Lecture LESSON FOR THE WEEK OF MAY 30TH, 2016

[Sunny Irene Roth]

Hi all,

Here is your lesson for this week!

Enjoy!
Irene S. Roth

 

[AnneP]

This lesson helped me clarify how far I've come recently. Thank you!

1. I haven’t given this much thought in the past, but I think I’ve been impatient with my writing. For example, when writing the draft of Second Chances, I reached a point about ¾ through when I just wanted to finish. Now, I have some serious rewriting to do because I didn’t think it through. I’d read you should get the draft down. I’m not that writer. I like to think about the direction my work is taking. I like to have a plan. I didn’t trust myself enough to know I would find my plan.
2. I have created unrealistic outcomes in the past, but I’m finding I enjoy writing a bit slower than other people. I saw that as a deficit, but now I know it’s who my authentic self is. I like to think, plot, and plan whatever I write. Even my blogs are thought about for days before I write them. I need time to let my mind work on a topic. When I do sit down to write, I can go for hours and feel like only minutes have passed.
3. I need to set realistic goals. I’ve spent this week editing one chapter, when I thought I could do three. I know the pace will pick up when I can add more time to my editing, but I’m starting slow to get in a groove. When I feel like I need to keep going, I will add more time to my writing day. For now, it’s about 60 – 90 minutes for the manuscript. I can do other writing, such as my blog and my journal, but this is the time I can focus on my work well.
4. I was an authentic writer at one time, but when I shifted from essay writing to novel writing, I lost my way. I tried to find people to emulate and became frustrated. I tried to fit my writing into a mold and became even more frustrated. I know when I’m not being authentic because I get verbal. It’s as if I’m trying to work something out in my head by taking down something else. Not a good place to be.I feel I’ve found my way in novel writing now, third book in, but I love writing again. I’ve found my authentic writing self. It even came through in my blog this week. I heard my voice in my writing. It felt so good. I’m beginning to hear it in my manuscript revision, too.

1. The biggest obstacle I have is letting other people influence my work. I have friends who are successful writers, and I felt jealous of their success until I realized our writing is very different. No one is better than the other, only taking different paths. It was eye-opening for me.
2. I used to rely on motivation, but now I rely on scheduling writing time. It works so much better. And I look forward to my scheduled time. Everything else works around it.