Angela Booth's Writing Blog

What inspires you?

Writing is much more fun, and it's easier too, when you're inspired. Your writing flows, like water along a burbling stream.

A writer contacted me yesterday, asking about inspiration, and my first inclination was to pooh-pooh it. "Inspiration? That's for wimps!" I grumbled. After all, writers write. Whether you're a full-time or part-time writer, if you hang about waiting for inspiration, you'll be a very skinny writer.

Then I thought about it... It occurred to me that somewhere along the line of 30 years of writing, I've learned to get inspired pretty much on demand.

That's nice for me, you may be thinking, but wait.

I made a list of what inspires me.

You may find it useful. Or not. :-)

1. Books. I read every day, for several hours, usually for amusement, rather than research. If I don't read for a couple of days, I find that I'm irritable and annoyed. I tend to get crushes on authors. Currently my crush is Ernest Haycox. I've read Bugles in the Afternoon many times, and I reread it whenever I want to be inspired.

2. Images. I love images. Photographs and paintings inspire me. I also like doodling. Images stimulate the right brain (creativity).

3. Music. I used to be able to listen to music while I write; I can't do that now. I need to focus on the music completely. My favorite genre is Early Music; especially the music of the Renaissance. I don't know why, but it's inspirational to me.

4. Walking. Whenever I get stuck, I go for a walk.

5. Meditation. I meditate every day. I do short meditations of a couple of minutes to clear my mind throughout the day as I switch from one project to another. (I use a couple of iPhone apps, they're great.)

What inspires you? Leave a message in the comments, or contact me if you'd rather leave a private message. You can also DM me on Twitter, if you prefer.

Today's writing tip: play!

Are you having enough fun with your writing?

Yesterday I received a message from a newish writer: "I never seem to finish anything. I've started dozens of writing projects. Why do I lose interest in them after a few pages? All these false starts make me feel so guilty."

Here's my response:

You sound as if you're putting too much pressure on yourself. Remember that your creative self is very child-like (not childish, however). Your creative self likes to PLAY.

Starting a project, and telling yourself: I'm writing a book, or even I'm writing an article for _________ can be enough to squelch your enthusiasm and child-like creativity.

Why not put all your start-up projects into the same file, or box, if you will? Think of that box as a planter box full of project seeds. Starting off new projects in your planter box keeps them all in the same place. Since you're only playing, there's no pressure; it's guilt-free.

You can create a "box" out of any file, in any program, or in a notebook, or in index cards. Call it your Play Box, or Toy Box if you like, and take your box out when you're ready to play. Once a project takes off -- it's sprouted in your planter box so to speak, you'll know -- you'll remove it to its own file automatically, without thinking about it.

If you keep all your new projects together, you'll find they'll cross-fertilize. :-) As you're reading through one, you'll get ideas for another, and can play with that one for a while.

Useful programs for your writing Play Box on your computer include: Curio (Mac) and OneNote (PC). Here's a great article Is Curio the answer to no OneNote on the Mac? 

I cover growing your writing organically in the Top 70 Tips to Help You to Write More.

FWIW, I start all my projects in my Play Box in Curio -- I must have around 100 mini-projects, and I enjoy playing with them.

Try this simple idea to help you to have more fun with your writing, and be more productive: PLAY. :-)

Photo 

Writing: Mind Mapping for Writers

Do you use mind maps in your writing process? They're a wonderful tool for any form of writing. I use them every day, and I encourage my students to use them too.

Let's look at how you can use mind maps to become more productive and have more fun.

1. Branches or Clusters?

There are two basic ways in which you can create a mind map. Tony Buzan, who popularized mind maps, uses branches. However clustering also works.

Try both mind mapping styles, and you will gradually find your own process.

I like to use branches on large, hand-drawn mind maps for planning books and other large projects. I pin these to the wall, so that I can see where I am at a glance.

When I'm planning an article or another short piece of writing however, I tend to use clustering, because clustering helps me to see connections and to explore what I want to say.

2. Brainstorm to Gather Ideas

Mind maps are fantastic for brainstorming, because they help you to use both the logical and the intuitive sides of your brain. If you're stuck on a writing project, create a mind map. You'll soon be writing full steam ahead.

3. Mind Map Your Week for Productive Days

Every Sunday, I create a tasks and goals mind map for the coming week. I pin this mind map on the wall where I can see it whenever I look up from my computer monitor.

Over time, my mind maps for tasks and goals have become less complex. I've learned to just create a basic outline of what I want to accomplish during the week, because that leaves room for inspiration and creativity.

4. Create Easy Proposals and Presentations

Is procrastination a problem for you? It's a problem for many writers. Usually procrastination means that you're not comfortable with a project, and a mind map can help with that. Create a mind map before you start on a project.

For example, whenever a copywriting client hires me for a new project, I do a quick mind map of the project and then file it away. Mind mapping seems to jog my subconscious mind, so when I start to work on the project I find that I've got a wealth of ideas already because I've been thinking about it subconsciously.

Mind maps are also useful for creating proposals. You can plan out a project very quickly with a mind map.

I also find myself using mind maps whenever I need to give the presentation. I can create a quick mind map on an index card and can then speak with confidence without needing to refer to notes.

Become familiar with mind mapping: it will help your writing career.

Write more - become a pro writer

Yes, you can write more and become an expert writer - even if you're a world-class procrastinator.

Did you know that when you write more, your writing improves? Many of my writing students experience this. They find that when they write more, writing is easier for them - they're not dominated by their inner editor.

My new writing class, "Write More And Make More Money From Your Writing: Develop A Fast, Fun Productive Writing Process" is based on lessons I developed for my private coaching students to help them to write more, improve their writing, and make more money writing.

If you're struggling with your writing, the class will help. The techniques you'll learn in class with help you write fiction, nonfiction, and copy for business.

Discover how you can write more, improve your writing, and sell more of your writing to higher-paying markets.

