1) Just Start

This may seem like a fairly obvious one, but you have to start somewhere right? Admit it, for months every time you’ve set aside time to write you’ve chickened out at the last minute. You suddenly find yourself very busy with chores you’ve invented or… hey, who put that remote in your hand? Don’t you dare start a new Netflix show… If you want to get out of your writing rut, you need to set aside time to write and actually stick to it, no excuses.

2) Start Small

When you’re picking up a pen after a long absence, it may be too much to expect yourself to jump right back into working on your manuscript. You’ll never fully lose your writing mojo, but you’ll definitely be rusty. The easiest way to get some practice without putting so much pressure on yourself is to do some writing exercises. Find some fun and short writing prompts and set aside an hour to challenge yourself. Perhaps the exercise will task you to use a character from your book or maybe you’ll have to write something entirely new. Either way, it’ll get your creative juices flowing again and it’ll help you start to get your confidence back.

3) Make a Schedule

One of the excuses you’ve made over the past few months is likely that you ‘weren’t feeling inspired’ enough to write. Not only do you know that’s just a poor excuse, but if writers only wrote when they felt inspired it would take five times as long for them to finish their books. Instead of continuing to use that as an excuse to let yourself drift off schedule for another few months, create a diligent schedule that you know you can stick to.

When it comes to making your writing schedule, our number one suggestion is to be realistic with yourself. If you realistically can only write once a week for a few hours, just put that on your calendar. The last thing you want to do put too much on your schedule and then keep missing your writing appointments that you set for yourself. Because every time you miss one you’ll beat yourself up, feel like you’re not a real writer, and before long you’re back to where you are now. It’s much better for your schedule and your writing confidence to make appointments you’re sure you can keep.

4) Join a Writing/Reading Group

Look into local writing or reading groups in your area. If you can’t find a good one, start your own with a few close friends! It may feel intimidating, especially when you’ve been out of the game for a while, but these groups can be a great way to hold one another accountable and bounce ideas off of each other.

If you’re planning on starting your own, there are a few options on how to structure it based on your needs. If you want to try to read more books to help improve your craft, you can start a book club and hold discussions about the material. If you want to workshop some writing, you could do a writing workshop where you take scenes (from either your book or specific prompts) and read/workshop them. Finally, if you have a few friends who are working on books/scripts/etc. you can host a group to simply bounce ideas off of one another. You can meet once a month, run each other through what you’ve been working on briefly, talk about any points where you’re stuck, and see if they have any suggestions.

5) Forgive Yourself

This is the toughest one because, ultimately, it’s the reason your absence from writing got so out of hand in the first place. Is your writing always going to be perfect? No. Are there going to be weeks where you genuinely don’t have time to write? Yes. That doesn’t make you any less of a writer than anyone else. Every writer has written bad prose. Every writer has taken absences that have stretched out longer than they should. You have to forgive yourself when you miss your writing days and on days where you feel like your writing is bad. Don’t let these things make you feel bad and don’t let them make you too afraid to pick up your pen again.

The post How to Pick Up Writing Again appeared first on Dorrance Publishing Company.

If they’re not a writer, they’ll usually drop it there, they don’t know enough about the process to call you out, but anyone who is a writer can smell it from a mile away…Procrastination. ‘Waiting for inspiration to strike’ is writer speak for I’m not making enough time for my book. Here’s how to stop ‘waiting for inspiration’ and start finding it.

1) Stop watching Netflix so much

Don’t give us that look, we all know you’re coming home from work and in the very limited free time you have you’re binge-watching shows. We get it, your days are long between work and spending time with family and when you have a second to yourself all you want is some quality you time. Taking a bath, catching up on Handmaid’s Tale, scented candles and a glass of wine- sounds super relaxing right? Well, is relaxing going to get your book written? No? We didn’t think so. Instead, push yourself to write for an hour even if you don’t ‘feel like it’. It’ll be tough at first, but you’ll get into your normal rhythm and actually get some quality work done.

