Writer Impossible

Happy Friday and welcome to the Scribes. Casey here!

Recently, my family has become infatuated with watching Food Network’s Restaurant Impossible. I know the show has been on for about four seasons now, but we had never seen it until I stumbled upon one afternoon. I was supposed to be plotting one of the three stories doing combat in my brain, but, hey – I didn’t feel like it!

MYSTIC INK at Mystic Pizza

After watching about a dozen episodes, several themes played out over and over again.  Such as:

Owners who micromanage to the point they do everything and don’t let their employees do their jobs.

Owners who let their staff walk all over them.

Owners who have no idea how much they are spending or what it costs to do business.

And, sadly, writers are often guilty of the same things. (Okay, micromanaging is mostly our job!).

Here’s what I’ve learned from Chef Robert Irvine:

1. Be honest. Denial does you no good. If you’re not up front about a problem, you can’t fix it. So if you aren’t writing like you want to, it’s time to assess your habits, document your day and determine how you can work more effectively.

2. Work smarter, not harder. I’ve encountered this philosophy in my corporate day job. I’ve witnessed first hand the belief that if you work 90 hours a week, that somehow you’re doing a good job. In my experience, that’s not true. Not if it means you end up burned out and unhappy. That is not a good long-term strategy. Working smarter means using your time effectively and delegating/outsourcing tasks when it make sense to do so.

3. Old dogs can learn new tricks. Bad writing can be fixed as long as you’re willing to learn new tricks. And you are willing to throw away the old and bring in the new.

4. Outsource. Robert doesn’t do everything by himself. He has a trusted builder and a designer (and I am sure a host of others you don’t see on camera) to help him out. Writers shouldn’t be afraid to ask for help or hire professionals when warranted.

5. Backbone. Get one. As writers, it’s our job to manage our careers and be our own champion. It doesn’t matter if you have an agent or not. No one can look out for you better than you. Like it or not, we are all small business owners and we all have to be savvy, especially now, with restrictive, rights grabbing contracts and other pitfalls.

And finally, Chef Robert’s most important lesson – do the best you can, every day.

Well, what do you think? Any lessons learned to share with us?

The Buck Stops Here

Yay! It’s Friday again! Hope you’re having a good one! Casey here.

Harry Truman famously had a sign on his desk that read – “the buck stops here.” I’ve always loved that phrase.

It’s the ultimate mark of true leadership, taking responsibility for an action, even if you personally didn’t cause it. Like a good captain, you go down with the ship and are responsible for your subordinates behavior. Not an easy thing to do.

I’ve been in this position, not as U.S. president, but as a mother, a manager, even president of my sorority chapter in college. In my day job, I’ve sworn off having responsibility for others. Too much stress, too little reward. Obviously, as a mom, I can’t do that, but lucky for me, my sons are well-behaved.

However, I can’t totally abdicate my leadership role as an author because there’s only one captain at the helm of the good ship SS Writer - me.

Often times, when I attend my monthly RWA chapter meetings, I hear a common complaint – “I need more time to write.” Or “I need someone to motivate me to write.”

I’ve addressed adding more time, so this time I’m switching to motivation. And I’m not going to go easy on you. There’s a reason Suze calls me “the whip cracker.”

First rule, when it comes to motivation – you are in control of you. No one else.

To use myself as an example, if I’m sitting at my computer staring into space or web surfing or avoiding writing, the first person I chastise is me. Sound harsh? You bet!

But it’s also great news. That means you can take charge and do the work.

Casey’s Whip Cracking Tips:

1. Recognize that you are procrastinating and cut it out!

2. Determine why you’re procrastinating. Maybe you’re stuck at a certain point in the plot. My advice, either skip that spot and come back to it later or plow ahead and write something (and fix it later if you don’t like it). I can tell you this from personal (and recent experience), waiting for inspiration to strike isn’t going to work!

Don’t make me send this guy . . .

3. Enlist the aid of a friend. I know I just said, no one can make you do the work, but it can help to spend time with others. Even if to cheer you up!

4. Join a writing sprint – CTRWA has them all them time on our Facebook fan page!! All writers are welcome, not just chapter members.

