Writing Difficulties

I've been struggling to do what I love for the past few months so naturally I've been wondering....what the hell is the problem?  I love the handful of stories I've been juggling and the stories' characters.  Friends and Twitter friends I've bounced my thoughts and ideas off of think that I've got some great stories.  Not writing makes me unhappy.  So why can't I WRITE my stories?  I mean I've been writing every day of my life since forever.  I still plan on going to college to better my craft and I still intend on seeing my books on the romance shelves in Borders stores someday.  So what the hell is the problem?  Over the past few days I've gotten a mild grasp on at least part of it. 

I'm losing my motivation.  Why?  Because I'm still writing for myself.  I want to share my stories, but there isn't anyone demanding them.  So I have no pressure to hit my daily word count goal.  Since I'm a Plotter and not a Pantser, I already know my stories.  Spending hours sitting on my butt typing is starting to appeal to me less and less as the sun shines.  Yes....I'm weak....you are too so don't be so judgmental. 

Published authors have agents and readers awaiting their next book.  Right now, I'm still writing for me.  I don't even have a critique group to snap that whip.  And it's a large part of why I'm so looking forward to taking writing classes at Southern New Hampshire University and joining the Creative Writing Club--I'll have deadlines.  I've heard before that deadlines are important for an author, but now that I've fallen off of the dream trail so to speak, I realize how truly important they are.

I know I want to finish two manuscripts for this October.  I know that I want to be published before I graduate college with a second manuscript accepted.  But both of those are very loose deadlines.  So I need to tighten up my goals.  I currently have a daily word count goal of 3k words that I've not even been close to hitting.  So--how am I going to find the trail again?  I'm going to whip my Muse and me back into shape.  Forget about the morning stretches, I'll get up while it's still quiet and dark and submerge myself in whichever one of my main manuscripts reaches for me first.  I'm going to start using Dr. Wicked's Write or Die website http://writeordie.drwicked.com/ so that I definitely hit my daily word count goal.  I'm going to finally join the New Hampshire Romance Writers of America so I'm among my own kind and that should do the trick of keeping me en route until the fall semester rolls around.  Generally, all anyone needs is a little push, but we're usually pushed in too many directions by too many different things.  I'm an extremely stubborn person, I can push back.  I won't be lost.

"Don't be pushed by your problems.  Be led by your dreams."  -Anonymous

Joing the NHRWA Clan

I've been a passive member of Romance Writers of America since the past June, but I've yet to really delve into the chapters that are available to members.  Chapters include both local and online writing groups.  There are two reasons why I haven't checked them out yet.

Reason the First: I don't want to spend more money.  In hand with that, being a member of a chapter--especially an online chapter--would eat up a lot of my already limited time.  The internet tends to do that, isn't that right, all you Twitter users?

Reason the Second: I'm a writer.  Well that sound like a dumb reason, doesn't it?  The chapters are there to help writers.  But writers write.  And I write constantly.  So much so that I often forget about other things like eating and homework and the flow of time actively flowing around me.  Writing also hampers my social life....as in it conspires to keep me from having one.  But hey--who needs friends when you have voices in your head?!  

Nevertheless, I went to my first New Hampshire Romance Writers of America chapter meeting today.  There were real live people and everything.  Technically, I'm not a member of NHRWA yet, but I definitely will be soon.  It was so nice to be around other writers, sharing stories, talking shop, relating, chit-chatting.  Face to face relations is much nicer than online interaction.

RWA is a great asset to the published and unpublished author.  I definitely recommend checking out the site:  http://www.rwanational.org/.

Juggling Challenges

Wow, I can't believe how busy I've been! All of my days just woosh right past. With new classes, LOTS of college homework, writing, editing, and rewriting WIPs, RWA e-mails, and trying to promote myself as an author--I have no spare time.

I became a member of RWA (Romance Writers of America) a few months ago. New York Times Bestselling Author C. L. Wilson, a fabulous storyteller of fantasy romance and one of my most favorite authors, mentioned RWA on her website as a great tool for aspiring authors. I took her advice, joined a few days later, and have been extremely glad that I did.

In RWA's monthly member's catalog I read a recommendation of getting your name out there before you even have a book contract. They suggest building your own website, making a Twitter profile, and creating a blog. So far I've done two of the three--I'm putting off building my website until I have some stuff to put on it! But Twitter is such a time consumer! It's a great networking tool--don't get me wrong--it just eats up the minutes....hours without you even being aware of it. On Twitter I'm following other authors (published and unpublished), literary agents, marketers, publishers, animal lovers, wiccans--and getting tips and links to suggested sites from all of them! (You can see now how it becomes time consuming)

Thanks to Twitter and RWA members I've joined two online writing workshops to make up for not taking any writing classes at the local tech. I'm very excited to begin them in the coming weeks. I can't imagine how I'm going to juggle everything though. I just need to add it into my schedule I suppose. Priorities.

And lastly--the characters in my fantasy romance MS, Risking Existence, have forgiven me. Also meaning....I'm working on it again. There is one problem however. Today I realized that I need to rewrite the entire beginning....

Ah, well. I like a challenge :)