I am not a writer, am I?

This is a blog for writers who don't know if they're writers

Spoiler: 

You are.

I am not a consistent writer. All the writing podcasts and advice books etc, etc., say you need to develop consistent writing schedule and remain vigilant and rigorous and all these things that I 100% absolutely am not and do not. And maybe that is the marker between success and mediocrity- but do I need to be successful to be good and take joy in what I'm doing. Nah.

Is this an excuse? Probably, but it's also real life. Look, I've written 4 books, 3 of which I may someday publish, and 2 chapbooks, 1 of which is published. I'm 38. Has anybody noticed my writing outside of my friends and family? Not likely. 

Sometimes I wonder why I keep doing it. What's the purpose, if it doesn't make a broad impact? In a capitalist society, are we good at something if we can't make a living on it? 

That is a resounding yes. Look, art and writing and poetry, and all the textile arts, these have been around as long as human history. We have written human history because of us, for fucks sake. It's taken me decades to deprogram that academic snobbery (and it's probably still hanging in there in the dark, un-swept corners), but we don't need all that shit to create works of beauty, works that embody our lives and our hearts. 

I am a writer. I don't write when I'm supposed to... I don't write how I'm supposed to, but I am a writer. I am a writer. I am an artist. I am a musician. I am an athlete. I am my own validation (but like, it's cool if you want to validate me too, I'm a Virgo and a person and I like that shit).

Are you also a writer or an artist. It's okay to say that. Don't demean it, don't denigrate it. You get to own this. If you write, you're a writer. If you're taking a break from writing, you're still a writer. You are a writer.

So here are some tips from a
Not-Famous-At-All Writer 

Who Has These Same Struggles

Please feel free to add any in the comments <3 

1. Create through and with fear. Look, it would be wildly unrealistic to say that you can create without fear. If you've ever started a massive writing project, there's a really good chance you've struggled with it: fear that you're not good enough, that you're faking it (hellooooo imposter syndrome), that it's a waste of time, that nobody wants to read it, any number of things. Creation is also sitting with those fears, holding them gently, and knowing that they are not your truth. Accept them as a part of your narrative, but you don't have to hold them as your reality.
   
   
2. Take a break from creating and live your life. You breathe new life into your words with new experiences, new feelings. A break is just time to till the earth and plant the seeds.
   
   
3. Don't give up. Woof, this one is hard to write, because I super want to give up on this novel and I've been talking about finishing it for years but it just feels so hard and big and I don't know how to do it. Butt in seat, fingers on keyboard, love and forgiveness to myself.
   
   
4. Get constructive feedback from other writers. On your work, but also on your progress. It helps to have somebody who knows what struggs you strugging and can speak to it. Cultivate your writer/artist friends.
   
   
5. Share your finished products with your friends and family. Your voice deserves to be heard and you are wonderful and goddamn am I SO PROUD OF YOU FOR FINISHING THE THING. HOLY HELL, THAT'S SO AMAZING AND HARD AND POWERFUL.
   
   
6. Own your creation. Say, write, sing that you are a writer. Know that deep in your big, squishy, wonderful heart. Keep saying it. 

I like lists. I hope you liked this list! And don't forget- if you like this content and want to support my writing and read supporter-only content, you can buy me a cuppa at ko.fi. You can also purchase my chapbook & audible of poetry, a record of night at Amazon. If you're so inclined, you can also follow my author page at goodreads or follow me on Twitter. 

Please show me some love and leave a comment, review, or rating on any of these platforms! Have an awesome day, my friends.

Pantster NaNo prep in 5 Easy Steps

 In the NaNoWriMo world, you have pantster and preppers, and those of us in between. 

You planner planny plan-type methodical folks have plenty of guides out there to the Perfect (TM) way to prep, so I'm not going to help y'all. You've probably already spent September reading blogs, watching youtube videos, or IDK snapchats? about it. You've got this under control.

This is a blog the messy rest of us.

Hello pantsters and plansters, thanks for reading. This won't be a prescriptive guide because if you're here, we both know that doesn't work for you already. If you're like me, I could create a million outlines and storyboards and still veer off course in a matter of 20 words, because for a lot of us, it's not just about the story, it's about how we engage with the story. When I started NaNo over a decade ago, I tried everything I could think of. My first novel was 100000% by the seat of my pants (and awful and hopefully lost forever). After that, I tried all the different ways. If we're being honest with ourselves, this is an incredibly difficult task and if we get bogged down in the how, we forget the do. So October is crucial, this prep is crucial, but ultimately keeping your ass in seat and writing is the only thing that matters.

