WRITER'S BLOCK REVISITED
This was one of the first topics I visited when I started doing advice pieces on my blog. You can find the original here. I wanted to touch on it again for a number of reasons. One being that times have changed and my whole writing process has changed along with it. When I first wrote that piece back in 2013, I wasn't as productive as I am now, I didn't have my writing process honed down to the level I do now and I wasn't writing full time either. I was busy juggling uni and still trying to get books written.
Another reason is that since I've grown as a writer and become more confident in both myself and my abilities, I've learned ways around writer's block. I know that a lot of people will say that it exists and that there are some sure fire ways to get rid of it, but I'm just gonna say this: what works for one person may not work for another, and when you have your process in that sweet spot of planning and allotting time for your writing, you may find that writer's block becomes a thing of the past.
I'm not saying that it doesn't exist, it does, for a lot of writers, it's the bane of their creativity. But for others, not being able to write past something is a bigger sign of other problems. Like you're pantsing something and you're not really a pantser, or you're a plotter, but haven't done the level of planning you personally need. Or you've written yourself into a corner and need to brainstorm. Or you're burnt out, or you're getting hit with imposter syndrome. Any number of things.
And while I can't claim to have the sure fire answer, because as I said above, it's not a one size fits all kinda thing, I can give you some tips to try and diagnose your writer's block and work out what it actually is, and how you can work around it, through it, or avoid it all together. As always your mileage may vary and this is just what's worked for me in the past. I'm not you, you're the only one who can decide if this is something that will ultimately work for you.
#1 HOW ARE YOU FEELING?
This is a big thing for me, if I'm not feeling good, then yeah, my writing is going to be like pulling teeth. If I'm super stressed or just not well, then I'm gonna find it harder and harder to get the words on the page. It doesn't have to be something huge either, it can be a fight with a friend, or nerves about something, and it can throw you through the wringer and slow those creative juices from flowing.
#2 DO YOU KNOW WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?
I ask this simply because if you do, and you can't get the words out, then it can be a number of things. You could be too focused on making the words perfect and that's what's blocking you. Or you could be too wrapped up in other things to focus. But if you don't know what happens next and you can't think of anything, maybe this is the time to go back and work on your outline, either expanding it, or redoing it and brainstorming to see what works for your story.
#3 CORNER STUCK? REWIND
I often found times when I would write myself into a corner and then have no idea what to do next. I've since learned how not to do that, and through that I've also accepted that sometimes you have to rewind. That means cutting, but keeping, where you got stuck and starting a new direction, it might be that you get stuck again, in which case it might be better to do point two, but if not, you might find a way to use some of what you wrote in the draft at some point, which is why you shouldn't delete completely when drafting!
#4 EDITING LOOP
Another thing that I've found causes writer's block is when people start to edit before the draft is finished. I mean, I'm someone who can do that, but it's not always possible. People get so focused on making the words perfect that they find they can't move forward. All that happens there is you end up with several drafts of the first few chapters, and the rest of the book never happens. It can also be a way to kill a project because you just lose hope and passion for it after so many times writing those first few scenes.
#5 IMPOSTER SYNDROME
This is tied into point four slightly in that the idea is that when you draft, your book should be as perfect as a finished, polished book, and that's simply not the case. It can lead to you re-reading your work and thinking you're an imposter in the writing world, which is something a lot of people go through. It's not easy creating for your job, and part of being a writer is knowing that those first words in that very first draft, don't have to be perfect, but it's a hard cycle to break.
So that's where I stand on writer's block. Do you have any other tips on what to do to avoid it? How you work out what thing it is that's blocking you? Lemme know down in the comments!
P.S It's my birthday today! I'm 38!
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SETTING GOALS FOR THE COMING YEAR
It's that time of year again folks! We are officially two days for 2020 and it's time for me to make my yearly goals. Now I have talked about these goals on my Authortube channel (found here) but since I will, hopefully, be reviewing these goals again in July on the blog, it made sense to mention them here as well, and to go into a little bit of detail about why I chose these goals!
As you're probably aware, I do Bi-Monthly goals on my Authortube channel, and so you may be wondering why I still do a yearly goals list as well. The simply answer is that I know that while the majority of my goals will be on a smaller scale, I won't be able to complete some of the long-term ones in two months. I don't want to focus on them on that scale, but over the year as a whole, hence the yearly goals.
1. RELEASE LIGHTS ON IN MAY 2020 - This should all go to plan, we're knee deep in the developmental edits for this book and everything should continue along smoothly. I have the front cover, and am super happy with it and planning the cover reveal!
