Wednesday Morning

Well, another day in paradise, as it were. Mostly I wanted to start this blog up to set up for the topic I will be discussing later, that has to do with my writing.

Because it isn’t just about writing about how much I love my writing, I should also tell you some of the fun things I am especially enjoying with Flake City.

You see, many characters in many zombie or horror stories will make a bunch of wrong choices…my characters largely make good choices for good reasons, but those choices and reasons can differ character to character.

Some people would think it is boring but frankly it just goes to show that sometimes even when you do everything incredibly right and incredibly well, shit still can go terribly wrong. Also that the characters reasoning, circumstances, and motivations can make the same choices be wrong for others. A slight commentary on the various ways us zombie aficionado’s discuss our zombie plans in the theoretical vacuum of the zombie apocalypse.

But it is because the characters are so entertaining that I am going to get back to them for the time being.  I missed out on some writing earlier this week and this past weekend and now that I have a semi good grip on what is to happen next to Kaya, I am going to get back to that and update this later.

Wednesday Evening

Well, it is later in the evening on Wednesday and I just finished a nice healthy writing spree. I need to update my saved word file and take the newly typed material off of the app and into the document, and then I can update my word count for NaNoWriMo, but this last writing spree should put be ahead on my word counts to be “on track” to finish, which it wasn’t, earlier.

I have been writing the number of words, but not always on the project. As you may know, I write 3,000 words a day, but sometimes it is in the blog, other times it Is in the universe, and other times it is total garbage that sits in a never seen word file.

Balancing all of that writing is hard. Namely because I now know I prefer to do long springs of writing on one project versus having to vigilantly guarding my moment so I can write some here, some there, and make sure I also edit and update the blog or even write a whole new piece etc etc etc.

So, the balance is a fun thing I am learning this NaNoWriMo, my first NaNoWriMo where I am taking my writing and blogging very seriously.

It is fun to see the lessons I learn every day about not only the process of birthing new creative ideas, but also the lessons in balance, in writing, in exploration of self and the world around you while trying to reflect it in your writing…It has been a fun experience of learning about myself and my writing style. I have been gaining a lot of confidence in myself, which is awesome.

Namely proud that I am just doing the damn thing. I am doing the impossible where I hit many of the hit points I want to do in my ideal life. I don’t have it all figured out, I have to go to an office I hate and a job I don’t like, but I am getting better at my time management, I am working out, I am dedicating hours to writing and creating, I am getting closer and closer too figuring out how to get the rest of the way to the life I want, because I keep working at it.

It feels really great to have a subtle indication that all the work you re doing is worth it.
It is even better to know that I am enjoying I so much that I don’t need to chase success…

I am enjoying myself, and I don’t need to have anyone loving me to want to do this. It is fun and I enjoy it.

Flake City is fun and I love it.

Overall, I am having a blast writing, and blogging, and even though I am always running out of time and constantly needing more time for writing, I am constantly finding more time to carve out for it, and I am finding more ways to better use my time, all while being true to myself and what I want to do.

Sure, sometimes that means Bret and I don’t cook at home. Like this evening we went to Salata, a salad shop we both love.

But that was less dishes to worry about and less food prep to be concerned with, and I am able to get that much more writing done. In this case, I was able to not only catch up my word count for Flake, I was able to story board the next couple of thousand words and also update the blog.

Not just update the blog but actually discuss part of the writing process, which I feel is important.

Entirely too many writers in the “writers who blog and blog about writing” world are sticking to “how to sound professional” type blogs, and wonder why they are running out of steam and “just can’t write that much.”

It’s because they aren’t writing authentically. They see someone succeeding with some style and they try to mimic it. They see some successful writer posting writing tips, so they do it too. Even though they themselves have not succeeded they do the things one does when they have obtained success.

Now, this is not to say one shouldn’t try to manifest their reality and all that, but it’s one thing to speak it into existence, it is quite another to mimic the behaviors of successful people instead of working on your craft to get to that level.

We don’t need sixteen hundred J. K. Rowlings. We don’t need eleven billion watered down Stephen Kings.

We need unique original takes. Go out, experience the world, and tell your truth, your experience, your own, unique and special journey.

Because like my characters, you have a different minds, motivations, etc. We are all different and unique and that is actually a good thing. Don’t post repurposed tips from others, test those tips out. I heard the theory of writing three thousand words a day, and I finally started sticking to it, because it helps me and builds me as a writer. I discover myself, my voice, my world, I work on so many skills all at once, building myself, my writing stamina, and, my body of work.

Try the tips. Write that odd story idea that popped into your head, who knows what it may turn into. Don’t copy down old tips on writing or random writing prompts…DO the writing prompt, TRY the writing tip or technique. We don’t need copycat writers, we need every individual unique writer out there.

Besides, you can always blog about trying those tips, and credit the original writer who posted the tip you test out. Maybe they will appreciate you mentioning and crediting them, because no matter their success they like to hear they helped and be credited for their brains hard work. Either way it is a nice thing to do.

Because people can read faster than even the fastest of us can write. The people who read the most, need us the most, and we are lucky enough to serve them.

We are luckiest, however, to chase our own dreams of writing, by simply doing the damn thing, and that is pretty fucking special.

So, as a template for future writers, I want to make sure I show as much truth and authenticity in my writing process to encourage others to explore their own, because we all have different paths.

Explore what makes you unique, what makes you special, and what makes you like your writing. Because you should always be writing the kind of stuff you would want to see.
No one can do you, no one can show what you can.

No one needs more overly corporate blog and vlog posts, we need more authenticity, more so as more and more of us go online and take in online content. The reason we all turned away from traditional media is it was all boring and kind of ran together. Let’s not ruin a possible future trend of reading by saturating the market with more generic drivel.

❤

Abbi