2) Limit time with friends

We’re not saying you shouldn’t have a social life at all, but if you’re going out and spending every free night you have with friends instead of writing your book- that’s a serious red flag. Cancel plans, stay home, sit down with your notebook or laptop and spend time getting to know your characters instead. How can you expect to ever finish your book if you’re spending more time with your real friends than with your characters?

3) Stop surfing the web when you should be writing

That’s right, we’re looking at you- the person who is online shopping and looking up flight prices for vacations they can’t afford when they should be writing their book. Instead of looking up vacations we both know you don’t have time for, take a trip into that fantasy novel you’ve been working on. Instead of shopping for new clothes that you don’t need, give your character some new and expensive armor. If you have to use internet blocker services, do it- be strict with yourself. This is the time you’ve actually set aside to write and you need to use it in its entirety if you ever want to finish your manuscript.

4) Stop getting distracted by new ideas

We’ve all been guilty of Shiny New Idea Syndrome at some point in our writing careers. We’ve been working on our book for years and we love it, but we’ve hit a bit of a slow point in the writing process. Suddenly, our minds are bursting with shiny new ideas about a second book, entirely unrelated to the book we’re working on. We’re excited by that idea, that new idea is good and it doesn’t have any of the roadblocks we’re facing with the idea we’re working on now. We’re trying to focus on our book… but this new idea keeps creeping back into our minds and we can’t seem to muster up the same enthusiasm for our book as we once did.

Write down the new idea in a notebook or document, make sure you have all the details there, and then close it up. DO NOT open that document until you’re finished with your book. It may be an amazing idea, but it’s only going to distract your ‘inspiration’ from your current book- you know, the one you should be working on?

5) Make a strict schedule for yourself

‘But I’m a creative person, I go where the wind takes me, strict schedules don’t work for me, they ruin my inspiration…’ we don’t want to hear any of that, OK? If you sit around waiting to be inspired until you write, these are the two things that will happen: 1) You’re only going to get ideas or feel inspired at times when it’s most inconvenient for you to write (IE when you’re at work, in the shower, driving, etc.) and 2) It will take you years longer to finish your book than it should. Set aside time to write each week, whether it be an hour three days a week or one. That is the time you write, period. Don’t worry about how uninspired you are on any given day, push past the layers of resistance and give us some beautiful prose.

6) Stop making excuses

Stop.making.excuses. We’re sure you have a million reasons why you haven’t finished your book yet, but guess what? All of the excuses in the world won’t result in a complete manuscript. We adore our fellow writers and we believe that they have so much to offer with their words- which is why sometimes they need some tough love. We want you to finish your book as much as you do, we want you to experience the joy of seeing your book on the shelves and hearing how much it has changed your reader’s lives. But, in order for you to get there, sometimes you have to stop ‘waiting for inspiration’ and start making your own.

The post How to Stop ‘Waiting for Inspiration’ appeared first on Dorrance Publishing Company.

STEP ONE: GET THE WORD OUT

The first step to successfully starting a Writers’ Group is to send out the bat signal to some fellow writers. Community websites like meetup.com or NextDoor are great ways to find local writers who may be interested in joining your group. Also, more obviously, check with any of your friends who are interested in writing. They may know people who would also want to join a potential group in the area. In addition, if you went to college for writing, don’t be afraid to reach back out to some of your old classmates. It may feel like a long shot, but they may be just as starved of a way to consistently practice their craft as you. Prior to reaching out to people, however, make sure you have a clear mission statement or goal for the group– whether it be focusing on a specific genre or improving a specific part of the writing craft. This way, potential group members will know what they’re getting into right away and whether the group is the right fit for them.

STEP TWO: ESTABLISH A LINE OF COMMUNICATION AND MAKE A SCHEDULE

Once you’ve collected a list of people who are interested, you’ll need to create a clear line of communication for the group. Whether that’s by starting a group text or creating a private Facebook group, you’ll need an easy way for everyone to talk to each other, share ideas, schedules, etc. Once you’ve created this and everyone is on the same page, it would probably be smart to gauge their level of availability for the group. For example, if you’re trying to host a group to write short fiction, ask your group how often they’d be able to write a new piece. In addition, ask what their availability would be for meetings. Depending on their responses and how you’re planning to structure your workshop, you will be able to determine how often it would be prudent for the group to meet.

