to say, a message, something they desperately want to get out to the world.

Two Kinds of Writers

Sure, there's definitely some overlap here. Perhaps there is some of both in most of us. But there are definite differences too.

Those who write for the love of writing say they would write even if they never got published, even if nobody else ever read what they write. They write because they love to write. Maybe it's the story creation. Perhaps it's the discipline of thinking out loud, having to capture thoughts in concrete enough terms to put them on paper. I'm not sure what these writers love so much about writing that keeps them addicted. What would you fill in that blank with? The point is, for these writers, if someone could somehow tell them they couldn't write anymore — make it illegal, take away all pens, paper, computers, whatever… — they'd find a way. (Tweet that!) Writing for them is like breathing. They have to. They'd do it anyway… regardless.

Those who write because they have something they desperately want to say might not feel the same way about writing. They write because they see writing as the best possible way to get their message out to the widest possible audience. They are not satisfied with spreading their message one on one, to the circle of people they can influence. They want more. Writing and publishing is their way of seeking that "more," that bigger audience. For these writers, if someone could somehow tell them they couldn't write anymore — if someone made writing illegal — they would find another way to get their message out. They would speak. They would go on TV or radio or the Internet or whatever, but they'd find another way to get their message out… regardless. (Tweet that!)

Do you identify with one of these groups of writers more than the other? Do you agree or disagree with my assessment?

The Writing in Front of Our Faces

Do you ever look at the top sellers or suggestions for books on Amazon or Goodreads? Or what's on the first tables you see when you walk into a bookstore like Barnes & Noble? Whether it's Amazon, Goodreads (which is owned by Amazon), or a brick and mortar bookstore, when I glance at what those companies put before my face, I'm somewhat surprised.

Only somewhat surprised because I know those titles represent "the world" and what, apparently, most people want to read. (Though I'm even skeptical about that. Judging by what I see on TV and hear on radio, it could very well be what companies WANT us to think is what most people want.) But most of the time it's not anything close to what I'd like to see, hear, or read.

What does surprise me is the topics and types of material that tops these lists of what is selling. In fiction I see lots of titles and book covers for stories that are "romance," but they are clearly steamy, sexual, who knows what the writer has put on the pages between the covers. I don't want to find out. I don't want to read that stuff. Many of these books are unabashedly called "erotica." I don't want to read this stuff.

If you're thinking these ads are coming up on my feed because that is what I search for, look at, or buy, you're wrong. I've never searched for, clicked on, looked at, or purchased "romance" of any kind or "erotica" ever. Again, I don't want to read that stuff.

Then there are the stories that bash our nation, or one political party, or that portray all law enforcement officers as crooked, dirty, underhanded, and violent.

Are these types of stories the most popular — not only for readers to read but is this what writers are writing? I don't want to read that stuff.  (Tweet that!)

Why Is This Important?

Why do you write? Do you just want to write stories that sell? So you can make money? Do you follow the trends, hoping to get in on the ride to the top? Are you a follower? Just doing what seems to be popular? Are you satisfied with indulging people's worst sides, helping them go deeper into degradation, taking their society with them?

Or do you have something important to say? Something that will lift your reader to a higher place, a better place? Do you have a message that will be good for your readers? Do you have some insight or knowledge or story that will help your little corner of the world, or your society, or your nation, or your world become a better place? (Tweet that!) If so, are you intentional in writing that message or that story?

Be Intentional in Your Writing

However you chose to write, whatever genres you choose to indulge in, I hope you will choose the nobler side.  (Tweet that!) I hope you choose to write what might be less popular in order that you might make the world a better place, not a worse place.

Have a message — a good one. Be a noble writer. Choose the good. This doesn't mean stories have to be fluff and sugar. Be a leader, not a follower.  (Tweet that!) Have a good message. And be intentional about making your message known through your writing.

READ THIS RELATED ARTICLE:

• January 1, 2016: Dianne's Challenge for Writers: Go Rogue!

It's Time to Finish the Writing Project(s) You Started

Thanks Pixabay.com

Just so you know, this post is not so much for you but for me. I'm betting, however, it will have meaning for you as well. It's June and we're approaching the middle of the year, so to meet some goals by the end of the year we need to be getting things done. My question for you this month is, what writing project(s) have you started that you haven't finished? (Tweet that!)

