Monday, May 30, 2011

Burning Questions Answered

So... On Thursday last week I asked what you wanted to know. Right away I saw a theme emerge. FEAR. 



Dean K Miller asked: How do you deal with, or feel about, the fears associated with writing a book, or other piece? Where do you go (internally or externally) to calm those demons? Or do you even have them?

Barbara Watson said: I love reading about writer's struggles. Not because I want writer's lives to be hard but because writing is.

Susan Kaye Quinn asked: 1) What's the scariest thing you've ever thought about writing (not paranormal scary, emotional scary)? Did you write it?
 2) What's the one thing you want to write one day, but don't think you're ready to yet?

See here's the thing, we (writers) have so much in common. And one of those things, for better or worse, is overwhelming fear and doubt. I've blogged about it before, and that's fine. But what I'm going to do here is relate it to myself on a personal level for you. It's something I don't often do, but since you're curious, maybe it will help someone. Maybe it will give you encouragement. Maybe you'll see yourself in me, or say "Gee, other people go through this too."

What am I afraid of when I write a book? What do I struggle with? Lots of things. I've written *counts* 6 complete YA manuscripts. You'd think after the first it would get easier, right? I'd think, hey, my critique group likes my writing overall (i.e., they didn't toss me out of the group). I have an agent, and he likes it. But still. STILL there's that voice saying, what if this one is ridiculous? What if it sucks? What if my characters aren't believable? What if the plot doesn't make sense? What if I'VE GONE TOO FAR? (I'll get to that in a minute) 

How do I deal with those demons? I remember that it doesn't change the fact that I HAVE TO WRITE. I won't be whole unless I am, and I know that about myself now. So even if I never publish another thing I will continue to write. So why wouldn't I try? Why wouldn't I put myself out there? 

Now back to the "WHAT IF I'VE GONE TOO FAR?" thing. Susan asked what the emotionally scariest thing I've ever written is, and whether I even went there. Ahem. Actually YEAH I did. And I continue to do so. 

I blogged about it a bit here. What was it about the writing that scared me? It wasn't just the tense shift, or the POV shifts (e.g., switching gender). It was the material. The dark and edgy subject matter. Torture. Sex. All important to the story and characters of course. 

The result? There was no denying that letting myself go there opened me up to doing a better job. You can't hold back. You have to let yourself go there (wherever there is for you), because that's how you grow as a writer. WRITE WHAT SCARES YOU. It's the absolute best writer advice I've ever heard, and I continue to pass it on whenever I can. 

Can you change things later? Hell yeah. But you may be surprised how little you actually do. Oh and since that time (no not since Halloween. Since I wrote that first scary MS), I've written THREE more manuscripts. Each one has (I believe) taken me forward by leaps and bounds in my writing. I force myself to go there. To take on the difficult issues and characters and do it anyway. And you know what? I'm kind of proud of myself for it. I've seen my writing grow. I'm not saying "I'm an amazing writer you guys," or anything like that. I just mean from where I started to where I am now, I've shown a healthy learning curve. And I know there's always room to improve. So I will keep on writing and stretching and trying. And I will embrace what scares me. 

Susan's last question was what aren't I ready for yet that I hope to write one day. The answer is the perfect manuscript. It won't happen. It doesn't exist. But I'll keep striving toward that anyway.

Hope that answered your questions! If not, or if it opened up more, feel free to ask.

44 comments:

  1. I'm getting ready to start a project that kind of scares me. It's great to read about another writer dealing with this stuff. What also really helps is to have someone pushing you--and calling you out when you play it safe.

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  2. This is great advice, Lisa. By doing a project that scares you, you're challenging yourself, and that's always a good thing. :D

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  3. You HAVE grown as a writer. You started out amazing, and now you're super amazing.

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  4. Sarah - that's awesome!! And you're right - having someone call you on it is golden!

    Stina - Always!

    Julie - Thank you, Julie. That means a lot.

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  5. Love this post.

    There's something I've been thinking about writing for a while and haven't for fear of the subject matter (as well as the fear of it sucking). You know what though? I think I'm just gonna try it.

    Thank you :)

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  6. Jemma - YAY!!!! You ABSOLUTELY should. Go for it!

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  7. totally agree! the scary projects are the hardest, but also the most rewarding. I'm working on one now that I'd been trying to do for years but I was too nervous about it to make it work... now I'm so glad I'm trying it again :)

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  8. It is pretty amazing what we can accomplish when we cast fear aside and just write. So hard, but so worth it! I hope your ms sells soon because I am dying to read it!

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  9. Ellen - Oh good! I'm glad you are giving it a shot!

    Heather - :D Thank you. I appreciate the confidence.

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  10. Oh, very nice post, yes. It is one of the best writing tips out there, I think I heard it from... dunno Holly Lisle? Maybe she wrote about it in one of her newsletters. As for the perfect manuscript. It doesn't exist, so don't worry about it, lol. Besides, sometimes love is when you find something adorably wrong about it but you can't bring yourself to fixing it, if that even makes sense. Thanks for the post! :)

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  11. Lyn - Ha! Yes that does make sense. I heard it from Libba Bray. She's my hero. ;D

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  12. I love this post. Truly, the only way we can keep getting better is to face our fears, and write them! Thanks for sharing some personal thoughts on this.

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  13. Love this! Especially the part about what scares you makes you grow. Um, just like a character, right? It's compelling because it's filled with truth, but it's so hard to see when you're mired in it. Thank you so much for sharing!! And you're right, there's no perfect manuscript. It's all in the striving. :)

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  14. Susan - glad I did all right with the answers! Yes, it's hard to see when you're in it, but I can personally attest to the validity behind it! ;D

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  15. I loved this post! You're right, you can't hold back. It hurts the story, we just have to follow and try to write it as best we can. :)

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  16. This is really a marvelous post! It's just the kind of writer's story I love hearing - the I write because I have to even though.....

