Kristi2holl's Weblog

Are You Focused?

kristi2holl — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 16:38:25 +0000

My writer friend Sherryl and I have been talking lately about our goals: how we did in 2008, what we hope to accomplish in 2009, and she even sent me a 1-year/2.5-year/5-year plan. We took a goals seminar class last year, and she was pleased to see how many things she could cross off the 2008 list as done! We talked about juggling other things (like family, teaching writing classes, health issues, the marketing that seems to be necessary now) while still getting our writing done. How could we focus enough on our writing?

Well, last week someone sent me an article called “Zoom Focus” by Jon Gordon. I loved his Einstein quote at the top of the page: “Vision without execution is hallucination.” That is a good thing to remember as we look back at 2008 and ahead to 2009 and begin thinking about our goals. Visions and goals are important–I would say critical–but without the elbow grease applied, we’re just hallucinating! Jon says that in his work with businesses and organizations, he’s found the key to success is to Zoom Focus.

“Zoom Focus helps you turn ideas and goals into reality and results. Zoom Focus helps you focus on your priorities, execute, and create success. Zoom Focus helps you take daily steps towards your big picture vision.”

Jon has four practical “Zoom Focus” suggestions for making the dream a reality, and the tips are good. I zeroed in on the last one, as it seems to have special application for writers: “Focus on Daily Improvement – I see it in sports all the time. Teams focus too much on winning the championship and forget to Zoom Focus each day in practice. They are outcome focused not process focused. The key is to focus on improving each day and take the necessary action steps. If you incrementally improve each day, each week, each month, each quarter by the end of the year you’ll see remarkable results and growth. When you Zoom Focus on the process the outcome takes care of itself.”Are YOU focusing on improving your writing each day–or each time you sit down to write? Are you focused on the writing process rather than the sale? Are you studying and reading the kind of books, stories and articles you hope to publish? Are you enjoying your writing? Can you tune out the marketing voice in your head and just focus on your craft? If you steadily improve–even in tiny increments–I agree that you’ll see remarkable results and growth in your writing.

Can you Zoom Focus today? Do you have a favorite focusing technique you could share?

Believe in Your Writing

kristi2holl — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 18:57:34 +0000

: Through the Shadowlands

Critiques are very valuable, but in the end, you have to be the judge of your own stories. You have to believe in your own writing. And trust me, negative critiques come to everyone.

Case in point: this week I’m reading C.S. Lewis Through the Shadowlands: The Story of His Life with Joy Davidman. I love C.S. Lewis‘ books, both his adult works and those for children. He’s probably most famous among children’s writers for his Chronicles of Narnia books (and now movies). Surely his books were well received from the beginning, right? No–his critique partner (none other than J.R.R. Tolkien of The Lord of the Rings fame) didn’t like it.

From Through the Shadowlands: “When Jack [C.S. Lewis] had completed his story about four children who discover a magic wardrobe and, through it, find a way into the land of Narnia, he showed it to Tolkien, who was unimpressed. Feeling, perhaps, that Jack had aimed rather more at achieving an effect than at creating an Other World of the kind he was writing about in The Lord of the Rings, Tolkien told him that ‘It really won’t do you know!’ Jack was discouraged and put the book to one side for a while before returning to it and rewriting the first few chapters. However, he still felt uncertain about whether it was any good or not, and decided to ask the advice of someone else.”

Thankfully the second person he asked was more enthusiastic. Jack then went on to complete this book, which became the first Narnia book: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.

Reading in the Middle of the Night

kristi2holl — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 07:13:00 +0000

It’s the middle of the night. And, as always, I’m thankful to be a reader.

When I was a young mother, I was plagued by chronic migraines that kept me awake for hours during many nights each week. To take my mind off the pain, I often read or wrote, finding it a helpful distraction. But with improved health, I hadn’t needed that help for a long time. Until tonight, for some reason. I woke at 1 a.m., my head pounding, my neck cramped, and my back stiff. Nothing worked to relieve the pain, so I finally got up about 2, careful not to wake my snoozing spouse. I took two aspirin and curled up in the rocking chair, grateful that I wasn’t facing a houseful of toddlers and babies in the morning, as in years past. I made a cup of hot chocolate, listened to the quiet of the house…and I thought of books.