STEP THREE: ESTABLISH A MEETING FORMAT

There are a few different ways you could format a workshop group. The first would be to have everyone bring a piece of writing to each meeting (whether that be a short story, chapter of a book, etc). If you want the group to encompass multiple genres, the type of writing doesn’t need to be specified, but you should put a limit on the relative length of the piece so the critiques don’t take up too much time. For a group working in 1-2 hour increments, pieces should be roughly between 20-30 pages. Have the group break into smaller groups of two or three, passing their work to the person next to them. Give the group a period of 30 minutes to read each other’s work and make notes. Then have them pass the work back to the person who wrote it and give them any critiques or notes they had.

Another possible format would be for the whole group to focus on 1-2 pieces per night. In this format, you’ll have 1-2 of the writers send their pieces to the members of the group a week in advance of the group meeting. The members are expected to prepare a few paragraphs of notes and critiques to present, giving the group more of a round table discussion format for 1-2 hours. We recommend, at least for the beginning, starting with this format simply because when you start a writing group you have no idea what each person’s critiquing style will be. This way, rather than relying on one person to give each writer an unbiased critique, they get the opinions of the whole group. However, with this format, you’ll likely want to meet every 2 weeks instead of once a month; otherwise, it will take a while to get to each person’s work depending on how many members you have.

STEP FOUR: USE FRAMED CRITIQUES

Regardless of which format you choose, there’s one thing that’s absolutely crucial: frame your critiques. What really sets Writing Groups apart from something like a book club is that the author isn’t some famous person who will never hear your opinions…they’re a human being sitting right there in front of you. And, as a writer, you know how personal the art is and how easy it is to be sensitive about your work. Therefore, the best way to critique is to frame each criticism with a positive comment at the beginning and the end. For example, “I loved the characters in this piece, they were really unique and made me laugh a lot. I thought the piece got a bit confusing toward the end, but I liked the narrator as well.” That’s obviously a shortened version of what you’ll be doing. You can get more in-depth into the criticism side of things, just make sure you’re framing it with positive statements. In addition, when you’re voicing a criticism, make sure you’re using ‘I’ statements. For example, saying, “I thought the middle section could be shortened,” instead of, “The middle section should be shortened.” Remember, you’re not the ultimate authority on what each piece should look like so the writer should know that your statements are solely based on your educated opinion– which they can take or leave.

STEP FIVE: MAKE SURE EVERYONE IS HEARD AND STAY ORGANIZED

Similar to Book Clubs, one of the most important aspects of the group is to make sure each and every member is heard. In order to do this, it helps to designate a host for each session. This could be you each time because you are the founder of the group or you could rotate. Either way, make sure the host is asking questions to get the group talking and calling on any members who haven’t made their opinions heard.

As the founder of the group, you’ll likely be the one in charge of staying organized and keeping everyone on task. For example, if you decide to go with the group discussion format, you’ll want to make a clear schedule in terms of a) when each person has a piece due, b) when each person’s piece will be discussed, and c) when each person will be hosting the group discussion. This way each person will know when to bring their critiques for specific pieces, when to prepare discussion questions, and when their own work is due.

The post How to Host a Writers’ Group appeared first on Dorrance Publishing Company.

Step One: Start One

The first step is obvious before you can host a Book Club you need….well… a book club. You’ll need to decide whether you want it to just be family and close friends or if you want to make it something open to the public. If it’ll be more open, you’ll want to post the gathering on websites like Meetup to find potential book enthusiasts in your area. It may also be helpful to find a public space like a coffee shop that would allow you to meet every so often.

