Gray skies stark
against swirling orange leaves,
tiny tornadoes on sidewalks
amidst shadow-monsters.
Hawk glides on the back
of the dragon-wind
and caws at the colors
and shrieks below.
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At the moment, I am a freelance marketing consultant. At least that is what I’m calling myself (as well as a writer, of course). This title has, just in the past few weeks, had me doing everything from painting house numbers on pumpkins for Kentucky House and Home EXP Realty to designing a website and running social media accounts for Thornhill Creations. Back in May, right after I graduated from college, if you would have told me this is where I would be now, I wouldn’t have believed you. I would have spouted something about needing a steady, reliable income. I would have said I needed more structure. In complete honesty, I sometimes still think those things. Up until about a month ago, I held onto an $8/hour job that continuously made me sick (thanks, new-found peanut allergy…) because it was a reliable, albeit small, every-other-week paycheck.
While I still worry about money, I have realized that I am here, in this position, for a reason. I don’t know the entirety of God’s plan in this (who ever does?), but I have learned one thing: I forgot how much I loved design.
For years, art was my stress relief. Drawing and painting were an outlet when I couldn’t find words to write. Images and colors have always been my inspiration, both for life and for my writing. In the midst of life, I had nearly forgotten all art had done for me — how much holding a paintbrush had inspired me.
All that to say, art has once again become a part of my life in ways it hasn’t before and I can’t wait to see how this ties into my writing and into this site. I am growing — as a writer, as a person, as an artist — and there is so much in store. Let’s see where God takes this endeavor next.
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A writer’s fear of rejections is familiar — almost universal. Almost every writer I’ve gotten to talk with, published and pre-published alike, will admit the same thing: a fear of rejection has held them back at some point in their journey. It is the dreaded form rejection letter that has writers stalling to submit queries or turn in a draft. Or that’s what we tell ourselves.
There is a possibility that we are not afraid of rejection: we are afraid of success. There is, of course, a part of us that is afraid of rejection, but there is only so much a simple email can do. We all know that, after a rejection, we will pick up our pens again. Another possibility is that we’re afraid of what if we don’t get a form rejection in our inbox; what if we get an acceptance.
There is a legitimate dread of getting an acceptance — getting an agent, a publishing deal, a contract for a second book– and feeling the work is not good enough for the world; perhaps that we are not good enough. Therefore, not submitting to agents and blaming the fear of rejection keeps our work — the work we feel is sub-par (although that is rarely the case) — off the market.
It all boils down to over-critiquing ourselves, something I find myself doing often, something that keeps me from writing — from submitting — more often than I’d like to admit. If I’ve learned one thing in the past few months, it is to ignore the fear. I can’t seem to stop being afraid altogether (the terror of sharing my writing with anyone still screams through me every time I hit submit), but I can ignore it. I can click the button anyway. I can remind myself of all I have achieved and remember that, acceptance or rejection alike, I have succeeded because I wrote and I followed through. We all have and we all will continue to do so.
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The make-or-break question when making writer friends: “are you a planner or a pantser?” I’m still not entirely sure why this is such a contended question. Personally, I’m a “plantser” (a mixture of both… yes I know I’m weird), so perhaps that is why I don’t particularly care which way you go about writing a first draft. You outline every chapter and fill out character sheets and the whole nine yards before you even start writing? Cool, sounds organized and thought-provoking. You word-vomit onto the page and go from there, learning your plot and characters along the way? Awesome, sounds surprising and adventurous.
If you’re considering doing NaNoWriMo next month and you’re seeing all the social media posts about NaNo prep this month, you are probably having varying degrees of excitement. Planners are rubbing their hands together excitedly, grabbing a pen and their favorite outline format. Pantsers… maybe not so much. You might be thinking that prep is just not for you and you’re just going to wing it come November 1st. Which is do-able, for sure (I’ve done it, much to my organized heart’s dismay).
That being said, NaNo prep can be useful to anyone, no matter your pre-writing methods. That is so, since “prep” doesn’t necessarily mean “pre-write.”
It’s like the whole rectangle vs. square thing (for you math people out there). Pre-writing is prepping, but prepping doesn’t have to be pre-writing. Prepping can mean cleaning off your desk and getting your Nano spot comfy and stocked with the supplies you’ll need this November (like pens and a laptop charger and chocolate and a blanket and possibly a Keurig…). Prepping can mean pondering on potential ideas, letting your imagination wander while you go about your day. For us plantsers, it can mean looking at a planner and setting aside specific times and days for writing (even if we don’t plan our first drafts, we can still plan our day).
