Creating the (Writing) Life You Need

Anyone who's ever chatted with me about my writing routine (HINT: I don't write every day or do morning pages) has heard my recommendation to build into your life the structure that best suits your needs. Do you require the habit of a daily writing routine? Do you need silence? A busy coffeeshop? Do you produce your best work by writing-in-group? Then that's what you should do...

For almost 5 years (starting in 2008 ~ ending when my friend Tina was widowed and couldn't write), we met every other Tuesday morning and shared at least 3 pages of first-draft material with each other over coffee. We wrote novels that way. Reading each other's pages outloud to each other. The deadline mattered. The trusted first-reader mattered. The tiny bit of distance from pen-on-paper ~ letting us hear that our words were not dreck ~ that all mattered. So, if you need a trusted reader, make it happen. If you need to email copies to a friend, do it! If you need that coffee-date to produce, set it up. It's your job to figure out what your writing demands of you and make it so!

Many who hear me speak about writing these days have heard about WATTPAD (online, free books for the reading). Well, yesterday I added 2 more stories to that site. Game-Boy (a Y/A) was written with Tina's help (finished in 2011) and the sequel, Sh*t For Brains was completed 2012. These are mysteries (genre I'd never tackled before); with a psychic (lol) and have a great deal of mad-capped humour (also not my usual). The storylines and cast of characters are engaging and I'm quite proud of the work, but they never went anywhere (much) other than my drawer. Once brave - always brave? Yes, they're out there in the world. Check them out if you feel so inclined...

I feel (at my age) that we writers need to share our writing in some fashion. With the publishing industry changed, I take my opportunities where I find them now. I'm hoping these rambling might be food for thought. Cheers. Happy writing & reading!

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