The Renovation Bug

Do you write at a desk when you’re stuck at home? Or do you have a designated corner of the couch with your favorite throw blanket? Or do you rough it at the kitchen table amidst the bustle of everyone going about their day? Personally, I’m a bit of a wild card — recently, I’ve been jumping between all of these options for a few reasons. For one, I am in the process of moving, so my desk is at The New Place while I’m still living at The Old Place. But I can’t always focus at the table and if I sit somewhere comfy, I’m likely to fall asleep. It’s quite the conundrum…

One of my quarantine goals (now that I am officially [semi] quarantined) is to create the writing space I actually want — the space that makes me feel relaxed, energized, and inspired. I’ve got a nook at The New Place all picked out and a few ideas of how I could go about creating this kind of space, so I thought I’d share some of them. Maybe they’ll spark some ideas for your own home-based work space.

• Get a new house plant to liven up the space
• Paint a canvas with a favorite writing quote
• Have an organized stash of supplies — paper, pens, laptop charger — at the ready. Venture out into the world for a cute storage container if need be.
• Ensure there is a place to set coffee or tea
• Incorporate a basket or shelf for prompt/craft books: suggestions include Bird by Bird (Anne Lamott), On Writing (Stephen King), The Making of a Story (Alice LaPlante), Poet’s Glossary (Edward Hirch), The Poetry Gymnasium (Tom C. Hunley), 300 Writing Prompts
• Make sure there’s enough lighting — use fairy lights if need be
• Hang a bulletin board or magnet board to keep track of goals
• Print photos of your biggest supporters to hang and keep motivation up

What are some ways you want to renovate your writing space? What is your dream writing nook? Minimalistic or artsy? Modern or vintage?

Happy redecorating and happy writing!

Click below to follow me on social media:

     

Check out my Etsy shop here and comment below things you would like to see show up there in the future.

A list for the anxiously-creative

Being cooped up puts me in the mood to create, but necessarily sit down to work on my WIP. I get an anxious energy to do without the mental capacity to focus on a long, complex project.

Here is a list of ways to work on writing-esque things without killing your quarantined brain.

• Create mood boards for your characters
• Compile a playlist for your WIP or your favorite character
• Make a list of potential character names — jump down the babynames.com rabbit hole
• Describe things around your house in obscenely-poetic phrasing
• Start world building that fantasy society you’ve been dreaming of creating.
• Drink some coffee.
• Work on organizing or redecorating your writing space — create your dream nook!
• Plan out your writing goals for this year and brainstorm ways to get/ remain inspired

What are your favorite ways of staying creative when stuck inside?

Click below to follow me on social media:

     

Check out my Etsy shop here and comment below things you would like to see show up there in the future.

Prioritize and Organize

What are your priorities? These often change day to day, but generally speaking, what do you put before everything else – or more specifically, what do you put before writing? Is it family? Or sleep? Your favorite TV show? There is usually something that causes us to get down on ourselves when we go another day without sitting down to write.

Sometimes, our priorities are legitimate reasons not to take time out of that particular day to put our pen to the page. Getting enough sleep is important, as is keeping a job and eating three meals a day; if these things are what fill your day, take care of yourself first and worry about writing later. But other times, what fills our day could easily be excuses for what we should be doing. But either way, we should not get down on ourselves. Easier said than done, I know.

Instead, we should re-evaluate. What are our real priorities? And we should be honest with ourselves. Is what we spend our time doing really what we want – or need – to be doing? Once we’ve reflected, we should think about what we want to do with that information. It is possible that this season of life requires focus elsewhere. If that is the case, re-evaluate in a month, two months maybe, and see if the season has changed and along with it, your priorities.

For me, I’ve been giving work and friends priority recently. And that’s not necessarily a bad thing. I’m getting married in about a month and a half (crazy to think about, I know), so income and community are very important to me right now. But I have decided that writing is something I want to make time for, so it is time to sit down with the trusty old planner and schedule in some non-negotiable writing time even if it is just once or twice a week. While this season is super busy for me, writing is my outlet and I’m eager to work on my passion project.

What kind of writing season are you in right now? What are your goals, no matter how small or how big? What are you determined to work on?

Click below to follow me on social media for updates, more content, and etsy shop promo codes:

     

Check out my Etsy shop here and comment below things you would like to see show up there in the future.

Words and poets and grease

Books that changed my life part two

“Stay gold, ponyboy.” One of the most impactful quotes in all of young adult canon. At least it is to me.

