Now I Am The Voice

Having a down day? A down month? Wondering if this writing thing is for you? Got too many voices in your head--and I don't mean characters. I mean self-doubt--? Those stinging ones I talked about last week, saying "I can't." or "I'm not good enough." Or whatever.

Try this on for size. (And yes, I cry at this assembly. UVU--a local university--athletes come and present it to schools. I am a baby. Deal with it.)

Now I am the VOICE.
I will LEAD, not follow.
I will CREATE, not destroy.
I am a FORCE for GOOD
I am a LEADER
DEFY the ODDS
Set a NEW STANDARD
Step up

Step up

Step up!

(~Anthony Robbins)

So today, I invite you to silence the stinging voices, and take control. Today, YOU are the VOICE. What will you say?

Back to Real Life

Status of my Life: I finished another edit of SHADOWS. And I finally wrote something new yesterday. Going back to work threw me all out of wack, and I didn't have anyone talking because I had so many other things clouding my mind. But yesterday (my day off) I finally heard them again and I was able to write 1800 words in a new novel I started a while ago and am now changing up a little bit. After about a week, that's relief.


So yeah. School's starting again. It's usually only bad until October. By then I have the little darlings all trained up and things run smoothly. But the next six weeks...yikes.

And that means that I'm going to have to be more scheduled with my time. I've set a bedtime of 11 PM and I'm going to try to focus on writing from 9-11 every night. I'm sure I'll get sucked into the black abyss of my writing forums, but I'm really going to try not to get too...sucky. We'll see how that goes.

My son is back in school, and scouts, and piano and that means time running him around to his thousands of activities. Time to get the notebook back in the purse so while I'm waiting for him, I can write.

Real life isn't sooo bad, it's just getting back into it.

Reading: THE DARK IS RISING by Susan Cooper

Nothing To Say...

Status of my Life: My voices have gone quiet. To other people, this means "writer's block." To me, this means that my characters are quiet right now, and need a little break. So I give it to them. I went swimming and ate lunch, and now I'm been critiquing in all my groups, because I'm so far behind.


I don't really have much to say. I've been writing a lot lately, and then the voices went quiet. I know they'll come back, screaming at me to write their stories. But, for now, not so much.

Sometimes I wonder if any of the stuff I write is even worthwhile. It is to me, and that should probably be enough. And it is. I'm still aiming to query in September, and have had some friends getting agents recently. I'm glad for them, and hope my day will come soon.

Well, that's about it. I'm wondering if I should start something new or go back to one of my "stalled" starts. I have about four of them, and I like them all, but just have nowhere to go. Maybe some of them will start talking to me again if I open them up.

Reading: THE SISTERS GRIMM by Michael Buckley

Good Things, Bad Things

Status of my Life: Writing the end of one of my WiP's. Oh, and I better get that steampunk polished and sent off to WOTF! Not much time left...


Bad Thing: I realized I forgot to blog the last day of the conference on Friday. Oh well, I must have been so overwhelmed with so many good things, that I couldn't think straight. I highly advise anyone to go to a writing conference. Just being around other authors is intoxicating.

Good Thing: I started in a new critique group on the Forward Motion Writer's Forum this week. Yeah, like I need another forum to frequent. I don't actually read through all the forum talk, because let's face it, I'm busy enough on QT and AQ Connect. I'd like to get over to Verla Kay eventually, but I haven't made it there yet.

Bad Thing: My voices are going dim again...

Good Thing: I was able to coax the voices back last time and have some good starts to stories that fizzled when the voices stopped. And I know how to get the voices back when they go quiet. Some call this writer's block. I have voices...that could be labeled under a "Bad Thing" too, I guess.

Bad Thing: I hear voices...

Good Thing: A friend of mine finally read SHADOWS--a novel I've been shredded on continually for the past four months. I know it has problems, as everyone keeps pointing out to me. She loved it. Said it was her favorite one. I was stunned. I think I had to lift my chin off the floor with a Bobcat. So maybe there's hope...

Bad Thing: Sleeping through the alarm and being late to tennis. I love tennis and every minute counts!

Good Thing: Live crit group tomorrow. I love meeting with those ladies and laughing. It's so fun!

Bad Thing: Staying up until 1 AM, getting up at 6 AM, rinse and repeat. I feel like a zombie.

Good Thing: Swimming pools in the summer.

Bad Thing: Kids who won't go to bed when you tell them to.

Good Thing: Writing. I love being a writer.

Reading: THE EDGE OF MEMORY by H.L. Dyer and THE HOST by Stephenie Meyer