Blog List

I have spent the last hour or so making a page on my blog for a blog list. I have included all the blogs I read and follow; most of which are from the Creative Writing Support Group and The Writers Bureau.

I have realised that if I help others to get their blogs recognised, they may well do the same for me and I could certainly do with some recognition. Over the last week or so I have neglected my blog, my writing and my course. Now I see that if I really do want this to be a full time career I need to pull my finger out and get working.

I need to apply to more competitions, send off more readers letters, write more short stories and finally get on with starting my novel. However, I have also realised that none of this will be any use to me if I do not promote myself as a writer, so here I am blogging, because let's face it-we all have to start out somewhere.

I never knew how hard it would be to write a novel. I thought I would sit down at my computer every day and within a few months I would have a novel waiting to be sent off to a publisher. How wrong was I?

Self-employed

I think I have had my fill of talk about registering to be self-employed. Why do they make it so difficult to do things the right way? Surely it would be easier for people to pay their taxes than it is now.

OK so I am only 20 and never had to do anything like this before but I wanted to go about things the right way. I want to pay my taxes and not get into trouble for not doing so. Yet yesterday afternoon it took me over 2 hours to find the appropriate form, fill it in and find appropriate information of what I need to keep in order to file my tax returns. It was mind boggling.

I hope I have done everything the right way, and I get the right info back. I have had a few invaluable snippets of advice from some valued writing friends but it is still so confusing. I need a step-by-step how to be self employed.

A new day

Last night I had a bit of a 'break-down'. I really questioned my skills as a writer. Can I do this? Is this the right thing for me? Can I actually make this a full time income?

My husband sat me down and kindly reassured me that 'of course I can'. I just need to regain the focus I had in the beginning when I was writing every day.

So this morning I have come up with a routine-that I need to stick to. I need to treat this as a full working day. Not taking breaks and being on facebook all day.

Also I have taken up reading again, 45 minutes in the morning and 45 minutes in the evening. It really sparks up the creative juices; reading words that you would never think to use.
I love reading and don't know why I stopped reading at all.

Now it is onwards and upwards for me and to get in with my writing career-because that is what this is; it's a career.

Just write...

Today I confided in some good writing friends that I am having trouble with my creative spark and do you know the advice that they gave me...'just write'.

Just write anything, anything that comes to mind. Write for 5 minutes. Write 500 words. Write with the computer screen turned off. Write without editing.

I can tell you this advice is invaluable. Today I have written 700 words without even thinking about what I am writing and I am starting to think that I am onto something.

I have found that I am writing what is close to my heart. Things that I had never thought to write about before. It is amazing what is in the back of our mind.

There I go again!

It has been 8 days since I last blogged. Why do I do this? Why do I set up something with the intention to update daily, or at least every other day, and then abandon it?

It has been the same with my writing. Since sending my F3 assignment I have barely written so much as my name on a piece of paper. I have seen a lot of blogs relating to not being able to find time to write with children...my child isn't even here yet and I am struggling. What will I bee like in 4 months time when I have a screaming newborn on my hands?

I am hoping in the next few weeks I can get some more filler and readers letters sent out and also to enter a few competitions.

Busy bee

The last few days I have been quite busy...sending off assignment F3 for the Writers Bureau, sending a short story to a magazine, sending readers letters and writing a short story for a competition.

I am very proud that I have achieved this in the last few days as I have been really struggling to find my passion for writing. I know why I lost my passion; because people told me that being a 'writer' (who hadn't even had anything substantial published) was not a real job. Over the last few days I have realise it is more of a job than anyone who goes to an office, sits there from 9-5 and then comes home. I am working 24/7. I am always on the lookout for ideas, constantly jotting sayings, places, names that might be useful in the future and I am always worrying as to whether I will have a target market for the next piece I am planning in my head. Plus I don't see any 9-5'ers getting up at 3am to jot own an idea they have had whilst nipping to the loo (no offence to any 9-5'ers who don't insult me being a writer).

I have realised that it does not matter what anyone else thinks of my 'job'. I write all day, every day and I have even been paid for some of my work. Therefore I am a writer. Whether they like it or not. So my passion is back with full force and I am really enjoying writing again. Hopefully next week I can enter another competition and get the next assignment out of the way.

Advice, advice, advice

It's amazing to find how many fellow writers are keen to give you advice. When I first started with the Writers Bureau I found it very difficult to get help from anyone other than my tutor. No one ever wanted to share markets or competitions.

However know I have found that there are a lot of writers who are willing to help in any area that they can. All you have to do is ask. I have made a few good friends since acting upon my passion for writing and it's good to know that if I am ever stuck in a rut with my writing, there are always people I can call upon for some advice.

Learn something new

Today I was supposed to be concentrating on getting Assignment F3 finished for my Writers Bureau course. Instead I was drawn to a blog that had a few posts about self-publishing on the Kindle.

Isn't it weird how sometimes you are drawn to read something and it turns out that it is something of great use to you. That is what happened when I came across these posts.

I have learnt a lot about publishing on the kindle and after getting to work on a few more assignments (to ensure that my fiction writing is up to scratch), getting a few articles/fillers/readers letters sent out and also entering a few competitions I am going concentrate on writing my own novella.

I think I am going to aim at writing 15,000 words. To me that is an achievable target and I think a good length for a hooking story. Although I am not sure about the genre; murder mystery or romance? I know I have a lot of research to do here and I need to get a good plot, fantastic characters and a good opening to my story but I am excited at the prospect of having a chance to become a published writer.

So the saying 'you learn something new every day' is true. I would have never known of how easy it is to get published on the Kindle if it weren't for that blog.