I haven’t been writing like I should, reaching my ten-page-a-day goal. Despite the No Excuses title, I’ll give you my first one: I’m a slow starter. The problem with saying this too often is I start to believe it. I start to live it. But I got the idea for my wip a few weeks before I finished the last book. My two fabulous writer friends, Jill Bevers and Karen Miller, helped me with the plot. I had time to think about the characters, and it’s a fun story that I’m eager to write. So that excuse is shot down.
My second excuse: I went to the WisRWA Mad About Romance conference that Liz wrote about. Three days off may as well be three months for me. I’m back from the conference and I’m starting again. Except … I pitched during the conference. The agent asked for a partial of my wip. My goal was to send the partial out the Monday after the conference. I went over my synopsis and my first three chapters at least a half dozen times. I got the partial in the mail, but I was too wiped out to start writing something different.
Yesterday I still couldn’t write. (I’m writing this early, on Wednesday, although it will be posted Thursday). But the editor’s hat from the day before was stuck to my head. So I went over the first six chapters. I polished, I cut, and I’m pretty happy with them–until I got to the last couple pages. Before I left for the conference, I knew something was wrong. Somewhere I’d taken a wrong turn in the last scene. Last night I figured out what the problem was. That’s the first step. Then I had to figure out how to fix it.
So I did what I usually do. I ate chocolate. I opened my email.
The fix came to me last night as I was about to go to bed. So that meant this morning I had NO EXCUSES! I’m back, I’m going to write. I’m in a BIAW for the entire month of June. Before I left for the conference, I put down my weekly goals in the group database. I’m determined to meet–to exceed–these goals. If I have to squeeze the words out of my veins, letter by letter, I WILL DO IT. Today I will write 10 pages.
What’s your writing goal? Today, this week, or this month? Are you going to meet it?
Just a note to let you know we’re doing something different at Magical Musings every fourth Saturday. The other three Saturdays we’ll still put up reviews, but one week out of four, starting June 17th, we’ll ask three published writers questions and post their answers. It should be fun. 
Oh, Edie, I’ve been dragging my heels, too! I’ve got the ideas–they are all ready to go in my head, but sitting down and typing those ideas onto the computer…I just haven’t done it! So, I’ll put down a goal for today–maybe that will help me get my butt in gear so I can finish up this WIP! Ten pages–before midnight.
I feel the same, Edie. I just dreaded sitting down to write the last couple of days. I think I’m through the worst though, no matter waht I did at least a page every day I didn’t want to do anything, usually more than a page, because I deleted so much
lol, I hear you, Edie. During my deadline hell I couldn’t wait to put that story to bed. I did, Monday, sent that baby off to NYC, and now, three days later? I’m dying to get back to another story.
Your story will pour out when you work it out in your head.
Hey, Cynthia! Congrats on your 4 1/2 star rating from RT! I was really excited when I saw that.
Michelle and Karin, you both know that the sad thing is I now have to stop and go back to figure things out with my book. So my forward progress is stopped once again.
But no sense whipping out the pages when I’m going in the wrong direction.
Thanks, Edie!
And here’s hoping you can get back on track, in the right direction (and, oh, but I’ve gone in the wrong direction a few too many times, too!).
Cynthia, after a lot of reflection, I decided the plot is okay, it’s the characters that aren’t. I’m not writing them with enough depth. I took the day off, and tomorrow I’ll start from the beginning and see if I can make the characters and the story sing.