Mosaic Master
Group: Administrator
Posts: 18,892
Joined: 1-August 03
From: Massachusetts
Member No.: 2
Real Name: Lori Kanter
Writer of: Poetry & Prose
Referred By:Imhotep
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Develop your Writer Instinct by Susan J. Letham
Being a writer is a way of life--a process as well as a way of creating a product. If you're serious about a career in writing, you'll find it pays to develop your writing instinct as well as your style and technique.
You thought instincts were inborn? Not necessarily. We tend to develop new skills to suit the lives we lead. For example, dancers and athletes develop an instinct for the best take off point, the right move, the perfect body angle. These things take time, training, and the best possible life circumstances, no matter how much talent a person has to begin with.
You have to create the circumstances you need to bring your skills to the fore. For our sport stars that includes a balance of action and rest, proper nourishment and the right attitude. For you--the aspiring writer--it means exactly the same. You, too, need to create the right balance between work and play, to nourish your mind, body, and soul well, and to make it easy for yourself to come to the page eager and bursting with ideas.
Here are strategies you can use to develop your writer instincts.
1. Be inquisitive
Creatives are nosey by nature. Learn to burn with interest at the things around you, and always be eager to know more. Hunt down the why and wherefore of people, places and events you encounter on your life journey. Find new ways to describe them.
Creative people translate life and experience so others can understand. Most folks are interested in the world and its ways, but as writers, poets, and journalers we're called to go further than that: we're called to interpret what we see, feel, hear and think.
Creatives have the gift of being able to see not only what exists, but also what its potential may be. This is particularly true of writers. At some point it becomes second nature for us to ask ourselves the journalist's questions: who, what, why, where, when and how? Great writers will go one small step further and add 'what if...?'
Note three things that arouse your curiosity today.
1. 2. 3.
2. Be open and communicative
Once your curiosity has led you to a topic, take the time to look, listen, learn and digest what's going on in and around you in connection with your project.
Talk to other people. Get different views. Invite feedback on your ideas. The input you get may be just what you need to help you take the next step.
Collaborate where you can. Join a group, a club, a circle, or work with a friend. Sure, you'll need to work on some of your creative projects alone, but you can also learn a lot by sharing.
List three people you can talk to about creative topics.
1. 2. 3.
List three ways/places you can work creatively with others.
1. 2. 3.
3. Care and share
Sooner or later creativity dwindles when you stew in your splendid isolation. The other end of the soup bone is that creativity multiplies when you share.
Success in writing terms means communication. For you that might mean publishing something you've written in an e-zine, newsletter, church magazine, or even the the PTA bulletin! It might mean joining a writers' group and sharing what you've written. It might mean teaching others whatever it is you've learned so far.
Don't underestimate the third option. If "I don't know any other writers/poets/artists..." is one of your pet whines, sharing what you know is the best way to change that. Do it!
List three ways you can care and share.
1. 2. 3.
4. Get organized
A lot of what's known as "writer's block" is only the result of poor organization. Set up good organizational habits for yourself from the start.
Begin with simple things like regular writing time in a special writing space.
Organize your tools. Hunting for utensils is distracting and keeps your mind off writing.
Plan your work. Keep a writing diary. Your diary can hold your progress record, list of deadlines, and all your writing-related information in one handy resource.
Organize your resources so you can access them quickly. Books and other reference material should be within easy reach of your desk. Things like library opening times can be written on cards then pinned to a notice board near your workspace. Save the URLs of your online resources in a special folder.
Organize your procedures. Once you know where to get what you need, arrange to get it in your off-peak time. Write when you're at your best and brightest. Research during your lulls.
By organizing the creative peripherals, you make it easier for yourself to get on with your real job, which is writing.
Note three things you want to organize. Add target dates.
1. 2. 3.
5. Aim high.
Success and average expectations don't get along well. Dream your writing dreams a size too big and aim to grow into them. Aim high and get passionate about your goals. Let your passion fuel your ambition. You need a rip-roaring reason to run in the writing rat race and jump the hurdles you need to take on the success track. Act as though success is the only option available to you.
If I knew I'd be successful, I'd write ...
1. 2. 3.
6. Get lucky
Yes, luck is part of the success equation, and the dice of chance will always play a role in your dreams. However... part of getting lucky involves being in the right place at the right time with the right people so that the right things can happen. That's the part of luck you influence.
Go to where the luck is. Sign up for the writing groups, courses, workshops, summer schools, conferences, retreats, college classes and anything else that will bring you together with the teachers and editorial decision makers who'll be able to help you reach your goals.
List three steps you can take to nudge your luck along.
1. 2. 3.
7. Plan for the long haul
I will gladly wish you instant success. It happens for one in a million writers, so why shouldn't that one be you?
My advice to the other 999.999 aspiring bestseller authors is to dig your ditches, pour your foundations, and start laying the bricks of your success one by one.
Take an honest inventory of your needs and skills, then create a plan that will help you get what you need to be successful. Building your reputation as a writer can take time. Spend some of that time honing your skills and applying what you learn to your writing.
Knowing your skills will make you feel confident about using them. Confidence will help you be patient, focused, and positive during the time it takes to reach your goal.
Decide on three skills you need and ways you can learn them.
1. 2. 3.
8. Enjoy what you do
Nothing kills creativity like the doldrums of depression, so lay your pen aside from time to time. Get out and have some fun! Go to a writers' retreat and get tipsy with the girls in the bar at night. Go dancing--it's the perfect activity for folks who sit at a desk all day.
Use your writing skills for fun. Write for a lark! Write to make people laugh and give them pleasure. Play writing games with other writers. Pen silly stuff and love it!
Find satisfying ways to use your writing, even if they don't pay at first. See it as part of your apprenticeship. Can you help a child learn to write? Can you write down an elderly neighbor's life story for her--for her family? Can you write for a charity you believe in? All these things can give you a deep sense of satisfaction and the knowledge that you're using your writing gifts creatively.
Decide on three writing-related ways you can have fun.
1. 2. 3.
These practices will soon become second nature to you. Once they do, you'll find they complement your writing skills perfectly. By living in tune with your writerly instincts, you'll be a better, happier, and more productive writer. Try it and see!
Susan J. Letham is a British writer, creative writing tutor, and owner of http://www.Inspired2Write.com . Sign up for classes and competent 1-on-1 coaching. Pick up your no-cost subscription to the monthly Inspired2Write Newsletter at: mailto:Inspired2Write_Newsletter-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
Permission to use this article granted to L. Kanter by Susan Letham, Jan 20, 2004
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"It's a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step into the Road, and if you don't keep your feet, there is no knowing where you might be swept off to." ~ J.R.R Tolkien, The Lord of the RingsCollaboration feeds innovation. In the spirit of workshopping, please revisit those threads you've critiqued to see if the author has incorporated your ideas, or requests further feedback from you. In addition, reciprocate with those who've responded to you in kind. "I believe it is the act of remembrance, long after our bones have turned to dust, to be the true essence of an afterlife." ~ Lorraine M. KanterNominate a poem for the InterBoard Poetry Competition by taking into careful consideration those poems you feel would best represent Mosaic Musings. For details, click into the IBPC nomination forum. Did that poem just captivate you? Nominate it for the Faery award today! If perfection of form allured your muse, propose the Crown Jewels award. For more information, click here! "Worry looks around, Sorry looks back, Faith looks up." ~ Early detection can save your life.MM Award Winner
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