Taking Your Writing Outside

It would be great to just look outside and see a beautiful day, so you pick up your things and take them outside to write.

Problem? Some things to consider before you do:
1. Be sure you have internet if you need it
2. Is your battery charged? If not, make sure you are close to an outlet.
3. Do you like it hot? Find shade or dappled shade to write in--good for you, good for your computer.
4. Find comfortable chairs to sit in. You can sit on the lawn, but realize small friends live there and will see you as the new playground.
5. Dust, bugs, and pollen also loves the great outdoors, so bring a cloth to keep your computer screen clean (and maybe bug spray for yourself)
6. Make sure you are close enough to a bathroom that you can lug your stuff back and forth without too much bother.
7. Have a sweatshirt or sweater on hand if the breeze picks up.

Writing outside is one of those things that looks great but takes time to look effortless. Recently, Mystery Girl and I wrote on her deck and it was a great experience--but we also had all of the bases covered.

My 'authonomy experience'

As some of you know, I put my ms up on Authonomy last month and it's about time I detailed my experiences on the site. First impressions were that the site was easy to navigate and you could be as full-on or part-time as you wished. So I signed up. I set up a page, picked some books that I fancied reading and read and commented and moved some of them onto my bookshelf. After a week of dipping my toe in the water, I uploaded my ms. First thing you have to do is come up with a 25 word pitch, which is not as easy as it sounds! Then you write your own blurb, next comes a cover - you can upload your own or use one of theirs. To upload the book itself you have to split the chapters up into separate docs and upload those to build your book. Add a few tags and voila you go live and start to get feedback - and if you're not careful that's when the floodgates open. People offer you read swops, a literary version of 'you scratch my back'. Anyway after adjusting my page to say what I don't feel qualified to read and stemming the flow of requests. I began reading and commenting in earnest. I only comment on books I really like and if I shelve a book, it is most likely to stay on my shelf the whole month. You really don't want to know how many I have on my watchlist right now. On the whole so far the experience has been good, I've discovered some cracking unpublished authors, been heckled a couple of times for not returning the read swop favour, and my feedback is honest, I'm not going to gush over a book if the ms is full of typos, commits the show don't tell sin or doesn't hold my interest. You don't have to be logged in to read a book (if you want to comment or watchlist then of course you do)

The holy grail of most authonomists is to reach the top five and get reviewed by the editors desk at Harpercollins. While my book is still going up (position 1401 as we speak) the comments are the goal for me. I'm actually researching self publishing - more about that later.

Would I advise other unpublished authors to have a go on Authonomy? - absolutely. Just set your boundaries and stick to them, be polite, give constructive feedback and above all enjoy it.

Support Groups

Rose and I are out to support a friend of ours at her reading tonight. She writes her own blog called Dr. Write if you want to get to know her.

This brings the question to mind on the idea of support: How do you support those around you that are published, getting published, or are trying to get published? How do you develop a community of writers that really offer support and not judgement?

I've been a part of writing groups in the past, where once their needs were met, they stopped being a supportive group. I've also been a part of groups that had nothing to do with writing but found great support with those few who also "wrote on the side."

I've also been a part of a group where it naturally took its course and tapered off but left me with an amazing writing partner (yes, that would be you, Rose).

I've yet to try the virtual writing group and see if I can offer support there or receive it. Rose is a bit braver than me there.

What about you? How do you find your support groups for writing? Who do you ask to read your work?

Finding a good support group involves trust and allowing yourself to be vulnerable. To reach out is hard, to be burned and continue to reach out is even harder. But how else will we find each other if we never try?

Does the agenting process work?

Nathan asks another good question.

http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/NathanBransford/~3/v--V52HB7yk/can-i-get-ruling-do-you-think-query.html

Takeover!