I'm betting a bunch of writing projects just flashed through your mind, perhaps followed quickly by a flash of guilt. (Tweet that!) Writers have stacks of stuff piled in the "writer's closet" that we never seem to go through because, well, we're too busy writing. I'm talking about the closet of unfinished projects, not a literal physical closet in our house, although those are probably just as cluttered and in needed of a thorough cleaning out which we also never get to because we're too busy writing.

So let's try to sift through our writer's closet today and see what's there and which projects we might be able to finish. (Tweet that!) Hopefully there's an item or two we can finish well or finish quickly.

Now, mind you, I'm not talking about the failed projects that don't deserve more of our time. Not the novels or articles or short stories or NaNoWriMo works we started, or even wrote to completion, that have no potential. These are practice works. They have value because they taught us and trained us and helped us along our writing journey. But they are not worth investing more time and effort in. If you have one or more of those, or even if you're not sure about a project, leave it in the closet.

(If it's a story of your heart that you love and want to finish, but it really needs a lot of work, leave it in the closet. We'll talk about that project next month.)

If you don't have time this month, if you're already booked full, look at your calendar and decide which month isn't booked yet. Make that the month you're going to target as your time to finish this project.

For me, the project I keep saying I'm going to finish and then "life" happens and I don't get to it is my series of twelve e-books for writers. Originally I was going to release one a month and have them all done in a year. That was a couple years ago. I've completed and released four:

• Cutting the Passive Voice
• How to Get Published by Magazines and Book Publishers
• Query Letters
• Booksignings

As currently planned, I have eight in the series  left. I threatened some time ago, on this blog I believe, to finish them. I don't know what happened then but I remember getting some work done on one and then… Whatever. They still are not finished.

So I've been planning for some time to finish them (or at least some of them) this month. June 2017. Yet here it is the 5th of the month and I'm just now writing the post that should have been posted the first of the month. What can I say. I'm a little behind.

(I'll blame it on my short film that kept lingering on as I tried to finish it. It's done and was turned in on June 1 by the deadline on June 2. I still have work to do to turn in the final documents, etc., by June 9. See last month's post for more info on that. I plan to write more about my short film documentary in the upcoming August 2017 post.)

So what is your project you'd like to finish? Need some help deciding? Let's talk about it. (Tweet that!)

What to Finish

Now that you've thought of all those projects you could finish, how do we pick one to work on? First, don't think of it as picking one, just picking the one to finish first. You'll get to the others too.

Consider:

Closest to done

Which of your projects is the closest to being done? If you work on this project, it will be the quickest one to finish. It will give you a sense of accomplishment. It will give you a something to sell or share. It will be one project checked off the list.

On my list of e-books, some of them I already have the manuscript written. They just need formatted and uploaded to Amazon's Kindle. One is formatted and partially uploaded, if I remember right. Others I have not written yet. I have the outline and have taught the material as a workshop, but I need to write it out to make it an e-book. It would take me very little time to finish the one that is formatted and partially uploaded. Duh. I need to start there.

Smallest/ Shortest / Easiest

Perhaps you have a project that would take little work to complete. Maybe it's not the most important to you. That's why you haven't finished it — everything else is more important. But if you finish this one, again you'd have an e-book to sell or an article to submit. What would it take to finish it and check it off the list?

Again, my almost-finished e-book I mentioned above fits here. It needs the least amount of work to finish. I sometimes get caught up in feeling I need to finish the biggest and best. Keep it simple.

Will produce greatest income

Do you have a partially completed project that, when finished, you can sell as an e-book or a printed book (Tweet that!), an article you might sell to a magazine or a short story to a compilation book that pays well? Maybe this is the project for you to pick and complete.

Hopefully a new e-book in my line for writers will spark new interest in all of them, increasing my income.

Will produce greatest joy

Which of your many unfinished projects is close to being done and would give you great joy to complete? Maybe it's a project just for you — you never intended to sell it or share it — and everything else in your world has kept you from it. Schedule time and put it on your calendar to finish it. Maybe you will sell or share it. That's good too. Do it.

Yeah, sharing what I've learned in e-books brings me joy!

How to Finish

Maybe you haven't finished this project for a reason. You've set it aside because there's something there preventing you from finishing it. Perfect! This is the month to tackle that challenge. Stop letting it stop you! Consider:

Roadblocks

You might be procrastinating because of a roadblock that you don't know how to overcome. Well this month it's time to dismantle that roadblock. I've found that often roadblocks grow bigger with time, or at least they appear to. The truth is, when I start to tackle them they shrink to something that's far easier to step over than I ever imagined. So what do you need to make this roadblock disappear?

