Maybe Sylvia Plath Was Onto Something....

If I told you that I'm about to write a book about a suicidal girl with writer’s block who obsesses about the execution of strangers, you might decide right away that you aren't going to read that book because it sounds depressing. Well, the fact is that this is already a book,and you are absolutely right. It's one of the most depressing books ever written, and everyone knows it. Sylvia Plath was depressed and suicidal, and she wrote the book about it. 

When it Shouldn't Work

Seriously, "The Bell Jar" is $&@!ing dark. At one point in the story, the main character goes around asking people how they would kill themselves. The book is so linked with depression, "bell jar" has becomes synonym for being depressed. And from a publishing standpoint, that really doesn't sound like a story that should work. But it did. Sylvia Plath's book is a big bestseller that's still read today. I own two copies of the damn thing, in fact. And I know exactly why this totally depressing book worked so well.

Writing 101: 5 Movies All Writers Should Watch

Yes, I am aware that the title sounds weird. Writing and movies, as any novel reader will tell you, rarely go well together. Adaptations have a way of disappointing all readers. But these 5 films aren't necessarily adaptations. They're movies about writers and writing, and they actually get it pretty right. Watch these films, and learn several valuable lessons about being a writer.

Jade's Top 5

Writers write a lot about writing. Heck, even I do it. I have actually advised against using this as a story element. In almost all cases, stories about writers are boring. You and I both know there is nothing exciting about writing. You're just sitting there typing. Sometimes, I might get up to pace around a very small area like a mad tiger, but this is really more maddening than fascinating. But in these 5 films, writing is something that's worth watching.

Writing 101: Depression

Doctors sometimes lose patients in the operating room, and it's hard on them. Counselors absorb other people’s problems, and listen to terrible tales of trauma. Actors tap into their deepest emotions and recall their most painful memories, all for the sake of the performance. Writing is one of those jobs that can get you down sometimes, like these others. It's important to keep the business of writing in perspective. This is how you will avoid depression. 

No, I Reject You

If I saved every single rejection letter I've ever received, I would probably have to move from my home to save space for the storage. I've been fired from more writing jobs than most people have ever had. And I've received some comments from real readers that made me want to set something on fire. Like maybe my laptop.

Writing can be a bit depressing like this. 

Am I Turning into Emily Dickinson?

In my neverending game of which writer am I comparing myself to now, I’ve realized that I may be turning into Emily Dickinson -- without the poetry and the super creepy death imagery, I hope. Not to say that any writer wouldn’t want to be like Emily Dickinson. But for the record, she did die unpublished and lived most of her life in her room. And maybe I’m becoming like her. 

There are worse fates.

They Called Me to the Window, For

Emily Dickinson sat in her room, looked out her window, and wrote poems about the house across the street. She penned poetry on a few other topics, as well, and never shied away from frankly looking at death. I think that on the surface, anyone would be a little bit leery of the young woman who never comes out of her bedroom and writes poetry about death. Because it’s weird, or at least it’s not quite the average. Emily Dickinson was what’s known as a recluse. She shut herself away and isolated herself from the rest of the world. The only reason that it’s not considered to be totally insane is because Emily Dickinson was a brilliant poet. We’ve been trained to accept that genius and insanity belong together.

But I’m learning that being insane does not also make you a genius. In most all cases, it just makes you insane. And sometimes, I question my own sanity. After all...I am a writer.

Writing 101: The Neverending Series

No matter how you might feel about the books, you know you wouldn't mind writing something with Twilight-like popularity. You wouldn't mind having a popular series like The Hunger Games, probably, just like most authors. Writing a series is great. It allows you spend some time in a certain world, gives you the chance to really develop your characters and could even become a hugely successful movie franchise. But writing a series can also turn into a trap. This is the good side and the really ugly side of a neverending series of books.

This is the Series That Doesn't End

Sometimes, a book series can become much bigger than the author ever expected. The character in the series, the series itself, becomes much bigger than the author. Like, way bigger. Some book series don't end. Like, ever.

Writing 101: The Danger of Doubting Yourself

For me, it almost always follows the same pattern. At the beginning of the book, I’m excited. I’m writing everything the way it’s supposed to written, it’s all flowing well. Then, I get to some intense scene. And I start to wonder. Should that character be killed? Should that scene be here? Should these two kiss right now? There’s a lot of danger in doubting yourself, and I know. It happens to me all the time.

