This summer I have several authors working away at their
books. All are at different stages and
while the summer is a great time to set aside and write, it can also be
challenging.
When you are sharing raw, emotional times in your life, it
can be hard to revisit and dig up your past. And then there’s the decision
about how much you reveal and how vulnerable you want to be.
I applaud the writer who can go there because at the end of
the day, your courage will help others as you can be sure that your story will
resonate with others who are in similar situations today or in the past. But it is a tough decision, as often there
are other people in your family who may be impacted by your brutal
honesty.
As well as the emotional side to writing a book, there’s
also the physical aspects to consider.
Being summer you may well want to work outside but find it is hard to
see your screen. One option is to try
pen and paper to see if that stirs up your creative juices. Another is to work on your book through
postcards, where you can jot down key messages, ideas and stories to tell, so
that later when you are indoors, you can just sit at your computer and write.
Another challenge maybe that your book is in your head and
if you could just dictate it, it would get done. These days there’s lots of software where you
can just dictate your book and voila, your words are on paper. One friend swears by Read & Write on
Google Chrome. So don’t make that an excuse – get cracking.
All of this to say that there is no right way to write a
book. The key is to get into a groove,
schedule time to write (or dictate) and make it happen.
Just remember that your first draft is just that… a first
draft.
No comments:
Post a Comment