#WritersCoffeeClub 6
Are you self-published or trad-published? How's it going?
I haven't published anything novel-length yet. But I'm hoping to leverage some of what I've learned from short fiction, where I've managed to convince other humans to publish me on multiple occasions. Some lessons learned:
-listen to critique partners
-grow a thick skin
-I'll write better tomorrow
-practice pays off
-keep submitting/querying
-anticipate non-responses
-not every market fits my level of weird
@b2ab0244 I do think "neurotypical" is the modern equivalent of "normal"—a term that was derided even in my Psych 101 class back in the early Neolithic.
Interesting how that pendulum swings, as I'd likely be upset with anyone trying to label me psychologically "normal" today.
@b2ab0244 I hesitated to call it a disability, but it is considered a form of OCD. In the book, I presented it as more of a quirk than a problem, but now that I'm starting to think in terms of a possible book 2, I think it will be taken to the next level.
#PennedPossibilities 90
Do any of your characters have disabilities? Can you relate to them on some level?
Zoe, like me, has some arithmomania. For example, she counts her steps: from bed to bathroom, from car to building entrance, from desk to breakroom. Most often it's a repeating eight-count. PTSD has made it worse.
Haley, like me, has an auditory processing disorder. If you want her (or me) to grasp anything, put it in writing. Do not offer either of us an instructional video.
@7b682b86@5a43dd67 My brother fell into that category. In 2018 he retired in April, turned 65 in July, and died in October. I believe he defined much of who he was through what he did for a living, and even considered many of his coworkers as a second family.
We're different people, he and I. And I was determined not to follow a similar path...so I retired much earlier than I had planned for, and it has been an excellent decision.
Count those days. And if you can, reduce the count.
#WritersCoffeeClub 2
How often do you write in a typical week? How do you find the time?
A manager once explained to me how "billable hours" work:
-head down, fingers on keyboard, dedicated to the project? Billable
-discussing the project with a coworker—or anybody else? Billable
-thinking about the project—even at 2am? Billable
Taking the same approach to writing, I'm almost always engaged. Thinking about the story, drafting, discussing, editing...they all count. As does everything I write.
@c09f86d3@551afd26 This is a *much* more interesting list than anything I'm ever approached about in a pub. If I've heard a Taylor Swift song I didn't know it was her, and I had to look up Ed Sheeran, but I could keep a conversation on psychopomps going until the wee hours.
@b7ab5d68 She was born in captivity, but we got her at a few weeks old. She's a ball python, so five feet long and as big around as a large rat. She gives excellent neck massages, but doesn't always know when to stop 😀
#WordWeavers 13
What animal would you like as a muse and why?
I'm partial to serpents. They live in dark places, studying the world of noise and light around them without becoming a part of the hustle—much like I prefer to observe the world and later pour what I have learned onto the page. They also have the power of transformation, of shedding skin and emerging anew—here I can draw an analogy to the story that changes from first draft to finished work.
@7b682b86 My SIL has remarked that the first time she met me, roughly age 9, I was parked in the backyard on a summer day with a stack of encyclopedias on either side of my lounge chair that I was quite obviously reading.
So cheers from another encyclopedia reader 😆
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