Tag Archives: writing

Want to Write More in the New Year? Just Show Up.

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by @Annie Daylon

PIANIST by author/artist, Ben Nuttall-Smith.

PIANIST by author/artist, Ben Nuttall-Smith.


My 2015 calendar from the Federation of British Columbia Writers arrived the other day and, from all of Ben Nuttall-Smith’s stunning illustrations, one jumped  at me– Pianist. It triggered memories of my beginnings at a keyboard: the Leila-Fletcher-on-staff-Middle-C-approach to the piano, taught  by Sister Mary John Hughes and her trusty pointer. Ouch!

Over the years, I worked my way from Fletcher’s C-D-E to Debussy’s Reverie. I never mastered the art of sight-reading (the ability to pick up a piece and play it as you would pick up a book and read it.) Once, when I was a student of music at Mount Allison University, a friend suggested we partner up and plunge into the world of sight-reading, an attempt to conquer the beast. I started, half-heartedly, and fell away from it: for me there was a gaping hole where passion, drive, and above all, confidence should be.  My friend persevered and became a long-time professional musician. (Thank you, T: I never did excel in sight-reading but I did learn from watching you gain mastery.) My piano, except for the annual Christmas carol, is now a silent shadow in the hallway of my home.

However, another keyboard has replaced it.

My passion is writing. I dipped my toe in the water seven years ago and I stayed. In that time, I have written three novels, each better than its predecessor, and I have a fourth awaiting editing. I have also penned forty+ short stories, sixty-five blog posts, and a few articles. Apparently, what I could not apply to music–commitment and perseverance– I can apply to writing.  Doubt may knock once in a while but I don’t let it in. I just show up and write, daily. My routine: coffee, crossword, computer. Three hour minimum.

In the coming year, whatever your passion,  just have at it. If writing is your passion,  park yourself at that keyboard and plunk away. One letter, one word, one sentence, one paragraph, one page… eventually becomes one book.

shutterstock_110397353 (2) Happy New YearJust show up and you will create a wonderfully accomplished, well-written new year. One key at a time.

 

Please subscribe to my Author Newsletter by placing your email address in the space provided on the right. Many thanks.

My best to you,

Annie Signature Light Blue

Pick of the Twitter: November, 2014

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Pick of the Twitter 005

Looking for writing/marketing tips? Here are my Top Twitter picks for November, 2014:

  1. How To Build A Top-Notch Media Kit by @MMJaye via @mollygreene @BelindaCrawford

  2. The Art of a Distraction Free Life by Courtney Carver @bemorewithless via @elizabethscraig 

  3. 17 Tips: How to Successfully Run Book Giveaways   @111publishing

  4. Rejections Are Part of the Journey by Patricia Sands via @Jess_Alter

  5. What Is #MondayBlogs and Why Should Bloggers Participate? by Rachel Thompson @BadRedheadMedia

  6. Considering Doing a Blog Tour?  by @stephaniebond  via @bkmkting

  7. 5 Rules of Writing From Pixar  via @magic_violinist via @write_practice

  8. Guest Post Strategy: Should You Pitch the Editor Before You Write? @SteveGillman @thewritelife

  9. 10 Blog Post Must-Do’s for Writers | The Book Sales Accelerator @IstanbulPuzzle

  10.  Your Elusive Creative Genius  A TED Talk by Elizabeth Gilbert

 

Many thanks to Tweeters and Bloggers alike!

Please subscribe to my blog by including your email in the space provided on the upper right.

 

My best to you,
Annie Signature Light Blue

My NaNoWriMo Experience

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by @AnnieDaylon

CASTLES-IN-THE-SAND (2) brag medallion

This week, I am guest blogging on the B.R.A.G. Medallion website. Here’s a snippet:

It’s November and, once again, information about NaNoWriMo is flooding social media. Many writers participate in this annual National Novel Writing Month. Maybe some sit by the wayside, wondering: Is it worth the effort?

I have participated in NaNoWriMo twice. In 2010, I wrote a complete first draft of my novel Castles in the Sand. In 2012, I wrote a complete first draft of my work-in-progress, Of Sea and Seed.

See more here>>>   My NaNoWriMo Experience

 

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(Thanks, @indiebrag, for invitation to blog!)