Never mind writer etiquette this is more like plain common sense. When you go to a coffee shop you buy their coffee and their food. What you do not do is stage a takeover. As I've said before our current writing haunt is great but - and luckily this was around the time we would usually be leaving - in came the takeover. An entire family, who proceeded to unpack their picnic lunch and play with their kids indoors, which led to the dropping child on head incident which led to some serious screaming. If this was one of those every-person cafes then fine - I suppose. This place is popular with students who actually want to study and because Cactus is a teacher she knows about it. These people were not student-y. I think we'll use the quiet section next week.

Joining the Colony and one distracted Writer

This week in the course of my list of submissions - I keep 10 out at any one time - I came across an online community for mostly unpublished writers. I read the intro and signed up. Its a supportive and encouraging environment which I've only been a part of for a couple of days but I really like the whole idea and the people I've spoken with online are all welcoming and interested in you and your writing.

This morning we went to our usual writing haunt and managed to bag the 'good' seats but I was having one of those mornings where my ears are working my fingers. I do wish people wouldn't have business meetings in coffee shops - that's what boardrooms are for!

Writer etiquette

When I write out of the house I want to go somewhere where I can camp (see previous post by that name) without getting in the way or pissing the staff off. I love our current venue but it does have a few drawbacks. The other week our usual spot was occupied but it wasn't a problem. This week same thing, only its a very drunk guy - passed out. His friends turned up later and in the end they all left together. We acknowledged them, it would be rude not to but I draw the line when complete strangers ask me to go shopping for them and they'll give me half what I spend in cash. I mean you honestly think I'm going to abandon my friend and go with three people I've never met. There's charitable and there's asking for trouble. So if you see a person writing in a coffee shop, by all means smile and if they say hi assume normal politeness rules so if they stop talking and go back to their work let them be, but never ever
a) ask them what they're writing
b) look over their shoulder and try to read what they're writing
c) ask them for a lift (yeah weird but it has happened)
d) ask them for money (the average writer is in as much fiscal distress as you are)
e) propose marriage (not cool dude, so not cool)

What's in it for me?

As Rose mentioned, why we write is part of a journey. The journey really. If I always questioned "what's in it for me?" I'd never stop to see the beauty in the art of "just doing."

But, let's examine the question as this question often follows the other one --why write?

What in it for me?

Fame--being recognized by many and having good seats at a game would be a few perks I am sure, as would publicly airing my laundry

Fortune--money would be up there at the top, because let's face it, if you don't have the money to DO anything, you are still just a poser. So "give me money (that's what I want)"

Public recognition--I would love to quit my day job and sit in a room typing and have that be considered a worthy endeavor, instead of a hobby.

Be coined "a real writer"--not like those fake ones you see typing in an empty room or coffee shop.

What's REALLY in it for me right now?

Well, certainly not fame or fortune, and I am still at work....so coining myself a real writer is really where it's at. I am just learning to form the words--I am a writer--without immediately making excuses for it. And, maybe next in line of importance is the fact that others around me are also taking me seriously as a writer.

So, bottom line?

I write because I am a writer.

Why do I write?

It's a question that keeps popping up. There are many reasons, the main one being I enjoy writing. If something is stuck in my head it makes a lot more sense to get it down on paper so to speak than have it rattling around in my brain. Reason number two it's my form of expression. Other people paint, sculpt, tell jokes, hang off the sides of cliffs, knit, cook, etc. Of course the stated goal of every writer is to get published and while that would be cool it won't change my life because that isn't the way life works. I already have the life I want, being a published author would be the cherry on top but wouldn't stop me from hanging out with friends, sleeping through the radio alarm or forgetting to unplug the kettle. In a recent rejection letter they said 'there's no doubt that this has potential' so for now I'm going to enjoy the journey and not worry about the destination. Wow that's deep for one in the afternoon.

A question of words

Cactus and I were talking yesterday about how many words make a novel. I said that 50,000 equalled a novella and my first one is 73,000 odd but they can be as long as 125,000 words although those tend to be more fantasy/sci fi. From a reader's perspective 300 pages is about right and a publisher isn't going to take a gamble on a 1,000 page opus unless you are a proven writer. Of course if the story grabs you and doesn't let go you don't care how long the book is - a good example being Mark Helprin's A Soldier of the Great War - which I loved.

