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From September 2004 UPDATE
(“TOUGH LOVE for Authors” is my bi-monthly article that will tell it like it is! So far, I’ve spent more years as an aspiring author than as a published author. The two points of view give me a unique perspective that I want to share in the hopes that many more aspiring authors can gain the title – published, while also providing insight for the newly published authors.) The classic stereotype of a romance writer paints a cozy picture of a woman typing her stories at home during the day. Only a small percentage of aspiring and new authors have it so good, while a larger percentage of veteran, best selling authors have become full time writers. The majority of writers have to hold down a full time job, especially when living in the bigger, expensive cities. Although I don’t have the luxury of a full time writing career, I have something that is equally important. I am 100 percent committed to my writing. This is why I am a full time writer. I have 24 hours in a day: 12 hours are taken up with dressing, work and commuting; 2 hours are spent on assisting my kids with their homework; 1 hour is spent chauffeuring my daughter to gymnastics; and 1 hour is used for dinner preparation and eating. 8 hours remain in my day, and I haven’t even taken any time out for sleeping. This means that I write for about 3 hours every day before I crash. Since I only have a short block of time, I have to treat it with respect. I can’t answer the phone. I can’t get on the Internet and surf. I can’t catch up on the latest reality show. I can’t go to the mall with my girlfriends, just for the heck of it. I can’t bring work from my day job home to be done at night. Those 3 hours are valuable and precious. I guard them with a protectiveness that may label me as anti-social, introverted, stand-offish. On the weekend, I write 6-8 hours on Saturday and Sunday. This is why I am a full time writer. I listen to my peers complain about finding the time to write. I hear empty promises about next week, she will start writing every day. The most humorous tidbit is listening to a writer talk about the top television shows. Nice that she has time to support a fellow of the arts when she hasn’t made it to the finishing line because her Chapter 6 still has a sagging middle the size of the Grand Canyon. When you decide that you want to be an author, you have to take that determined step forward. You can’t write a little, otherwise, you’ll either be a one book wonder or won’t make it past the forbidding odds toward being published. You’ve heard the saying, you can’t be a little bit pregnant. You either are or aren’t. Take the same advice for writing. You either are or aren’t a writer. Whatever you decide to make as a writing goal, stick with it. Do whatever it takes to get you in the zone to maintain discipline. Motivational tapes may help. Reading a biography of a successful writer or actor before you sit down to write may work. Surrounding yourself with positive influences also can provide an intangible boost. Do I take vacations? Of course. After I finish a project, I stop to smell the roses. Then I get back into the zone and start working again. Respect the craft. Maintain discipline. Become a full time writer. ---- Making Connections
by Visiting Other RWA Chapters How can you liven up a lengthy business trip? Tap into the local writers groups, of course. During a recent spate of business travel, I decided to see if I could liven up some of those boring evenings by meeting up with someone local from my online critiquing loop. I put a note out on the loop, and sure enough, got an invitation to meet up in Minneapolis when I was out there in April. Our dinner of five dwindled down to a one-on-one with the single member who was able to accommodate my ever-changing schedule, but we had a blast chatting at an Irish pub for a couple of hours. The Arizona loop member pointed out that my visit coincided with the monthly chapter meeting. Laurie Schnebly Campbell, a published author with the Desert Rose Chapter, asked if I would be interested in attending the meeting as well as getting together for dinner. Absolutely. This was fun and fascinating on many levels. It was great meeting fellow RWA members and sister chapter members--but what was REALLY amazing was finding the myriad connections that were there between our chapter and members. The easy ones: Both Laurie and I are RWA members, local chapter members, and participants on the same writer's loop. But there were plenty more. Laurie made arrangements for another Desert Rose Chapter member to pick me up and take me to the meeting. That turned out to be Jennifer Ashley (writing as Ashley Gardner)--who is a critique partner to our own Glenda Garland. Jennifer was quite startled to find out that "Laurie's friend from the loop" knew her critique partner from Washington, DC. As a small thank you gift for the rides to and from the meeting, I gave Jennifer and Laurie signed copies of WRW member Hope Tarr's book, Tempting. It turned out Jennifer had met Hope at the last two RT conferences and Laurie had a tape from Hope's "10 Steps to a Kick Butt Booksigning", a 2002 National Conference session. When I got to the meeting, I was invited to participate in the raffle they hold every month. One of the prizes was a copy of WRW member Sherrilyn Kenyon's latest release. Copies of the popular RT Book Review magazine that had been passed out at Desert Rose's recent conference were available on the give-away table-yes, that would be the issue featuring WRW's Kathy Caskie and Sophia Nash-Ours on the cover. I got compliments on my recent article in the Update, which was apparently read by many of the chapter members via the posting at our website. And they all knew about our Retreat, and many had attended in past years. Attending this meeting made me realize just how interwoven our RWA (or writing) community really is. Here I was 2,300 miles from home hanging out with people who knew my friends. If you ever think your name's not getting out there, be reassured, it is. ----
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