5. Use the carrot and the stick approach. Try to reward yourself for meeting your goal (avoid using food, otherwise you’ll be stressed about your weight too). And, sorry, but if that doesn’t work, you have to suck it up and just do it (hear the whip snap?)

My final tip, realize that tomorrow is another day. Believe it or not, there are days (and sometimes weeks) where productive work won’t get done. That’s not an excuse to slack off, but do recognize that sometimes life throws curve balls.

Now, go forth and be productive! Or I’ll find you with my whip! *snap*

What are your favorite whip cracking techniques?And do they work for you?

The Bloggy Blah, Blah, Blahs

Happy Friday everyone. Casey here!

There comes a time in every blogger’s life when you hit the “wall”. The “OMG, what am I going to blog about this week (day, month)?” blues.

It happens to us all. Some more frequently than others. I know that I feel that sharp pang of panic more and more often than before.

We’re all strapped for time. In the case of the Scribes, in addition to being writers (with deadlines/goals), most of us have full time jobs, families and other responsibilities. It’s not always easy to whip up a blog post like a Betty Crocker cake.

Here it is, at the end of 2012 and I have the bloggy blahs. Yes, that is a technical term! So I figure, what better way to fight the blahs, then to offer some tips for combating total blog boredom:

1. Consider all ideas – no matter how crazy. Generally the Seven Scribes blog is focused on a writer’s journey, but all work and no play make Johnny crazy! It’s okay to deviate once in a while – mix it up. Please.

2. Tell a story with pictures. Some of our more popular posts are about what us Scribes do when we aren’t writing. Share something meaningful (and, no, that doesn’t mean TMI or ranting!)

3. Utilize guest bloggers. A word of caution – especially for writers – beware of guests who only do promo for their latest book and nothing else. Cultivate questions and encourage them to do more than talk about their latest book.

4. Don’t be so hard on yourself. It’s a blog. Chances are it’s not going to change the course of human events.

5. However, do remember that a blog can be meaningful to someone else and may touch them depending on the topic.

6. Celebrate success. We all love to hear good news. Don’t be shy! Share it!

7. Size doesn’t matter. A blog post doesn’t have to be the length of War and Peace. I appreciate a short, pithy post. If I see a wall of words, I may just skip you (sorry, but there are only so many hours in the day).

And finally, when in doubt, do what I just did, blog about how you’re doing. If you’re struggling with something. Chances are someone else out there is too. Ask for help. Most everyone loves to offer suggestions and maybe you might learn something new or solve a problem.

How do you combat blah-dom? Please share your tips, tricks and suggestions!

Stop Thief!! Beating the Time Bandits

Happy Black Friday! Casey here.

Everyone knows there are only 24 hours in a day. And we all pretty much wish we had more time to get everything done.

I don’t know about you, but I can’t change the laws of physics. So unless you want to move to Venus (where a single day lasts 243 earth days not to mention it’s totally inhospitable), you have to use the limited time you have wisely.

You have to identify and eliminate Time Bandits. In order to do that, you have to be brutally honest about how you are spending your time.

Just like dieting, where everything you put in your mouth can land on your hips, every moment you spend playing on-line internet games, is one more moment where you aren’t writing.

Identifying Time Bandits can be tricky because it’s not alway immediately obvious that you are about to robbed of your precious writing time.

Here’s a real life example. This happens to me frequently on the weekends. It starts with an innocent question from my hubby – “Honey, what are we doing for lunch today?”

I look up from my laptop, where I am clearly at work, yet it is not perceived as work by anyone but me, and say, “I don’t know. Can’t you make a sandwhich?”

This response is met with a derisive snort. “How about _____ (insert, Chinese, Pizza, hamburgers, whatever)?”

Soon, the sons have emerged from their mini-man caves and start to chime in. Next thing, I know, I’m in the car on the way somewhere to eat. I have just lost, if I’m lucky, an hour of writing time.

Hold on. I know what you’re going to say – “just say NO.” And sometimes, I do. But, I also want to eat (hey, I’m human!) and I do like spending time with my sons (before they completely grow up and move away).

Clearly, for me, this is an area where I can combat the Time Bandit. In order to make up for lost time, I have to give up watching television (love that DVR) or not read before bed that day.

So how do you know if you are about to be hi-jacked by a Time Bandit? Please note, I am not adovocating that you must ignore all responsibilities or become a hermit.