Bring Back the Pads!

During our latest excursion out to write, Rose and I noticed a familiar theme cropping up in our discussion on the way home: chair comfort.

Now, I look the look and smell of wood mixed with coffee when I write, but I'm starting to realize how much I don't like the feel of wood after the second hour. So while Nostalgia offered a great atmosphere and enough space to comfortably sit down to write, there isn't a pillow or pad in site for your precious gluteus maximus.

We resorted to sitting on our computer cases (luckily, both soft), but it has changed our minds about going back.

If only they could balance their chairs with some cushioned ones. Or better yet, just offer pads to those who suffer from a sore booty after a lengthy stay.

But maybe that is their intention--to move us along, make us uncomfortable after an hour so we decide to leave. Higher turn around and a higher profit possibly.

Or maybe coffee shops are no longer used as they were first intended: to visit and relax with a cup of Joe while playing games or reading or (insert leisurely activity here). And this would be sad.

I don't know about you, but in this day and age, where I am asked to account for every hour at work and then fight to finish my errands before the store closes or the sun goes down, I like a moment of grace--where time is not measured but enjoyed as I sip that roasty goodness and hunker down to write another page.

I'm Stuck in This Body, in This Life

With the smell of Expo pens in the air, I know one of our graphic designers is stuck and taking it out on the whiteboard. The drawings are often humorous, thought provoking, and edgy, and usually have nothing to do with the current work load. It’s more of a way to allow a freedom back in his workflow, of pushing the boundaries around in an area he is allowed to so he can get back to the confines of the project and hopefully see it in a new light.

I wonder how different this is to my choice of walking around the block while thinking out a problem. Sometimes I purposely place it in the forefront of my mind and picture seeing the solution, but most often I just walk, watch, and listen. I let the thoughts percolate, hoping to brew a beautiful marketing design or proposal.

This got me thinking…what techniques do people use when they get stuck or feel confined creatively? There are a lot of writing tips—mapping, brainstorming, journaling, etc.—but what if the problem isn’t you but your surroundings?

How important is the place we work, live, breathe to our work, our creativity?

Secondly, what do when we are faced with a crappy place to work? We can’t always ask our bosses to move and we can’t always just get new jobs—especially in this economy.

Here are some ways I’ve found useful and some links that take you to more ideas:

Website on overcoming creative blocks

Blog on overcoming creative blocks

Second blog on overcoming creative blocks


Think about it—do you already have a process and you just aren’t aware of it? How will it help you to figure out what the process is?

How to camp

Some writers would have you believe that writing is a solitary occupation. You imagine some scrawny writer in a drafty old building crafting his or her masterpiece. Nope - not like that at all. Before I got the laptop my writing was only done at home and I think suffered as a result but now the cord is cut and I can write anywhere I damn well please - although the middle of the freeway is a definite no-no.

In the last few months Girl Ink and I have been writing in coffee shops but there are rules. First don't go for the small places, if the place only has five seats they are going to notice if you stay a long time. Second always buy something, coffee is good but maybe a cake as well. Third don't make a nuisance of yourself no loud braying laughter, risque jokes etc you want to be the invisible writer.

Our Favourites

Divas - good coffee and cupcakes. Dome can provide some really juicy material because the people on the other side of it sound so close they could be whispering in your ear. Nice patio in the Summer. Wi-fi

Mestizo Coffee - food is good, loads of comfy chairs, wi-fi, music isn't too distracting just don't sit right under the speakers.

Nostalgia - good coffee, mini's cupcakes! plenty of room to spread out and of course wi-fi.

And we meet again!

Hello!

I'm so happy to start musing back and forth about writing with Mystery Girl. Here are a few things we learned:

Writing groups are great, but a writing partner is better

Vary where you write and it may help keep those writing juices flowing

Sugar and caffeine make everything seem great for awhile

Don't be afraid to read something similar to what you are writing. Most likely, you are conscious enough not to copy it, and you may find that it spurs ideas for you to push yourself even further.

Try writing at roughly the same time. It really does help!