Getting Excited for NaNo & What I'm Writing for It

It's that time of year, when writer's across America get revved up for National Novel Writing Month in November. We call it NaNo for short. Otherwise the month is over before we can even tell you what that means. 

It means, those of us crazy enough to participate attempt to write 50,000 words in 30 days or less! 

For me it's always less, due to weekends and holidays. I don't write during those days.Which begs the question, why do they pick a month with a major holiday in it? *scratches head* Not to mention Black Friday and the count down kick off to Christmas when we all start putting up the decorations, etc. Why not pick January and give us the extra day? 

Anyhow, this will be my third year to participate. I've pulled it off twice now successfully (and have 2 completed novels to show for it) I've marked on the calendar how many thousands of words I have to write each day, taking into account the aforementioned, plus kids appointments, husband's days off, etc. It's a little daunting, but on most days I only have to pound out 2-3K so it is doable. And I've started the outline. 

I'm actually excited about writing. It's been nearly a year since I did. Editing and formatting don't count. Necessary to producing a book, but not at all the same as writing!

But what to write about with so many ideas swirling about in my head?

I put fingers to keyboard (instead of pen to paper) and typed out a few cover blurbs to choose from for this year's project. 

I settled on Silver Star. Can't steal my title, it's already copyrighted. ;)

Here's the rough version of the blurb I'll submit to NaNo:

Country superstar Sara Silver has it all: fame, fortune, and a mantel full of Grammys. She also has a string of chart topping heartbreak songs to go with them -- all based on her bad luck with romance, which makes for great songs, but a miserable love life.

With her parents example of a working happy marriage as a guiding star, Sara should have no problem finding Mr. Right. Except, there seems to be a gap between finding a guy and finding the right guy to call hers forever. Somehow, that bit of wisdom wasn’t imparted to her before her mother’s death. And now Sara wonders if maybe she’ll never find love. Maybe she is destined to walk this life alone.

There’s also the problem of her recording label considering moving onto the “next big thing” if she doesn’t come up with another hit album and soon, like yesterday. After all, she’s been at this for ten years. Maybe she’s all washed up.

Exiled to a ranch in Wyoming to work out her music, or else, Sara determines not to let anything distract her...and then she meets Cal. Could he be the one to inspire her music and fill the empty hole in her heart or is he just another broken heart ballad waiting to happen?

Sound like something you'd want to read?

Comment below with a yes or no. Or better yet, share your own NaNo project. Good luck on your 50K!

Be sure and check out my NaNo tips on my blog:

http://www.lisaswinton.blogspot.com

Growing a Thick Skin ...

When I was a little girl, I was somewhat fascinated by a bump my mother had on the side of her middle finger. She explained to me that it was a callus that formed from holding a pen and writing letters. For some reason, I thought that was the coolest thing, and I wanted one too. As I got older, I was excited to see that I was developing one. It was like a badge of honor, the mark of one who writes.

Then I started typing more than writing, and eventually, I was using a computer for 99% of all my writing-related tasks. Pens were more for taking notes and writing to-do lists, and my callus began to shrink. Now, it's barely noticable at all.

We develop calluses to protect us from friction. The pen presses against the finger, and the skin of the finger hardens to create a protection. Sometimes we do the same thing emotionally - put up a wall to protect us from the harshness of the world. This can be a good thing, or it can be negative.

Think about the word "callous." It's related to "callus," but it's not a noun. It describes a state of being - "She was callous about her treatment of the sick dog." It means that someone has walled themselves off so much that they don't feel proper emotions. This can lead to damaged relationships and the inability to hear the Spirit when it speaks.

When I look down at this bump on my finger that has all but disappeared now, I remember this analogy. I want to be strong enough to withstand negative things that come my way, but I never want to wall myself off so much that I can't feel those subtle things like happiness and inspiration.

Just a thought for the day.

Writing Sex

by H. Linn Murphy

Recently I read a question on the ANWA Facebook page about sex selling. It's a topic I've been thinking about for a long time.

