Be Fearless! Become a Professional and Successful Writer

From Kate’s Writing Crate…

          My professional life has gotten very busy. I’m editing and indexing a book for publication in early spring as well as working on a book I’m co-authoring with Cheryl L. Butler, co-founder of this blog. Add to that a few other freelance projects, this blog, and my day job of editing and writing for two publications and I’m very busy indeed.

          There are so many opportunities for writers these days as an employee, a freelancer and, best of all, as your own boss!

          Whatever your dreams, be fearless!

You have to be able to write on demand to meet deadlines. Have great ideas for articles and follow through with interviews and/or finish the book you are always talking about and get it published.

Write. Rewrite. Polish. Publish. If you are a writer, those are the job requirements to make a living doing what you love.

          Practical ways to achieve your dreams:

I recommend reading:

 Fearless Writing: How to Create Boldly and Write with Confidence by William Kenower is essential for every writer. Inspiring. Motivating. Supportive. Fantastic! (Please see my reviews of this book on this blog.)

          Ensouling Language: On the Art of Nonfiction and the Writer’s Life by Stephen Harrod Buhner. Read it for the sheer beauty of his written words as well as his remarkable thoughts—a fabulous beacon for anyone on a writer’s path.

          The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles by Steven Pressfield will keep writer’s block away. Whenever I’m not inspired to write, I flip it open and read a page or two then I’m raring to write again without fail. I most love his encouraging and inspiring essay “The Artist’s Life” on page 165—which I think should have been the first in his book because it’s essential for writer’s to know and believe in it.

Writing Down the Bones: Freeing the Writer Within by Natalie Goldberg will get you thinking and writing. Follow her routine of filling a spiral notebook every month. I’ve been doing this for well over a decade. I have no fear of the blank page because I face it every day in this low-key way.

          I recommend writing:

          Fill a spiral notebook a month as recommended by Natalie Goldberg in her book recommended above. Upside—no fear of blank pages. It's a private way to improve your writing and capture ideas fearlessly.

Start a blog on any topic of interest so you write regularly—never missing a deadline. Gain an audience. Get feedback. Improve your writing fearlessly.

          Take a writing class. I did and besides learning more about the writing craft, I met the new owner of a local magazine there. This led to an internship, then a staff writing position, then Assistant Editor, then Editor, then Editor of two publications, then three, then four. Then all the freelance work I’ve done—and soon a published book—all because I was brave enough to go to one writing class and willing to work hard and fearlessly.

          Cheryl wrote her first book, Pregnant Women Don’t Eat Cabbage, for one hour each Saturday (all the time she could spare while raising eight children) until completed. She was brave and did some public speaking events. In the audience one night was a woman from Macmillan Publishing. A while later when the current Mighty Mommy left, this woman remembered Cheryl and recommended her to become the company’s Mighty Mommy columnist and podcaster—all because Cheryl pursued her writing dream fearlessly!
.

Amazon has certainly opened up opportunities for authors. I have several friends working on books they plan to publish through Amazon. A friend of one of these friends has published both through a traditional publisher and Amazon, and she prefers Amazon as she has full control over the cover and content and receives more of the profits. Publish fearlessly.

Be fearless! That’s what it takes to be a professional and successful writer!

The Writer;s Crate has NOT ended!!!! Sorry for message.

From Kate's Writing Crate...


Sorry for the mistakenly printed post today. I usually move that post ahead several months just in case something happens to me so the blog doesn't become a ghost blog.

I will still be posting the first Monday of every month.

Thank you for your readership!

New Year, New Organizer

From Kate’s Writing Crate…

          I don’t live a one-organizer-fits-all life. Does anyone? Which is good as I receive five or six as Christmas gifts each year and I put most of them to good use.

          Friends and family members give me planners with covers of dogs, outdoor scenes, and creative words—all things I love.

          I have a pocket planner for my purse so I know at all times when any family member has a doctor, dentist, or hair appointment—not to mention vet appointments as well. It fits in any purse so it’s always on hand as I schedule follow up appointments or six-month checkups while at the doctor, dentist, or vet, but there’s not much daily space for everything else going on in life. I use initials for events or people I’m supposed to go to or meet, but often need more detailed entries so there is the social events planner for activities, parties, meetings, and gatherings of all sorts.

          This is a larger planner I keep in the kitchen. As invitations arrive in the mail, by email, or phone, I jot them down on a page with enough space to add details like what dish or wine to bring, I also copy over all the information from the pocket planner to make sure there are no conflicts. Then I record dates for any workmen or deliveries. All other family members’ various activities and parties are recorded here, too.

