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Jessica Ferguson

Author, Writing Coach, Speaker

IWSG: What Would Make You Quit Writing?

July 6, 2021 By Jessica Ferguson 12 Comments

Today, Wednesday, is Insecure Writers Support Group day.

Our Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds! Our Twitter handle is @TheIWSG and hashtag is #IWSG.

The awesome co-hosts for the July 7 posting of the IWSG are Pat Garcia, Victoria Marie Lees,and Louise – Fundy Blue!

Each month we have an optional question. This month it is: What would make you quit writing?

What would make me quit writing? Last month I would have said absolutely nothing. Discouragement hasn’t done it in forty plus years; and there has certainly been plenty of discouragement. With the popularity and acceptance of Indie publishing, rejection can’t crush me the way it once did.

If those two things can’t stop me, nothing can. At least, that’s what I thought. This week I know better.

I recently signed up for a webinar called The Pleasure of the Personal Essay, offered by Jane Freidman. Our instructor was Dinty W. Moore, one of my favorites. I have his excellent book, Crafting The Personal Essay.

Hearing Dinty speak about the essay stimulated my imagination, and encouraged me. I’ve always figured the essay is short and formal—not a relaxed observation with questions and answers, ponderings and research. I never realized an essay could be book-length. Have you ever heard of a book-length essay? The White Album by Joan Didion? Heavy by Roxane Gay? How did I miss the book-length essay? Is it something I’ve forgotten?

The seventy-five minutes of Dinty W. Moore’s voice was akin to pouring fuel on smoldering coals. My mind raced with all kinds of possibilities for writing essays about things that have touched me, scared me, confused me. Actions and observations that I’m still pondering from long ago and far away.

A couple of weeks ago, I went to see my 97 year old mother who has round the clock sitters. Mom was a spit-fire in her day. A country girl from Arkansas, bright red hair and freckles, she was the oldest of ten kids. Her dad was an ordained, self-proclaimed Baptist minister. And Grandpa was totally illiterate. He couldn’t read. He couldn’t write. Often we couldn’t even understand the word he was trying to say.

Mom always said he was too mean to learn, but later, she amended that to too lazy. I suspect today we’d label him with a learning disability.

But my auditory processing Grandpa learned the Bible by making his eight daughters read to him. And from listening to an odd assortment of preachers on the radio. (His two youngest children—sons—became preachers too, though to their credit, they were educated.)

Mom was the first to leave home. After a failed marriage to her best friend’s brother, she hopped a bus and headed to Texas where she became a nurse. And while there is a much interesting story between leaving Arkansas and meeting Dad, I’ll save it for a later date.

Each time I go home to Texas from Louisiana, I wonder what I’ll encounter. Will she sleep during our entire visit? Will she know me? Will she bring up embarrassing childhood events as if they happened to someone else? She loves to tell stories about switching my little brother’s legs; she can’t quite remember popping me when I stuck my face out and backtalked her.

For seven years, I was an only child. My little brother came along when I was a first grader. Today, our mom fuzzily recognizes us.

This recent visit, she called me by name then wept, covering her face with her manicured hands. Thankfully, her sitters spoil her. She always wanted beautiful nails—she has them now.

When she looked up at me, she asked: “You’re my daughter? I’m a mother?” I couldn’t help wonder why that would surprise her.

My brother warned that she’d done the same with him. Over and over again, the ritual played out. She would cry, look at us with tears streaming down her face.

“Mom, why are you sad about that?” Even as I said the words, I wondered if I really wanted to hear her answer.

“You don’t understand,” she said in a small voice that wasn’t hers. (Mom had never owned a small voice.) “I’m different from most people. I cry when I’m happy.”

Her logic was impressive. It was the small, pitiful voice that was so disconcerting.

I’m just as disturbed by the disconnect in her mind. How can one forget children of sixty and seventy years? The intimate things shared and learned together. The fights and disagreements? How can one forget much loved shopping trips?

Oh, how I dreaded those shopping trips, just as much as I loved the new clothes. Mom touched and examined every garment, every price tag, and then went back to the beginning and touched, examined them all again, wondering, visualizing, making her decision about the wisest investment. The quality. During my growing up years, she owned two starched nurse’s uniforms, bright white, not a stain anywhere, and two dresses for church. My closet was full.

How could she forget those unique bell bottoms she bought for me, or those black leather pants? I had matching shoes for my skirts and dresses. Pointed toes. T-straps. She was a shoe lover; and I was the recipient of her love for shoes. No matter the size, if they were on sale, they were mine. My toes scrunched into six and a half narrows and I stuffed cotton and Kleenex into the eights.

When I remember the life we shared, the laughter, the tears, the anger, the disagreements, the hostility, the sacrifice … I wonder where it is in her mind? What corner of her deteriorating brain protects those memories, because she is … was … a hoarder, of sorts. She has to be saving memories somewhere, doesn’t she?

She saved tiny chunks of Dial soap in bags—just in case. Not sandwich bags, but large plastic grocery bags filled full. Just in case we became a world without Dial.

Where are her memories? Maybe we aren’t in her mind anymore, but stuffed deep down in her heart. With her love for nursing. I always thought Mom loved nursing so much more than she loved us. But in hindsight …

The second day I saw my mother, she still knew my name, but when I told her I was her daughter, she laughed. An unrecognizable giggle, not the belly laugh I grew up with. My mother never giggled in her life—at least, not during my lifetime.

“Why are you laughing, Mom?” I asked.

“Because I’m so proud of you.”

Proud of me?

She doesn’t remember the hateful words, the times I disappointed her. She doesn’t recall her continuous sacrifice that couldn’t possibly have been fun. Sacrifice was something she did without thinking, for her family. Her second nature.

“I’m so proud of my children.”

Just like in the old days, through tears and laughter, we love each other.

For four days, we entertained each other with foreign dialogue that neither of us understood, and I came away knowing more about myself, my own life. Asking myself hard questions that may or may not have decent answers. I know one thing for certain: When asked what can make me quit writing, the answer will be … will always be …

I’ll write forever, until my children sit beside me and I look at them in dismay and ask: “You’re my children and … I’m a writer?”

 

Filed Under: IWSG Tagged With: Dinty W. Moore, discouragement, essay, family, I, illiterate, Inspiration, IWSG, Jane Friedman, love, memory loss, mothers & daughters, Questions, The Pleasure of the Personal Essay, writing

How Do You Write?

May 28, 2021 By Jessica Ferguson 2 Comments

I truly envy those of you who can sit down and plot your entire book scene by scene or chapter by chapter, including each character’s GMC. I can’t. Or maybe I should say I don’t plot to that extent. I use a very vague 3-act structure. And pile lots of random notes into my iPhone.

I start thinking about the story when an idea or a character with a goal or a problem pop into my mind. I vaguely map out the little I know —and hope it’s enough to keep me excited. I’ll be able to tell soon enough … when I start writing. The actual writing is where I get to know my characters and my story. Would you call me a pantser?

I’m a fast typist. If I have a soft comfortable chair to sit in, I can write all day. I just think story and let my fingers fly. The problem, of course, is that there’s a heck of a lot of revision.

Once I wrote four novellas in the course of a few days. That was several years back and I often think about those short books, and how I might make them longer. The characters are still real to me. Their stories still excite me, but they’re so rough I’d probably be overwhelmed if I re-read them. I wonder how long revision would take. I used to love rewriting my novels. Now, not so much.

Every writer has their own writing/plotting/revision methods. Plotting is probably second nature to many of you. I’m good with beginnings and endings–meaning they come fairly easy. It’s the middle that stops me cold and hangs me up.

I’m investigating plottr. It seems like an interesting program—and very visual. I’ve never fully understood or caught on to Scrivener so maybe Plottr will work for me. There’s an interesting YouTube interview with bestselling author Deb Kastner, and she shares her plotting a romance template. There are many good instructional videos showing valuable info regarding plottr. You may have already watched them.

Have you used Plottr? What’s your experience with it? Share how you write. I’m curious and interested.

Filed Under: Plotting Tagged With: Deb Kastner, plotting, Plottr, rewriting, writing, YouTube

Six Month Review

June 26, 2020 By Jessica Ferguson 4 Comments

Hello my friends—assuming I have any friends left. This is my first post of 2020, and I’m still not certain I have anything to say. I’m going to assess what I’ve accomplished so far this year. I’m afraid more thought than action.

I sold another story to Woman’s World. Wait… was that this year or last? It came out this year.  I’ve lost all track of time. It was such a fun little story. I titled it Daughters and Dogs but they changed it to The Promise of Puppy Love and they changed the ending. (My ending worked better.) Since we were in the middle of Coronavirus, I could only find a few copies of it in one particular grocery store. I didn’t want to run all over town exposing myself to COVID just to purchase extras. That issue went quietly into the abyss, and since the story came out, I haven’t submitted any more WW romances. I just haven’t been able to write much except …

April was Camp NaNoWrMo and I wrote a nonfiction book. Yep, that surprised me too! I’ve been wanting to pull together a “writer memoir” for a long time, sort of walking beginning writers along my publishing path and sharing info that I think is important whether the rest of the world does or not. You know, we all have our experiences and our opinions, and I really have a bunch. I even talk about mean writers/mean critiquers in my book. Believe me, if you aren’t prepared for a mean writer, it can shut you down–especially if it’s someone you admired. I still have to do a lot of rearranging and major revisions; we all know how I am when it comes to rewriting. I seldom get to it so there’s one more manuscript stuck in my “unpublished” drawer. Funny how motivating a contract is–makes all the difference when it comes to revision.

And here’s another conundrum:  I’ve been working on a short story (off and on) for two or three years. I think I’ve mentioned it before. It came to me with a complete beginning, middle and ending as I was driving through East Texas. I wrote and rewrote to the best of my ability, then sent it to a Beta Reader for her thoughts. (A woman I did not know so she had no reason to flatter me.) The comments she made really helped flesh out the plot as well as the characters. I entered it in the very first Bill Crider Prize for Short Fiction contest this past year. Back in September I received a notice stating:

“Your story was among those in the second round of judging. Unfortunately, it was not among the finalists.”

So there you go—not a winner, not a finalist, but I made it to the second round of judging. Okay, I’ll take it! I put my manuscript aside for a while so that when I finally went back to it I might determine WHY the story didn’t make it to the finals. And remarkably, I spotted a couple of places where I did NOT do my research. Really stupid mistakes on my part.

Now, I’ve rewritten again. This time my story is geared toward the Great American Fiction Contest sponsored by The Saturday Evening Post. I’ve been waiting, and waiting for just the right story to enter, and I was certain More Than a Legend was the one … until a couple of weeks ago when the Texas Ranger statue in Texas was removed.

More Than a Legend is about a Texas Ranger who passes away and after his death his “so called” best friend learns of an “indiscretion.” The moment the Texas Ranger statue in Dallas toppled to the ground, I knew I shouldn’t submit my story. I can’t contribute to the insanity of demeaning another law enforcement officer. More Than A Legend may never find a home. Obviously, not this year. It just feels wrong. And it may be awhile before I feel like writing about any bad cops.

But if you’d like to enter this great contest sponsored by The Saturday Evening Post, here’s the link. Deadline is July 1st so hurry!

Now, tell me what you’ve accomplished during the past six months. I hope you’ve been writing like crazy!

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: encouragement, Great American Fiction Contest, Romance, The Saturday Evening Post, Woman's World Magazine, writing

IWSG DAY: Questions, Questions, Questions

January 1, 2019 By Jessica Ferguson 29 Comments

Today is so exciting because it’s Insecure Writers Support Group day. IWSG was founded by Alex J. Cavanaugh  for the purpose of encouraging other writers—or anyone who’d like to learn the craft. Writers can ask questions and express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. We’re a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds. We invite you to follow other IWSG members here or by using the twitter hashtag #IWSG. You can also go to our Facebook page and Instagram. We’re awesome!

Co-hosts for the January 2 posting of the IWSG are Patricia Lynne, Lisa Buie-Collard, Kim Lajevardi, and Fundy Blue!

 Our January 2nd question is What are your favorite and least favorite questions people ask you about your writing?

The question I dislike the most but hear often is are you still writing? That’s a sure sign they haven’t Googled me, looked me up on Amazon and they certainly aren’t reading me. Yeah, yeah, I know I’m putting all the work on them. The way I see it (and like it) is if they do what they’re supposed to do (track me down) then I won’t have to do what I should be doing (promote myself and my books!) I really have a rough time promoting myself.

Questions I’d like to hear are:

Hey, I was thinking about you the other day and Googled your name. You’re really out there, girl! How did I miss all the excitement in your life? Now that would make me laugh out loud! I might even strut a little.

Or this question:

I can’t get your first book out of my mind. It was such a fun novel, I really loved all the Elvis trivia. Have you thought about writing a sequel?

Yes, a prequel and a sequel, but no, my Elvis days are over.

Answering questions about our work is part of the job–regardless of whether they’re good questions or bad questions. Promotion, advertising, doing interviews and blog hops is expected. Every contract I’ve signed has included a paragraph about promoting the project.

Having interviewed authors for Southern Writers Magazine for almost seven years, I noticed how some authors have a knack (a personality) for answering questions and others come across dull as dirt. Maybe the dull ones are trying to come across as serious professionals. Then again, maybe they just have no personality or humor about them. Answering questions seems like an easy task but as an interviewer, I believe there’s an art to it. We all need to learn how to answer questions in a way that encourages the reader to find us interesting and want to know us better. We should put personality in our answers.

In 2019, I hope to write, sell and answer a lot of questions. How about you?

Filed Under: IWSG Tagged With: Interviews, IWSG, Questions, writing

Let’s Camp NaNoWrMo Together!

June 29, 2016 By Jessica Ferguson 8 Comments

Hey gang! Just popping in to let you all know I’m still alive. So far, my summer has been busy. I’ve revised my novella that’ll be a part of The Bucket List Dare Collection. I have to go through two more critiques/revisions before it’s truly ready but release date is in October.

I’ve finished my short story in the Legacy Letters project with some of my Oklahoma friends. It will release in September.

For both of these I have to come up with short blurbs or one-liners. Always challenging for me.

mother dayIn July, I’m going to a quilt show with my daughter who has developed an interest in quilting. Here’s a pic of the lap quilt she’s making for me. The backing is script. I can’t wait to get my hands on it. 🙂

On July 1st I’m going to camp. Yep, going to the same camp I attended last year with a group of mystery writers-Camp NaNoWrMo. I decided to go alone thisCamp year but looking around this huge cabin in the woods today… I got spooked! It’s way too big for one person. I don’t think I can stay there by myself.

Anyone interested in joining me? All you have to do is go to the camp site and create a profile, then send me your user name so I can invite you in. We’ll write and encourage each other. Share some secrets and eat S’mores! (I wish!)

If you aren’t familiar with Camp NaNoWrMo. It’s like the November NaNoWrMo but during July you can write anything. Just set your goal for the month (a project or a daily word count or editing) and do your thing. Unless I change my mind before July 1st, I’ll be tackling a nonfiction project.

Anyone game? Let me hear from you! I’d love for you to join me. Hope you’re having a great summer.

Filed Under: Writing Tagged With: Camp NaNoWrMo, Deadlines, writing

A to Z Reflections

May 14, 2016 By Jessica Ferguson 2 Comments

A-to-Z Reflection [2016]I missed the deadline for the A to Z Reflections but I’ll reflect anyway.

For me, the A to Z Challenge this year was better than ever. More challenging in some ways. More fun in others. I blogged about my passions: writing, coaching, and inspiring others.

I didn’t plan—I never do. And I still wrote each post the night before—sometimes as late as 10:00 pm. I’m a slow thinker, fairly uncertain until I actually start writing, so each April I purposely work under pressure, trying to teach myself to think and write fast, the way old time reporters did back in the day. One of my favorite movies is Teacher’s Pet with Clark Gable and Doris Day. Check it out. And remember Lou Grant?

I did one thing different this year. I shared on FB and Twitter. Mine and other people’s posts. Amazing how that adds another level of excitement to the challenge. And adds FB friends and followers.

In addition to daily blogging the challenge I was also writing a 20,000 word novella that will come out in a collection with three other writers, and coaching a writer who was trying to finish her novel. I’d love for you to read her story: Why It Took Seven Years To Write This Novel. I’m thrilled to say she accomplished her goal. Not only did she finish her book, but she submitted to Amazon’s Kindle Scout program and was accepted. For the past three days she’s danced around in Hot and Trendy and for an hour or two was #1. That alone tells you I had an exceptional client to coach: very capable, talented, and focused. Her writing is excellent.

My adrenalin surged during the month of April. Those three activities—writing, coaching and blogging—kept me organized and focused. I think that’s what we need to remember; we have to remember. The key to success is focus. Everyone who completes the A to Z Challenge each year knows and understands all about focus. We have to keep our eyes on our goal.

Now that A to Z has ended, I’ll concentrate on spreading the word about my client’s book. I can’t help but feel her success is mine too. 🙂 I invite you to read the the wrong first few chapters of  The Wrong by Heather K. Duff . If you enjoy it, consider nominating her for the Kindle Scout contract. You’ll get her novel free if she wins. If she doesn’t, it will have been a wonderful learning experience just to watch how things play out, one you might want to try yourself. Heather hopes to post about her experience too, so consider signing up to follow her blog.

All of you who popped in to read my posts during A to Z and left comments made me feel valued. I loved talking writing with you and reading your own posts too. I appreciate every comment and the dialogue we shared. I wish we could get together for coffee and chat in person. There’s nothing I like better than a three-hour coffee. Maybe someday. 🙂

In the meantime, what do you have planned for the summer? Where will your focus be? On a novel, novella or a book of poetry? Or maybe you’re taking the summer off to play with your kids?  Whatever your plans, be safe and have fun. Enjoy your focus.

Filed Under: A to Z 2016 Tagged With: coaching, goals, Kindle Scout, The Wrong, writing

K is for Keys

April 12, 2016 By Jessica Ferguson 8 Comments

KIf you’re just finding me among the hundreds and hundreds of A to Z bloggers, I’m thrilled. I’m sharing about writing, coaching and inspiring others.

I’m tempted to blog about Kritiques, but I guess I should keep it real. 🙂 Today I’ll give you keys to writing and publishing; my tips that will benefit you for as long as you’re a writer.

Read. Don’t read just anything—read the best of the best. I could give you a list of books, but my opinion of “the best” might differ from yours. Just remember, the saying garbage in-garbage-out is true.

Write. Every day. Some people argue that writing daily isn’t necessary. I believe the more you write, the better writer you become. And yes, I believe in forcing yourself to write. We force ourselves to wash dishes and clothes and toilets (or am I the only one?) so why wouldn’t we force ourselves to do something we truly love?

Write long. Tell your story then cut it short. You’ll be surprised how many unnecessary words you’ve used. Make every word count.

Write short. I believe writing fillers, letters to the editor, very short pieces teach us to write tight. I’ve heard writers say they can’t create anything in a 100 words. Like my mama always said, “Can’t never could do a thing!” If you can’t create in 100 words how will you ever write your book blurbs?

Submit. Find a couple of markets to conquer: Chicken Soup for the Soul, The Sun, Women’s World. There are many opportunities within those three markets.

Join a local writers’ group. If there’s not one in your town, start one. You might belong to thirty online groups, and that’s great, but there’s nothing like gabbing with other writers at your favorite coffee shop.

Call yourself a writer. Tell people you meet for the first time that you’re a writer. Yes, it’s hard because they always ask what you’ve published and you may not have published anything. That doesn’t matter. Tell them you’re working on short stories, a novel, a screenplay and hope to submit soon. The more you say you’re a writer—out loud—the more you’ll believe it.

Recognize opportunities. When you talk about writing and call yourself a writer, opportunities will come your way–from local magazines and newspapers, the Chamber of Commerce, or from church or club newsletters. Don’t ever pass up an opportunity that falls in your lap.

Learn. How-to books, trade magazines, online classes and writing blogs are at your fingertips. Take advantage of them. You may become a New York Best Selling author, but that doesn’t mean you know everything. You never will. Never. Educate yourself about markets, the business of writing, agents and publishers, traditional and indie publishing. Don’t depend on anyone to do your research for you. Your career is your responsibility.

Don’t ever, ever quit learning.

Filed Under: A to Z 2016 Tagged With: how to, reading, writing

H is for Heart

April 9, 2016 By Jessica Ferguson 11 Comments

HThe Merriam-Webster online dictionary says that the heart is the organ in your chest that pumps blood through your veins and arteries. It’s in the front part of your chest and it’s thought of as the place where emotions are felt.

I like that simplified definition.

Like everything else I see, hear, touch, smell and taste … I apply “heart” to my writing and the books I read. Heart is what makes our books live.

Do my stories have heart? Do they make readers laugh, cry … feel anything at all?

I’ve watched my daughter, an avid reader, sob through most of Karen Kingsbury’s books. If you’re familiar with KK you know she’s one of the top Christian authors of our time, and writes heart-rending fiction. I’m sure all her readers sob.

But how about this: Daughter also cried uncontrollably when she read Dean and Me: A Love Story by Jerry Lewis. That book is nonfiction about the 10 year partnership of Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis. Figure out those tears!

She read (and cried) in The Paris Wife about Hemingway and Hadley, his first wife.

Now before you accuse Daughter of being highly emotional and able to cry at the drop of a hat, no. That’s not her.

However, I do know why she cried. Those books have heart.

That should be our goal. To conjure up such emotion in our readers that they laugh or cry beyond their control.

How do we do it?

First, we use the senses, we know our characters inside and out, we use active verbs and words that paint pictures, but until we’re capable of putting ourselves in a character’s POV and walk in their shoes—suffer with them, cry with them, feel their pain and loss, we won’t be able to pull it off.

We must also consider pacing.

A reader has to develop a relationship with our characters. If our pace is too fast, the reader doesn’t sufficiently bond with our characters. If our pace is too slow, our readers get bored.

Tricky, isn’t it.

I’ve read books where good characters die and I didn’t shed a tear. The last time I cried guise-of-another-225while reading a book was in The Guise of Another by Allen Eskens. Guise is about two brothers, both detectives, and one of them is on a downward spiral. The relationship I developed with these two brothers surprised me. I think Eskens broke a lot of rules when it came to creating this story—but he knew what he was doing and he pulled it off. His characters are still with me–in my head and in my heart–even though I read his books last year. 

The next book you read, study it for heart. Pay attention to the emotion you feel while reading it.

But honestly, I wonder if we can teach writers how to write “heart” into their stories. Doesn’t it have to come from within us? Maybe we have to pour our own love, sadness, brokeness, and fear into our characters before their stories truly touch a reader’s life. What do you think?

Filed Under: A to Z 2016 Tagged With: Allen Eskens, Emotion, Heart, writing

E is for Encouragement

April 6, 2016 By Jessica Ferguson 6 Comments

EInsecureWritersSupportGroup

Since this is the 5th day of our A to Z Challenge and IWSG Day, I hope it’s okay that my blog post serves two purposes: It does have to do with Encouragement which is the premise behind IWSG. So here we go …

Back in 2008 I submitted a couple of devotionals to an anthology called Daily Devotions for Writers. I thought I’d reprint one here because there’s a lesson to be learned from the experience I wrote about. If any of you have the book, the devo is on page 177.

***

“My assignment was to interview women in Toastmasters, a nonprofit organization that helps develop public speaking and leadership skills. I’d pitched the idea to my editor with an ulterior motive. I wanted to learn for myself what Toastmasters was all about—with no commitment to stand up and speak.

While I talked with several ladies in the club, the president listened. Finally, he spoke. “Would you be interested in helping me start a commercial writer’s program through the continuing education department at my college?”

I immediately lapsed into I’m-not-smart-enough-I-know-nothing-you-can find-someone-better-than-me mode. The expression that crossed his face sickened me. Because I had such little confidence in myself, his opinion of me changed in a split second.

While writing the article, I read and reread how Toastmasters helped each woman gain confidence, and how that confidence had spilled over into her personal and professional life. I visited another meeting to take copies of the published article. When the club president asked me again to help create a commercial writing program at his college, I accepted with confidence.”

Dear Lord, thank you for being a God of second chances. Help me remember that you are my courage.

***

Okay, how many of you have turned down a writing assignment (or anything) because you didn’t think you could do the job? daily devos for writers

Don’t!

You can do anything you set your mind to—though I don’t recommend surgery if you aren’t a doctor. Seriously, we have so many learning tools at our fingertips—just Google or go to YouTube. Ask friends in your writing groups. If you don’t know how to interview, then watch some podcasts or C-Span. Can’t write an article? Read and dissect some. There are also online writing classes–some of them FREE.  There’s always a way to learn…how to paint, how to knit, how to speak.

(A few weeks ago I watched a Youtube video on spray paint art. Fascinating, and who knows how I’ll use this new found knowledge!)

I encourage you to say yes to every opportunity that comes your way. That’s how you learn, and it pays off in the long run. I started the writing program with the college: it consisted of nothing more than determining what I thought new writers would like to learn, finding other writers with the expertise to teach it and scheduling. I met some fine writers, had a lot of fun and taught my first online classes. I learned a lot too, but, if I had stuck with my pitiful I-can’t- attitude— I might still be an insecure whiney Jessy today.

So, tell me, are you going to do it? Take a step of faith and say YES to all those opportunities that come your way? I want to hear about it! And if I can help… holler at me!

Filed Under: A to Z 2016 Tagged With: courage, encouragement, opportunity, writing

B is for Backlog

April 2, 2016 By Jessica Ferguson 21 Comments

BB is for Backlog because I’m wondering if you have a backlog of stories, poems, and novels that you’ve given up on. Are they hidden in a drawer or file cabinet, unfinished?

I have many. I think of them often and vow I’ll get back to them. Chances are I won’t because I get fresh ideas that I do start and finish.

I have so many rough drafts, it’s almost ridiculous: first drafts, fifth drafts. One manuscript has been taken apart so many times, chunks are missing. The reason these books are still drafts is because I didn’t plan. I plunged head first into NANOWRMO or some other exciting “Write Fast” activity and I neglected to give sufficient thought to my characters, their GMC or my beloved 3-Act structure.

Yes, I know there are successful seat of the pants writers out there. I’m not one of them, unless you count eleven rough drafts a success. I definitely know how to finish a book–it’s the grunt work of a SOTP manuscript that I don’t particularly enjoy–the  rewriting of a book that’s got too many holes.

And that’s where planning comes in. The more you plan, the easier the rewrite.

The late Stephen Cannell planned extensively. He stated that sometimes he wrote 60 page treatments of his novels, then he’d never look at those pages again.  He knew his characters and story so well, he didn’t have to refer to his treatment.

I especially like his outlook on unfinished manuscripts.

Cannell said, “You get nothing from an unfinished project, and you learn nothing.” At some point he made a deal with himself that he would never abandon another project; he’d write to the end. That’s when he started on his road to success.

So what are we going to do about our backlog of poems, stories and novels? Any ideas?

Filed Under: A to Z 2016 Tagged With: A to Z Challenge 2016, GMC, Stephen Cannell, writing, writing fast

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