Tag: Writing (Page 2 of 2)

Writing Contest

August 4, 2020 / Gail Lowe

I hope July treated you well. For me, it was a month of firsts. I entered my first short-story contest. Then I got my first rejection notice.

The experience was a wild combination of excitement and disappointment that taught me a few things about my writerly self.

Not all stress is bad:

I’m not competitive by nature and I avoid deadlines. I left that world behind years ago and have never looked back. But the contest provided a tight timeline which reminded me that I focus well under stress.

Set boundaries:

Having a short period of time to create my ultimate short story, I carved out the time needed and let everyone know that my writing time was non-negotiable. In short, I put myself first and no one had a problem with that.

Disappointment is a symptom:

The disappointment I felt receiving that rejection notice surprised me. This was my first contest. Did I really expect to knock it out of the park? That would have been awesome, however, no, I didn’t expect a home run.

My goal was to be a part of something exciting. So what was the real reason for feeling let down? It took me a day to figure it out. Working on something new felt great. Not making it to the next round meant I had to return to my novel project.

Variety equals creativity: I love my novel but the redrafting process has started to feel like all work and no play. Participating in the contest resulted in an unexpected boost of energy to write again. This goes against ideas like “finish what you start” and “don’t spread yourself too thin”. Narrowing my creative energy to the completion of one thing had encouraged cobwebs to grow inside my brain. Working on something new cleared them out.

No fresh stimulus In.

No new Ideas out.

– Duncan Wardle

Entering that contest gave me a new plan of attack. Never again will I underestimate the power of trying something new. Cobweb-free, I’m heading into August with plans of world domination.

It Starts with an Idea

June 8, 2020 / Gail Lowe

by Gail Lowe

Sometimes it drops into your mind complete with ribbon and bow.

Sometimes you get a picture, a few words, and your mind has to chase the story down one sentence at a time.

It doesn’t matter how it arrives.

It’s what you do with it.

I’m an expert daydreamer. I feel quite comfortable claiming the status because I’ve clocked way more than the recommended 10,000 hours that Malcolm Gladwell wrote about in Outliers. Apparently, experts are disputing the 10,000-hour-claim, but I have been watching Malcolm on Master Class, and I like his style, so I’m going with what Malcolm says*.

*See, Malcom and I are now on a first-name basis. Lean in… I’m whispering:

You can do that when the other person doesn’t know you exist.

Anyhoo, back to the topic at hand…oh yes, daydreaming. I think my muse has more access to me when I’m daydreaming or doing things that empty my mind and make room for extraordinary ideas to come through. I have this image of two muses sitting in a boat on a celestial lake with fishing rods. One muse pipes up and says to the other: “Got one!” I think some creative force is always out there fishing, waiting for us creative types to take a bite.

It’s what happens after we take that bite that separates the starters from the finishers. Ideas have to be developed. Daydreaming alone isn’t going to get the job done. I figured that out the hard way, and now I’m working towards my 10,000 hours as a finisher. My muse checks in every once in a while to see how I’m doing. I appreciate that immensely.

I have also discovered that there are amazing creative types here on earth, ready to help:

The Alexandra Writers Centre Society is where I started (www.alexandrawriters.org).
Libraries and librarians are master connectors.
MasterClass is amazing (www.masterclass.com).
Established authors such as Brandon Sanderson have resources available. He is one of many who offer online classes.
The Corner Lot Author Olyn Ozbick (@OlynOzbick) is working to connect writers in search of writing groups, online.
Wordfest (wordfest.com) and When Words Collide (WhenWordsCollide.org) are gatherings and more recently offer online resources and connections for aspiring authors. Here you can ask and approach agents, publishers, established authors, and fellow writers. (All of this is just a glimpse of what I have discovered so far.)

But first, it starts with an idea.

So, the next time your muse is out fishing, why not take a bite?

Writing Can Be Murder

April 27, 2020 / Gail Lowe

by Gail Lowe

“How to Commit the Perfect Murder was an old game in heaven. I always chose the icicle: the weapon melts away.”
– Alice Sebold, The Lovely Bones

I’m figuring out how to commit murder.

The method and weapon still elude me although I have decided on the location and time of day. Disposal of the body is still a problem. I researched for hours only to discover I had to narrow down my options. Sometimes there’s just way too much information on the Internet.

Does anyone monitor my Internet usage? I have a chapter ready to show the police when they knock on my door. Will they even knock?

Sci-fi fantasy purged from a black heart – Gail Lowe

I must have a black heart for the terrible things I put my protagonist through. But since comedy doesn’t seem to flow onto the page, I settle for drama and find myself smiling when I get it right.

Danger is just so interesting, and making people look over their shoulders is a sign of success

“She had always found villains more exciting than heroes. They had ambition, passion. They made the stories happen.” – Soman Chainani, The School for Good and Evil

I write my villains late at night. When everyone has gone to bed and the hallways have shadows. A good villain makes the story. A great villain gives me goosebumps. I know when I’m turning on the lights and checking all the doors that I’m getting close.

You would never know it looking at me — that I commanded a Condor to rip the scalp off a man’s head.

But really, he had it coming so it didn’t bother me at all.

Hopefully we share a love of writing, reading, and my favourite: Day-dreaming. I get carried away daily, in whatever direction my mood is facing.