Freedom to Write

Happy 4^th of July! We have been traveling so I had to delay my usual Wednesday post to today. However, I am thinking that it turned out to be an appropriate postponement, since my musing today is about freeing ourselves from distractions to write.

What does that mean? Well, for me, I can write when the kids are running around the house, I can write in a crowded coffee shop or at the library, but what trips me up the most is technology distracting me.

To help with the issue of technological distractions, I decided to try a product called Mac Freedom. I had heard about this on other writing blogs and decided to give it a try. Basically, what it does is shut down your connection to the Internet (and all its distractions) on your computer for a set amount of time.

I usually set my timer for 45 minutes when I need to write, and I have been amazed by my progress when I use Mac Freedom. Even more than that, I have been amazed at just how distracting the Internet and emails are to my writing. While I’m writing, I find myself trying to check my email or look something up online within about 10 minutes of getting started. Even though I should remember that the Internet is turned off, I attempt to check it three or four times within my 45 minute time period. Sometimes I am trying to look up something writing-related, but many times it’s just a random thought that pops into my head or something I meant to look up online earlier.

It's been eye opening to me how distractible I am when on the computer, and how easy it is to rather frivolously waste my writing time.  I have been glad that I went ahead and gave Mac Freedom a chance, since it really does help me focus and get through my writing goals for the day much more easily.

It doesn’t have to be Mac Freedom though, there are other ways to free myself from distractions while I write. My husband suggested that I could just turn off the Wi-Fi on my computer and achieve the same goals, but somehow I hadn’t thought of that - and for me, it seems too easy just to turn it back on. While Mac Freedom works for me since I currently have a MacBook, I am sure there are similar programs available for PCs. Another option - paper and pencil. The old-fashioned approach often helps me stay focused on my writing. Although I have to admit - my hand gets tired quickly! We must use different muscles to type than to write by hand.

One other trick, when I do use Mac Freedom I have to make sure my iPhone is far away. Otherwise I might pick it up and hop online before I even think of it. It’s crazy how automatic technology has become.

We need freedom from distraction to write. So take a while to think about what distracts you the most from writing. Then, think of ways you can conquer those distractions and declare freedom to write!

Summer Challenge Check-in #5

Hi everyone,

  Sorry for the delay in the check-in post! I was able to email the group on Monday, but didn't get the reminder post up on the blog until today.

  I hope that some of y'all may be challenging yourself with your reading and writing, even if you aren't part of the "official" group. So how is it going? We're about to hit 4th of July weekend - are you pleased with the work you've done so far, or are you ramping up your efforts for the dog days of summer?

  Don't forget - here's the link for information about the challenge.

  Keep up the good work!
  McCourt

Outliner or Pantster?

Hi everyone! As I've been working on my latest novel, I've been thinking a lot about being an outliner (someone who plans the novel ahead of time) versus a pantster (someone who makes it up as they go along, aka by the seat of their pants). I've always been a pantster, but in my recent attempt to become more efficient in my writing, I've been wondering if outlining can improve my productivity.

On the one hand, I enjoy the spontaneous nature of making things up as I go along, letting my characters constantly surprise me on the page. But for me, that means a lot of meandering as I tell the story. I'm starting to feel like that might not be the most efficient use of my writing time.

I think that outlining has always reminded my of school - with it's organized system of numbers and letters. While I actually like the inherent structure of an outline in some areas of life, in my fiction writing, having to know what happens next in a story intimidates me. I generally don't know the exact details of what my characters are going to do, and I only have a very vague idea of the ending of my story beyond "happily ever after". How I will get to that point is a mystery.

So I recently tried a very loose outline of my current work-in-progress. I took each character and wrote an overall arc for their individual growth and for the overall story growth. Then I wrote one or two phrases for the next 10 chapters or so and what direction I thought the story would take. My very first (and very loose) outline!

So how's it going? Well, I pretty much stuck to the plan for the first four chapters or so, but then, a fight broke out (literally) between a few of my characters that I didn't see coming! Luckily, since my outline was so loose, I just updated it to deal with the consequences of the new plot twist. I kept the original outline as well to help me remember how I thought things were going to happen, so I can attempt to get back to those points somewhere along the way.

Despite the changes, I found the outline was still helpful. I think part of this was because I didn't spend a lot of time on my outline. I know that some people spend almost as much time on their outline as they do on their novel, and that works great for them. But for me, the fluidity of my outline gives me more of the freedom I desire. If I had spent days or weeks on my outline, then I'd feel too attached to its trajectory and not willing to veer from the course.

So am I an outliner now? I'm sure that to a lot of outliners out there, the answer would be no - I didn't even stick to the basic one I had. But I am seeing some of the benefits already of having a semi-plan in my writing. It is helpful when I see where I left off each day, and then be able to look at my notes and say "okay, now for this chapter I write where X finds out Y". It gives me a sense of direction so I don't waste as much of my precious writing time; but it still leaves me lots of room for the characters to take over.