Growing up, I struggled finding books I was “allowed” to read. The books my friends were reading were mostly forbidden by my parents, for good or for bad (I’ll leave that debate for another time). With a reading addiction as strong as mine was (and still is) I struggled with this conundrum, and throughout this time of limited reading material, my mom tried her hardest to keep a book in my hand at all times. This led to her suggesting some of her favorite books that she read in high school, one of which was The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton.

Not only did I love this book and the characters in it, but I read it six times. Four times consecutively. From a reader’s perspective, the plot and characters are so well done that I was immediately immersed in the world of greasers and socs.

From a writer’s perspective, S.E. Hinton became my life goal – she published The Outsiders at age 18 and I made it my goal to write and publish a book with such unique voice and relatable story by the time I graduated high school. That goal was not met, but I knew it was ambitious and I’m still striving to be as unique and solid of a writer as Hinton is, even if high school and college have since passed me by.

Click below to follow me on social media:

     

Check out my Etsy shop here and comment below things you would like to see show up there in the future.

Reset.

Today’s writing tip: breathe.

Sometimes, the best thing for your writing is… not writing. I know it sounds counter-intuitive and it is the last thing I thought would ever come out of my mouth. But sometimes you just need a break.

I’m not saying quit writing altogether. I am saying it can help to step away from a project, or from large projects entirely. Take some time to simply journal, relax your creative mind, and reset. If you find yourself zeroing in on a project so intensely that you can’t see straight, you may need to take a break from it and re-evaluate your perspective. Take a breath, focus on your mental state (make sure you’re getting enough sleep and not kicking yourself for not being perfect), and take some time to write something small, like anything you’ve been thinking about or what you dreamt last night.

Even if you want to keep pushing through that project that seems to be kicking your butt, remember to breathe and take care of yourself. The writing will come.

Click below to follow me on social media:

     

Check out my Etsy shop here and comment below things you would like to see show up there in the future.

Writing Personally

A lot of writers say, “write what you know.” They use it as a mantra, a motto, saying it over and over again. Giving it as advice to other writers as well as themselves. This advice isn’t necessarily wrong or bad, but it should require some clarification and attached warnings.

Writing what you know means different things to different people (hense the needed clarification). Some people mean write in the style/genre you read most or are the most familiar with. Other people mean write characters that you identify with or understand well. Others mean write stories based on your own life experience. Again, none of this is bad advice.

But, a few words of caution: if you write what you know, especially using the last definition, be aware that it may be harder to be content with the outcome.

This is what I’m currently struggling with. I have written a story based closely on some events in my life, events that changed me as a person and, as I grew, changed how I thought about church and faith. I have big plans for this novel. Big motivations. A clear purpose; a strong message. And yet I cannot get it right. I cannot seem to write the story how it appears in my head.

If this were any old story idea, I would be fine with that. I would let the story lead me where it wants to go and let it share what it needed to. But this one is different. It feels like there is so much riding on it; there is a specific story I want to tell out of all this, and yet it can’t ever quite get there.

After I “finished” this novel in May, I gave up on it. I thought I would never touch it again; it would never be published. It would never be good enough. Yet I cannot seem to let it go. I keep going back to my motivations for writing it in the first place (outlined briefly here) and my heart aches thinking that I have these passions about YA and faith coming together and I’m not doing anything about it.

So here I am, frustrated and discontent with my story, yet still trucking through somehow. All that to say, if you have stories you want to tell that mean a lot to you, be prepared to work through them even when it seems impossible.

Click below to follow me on social media:

    

Check out my Etsy shop here and comment below things you would like to see show up there in the future.

Photogenic Stories

Don’t worry.

I’m not going to make any 2020 puns.

But with the new year comes new WIPs, at least for some of us. Or maybe projects that need a re-boot. In the vein of new writing goals and fresh starts, there always has to be something that gets you thinking about what to write. Sometimes that idea is stimulated by a snappy piece of dialogue you come up with in the shower. Other times it’s a random stranger you see in public or a song lyric you hear on your morning run (which we’re all starting to do this year, right?).

One of my favorite ways to get ideas is through photographs. Even the simplest of photos have a story in there somewhere, whether its about the people in the image or the feeling it gives you or any other detail you see. I like looking at photographs and using them as a setting. Not necessarily the literal place, but the emotional place. What kind of vibe does the photo give off? What is the tone? What kind of person would take this photo?

