November is all about Discipline on The Lit Coach's Guide to The Writer's Life. Those of you participating in NaNoWriMo know what I'm talking about, right? But Discipline means more than sitting down to write; rather, it's a collection of positive, productive habits practiced on a daily basis that ultimately lead to your own success. We'll explore what all this means in detail this month. I'm rounding up your questions for another session of Q&A with The Lit Coach! Please send me ONE question about anything pertaining to writing, the writer's life, publishing, literary agents and I'll do my best to answer them at the end of this month.
New Lit Coach Services page has been added on TLCG. Check out my services menu and let me know how I can best help you!
Have a great weekend, writers!
TLC
Dear Ms. Reel,
ReplyDeleteI was hoping you wouldn't mind if I asked another question by comment.
Anyways, I'm trying to write for NaNoWriMo, but I'm having trouble focusing, because all these new plot ideas keep appearing in my head! See, I was going to sit down and write one novel, but then a few days into my writing I get this new plot idea. It's not nearly as developed, so I decided to work on it later, but now the idea won't leave me alone. I don't want to abandon the developed plot, or risk not having the motivation to actually get down and write the new one once I develop the plot (NaNoWriMo isn't for another year, after all). So it seems obvious I write the developed plot...except I just can't get the new one out of my head, which influences my writing of the good, planned plot.
It isn't really a question, I suppose...basically, I'm asking, "If I get a new idea I like a lot, should I switch to work on it, or stick with the well developed plot I'm suddenly not as excited about, but know I can do a good job with?"
Thanks a lot!
-Anon
I was wondering about your query letter critiquing service. I believe I read that you do that...
ReplyDeleteAnon, that is a tough question. Since you're wrapped up in NaNoWriMo, I'll address this now. I'm all for finishing things I've started, but when we're talking about storytelling...tell the story that's most authentic to you and you're truly passionate about! You may have to spend some time outlining plot and figuring out your characters, but once you do that you may find your writing will flow more smoothly and swiftly than if you were to write something you are less excited about.
ReplyDeleteThat said, NaNoWriMo is a great exercise in discipline in terms of getting something down on paper - don't expect perfection.
Good Luck!
Cathy, yes I do offer query letter and synopsis review, critique and direction. However, I highly recommend the full manuscript critique service which includes query and synopsis review and critique. You can have a great pitch and synopsis but if your novel or nonfiction proposal doesn't deliver what was promised in your pitch, you've lost your opportunity.
ReplyDeleteI'll update my services page to reflect that, but you can also email me to discuss this further.
Thanks!