    Thank you so much for sharing.

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  17. going too far is fun. Then each time you go 'too far', there's a new 'too far' that's a bit farther.

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  18. Bethany - Yes, if you hold back you hurt the story!

    Barbara - Glad it was what you were looking for!

    Lighting - SO TRUE!

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  19. Great post, Lisa. That is all.
    Oh. And, yeah - every manuscript gets scarier and scarier for me. I'd be worried if they were getting easier.
    Nelsa

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  20. Nelsa - :D Thanks for that! You're right, they shouldn't get easier. Then you aren't pushing yourself.

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  21. That ghost is so cute, I will call him squishy and he will be mine. :-D

    and just to bring everyone down, fear still hangs around even when you're published. It never goes away, but I *think* I'm getting better at writing through it.

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  22. Ebony - You're so sunny and uplifting!! LOL - I expect that's true! Fear is just something we have to live with as writers. Oh and Squishy is just too cute.

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  23. A friend and co-worker when I worked for Habitat for Humanity years ago gave me some great advice which I've tried to follow since. At least it's always stuck in my mind. :-) -- Go where it's scary.

    He wasn't talking about writing but about life, but you've hit the exact idea just perfectly for writing. Thanks!

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  24. Susan - It is great advice, for both writing and life in general. :D

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  25. You hit the writer's nail on the head. It is scary to go to "those" certain places, but there is always a reward when we do. I believe the partnership of writing out of our comfort zone, and reading to see where others have dared to go turns our fears into thrills. Great post. And I might add that your writing improves exponentially with every new piece. You go girl!

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  26. If I am scared of vampires and werewolves, (I totally am), does that mean I have to start writing paranormal YA?
    lol :)
    Seriously, though, good points and thank you for opening up like that. I really appreciate your straightforward blog posts. Writing what scares you is HARD, but you're right.

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  27. Leslie - <33 you too.

    Kristen - LOL! YES write more vampire books!!! He he he. NO, and I appreciate your comment!

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  28. A little time after reading your first post on what scares you, I read the same advice from Franzen, and it hit home.

    Except, I haven't done it yet. Well, I did partially. I've always dreaded that my home would burn down, and I wrote about it, and it gave me a better character than I've ever had before. But I haven't written some other bigger inner demons yet. But I will. The fraid of fire girl convinced me of that. Like you said, it's all about growing as a writers.

    LOVED the quotes you shared last week! Some are also on my favorite list. Some will be now!

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  29. Margo - So glad I could inspire! It's probably therapeutic for us too.

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  30. Thanks for sharing this! My WIP scares me because it's my first book. I'm scared of not being able to finish it, of it not being good enough. The fear does propel me and I feel proud when I reach a new milestone.

    I love Libba Bray. She gives fantastic advice! :)

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  31. Ghenet - That's awesome! You can do it!!! Don't give in. And yes, she's my hero. I told her that when she signed GOING BOVINE for me and she wrote: I'll be your hero if I can have a cape. LOVE HER.

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  32. Every time I write, I'm scared. I'm scared I won't get the story down the way I want, that the characters won't be full and empathetic, that when someone reads it they'll say something like, "and she thinks she can write?"

    All of that and more. Yet here I am at the computer this morning, getting ready to settle in for a few hours of writing--a few hours of scaring myself again.

    As always, I've stopped in for a visit and you've given me exactly what I wanted. <B

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  33. Lee - I guess we enjoy torturing ourselves as much as our characters, eh?

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  34. I feel the same way about my writing--that I know it's grown and will never be perfect.

    Also, kudos to you for taking your writing to the edge. It's scary but worth it.

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  35. Right. We all have fears, and I sometimes wonder what it would be like if we were super confident all the time... would we grow as writers? I don't think so.
    Also, totally right--we should push ourselves to write what scares us, or what makes us FEEL something ;)

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  36. Damn, I love your posts.

    You can't hold back. You have to let yourself go there (wherever there is for you), because that's how you grow as a writer. WRITE WHAT SCARES YOU.

    Blogging has really helped me with this. The scariest thing for me to write has been deep, true vulnerability. The first time I wrote an entry that laid bare my soul, I bawled through the whole ordeal. I could barely bring myself to press the "submit" button.

    Wouldn't you know it, that post got me more comments by far than any other I'd posted at that point. People responded to the vulnerability and heartbreak of that entry, which served as a resounding reminder to me that people hunger for the truth--especially when that truth helps remind them that we all struggle, but that the struggle isn't nearly the end of the story.

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  37. Jill - thanks for the kudos! Much appreciated.

    Monica - You're right. We need to do it to grow.

    Deb - Awww shucks!! And that is the perfect example. :D

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  38. That advice is some of the best I've ever gotten too--I was always writing what scared me anyway, but I never knew WHY I was writing it. Figuring out that I was compelled to explore my own fears through writing meant I could focus my writing so much better!

    Whether you're writing horror or fluffy chick lit, fear has to be one of the most universal things human beings experience. Great post as usual!

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  39. Meagan - Thanks! Glad to hear you agree with that advice.

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  40. The scariest projects often turn out to be the best ones. :D I'm sure this is no different.
    nutschell
    www.thewritingnut.com

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  41. One of the best things about what we do are those moments when we can take a step back and look at our journey, and how far we have come. I think whether or not we've published is secondary to the pride we feel at the growth that is evident in our writing now vs then.

    Thanks for being candid and personal about this!

    Angela @ The Bookshelf Muse

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