Three Things Thursday

1. Here we go! The end of this month will have a challenge to get us ready for NaNoWriMo which is just a couple of weeks away.

This is the plan: Five days out of every week (for the rest of October) come up with one book idea–one you have NOT written already–and jot down the plot points. Give yourself as much time as you can to think and play and develop. If you can get so close as to even sort of jot down chapter ideas, do. Can you do that–get a rough idea–in 30 minutes a day? If you write straight through that 30 minutes you might very well succeed.

What will happen? If you manage to play this game, including today, you will have 11 ‘plots’ to help you as you begin the huge writing endeavor that NaNo is.

My goal is to try and do two ‘plots’ per day. I am not a plotter. I never know where my story will go (generally I have a vague idea what the climax of a story will be and I write toward that). But I want to attempt to complete this challenge this month. It sounds like a fun experiment.

Having too many ideas is not a bad thing. Having too many great ideas is even better. Best? Having terrific ideas that you have pondered and sort of know the direction those ideas are going.

2.The Olive garden is NOT closed. Ann Dee will choose a time that is best for her and we will go eat at the Olive Garden. There we will each read 250 words (or less) of our newest book.

3. I’m checking with the Provo library for Tuesday afternoons or nights for us to get together for group writing time. If we can get a space and place, and if people are interested, we’ll try this monthly.

Is anyone interested?

Goal?

Get a room, bring your laptop, your brain, and we will write together for two or three hours.

Just Write

1. In the works for TUP– interviews with authors, agents and publishers.

2. Dates for Writing and Illustrating for Young Readers is June 16-20, 2014.

3. The keynote speaker is . . . James Dashner!

4. Names of other faculty will be released as soon as I find my notes so I can tell you all everyone at once.

5. No one has said where they would like to gather for the dinner,  so I am saying Olive Garden (Provo) again. They have a room for us. Ann Dee and I will choose a date and let everyone know as soon as we do. Remember: we will read from our work–depending on the number of people–about 500 words. So start thinking about what you’ll read. NOTE: You don’t need to have completed your goals to get together. You just need to want to have dinner with us.

6. November is just around the corner. And that means NaNoWriMo. We will take part of October to get ready for this but Kyra and I have another fun suggestion: groups. Not critique groups but writing groups.
Form groups that meet weekly to JUST WRITE. Not talk, not read, not critique. Kyra and I have only done this twice but both meetings have been successful. Once we brainstormed. And once we timed ourselves going for the most words possible during our time together. I know Matt Kirby had (has?) a writing group that met weekly and wrote together and look at how successful HE is. In fact, there may be several published people in that group. Ann Dee knows.

7. I have one week left before school starts at BYU. (Yes, I get to teach another creative writing class. It should be a lot of fun. I do love my students. Many become good friends.) So I have a few days to JUST WRITE. And two books to work on. (Maybe three, depending on when one editor gets back to Laura and me.) So, I am making an-end-of-the-month goal for myself.  Number one: finish this huge rewrite with Cheri. Number Two: Write fifty pages on the new ghost book. And then maybe number three: do a rewrite with Laura.  Anyone want to join me for one week of play and silent goal making (that’s from an LDS Song. Anyone know what it is? Yes, I changed the words some.)?

8. For those of you who want to write chapter books we have the amazing Shawn Stout coming to the conference next year! (Yes, another peek into the conference line up!)

9.If you had eight hours a day to write, how would you fill the days? Could you write like Dean Hughes who has made a living writing full time? Would you be like Neil Gaiman and swear off email because it takes too much of your creative time? Would you be like Rick Walton and hire someone to help you so you could double your output? I’m gonna see what I would do.  🙂

10. What are you reading this for? Get to your own writing. BYU starts in a week!