Self Doubt

I ask a lot of questions. It's how I come up with a lot of my ideas, but sometimes it take a turn for the dark side. Sometimes, I start asking myself questions after I've already started working on a project. I'll get to asking questions, and instead of writing I'm fooling around with my outline and erasing paragraphs and doing new research. This is what self doubt does to me. Self doubt is different for everyone, but it almost always has the same effect: it keeps you from writing well. 

Writing 101: Everyone's Opinion is Subjective

Beta readers. Reviewers. Your good friend. That writers group you joined. A lot of people are going to give you a lot of opinions about your book. They'll ask questions and tell you what they think. And as the author, you've got to remember that everyone's opinion is subjective.

Everybody's Got Something to Say Except for Me and My Monkey

It's a fine line for any author to walk. You need the opinions of readers, because you're writing for the readers. But you also need to stick to your guns when it comes to telling the story that you want to tell. In other words, you can't always follow the advice that your beta readers, friends and reviewers give you. Sometimes, you have to write what you're going to write anyway -- and leave it that way.

Writing 101: Are You Disposable?

You know how they say you're only as good as your last book? They say it because it's true. Some people throw books away when they're done reading them. I delete mine right off the Kindle. You may not like it, but as an author you are disposable...to at least some of the readers, all of the time.

Getting Trashed

The life of an author can be painful,. If you send out letters to agents and publishers pitching your book, you will be rejected by some of them. If you self-publish and you court the book bloggers, you will get reviews that hurt your feelings. If you make yourself available to fans through social media, you will be leaving yourself open to ridicule and attacks. But few things hurt quite as bad as simply being totally, completely ignored.

Writing 101: The Fall of Books

When was the last time you cracked open an epic poem and began to read it? Do you casually browse through "Beowulf" when the mood strikes, or thumb through "The Canterbury Tales?" Probably no, because that stuff is way old. And it's got me wondering whether or not anyone will even be reading books  100 yeas from now. 

Who's Actually Read Virginia Woolf?

In the year 1915, Virginia Woolf published "The Voyage Out." Have you ever read it? She's a well-known author, or she was, and enjoyed a highly successful career before she walked into the ocean one day. The point is, she was a successful working writer in her own time and you recognize her name. But have you read her books? Did you read this one, published 100 years ago? Did you read any of them ever? Would it make a difference if I told you that you can read her books for free?

Writing 101: Are You Inspired, or Are You Avoiding It?

I always say -- correction, I used to always say -- that you should give in to inspiration when it strikes. I did, after all. But now I'm wondering if I was really inspired, or if I was trying to avoid writing something else.

Avoiding It

It all started when I finished my book "Hope's Rebellion." I had known for some time that I was going to start working on a project called "What Happened to Mary Celeste?" I roughed out the first few chapters, and then I got stuck. I started working on buying a cover for the book. After all, I knew the title already, and I would need a cover. But then I started to work on the trailer, too. I would need a trailer, right? Sure I would. Soon enough, however, that was finished as well. I was still in the exact same place with the manuscript. That's when I started writing a different book altogether. I was inspired. Correction. I thought I was inspired.

Writing 101: What Writing Used To Be

During the Middle Ages, storytellers were members of the royal court. They knew all the juiciest gossip, they were present at all the big events, and they traveled around telling their tales to large audiences. Today's storytellers sit somewhere with a laptop, typing quietly. Which sounds more fun?

A Troubadour's Life for Me

The storyteller was always a welcome sight in medieval Europe. You may have found them in a market place, but you were sure to find them at court. Every king and queen of note had storytellers at court, a place where the royals granted various favors to their favorites and everyone danced, dined and drank for almost any reason whatsoever. 

Writing 101: How Do You Know You're Obsessed?

The minute I started thinking of one of my books as "my masterpiece," I should have known I was in serious trouble. Not just because it's arrogant, which clearly it is, but because it's the start of an unhealthy obsession. It's something that happens to lots of artists and storytellers, and I'm here to warn you that it could happen to you.

Obsession

As an artist, it's very easy to become obsessed. So easy, in fact, you may not even realize that it's happening to you. There's a way to find out.Obsessed artists generally have a single trait in common. If you have it, too, then you might be obsessed.