1. Mundane chores are appealing. If you find yourself thinking that cleaning the tub (and you normally loathe it) then you have a Time Bandit. If you have teenagers, make them do it (bribes work better than threats) or learn to live with some dirt.

2. Social Media – I know this is obvious. But we’ve all experienced “the promise” where you swear to only spend a half hour and the next thing you know two hours have elapsed. Get a timer. Or in my case, I had to go nearly cold turkey to get back on track.

3. The Boob Tube – yes, I love it too. I have plenty of shows that will gladly rob me of my “precious” (writing, for anyone who doesn’t know who Gollum is). In the last two years, I have gone on a severe television diet. I avoid most shows that may tempt me and only allow a few favorites to DVR (any Haven fans out there?). I’m sorry to say, if you have hours and hours of DVR’d programs or are spending hours watching TV, then you have a Time Bandit.

4. Your family – see my example above. We all love our families BUT in order to be successful as a writer, you have to actually write. Sometimes, your significiant others don’t realize they are Time Bandits. You need to politely call them on it. Of course, there has to be compromise. Perhaps you can agree to have a nice dinner together instead of going out for lunch.

5. You – Yes, you are your own worst enemy. If you peel the mask off the Time Bandit, you might see your own face there (kind of like in Empire Strikes Back, when Luke sees his own face in Darth Vader’s mask). One thing I’ve learned is that if you are waiting around for the Muse to strike you, you’ll be waiting a long time. Treat writing like a job and write something, anything, until you get your brain in the place it needs to be to work on your latest WIP.

If you can write an entire book, then you can come up with creative ways to conquer those Time Bandits.

How about everyone else? Remember, the first step to solving a problem is to admit you have one. Please share your Time Bandits or your suggestions for managing your writing time.

Give a Hoot!

Happy Friday everyone! Casey here! I hope you’ve had a great week.

One quick announcement – The Undead Space Initiative is on sale now! Thanks to everyone who purchased copies. I appreciate it!

I’m always looking for new ways to use my time more efficiently. I recently signed up for the free version of Hootsuite (thank you Jennifer Fusco for the tip). Now, I received this information a while ago from Madame Fusco, but I was reluctant to sign up for YET another social media tool. I’d tried Tweetdeck and was completely underwhelmed and gave up using it.

With another book release looming in my future (and a huge bout of indecision about promotion), and feeling disorganized and out of control, I did what I always do  -  step back, assess, and organize.

My solution: give Hootsuite a try. So I signed up for the free version and gave it a whirl. (And yes, I do love that little owl logo – see here for my admitted owl obsession).

After the initial set up (which took about two minutes because I had to create and document another new password), I was asked to choose the social networks I wanted to connect to. With the free version, I was limited to five. I had a tough decision to make because I also manage the Scribes’ Twitter and Facebook pages. And I belong to several Facebook groups too.

In the end I chose to use my own pages for the trial run. So I hooked up my Facebook profile, fan page, my Twitter account, and my WordPress blog. Once I did that Hootsuite presented all my information on a series of dedicated tabs and then asked me to choose the “streams” I wanted to view.

Basically that means – how much information do I want displayed? For example on Facebook, you can view wall posts, news feeds and events (to name a few). With Twitter, I can view lists, mentions, the twitter feed, and sent tweets.

The best thing about Hootsuite is scheduling messages. Hootsuite allows you to add photos, documents, and links. Then you can decide the date/time where you want them to appear (FB page, Twitter, your blog).

I have to say – it’s pretty sweet. With minimal effort, I can now schedule my tweets etc. for my weekly blog posts or announce my latest buy link therefore saving me time. If I were to upgrade to the full package ($9.99) a month, I could use their bulk scheduler, connect to an unlimtied number of social networks, and more.

Hootsuite has other free features like analytics that I have yet to explore, but I’m taking baby steps for now!

So far I’ve had a good experience with Hootsuite and I would recommend it for those of you who are time-strapped. Especially if you are on a blog tour or gearing up for your next promotion. The scheduling aspect is my favorite part.

Anyone else using Hootsuite? Any time-saving tips you want to share with the rest of us? And if not Hootsuite what other time-saving applications would you recommend?

