Monday, May 9, 2011

Post: Writing May Require Faith, Too



It is May, friends. Already nine days in, and I'm a little disappointed in myself. I had hoped to have my WiP  finished by now, but the likelihood of that happening isn't likely, unless by some miracle I can pull off four chapters in the next two weeks. Then I got to thinking. What's my issue? Why am I so hard on myself?

Getting hammered by new responsibilities is a factor. The increasing call of parenthood is another, but then I thought, are these just excuses? Am I bogging myself down? Then it all stemmed back to a picture I found. Believe. Yes! Maybe I was losing faith in my writing abilities. I had to believe in myself again. So I took out a piece of scratch paper and wrote. Just wrote. It didn't matter what. These bumps are a nuisance, sure, but with a changing schedule, I understand my dilemma better. It's time to put writing back up as a priority.

I see we have new followers this week. Excellent! Please feel free to visit their blogs, everyone!

N.R. Williams
Katherine
Nisa
Kimmel (blog?)
David O'Keefe

Updates: Chapter 20 is done! I just need to do one last thorough reading before I pass it on to my alpha. As for when chapter 21 will get started and be done? I really can't honestly say. This week isn't likely, even though it should go by fast (it's pretty intense). Maybe in two weeks? That sounds reasonable. That's the plan, then!

Who went to Storymakers this weekend? Who saw the mighty Thor? I spent my weekend ripping out flooring, so please, do fill me in on the fun stuff I missed!

I'm David, and someone should invent 'work jammies.'

23 comments:

  1. I spent most of my weekend dancing, playing tennis and hanging out with friends. The upside - I had a lot of fun. The downside - WIP's word count hasn't expanded much =(

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  2. Work Jammies does sound like something awesome. But not if they're tacky looking like the tights that pretend to look like jeans. Configuring a new computer and then slamming out essays didn't make for a very fun weekend. Sadly this is the rest of my week too. And the next. Summer looks so awesome right about now.

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  3. I feel like I'm in a very similar boat. I was also hoping to have my first revision done by now, but I'm about 5 chapters away... From finishing reading and making notes, I haven't even started any rewriting yet.

    I wonder how many excuses I'm making up vs. actual obligations that pull me away from doing it. The more time I'm away from my story the more time doubt has to creep in.

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  4. Sorry it's been such a tough time fitting everyone in. I'm glad you found a way to believe in yourself again! Good luck with getting the last few chapters done.

    I went to Storymakers this weekend, and it was awesome! I posted about it today. :)

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  5. This post sounds very much like me right now. I have only written twice (I think) in the past two weeks or so. Bummer. I even had a few hours in the midst of chaos to write, but with all the stress of other things I just couldn't get into it. I think I can do it now. One hurdle jumped. (LDSers will understand...my husband put me in charge of the ELDER'S Q. act. Women were invited...so, I guess he thought I could make it nicer than he could =). Lots of work I will tell you.

    Now back to writing.

    No, I didn't go to the Conference. Wish I could have though. Not in the bucks. But next year I want to make it a goal. OR the year after. WE'll see. =)

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  6. Oh I hear you. Thing is, it's so easy to feel guilty about the things we don't get to do, instead of the things we DO do.

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  7. Pajama jeans are scary enough. Please, let's stay away from work jeans! lol

    Thanks for the shout out! :)

    Why is it so easy to believe in others and so hard to believe in yourself? I'm still trying to figure this one out. Glad you realized you were being too hard on yourself.

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  8. Thanks for the shout out. I think life can easily interfere with our writing lives. I hope all goes well for you.
    Nancy
    N. R. Williams, The Treasures of Carmelidrium

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  9. I have replaced belief with habit. It works just as well.

    Glad you're feeling positive, David. And look at all those word on your -- I don't know what they're called, word-coutners? That's awesome you must be doing something right.

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  10. Keep the faith David. For us unknowns, it's all we have.

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  11. Hi David,

    I like the way you help promote new followers. I haven't found a good way to track that--to tell who the new people are. How do you do it?

    By the way, we missed you at Storymakers this weekend. It was the best conference ever. I got two requests to see my middle grade fantasy--one partial and one full! Wahoo!

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  12. Thank you all for your encouragement! I wish the same back, multitimes fold (there I go, making up words again). I mean it. This post and your comments helped today (another 1000 words in, yay!).

    Joshua - That is fantastic! I look forward to checking out your series, and I'm not just saying that. I'm really intrigued by it. I link new followers weekly. It's my way of saying thank you for following. They deserve it. :)

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  13. Hey David I love this post. I was told by a successfully published author that their 1st novel took 17 years in the writing so don't be too hard on yourself. This author now has 5 published novels. :O)

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  14. Yes, keep the faith and keep writing. It really doesn't matter when you finish - as long as you finish :)

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  15. I went to Storymakers and saw Thor. It was a pretty great weekend!

    You can do it David. It will come. I think we all get in those ruts. I talked to an award winning author a couple weeks ago who is going through that (and she's award winning! yikes). Just keep on going. =)

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  16. Good for you, for not losing complete faith and giving up! It's hard not to lose heart sometimes, but you don't seem like the kind of person who would stay down. Life can "get in the way" and it's never an excuse, life is important!

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  17. Don't lose faith. Life gets in the way, but if you love writing as much as I think you do, you'll find a way to make time for it. :)
    I did go to Storymakers this weekend. It was super awesome. There were so many amazing writers there. I can't wait for next year!

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  18. Keep it up, bro. Sometimes there is more time to do writing than other times-- go with the flow-- life happens.
    Didn't make it to Storymakers this year. The madness of running a writing conference sort of over shadowed everything the last few months.

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  19. We all go through the writing roller coaster. Trying to find the right balance, esp. if we're parents. Writing does require faith - no doubt! Great food for thought; thanks for sharing! :)

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  20. Congratulations on almost being done! It's nice to meet you, drop by any time. Would love to feature exchange!
    S.B.Niccum
    Blog

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  21. It does take a lot of faith! Life can so easily get in the way. Sometimes I think how much easier life would be if I just didn't care about writing.

    Of course, that doesn't make me STOP caring about writing. :)

    I went to Storymakers; I did not see Thor.

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  22. I've been there, often. As you say, we just need to remind outselves we can do it. We need to believe in ourselves and our WIP.

    Ripping out floors. I'm doing that next week. Joy!

    Ellie Garratt

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