So what does all of this mean? Maybe it's an encouragement for those who don't outline to try it even in the loosest form. It doesn't have to be the kind of outlines we learned in high school - I give you permission to break the rules! Or maybe for those of you that are strict outliners, try mixing it up a bit by writing some unplanned chapters. While I know we all have systems that seem to work best for us, challenging ourselves in our craft will always lead to more inventive and creative work.

Would you like to join our summer writing and reading challenge? My group has been making great progress and saying that accountability really helps! Read the details of the challenge here and let's see what we can accomplish together this summer!

Take care, McCourt

Summer challenge check-in #4

Hi everyone!

  I'm so proud of all the progress our group is making. Even with summer activities, vacations, and unexpected delays, we are keeping our writing and reading in the forefront of our responsibilities.

  Way to go! Keep up the good work.
  If you'd like to join our group email for accountability, here's information about our challenge.

  Take care, McCourt

Making Writing a Priority

“You cannot plow a field by turning it over in your mind.” - Gordon B. Hinckley

“You learn to speak by speaking, to study by studying, to run by running, to work by working, and just so, you learn to love by loving. All those who think to learn in any other way deceive themselves.” - St. Francis de Sales 

“If you want to live a happy life, tie it to a goal, not to people or things.” - Albert Einstein

I’m a collector of quotes and I often discover a similar theme running through the ones that I save. Lately, one of them seems to be my need to spend less time dreaming about a project or idea and more time actually putting it down to paper. I think as writers we are often full of inspiration, but need more perspiration to get the job done.

Of course, many of my writing friends don’t seem to have this problem; they wake up ready to write and take advantage of any opportunity to do so. I, however, have a tendency to let other things take priority over my writing time. I volunteer, overcommit, and procrastinate away the time that I have delegated for writing. I wonder why I do this. At times I’ve even asked myself - do I really want to keep writing?

I know that the answer is yes. I enjoy writing. I enjoy meeting my characters and discovering their story. In fact, my time writing is almost always one of the most pleasant parts of my day. So why do I let everything else come first and bump writing down my list of priorities?

I think it’s because I’m not selfish enough about my writing time. Perhaps because I’m not published and I’m not contributing financially to my family’s income with my writing, I feel like other things should come first. Family commitments, volunteer commitments, graduate school homework, kids' activities, household chores, etc. always feel like they have to come first - and then I’ll squeeze in the writing around those things. Unfortunately, those things never seem to end and my writing goals rarely get accomplished.

I think it will ultimately come down to me making the decision that writing is a priority for me, especially if I’d like to earn even a meager income from it some day. If I don’t start putting it first, then who else will? While my family is very supportive, it is still up to me to move writing up my list of priorities.

After all: “They always say that time changes things, but you actually have to change them yourself.” - Andy Warhol

Accountability and deadlines help me a lot to try and achieve those writing goals. If you’d like to join our summer reading and writing challenge, please do!

Summer Challenge Check-In #3

Hello everyone!

  To all of y'all playing along at home, it's time to check-in. How did it go this week?

  Travel put a kink in my writing and reading plans, but it was a wonderful trip to remember :) so I'm not bemoaning the lost time. Just means I'll have to get back in the game this week!

  If you'd like to join our challenge email list - here's the details of our summer challenge. Join anytime!

  Keep reading and writing!
  Take care, McCourt

Inspiration from a Master

 Recently at an exhibit of Vincent van Gogh in Paris, I came across a quote that really struck me:

“What is drawing? How does one get there? It’s working one’s way through an invisible iron wall that seems to stand between what one feels and what one can do. How can one get through that wall? Since hammering on it doesn’t help at all. In my view, one must undermine the wall and grind through it slowly and patiently.”

-       letter from Vincent van Gogh to his brother Theo van Gogh, October 22, 1882

I know Van Gogh was talking about drawing (so I bet it especially rings true to all of you illustrators out there), but I immediately saw the connection between this quote and the writing process. How many times do we as writers or illustrators struggle to get what is in our mind on to the page. We may imagine witty dialogue between two characters, and even ‘hear’ it in our heads, but when we write in on the page, it comes across as flat and quite boring. How many times do we hit that invisible iron wall?

One of the things I keep reminding myself during this summer writing challenge is the benefits of practice. If I only sit down once a week or even once a month, and expect amazing prose to pore from my mind on to the page, then I am kidding myself. Not only that, I’m actually letting myself down. Because if I only write infrequently, it may be “okay” or “pretty good”, but how much better could I be by practicing my skills every day?

I know that writing every day doesn’t guarantee that I’ll write brilliantly each day. In fact, I am sure there will be many days that I will write very little that may be salvageable. But the important thing is that I will be moving forward. As the quote states, “… one must undermine the wall and grind through it slowly and patiently.” Slowly and patiently grinding through it. That’s what daily writing and illustrating is all about. And eventually, we will all have our own masterpieces.

Want to join the summer writing challenge? Click here for details. We’d love to have you!