2. RELEASE CRAMPING CHRONICLES: THE FIRST TWINGE IN OCTOBER 2020 - Normally I would do one book in May and the other in July, but this year, having done three releases, I wanted to spread my two out a little more. So I'm aiming for an October release for this book, and hoping it all goes to plan.
3. READ 200 BOOKS - Last year I set the goal of 120 books because I'd really been struggling towards the end of the year to even reach my previous goal of 150. I didn't want to add that extra pressure to myself, so I lowered the amount. Of course by February I was over 20 books ahead of myself, so I bumped it up to the usual 150, and then I was done with that in June. So I went for 200. I finished that in around October time, and am now at a point where I've read more books this year than ever before, since I started tracking. I don't know if I can do it again, but I'm gonna try!
4. FINISH BOOKS THIS IS HOW IT ENDS & I WISH I COULD SAVE YOU - Both of these are pretty new to me. I started them during NaNoWriMo and have made a good headway into them. I believe they should be done around May/June time.
5. START BOOKS 31 & 32 - And therefore, since the last point says I'll be done before the end of the year, I obviously want to write and plan two new books, that as of yet, have no titles, or plots, or characters. But I'm sure they'll come to me!
6. DO A LIVESTREAM ON AUTHORTUBE CHANNEL AT LEAST ONCE - I really missed out during NaNo with all the livestreams. I'm in the UK, most of Authortube is in a completely different time zone to me, and with my conditions really putting me to bed around 5pm my time, it just wasn't possible to make it to any, despite wanting to. So this coming year I want to try and do one of my own. I just don't know when or whether I'll do it alone!
7. COLLAB WITH AT LEAST 5 OTHER AUTHORTUBERS OVER THE YEAR - I did some collabs with Authortubers this past year, but I really wanted to work harder at cementing those friendships with all the people I've met through that platform. So this is a big goal for me!
8. KEEP UP WITH WRITING LOG - This is something that appears every year because it matters to me greatly, and is pretty self-explanatory.
9. KEEP UP WITH AUTHORTUBE CHANNEL - Same as above, pretty easy to work out why!
10. KEEP UP WITH MONDAY AND FRIDAY POSTS ON BLOG - And again, easy to work out why!
11. DO 50 REVIEWS IN 2020 - I managed to do more reviews in 2019 than any other year, and this coming year I want to beat that and do at least 50 reviews. This counts for both my Friday posts and any reviews I do outside of that.
12. START EDITS ON LIGHTS OFF AND CRAMPING CHRONICLES: THE SECOND PANG READY FOR RELEASE IN 2021 - This one is something that I usually have on there, because the work starts for this about the middle of the year, so I want to be sure that I have everything in place and ready to get those two done.
13. DO A LOCAL SIGNING/BOOK SIGNING - There is no Darker in 2020 and I'm not actually signed up for any signings, but I would really love to do one, even if that means it's only me there. So this is one I want to branch out to the local area and see if I can pull it off.
14. DO #JOWRIMOGO EVERY MONTH - Another one that is pretty easy to understand why it's there. I started this hashtag about four or five years ago and I haven't looked back since. It's the one thing I always do every month, which is write, at least, one page for every day of the month.
15. TAKE ONE DAY OFF COMPLETELY EACH MONTH - And although I'm pretty good at doing this now, I still wanted to have this one on here. It's so easy to get caught up in working all the time, that I need to hold myself to this. I need time off, everyone does, and having this goal there makes sure that I get at least one day of the month to do nothing. I've started having more than one, which is an amazing thing!
So there we have it, my goals for 2020! Lemme know if you have any down in the comments! And enjoy the last days of 2019!
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BEING A WRITER FULL TIME
I've been asked about this before and wanted to do a whole piece on it as it seems to be something a lot of people want to know about. Firstly, a little background. I have been writing since I was 19, when I was retired from the working world on medical grounds. I was first published at 23 and started getting more serious about writing in 2011. I have now written over 24 books, and have 13 released with 3 more coming in 2019. I am a full-time writer in that I am unable to hold down any other job, and it's the only thing I can do.
With all that covered, I need to be honest and say that the bulk of my income does not come from book sales. I am not full-time because I made it as an author, but because of my disabilities and health conditions that prevent me from working a different kind of job. So a lot of my advice is going to be taking that into account and on top of that, comes from a place of someone who is very much a small fish in the writing world.
So, how do you know when it's time to quit the day job and become a writer full time? I wouldn't know, I also wouldn't advise that anyone follow the advice of someone who doesn't do that. I did however want to touch on the fact that the majority of writers don't make it to the point where they don't have to work a second job, or a main job, or have a partner who is able to provide for them. The norm as an author is to be juggling writing with everything else. And that's completely okay. Taking all that into account, I can give you a few ideas about what it's like to write full-time and how to maybe judge whether you're in that kind of circumstance yourself.