I read extensively. I read a variety of genres and time periods. That's also how I write. I put pen to the page and write what hits me. I am a storyteller. I write truths.

I thought back over several of my favorite books and series. It's anything from Lord of the Rings to Pride and Prejudice to Martian Chronicles to Elizabeth Hayden's books, Book of Mormon to How to Stay Alive in the Woods and A Light in the Forest. From Runemaster to Dangerous Favor to First Year Latin. Through out all of those books a single thread runs: No sex, no bad language. There is some violence (in the Book of Mormon of all places and among others) but it's not graphic.

I'll say it again. No sex. No bad language. It's trash. We don't need it to tell the story. If it's a story that cannot stand without sex, it isn't worth telling. What needs to come out is the truth of that story--the truth of the character. And that can happen without letting fly with the exact swear word put to paper. It can fly without telling us about falling zippers.

I thought about what I'd do if a publisher insisted. Then I made a decision. No. I won't do it. I don't write that kind of trash. I'm not saying my books don't contain some tense situations. They do. But I'm trying very hard to write books I'd want my kids to read.

I say this: Don't buy into the false ideology that if it isn't 59 Shades of Murk it won't sell. That's what those who are working for the Destroyer want you to think and to help them peddle. This is the deal. If your publisher insists that you have to add sex scenes for it to be real, hit the highway. Because he's lying to you. Otherwise Jane Austen wouldn't be selling a single book. Every one of her books has sold millions of copies, been made into movies, audiobooks etc. Even Mansfield Park, my least favorite. And not a single one had an ounce of sex in it. We were hard pressed to read about a single kiss.

In actuality, the Church has recently come out with information labeling romances with heavy sex in them pornography. That's right. There are now addiction classes for sex-filled romance.

I personally know of at least one instance where the wife got addicted to reading steamy romances. She bought them by the ton and read them non-stop--even on the way to church and the temple! She is now, because of those books, looking at the back end of a four year separation and a vitriolic divorce. Those books actually changed the chemistry of her brain. They change how a person looks, feels, and acts about the real act and about love. It renders a person incapable of recognizing real love. I've seen that first hand.

Bad language clogs our brains so that the Spirit cannot enter. It sits in our minds like silt, waiting to bog down any good thoughts and fill us with darkness.

Be the shining light. Be that huge beacon on the hill. Blaze forth with REAL love, REAL sacrifice. A REAL story for the ages.

Positive Portrayals of Women in Writing

I attended Salt Lake Comic Con this last weekend and I had the opportunity to be a part of four different panels. I enjoyed each of them, but I think the one that stuck with me the most was the last one I attended. It was called Positive Portrayals of Women in Pop Culture.

I was the only writer on the panel, while the other women came from different podcasts. They were more into pop culture and the latest and greatest television shows, while I was involved because of the characters in my books. I worried that I wouldn’t fit in or have a clue what to say among them, but I found that we had a lot more common ground than I’d first expected.

One thing that stuck out to me the most was that we made sure to point out over and over again that a positive portrayal is not simply making the female the super tough heroine who needs no one because she can win the battle herself. It was more about bringing depth to those characters and making them real.

As the different women spoke of their favorite shows and why they liked those female characters, I had time to reflect on the books I write. I thought of each of the main characters and why they were “strong” to me. I realized that it was their flaws and their need to get through their obstacles that made them who they were. Am I perfect at getting those characters down? Probably not, but I want to do my best to build someone who girls can relate to and want to be like.

Each of us have our own voice, our own likes and dislikes, our own backgrounds. We as writers need to make sure that we provide those same attributes for the characters in our stories.

So what does this have to do with portraying strong women? Or the girls in younger books? Everything. It’s not about making them tough enough to win a battle. It’s about making them strong enough to be the daughter or the best friend, or yes, the hero by showing who they really are. Give them a backstory, fears, and a reason to go on. Let’s make them strong by allowing them learn and be a better person than when the story began.

Think of your favorite villains who share their backstories. Maleficent’s movie showed her love turning on her and stealing her wings, causing her to lose everything. The stepmother in the new Cinderella movie only wanted love and comfort and watched the stepdaughter she’d tried to squash, get exactly what she wanted.