It had been a busy weekend, with a book signing and talk on Saturday, church on Sunday, and some other obligations. I’d missed having some quiet time to myself. Why not take advantage, as in years past, of this unexpected free time? I’d half expected to sit in the living room feeling sorry for myself, but then I remembered the new (used) writing book that had arrived in the mail Friday, the Elizabeth George book Write Away that I blogged about in “Demystifying Writing.” Sipping my hot chocolate, I read a chapter that detailed the author’s researching techniques when visiting England. It got my mind to racing, as we plan to visit England in the spring, and I could easily picture myself doing research there. Perhaps I could think of a tax deductible book idea before spring…

I’d also picked up four mysteries at the library last week that I hadn’t had a chance to look at yet, so I chose a cozy by an author new to me, kept sipping, and started reading… Now I’m three chapters into Aunt Dimity: Snowbound and so far, I’m hooked. I love a mystery set in England, minus the corpses, and while I read, the headache faded into the background. It brought back memories of how I dealt with those long years of constant chronic pain. What would I have done without books?

I think I’ll head back to bed for a couple hours of sleep before the day starts officially. Yes, I’ll be sleepy tomorrow and may need some extra caffeine at some point. But my blog for today is finished, I’ve started two excellent new books, and I’ve enjoyed some quiet hours of reading. My body may feel old and tired right now, but my mind is happy and my spirit refreshed. All because of the joy of reading good books. I’m so grateful that I love to read.

Writer’s Block Revisited

kristi2holl — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 14:04:00 +0000

The topic of writer’s block came up several times this week in email from newer writers via my website. There are multiple causes of writer’s block, with as many solutions. So today I want to point you to a couple of good resources for dealing with this.

(After you finish this post, go to the Absolute Write website to read my article on writer’s block called “A Block by Any Other Name…” )

One resource is a book Kurt Vonnegut called “as well researched and helpful a book on writing as I’ve ever read.” It’s Write: 10 Days to Overcome Writer’s Block. Period. by Karen E. Peterson, Ph.D. [See Amazon's great used prices for this book!] From her website:
“Writers want to write, but often find themselves whirling through cyberspace, glued to HBO with a box of doughnuts, careening off to the nearest Starbuck’s, and/or carving out last week’s fossilized spaghetti from the kitchen table. Sound familiar? This is what Dr. Karen E. Peterson— who has overcome writer’s block herself—calls ‘the write-or-flight response.’

In this revolutionary book, psychologist and novelist Karen E. Peterson presents an effective way to outwit writer’s block. Based on new brain research and sound psychological principles, this innovative program shows writers how to conquer writer’s block using:

Exercises to conquer the “write-or-flight” response
Techniques to create that elusive “writing mood”
Parallel monologue and interior dialogue to jumpstart the writing process
Checklists to see which side of the brain is blocking you”

I fully recommend that little book because it worked for me. It explained the physical reasons why certain types of blocks occur–and what to do about them. (Now, off to the Absolute Write website to read “A Block by Any Other Name…” )

Do YOU have a favorite block buster you could share?

Slow and Steady

kristi2holl — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 16:42:00 +0000

Slow and steady still wins the race.

In celebration of the ten-year anniversary of http://www.cynthialeitichsmith.com/, Cynthia asked some established authors the following question: Over the past decade, what are the most important lessons you’ve learned about your craft, the writing/artistic life, and/or publishing, and why?

In part, Nancy Garden said: “I think the most important lesson I’ve learned about my craft–or at least about myself as a writer–over the past decade is to slow down! By that I don’t necessarily mean to write less, and I certainly don’t mean to take more time off (what’s that?), but what I do mean is to be sure to give each new book or story all the time it needs before sending it off to one’s editor or one’s agent. Working on more than one book at the same time used to work for me, especially when each project was at a different stage of development and or when each was different from its companions–different age levels, for example, different genres, etc. But recently, I found myself working on two or three things which were at roughly the same stage of development at more or less the same time–and that led to my impatiently releasing some before they were really ready.”

I couldn’t agree more with her statements. In the last few years, I’ve thought a lot about where the pressure to hurry the writing comes from. In In Praise of Slowness: Challenging the Cult of Speed Carl Honore says a lot more about this subject, and it’s worth reading the whole book. But in his chapter on “Work: the Benefits of Working Less Hard,” he talked about how technology today has allowed work to seep into every corner of our lives. There is nowhere to hide from email, faxes and phone calls. Everyone is potentially on duty all the time–and often expected to be. Working from home can easily slip into working all the time. And writers are no longer exempt.

With the recent emphasis on writers needing platforms in order to sell their books, writers feel pressured to have websites, blogs, blog tours, newsletters, book trailers, TV and radio interviews, and more. The slower methods when I started writing (typing on an old college typewriter in a tiny closet to get away from the kids) were quiet and peaceful and slower. It was a big part of the charm of the writing life to me. But now, thanks to “hurry” pressure, even writers are caught in a time squeeze.

