goal groups, to-dos, and shaking it out

In a bout of spontaneity at the start of the week, I started a goal group. What is that? Well, it’s a work in progress and I am certain there are folks out there who can better define and organize such a group, but here’s what I did: I asked my ‘friends’ on Facebook who’d like to join in on one week of goal-sharing and goal-cheering.

The plan was to bring together a handful of friendly folks who would express an individual goal for the week, comment on ups and downs throughout the day in a private FB message group, and motivate one another in the process. It may sound silly but it’s been widely expressed that when you say a goal out loud, there’s an accountability factor that kicks in that may prevent you from flopping.

The group that formed this week took on everything from completing taxes to getting up from the desk every few hours for a healthy stretch (my own personal goal) to writing-related goals such as writing daily poems or submitting new work. Anything and everything counted, and our group grew to include six people in total with random messages throughout the day. For my part, it was a lovely thing to wake up to notes from my fellow goal-setters. There was an accountability factor there, as I didn’t want to disappoint and I knew I had an active audience awaiting my results for the day.

For this initial goal group experiment, we set out to share for one week only. But, who knows? Maybe this will spark future groups and ideas for motivating one another in formal and informal ways. I felt the impact of the group and it’s always a good thing when I can say I checked off some to-dos from my list. This was a fun way to do so!

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Guest Blog: how to write

Kiersten White, a fabulous YA author who blogs at http://kierstenwrites.blogspot.com/, was kind enough to share this previous post of hers with us today. Please welcome our guest blogger and make Kiersten feel at home!

fool-proof steps for becoming a writer
by Kiersten White

Step One: Decide you're going to write a story.

Step Two: Decide it's going to be brilliant. Imagine the response of your [teacher, classmates, reading group, agent] and how it will completely change the way they look at you.

Step Three: Open up Word.

Step Four: Stare at the blank white screen stretching on into infinity until your eyes begin to burn and your brain hurts from the sheer emptiness of it all.

Step Five: Check your email. If writing a novel, research agents for a couple of hours.

Step Six: Stare at the blank Word document again.

Step Seven: Realize you need music. Spend the next hour finding the perfect "mood" music for what you want to write.

Step Eight: Inspired by [insert perfect music here], click back over to Word document.

Step Nine: Change Facebook status to: [Your name here] is WRITING!!! Realize you aren't on Twitter, and that anyone who is anyone is networking/wasting time on Twitter. Sign up for an account and spend the next two hours figuring out how it works and what the crap # means.

Step Ten: Stare at blank Word document. Decide you need a title. Brainstorm for the next hour.

Step Eleven: Come up with a GENIUS title. Proudly type "The Scent of Green Papayas" at the top of the document, followed by your name. Happily consider how easily a story will come now that you have such an amazing, literary title.

Step Twelve: Take a four hour break for snacks and naptime.

Step Thirteen: Refreshed, sit down and toy around with pen names for a while.

Step Fourteen: Realize to your horror that your genius title is actually the name of a Vietnamese foreign film you saw seven years ago.

Step Fifteen: Erase the title, pressing Backspace much harder than necessary.

Step Sixteen: Stare at the blank Word document until your eyes bleed.

Step Seventeen: Check Facebook. See that fourteen people have commented on your status, asking what you are writing. Feel both guilty and annoyed.

Step Eighteen: Slam your laptop shut and go to the movies. Tomorrow's a better day for writing, anyhow. See? You never knew writing was so easy!

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Thanks to Kiersten for sharing her funny – and true – post with us today. Please check out her blog at http://kierstenwrites.blogspot.com/ for more wisdom and wit.

Until next time… happy reading!

revved up: racing past rejection

Last month, Dear Spouse took me to a local track as part of my birthday treat (he’s a ‘special’ kind of romantic, but at least he remembers the date). I’ll admit, I am not what most would consider a fan, but I don’t dislike it either. I’ll also admit that watching a race in person is a whole other experience compared to the televised snippets played in the background on a Sunday afternoon. In person, the adrenaline can’t help but spike.