Think of your heroes. Hermione used her book smarts, her wit, and the strength of her friends to fight, but also to help Harry and Ron survive. Katniss was tough, yes, but she also stepped in to protect her family so her sister wouldn’t have to be part of the games. Aurora won Maleficent over by her love, her smile, and her kindness. Black Widow is a tough fighter who knew nothing else as she grew up, but when it comes down to it, kindness is what makes her the person I admire. The way she handles Hulk to calm him down, touches my heart every single time.

If you need tough females to make your story work, do it. But give her both the flaws and the strengths to make her the best person she can be.

Would You Like a Hug?

It seems lately like I'm surrounded by the discussion of hugs, both giving and getting them.  An author friend on facebook discussed whether or not hugging strangers at writing conferences was weird, and at church we laughed together as another friend hugged me and my sister-in-law, but excluded my brother-in-law.  I realized that even though this brother-in-law is a friend and like a blood sibling to me, I don't think I've ever hugged him.  Maybe at his wedding?

When to give hugs and how to give them can be complicated.  Sometimes we're in the awkward position of getting a hug we don't want, or aren't comfortable with.  I'm generally the type to pass them out fairly freely, but I'll admit there's been times when I realized halfway into the hug that maybe it wasn't such a great idea.  And then there was the first time a guy I didn't know well did the European air kiss thing, to the sides of my cheeks.  I wasn't expecting it, and probably looked like he'd leaned in and checked my nose for loose hairs!

If you're one who prefers personal space, here are a few tips for avoiding unwanted hugs:

• Watch your arm movements.  If you approach a group with your arms up and waving excitedly, it can look like you're opening them up big for a hug.
• As you and the person approach, extend both hands but keep them close together.  With your elbows tucked in to your sides, reach for their hand, and give it a warm shake or pat.  This will help you seem welcoming and make clear you're happy to see them, but avoid the hug.
• This can also be adapted to situations where you're standing still and someone approaches but is getting in your personal space.  You extend your hand to shake hands with them, then once the hands are clasped you keep your arm extended and stiff while stepping back.  This gives you the space you're looking for by literally keeping them at arm's length.
• If they surprise you with the hug you can still turn it into the 'half hug' of an arm around the shoulder by pivoting as they step in, perhaps to introduce a friend, or point out something around you.  Potentially awkward, but perhaps less so than the un-welcomed hug.
• Similarly, as a friend is approaching and obviously going for a hug, you can extend your arm to welcome them in a half hug while opening your other arm to extend to another friend.  This makes for a looser group hug and once again creates a bit of distance.

It would be nice if we all came with 'hug radar' and could tell when someone wanted a hug, and they could see the same in us!  What's your preference?  When you see a friend after a week or two's absence, or run into an old critique partner at a conference, do you go in for the hug?  And do you have any tactics you've learned for when to give them, or how to avoid them when you don't want them?  I'd love to hear them!  In fact...I'd probably give you a hug. ;)

Cleaning out the Closet=Liberation

A few months back I stumbled on a blog by a mom in Texas who mentioned another blog. Long story short, it was about narrowing your wardrobe to a select few pieces for each season. Here are the #s. 

15 tops

9 bottoms (pants/skirt mix)

2 dresses 

2 jackets

Now, items in the wardrobe not counted are underwear, bras, workout apparel, swim suits, belts, shoes (though I think she tried to stick to 5-9 or something like that), and accessories e.g. jewelry, pins, scarves, etc. 

She had a budget for each season, some of which weren't economically feasible for me. I think I spend about $200 a year, maybe. She also had a rule, if she bought something new, then she had to get rid of something old, keeping the numbers steady. 

For months, I've been curious if I could take on this challenge and pare down my closet, which was stuffed and overflowing. While I opted to not restrict the number of clothes by each season, (I thought I might have an stroke if I attempted it) I did do a thorough clean out. I especially couldn't keep to the 2 dresses rule. I attend church every Sunday in a dress or skirt so I needed more. 

