Many of our readers are also writers. Or they want to be. If you are among them, you have probably already read at least a dozen or more books about writing, covering everything from plotting, themes, characterization, technique, grammar, formatting, etc. But the real question still remains: How to get it done? How to find the time to write? How to start the process? How to get your butt into the chair and keep it there?Here are a few simple answers that might help: 

Let the world know you are a writer: Being a writer doesn’t mean you have already published a book, or a novel, or a collection of short stories. It merely means that you write -- often, consistently, and with passion. No one asks a biker if he competes in the Tour de France. No one asks a jogger if they have been in the Olympics. No one asks a golfer if they plan to play in the Masters. You write, therefore you are a writer. Dare to tell the world.

Assume that you are going to write: Sometime soon, today, tomorrow, this week, you are going to sit down to write. Make that a fixed assumption. Not a nebulous promise to yourself. Not a tenuous wish. You know you are going to write.

Make a plan to write: Once upon a time I was a professional runner, and a great coach instilled in me that I should plan to train at the same time every day. So it becomes a habit. I often found myself dressed and out on the road without really thinking about it. This happens with writing or any other activity. Set the time of day when you can find time to write, and then keep that as your writing time. Soon you will find yourself at your desk writing, before you are even aware you’re doing it.

Volunteer to write anything: The more writing you do, the better you will become. Volunteer to write for the local neighborhood news rag, or as the secretary for an organization, or something important for a friend, etc. You will be organizing your thoughts, using words, improving your grammar, making a written document clear to others. All of this will eventually be reflected in your fiction, your creative non-fiction, your memoirs, maybe even your poetry.  I wrote an obituary this week, the first time in 20 years of writing. It tested my writing skills.  

Rewriting is writing: Don’t feel guilty if you spent your precious time rewriting one of your earlier efforts instead of writing something new. You are improving your skills. working your words. No matter what you have just written, or just rewritten, it will need more rewriting. Trust me on this. Learn to live with it. But then learn to move on to something new.

Researching is not writing. It is fun to find out about whaling ships in the 1800’s. Or how forensic professionals really do their job. But all of it is a distraction from writing. Learn a little, then move on, and come back to it when you think you need more. You’re at your desk to write, not to obtain a PhD in whaling. 

Find a deadline. Nothing inspires the writing adrenaline like a deadline. Submit to a contest that you care about, or an anthology that closes on a fixed date, or commit to an editor at an e-zine, or a literary mag, or a magazine, or newspaper.  A public commitment, staring you in the face, will always get your juices rolling.   

Happy writing! In the meantime, enjoy our summer issue.

In this issue: Our theme this issue is Fireworks. Our featured writer is Michael Mohr who writes about a time when fireworks were the last thing his characters wanted. Caroline Taylor and Pat Jeanne Davis bring us fireworks of a more personal kind in their stories in &More. Poet Diane Sismour gives us a patriotic and thoughtful piece. Our interview is with the charismatic USA Today bestselling romance author Caroline Lee. And, of course, Betty Wryte-Goode brings us her musings about writing and life. 

But DO NOT MISS the wonderful 2nd and 3rd place stories from our 2017 SHORT STORY AWARD competition from Leigh Saunders and Eleanor Ingbretson respectively. We are happy to feature both in this issue. 

We hope you enjoy some lazy summer hours to peruse all of these offerings.

Michael Mohr

1.      Impatience: I’d say 85 percent of the clients I work with desire to do one quick edit and then be done. I always remind them that writing a novel or memoir is a serious decision and it requires diligence, craft, and time. It is not uncommon to work with a dedicated writer for 1-2 years before attempting to publish or acquire an agent.

2.      Ignorance related to the book industry: Do your research. Know what path you’d like to take. Do you want to self-publish? Get a vanity publisher? Small-medium press? Would you like to try the traditional path, aka, attempt to snag a literary agent?

3.      Getting defensive about commentary: Always remember that this is your manuscript. Not mine. I am here to help. Take what works and leave the rest. I am always open to answering questions. One positive about hiring a book editor is that, as the author you’ve lost objectivity. You need a second set of objective, professional eyes to see what is working and what isn’t.

4.      Hearsay about the industry or writing process: Many clients come my way—usually via word of mouth—and sometimes they come with assumptions which are false. Since 2000, the internet has made blogs and self publishing and submitting to agents much, much easier. Too easy in my opinion. There is a massive influx of materials; literary “white noise.” Along with this chaos comes many claims of “how to write,” “how to submit,” “how to get edited,” etc. How do you trust anyone? Trust your gut. Get a second opinion. Ask a published writer friend, etc. Question the price of editing. Do internet research but don’t rely solely on that.

5.      Using outliers as examples for, say, writing a 150,000 word YA novel: Yes, some authors who are famous, and some who are published but not famous, have broken all kinds of accepted “rules,” including word count, etc. Those are the exceptions. For the most part, for debut authors, keep it within the general box. Later, you can break established norms.

6.      Wanting editing to be done in a few days: It depends on the length of your novel or memoir but, for the most part, it will take me usually anywhere between 1-3 weeks to complete a book edit, sometimes longer, and possibly up to six weeks, though that is less likely, unless I am very busy and/or the MS is extraordinarily long. I do this full time, for a living, so I have other projects. Book editing is a craft, like writing.

7.      Getting frustrated by a lot of commentary and a long editorial letter: Same thing as the above point. Writing a book-length project is hard. It requires a lot of effort and talent. So does the editing side. And the revision side. Revision is incredibly important and necessary in book writing. I have written six books and edited dozens. Writing is rewriting, as they say. Don’t be daunted by a 10-page, single-spaced editorial letter and 10,000 added words a la my commentary on your MS (rather common); instead, jump in and start editing!

8.      Believing that your first, second, or third draft [of your book] is ready to go: Certainly I will work with your fresh novel or memoir if I feel we’re a good fit and I think there’s a clear path to completion and landing with a publication-ready work. But I would prefer books which have been worked on and vetted for a few years, which have been rewritten and tightened and tinkered with, etc. I can come in, we can do a few steady revisions, and then we can try to get your baby out there into the world!

9.      Attempting to write the latest [genre or otherwise] trends: Write what’s in your heart and head. Speak your literary truth. Go for it! Industry trends change every few months or year/two so you might as well write what’s inside of you anyway! Chasing trends will rarely (if ever) be satisfying on a deep, core level.

10.  Being afraid to dig down deep, emotionally, in your prose: Dig deep! Don’t be afraid to challenge the status quo, to say what’s on your mind, even (especially!) if it’s unconventional or apart from the socially accepted “contract.” We need divergent voices. Marginalized voices. All voices.