Blog
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Editing is writing, too.
Editing is writing, too.
Do you resist editing your writing?
Does the idea of polishing your writing make you feel uncomfortable?
I hear ya!
Do you resist sharing your writing with others?
Does putting your writing “out there” feel like you’re sending your precious child into the (cold, cruel) world?
Yep, I hear that, too.
I used to be very nervous about showing my writing to others. And I still am a bit nervous sometimes.
But then I joined writing groups here and there and I began to share my writing.
When my writing was published — it happened sort of by accident — I didn’t seek to be published. A friend encouraged me (thank you, Pat Tyler) and . . . now I’ve been published in 6 anthologies. And I have to tell ya . . . it’s fun.
Here are my thoughts about the writing process of going from the creativity of a new idea to editing to final product.
When you first write something. . . it can be creative and fun. Then, when the possibility of publishing comes up. . . that precious, personal writing becomes . . . A Product.
And that can be a difficult shift to make. But, here’s the thing. . . editing and polishing your writing for publishing can be fun. Although it’s challenging to select the exact right word or phrase choice, when you have success, it’s a fabulous Eureka moment! It can be fun to shape the writing so others can understand what you are trying to say.
Finally, it can be rewarding to share your writing and receive positive feedback that helps strengthen your writing.
Editing is like pruning a fruit tree or a rose bush. Make a few snips (changes), step back, take a look . . . make a few more changes until the shape gets better and better, and more pleasing. Until, finally, you like the final product and you’re ready to send your precious writing into the world.
Give it a twirl . . . post your writing here, on The Write Spot Blog, and see what happens. I predict good things for you.
Thank you, Kelly and all my friends, for the inspiration for this post.
Just Write!
Photo by Jeff Cullen -
The way I found out about . . . Prompt #100
The way I found out about . . .
Start a sentence with “The way I found out about . . . ” and go from there. Write! Just write.
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The Southern Review welcomes unsolicited work.
The Southern Review welcomes unsolicited work during reading period, Sept 1 – Feb 1.
They consider fiction, poetry, and essays, including creative nonfiction and literary essays. Only previously unpublished work will be considered. They accept simultaneous submissions but ask that you notify them promptly if your work is accepted elsewhere. They recommend that before submitting work you familiarize yourself with the journal’s aesthetic by subscribing.
Click here for submission guidelines.
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An Argument for Daily Writing by Ellen Sussman
Guest Blogger Ellen Sussman writes about “An Argument for Daily Writing.”
You want to be a writer. But…
You’ve got a demanding job. A demanding spouse. Demanding kids.
You wrote a novel that didn’t sell. You wrote two novels that didn’t sell. Three? Four?
You don’t have a snazzy office. You don’t have the latest computer. You write at a café and the moms bring all their screaming babies to that café.
You don’t think you’re good enough. Your high school English teacher told you you’re a lousy writer. Your mother told you that your brother was smarter than you are.
You have a hangover. You have carpal tunnel. You’re hungry and there’s no food in the house.
Excuses are easy. Writing is hard. I’ve got one way of silencing all those voices. I go to work every day. Writing is my job. So I show up. Screw the hangover. Screw the high school English teacher. Screw the screaming babies.
If I had to make a decision whether or not to write each day, I’d be a basket case. There are too many good reasons not to write. But my decision has already been made. I’m a writer and so I write. Daily. Regardless of whatever crazy thing is trying to distract me.
I think it’s better to write for a half-hour every day than it is to find a time, when the muse strikes, to sit your butt in that chair at your desk. Because daily writing teaches you the practice of writing. And the more you practice the better you get.
Ellen Sussman is the New York Times bestselling author of four novels, A Wedding in Provence, The Paradise Guest House, French Lessons, and On a Night Like This. She is the editor of two critically acclaimed anthologies, Bad Girls: 26 Writers Misbehave and Dirty Words: A Literary Encyclopedia of Sex. She teaches through Stanford Continuing Studies and in private classes.
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Warm-ups
You have ideas what to write about. But how do you get started? Do you sit at your computer, fingers poised above the keyboard . . . ready. . . but your mind swirls, goes blank. . . at a loss how to get started.
How about starting your writing time like many famous author do? With warm-ups, using writing prompts.
There are many blogs and websites with ideas for writing. One of them is my interactive blog, The Write Spot Blog. You can post your writing (~600 words) and receive comments on your writing.
You can also use prompts posted on my Facebook Writing Page and writing prompts on my website. http://www.thewritespot.us/writingprompt.html
The joy of writing freely . . . that’s what these prompts are about.
How do you start your writing time? What are your rituals? Your writing habits? Or, do you Just Write?
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What’s the most important thing you’ve learned about writing?
Andrew Sean Greer answers this question in the September 2014 issue of The Writer Magazine.
What’s the most important thing you’ve learned about writing?
“That you be clever as clever, and people will be impressed, but they will only be impressed for so long. After that, unless you are very real in your writing, and donate some piece of your heart, and are vulnerable, someone else will come along much more clever than you. Better to be ready from the outset. There is no competition for vulnerability. We are all in that together.”
Note from Marlene: There’s that vulnerability thing again. Feeling vulnerable seems to go along with sharing your writing with others. . . that’s what Steve Jobs and I were talking about in the August 14, 2014 post about the most important tool in life about making big choices. Well, Steve and I didn’t actually have this conversation. . . but we could have, in my writerly imagination!
Your turn: What’s the most important thing you’ve learned about writing?
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Favorite food or drink. Prompt #99
Write about your favorite food or drink and the last time you had it/them.
Photo of fruit salad, prepared by Meals From The Heart at the French Market in New Orleans. If you go there, go to this Cafe. Seriously good food. The BEST gluten-free crabcakes! -
What would you attempt to do if you knew you could not fail?
What would you attempt to do if you knew you could not fail? — Robert Schuller
Note from Marlene: You talk, right? And you think, right? Therefore, you can write. I just know it!
Set yourself up for writing with paper, pen or pencil, or computer and keyboard. Choose a prompt. Set a timer for 12 minutes. And Just Write! -
Fake it until you make it.
I facilitate Jumpstart writing workshops in Petaluma, California and here, online, with you. People new to writing have a hard time saying “I’m a writer.” So did I, until my writing teacher, Pat Schneider, made me say it out loud.
And now I’m encouraging you to say it out loud. Come on. I’ll say it, too.
I am a writer.
Again, louder. I AM A WRITER.
There now. . . and if you weren’t able to say it louder, fake it until you make it.
No need to fake your writing. . . Just fake having confidence in your writing.
And now . . . select a prompt and Just Write!
