Posts Tagged ‘fiction’

27
Apr

Variety is the Spice of Life

   Posted by: Michell    in About Writing

A little while ago I posed the question: should I focus on a single series or write a number of different things. I received several responses to my question, all of which I appreciated. The general consensus was that I shouldn’t limit myself, but write a number of different things. By doing so I stretch my writing muscles and I give myself the best chance to appeal to a larger group of people.

While I was considering the question myself I also came to the conclusion that not only should I write in multiple genres, but I should write many different things beyond that.

For example, I write this post every week which allows me to express myself in one way. I also write the copy for Get Published which takes me in a different direction. There is, of course, my fiction, and at work I write contractual language, project management plans and process documentation. As if that wasn’t enough, I do a few pieces of non-fiction writing every month or so for various places.

All though things mean that I am writing for multiple audiences, from multiple points of view in multiple ways (have I used the word “multiple” enough yet?). I can’t help but think that all that is useful to honing my writing skills.

It also means that I’m always writing, even when I don’t think I am. That’s good too because it helps to improve my vocabulary and feel for sentence structure and writing mechanics. All important stuff.

The downside to all this is it takes much longer to finish a project. Lots of irons in the fire means that my attention is pulled in many directions, not to mention my actual time.

Such is the life of a writer, I suppose.

So, my question to you is this: how do you stretch your writing muscles? I bet if you look you will find that there is more going on than you think. Do the quick exercise to find out and next time you are feeling badly about your own progress, remind yourself of how much you are actually doing. The self-congratulations vs. self-flagelation will be a step in the right (write?) direction.

Personal Update

I’m closing in on completion of my revising for my YA novel “The Mystery of Lake Chulala”. This is going to be the first in an ongoing Young Adult/Middle Grade series. I still have hopes that it will be available in May.

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24
Jun

Holiday Brain

   Posted by: Michell    in Irreverent Muse

All I can say is “Whoops!”

With everything that’s been going on I almost forgot my weekly post.

“What’s been going on?” you ask.

Well, for one, I’m going on two weeks of vacation starting Saturday. That in itself isn’t what is distracting me. It’s all the OTHER things I’m trying to get out of the way before I go.

For example, I had Episode 8 of ‘Get Published’ to finish and get into the feed. Then I had a promo to write, record and mix. AND the podcast was nominated for a Parsec Award which means I needed to mix a 10-minute sample episode for the judges. And I’ve still got to record Episode 9 (I’m not expecting to have good Internet Connectivity while I’m gone). That’s not even taking into account the regular stuff I need to do around the house, the time spent with my family and so on.

All I can say is busy, busy, busy.

I guess that can serve as this week’s lesson: whatever you have on the go, don’t lose sight of the important stuff. For me, this blog is important. Granted, my family still ranks higher, but I made the commitment long ago to have a new post out every Wednesday and it is important to me that I do so.

So, my apologies for getting this out late and when it did get out, not having a lot of interest to talk about. I’ll try to do better next week. You know, when I’m on holidays :) .

Personal Update

As mentioned above, I posted Episode 8 of ‘Get Published’. I encourage you to listen as I was lucky enough to interview Phil Rossi. He’s an interesting (and talented) guy.

I also created a promo for the show. I had a lot of fun writing and recording the episode and I would love to hear what you think about it. Please don’t hesitate to have a listen and send your comments my way.

I finished my sample episode and sent it off to the Parsec Submissions committee. Now I sit back and wait. While I am very honored to have been nominated, my competitive streak tells me that darn it, I want to win! We’ll see how it goes.

I’m (hopefully) a couple weeks away from finding out if the publisher has accepted my YA Novel submission. Fortunately, holidays will keep me distracted while decisions are made.

The biggest news I have is concerning Episode 9 of ‘Get Published’. I’m creating a “special” episode to air while I am gone (July 5th). It will feature my first ever recorded fiction, in this case, as short story I wrote a few years ago prior to my first novel. It was created as a study of the world I was creating. Nervous to put it out doesn’t even begin to cover it, but I’m also looking forward to sharing it.

Please, please, please (yes, I am begging) have a listen when it drops and let me know what you think. Negative feedback I can handle. No feedback is harder.

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