          While not a planner, the family calendar on the wall in the kitchen is the biggest reminder for everyone what is happening that day, week, or month. That has to be updated from my planner—and any additions made by others have to go into my planners.

          No room for errors or disaster strikes!

          Then I need a work planner. As an editor, deadline dates are etched in stone each week or month. I need to assign articles to contributing writers by a certain day. I need them submitted to me by a certain day. I need to edit them by a certain day, then submit them to the Production Department by a certain date. (I mark all work deadline dates with red stars in the social events planner to avoid conflicts so all information is available in one place.)

          For a monthly publication, this gets tricky. For example, I make assignments for the January issue by November 25. This gives writers three weeks to set up interviews, complete interviews, and write their articles. They turn them in to me on December 15, I have until December 18 to edit them and send to the Production Department.

          The Production Department sends me first proofs about two days later. I have one day to make corrections and return them. Final proofs are sent back a day or two later. Generally, I have half a day to make final corrections—and then I start planning the February issue in December.

          This can get confusing—I’m planning Christmas before Halloween every year!—so I write it all down in a big work planner with plenty of space for detailed notes.

I’m also a contributing writer. Article assignments have many dates: a day to schedule an interview, a day for the interview, and a due date for the article. These go in my work planner as well.

My deadline dates for my freelance work also are recorded in my work planner, but I need space for detailed notes so I have a creative planner as well. This one gives me plenty of space to schedule/track the time I spend each day on my own book, screenplay, and freelance assignments as a writer and editor. There are a myriad of dates I need to remember while editing a client’s book. Writing them in a planner is the only way I can stay on track.

A pocket planner, a social events planner, a work planner, and a creative planner should cover all the bases, but I have one more—an inspirational planner.

I pick this one out for myself since it needs to inspire me even as I write my inspirations in it. I like ones that ask questions—sort of writing prompts in case I’m not inspired—but mostly it’s a place to think about future issues and record ideas for the magazines as well as essays, articles, plots for books, short stories, and screenplays. I like to look back to know when I had an idea and then when I completed it.

My life is full and fully documented. It’s the only way I can make sure everything gets done!

2018 Gift Ideas for Writers

From Kate’s Writing Crate…

          (I forgot to post this list earlier. Sorry about that.)

These are unpaid recommendations—just things I love!

          Two stocking stuffer ideas:

                   Key chain that says “I disappear into books. What’s your superpower?”

Pack of four or five Field Notes notebooks in a variety of colors. Small and slim, they fit perfectly into a pocket so you can always jot down ideas.

         

For inspiration: Framed quotes by favorite authors or by The Writing         Manifesto.org.

For organization: A Question a Day Planner by Eccolo. The planners are lovely and useful plus the questions are great writing prompts.

Big gift: I just discovered desk chairs with retractable foot rests. During three-day-marathon magazine deadlines, I would love to put my feet up after hours of work and take a cat nap. In one of these chairs, I could. Hoping Santa brings me one!

Happy writing in 2019!

Share the Gift of Written Words with Kids

From Kate’s Writing Crate…

                                 

There are many wonderful and classic books to read to children this time of year. My best memories are of my mom or dad or grandma or grandpa reading their favorite books to my siblings and me. We only saw our grandparents a few times a year so spending time sitting on their laps or huddled together on a couch or bed listening to adventures was fun and exciting. These days parents and grandparents can also read to kids via the Internet.

For the youngest audience, there is Harold at the North Pole by Crockett Johnson. Harold, who always has his trusty purple crayon in his hand, goes on yet another wonder-filled adventure—this time to see Santa and find a Christmas tree. I loved that Harold could create whatever he needed or wanted using his imagination and his crayon. If only crayons worked like that outside of books!

For the three to eight set, The Sweet Smell of Christmas by Patricia Scarry and illustrated by J. P. Miller is always a big hit with its scratch and sniff pages. When you think of Christmas as a child or an adult, it’s often the scent of pine and baking cookies that first comes to mind so this book with its six scent pages will create a strong memory for the children you read it to as they experience Christmas along with lead character Little Bear as he and his family prepare for the holiday by baking, getting a tree then decorating it, and receiving a stocking. I can still remember scratching and sniffing those pages as the book was passed around. It made the anticipation of Christmas morning even keener.