Refilling the Creative Well

PJ Sharon has left the building! I’m away this week on a much needed vacation. Basking in the sun and having fun in North Carolina while preparing for my #2 stepson’s wedding. After gearing up for last weekend’s fabulous CT RWA Fiction Fest conference and all of this promoting and marketing business, I’m well past due for a break.

The past few months have been a whirlwind of activity for me. I won’t bore you with all the gruesome and hair-raising details, but needless to say, I’m more than ready to set aside some time to rest and relax. As much as I’m enjoying my new career as an author, I have to say, I’m struggling to get the next book written in the time frame I gave myself. I was able to produce first drafts of my previous books within a few months, so when I set my production schedule, I assumed I would be able to manage the same pace. But that was before I entered the realm of publishing, where 80% of my time would be dedicated to marketing and promoting the three books which I indie-published over the last six months. I’d hoped to complete the next book by July. What planet was I on when I thought I could do that? I don’t think superman had stronger kryptonite than an impossible deadline.

Which leads me to part of the problem. The book I’m working on is the first in a dystopian trilogy. I’ve never written a series…and I’ve never written about a world that doesn’t yet exist…both challenging on many levels, even for experienced writers. The hardest part for me, however, is that my left brain has been working on all cylinders and leaving my right brain creative side in the dust. Now I know better than most how important balance is for good health and optimal performance, so I know exactly what I need to do. Refill my creative well. That requires me to change my focus and perhaps even my expectations.

The good news is that I’m aware of the problem and know what I need to do to fix it. The first thing I need to do is remind myself that I am the boss, a mantra I’ve been practicing a lot lately. What that means is that I can change my deadline date without fear of reprisal from a publishing house. I hate to disappoint readers, but I know they would prefer quality over quantity any day of the week, so I’m hoping they’ll stick with me and be patient. The next step is to kick back and regroup. Fortunately, this trip came at the perfect time. The price I’ll pay for being off-grid for a week will likely be a mountain of e-mails to address upon my return, but the mental break will hopefully give me a chance to kick start that right brain into high gear. When I do return, I’ll need to reassess my marketing plan, get control of my schedule, and revamp my life a bit to carve out time for writing and resume a more balanced writer’s life.

So if I don’t return your e-mails, comment on your blog, or show up on your twitter and Facebook feed, just know that I’ll be back…in limited view…in a week or so. Thanks for all the support, Scribe’s followers, and have a wonderful week! My Scribe buddies will be fielding comments today, so feel free to chime in on any other ideas for balancing my business and writing life. 

Beating the Stress Monster

 

           Mr. Webster says that the word stress is defined as “pressure; mental or emotional strain.” Most of us think of stress as an event that causes our adrenalin to spike, our anxiety level to rise, and our emotions to run-amok. In reality, stress is not an event—it’s our response to an event.

Being creatures of habit, we cling to routine. Any change in the status quo can bring about a stress response. Weddings and funerals, the birth of a baby, starting or ending a job, moving, going to a new school—what these stress inducing events have in common is “change.” Good or bad—the constant state of change and dealing with the excessive minutia of life can be overwhelming.

Stress Monster

Today’s lightning speed lifestyle doesn’t help. Technology is progressing at an incredible rate and the world is changing so fast that even a flux capacitor couldn’t handle the time-warp we’re in. Whether you are a freshman in high school dealing with tests, homework, book reports, and being shoved through the halls from class to class, or a newly published author swimming through the quagmire of promotion to put your debut novel on the Kindle Top 100 list—we are all moving at warp speed. The bottom line is that life is stressing us out. We aren’t equipped to deal with the speed at which the world is changing.

So what’s the answer, you ask?

            I might suggest being more organized, eating right, getting enough sleep, doing some yoga, and meditating—all helpful in maintaining balance and helping us cope with the stresses in our lives. But beyond that, I think the most helpful advice I’ve found is from the wisdom of Deepak Chopra. He says, “Detach from the outcome.” What does that mean? It means that when we attach expectations to an outcome (like passing a test or achieving bestseller status), we set in motion that stress response. Our instinctual fear of the unknown kicks in, adrenalin floods our system, and we are set on the emotional roller coaster that comes with the possibility of dashed expectations. With all the uncontrollable variables and constant motion of life, none of us can guarantee what the future will bring—no matter how much we plot and plan. Whether it’s a by-product of our society or self-imposed expectation, we all inherently fear the unknown and dread failure. It’s simply part of being human.