Ask someone. Find an expert in the field and see if they will help or mentor you, or at least point you in the right direction.

Ask a friend for help. Sometimes people are more willing to help us than we realize. The truth is, most often the people we know really want to see us succeed. Ask. They might help.

Hire some help or trade skills.

Perhaps more research will help?

Stumbling blocks

Or maybe it's not a roadblock but just a stumbling block: something that seems difficult or time consuming. Or something you just hate to do. Maybe one of the ideas above will help. Or can you possibly make a list of nearby friends who can help you, ask them to come, throw them a party, and let them help you?

Or maybe you just need time. Can these friends temporarily take some responsibilities for you to give you intensive, uninterrupted work time to finish? Ask.

Something needed

Perhaps you simply need something to finish it. What do you need? Where can you get it? Editing? A book cover? I recently reminded a friend of Fiverr.com and she found the editing she needed at a great price on that site. I had the e-book covers for my twelve e-books designed there and I think they're pretty awesome. (Now, if I'd just finish formatting some, and writing others, and getting them out there!)

Whatever you need, write it down. Write it in big bright letters on your big white board. Then go after it. Find it. Tackle it. Then finish your project and move on! (Tweet that!)

Finally

This Bible verse speaks to me. I've typed it up, printed it out, and pinned it to the bulletin board in my office:

Now finish the work, so that your eager willingness to do it may be matched by your completion of it…     1 Corinthians 8:11 NIV

Which writing project(s) have you started but never finished that's speaking to you saying, "It's time to finish what you've started"? (Tweet that!)

What are you working on to finish?

What did you finish?

Let us know in the comments section below. Include a link to your finished product if you want so we can check it out.

Related Articles:

If your unfinished project is making a Kindle e-book but a roadblock or stumbling block for you is that you don't know how, you can find help in the series I wrote on that topic. These posts walk you through the process:

1. How to Make Your Manuscript a Kindle E-Book on Amazon (for Free) - Part 1: Formatting Your Kindle Document
2. How to Make Your Manuscript Into a Kindle E-Book on Amazon (for Free) - Part 2 - Front Matter, Back Matter, and Images
3. How to Make Your Manuscript Into a Kindle E-Book on Amazon - Part 3 - Get Your E-Book Covers Here! (Not All Free)
4. How to Make Your Manuscript Into a Kindle E-Book on Amazon (for Free) - Part 4 – Uploading Your Ebook

Writing for Publication and . . . Servanthood

I had some "life" happen recently that meant I wasn't able to prepare the post I had planned for August 1. So a wise friend asked if I had something I could re-run. Yes! I remembered this article I wrote a few years ago, back when this blog was a newsletter for subscribers only. I thought this might be a really good article to run this month. Sorry it's a bit late, but life happens. And when life happens, it's important not to miss it.

So, I hope you enjoy this re-run article.

Writing for Publication and...Servanthood

I had a couple of interesting conversations with writers lately. One lady contacted me because she noticed the local writers group and she was thinking she might like to join. Though I encouraged her to come to the writing group, she seemed shy and uncertain. Finally she confessed what was really on her mind:

She said she wasn't sure it was right to call attention to herself through writing. She was concerned about becoming prideful about writing in a way that would be unbecoming for a Christian. (Tweet that!)

I had to be careful in my response, because I didn't want to laugh out loud. That might have come off as rude.

Will You Be a Famous Writer?

I asked her what she meant about calling attention to herself. She looked confused. I asked her if she thought if she started writing that everyone would then know her and she would be famous. (Tweet that!) She kind of, sort of indicated yes.

I asked her if she had read any magazine articles lately. She said yes. I asked her who wrote them. She said she didn't know. 

I wondered if she'd read anything else lately. Articles online? Newspaper? Book? Would she have remembered any of these writers' names? My bet is if she could have remembered any, it would have been the name of a book's author.

Then I told her, Look, if you start writing, chances are extremely thin that you'll become famous. Most people won't even notice your name on a magazine article. I'm convinced the only people who read bylines are other writers. (Tweet that!) ("Oh, look! My friend Linda got an article published in here. Good for her. Wait a minute. How'd she do that? I wanna to do that.") (Tweet that!)

Publishing is Like the NFL

This lovely Christian lady was all worried about calling attention to herself and becoming sinfully prideful. But what are the chances of her actually drawing that much attention? I told her it's like playing in the NFL. A lot of kids start out wanting to be a star in the National Football League, but first you have to make the team. Then you have to make the high school team, the college team, and then win a spot on a professional team. Only a few people actually make it that far. And when you do make it that far, there are only so many slots on a team and only so many players can be chosen to fill them.