#1 - BILLS NEED TO BE PAID
This is, sadly, a fact of life for everyone. Some people have it easier than others, but the majority struggle with bills. If you're writing and your income isn't enough to meet your bills, then you're probably not going to be able to quit that day job and focus on your writing 24/7. However, one of the benefits of doing both is that you are getting some income from your books, along with some outgoings because of marketing and the like. The way I've heard it told, the majority of authors will only use the royalties they make to pour back into marketing and this allows them some wiggle room. That way they don't have to worry about spending a huge chunk of money they need elsewhere. Personally, I do this. The royalties from my books go into advertising and ARC copies and all the rest. It's the only way to make sure I have enough for my bills and for my writing.
#2 - ALLOW YOURSELF SOME BREATHING ROOM
Writing and books are something that fluctuates. One month you may make a lot and then the next you make half that, or nothing at all. And that's a big problem when it comes to the whole doing only writing. If you're not relying on that income for things like food and bills, then that gives you a lot of breathing room. Personally, doing it this way allows for me to not get super anxious when my sales are low at the middle or end of the month. On top of that you get royalties (as an indie author, I can't speak for traditional) two months behind, so things take time to get to you. If you have an amazing month, you're not going to see that money for two months.
#3 - BOOKS, BOOKS AND MORE BOOKS
Part of being an author is writing books. Along with writing comes the cost of editing, covers, publishing and the like. While a lot of people will say that the more books you have out there, the better you're going to do, not everyone writes at the same pace, which is more than fine. I write fast yes, but I also had a long time to garner up a back-list which helps me stay afloat. It also helps me pay for editing and covers and all of that stuff that comes along with a release. While I will be releasing three books in 2019, it's only going to be that way because I'd budgeted for that. Otherwise it would be completely beyond my reach.
So those are my three points. These are, I feel, pretty obvious and while I'm not someone who makes a huge amount, nor lives off the royalties, I do want to add a caveat. You are the best person who can decide what you need to be making before you're ready to start doing this full-time, and it's not common for that to happen. A lot of the other writers I know who do work full-time as an author are either very popular and a rarity or are, like me, disabled or have a partner who makes enough for them to not work. It's the dream for so many, but be careful with how you go about it. Just because you're not there, doesn't make you a failure and if you never get there, that's okay too. Just look after yourself. That's the important thing.
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SMASHWORDS END OF YEAR SALE
ALL EBOOKS ARE 50% OFF WITH COUPON: SEY50
(excludes The Friendship Triangle)
ENDS JANUARY 1ST 2019.
SIX MONTH CHECK IN WITH GOALS
I thought that since we're now in July, and I plan to start doing bi-monhtly goals that I would do a check in with the goals I set myself at the beginning of the year. For those who can't remember, here's the list in full with notes on how far I've come.
MY GOALS FOR 2018:
-> 1. RELEASE DYING THOUGHTS - SIXTH CHANGE IN MAY 2018 - I did this on May 16th and it went amazingly well! I'm very pleased with how this turned out and this goal is completely done!
-> 2. RELEASE WALK A MILE IN JUNE 2018 - I did this on June 27th and while it was a little bit of a hurried time, I am very pleased with every part of the release. I'm calling this one done completely!
-> 3. FINISH WRITING INVISIBLE & CRAMPING CHRONICLES: THE THIRD ACHE - I did this on May 25th and May 27th respectively. I was very happy with how they turned out and super excited for starting the next two!
-> 4. START <s>VISIBLE</s> TRANSLUCENT & CRAMPING CHRONICLES: THE FOURTH TORMENT - This one is done, but with some changes as you can see. The Invisible trilogy was only going to be a duet when I wrote these goals and so, I've started the second book in the series on June 2nd and am happy with that. I also started Fourth Torment on June 4th and am very excited with where it's going. I've only been writing them both for a month, but I'm happy with how things are turning out.
-> 5. GET UP TO 4K NEWSLETTER SUBS - Not done and not going to be done. I realised early on in the year that a newsletter just wasn't working for me. For a number of reasosn, I decided to shut it down and so this won't be done and isn't really a worth while goal any more.
-> 6. EDIT DYING THOUGHTS - SEVENTH DEATH READY FOR RELEASE IN 2019 - Not started, but I plan to in November time get out the editing pen and see how to make it better as I go through a second round of betas
-> 7. GET UP TO 500 SUBS ON YOUTUBE, 500 ON INSTAGRAM & 1K ON TWITTER - I am DONE with Instagram as I sit just above 500 now, Youtube is lagging behind at 320 and Twitter is about 860 so I'm getting there.