As Honore says, “Even the simple things–taking the kids to school, eating supper, chatting with friends–become a race against the clock.” Life wasn’t this way when I began writing–and I had four very young children underfoot and a farm and huge gardens and lots of church work when I started writing. But no Internet, no email, no blogs, no pressure to turn out books as fast as you could type them. Does it have to be this way? No, but you will need to swim upstream to achieve it. I would encourage all of you to think about this NOW before you get too caught up in the madness. Decide for yourself how much time you want to spend on marketing, and stick to that limit. Decide which things you might enjoy most, and try them. DON’T TRY TO DO EVERYTHING, at least not until you’re richly famous and can (like one author I met last spring) afford to hire FIVE full-time employees to handle all the marketing and publicity.

Don’t let the Internet or marketing or “building a platform” rob you of the time you need to write or make you think you have to hurry, hurry, hurry to get your book out there. I think that accounts for a lot of the self-publishing frenzy in recent years. Slow down! Enjoy your writing life. Slow and steady–inch by inch–still wins the race. And it gives you time to enjoy your entire life along the way.

Procrastination Tip

kristi2holl — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 16:28:00 +0000

In “Procrastinators Unite” I talked about the book The 60 Second Procrastinator. Procrastination tip #41 hits on an idea that kills two birds with one stone–and I’m going to try it today. What are two common problems that writers have, problems made worse by procrastination? They are (1) being unfit and (2) not having a broad enough base of general knowledge. We sit too much, reading or writing by the hour, resulting in sore backs, kinked necks, headaches, and extra pounds. We write about the same subjects or themes over and over, fishing without restocking the pond with information and images.

The answer to both writing problems? Procrastination tip #41 suggests exercising while watching tapes or DVDs from your library covering topics like science, history, geography, and so on. He says, “While exercising, I am adding to my storehouse of knowledge or understanding of human endeavors.” It sounds like a great way to learn–and keep the old body in shape to write at the same time. Whether you write fiction or nonfiction, you have to feed your pond. The solutions to most of my eleven mysteries have hinged on some little known fact of science or history, something picked up in a brochure or a conversation. Why not systematically feed my brain interesting facts while exercising? I already listen to books on tape when I run, but it’s the bleh weight routines indoors that bore me–and the exercise I most procrastinate on, despite the real need for my little porous bones.

This sounds like a winning tip to me! I’m heading to the library to check out that nonfiction DVD/video section. I like the idea of getting in shape, both physically and mentally, at the same time. And if I can watch something interesting, the boring weights routine should go faster. Make it fun!

(If you need more motivation to kick procrastination, see Australian Craig Harper’s motivational article called “Procrastination.”)

Procrastinators Unite!

kristi2holl — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 14:52:00 +0000

It’s almost ten in the morning, and I’m having a terrible time getting started. I’m between projects, having finished a novel and mailed it off Wednesday. I have a proposal to “revisit,” but I did email instead. There’s no real reason for me to be unfocused. I feel fine, ate a healthy breakfast, had a lovely chat with hubby before he left for work, cleaned the kitchen and straightened the house. I need to write now, but I’m considering watering my droopy flowers first. When I started writing umpteen years ago, I had babies and toddlers underfoot, lived on a farm, wrote a lot, and moved at lightning speed, multi-tasking before it was a word. I had no patience at all with writers like the one I’ve become: the writing procrastinators. Back then, I had no time to procrastinate. If I didn’t write during the hour the kids napped, I didn’t get to write. I was in my office typing within a minute of tucking in the last child. No time to waste!

No need to rush about so much now; hence, the problem. So what to do? Thankfully, I’m an avid collector of writing and writing-related books. I knew there was an answer to my problem somewhere on my shelves. I pulled out a promising title: The 60 Second Procrastinator: Sixty Solid Techniques to Jump-Start Any Project and Get Your Life in Gear! by Jeff Davidson. The book is in paperback, on audio, and available on Kindle. (You can get a free sample of the Kindle book.) The back of the book claims that “you can bust procrastination in one minute flat!” Sounds good. It’s a little book, but judging by the markings, the turned-down corners, and the colored sticky tabs poking out from its pages, it is full of great ideas I’ve used in the past!

The author says “procrastination is a nasty habit and facilitated by distractions.” No argument there! Mr. Davidson also says: “Whenever you let progress on lower-level tasks or projects stand in the way of higher-level tasks or projects, you are procrastinating–you got that? Procrastination…is a recurring response to all that is competing for your attention.” He says that if you change your mindset, you change your [writing] life. I certainly believe that.
Lower level tasks? Yard work, email, lunch out, my favorite mystery. Higher level tasks? Writing, marketing, doing the dreaded search engine optimization for my websites. Hmmm…I think I’ll take the procrastinator book outside with me now and re-read it while I water my wilting flowers. In the coming week I’ll probably share the techniques I find most helpful.

How do YOU deal with procrastination?