Since I take my camera practically everywhere, of course I took photos of the races. Chance timing allowed me to capture this crash.

Why, though, would I possibly find it interesting to talk about a car race on a blog about writing?

It made me think about how writers can be hard on themselves. Prior to being published, an emerging author will get their hopes high, only to feel so low when a rejection comes back. There’s this constant up-down emotional ride that, honestly, doesn’t end once a publishing contract is signed. Since writers are always putting themselves out there, the ups and downs will always follow.

Then, the published writer can be particularly hard on him or herself, once the first contract is signed, as he or she wonders if a second contract will ever happen. She wonders if she’s a one-book-wonder or if readers hated the first book so much it doesn’t matter if a second book will come along since no one will read it anyway. Or, even if these self-doubts don’t come into play, a reviewer will doubt the writer on her behalf, or the editor will question why a contract was accepted, or… any number of imperfect things will happen.

With so many obstacles in the publishing world, with so many ups and downs, it’s a wonder any writer makes it through a day without giving up. Writers are terrible self-critics. Which brings me back to this car crash…

Is a racecar driver only successful when staying on course? Are crashes not inevitable? Are they not expected? Whether a local racer on a small course or a pro at the Indy 500, accidents happen. Drivers go off-course. So do writers.

Racecar drivers know accidents happen but they generally get back on course and finish what they started. So does a professional writer. Whether it’s ignoring a form rejection, or soaking in the advice of a personal rejection, it’s up to the writer to get back on course.

When it comes to writing as a career, an author must always keep the end goal in sight. We can’t let the little spinouts or literary fender-benders slow us down. There will always be downs, but with those come the ups that make it all worthwhile.

There’s no such thing as a perfect race when it comes to writing. The finish line always changes; there is always a new goal to reach. It’s not about coming in first. It’s about getting back on course when we stray off path and not letting a bump on the road completely derail us (oops, mixing metaphors!).

Like racers, a writer needs a good support team. Maybe that includes a spouse and some friends or maybe that includes a critique group or workshop retreat. Use your team to help keep you on track and guide you along your course.

Speaking of support, I was just asked to join this year’s Critique Mania, hosted by Whidbey Island Writers Association. For $25, emerging writers can submit a poem or three pages of prose to be personally critiqued by one of the many wonderful authors who have volunteered their time to support this fundraiser for Soundings Review, the Whidbey Island Writers Association magazine. Not only is this a great way to support a top-notch literary community, it’s also a fantastic way for an author to get detailed feedback on a work-in-progress. Details about the 2009 Critique Mania will be updated on the Whidbey website very soon, so I hope you’ll check it out.

Remember, a writer is not unlike a racecar driver. There are bound to be hits and misses and it’s inevitable that a crash will happen to even the most experienced writer. But by keeping focused, dismissing the negatives, and working with the positives, a writer can learn to tame the self-doubts and cross that finishing line each and every time.

What stumbling blocks have you had to overcome in your career? How have you moved past rejection and kept up your momentum? Please feel free to share your own experiences here. We’ve all been there and most of us will be there again. After all, it’s simply a part of being in the race. The important thing is, is that you’re still in it.

coffee: a writer’s best friend

Confession: I drink an embarrassing amount of coffee. I love its taste, aroma, and guaranteed ability to keep me going. There’s not a moment of my life I remember not loving coffee. The thing is, though, I am also a writer. A writer who has recently been working pretty much around the clock and putting sleep way at the bottom of my to-do list. Don’t worry; it’s a phase. History shows I will go through this sleepless storm of writing and editing and marketing and all-crazy-caffeinated-things for a stretch of time and then ‘normal’ life will somehow get back on schedule. Rinse, repeat.

The other day, though, my husband commented on the cycle of coffees I go through when I am in this marathon-like stretch of productivity. In fact, it was he who suggested I blog about it, so thank you Dear Spouse. What he was commenting on was the transition I make with the various beans and blends, depending on what type of work I am doing, for how long, and to what extent I am beginning to show signs of burn-out-syndrome. Perhaps those of you who are self-proclaimed coffee addicts can relate.