There is nothing like the original English adventure novel One Hundred and One Dalmatians by Dodie Smith—not the Disney version—for children about five to ten or eleven. At 199 pages with detailed black and white illustrations, you are whisked away to London and then the English countryside where Pongo and Missis (as Perdita is a different character) in search of their puppies are helped and sheltered by an array of doggy characters including a spaniel in a country manor who shares a delightful tea time with them when they most need comfort. (Serving tea or hot chocolate and buttered toast or Christmas cookies during the reading of chapter 9 is highly recommended.) At a chapter a night you can keep the kids and grandkids on the edge of their seats for 18 nights. Chapter 17 takes place on Christmas Eve in a serene and holy setting followed by the last chapter that continues at the peak of the adventure on Christmas Eve into a happy Christmas Day then into the New Year. As we were a family who had dogs and cats, this adventure appealed to everyone as cats play important roles in the story filled with puppies. We also felt good that the Baddun brothers got their comeuppance—thanks to the Colonel who then promotes himself to Brigadier-General—as well as Cruella and her husband—thanks to their own cat and most every Dalmatian. (Please note that Dalmatians are high-energy dogs so not the best pet for many families although a dog and/or a cat makes a home even homier in my opinion.)

My grandmother loved The Five Little Peppers and How They Grew by Margaret Sidney and illustrated by William Sharp—perfect for kids about six to twelve. Mrs. Pepper is a widow raising her five children in a setting about a hundred years ago. The three brothers and two sisters are a close-knit bunch helping their mother as best they can while still having fun. Life is not always easy and Christmas gifts are difficult to come by and yet the family celebrates all the blessings they do have including their new friend, Jasper, and his German shepherd, Prince, who save the youngest, three-year-old Phronsie, when she goes missing. While there are good times and bad, the family has a happy ending. I believe my grandmother loved this book as more important things than gifts are highlighted in this story. I loved the characters wishing I had an older brother like Ben or Jasper, a sister like Polly, and especially a dog like Prince. (When I grew up, I got a German shepherd just like Prince—my own happy ending!)

Make your holidays more memorable—read to the kids!

Ensouling Language by Stephen Harrod Buhner

From Kate’s Writing Crate…

          Life has gotten very busy. Besides family obligations, work, and creative projects, Cheryl and I are working on a really big writing project which I will discuss in January.

In my spare time, I am reading Ensouling Language: On the Art of Nonfiction and the Writer’s Life by Stephen Harrod Buhner. The title grabbed my attention as I was browsing for something to read.

I am entranced by this book. I had hoped to write a review for my post this month, but I have only finished five chapters due solely to lack of spare time as I love this book.

In fact, I love this book so much I have bought it for all the writers on my gift list as well as a second copy for myself as I never want to be without a copy. (Off the top of my head I can think of 10 other books with intentional duplicates in my library, but I know there are a few more. I will make that list a future blog post.)

Despite not being able to write a complete review (look for a Masterclass post in the future), I wanted to let writers know about this book now. If the title and/or my comments interest you, I hope you will check it out.

At the end of his “Before Buying This Book” section on pp. xi-xv, Buhner states:

                                                 

This book…is for all the children who stayed up late, covers over their heads, flashlight on, reading when they were supposed to be sleeping…It is for every child who has felt touched by the greatness of this craft and then, when they were, heard someplace deep inside a tiny voice speaking, saying something like, “I wish I could write like that; I wish I could write something that would make other people feel like I just felt. I want to do that too.”

You can and what is more, you must.

          If you have ever felt that way, Ensouling Language by Stephen Harrod Buhner is a book for you.

A Real Piece of Work

From Kate’s Writing Crate…

My respect for every author has increased a hundredfold since I started writing my book seriously. The time, dedication, discipline, creativity, confidence, and energy required is draining and exhilarating simultaneously.

Writing a book changes how you look at a book. It’s no longer just something to read and, hopefully, enjoy, but a real piece of work.

Hundreds of hours are needed to create something people read in a few hours, but that’s how work works—hours to create fashion, seconds to put it on; months to build a boat, moments to set sail, and years to build a skyscraper, minutes in an elevator to reach the top. Not sure we ever truly appreciate the work that goes into anything unless we have done the work ourselves.

What I am sure of is that writers need to make the time to write no matter what on a schedule that gets words onto documents. Then the rewriting begins.

This takes time, dedication, discipline, creativity, confidence, and energy, i.e., work. Writing is work. Successful writing is hard work that takes a lot of time.

“The days are long, but the years are short.”—Anonymous

The work pays off if you make time during your long days to pile up pages so your years are filled with your books, articles, essays, poems, screenplays, short stories, and/or plays.

Do your work. Do it today. Do it every day.