All this to say, make this NaNo season your own. Embrace it, no matter your strategies or plans (or lack thereof). Take this November by the horns and write that first draft!
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An assassin in a fantasy novel with great world building? What’s not to like?
Sarah Maas does a fantastic job with writing the story of Celina, a world-class assassin who, a year before, had been caught and sentenced to life as a slave in the deadly salt mines. She’d already lasted longer than anyone else when the crown prince of the very kingdom that gave her the death sentence approaches her with a proposition: compete and win to be the king’s personal assassin in exchange for eventual freedom.
This story is one of suspense, friendship, mystery, action, and a touch of romance. And don’t forget the magic. The characters leap off the page with their quips and nuances. The world is complex, yet understandable and relatable. Every detail about this story has its time and place of significance.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book, the first of the series (which I plan to pick up book #2 as soon as possible!), although my one complaint, if I have to be nit-picky, would be the ever-ruined love triangle. It seems a bit flat and unnecessary, but I have only read the first book, so perhaps that development is still to come!
If you are a fan of Camelot-esque myths and the suspense of romance+espionage, then Throne of Glass is a must-read.
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I live an oxymoron. I am a “creative” and yet there is no doubt at all that I am very much Type-A. I do not do well “pants-ing” in writing or in life. I love schedules more than I should and without one, I may or may not be totally lost. Therefore, I was unreasonably excited when I discovered there is a journal that combines these traits. A bullet journal. I’m sure a lot of you have heard of these or heard me mention them, but recently when I’ve talked about it, people have heard of bullet journaling but are not sure what, exactly, that means.
If you need structure but a normal planner or agenda just doesn’t cut it: buckle your seat belts for the best middle ground I’ve been able to find so far. And it’s the best because it can be basically whatever you want it to be.
With the start of October here (already!!) and NaNoWriMo just around the corner, I figured now would be a good time to break down how and why my bullet journal is one of my best and favorite writing tools.
What is a Bullet Journal? Basically, it is a personalized planner. You can make it look however you want and include whatever pages you want to keep track of anything from a daily schedule to meal planning to health to writing routine. And you can put as much or as little work into it as you wish. The great thing about it, other than the customization, is the ability to create something and get organized at the same time. It gives a sense of relaxation, ease, and encouragement!
Getting Started!
Step One: Supplies
Step 2: Set up
Once again, this is pretty much all up to you. It all depends on what you want to include. The most important things, if you are planning on using your bullet journal for staying organized, are your weekly spreads. I also like to include monthly at-a-glance calendars to give me a big-picture view. You can make these all at once at the beginning or you can make them as you go through the journal. I have found that if you make your spreads as you go, it helps to either have an index at the beginning or tabs along the side so it’s easy to find what you need.
Any of your other pages, like a writing tracker, for example, can go wherever you want. It might take a few months to figure out the best set-up for you, so I recommend going month-by-month to start out until you decide what you like best.
Step Three: Using the Bullet Journal
I use my bullet journal daily. I keep my work schedules in here, as well as how much I want to write each day, habits I want to keep track of, and how much money I’ve spent. I write it all down, because if I don’t, I feel like my brain has to keep track of it all at once, which stresses me out like no other. A lot of people are not wired like me, though, so if you are one of those people, don’t feel like you have to look at your bullet journal nearly as often as I do. Maybe you only need it to remind you of writing deadlines or long-term writing goals. Maybe for you, it is just a once-a-week gathering of ideas and a time to doodle and plan out how you want to spend your time.
Step Four: Extras
Don’t think your bullet journal has to be entirely organized and solely for goals and planning. Feel free to mix it up. Intersperse your organization pages with pages scrawled with snippets from your WIP and doodles and shower-thoughts. Sketch out your characters on a random free page, if that is a thing you like to do. Write daily haiku. Pull out your journal at a coffee shop and write down every adjective that describes the space on the next blank page. Basically, make this journal contain anything and everything you want it to. Make it yours. It can be as free-flowing or as straight-laced as you so choose.
My bullet journal keeps me on track. It reminds me how much I need to write per day until my deadline. It informs me when I have to be somewhere and when I have to work in my writing at a weird time one day. But it also helps me spew out my creative thoughts, my brainstormed ideas, my random excerpts of half-thought-out poetry. Hopefully, you will find bullet journaling to be just as satisfying as I do, and remember: make it yours and put as much energy into it as you feel you should.
For more ideas or details, check out my pinterest board (linked above and below) and this super aesthetic and helpful blog about bullet journaling. Also, here is a blog with a ton more information and some printables too! Happy journaling!
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Celestially Created 