-> 8. GET UP TO 240 RATINGS & 190 REVIEWS ON GOODREADS FOR ALL BOOKS COMBINED - Not yet done, but getting there! I'm at 227 ratings and 155 reviews, so I'm doing good!
-> 9. DO 12 EVENTS IN 2018 - Eeek!! I've not done any events bar the signing, and I doubt I will be doing any either. What was I thinking??
-> 10. DO 5 QUESTIONS FROM READERS IN 2018 - I've done three of these, so we're on the way to being done!
-> 11. KEEP UP WITH AUTHORTUBE CHANNEL - Done this so far!
-> 12. DO MARKETING PLAN FOR DYING THOUGHTS - SIXTH CHANGE & WALK A MILE - I did do this and I found it made things so much easier for me. I will be doing the same carrying on through into 2019.
-> 13. DO A SIGNING IN 2018 - I did this in April. I also have BLISS in July and Darker in October!
-> 14. SUBMIT TWO BOOKS FOR AWARDS IN 2018 - Done this too! I should find out results in September.
-> 15. DO TWO GIVEAWAYS OF MY OWN IN 2018 - Not done. But I will get on this!
-> 16. PLAN TO RELEASE LIGHTS OUT & DYING THOUGHTS - EIGHTH ENDING IN 2019 - Also not done, but will be towards the end of the year.
-> 17. REACH 100 PEOPLE IN READER'S GROUP - I'm at 30 I think? I plan to start directing more people there after signings and the like!
-> 18. DO #JOWRIMOGO FOR ALL OF 2018 - I have done this every month so far and can't see me turning away from it.
-> 19. KEEP UP WITH WRITING LOG - Done this too! I do love having my writing log.
-> 20. MAKE NEW CONTACTS AND KEEP UP WITH OLD ONES - And this is done as well so I'm very pleased with how things are going!
So at over six months into the year I have done eleven completely and another three half done with six that are either not going to be done, or are on the list for later in the year! I think that's a good thing!!
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STARTING A NEW YEAR & GOALS
May I be among the first to wish you all a Happy 2018! It's a brand new year, a fresh start and with it the chance to look ahead and see what you can achieve in the coming year. As you may have seen from my most recent vlog I made a list of goals for the year. All of which are listed below should you wish to check them out. I also wanted to do a piece about that whole new start of a fresh year when you're also battling chronic conditions.
I've been chronically ill for the majority of my life. Of course, with my birthday in a few days and my health finally starting to take an upturn, I'm starting the year on a better footing than I started 2017. This time last year I was worried that NICE wouldn't approve the trial drug. Now I'm going in a couple of weeks for my fourth dose of said drug. It's amazing the difference a year can make and that applies to writing too. When you're juggling a chronic illness and a creative pursuit, it sometimes feels like shovelling snow when it's still snowing. Like you're never really going to get to where you're going.
I know that most writers aren't like me in that it takes them longer to complete a book, everyone has a different writing and creating process. I've tweaked mine over the years to make sure that I have the most output for what I'm able to put it. It's a lot of work, and doesn't leave much time for anything else, but it does work for me. While you're looking at making your own goals - whether they be monthly, bi-monthly, quarterly or yearly, make sure that you leave time for yourself, time for surprises and time for successes too.
I've found that if you pack things too tightly, all it's going to do is lead to heartache because when your health kicks in and it needs this or that, you're going to feel like you're failing when you're not. The first big important lesson I learned as a spoonie was that everything takes as long as it takes. Everyone, even those with the same conditions as you, reacts and deals with things differently. Even if you meet someone who is a mirror image of conditions, symptoms and all the rest, they are still going to approach and manage in different ways. The problem of chronic illness is that it fluctuates from time to time and you can never really predict how it's going to hit you next.
So my advice for those fellow spoonie writers is be kind, be careful, and leave space to flare because we know it's going to happen whether we want it to or not. And with that, I leave you with my own goals and the hope 2018 is filled with spoons and great things for you. Have a good new year!