Demystifying Writing

kristi2holl — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 14:50:00 +0000

Yesterday I read an old article from The Writer called “Demystifying the Writing Process” about how the author, Elizabeth George, writes her mysteries. I’ve been a longtime fan of her books after seeing BBC productions of her Inspector Lynley mysteries. Ms. George creates intricate plots, unusual characters, and psychological suspense.

In the article, Ms. George was asked about her process of writing. She said, “I developed a complicated process to demystify writing. I do think everybody needs to develop a process that works for them that will demystify or deterrify the process.” She said she created a structured, step-by-step approach to writing that appealed to her organizational side (left brain), and that as she applied her approach, she did it in such a way that it triggered the creative side (right brain). She wrote about this approach in Write Away: One Novelist’s Approach to Fiction and the Writing Life. I wondered if her approach would be too structured for me. But then I read her statement: “When it comes to writing, I never listen to my mind; I always listen to my body. I’ve learned to trust that feeling right in my solar plexus.” I checked with Amazon, read a sample chapter, and ordered a copy right then! (Check out the used prices!) I can’t wait till it arrives.

We can always learn from each other. I’ve got a pretty good system that has helped me sell 35 books, a system I originally learned in 1979 when I took a writing course from The Institute of Children’s Literature. Over the years, I’ve adjusted the system to suit my needs, and I’ve found that most how-to writing books have at least one idea (often more) that I can use to help my own writing. When Ms. George’s book arrives, I’ll let you know what I find out.

What writing books have YOU learned the most from? Current ones? Timeless classics?

Treadmill Journal

kristi2holl — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 12:04:00 +0000

I am finishing a book this week and plan to start a book next Monday that I’ve already done a proposal for last spring, along with a few sample chapters. While I enjoyed writing the current novel, I know the progress was much slower than necessary. With this next book, I’d like to be more disciplined, which is my unending writer’s challenge. Recently I found a new system that looks simple and effective, and I plan to try it. I have my “treadmill journal” all set up and ready to go!

A treadmill journal? Something you write on a treadmill? No. The name comes from an article in the April, 2007, The Writer by Gregory Martin called “Want to Be PRODUCTIVE? Start a ‘treadmill’ journal’.” He says trying to write a meaningful piece of literature is like training for a marathon. I would agree. “Most often in workshops, craft considerations (plot, characterization, imagery, etc.) receive primary emphasis,” Martin says. “This may lead apprentice writers to think their most important problems are craft problems. They aren’t. Craft knowledge has nothing to do with tenacity. Students can learn plot, but they can’t learn hunger. Desire, like discipline, must be cultivated.”

His solution to this tenacity problem is to keep a “treadmill” journal, a record of daily writing training, much like a marathon runner logs in miles and speed. These are the five entries that go in a daily journal:
**DATE AND TIME: Good writing depends on habit, and record keeping matters.
**HOW LONG YOU PLAN TO WORK: Too many talented writers have no discipline–and no sales. He says to aim for 18 hours per week. If you can’t, start with an hour per day and work up.
**WHAT YOU PLAN TO WORK ON: The desperation of vague intentions keeps many people from writing regulary, Martin says. Be as craft-specific here as possible. (e.g. work on description of cabin, deepen hero’s character in Chapter One, add dialogue to climax scene)
**HOW IT WENT: When you’re finished for the day, take inventory. Say what you accomplished and also how you felt (physically and emotionally). This helps you order the rest of your life. (e.g. An entry saying “I was groggy despite the coffee” might lead you to getting more sleep that night.)
**WHEN YOU WILL WORK TOMORROW AND FOR HOW LONG: It tends to happen if it’s on your schedule. Try not to take any days off. Keep your momentum, even if one day you only write half an hour.

I got a blank journal with a picture of an old Royal typewriter on it, then copied the five steps of a treadmill journal on the first page. I intend to start using it today. I have been striving for consistency for as long as I’ve been writing, and I hope this tool will help! If you try a treadmill journal, comment or email me and let me know how it works for you!

For the Love of Words

kristi2holl — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 13:32:00 +0000

I’m always shocked when people tell me, “I don’t like to read.” I’m less surprised when kids and grown-ups say, “I hate to write.” But oh, what poverty! I can’t imagine what life would be like if you didn’t love words.

When I’m happy or want a reward for a job well done, I pick up a good book and read for pleasure. If I want to know something—from how to be a better grandma to planning a trip to England—I read to learn. If I have a personal problem, I look to books where people have shared their struggles and ideas for overcoming. If I’m hurt or afraid, I turn to my journal to sort myself out and talk to God about things. By the time I’m all written out, I feel much better and often I’ve arrived at a solution to my problem. And I get to make a living by staying home and making up stories.

What wonderful gifts, to love to read and to love to write. Today, instead of focusing on the frustrations of revision or marketing my work, I’m just grateful for the God-given desire I have for words.