My best to you,

Annie Signature Light Blue

Pick of the Twitter: October, 2014

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Pick of the Twitter 005

Looking for writing/marketing tips? Here are my Top Twitter picks for October, 2014:

  1.  6 Traits of Strong Characters   @mythcreants via @elizabethscraig

  2.  Submission Tips for Writers  @writing_ie

  3. 99 Essential Quotes on Character Creation by M J Bush  @writinggeekery

  4. Self-Pubbed AND Traditional? An Interview With Author Pam Beason  @mollygreene

  5.  9 Practices to Inspire Your Writing in an Instant  @WriterJoMalby

  6. NaNoWriMo – Should You Take Part?  @GlynisSmy via @elizabethscraig

  7. 23 Seldom-Used Ideas for How to Use Twitter Lists  @BrianHonigman

  8. Is There A Name For That? Grammar Fun With -Nyms by Kelly Jensen @BookRiot

  9. How to Rock a Writers Conference    @TonyMaxeyRB   @TrueFactBarFact

  10. 15 Experts Share The Worst Blogging Advice!  @10minnovelist 

  11. How to Format a Short Story Manuscript for Submission: a Checklist @write_practice

  12. Preparing for NaNoWriMo: Manage your time, stay motivated, and keep the creativity flowing  @BookBaby @chrisrobley

 Many thanks to Tweeters and Bloggers alike!

Please subscribe to my blog by including your email in the space provided on the upper right.

 My best to you,

Annie Signature Light Blue

Conference Riches, Blue Pencils, and Pitches

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by @AnnieDaylon

SIWC 2104 camera 004For the past three years, I have attended the Surrey International Writers Conference as a volunteer. (SIWC: My Volunteer Experience)

This year, because I wished to include Blue Pencil and Pitch sessions, I paid the price of admission (Saturday only.)

My day was rich with many events: riveting keynote speech by Cory Doctorow, an agent/editor insight panel, SiWC Idol panel, Rookie Mistakes workshop, and a Creating Kick-Ass Characters workshop. In addition, I became reacquainted with conference buddies, and met up with author friends.

I’ve been writing for several years now and feel very comfortable  walking into Blue Pencil and Pitch sessions; in fact, on Saturday, I did so without a twinge of anxiety. (It helped that a wonderful post jumped into my Twitter feed on Friday:  How to Rock a Writers Conference. It was a reminder: have a goal, but have fun, too.)

Prescheduled on my agenda were two appointments: one Blue Pencil, one Pitch. Once at the conference, I lined up to sign up for a second session in each (first-come, first-served basis.)

My two Blue Pencil sessions were back-to-back, one at 11:15, the second at 11:30. For my prescheduled session, I chose a writer who was familiar with the Celtic world: I wanted to see if my second chapter, which references the Great Famine, rang true. She was lavish in her support of what I was doing and offered suggestions, such as the addition of a third element, to enhance it.
I lucked out in the line-up-to-sign-up for my second Blue Pencil. My appointment was with a writing professor/accomplished author. I deliberately showed her a different chapter, the opening. Once again, I received great feedback and suggestions ( i.e. use more internal reaction of narrator.) 

After I finished my Blue Pencils, I lined up for a second Pitch session. Not one of the agents I wanted to see was available, but there was one free “now.” I  jumped at the opportunity and switched to ‘pitch’ mode.  After initial introductions, the conversation, paraphrased, was:
Me: “They just offered me this slot and I jumped, without knowing what your area of expertise is.”
Him: “I am looking for stories to turn into screen plays.”
Me: “So you’re looking for another Gone Girl?”
Him (eyes bright): “Do you have that?”
Me: “Nope. Do you mind if I just practice my pitch with you?”
Him: “No problem.”

So I pitched my historical fiction trilogy. He offered advice that would improve my pitch. I listened. During lunch, I received and overheard tips about presenting a pitch. Here’s the rundown:

  • Memorize, don’t read, your pitch.

  • Focus on story.

  • Insert history afterwards  (if, like me, you’re writing historical fiction).

  • Be prepared to say who the comparable writers are (I floundered a bit on this one. Know better now.)

  • Know your word count.

  • Be prepared to answer the question “why are you writing this?”

I incorporated all of the above at my 1:40 session.

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Overall advice? Go with a goal. Be prepared. Be open to everything. Enjoy the opportunity to have professionals offer advice. Be determined to have fun.

My thanks to  all at SiWC, including those amazing volunteers, who made my experience so enjoyable. I left feeling inspired!

