Words
May turned into June, which became July and morphed into August. Very little writing accomplished. This left me sad, frustrated, irritated, depressed, and angry with myself.
At the beginning of August, John and I attended the Shore Leave Convention ( http://www.shore-leave.com/ ). I spent 3 days once again speaking to many accomplished writers, attending several days’ worth of writing panels, and realizing yet again that the longer I make excuses for not making the time for writing, the further away this dream of mine is slipping. Yes, it’s true; work is completely out of control and eating into my valuable personal time. But it’s also true that I need to figure out a way to transition between work and writing and try to get words on a page, even if all I can manage is 300 words a night. 300 are better than none.
Some of what I’ve been doing:
Reading:
I’m currently rereading Aine Greaney’s book, “Writer with a Day Job” (Found on Amazon here: http://www.amazon.com/Writer-Day-Job-Inspiration-Exercises/dp/1582979960 ). Even if not all of the book is new to me, I’m finding some inspiration as well as some practical tips to get into the writing zone following a hectic day in the office. You can also find a free Writer’s Digest webinar led by Aine, here: http://www.writersdigest.com/writer-with-a-day-job-free-webinar
Learning:
I am following along with author Brandon Sanderson’s 2013 Creative Writing course at BYU, found here: https://www.youtube.com/user/WriteAboutDragons .  The courses, recorded and posted by Scott Ashton, allow those like me that can’t go back to school at the moment, to sit in on two years’ worth of college-level creative writing courses. You can also learn more about Brandon Sanderson here: http://www.brandonsanderson.com .
Writing:
After getting home from Shore Leave, I decided I had to make a serious effort to create time to write. I’ve been attempting to leave the office on a set schedule, and after getting home and having dinner, making myself either disappear to the basement or another corner of the house to work. At the moment, I have a strong start to a story that’s currently at 5,900 words. I’m also experimenting with plotting more, and trying to apply a host of techniques and tips discussed at Shore Leave and Farpoint this year.
I am hopeful I am on the right track now.
-H
Originally posted on Spare Time Writer dot Com