Tag: ideas

Life, Writing

Ideas, ideas, ideas

AJ Niblock

Okay, so if you spend time working on creative projects, even if it’s just a craft project that takes time, you will undoubtably have been tempted to abandon the project and start on something new before you finish the first project.

I admit that I do this with my own craft projects. I tend to have several going at once, and I try, I really do, not to start too many at a time. I find that sometimes taking a break from something I’m not making progress on helps me approach it with fresh eyes and a renewed sense of energy.

The reason I mention this concept is that this same process can be used for my writing projects. However, now that I’ve written four books, I find myself less likely to push one to the side.

I’ve learned to keep new distracting ideas separate from whatever the main project is I’m working on. This is especially important to me when I’m drafting a new book. When I’m drafting, I don’t like to even think about other projects, I don’t read as much, and I usually get behind on my blog too.

For me, the drafting phase, when I’m putting a new story down, needs to be as distraction free as possible. I don’t know why, but for editing, I can work on other things. I think it’s probably because I can only stand to edit for a few hours a day before I need to do something else.

Anyway, I was wondering what the rest of you do with ideas so they don’t distract you?

I write them in my idea journal and save them for another day.

And on that note, go create something wonderful! Happy reading and writing today and every day!

Life, Writing

Here are a few of my favorite (writing) things…

AJ Niblock

Writing and editing is a long, tough process, and I’m sure many of you know that as a writer, there is always room for improvement. And there is always room to learn a new skill. And sometimes you need to brush up on old ones.

Even though, I studied literature in college, that doesn’t mean my writing is anywhere near perfect. It just means I can analyze fiction (a mostly useless talent outside of academia).

Here are three things to keep in mind when you’re working on your own writing:

  • 1. Practice makes perfect.
  • 2. Sometimes you need to go back and review things you thought you knew.
  • 3. Have someone else read your work!!!! I cannot stress how important this is.
  • 4. Take some time to learn or study the craft of writing. Every year I read one or two books about writing. It’s nice to read what other writers have learned throughout their careers too.

In addition to practice being the best method of improvement, there are some other things that I use to help with my writing and editing process.

Here are a few of my writing/editing tools:

  1. Autocrit.com
    • This website allows you to submit your writing and it checks it for everything! It’s nice, but it’s still just a program. It doesn’t make up for reading and editing by humans.
  2. Understanding Show Don’t Tell
    • This book by Janice Hardy is a great resource for understanding the show don’t tell concept. When I first edited my own work, it was something I struggled with. It’s a challenging concept if you don’t know how to recognize it.
  3. Ready, Set, Novel!
    • This book was created for NANOWRIMO. I love it! I like to use it when I’m brainstorming a new project. The exercises are practical and build on each other. You can go from something very basic to a detailed outline in no time.
  4. Complete the Story
    • This book is page after page of story ideas. I use it to write my short story every month. It’s also where the original Unicorns Are Really Vampires (my first novel) idea started.

As always, happy reading and writing today and every day!

prompt, Writing

May’s Short Story Prompt

AJ Niblock

Let me start my post today by saying Happy Mother’s Day to all the moms out there. It’s a tough job sometimes, but worth every second.

I also wanted to add that as a mother, I know that many of us feel pulled in many different directions at once and sometimes we need to take a minute to find our sanity. I hope you can find that today. And remember, there is no one standard for what it means to be a good mom except doing the best you can. Happy Mother’s Day!

I am doing my best today to get back on track with things that I’ve let slip through the cracks lately. (Like working on my short stories). At this point, I need to write 3 this month. (It can be done…. hopefully).

So without further rambling on my part, here is another short story prompt:

It was just a game, of course. But it was more than that, and everyone knew it. They were from the upscale part of town, and we were from the wrong side of the tracks. Literally. North of the rail line…

Complete the Story

If you come here for the stories, they will be some coming soon!

Happy reading and writing today and every day!