Keep Pushing!

Thought you might like a quick update on the challenges (see here if you don’t know what I’m talking about).

I am gathering info on my topics and have a pretty good idea on how I’m going to approach at least three of the subjects. I’ve also been given two more since the last update: 10 Reasons Why Glasgow is Better Than Edinburgh and Why Asian People are thinner than Western. Yikes, this should keep me busy!

The first post, about my home area, should be arriving in the next few days so keep an eye out. I have to say, this one (which I thought would be the easiest) is actually quite difficult, as I am putting quite high expectations on it. The subjects I’ve started to look into, ukeleles and football, are surprisingly fascinating! Though whether I’ll still be saying that after the World Cup is anyone’s guess. What I could really do with is a video of someone playing football songs on the Ukelele – Three Lions anyone? Kill two birds with one stone. 😉

If anyone’s got any more challenges, keep them coming. Unless they’re time-specific I’ll put them onto the end of the list and work my way through. I suggest subscribing to the blog to stay notified of new posts so you don’t miss your suggested / favourite topic (shameless plug over now). Or you can follow me on twitter: @rebeccaebrown.

Thanks for reading!

Writing Is Hard

For the first time in a while I am feeling good about myself. I finally feel I have a story worth writing and I am determined to actually do it.

It is going to take a long time and a lot of hard work. At the minute for various reasons I am only spending a small amount of time each day on it. I am still building up background and and noting plot points, still figuring out exactly what story I am trying to tell. But the real achievement for me is that I am spending time on it each day. I am thinking about it all the time, I am beginning to see the world of my story open up, and coming from the state I have been in for the past few months this is very exciting.

The crunch will be when I have outlined as much as I feel I can or should, and actually start writing. I need to accept in advance that the first couple of drafts will be poor and there will be parts that I hate. Hopefully there will be parts that I love! But I must not expect to be happy with the first draft, else there will never be a final draft for me to be happy with.

It is easy to question yourself when you have dry times like I have just had. Should I even thinking about writing, my inability to do anything is just making me frustrated and miserable? If I was meant to be a writer, wouldn’t I feel energised and motivated, compelled to write anything and everything constantly? Shouldn’t it be harder to stop me than to start? But I read a few things lately that have made me think twice, and have given me permission to say: writing is hard. It is like alcoholism – acceptance is the first step to recovery. Allowing myself to say that writing is hard allows me to keep restarting, retrying and not give up.

Right now I am actually pretty proud of myself for not giving up – I have kept a journal going, I have restarted my blogs, I have drafted a couple of competition entries, and now I finally have the basis of a novel I think I can do something with. I am putting in some writing time every day, and it is becoming natural, even necessary. I intend to stop feeling guilty that I am making slow progress, and start feeling proud that I am making any. I will let myself work at a comfortable pace now and work up as the words begin to flow better and faster.

Because I think that now I am becoming a writer, and once I get going I will not give up. Individual projects may falter and fail, but my goal will not.