Love mind mapping? Be quick for this

Mind mapping is an incredible productivity tool. I use mind maps every day, both hand-drawn, and on my computers.

I've had many questions about iMindMap, and several writers have purchased the program on my recommendation. They're thrilled with the difference it's made both in their creativity, and in their productivity.

Now my favorite mind mapping application is running a special for 24 hours only, so if you've been hesitating because iMindMap seems a little pricey, you'll want to take advantage of this offer.

You have around 19 hours to go... :-)

Happy mind mapping. :-)

Get Creative and Write More: Fab Freelance Writing Ezine

Our theme in next week's issue of Fab Freelance Writing Ezine is "Get Creative and Write More".

Here's an excerpt from the Editorial:

Make writing more one of your goals

If you want to write more, you need to make that one of your goals. It took me a long time to learn this. By my own calculation I spent the 1980s and 1990s figuring this out; I'm a slow learner. :-)

If you don't already track the number of words you write each day I encourage you to do that. You can keep your daily word count in a word processor file, or in a spreadsheet. A spreadsheet is probably easier.

What matters isn't so much the number of words you write, but the fact that you're actually counting them. What you focus on increases, so you won't need to do much beyond tracking to find that your daily word count gradually goes up.

For example, if you write just 50 words today, you'll be amazed that tracking will increase your word count to 500 and 1000 words a day within six weeks.

Tracking your daily word count is powerful and it's easy, so do it.

The issue includes a list of tools which will help you to become more prolific. Enjoy.

Make money writing from home: ditch your day job forever

If you can write, you can make money writing from home. The Web has made it possible for ANY writer, no matter how new or inexperienced, to turn writing into a fabulous career. If you're stuck in a soul-destroying, or just boring job, writing is your way out.

Fab Freelance Ezine helps you - subscribe and receive the free report: "Freelance Writing for Beginners: Great Opportunities to Make Money Today". It's 21 pages packed with information to help you to develop a six-figure writing career.

Writing: how to get more great ideas every day

Want to get great ideas for your writing? Ideas are everywhere. Chances are you get dozens of great ideas between the time you get out of bed, and while you're having your first cup of coffee.

All writers get more great ideas than they know what to do with; if you don't, it's because you're damming up the flow. At some stage, you've told your subconscious mind, by your behavior, NOT to give you ideas. You can retrain your subconscious.

Here's how.

1. Be prepared: know when your ideas flow

The way to get more great ideas is to notice the ideas you have. Most ideas come when you're not actively working, you're doing something else.

Oddly enough, I get my best ideas in the shower. It's horribly predictable that as soon as the water starts cascading down, I get a flow of ideas.

I've been known to leap out, all soapy, dry off my hands, and scribble notes.

Nowadays I take a digital recorder into the bathroom, jump out, and then talk the notes into the recorder. As soon as I'm dressed, I go to the computer, and mind map the notes. Once the notes are in mind map form, I know they won't escape.

You'll find that the more you notice, and USE any ideas you get, the more of them you get.

2. Ask for more ideas: affirm you're creative

Your subconscious mind will obey you. Just say to yourself "I'm creative. I get lots of great ideas, every single day." Keep repeating this affirmation, and ideas will flow.

Use mind maps, as I do. I'm an avid mind mapper. I create mind maps on my computer, on index cards, on sticky notes, and on the iPhone (I use iBlueSky, it's great.)

Your mind maps let you capture your ideas, so that they can trigger more, and better, ideas.

3. Create lots of projects: ideally, finish them

At any one time, I'm always working on around 20 active projects. These projects include client work for my copywriting practice, articles for my magazine clients, as well as my own projects.

Once you start paying attention to your ideas, and using them, you'll create lots of projects. You won't finish some of them. (You'll finish client projects of course, that goes without saying.)

Don't get stressed over this. Feel free to dump projects onto the back burner. Remember, ideas are everywhere, and you'll get more great ideas every day. So what if you don't complete them all? There's no law which says that you must.

Yes ago, I was compulsive about completing projects I started. I'm sure this was due to my upbringing. Finally I decided that this was a silly attitude. Why work on a project I didn't want to work on, when I had better ideas lined up?

In a nutshell: to get more great ideas every day, pay attention to your ideas, and tell yourself you're creative.

If you have idea-generating tips which work for you, share them in the Comments.

End your writing procrastination: become a prolific writer TODAY

Are you procrastinating? If so, you're feeling frustrated and guilty. You know you can write, and you know you should be writing, but you can't.

Now you can. You can end writing procrastination for good. Discover how you can become the prolific writer you were born to be with my bestselling ebook "Top 70 Writing Tips To Help You To Write More".

You'll discover 70 ways in which you can write more, no matter who you are, or what your level of writing experience.

The 70 tips will help you to plan your writing time, stick to a writing schedule, and get more energy, so that writing is a pleasure for you.

End procrastination for good today, with "Top 70 Writing Tips To Help You To Write More" - you can make writing easy and fun.

Write for The Genie: you never know when he will appear

For weekend writers, I just wrote "Surprise! Surprise yourself, and others, in your writing", which encourages you to use surprises in your writing.

Your writing itself will often surprise you, when it has effects you could never have predicted.

Through your writing, you may meet someone who can totally change your life. A blog post may deliver a big new client. An article you write may produce the seed of a book. Your writing may suddenly change direction, and take you from boredom to exhilaration.

Without knowing it, when you're writing, you're writing for The Genie, as Andy Nulman suggests in this blog post: Make A Wish (or "I Dream of Genie")--Theory 25

"Meeting The Genie is akin to a raffle. Do nothing, you have no chance. Buy one ticket, you have one chance. Buy 100 tickets, and you increase your probability 100-fold. It's rare that The Genie will come to you. So do the work. The math is simple. It's the black-box outcome process that's complicated."

Read the entire post... then keep writing. You'll meet your own Genies. :-)

Write more - become a pro writer

Yes, you can write more and become an expert writer - even if you're a world-class procrastinator.

Did you know that when you write more, your writing improves? Many of my writing students experience this. They find that when they write more, writing is easier for them - they're not dominated by their inner editor.

My new writing class, "Write More And Make More Money From Your Writing: Develop A Fast, Fun Productive Writing Process" is based on lessons I developed for my private coaching students to help them to write more, improve their writing, and make more money writing.

If you're struggling with your writing, the class will help. The techniques you'll learn in class with help you write fiction, nonfiction, and copy for business.

Discover how you can write more, improve your writing, and sell more of your writing to higher-paying markets.

A writer's Christmas with notebook and camera

Sick of Christmas yet? After the first week of December, Christmas music in stores and an ever-growing list of things to buy and do, create stress.

Cheer up. You're a writer, right?

So in true writer's fashion, if something annoys you (or even better, outright enrages you) write about it.

You can write:

* An article query for a magazine on dos and don'ts of frugal shopping, since credit card debt never goes out of fashion;

* An essay on trends in kids' toys;

* An essay on your best Christmas ever.

Go shopping with your notebook and camera. As you stroll through the malls, think about what you're looking it.

If you see a nice display, take a photo of it, and ask the store owner for an interview after Christmas. You could write several articles for trade magazines on making the most of a Christmas display.

In the final week, as you're preparing for the Christmas feasts, take snaps as you stuff and truss the turkey for your blog. A how-to is always welcome, and will get you lots of traffic (and money) in the months leading up to Christmas 2009.

When you think of Christmas as a never-ending source of ideas, you'll feel much better throughout this frantic time of the year. Writing is relaxing, so do what you do best, and you'll sail through all the petty aggravations. Before too long, you'll feel the Christmas spirit and will realize that every Christmas truly is a time to celebrate.

Subscribe to Angela Booth's fabulous free weekly ezine for freelance writers: get a free report just for subscribing. Even if you're a new writer, you can freelance your way to a fantastic writing career.

Join the thousands of freelance writers who are making great money freelance writing, using Fab Freelance Writing Ezine as their guide.

Three Fast Writing Techniques Anyone can Use

Looking for techniques which will help you to write faster? Here are three writing techniques which anyone can use.

1. Create a List of Ten to 20 Keywords

Start by creating a list of keywords. Normally this is done when writing Web content, but you can also use this technique in other forms of writing. Creating lists of key words will jump start your ideas.

Create a list of ten to 20 keywords, or even more if you can think of them. This is a way of priming your brain. Write the words quickly, without thinking about it too much. Often a word which seems unrelated to your topic will start a train of thought which gives you several great creative ideas.

2. Create a Mind Map or Cluster Diagram

Your brain thinks creatively in images. You can make use of the way your brain naturally works, by creating a mind map or a cluster diagram before you start writing, or at any time.

You'll often find that when you're writing a project and create a cluster diagram, you'll generate ideas for several additional projects as you're working with the diagram.

Use large sheets of paper for your mind maps and diagrams. You can buy artists' portfolios (often called visual diaries) for this purpose. Those in A1 paper size work well. This gives you room to doodle and to make notes on each diagram. Creating large cluster diagrams is particularly useful if you're working on a long project like a book or a manual.

3. Write a List of 50 Topics

Writing begets writing. Here is a way to start your creativity humming. Write a list of 50 topics in one single area. For example, your general subject area might be photography. Write a list of 50 topics which would be helpful to someone new to photography.

Once you've created the topics add them to a cluster diagram, and save it. It will be helpful in future, providing  you with ideas.

The ability to write fast will grow as your experience of writing grows along with your subjective experience of how your mind works. You'll develop your own techniques which you'll use on every writing project. However, since each writing project is different, you'll also discover techniques which are specific to projects, which you may only use once or twice.

The three techniques in this article will work on just about any writing project you're likely to encounter.

Recession-proof your freelance writing career

"Write More And Make More Money From Your Writing: Develop A Fast, Fun Productive Writing Process" gives you all the tools you need for a thriving writing career, no matter what the economic climate.

Three weeks after completing the class one student wrote:

"Thanks Angela, for all your help and advice in class. I'm quitting my job next week. I printed out my letter of resignation tonight after landing a contract writing job that will pay me more for three months part-time work than I earned in from my day job in the whole of 2007! You were right – the great gigs are out there, and now I've got the skills to land them. Your class opened my eyes. Bless you…"

"Write More And Make More Money From Your Writing: Develop A Fast, Fun Productive Writing Process" shows you how to thrive as a freelance writer. Would you like to write five times more than you're writing now, and sell to higher-paying markets? Take the class.

Photo credit

Manage your mind, manage your writing

Are you in control of your mind? If you can't manage your mind, you can't manage your writing.

Mind management is especially essential for writers in the current economic climate. Others' fear and doom-laden pronouncements can trigger an avalanche of self-doubt and worries.

The result? Stress.

Stress kills your creativity.

Here's how to cope.

1. Exercise

Stress impacts your body. Not only do stress hormones age you, they're bad for your health. You'll feel better when exercise, and get rid of all those stress hormones, so make time for exercise every day. Just do it.

2. Pay attention

Your brain developed in ancient times. It can't tell the difference between a real here and now threat (a sabre toothed tiger leaping at you) and your imaginative "what ifs"... Viz: what if I lose all my money, can't pay the mortgage, get fired... etc.

Stay in the here and now. Are you safe and healthy right now? Are your loved ones safe?

Realize that your imagination is a double-edged sword. Writers have excellent imaginations. Rein yours in.

3. Write your concerns in your journal - get them out of your head and onto the page

You're a writer, so write.

Write down every single worry and concern you have. Set a timer for 20 minutes, and continue this sentence: "I'm worried about__________"

You'll feel much better when all the junk is out of your head.

4. Develop a writing routine

You've taken control of your mind, so now it's time to take control of your writing. If you're not a full time writer, chances are you've never created a writing routine. Start today.

Enter your writing time into your calendar program - schedule your writing as you do everything else.

Then, when it's time to write, sit down and write.

Once you take control of your mind, and of your writing, you can handle anything life throws at you. Happy writing. :-)

Make money writing from home: ditch your day job forever

If you can write, you can make money writing from home. The Web has made it possible for ANY writer, no matter how new or inexperienced, to turn writing into a fabulous career. If you're stuck in a soul-destroying, or just boring job, writing is your way out.

Fab Freelance Ezine helps you - subscribe and receive the free report: "Write And Sell Your Writing: The Power-Write Report". It's 21 pages packed with information to help you to develop a six-figure writing career.

Free the writer within you

If you have negative feelings about your writing, you'll never be the writer you could be.

Here's how to eliminate negativity.

Start by writing down all the reasons you feel you're not a good writer. Give yourself at least five minutes, and make a list. During the five minutes don't take your fingers from the keyboard; just write whatever comes to mind.

These reasons could be anything at all.

For example:

I have great ideas, but they don't sound right when I write them

I don't know what to write about

I freeze when I try to write

I'm not creative

I'm too old to start writing now

I don't have time to write

Etc.

Now you know what your negative beliefs are, is it any wonder that you find writing difficult?

The key to writing well and writing prolifically is the ability to let yourself go and just write. You must separate writing from editing. Writing is just writing.

Tip: writing isn't a function of your logical left brain. Therefore you'll never become a better writer by trying to force yourself to write well.

Writing is a partnership between your logical left brain, and your creative and intuitive right brain. When both your left and right brain learn to work together, writing will not only be fun for you, but it will also be the easiest thing you could ever do.

Relax and let your creativity flow

If you're feeling tense when you write your right brain won't get into the act at all.

Therefore, before you even start writing it's vital that you become totally relaxed. Forget about trying to make your writing make sense. Writing is a process of discovery if it's anything at all. You don't need to know what you're going to write before you write it.

When you put restrictions on yourself as you're writing, you're choking off your creativity. It's as if you were trying to water the garden and were  standing on the garden hose.

Here's an exercise.

For 20 minutes sit down and write without lifting your fingers from the keyboard. Start with this sentence: "What I'd really like to write about is________"

These two exercises should offer some release from any negativity you harbor about writing. You'll find that writing is more fun after you complete them... so DO THEM. In less than half an hour, you'll remove many of the negative feelings which are making writing difficult.

Tip: do the above two exercises three times a week for a month. You're cleaning the windows of your mind. Your writing will improve, simply because you're allowing yourself to write.

Write more - become a pro writer

Yes, you can write more and become an expert writer - even if you're a world-class procrastinator.

Did you know that when you write more, your writing improves? Many of my writing students experience this. They find that when they write more, writing is easier for them - they're not dominated by their inner editor.

My new writing class, "Write More And Make More Money From Your Writing: Develop A Fast, Fun Productive Writing Process" is based on lessons I developed for my private coaching students to help them to write more, improve their writing, and make more money writing.

If you're struggling with your writing, the class will help. The techniques you'll learn in class with help you write fiction, nonfiction, and copy for business.

Discover how you can write more, improve your writing, and sell more of your writing to higher-paying markets.

Photo credit.

Stop thinking and start writing

As a writer, your mind can be your best friend, or your worst enemy, and it's your choice which it will be.

The biggest challenge I've found with my writing students is that they think too much, and don't write enough.

Their minds are filled with:

"What if..."

"But why..."

"When..."

"How..."

Questions and more questions, leading to swamps of indecision and procrastination.

Take charge - WRITE IT DOWN

Got a question? Write it down.

Questions are great, but only if you get them out of your mind and onto the page. I love questions because they contain nuggets of possibility, if you corral them onto the page.

So whenever you find yourself asking any question, just write it down. Write your question onto sticky note, an index card, or into a computer file.

I have a couple of files I keep open most of the day, one is "questions" and the other is "this week".

The Questions file is a file packed with possibilities, because my questions are usually "What If" questions.

My "This Week" file is a Curio file with snippets of Web sites, blogs, current projects, planned projects, and links to recordings of discussions with clients. It contains everything that's current in my writing.

Meditate, to get control of your mind

Meditation is a boon for writers. It will clear your mind, and allow you to just write. Think of meditation as a gym for your mind, building your focus and concentration. However, paradoxically, you can't build your mind with meditation by struggling, straining and holding on using willpower - you learn to let go.

Even ten minutes of meditation a day will help you to get your mind, and emotions, under control and stop them running away with you.

There are many different forms of meditation. For many years, I did Insight Meditation, which I can recommend as a way of watching what your mind gets up to when it thinks no one is looking. :-)

So, in brief: write it down, whatever's on your mind, and consider learning meditation.

Recession-proof your freelance writing career

"Write More And Make More Money From Your Writing: Develop A Fast, Fun Productive Writing Process" gives you all the tools you need for a thriving writing career, no matter what the economic climate.

Three weeks after completing the class one student wrote:

"Thanks Angela, for all your help and advice in class. I'm quitting my job next week. I printed out my letter of resignation tonight after landing a contract writing job that will pay me more for three months part-time work than I earned in from my day job in the whole of 2007! You were right – the great gigs are out there, and now I've got the skills to land them. Your class opened my eyes. Bless you…"

"Write More And Make More Money From Your Writing: Develop A Fast, Fun Productive Writing Process" shows you how to thrive as a freelance writer. Would you like to write five times more than you're writing now, and sell to higher-paying markets? Take the class.

Write about your life's experiences

This week in Fab Freelance Writing Ezine we talk about mining your life and experiences for your writing.

Here's an excerpt from the Editorial:

Recently I was chatting with a writer who wanted to create a blog about writing. She was just starting out as a freelancer, but had written a book.

"Why a writing blog in particular?" I asked.

She'd sent me some information about herself, so I knew she was retired from teaching, ran a bed and breakfast, and had just written a book about surviving cancer. She'd led an enormously varied life, with endless material she could use.

I considered that with her life experience, she had a huge range of topics to blog about, and choosing "writing" seemed a little timid to me.

It turns out she'd never thought of blogging about kids and teaching, or about running a bed and breakfast (which would present a huge opportunity for advertising her own B & B) or cancer-survival.

She was interested in writing, read many writing blogs, and her mind naturally tended in that direction when she considered blogging.

Yes, she could certainly blog about writing, but if she did that, chances are she'd run out of material. On the other hand, if she wrote about her other life experiences, and there was little likelihood she'd be stumped for things to write about.

Subscribe now, and don't miss tomorrow's issue.

Make money writing from home: ditch your day job forever

If you can write, you can make money writing from home. The Web has made it possible for ANY writer, no matter how new or inexperienced, to turn writing into a fabulous career. If you're stuck in a soul-destroying, or just boring job, writing is your way out.

Fab Freelance Ezine helps you - subscribe and receive the free report: "Write And Sell Your Writing: The Power-Write Report". It's 21 pages packed with information to help you to develop a six-figure writing career.

Writing - Become a Magnet for Juicy Ideas

Writers thrive on ideas. I hope you've got more ideas than you could write in a lifetime. If you struggle to find ideas, this article will help. Over 30 years of writing, I've found that some ideas are made for you, while many other ideas are not.

Let's see how you can become a magnet for juicy ideas which are custom-made for you.

However, before we start, let's get one important, non-negotiable point out of  the way: you need to decide WHY you're writing a project. Everything starts with your intention. You can combine your goals for a specific piece of writing, but you must have goals.

For example, let's say you want some ideas for a novel. What are your goals? Your goal may simply be to get published. That's an excellent goal. Or perhaps your goal's to have fun with it - it's a hobby. Also excellent.

With that out of the way, let's find some ideas.

Writing challenges 1: writing in your head

A few days ago I asked What are YOUR writing challenges?

Ski replied:

I have difficulty with organizing and writing down notes regarding my writing ideas. I have these ideas floating around in my head for a long time, but when they've congealed to the point that I finally feel that I should write them down, I can't seem to figure out how to do that without losing or missing some part of the idea. It's severely aggravating, and when I hit that wall I lose my motivation.

Write it ALL down

Ski, writing in your head is a waste, as you've discovered. The problem is that ideas which seem wonderful as we think about them are almost impossible to get from the brain to the keyboard in one step.

When we're thinking about something, our brain makes rich connections - it flips from idea to idea, and all those ideas resonate with us, because of our personal experiences. That's the reason these ideas seem "good"...

However, when you're writing, you need to write all those resonances down, and even using stream of consciousness writing, this is impossible.

The best way to write is just to write: write down whatever's in your head. It's a process of discovery. Once you've written it down, you can work with it.

Let's say you get an idea: "childhood bullying".

OK, write down "childhood bullying". You immediately think about three or four things related to the topic. Write it down in a list, or make a mind map. Or you can write each additional idea on an index card.

If nothing else comes to mind, leave the topic for today.

Tomorrow, you look at your "childhood bullying" idea again, and get some more ideas. You write them down. You look up some references, and make a note to talk to a schoolteacher to see what's happening about bullying in the schools. Your remember your mother talking about bullying when she was young, so you write down that anecdote too.

As long as you write EVERYTHING down, as you think of it, you'll maintain your motivation, and your idea will grow, until you have enough to write an article or book. Just with the work above, on "childhood bullying" you'd have enough to write an article.

Hope this helps. Happy writing. :-)

Got a writing challenge? Please leave a comment.

Technorati Tags: 100 ways to be more creative

Around my blogs this week

Here's a roundup of interesting stuff you may have missed on my writing blogs this week:

* Article Writing: Write and Sell Powerful and Useful How-to Articles

* Writing - The Truth about Making Money with your Writer’s Web Site

* Freelance Writing - Top Blog Jobs and How to Get Them

* Your Blog as a Home Business: Making it Happen

* Blog - Five Easy Ways to Get Readers for Your Blog

* Your Copywriting Business - What Services will YOU Offer?

* Article Marketing: Create your own Home Business Writing Articles for Others

Enjoy. :-)

BTW, the special offer of charter subscriptions to Sell Your Writing Online NOW ends this weekend.

Get the writing success you deserve by taking the first steps into the new world for writers: instant publishing on blogs

Want to build an amazing writing career? You can.

"Writing Success With Blogs by Angela Booth" includes an hour of FREE email coaching with me with purchase; this is a $300 value. I want you to blog with style and confidence, and get the top blog jobs.

Discover what, how, when, where and why you should blog for writing success. Get started blogging, today, and watch your writing career take off.

Technorati Tags: 100 ways to be more creative

Write More - Five Easy Writing Productivity Tips Anyone Can Use

Do you wish you could write more? Use these five tips, and I promise that you'll at least double your writing productivity. In addition, your writing will be clear, concise and will flow effortlessly from your mind to your fingertips.

Try at least one of these tips. (I hope you'll try them all.)

1. What's your point? Write one sentence

The first of these tips is important. It took me years before I realized that I tend to wander off the topic when I write. I'd complete an article, then realize that I'd left out vital points. Or the logic didn't flow. Or I'd write half a book before I realized that the book wasn't worth writing.

Since writing tends to morph as you write (and the longer the project the more it will morph) commit to writing ONE sentence which summarizes the article, the book, the sales page, or whatever else you're writing.

Do this before you start writing, with every project, large or small.

2. Chunk it down to eliminate procrastination

You write word by word, and sentence by sentence. So, chunk everything you write down. This has a great psychological effect. Tell yourself that today, you're writing just 100 words of your article. Or five headlines for a sales page. Or making a list of topics you could include in your report.

Chunk projects into sections which will take you no longer than ten to 15 minutes to complete.

3. It doesn't have to be great, it just has to be done

You want everything you write to be good, if not great. However, these expectations will ensure that you put off writing because you have no time to write "properly"/ you're too tired/ you haven't done enough research... and whatever other excuse you can dream up.

Just tell yourself that great, good, mediocre or outright terrible, you don't care - you'll just get it done.

4. Sit down and write, NOW - develop routines which work for you

The more routines you create for your writing, the better. You could make it a routine that whenever you turn on your computer you write 50 words of your current project. Or that you write first drafts in longhand. Or - anything you choose. A romance novelist friend writes by candlelight.

Create your own routines to make writing easy and fun for you. The more pleasurable you can make writing, the more you're likely to write.

5. Be polite to yourself and overcome resistance

What do you do when someone tells you to do something?

That's right, you resist. This resistance applies even when you tell yourself to do something, so be careful with your self-talk.

It might seem silly to treat yourself like a difficult toddler, but being nice to yourself in your self-talk really works.

Try asking yourself: "Could you write (project X) now? Would you?"

You'll be surprised at how your resistance to writing - even longstanding resistance - melts when you're kind to yourself.

So there you have five tips which will help you to write more. Please try them. You may just shock yourself and become a writing dynamo.

Recession-proof your freelance writing career

"Write More And Make More Money From Your Writing: Develop A Fast, Fun Productive Writing Process" gives you all the tools you need for a thriving writing career, no matter what the economic climate.

Three weeks after completing the class one student wrote:

"Thanks Angela, for all your help and advice in class. I'm quitting my job next week. I printed out my letter of resignation tonight after landing a contract writing job that will pay me more for three months part-time work than I earned in from my day job in the whole of 2007! You were right – the great gigs are out there, and now I've got the skills to land them. Your class opened my eyes. Bless you…"

"Write More And Make More Money From Your Writing: Develop A Fast, Fun Productive Writing Process" shows you how to thrive as a freelance writer. Would you like to write five times more than you're writing now, and sell to higher-paying markets? Take the class.

Technorati Tags: 100 ways to be more creative

Stop thinking and keep writing

Many of the questions I get from novice writers are charmingly naive.

Novices imagine two things:

1. That someone, somewhere has the perfect answer to their writing challenges

and

2. That you can write and build a writing career without making "mistakes".

Let's deal with these two common misconceptions.

Only you know what you can write - the answer to all your writing challenges is in your writing

If the writing muse allowed me to choose, I'd love to write like PG Wodehouse and create another Bertie Wooster or Lord Emsworth. Unfortunately writing doesn't work that way.

I write what I write, you write what you write. And you only find out what you write when you write it, not by thinking about it, or talking about it. All writing is a process of discovery - I've written about working memory and the Magical Number Seven in the past.

Yes you can choose your genre when you're writing fiction, and yes you can vary your style when writing nonfiction. But ultimately everything you write comes from YOU - no one else.

This means that the answer to every writing challenge you face is in your writing. So write.

I know that this seems unhelpful, but thinking and talking about writing are not writing. Stop thinking and write. All your challenges will be resolved if you plant your rear end on a chair and tap the keyboard.

Your "mistakes" are the stepping stones to your success

Let's say you're writing a mystery novel. You complete the novel, and send a partial (chapters and outline) to 50 agents and publishers. Over the course of a year or two, the responses are... ZERO. Or along the lines of "not for us."

You made a mistake, didn't you? Shame on you, thinking that you could write a mystery novel...

Actually, in this particular scenario the only possible mistake you can make is to stop writing. If you submit your partials and sit back and wait for a publishing contract that's a huge error.

While your novel is doing the rounds, write another novel. And another novel after that. Submit them all. And keep writing and submitting.

Sooner or later, at Novel 3, or 9 or whatever, you will get an offer and you'll starting selling your mystery novels.

So, all the novels which didn't sell, your "mistakes", were the stepping stones to your success.

Without the mistakes, you could not achieve your goal.

You must keep writing and sending out your writing to people who can buy it, no matter what.

As long as you're writing, you're building your own stepping stones to your success. Keep writing, and you will achieve your writing goals.

Wrapping up this little homily, WHAT and HOW you write (in the sense of your voice, or style) is essentially out of your control. You can only write what you can write, but you won't know what that is, until you write it.

Equally, there's is only one mistake you can make in writing, and that's to  stop writing.

So please stop thinking, and keep writing. :-)

Write more - the key to your writing success

Yes, you can write more - even if you're a world-class procrastinator.

Did you know that when you write more, your writing improves? Many of my writing students experience this. They find that when they write more, writing is easier for them - they're not dominated by their inner editor.

My new writing class, "Write More And Make More Money From Your Writing: Develop A Fast, Fun Productive Writing Process" is based on lessons I developed for my private coaching students to help them to write more, improve their writing, and make more money writing.

If you're struggling with your writing, the class will help. The techniques you'll learn in class with help you write fiction, nonfiction, and copy for business.

Discover how you can write more, improve your writing, and sell more of your writing to higher-paying markets.

Technorati Tags: 100 ways to be more creative

Writing reality: writing is a process

Many new writers expect golden words to flow from their fingertips instantly.

Unfortunately, it doesn't work that way. Your first draft of anything you write should always be awful, nonsensical, and all but unintelligible.

This is because in your first draft, your sole aim is to generate text. Writers write - they think on the page/ computer screen. I've written about the Magical Number 7 before:

4. Remember The Magical Number Seven, Plus Or Minus Two - don’t “write” in your head Your working memory is limited; you can only keep around five to nine elements or “chunks” in your mind at one time. That’s not a lot, and it’s a primary reason some writers write very slowly. They’re trying to use their mind in a way it wasn’t designed to be used.

Don’t try to “write” in your head.

WRITE. Write your thoughts, so you get it out of your working memory onto the page/ computer screen. The Magical Number Seven is the reason free writing is such a wonderful tool, and why it’s so important for you to use this skill.

When you write, in free writing and journaling, you’re extending your working memory, and when you do this, you automatically write more.

Writing is a PROCESS, something like this:

1. Get vague idea about something or other; write idea in a sentence. Or have no ideas at all, just write a sentence, any sentence. Or, read your commission/ brief and summarize it (if you've been commissioned to write);

2. Expand on the original idea/ sentence, just writing whatever comes. Hope that this sparks further insights;

3. Write a draft, without expectations. You've now made a start, which is all your first draft is - a start;

4. Print out the draft, make notes. Get more ideas;

5. Next draft.

Writing is just a process. It's very mechanical. You need to WRITE. :-)

End your writing procrastination: become a prolific writer TODAY

Are you procrastinating? If so, you're feeling frustrated and guilty. You know you can write, and you know you should be writing, but you can't.

Now you can. You can end writing procrastination for good. Discover how you can become the prolific writer you were born to be with my bestselling ebook "Top 70 Writing Tips To Help You To Write More".

You'll discover 70 ways in which you can write more, no matter who you are, or what your level of writing experience.

The 70 tips will help you to plan your writing time, stick to a writing schedule, and get more energy, so that writing is a pleasure for you.

End procrastination for good today, with "Top 70 Writing Tips To Help You To Write More" - you can make writing easy and fun.

Technorati Tags: 100 ways to be more creative

Just Write: Find the Confidence to Write More

Here's a short exercise. On a scale of 1 to 10, where 1 is totally and completely trivial, and 10 is vitally important, please rank writing in your life.

How did writing measure up?

Be honest. :-)

You're not making a moral judgement, you're just aiming for clarity.

At some stages of your life, writing isn't important. Other things are much more important. If you're raising a family, working two jobs, and studying for example, writing may rank at 3.

If writing is important to you - you've ranked it at 7 or over, then it's time to make room for writing in your life.

Here's how: schedule your writing. Make writing the first thing you do each day.

As soon as you get out of bed, stumble to the computer (forget coffee) and start writing.

Julia Cameron's Morning Pages helps with this. Morning Pages allows you to write without pressure, just getting your pen moving across the page. Once you learn to do this, you can transfer this writing-ease to whatever other writing you're doing.

In "Just Write: Find the Confidence to Write More" I wrote about brain lateralization and giving yourself the freedom to write junk. This is a great attitude to have.

Morning Pages will help you in your quest to free yourself to write junk. When you stop putting pressure on yourself, you'll find that the overall quality of your writing goes up, and that the best writing you do is very good indeed.

You can only write more if writing is important in your life... and if you free yourself just to write, without making demands.

Write more - the key to your writing success

Yes, you can write more - even if you're a world-class procrastinator.

Did you know that when you write more, your writing improves? Many of my writing students experience this. They find that when they write more, writing is easier for them - they're not dominated by their inner editor.

My new writing class, "Write More And Make More Money From Your Writing: Develop A Fast, Fun Productive Writing Process" is based on lessons I developed for my private coaching students to help them to write more, improve their writing, and make more money writing.

If you're struggling with your writing, the class will help. The techniques you'll learn in class with help you write fiction, nonfiction, and copy for business.

Discover how you can write more, improve your writing, and sell more of your writing to higher-paying markets.

Technorati Tags: 100 ways to be more creative

Writing resolutions - make them, keep them

Whatever your writing resolutions: to write something every day; to write more often; to write a book; or to turn writing into a full-time career - keeping your resolutions means that you need to make writing a priority in your life.

This is easier said than done.

I've just posted "Just Write: Find the Confidence to Write More" at Writing Hacker.

If you follow the easy tips, you'll find it easier to keep your writing resolutions because you'll have growing confidence in your writing.

Technorati Tags: 100 ways to be more creative

The only way to write is to write: demolish writer's block forever

The only way to write is to write. Sounds obvious, doesn't it? Unfortunately, if you're a new writer, or an experienced writer who's suffering from writer's block, it may not be obvious.

The only way to write, is to write, but sometimes you get in your own way.

Here are three ways in which you block yourself:

1. You demand of yourself that you write in a certain way, to achieve a specific goal

Let's see how this works. You're writing a mystery novel. You want to write a mystery in the style of ___________, who happens to be your favorite writer.

This can work, but often it doesn't, for the simple reason that you are you, you're not your favorite writer.

When you set out to write a specific project, be yourself. Write it your way - just start writing. If you make demands of your creative muse, you're likely to become blocked. Accept yourself and the way you write.

That's not to say that you can't write in the style of someone else. When I read some writers, like Charles Dickens and PG Wodehouse for example, I tend to write in their style, and need to journal for a while to get out of it - this comes naturally for me.

Do what's natural for you: write your way. If your writing is flowing easily, that's great; something's working. It's a mind state, and since it is, after you become aware that it is, you can tap into this mind state on demand.

2. You don't journal about your writing as you write

Journaling is a great way to break blocks. Journal right in the middle of your current project.

I just write: [THOUGHTS] and journal. When I've finished thinking on the computer screen, I end it with [/THOUGHTS].

I leave my thoughts in the project until it's complete, then I save the file as Version 2, and delete the thoughts in the new file. I always leave the original "thoughts" with the previous version of the file, because then I can  return to a previous version and discover what I was thinking at that time.

Writing about your current project while you're in the middle of it stops you blocking - you're writing, aren't you? :-)

3. You don't schedule your writing

I love schedules. My mantra is: "If it's not written down, I don't do it" - so I schedule everything.

I have a daily schedule, a list of writing tasks that I must get done, plus long lists of tasks for each project I'm writing. I work through those additional tasks after I've done all the tasks I MUST complete on a certain day: the ones I've specifically scheduled.

If you're not a full-time writer, you nevertheless must schedule your writing. If you don't schedule it, it won't get done, and you'll convince yourself that you have writer's block when the reality is that you're just procrastinating.

Create a schedule, even if you're fitting writing in between working two jobs and raising a family. You can build a writing career even if you're busy with other things, but only if you write, so schedule ten minutes, 20 minutes or an hour for your writing. Every day.

At the time you've chosen, write.

So there you have it: the only way to write is to write. All you need to do is get out of your own way.

Technorati Tags: 100 ways to be more creative

My best tip for writers' block - have fun

Running with seagulls

Several readers have asked about writers' block this week. Is it something in the water, or in the air? :-)

I've written about writers' block extensively on this blog and elsewhere, so here's my best tip.

Start by giving yourself a break

Over the next two weeks, join the rest of the human race and give yourself a break from writing until the holiday season is over.

During the two weeks, let yourself wonder idly why you're experiencing resistance to your writing. Don't make a production out of it - don't stress.  Just think to yourself occasionally: "I wonder why I'm not writing?"

You'll get an answer; probably when you first wake up in the morning.

Now you know. :-)

"What would be fun for me to write?"

In the new year, ask yourself: "What would be fun for me to write?"

Make a list. You may be surprised. You may secretly want to write a novel, or a screenplay, or a poem.

Just start noodling on whatever it is, stop when it stops being fun.

Make a commitment to yourself in 2008 that you will only write what is FUN for you to write.

The creative part of you is very child-like; it likes to play. When you turn writing into play, your writing will flow like a river in full flood - you won't be able to stop it.

It all starts with your commitment to FUN.

Technorati Tags: 100 ways to be more creative

Day-dreaming your writing: word by word, and image by image

Photo

Day-dreaming is a secret all professional writers know. Day-dreaming powers your writing.

Day-dreaming your projects starts with recognition. You read a novel, and think "I can write that". You can too. Getting the feeling that I CAN means that yes, you can. However, remember that a book which takes three hours to read may have taken the author three years to write.

How do you write anything? Word by word. However, those words are directed by images, by day-dreams.

When Dr Jean Houston wanted to know what makes a genius, she discovered that a trait that all geniuses shared was that they completed what they started. They also used imagery before they started a creative challenge.

Before they started, they day-dreamed about the challenge. They pictured themselves completing the project  in several different ways. Then they picked a method of working, and started.

Imagery (day-dreaming) builds motivation to COMPLETE what you start. So never beat yourself up over day-dreaming: when you day-dream about your writing projects, before you start, and as you write, you're making it possible to begin and complete your writing projects.

Love to write? Write more, and become the writer you were born to be

Imagine writing fast and well, with words flowing from your fingertips... Angela's new writing class "Write More And Make More Money From Your Writing: Develop A Fast, Fun Productive Writing Process" has the potential to change your life.

Technorati Tags: 100 ways to be more creative

Five Secret Tips To Help You To Write Creatively And Have Fun Writing

Creativity happens when you’re having fun. Chances are that the last time you played creatively you were a child: you dabbled with finger paints, scrunched plasticine into odd shapes, and built great sand castles.

In childhood, projects were exciting: you painted and drew and colored without expectation, just to see what would happen. You didn’t give yourself a mass of instructions, and you certainly weren’t concerned whether you would finger paint correctly. You just did it.

If you can bring fun into your writing, you’ll discover your own creative energy. Because it’s fun, you’ll stop being self-conscious and will just write. You may well surprise yourself at how creative you really are.

Creativity is a state of mind; it’s been called a state of “flow”. It’s a state of excitement and immense concentration, but you don’t get to a state of flow by trying, you get there by having fun.

Want to make writing fun and become more creative? Here are five tips:

1. Use Your Dreams

Your dreams are your own private movie theater, and there’s something exciting playing every night. You’re the star! Keep a notebook on your bedside table and record your dreams. Use your dreams as inspiration for your writing.

2. Use Your Daydreams

Daydreams are fun. Choose a travel photo from a magazine or find a photo of a beach or mountaintop online. Daydream yourself into the landscape of the photo. Write down what happened.

3. Schedule Time For Creativity

To write creatively, you need to welcome creative fun into your life. Take up drawing, gardening, or another creative pursuit. Your only goal in this pastime is to have fun: the end product isn’t important. Lose yourself in this activity.

Schedule the time for this activity as you schedule any other appointment. Aim for three “appointments” each week. You’ll find that when you rediscover creativity and fun, this mind state will bleed through into your writing.

You’re teaching yourself to be yourself, in your writing and in the rest of your life.

4. Use Mind Maps

Mind maps enhance creativity because they embrace both parts of your brain. Draw your mind maps using paper and colored pencils, rather than using a computer program.

5. Allow Yourself To Play In Every Area Of Your Life

The more fun in your life, the more creative you’ll be. Indulge yourself in at least one fun activity a day. Ask yourself what you did to have fun when you were a child: make a list. Bring those activities into your life today.

Make another list of what you would do just for fun if money and time were no object. You may be surprised that you actually manage to do all those things in the next few years.

You CAN be creative. It’s simple. Allow fun into your life: you’ll be creative in all areas of your life naturally, and in your writing too.

Become a more creative writer with Your EveryDay Write

Are you ready to have fun and become a better, more creative writer? No matter what kind of writing you do, whether it’s business writing, writing articles, novels or copywriting, you will find writing easier and you’ll be more productive when you remember to have fun.

Angela's writing prompts and writing tips have been the most popular posts on this blog for years. Now you can have them delivered to your Inbox.  Receive a free 22-page report: "Angela’s Top Ten Best-Ever Writing Tips - get creative, write more, and have fun" when you subscribe to Your Everyday Write - have fun and become a better writer with Angela Booth.

Technorati Tags: creativity