Please subscribe to my Author Newsletter by placing your first name and email address in the space provided on the right. Many thanks!

My best to you,

Annie Signature Light Blue

 

The Thing with Feathers (A Short Story)

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by @AnnieDaylon

 

 I love to enter short story contests (see previous post: Why Enter Story Contests?) In my 2014 goals, I listed that I would enter a few. (One done in January, one in October. Yay!)
I enter to learn, not to win. I enter for the fun and for the feeling of accomplishment that the marathon of the novel does not provide.

Here is an entry that did manage to land second place this year:

The Thing With Feathers*
© Annie Daylon

shutterstock_121881667 woman birdsAirborne at last, after a lifetime of longing.

Bittersweet memories float past, memories of emerging from the womb, hoping to fly, flailing like a nestling, disillusioned by gravity. Childhood slips by in a blur of fairy stories and bluebirds and magic carpets and angels’ wings. Deeds of derring-do slide in: toppling from tree branches, leaping from monkey bars, jumping from a second-floor balcony. Echoes of painful cries ring out as I recall dropping like Icarus to broken bones and harsh reality.

Footfall (not free flight) was to be my transportation.

Grounded, literally, yet one day I fluttered with hope when I spotted a skein of Canada Geese scissoring the sky. Hope is the thing with feathers, Dickinson’s apposite metaphor, instantly flitted in. I stared at my bony arms which were peppered with freckles and wisps of hair, nary a feather in sight. Juxtaposed with tears of frustration was dissolution of hope. Knowing that I could never soar with birds, I shelved the dream and faced the future, determined to live my life to the fullest.

Love tapped on my door and I ushered it in.

Marriage followed and, with it, the free flowing joy of motherhood.

Never planned for divorce, but there it was and there I was.

On my own.

Plop!

Quickly, so as not to dissolve in a puddle of loneliness, I found a platonic partner with whom I happily shared more than two decades of living expenses, childrearing, and world travels.

Retirement years loomed, yet I, still committed to living large, never gave them, nor money, a thought.

“Save for your golden years,” warned my adult daughter, “else you’ll end up residing in my den.”

“The truth of the matter,” I replied, “is that life is short and I intend to experience all the joys of this earth, and that I will continue to travel until…”

“Until death do you part this mortal coil?” she grinned.

Vibrations shook me momentarily, a cold shiver passing through.

Was it really days later, after a minor surgical procedure, that doctors told me I had mere hours left? X-rays confirmed their diagnosis and soon I was gone, my body cremated, my ashes residing in an urn, in my daughter’s den, just as she had predicted.

Yes, my earthbound life was over and my loving daughter, knowing my deepest desire, chose a blustery day, this very day, to fling my ashes into the wind. Zillions of tiny particles, the remains of me, now sweep through the air like a murmuration of starlings, joyous, soaring, and I, after a lifetime of longing, am airborne at last.

*****

 

The above story was written in January for an Alphabet Acrostic contest. The opening, “Airborne at last,” was given. The criteria? “Complete your story in 26 sentences, each beginning with words in the sequence of the English alphabet.”

The learning? I have entered this contest before, each time loving the experience of  reading the dictionary to search for words.  (Yes, X is limiting, but there are ways around it.) The fun? Love it! (This particular contest is available annually through The Brucedale Press. The sixteenth annual Alphabet Acrostic contest will be announced sometime this month (October, 2014.) Check their website!

*The Thing with Feathers was first published by The Brucedale Press in The Leaf #34, Spring 2014.

My questions for you: Did you notice as you read the story that I was progressing through the alphabet? If not, did you go back to check? 🙂

 

(Please subscribe to my blog by including your email in the space provided on the upper right.)

My best to you,

Annie Signature Light Blue

Favorite Quotes about Writing

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by @AnnieDaylon

I’m  drawn to quotes about writing. Here are ten of my favorites:

shutterstock_110397353 (2) writing1. “There are three rules for writing the novel. Unfortunately, no one knows what they are.” ~ W. Somerset Maugham

2. “Be obscure clearly.” ~ E. B. White

3. “I do not like to write. I like to have written.”  ~ Gloria Steinem

4. “Writing is easy. All you do is stare at a blank sheet of paper until drops of blood form on your forehead.” ~ Gene Fowler

5. “When you take stuff from one writer, it’s plagiarism but when you take it from many writers, it’s research.” ~ Wilson Mizner

6. “Writing is a way of talking without being interrupted.” ~ Jules Renard

 7. “Proofread carefully to see if you any words out.” ~ Author Unknown

 8. “History will be kind to me, for I intend to write it.” ~ Winston Churchill

 9. “I love deadlines. I love the whooshing noise they make as they go by.” ~ Douglas Adams

10. “If you don’t have the time to read, you don’t have the time or the tools to write.” ~ Stephen King

 

Got any favorites you think I should add? Please let me know.