I set a goal, time frame, and used it toward a Personal Progress Value Project which require 10 hours of work to be completed. This is part of a church program we have for teen girls age 12-18. I work with these awesome young ladies and have been working on earning my own medallion of completion, so it was a total win-win. Good example, project complete, my closet got clean, and then I offered the girls to raid my cast offs (after my daughter was done calling dibs), as they are always on the lookout for modest apparel. Maybe that's a win-win-win-win. In any case I haven't found a downside yet. Unless you count the fact that I tried to sell my in-good-condition clothes to a second hand store and they declined citing the garments were too upscale. Apparently they disagree that not all teens want to look like they rolled out of bed. 

Anyways, you're probably wondering how cleaning out a closet could possibly take 10 hours. Well, when you count trying everything on, sorting, attempt to sell, inviting girls to raid, and getting rid of the leftovers, it comes out about right. Plus it's a walk-in closet. 

Unfortunately I didn't take any before pictures. 

Just know my racks were crammed, shelves brimming, and not a place of serenity. Not a happy space for an organizational queen. 

I did take pics of after. 

The one you see of the overflowing basket with items next to it is what I got rid of. It doesn't look like much in the picture but it actually fills 2 large black lawn bags and is half my wardrobe. Charity is going to be so lucky!

I don't have a dresser so I use horizontal shelves instead. Of the bins, one is now empty. 

 

Next comes the half hanging with shoes underneath. I tried hard to get rid of shoes, but wasn't very successful. There are 35-40 pairs there including the boots. I was able to donate the castoffs to a charity program that recycles them. Soles for souls or something like that. I went through my jewelry and handbags too. 

Then there is the back section for long items and coats. I got all the miscellaneous papers, books, and stuff that didn't belong in my closet, and found them appropriate homes elsewhere. See all those empty hangers!

Now when I walk into my closet I know whatever I grab 1) fits me, 2) is something I love to wear, & 3) generally looks good with any number of combinations of outfits I can put together. 

I made sure to not just keep neutrals either. You have to have color each season. Who gets excited about wearing endless combinations of khaki, brown, navy, and black? No one. 

It has been wonderful to get rid of the burden of sagging shelves of clothes I wasn't using or didn't fit anymore, or clothes that did fit but made me feel frumpy. 

I still think there's some more paring down I can do. Items that fell into the maybe list. If they still haven't seen the light of day in a year, or if I don't really love them the next time I wear them, then I'll donate those as well. The charity store never closes. Besides, do I really need 4 pairs of brown heels? Navy shoes? Probably not. 

Now, some of you may be thinking, "This is a great idea!" and it is. But then you might be tempted to think, "Now she can go shop for new clothes and refill her closet! Lucky girl!" And that's where you'd be wrong. 

I don't want to add items and get back to where I was before the closet purge. I'm inclined to follow the other bloggers rule of item in - item out. 

Will I ever get down to the ambitious numbers stated at the beginning of this post. Maybe not. But if I feel lightened and liberated now, think how amazing that would feel. 

Are you up for the closet challenge? 

Mommy Overwhelm

There are times when it feels like being a mother is far too hard. We're supposed to feed them (all organic, no sugar), clothe them (in things we sewed ourselves using all manmade materials - recycled, no less), take them to the park, teach them their ABCs before they're born, have them reciting the Declaration of Independence before they're two, and always, always keep the house spotless in the meantime.

Of course, that's an exaggeration, but it's sure how it feels sometime.

And yet, you know what? That's not our greatest, most important task . Our most important task is to teach our children the gospel. The Lord doesn't care if we have eight dishes in the sink or if our children ate peanut butter and jelly for lunch instead of a tuna salad made from tuna we caught ourselves in the river flowing by our house. He cares that we love them, and that we are teaching them the most important things they can ever know - how to return to Him someday.

I find that when I keep my focus on the eternities, it becomes so much easier to keep the little tasks of today in perspective. And if someone comes by my house and sees a messy living room, I'm relatively certain it won't be the end of the world.