Topping off my list of favorites is Kicking Horse Coffee. This little Canadian-company-that-could grew out of the Rockies, addicting innocents like me with their Fair Trade goodness. My two favorites are 454 Horsepower (for those moments when I need a serious gear-shift) and Kick Ass, for when I need a kick in the… well, you get the idea. Both are wonderful dark roasts, possibly too dark for most people I know, but ohhhh so delicious and wonderful.

Now that I am no longer on Canadian soil, it’s not as easy to pick up the black-bagged beans. Plus, economy rules, so usually when I make my ultra-cool trip to Costco (come on, work with me… it’s cool to go to Costco, right?), I grab a 2.5-pound bag of Starbucks French Roast. I am an equal fan of the Italian Roast, only Costco doesn’t carry it in its usual army size option. If I’m really pinching Costco pennies, I’ll even pick up the adequate alternative of Starbucks House Blend packaged as a Kirkland Signature product. Hey, it’s a rough economy. Sometimes we need to make compromises.

Ahh, but you caught me. House Blend and French Roast are on entirely different sides of the roast chart, you say. You are correct. But this is exactly what Dear Spouse was referring to. Yes, I prefer – by far – a super dark roast. But, as I drink… oh… about 15-20 cups of coffee in a 20-hour period (don’t judge!), I concede it is not always the best choice to only consume dark, dark coffee.

Thus, here’s my ritual. In the morning, when I wake up, I enjoy a couple of cups of premium dark roasted coffee. Yum! But, for the majority of the day that follows, I defer to a smoother, milder brew. Yes, that generally increases the caffeine intake, but it also allows me to enjoy the next dozen or so cups of coffee without entirely losing my tastebuds. Perhaps in the late night, I will relax with another dark roast, but throughout the day I have found that variety in beans keeps me fresh. It also keeps the coffee tasting fresh. Each new pot is like that first cup in the morning.

So, what grounds me during my hectic day? Ha. Get it? Grounds? Okay… that was a lame one, I’m sorry.

While in Canada, my choice coffee for the big stretch of the day was President’s Choice West Coast Dark Roast. Yes, I know, it’s a dark roast (technically), but it also has a very smooth bodied taste (in my opinion). Now that I am on US soil, I have fallen in love with Trader Joe’s Smooth & Mellow Blend. This is a very smoooooth cup of coffee, sold in whole bean (just the way I like it), offering a perfect balance of taste, aroma, and addictive elements.

I am also a big fan of picking up locally roasted beans. Usually when perusing a farmers market or passing through a quaint little town while on vacation, I will come across a local roasting company or a mom-and-pop kind of establishment. This is such a great way to discover coffee and add to the pantry.

One of the bag of beans I recently picked up was a French Roast from The Righteous Bean, a Fair Trade coffee company. They have distribution throughout 30 states, but I happened upon it at a little local market. I was very pleased and will definitely buy this delicious bean again.

Another favorite of mine, when I lived in Canada, was a London, Ontario based company called Las Chicas del Cafe, otherwise known as "the coffee chicks." They make a really, really great Dark/Continental Roast that I swear I will stock up on when I pass by there again someday.

As a writer, it’s important to have a complete tool-box to keep me going: Notes on my current projects, a cooperative computer, sticky note reminders, workshops and local events to keep me motivated, online groups to meet new people, and… a well-stocked pantry of various coffee beans. It’s a staple. It’s just as important (no, more so!) as giving myself time and space to think about character development or plotting. I have never had coffee block. Coffee has never rejected me. And coffee always gives me four-star reviews. Now, what writer can do without all that?

So, dear reader, whether you write books or simply enjoy reading them, what’s your favorite coffee (and where can I get it)? Do you have marathon sessions at work or in writing that you turn to coffee for moral support? If you don’t drink coffee, what’s your secret? Go on... spill the beans!

I’d love to continue this discussion, but I’m afraid I have to go make a fresh pot of…