Don't Die Waiting to Write that First Word!

“A writer who waits for ideal conditions under which to work will die without putting a word to paper." -E.B. White

I know too many would-be authors who are waiting for the "perfect time" to start writing. It might be when they finish college or when the kids are grown or when they retire. Others are a little less specific. They say they'll write when they aren't so busy, or have a little more time. Or…when the muse strikes.

Sorry, people! There are no ideal conditions or perfect circumstances, so stop waiting for them before you start writing (I'm saying this with an encouraging smile). :)

 The time to start writing is now. You can carve out an hour a day--or even an hour a week. You can do that hour all at once or you can divide it up into 15-30 minute segments. Really, you can put in at least an hour a week, and you'll be surprised at how even with that minimal amount of time your word count will add up at the end of a month. Get up a little earlier in the morning and write. Or announce (even if it's only to yourself) that Friday evenings from 9-10 is your time for writing, and that's that!

Don't put too much pressure on yourself, though, if you've set "only" an hour a week as your writing time. Tell yourself you have to write only two sentences. 99% of the time you will end up writing much more than that. But on those occasions when two sentences are "it," don't feel bad. That's two more sentences than if you hadn't written anything at all!

You really do have only one life, so the time to start writing is immediately.

 For information about me, my books and my kitties, visit: http://annherrickauthor.com/

Where Do You Get Your Ideas?

Authors often get that question.

Ideas come at all times of day and night. I've had ideas come when I'm in the shower, when I'm driving to the dentist's office, and, often, just as my head hits the pillow when I go to bed. I might see someone at the grocery store whose appearance is something I want to remember, maybe for use as a character.
I've found the only way to remember ideas is to write them down. I have a small notebook with me at all times, and I have them scattered around the house. My dh is now used to me turning the light on right after we've gone to bed so that I can jot down some plot idea, bit of dialogue or description for a setting.
I've rushed a lot of showers so that I can get out in time to write down an idea before I forget it! (Good for water conservation, too.)

Some ideas come from looking at something familiar in a new way, or really looking at my surroundings when I'm at the grocery store, post office or out for a walk in the neighborhood. I have to write down these ideas, or, no matter how good I think they are at the time, they will vanish!

 I clip articles from newspapers and magazines (my own!). I sometimes "borrow" from my own life, or lives of others, with a new twist, of course.
Ideas are everywhere, but they must be "captured" before they disappear!

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