Personal Pep Talk

[mer]

Look, you. I understand you're scared. That you don't think you can possibly write two interesting books for this market in a row. That the first one must have been some kind of fluke. That this book is translucent and frail and will shred like wet tissue paper when moved.

You've convinced yourself of tissue paper books in the past. What's the balance sheet read for the past seven years? Three completed novels, and twice that many that failed to thrive after 25k... And dozens that didn't make it to 10,000 words. When you look at it that way, no wonder you see the water dripping down. But stop looking at it that way. That was practice. That was for learning. That was so you could hitch up your pants and stride forward on this one.

So, buckle down. Reign in those wandering plot lines. Pare down your themes. And move forward.

It's not like you only get one shot at this. This is just the first draft. It's just words on a page. Actually, it's the simulacrum of words on a page. It's pixels on a screen, electrons in a box. Even easier to fix than words on the page--no white-out crust, no eraser dust.

Ok? Stop dithering. Get some work done. And fake it til you make it.

Comments

[cathshaffer.livejournal.com]

Write or die, you miserable worm!

(Ahem. Just getting into the spirit. ;-)

[http://users.livejournal.com/_earthshine_/]

If i may paraphrase, of all things, a Riker line from an ST:TNG flick:

"Do not try to be a great author. Just be an author and let history decide."

Put another way: when in doubt, remember why you write.

[leahbobet.livejournal.com]

Yeah, so thank you. I needed that. :p

[merriehaskell.livejournal.com]

I wonder what Tarot card best exemplifies this one...

[gwynnega]

I'd go with Strength.

[shawnalenore.livejournal.com]

"And fake it til you make it."
I think I need to post that above my desk :) Good luck!

[stephanieburgis.livejournal.com]

"Fake it til you make it" is a brilliant slogan when the writing panics hit!

Go go go! :)

[redmomoko.livejournal.com]

Don't obey the space robots.

http://www.albinoblacksheep.com/flash/terriblesecret

[kelly-swails.livejournal.com]

Go go go!!!!

[penmage.livejournal.com]

Off topic: I just logged on to twitter for the first time in nearly a month, and saw that you read Dreamhunter/Dreamquake and loved them.

I am SO GLAD. I love those books so very, very dearly.

[merriehaskell.livejournal.com]

I was, I confess, a bit dubious at the end of the first book. But man. I went around in a daze for days afterward! (Daze for days. Oy.) OMG!

[steve-buchheit.livejournal.com]

It's just a draft. It's allowed to suck. I forget who said, "I can fix a page of broken prose. I can't fix a blank page."

And get back to work.

[madwriter.livejournal.com]

Hey, I had three unfinished novels--one approaching 50K--before I started writing my Shenandoah books. Now I'm on the last chapter of the fourth and final volume. It can be done!