            My understanding of “detachment from the outcome” requires that I stay present in the moment. I need to take time to enjoy my successes when they come, learn from my failures, and detach from the expectation that an event will go exactly as I had planned. This is the only way I can overcome the stress monster. I know that this is easier said than done and I assure you, it takes daily practice.

 There was a time when this had become second nature to me. I knew to breathe, live, and have my being in the moment. I had created a lifestyle that was conducive to maintaining balance. But somewhere between my decision to self-publish and diving into the sea of details required to accomplish that task, I lost sight of my ability to stay peaceful amid chaos.

So now I’ll take a breath and get back on track with taking care of myself—a necessary part of staying strong enough to beat the stress monster. I’ll do my best to eat healthy, exercise, and sleep more. But most of all, I will get back to that philosophy of detachment from the outcome. Does that mean I won’t be checking on sales reports or making lists, setting goals, or working on getting that next book out? Nope. But I will remind myself daily that NOW is all I have and I can’t get it back once it’s gone, so worrying about the outcome of things that are beyond my control will never make me happy, healthy, or sane. I’ll remind myself to breathe as often as is necessary and I’ll attack my lists one thing–one moment at a time.

Stress monster, look out!

What do you do to beat the stress monster?

Gerri Brousseau was randomly chosen as the winner of a free e-book copy of Heaven is for Heroes. Thanks you Gerri for commenting on both my posts last week here on the Scribes site and over at Market or Die.

Finding Time for Your Stories

Hi, all.  Susannah Hardy here.  I’m a writer of humorous mysteries set in the fictional resort town of Bonaparte Bay.  I hope you’ll be able to travel there with me soon!

With summer approaching, I was thinking about my own childhood summers in northern New York State, way up by the Canadian border.  I would often spend a day or two with my grandma, Gert.  Gert lived with her second husband in a little converted one room schoolhouse, surrounded by zinnias, peonies (which she called “pineys”), and old-fashioned pink roses.   She always did her housework and gardening in the morning, because after lunch she dropped everything.  She’d make herself a cup of Red Rose tea and put an Archway cookie on a plate, then park herself in her rust-colored velour recliner in front of the television to watch her “stories.”  Now, there was no cable where she lived and she only got a couple of stations, so it was the CBS soap operas for her — The Edge of Night, and Secret Storm, and As the World Turns.

The point is, her stories were important to her, so she scheduled her other activities in such a way that she had time for them.  And that’s a lesson we can all learn as writers.

There are so many demands on our time — families, housework, jobs for those of us still in the traditional workforce — it can seem impossible to eke out even a few minutes to write.   I’m here to tell you, though, that The Dream, whatever The Dream constitutes for you, is never going to come true unless you find time for it.

Notice I didn’t say “make time.”   We’ve all got the same twenty-four hours in the day (at least here on Earth that’s true — you fantasy and sci-fi writers, modify to suit your particular planetary rotation), so there’s no way to make the day magically longer.  However, we can structure our days to include a few hours, or even just a few minutes, to work on our stories.

Maybe you can get up an hour earlier than the rest of your family (easier in the summer than the winter here in the Northeast!).  Maybe you can skip going out to lunch with your co-workers, but instead brown-bag it with your BFF the laptop in an unused office or the local coffee shop.  Maybe you could – gasp! –ask your family to make a simple dinner a couple of nights a week, or put in a load of laundry, or run the vacuum cleaner.   Maybe you could — bigger gasp, possibly resulting in hyperventilation! — limit Facebooking, Tweeting,  Internet surfing, e-mail reading, and/or television watching.  You might just be surprised at how much you can get done in an hour or less of focused effort.  And even small amounts will eventually add up to a completed manuscript.

I’ll be exploring this issue of time a bit more over at my blog site tomorrow.  In the meantime, your Secret for today is:  Take a look at your typical day and see where you can rearrange or delegate some tasks, or delete some time-suckers, to find time for your Stories.  Nobody else will, or can, do it for you.

Till next time,

Susannah