Writing 101 Redux: Using Pen Names

Many writers are using pen names to develop a dedicated author personality and presence online. But how careful are you being about the name you're selecting?

Read my Writing 101 post for more info about using pen names this Throwback Thursday, and remember why it's so important to choose a great one.

Writing 101: Stand By Your Guns

Being a writer means making a lot of decisions, hard ones. You're going to have kill people, traumatize others. Someone is going to have to lose. You're going to write things that people don't like, sometimes. When it comes to making decisions as a writer, you have to be firm. You have to stand by your guns. 

Ready, Aim, Fire

I like to make all my decisions right at the beginning of a book. This is why I create an outline. Once you decide who's going to die and who's going to fail and which heart is going to get broken, you need to stick with those decisions. It gets harder to do that if you're writing a series and you begin to develop attachments to the characters. It gets more difficult as readers form attachments to those characters. But as a writer, you stick to your guns.

Writing 101: Going it Alone

I didn't tell a single member of my family, nor any of my friends, that I was writing a book. I didn't say a word about it to anyone, in fact, until it was published. Now I self-publish, and I still find it difficult to talk about my current projects. I'm used to going it alone, but I've learned that it's the absolute worst way to go about writing.

Unsupported

Writing anything is difficult. Writing a book is an exercise in self-torture. And writing a good book takes more than what you currently have inside of you. If you're going to write something great, you're going to need other people in your life to help you get through it. At the very lest, you're going to need someone who can remind you to eat something every once in a while.

Writing 101: Writing About Writing

Here's how you know you're watching a movie that was adapted from a Stephen King book: a) something weird is going on; b) the people in the story don't know that weirdness is going on; and c) --and this is most important-- one of the characters, probably the main one, is a writer. Stephen King writes about writers all the time, because that's what he knows. But here's what I learned in my time of writing about writers: mostly, it's only writers who are interested. Writing about writing is all well and good, but it's even better if you don't do that at all. I'll tell you why. 

On Writing...

People are always interested when they find out that I'm a writer...at first. Once they understand that writing is me sitting on my couch and staring at my screen, they realize that writing is actually pretty boring. It is tedious, hard work. And it isn't interesting. This is why you shouldn't write about writing.

Writing 101: By the Way, No One Gets It

As a writer, part of your job is to describe new settings, scenarios and ways of life to readers. I personally will never know what it's like to be an ER nurse who is helping the police investigate a series of hospital murders, but I can go find that book and read all about it. You can put your readers anywhere and make them feel anything...with one exception. When you try to tell ordinary civilians what you're personally going through as a writer, they won't ever really get it.

Ever.

Screaming at the Wind

Have you ever stood outside and screamed into the wind? It rips your voice away and swallows your syllables, until there's nothing left but you, standing there with a red face. This exercise is actually more effective than trying to explain what it's like to be a writer to all your friends and family.

Writing 101: Are You Too Emotionally Attached?

It takes a writer to create a horror story, because writers know horror. If your computer has ever imploded and erased your files, if you've ever lost that chapter and don't know where it went, if you've ever been held hostage by a crazy woman and was forced to burn a manuscript, then you know how to answer this question: are you too emotionally attached?


$&!/ Happens

I really don't care who you are or what your process is. If you write long enough, at some point something is going to happen. There will be a random bolt of lightning, a system wide crash, a cat that jumps on the keyboard and somehow manages to reset the hard drive in 10 seconds when you couldn't figure out how to do it in three hours while reading the user's manual. You will, no matter what, lose some of your writing. You may lose a few pages, an entire chapter, or even a whole manuscript. It's going to happen no matter how careful you are. And when it does, you'll find out pretty quickly whether or not you're too emotionally attached. Since you're a writer, you probably are. But you can't be, because the world is full of cats and lightning.

Why I Love/Hate Writing

 Every writer hates writing sometimes. Or maybe it's just me.

Visit Taking It One Page at a Time, a blog by freelancer and friend of the blog Danica Page, to find out why I fell in love with writing...and why sometimes, I hate it.

Writing 101 Redux: Copyrighting Your Writing

Are you copyrighting your books? Are you doing it the right way? Depending on where you are in the world, the laws are different. Know them, and protect your writing from theft. 

Get into all the details of copyrighting your books with me today in this Throwback Thursday Writing 101 tip.