Step Two: Don’t Overcommit

The last thing you’ll want to do is push both yourself and your fellow book club members on what they can read. During your first meeting, ask everyone what a reasonable reading goal would be for the group and use their input to decide what would be best for your group. Book clubs can be like New Year’s Resolutions- they’re abandoned all too quickly if the goals are unrealistic. For most book clubs, typically a reasonable reading goal would be one book per month. If that’s what the group ends up agreeing on, you can either meet up once every week/two weeks to go over progress or just once at the end of the month to go over the book at large. Again, ask for everyone’s input to see what works best for each group member’s schedule.

Step Three: Decide what your book selection process will be

Now, to decide what books your group will read. If you want your Book Club to exclusively read books of a specific genre, that’s OK. Just make sure you put that in any advertisement or notice for your book club so potential members will be readers with that specific interest. If you’d rather your club be open to all genres and reads, that’s great, too.

Though you’re the group leader, the last thing you want is to be the only person choosing the book club books. Book clubs are tight-knit groups and you’ll want each person to feel their voice is heard. Typically, books are selected one of two ways. At the end of the month (during your month’s discussion) everyone brings a new book to pitch for next month’s read. After everyone has the chance to pitch their book, the members vote on which one they’d most like to read (not being allowed to vote for their own). This selection process makes sure the majority of the group is excited about each month’s read.

Another method you could use is a rotation. So select a rotation order for the group by giving them each a number (or month) and, whichever number they draw will be the month they choose the read for the group. This may mean there are some months where the majority of the group doesn’t enjoy the monthly read, but it also means everyone will get the chance to choose a book.

Step Four: Come to each meeting organized

As the host, one of the most important jobs is to come to each meeting organized. This partly involves coming prepared with your thoughts and questions for the group already written down. As far as your overall thoughts on the book, construct them in a way that is conducive to conversation. It may be helpful to break them down into the positive and negative aspects of the read. So start by asking yourself: What did I like about this book? Think in terms of characters, character development, plot, arc, themes, writing style, character choice, tone, etc. Next, ask yourself: What didn’t I like about this book? Break it down by the same categories and perhaps use bullet points as well.

When you’re going through each of your bullet points, don’t just lecture the group- open it up to the discussion. For example, let’s say you’re talking about how you felt a particular character didn’t necessarily add to the story. Open it up to the group by asking, “Did anyone else feel similarly? Did anyone else feel differently and why?” Make sure you let the group know that they’re free to jump in as you’re going through your list. The list isn’t meant to just allow you to get your thoughts out, it’s to give the group things to talk about.

After you go over your bullet points, ask the group if they had any thoughts on the book that you haven’t covered. Typically this will lead to more discussion, but if not make sure you have a list of questions prepared to keep the conversation going. Some fun questions to ask would be: “Who was your favorite character and why?” or “What was your favorite part of the book?”

If you wouldn’t always like to be the one leading the discussion, you can also have a rotating discussion leader. This person will fill the same role of bringing in bullet points to talk about, asking questions to the group at large, and keeping the conversation flowing. Though, if you started the group, we recommend you going first to give the other members an example of the discussion leader’s roles.

Step Five: Make sure everyone is heard

There are a few different ways to handle group discussions, but the most important part of them is to make sure everyone in the group is heard and feels like an active member. There are a few different ways you can conduct the group discussions. The first is to keep them structured by going in a circle and having one person talk at a time. So, every time you ask the group a question, you’d go clockwise around the circle so everyone gets a turn answering. Though this may take a while, it assures everyone has their opinions and thoughts heard.

The other way would be to have more of a free-form discussion, allowing the group to answer questions freely. Though less organized, this allows people with similar thoughts or ideas to bounce off of each other, rather than having to wait their turn to speak. If you decide to go this route, keep in mind that your more introverted members may struggle to be outspoken on their thoughts. We suggest that, should you go with this strategy, make sure (if you notice someone has been quiet for a while) to call on them and ask their thoughts on the question being discussed. Through time and experience, every member will grow to feel more comfortable speaking their mind and the conversation will flow more naturally with each meeting. And, before you know it, you finally have a group of like-minded book lovers to force all of your passion upon. And your other friends can breathe a huge sigh of relief.

The post How to Start a Book Club appeared first on Dorrance Publishing Company.