Thing 1: Identify what interests you and how you stay interested

Your first step to figuring out how to be effective here is to figure out what gets your juices going (and what keeps them going). This is the most important step. If you're like me, you'll spend October meticulously planning your novel (gets me going), and then as you jump into November, you'll get bored and start changing it right and left (brings me joy). Add a dragon here, an immaculate conception there, maybe some torture? Really bored? Kill somebody. So planning helps me get excited, but being flexible and adaptable while I'm writing keeps me going. Maybe for you, it's the world building? Or the character creation? Do you like to doodle your characters to get ideas? Do it.

Ultimately, no two writers are the same. What works for me may not work for you, but I hope this guide can help you start brainstorming ideas and thinking about what works for you.

Thing 2: Get to know your characters

Do outlines kill you, deep inside? Does knowing where your story will take you bore you down to your bones? Then don't fucking do it. Take this prep time to figure out your characters and the world they'll be in. That way, when you sit down on Nov 1st, you already have a relationship with them and you know how they'll behave and what you'd like them to do. 

I do this in a lot of ways:

• Create character sheets (like in D&D)
• Create Pinterest boards of celebrities that look like my characters, of places that remind me of where I'd like them to live or for some of the plot to happen
• Create a playlist that makes you think of the characters or gets you in the mood
• Write a few short stories that are centered on your characters (or in the world) to get a feel for it all and really shift gears into this new and wonderful place.
• Talk it out with your writerly friends. Sometimes you just need to ramble about your ideas (it's called rubber ducking) and be sure to let your friend ramble their ideas too! 
• Something I haven't listed- get creative! This is about finding out who you're writing about! This list isn't exhaustive.
• Don't forget your villains. Villains are fun and deserve to be fleshed out, as it were.

Thing 3: Get to know your world

You don't have to know exactly what it looks like but it helps to have an idea before you jump into this. Here's a list of ways I've done it or plan to try it:

• Pinterest that shit, look up pictures of places all around the world and save it to your pinterest vision board
• Create a visitor's guide and include the info you think it's important for folks to know.
• Draw a crude map. My first world map was on a napkin. This does not need to be elaborate.
• Sometimes I like to doodle unusual flora and fauna that might be in my worlds.

Ultimately, you'll probably want to think of the core nugget of the plot.

Thing 4: CONFLICT

You don't have to outline the main story, but you should have some idea as to what your main conflict looks like. Write it out, draw it out, sing it out. Just work through it and keep a note of it somewhere to glance at- it can be one sentence, "Jameela's mother died under mysterious circumstances and she wants to find out what really happened" or perhaps "Randal needs to visit his ailing cousin but there is a Giant Fucking Serpant in the way" are examples that are perfectly suitable. 

"Jane doesn't like ham" might even work, IDK your life. Write what makes you happy.

Just figure out what the central conflict is and keep track of it.

Thing 5: Keep track of your shit

This is a two parter- 

1. Store all of your files together. I use google drive, but you do what you want. You will probably have to access some of your character or world work as you go, so it's good to have it somewhere you can pull up quickly.
   
   
2. Start & keep an ongoing file of character names, appearance, and relationships. For example:
   Durga, sister, tall brown hair blue eyes thick likes apples
   Shiela, lover, short, thin, green eyes red hair, slight
   
   I also include like quick world notes here too, and slang I make up along the way. Anything you might forget and need a quick ref for.
   
   This way allows you a quick reference while you're writing, so if you create a totally random character out of the blue, one you hadn't planned, you can pull them up 50 pages later and have the details correct. This is really important time saver for pantsters and plansters, because when we deviate, we can record it and refer back to it without needing to retcon anything or spend precious writing time tracking it down in the rough draft.

Good luck, writers! Have fun and curse the gods!

And don't forget- if you like this content and want to support my writing and read supporter-only content, you can buy me a cuppa at ko.fi. You can also purchase my chapbook of poetry a record of night at Amazon. If you're so inclined, you can also follow my author page at goodreads.

Procrastinating

This post is procrastinating and about procrastinating.

Are you familiar with the "You Should Be Writing" memes put out by Writing about Writing?

These are photos from the FB page. Familiar? Because I need them branded into my brain. I have been such a procrastinator. I am sure you are unsurprised, readers. This man provides a valuable service for humans such as me.

But I'm still going to get this done ya'll. It's happening. I need to be done with this series! Plus, I need to start editing so that it's vaguely cohesive! Queers saving the world! Needs more dragons. OH, that's A GOOD IDEA.

I guess I should be writing. Happy Camp NaNoWriMo month, y'all!