MY GOALS FOR 2018:
-> 1. RELEASE DYING THOUGHTS - SIXTH CHANGE IN MAY 2018
-> 2. RELEASE WALK A MILE IN JUNE 2018
-> 3. FINISH WRITING INVISIBLE & CRAMPING CHRONICLES: THE THIRD ACHE
-> 4. START VISIBLE & CRAMPING CHRONICLES 4
-> 5. GET UP TO 4K NEWSLETTER SUBS
-> 6. EDIT DYING THOUGHTS - SEVENTH DEATH READY FOR RELEASE IN 2019
-> 7. GET UP TO 500 SUBS ON YOUTUBE, 500 ON INSTAGRAM & 1K ON TWITTER
-> 8. GET UP TO 240 RATINGS & 190 REVIEWS ON GOODREADS FOR ALL BOOKS COMBINED
-> 9. DO 12 EVENTS IN 2018
-> 10. DO 5 QUESTIONS FROM READERS IN 2018
-> 11. KEEP UP WITH AUTHORTUBE CHANNEL
-> 12. DO MARKETING PLAN FOR DYING THOUGHTS - SIXTH CHANGE & WALK A MILE
-> 13. DO A SIGNING IN 2018
-> 14. SUBMIT TWO BOOKS FOR AWARDS IN 2018
-> 15. DO TWO GIVEAWAYS OF MY OWN IN 2018
-> 16. PLAN TO RELEASE LIGHTS OUT & DYING THOUGHTS - EIGHTH ENDING IN 2019
-> 17. REACH 100 PEOPLE IN READER'S GROUP
-> 18. DO #JOWRIMOGO FOR ALL OF 2018
-> 19. KEEP UP WITH WRITING LOG
-> 20. MAKE NEW CONTACTS AND KEEP UP WITH OLD ONES
Follow Joey here on her blog, or on Facebook or Tumblr to be kept up to date with the latest news regarding Joey and her books. You can also sign up to her newsletter here.
THE END OF YEAR FUN
Firstly, I'd like to wish you all a Merry Christmas. I hope you had a wonderful day yesterday and are looking forward to the end of 2017 and the beginning of 2018! So I thought, as a follow on from the other week's piece about writing around the holidays, I would do a piece about how as an indie author, the Christmas period can be filled with stress and strife, but you can also have a lot of fun with it. I'll get you some of my tips for that. When it comes to the end of the year, there is so much to be done. Something that I find a little stressful. You have the end of year royalties to get together, the sales to track. You have all that fun of checking off goals and planning for the new year. So here's some tips of how to get through the end of the year fun.
#1. MAKE A LIST
A bit like Santa, you wanna be making a list. That way you can cross off everything you get done when you get it done. So downloading royalty reports, making sure everything to do with the end of 2017 is done, filed away and ready for when you next need it. Some places won't have an end of year report until January, but others will have one on the 31st so it's a good idea to check and make sure you get the ones you need.
#2. DON'T RUSH
The last thing you want to do is rush, so I'd advise checking what you need long before we hit that last week of 2017. I've been slowing gathering what I can in the weeks of December already past. That's simply because I'm a planner and leaving things to the last minute make me anxious. It also means that if I do forget something, I've got time to correct the issue
#3. WHEN MAKING GOALS, BE REASONABLE
As you all know I do both monthly goals on a private blog as well as yearly goals that I post about in a vlog towards the end of the year. I also post it here on this blog to make sure everyone knows what I'm planning to do in the coming year. If you're someone who does quarterly goals or bi-montly goals, you'll also be starting to make those goals around this time as well. Just remember to be reasonable with yourself, know your limits and while you shouldn't aim too high, don't go too low either. Make sure that they are things you could reasonable do in that time period and be honest with yourself if no one else.
#4. TAKE TIME TO RELAX
I know it seems like it's a lot of work. Hell, it more than seems, it is a lot of work. But you should also plan to have some down time as well, simply because it's supposed to be a fun time of year all around. I know it's hard when you have deadlines looming, kids or family running around, but you should also take some time to breathe. Make sure that you set aside, even if it's just an hour here and there, for you to do something you enjoy. I work most days, and yet I always have a couple of hours in the evening to read a book and enjoy that down time. It helps you stay productive and stops your from burning out.
So those are my tips of the end of year fun. There's a lot that needs doing and that's not even going into sales and other promotional stuff that seems all amped up over the holiday period. Overall, I like to think that no matter how much stress this time of year brings, it's usually a good experience. I had Christmas at home with my best friend and her daughter. My mum came over along with my brother and his girlfriend and today I'm headed off to see my dad and step-mum. These two days are blocked off as complete days of rest, so other than posting this blog post, I'm doing nothing but relaxing.
Tomorrow I'll start back at writing, and will also be getting those final bits and pieces ready for the end of 2017. I won't speak to you all again until the new year so I hope you have a great one. As always, if you wanna leave a comment about your Christmas, or any tips you have for the end of year, let me know!
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