Please subscribe to my Author Newsletter by placing your first name and your email address in the space provided on the right.

My best to you,

Annie Signature Light Blue

Bonus quote:  “Strong nouns. Strong verbs. Kick descriptors to the curb.” ~ Me

 

 

Make Writing Your Priority

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by @AnnieDaylon

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Today I am guest blogging  at BookMarketingTools. Here’s a snippet:

Indie authors today are faced with an overwhelming array of choices. Herein lies a paradox: there are too many choices, especially in social media. It is easy for writers to lose sight of the most important thing, the writing itself. Yes, there is a need to develop an online presence but, first and foremost, there is a mandate to create product. In order to do that, writers must place writing above everything else.

Here are some tips to help you do that:

Read more here…

 

My best to you,

Annie Signature Light Blue

 

 

Writing Historical Fiction? Best Tip Ever!

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by @ AnnieDaylon

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Looking for a great tip for writing historical fiction?

Try this:  “Once upon a time, it was now.”

I found this pearl of wisdom in The Art and Craft of Writing Historical Fiction by successful historical fiction author, James Alexander Thom. Thom sees this concept as most effective for storytelling and has adopted it as his credo. The author, Thom says, must write as if everything is happening now, with no thought about future. He further explains:

  • “Today is now.

  • Yesterday was now.

  • Tomorrow will be now.”

How do authors of historical fiction make any time now? By taking the reader there, into that exact time.

For me, this means  that authors must provide not only authentic historical details, but also authentic character reactions. Yes, the authors know the future. Yes, the readers know the future. But the characters know nothing of the future. Authors must make readers so enmeshed that they forget the future, that they are there, now, with the characters, looking forward, experiencing the same emotions, reactions, and  uncertainty the characters do.

I am in the editing  process of Book I of a trilogy which is set on the island of Newfoundland, one hundred years ago and the phrase “Once upon a time, it was now” is never far from my mind. I am determined that my ‘once upon a time’ will be a now.

Many thanks to James Alexander Thom! 🙂

Do you have a favorite tip for writing historical fiction (or any other genre?) If so, please send it along!

 

Please subscribe to my Author Newsletter by including your first name and email address in the space provided on the right. Many thanks!

My best to you,

Annie Signature Light Blue

Putting on my ‘Top’ Hat…

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by @AnnieDaylon

 

shutterstock_150959219 1Ever struggle with wondering if you are doing enough, or if you are doing the right thing as an author? I certainly do.

A while back, I attended a workshop by successful indie author, Jodi McIsaac, who listed twelve hats that an indie author must wear, among them: writer, editor, bookkeeper, webmaster, marketer, distributor, etc. Sometimes my head is spinning with choices: Which hat today? Do I need to update my site? Do I focus on marketing? Do I work on my budget? It’s dizzying!

I have come to realize that I cannot do it all; when I try to wear too many of these hats in one day, my writing (quantity and quality) takes a hit. I have to set priorities.

Recently, I found two helpful posts that deal with making such choices:
What Learning to Say No Really Means by Alexis Grant, and
Fighting Overwhelm: How I am Learning to Refocus My Workload by Joanna Penn.
Both talk about managing workload, about focusing your time, about giving up some things, even things you don’t want to give up.

The key for me?
Deciding the most important thing and doing that FIRST and FOREMOST. Right now, that happens to be writing the first book in a novel trilogy. I am immersed in it, writing every morning for a minimum of three hours.
Yes, I tweet. Yes, I blog. But mostly, I write.

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If you are juggling too many hats: stop, focus, prioritize, and choose the hat that best fits right now.

For me the right thing, right now, is the write thing. That’s my ‘Top’ Hat!

What’s yours?

 

A free story will wing its way to you when subscribe to my Author Newsletter by placing your first name and email address in the space provided on the upper right. Many thanks!

My best to you,

Annie Signature Light Blue