This kind of prompt works well for if you’re just starting (a la mood boards) or if your story needs another layer of something that you aren’t quite sure what it is yet. A simple image can spark any number of ideas, so I encourage you to find some photos and just write about them for a while. You don’t necessarily have to forget about your story and your characters (if they already exist), but feel free to just describe for a while and see where it takes you.

Here are some photos I found that inspired my current WIP, so you can try the exercise with these or find your own pictures.

I can’t wait to hear what you all think of this prompt! Comment below how it goes!

Click below to follow me on social media:

    

Check out my Etsy shop here and comment below things you would like to see show up there in the future.

Some thoughts on inspiration…

This is gonna be lit so hold on to yer britches pals. Lit. As. Heck. -my outward motivation

This blog post is brought to you by my inner motivation. AKA friends who tell you to quit procrastinating and write the dang blog post. (See epitaph).

Sometimes, you need an outside source of motivation that you can pretend is your subconscious. That can be a best friend or even a note you write to yourself for a later date. Sometimes your past self (from two years ago, last week, yesterday…) is the wiser, more inspired, version of you.

This is why writing in a journal, even if you supposedly have “nothing to write.” Sometimes, those random thoughts are the best pieces of wisdom your future self can receive.

That inspiration isn’t always neat handwriting or full sentences on a computer screen. Sometimes its random words riddled with doodles and coffee stains. Sometimes it’s momentary frustration manifesting as poetic bursts and ink blots. But in those moments, dont be afraid to make it messy. Inspiration isn’t always cut and dry. It is fits of emotion and ideas you can’t write down fast enough. Sometimes, in the moment, it doesnt even feel like inspiration, but looking back, they spark a will to write — to create.

A lesson for myself: write always, even if it isn’t entirely full sentences or even words at all. Just write.

Find Celestially Created art and merch Here and click below to follow me on social media:

Holiday Dreamin’

I have a habit of looking into my future and seeing greatness — or a better word for it may be perfection. I look to next year and see my own apartment, an agent-ed novel, a well-stocked kitchen, a successful business. None of these are unattainable goals. A year to obtain all of them? That might be pushing it. But here I am, trying for all of the above simultaneously.

Some may think I’m crazy, but I prefer the word ambitious. The only problem with that word is that it means I like results and I don’t like waiting. I like taking physical steps to achieve my goals and seeing the progress. The problem with that is sometimes, the progress is not visible. I cannot physically see agents’ reactions when they read my queries to determine if I am progressing in that area or not. I cannot see the progress of my business when I am just starting out and doing some trial-and-error marketing. I cannot see the progress of my novel when I’m stuck on a random scene smack in the middle that I simply cannot get on paper.

This can be discouraging, but all that means is, especially during this time of year, I need to sit down with a good cup of coffee and remember what really matters: I’ve come so far from this time last year, I have progressed — I just can’t see it yet, I am blessed beyond belief. God has given me so much and He will provide — even when I cannot see it.

When this season gets stressful and busy and overwhelming, when my bank account reminds me that I now have bills to pay, when I become discouraged by my apparent lack of success, I will remind myself that everything has its purpose and everything will (eventually) fall into place.

Check out my etsy shop for antique books and literary gifts here!

or click below to follow me on social media:

    

Do you word-sprint or word-cross country?

We’re half-way through NaNoWriMo. How’s it going? I’m very far behind, but there’s still time for me to catch up. Maybe. Currently, I’m not sprinting or going slow and steady. I’ve stopped running. (In reality, I’m still running, just not in the novel-ing direction, but that’s besides the point.) The good news is, though, I’m determined to start working on my NaNo project again through some short sprints in hopes that those sprints will help me re-build my writing stamina.

No matter if you’re working on your novel steadily or if you’re like me and need a little boost, writing sprints can be super helpful. Here’s how they work:

Set a timer. 10 minutes, 20 minutes, however long you have.

Set a word-count goal. 100 words if you’re feeling slumped. 500 words if you’re feeling ambitious?

Go. Just write until your timer goes off. Don’t pick up your pen, don’t take your hands off the keyboard, do not pass go do not collect $200. Just focus in and write. Let yourself be surprised when your timer dings.

You can either just write with the timer or you can find a prompt if you’re stuck. @NanoWordSprints on twitter has a ton of word sprint prompts. I’m excited to try this one: “An Explosion. The building explodes. The thing in the microwave explodes. An argument that’s been brewing finally blows up. The secret gets out and minds are blown.”

See you on the other side of this word sprint! Good luck! Comment your thoughts and results below 🙂

Click below to follow me on social media: