Becoming a writer is a journey. It doesn’t happen overnight, though I wish it did. It takes a hell of a lot of work, both of the pen to paper, learning the craft kind, but also of the internal, emotional struggles kind.
I’ve spent a lot of time putting pen to paper (er, fingers to keyboard – god, that just doesn’t have the same poetry, does it?). I’ve completed an 80,000 word first draft, and I’ve revised it once and am currently working on draft three. I’ve even done fits and starts of two other books (another dsytopian novel and my Mississippi** novel, remember that one?).
I’ve also started doing a lot of work of the learning the craft kind. I’ve read dozens of books on the subject, internalizing the lessons of each one and slowly beginning to put them into practice.
The book I’m currently reading is called The Plot Whisperer. It’s a good book on the craft, with some really good exercises to make you look deeply at your plot. But it also forces you to address your own writer’s journey. And in that way, it has inspired today’s post. She asks that you answer the following questions about yourself and I figured, hey, why not answer them on the internet, for the whole word to see? What could be more painful than that??
So here you go: my answers. If you’re feeling up to it, I’d love to hear your answers as well! Continue reading »