Publishing is similar. There are only so many slots available for writers. There is only so much room for so many articles in a magazine. (Tweet that!)

There are only so many slots in a publishing house for so many books to be published. (Tweet that!) 

And when you get to that level, you're competing with professionals.

So where is your level of skill in writing? Are you at a professional level? If yes, then keep submitting. 

If not, what do you need to do to get there? Work out more in the gym? (Write more.) Get with a Trainer? (Find a writer or group who can teach you?) Practice your skills? (Practice your skills?!)

Why Do You Want to Writer?

After I told that nice lady that she would probably never have to worry about becoming sinfully prideful because she'd probably never be famous, I ask her why she wanted to write. I don't think she really knew how to answer that question. (Tweet that!)

Will it Serve?

I had a second conversation with a different writer who, basically, wants to write what she wants to write. She has something she wants to say. It's important stuff to her and she wants the whole world to know it and so she wants to tell the whole world. 

Well, okay, that's all good and fine. But is it something anyone else wants to read?

Will it help the reader? Will it serve the reader's wants or needs? Or is it just a demand that somebody listen to what she has to say? (Tweet that!)

You see, so many people think the reason to write for publication is to become really famous and to make a lot of money. Other people want to be heard, to be listened to. But all of these reasons are filled with "I wants":

I want to be famous. 
I want to be rich. 
I want to be listened to. 
I want to tell. 
I want to be known for telling you this. 
I want to be heard. 

If you're writing for publication, this is never going to work. When we write for publication, we're not writing for ourselves; we're writing for someone else: our reader. (Tweet that!)

The way to write for the reader is to SERVE the reader. 

You think you have something to say? Okay, will it serve the reader? Is it something the reader wants or needs to hear or know? If not, then the writer is only serving him/herself.


I know what you're thinking: "Yes, but I'm writing because I have something to say! And it's important."

Yes, of course it is. It's on your heart, or it's in your mind, and you want to share it so badly. And that's fine, because often we want to share what we know because we know it will serve other people. It's a fine line, but it's a line.

I know what some of you are thinking: "But I don't have anything important to say. I just want to tell stories [or write articles, or fill in the blank ______ ]."

It's About the Reader

Listen to me. Are you listening? You do have something important to say. Especially if you are a Christian. You do have something to say that people in the world out there need to hear. (Tweet that!)

So what's the difference? When writing for publication (not for yourself--your journal, your exploring, your own benefit), our writing should be about the reader.  Not, "What do I want to say that I want everyone to hear?" But, "What do I have to offer that will help my reader?" (Tweet that!)

This is the Servanthood of writing. (Tweet that!) And you can sum it up in this question: "How can I SERVE my reader?"

As an example, my aim with this e-zine [now a blog] is to serve those who read it. It's not about me. Sure, there are times I mention what's going on in my writing life... That's because I believe many of you are interested in what I'm up to--and if you're not you can skip that part. But the main purpose of this [blog] is to help you, to serve you, to help you become the writer you want to be--whether that's published or just a better writer or whatever you're longing for.

If you're not getting published, maybe you can take a look at this area of your writing and see if there's room here for improvement. Editors are interested in serving their readers. You need to not only serve your reader, but serve your editor. But I guarantee you, if you're serving your reader, then you're serving the editor.

How Do You Want to Serve Your Readers?

So this month as you write, how do you want to serve your readers? What do you have to offer that will help your readers? (Tweet that!)

Now don't give me that "nothin'" answer. I know better. Especially if you're a Christian--because you have a knowledge of the One. 

But Christian or not, you have information for a magazine article that would help someone. You have an experience that taught you something that would help someone else. You have a story with a message that will bring someone closer to God. (Tweet that!)

The delightful thing about writing is that our serving can be done in infinite ways, unique to each of us--which satisfies the longings of our souls to write and be heard. (Tweet that!) But in the end, it needs to be for and about the reader, not the writer.

If you have this attitude of Servanthood, you'll never worry about becoming sinfully prideful, because it's not about you. It's about the reader. And for the Christian writer, it's about Christ.

Tweetables:

If you are a #writer, it's all about serving your reader.  Click to Tweet

The "Servanthood" of #Writing.  Click to Tweet

The way to write for the reader is to SERVE the reader. Click to Tweet