Tag: writer

How do other authors struggle with writing?

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There is an assumption that published authors have an easy time writing books. Not true.

Writers do need to write though.

They may systemize parts of the series of books they write. They may have techniques to keep them writing. They may use assistants to help organize or assist them virtually.

Writing is hard because almost no writers will ever write once and publish exactly what they wrote.

Editing and rewriting can seemingly take forever.

Here are a few known writers who wrote about the struggle of writing and how to overcome these struggles:

How do I: deal with writer’s block

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Someone asked me recently how do I deal with writer’s block and what is the opposite of it.

Hypergraphia is the opposite of writer’s block.

As a writer, you probably don’t want writer’s block nor hypergraphia. Something in between works well. 

Some writers claim there is no such thing as writer’s block, just as much as no one suffers from speaker’s block (let us assume this is not public speaking which many people are afraid of).

There is a lot of reasons why writers find it hard to write sometimes. Author Steven Pressfield wrote about these challenges, excuses, remedies, and struggles in The War of Art. Note this is not by Sun Tzu who wrote The Art of War, but that is a good read as well.

Besides focus, the structure is often one of those missing elements that may be a common blocker in the writing process. The structure can be used as building blocks for your project and help guide you to what still needs work. Without a structure, it is like creating a building with no plans and no timeline which would not work out well for any existing budget nor sanity. That structure may include an outline that becomes a table of contents. That structure can be fluid (like water) as contents expand and flexible (like bamboo) as it grows more mature and hopefully clear to what it’s for and who’s it for. You can use a mindmap to link ideas together. You can use timelines with multiple swimlanes to figure out time frames for events with each character. These tools will help you fill gaps in your book project.

Don’t waste your time. Schedule your writing time daily. Make your book project a daily habit for as little as 30 minutes a day when you have available time, energy, and ideas flowing.

Take that massive book project which is likely a big hairy audacious goal (BHAG) and break that structure down into finite timely achievable goals (FTAGs). Each goal is a series of doable steps.

Perfect is not an achievable goal, so move on from the myth of perfect and just ship it.

How do you deal with writer’s block?

For help with your own book project, schedule consulting time online with Henrik de Gyor today

Low Country Non-Fiction Writers 2018 Meeting Dates

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Having started Low Country Non-Fiction Writers with a great venue like the Bluffton Community Library, these are the 2018 meeting dates, topics and links:

January 16 – Tips On How To Write Your Own Book – Henrik de Gyor (audio, slides)
February 20 – Self-Publishing Explained – Henrik de Gyor (audio, slides)
March 20 – Marketing Your Book – Chris Groote and Jamie Gilleland (audio, slides)
April 24 – Book Editing – James Mallory (audio, slides)
May 15 – Distribution – Rockelle Henderson (audio, handout)
June 19 – Creating your own audiobook – Henrik de Gyor (audio, slides)
July 17 – Researching your book – Henrik de Gyor (audio, slides)
August 21 – Marketing for authors and speakers – Garry Johnson (video)
NOTE: As of September 2018, there are no further meetings scheduled until further notice due to time and travel constraints of the organizers. Enjoy the links to slides and recordings above.
#LCNFW

Starting Low Country Non-Fiction Writers

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Since moving to Bluffton, South Carolina a few months ago, I researched and visited a number of writers groups in the area, including the Island Writers’ Network (IWN) of Hilton Head Island and South Carolina Writers Association (SCWA). Attended a few their meetings and met a small number of non-fiction writers like myself. There are other groups I have not attended since I don’t live in Charleston like Rough Writers

Most writers I’ve met in the Lowcountry are fiction writers. This is not uncommon especially in the land Pat Conroy made famous among other authors.

A few other [unnamed] writers groups were more interested in upselling their membership dues instead of forming a local chapter to provide support and value to writers.

So I saw a gap in the market beyond myself where other non-fiction writers were underrepresented and underserved. After speaking with another local non-fiction writer named Roy Austin, we decided to start the Low Country Non-Fiction Writers (LCNFW) to meet monthly at the Beaufort County library which also supports and promotes our meetings to their own patrons.

All experience levels welcome. You don’t have to be published yet to join. We will have some networking among writers and share resources.

Our first meeting is scheduled on Tuesday January 16, 2018 from 6 pm to 7 pm at the Bluffton Community Library in Bluffton, SC. All are welcome and the meetings are free of charge.

We will meet monthly and future meetings will be announced shortly.

Click on the library poster below for our 1-hour schedule.

LCNFW-1

Special Thanks to the Bluffton Community Library for their support.

#LCNFW