One way to capture those fifteen magic minutes

In late November of last year, I was searching for a way back into my writing. I was searching for a way to do what Ray Bradbury urged here:

“I don’t believe in optimism. I believe in optimal behavior. That’s a different thing … Action is hope. At the end of each day, when you’ve done your work, you lie there and think, Well, I’ll be damned, I did this today.

It doesn’t matter how good it is, or how bad – you did it. At the end of the week you’ll have a certain amount of accumulation. At the end of a year, you look back and say, I’ll be damned, it’s been a good year.” ~ Ray Bradbury

Terrific and inspirational advice but how, how, do you get there? How do you turn your hope into action? One way is to create a writing habit (which works an awful lot like an exercise habit–in fact, exercise has a lot in common with writing, but that’s fodder for another post).

Take a quick look at Rosanne Bane’s post on Why Habits Work When Discipline and Will Power Won’t and you can also read her post here about those fifteen magic minutes. To everyone who says you can’t create something worthwhile by writing for fifteen minutes three to five times per week, I say:

You can’t create anything worthwhile if you never start.

So go. Start something. What that something is matters less than you think it does.

So anyway, back in late November, when I was trying to figure out a way to start, I stumbled upon The Southeast Review’s 30-Day Writer’s Regimen. They were gearing up to run a version during December. I nearly didn’t do it. Come on, December? The holidays? How on earth was I going to write? Then I decided it would be a Christmas gift to myself.

It was very low stress. All I needed to do for each prompt they sent was write a single page, longhand (that’s maybe 250 words for me). It didn’t even need to be about the prompt, just whatever came to mind after reading it.

I missed a day or two (but oddly, not Christmas itself). One prompt inspired exactly nothing, so I wrote about my reaction to that prompt (wow, I have a whole lotta nothing for this one …). Some prompts got a page. Some built a continuing story, one became a poem, another a flash fiction piece. And one was the jumping off point for my very first Write 1/Sub 1 for the year, which ended up at ~8,000 words.

All because I decided I could write a single, longhand page per day for thirty days. By doing so, I built a habit, one I happen to love.

And … they’ll be running the Writer’s Regimen again in June. All new material. Still plenty of time to sign up. Anyone want to join me?

Write 1/Sub 1 check in: week 20 the one with an accidental novel

Week 20! This is the week I hang my head in shame. Did I stop writing? No, quite the contrary. This is the week I admit that what I have on my hands is a novel. Worse, it’s a very strange novel.

Yes, I know. I’m not sure I can truly count it as a “write 1″ but there you go. I mean, what am I going to do? Not write? Given the choice, I will always go with the writing.

Writing:

• Pansy~ 7,200 words.

Rejections:

• The Life Expectancy of Fireflies ~ I don’t have the official status yet, but I know the outcome. It made the “long list” (top fifty) in the Women On Writing Flash Fiction contest, but not the top ten (which includes publication). That is made any sort of list at all is nothing short of amazing. You’ll see below why I’m counting it here.

Submissions:

• The Life Expectancy of Fireflies ~ there was another contest where I wanted to submit it. This worked out rather neatly.

Acceptances:

• None

Write 1/Sub 1 check in: week 19 the one with a revised novel

Week 19! What a week. A software release at work (this is no small thing) and revisions on Speechless. Plus, I managed to write a short story and submit two.

I credit this to my participation in Write 1/Sub 1. Sure, the accountability factor helps. But it’s more than that.

In a way, the slow and steady writing is a lot like exercise. When you need to give it your all and run the race as fast as you can, you’re in shape for it. While I’m looking forward to relaxing and filling the creative well (so to speak), I don’t feel burnt out from this round of revisions.

Writing:

• Sunset~ 1,200 words.
• Revisions on Speechless, edits up to the end. As tempting as it was to rush, I kept a steady pace. I ended up adding about 8,000 words to the story (this is a good thing) and I’m pleased. I’m also looking forward to relaxing a bit.

Rejections:

• Just a Matter of Time ~ not surprised, it was a long shot.

Submissions:

• Filling the Space
  
• The Patron Saint of Lost Things

Acceptances:

• None

Write 1/Sub 1 check in: week 18 the with … wait, is that a sale?

Week 18! With a little luck, this week, we’ll have some sunshine, and warmer temperatures, and maybe spring. Crazier things have happened.

My brain is totally into the revision of Speechless, so the 1,000 words I managed were a little rough. But … I managed them, and that’s the main thing. Plus, I had some good and surprising news this week as well. Keep reading to find out.

Writing:

• Vigil ~ 1,000 words.
• Revisions on Speechless, edits up to chapter fifteen. With all the changes, I’ve added ~5,000 words so far. I’m hoping to be done this week. I wanted to be done this weekend, but better slow and steady than rushed and sloppy.

Rejections:

• Filling the Space ~ uh, this one went off into the ether, I think. I don’t know. Anyway, it will be the sub 1 for this week.

Submissions:

• The Burden of So Many Roses ~ to a reprint market.

Acceptances:

• Elvis Has Left the Building ~ I sold this to Untreed Reads and it will come out as its own little e-book. From what I’ve seen/heard, they have fabulous distribution and editing/proofing. This was an older story that I still thought I should/could send out, so I’m pleased to have found a home for it.

Other:

• Pitch contest: I’m a finalist in the pitch contest I entered a few weeks back. 

Write 1/Sub 1 check in: week 17 from snow to sun

Week 17! Last week it was all snow. Now? We have sun! We’ll be inching toward eighty degrees here today. It’s a little surreal.

Even with the revision work, I wrote something new, if short, this week. I got my submissions in, even submitting something new along with a re-submission of another story.

Writing:

• Long Walk Home~ 1,000 words.
• Revisions on Speechless, edits up to chapter nine, new scenes added (and some deleted). In total, I’ve added 4,400 words to the manuscript. Because I’m “aging” it (from tween to teen) this is a good thing. The book can go a bit longer without any worries about it being too long.

Rejections:

• None

Submissions:

• Leap of Faith
• Just a Matter of Time 

Acceptances:

• None

Editing cat is editing

Editing cat finds your words … wanting.

Also? That’s no ordinary pen. That’s a Uni-ball Vision Elite, black ink infused with color (in this case, red). That’s right. It’s infused. With color. And it is awesome.

Write 1/Sub 1 check in: week 16 the one with more April (snow) showers and rejections

Week 16! And what a week is was, was it not? Glued to the news, two and a half hour commutes thanks to an epic April snowstorm, and those are just the things I remember.

The rest of the week I revised and I wrote a … well, let’s call it another episode of what I’m thinking of as Pansy’s story. I sent out another new story this week, although for this coming week, I may go with a re-submission of a story that has been making the rounds. I have enough on my writing plate that revising another short story might be more than I can handle.

Writing:

• Downpour ~ 4,500 words.
• Revisions on Speechless, book map, new calendar, and the first two chapters revised. Yay!

Rejections:

• The Patron Saint of Lost Things
• Fellowship award I knew I wasn’t going to get

Submissions:

• The Weight of Secrets 

Acceptances:

• None