writing time – Page 6

The Writer’s Support System

Published on February 26, 2019February 18, 2019 by Noreen LaceLeave a comment

52097701_1351830314971980_5220375913262219264_o

Maybe it’s me, but I doubt I’m alone in this: A writer’s support system sometimes seems a shaky and insecure. Some people do not understand, others say ridiculous things, and some are even jealous of our steps forward.

Finding a support system is an active and ongoing endeavor. People move on, they step back, and we need to keep moving forward, be unwilling to let negative people and comments to hold us back.

Don’t be afraid to move on. It doesn’t mean you have to cut contact with everyone or even anyone, but you certainly want to keep those who are positive supporters of your in the forefront of your mind and heart.

Sometimes, we feel very alone. Writing is a solitary act, but we don’t have to live in a bubble. Make contact through writer’s groups, online and in person. Meet other writers at conferences or critique groups and stay in contact with them. Join a book group, we need friends.

14563288_1399791920050130_5249056612799485051_n

Photo Credit: Noreen Lace / Here in the Silence

Why Age Matters

Published on February 23, 2019February 9, 2019 by Noreen LaceLeave a comment

There’s a number of small presses and publishers looking for younger poets and writers. It’s always disappointing to me, infused with experience and wisdom, to see an age limit on a submission form of a literary journal or publisher.

age-woman-aging-benefit-cosmetics-ecards-someecards.png I know that America, and much of the world these days, has no respect for age; however, there was once this school of thought that there was some value in life experience.

Publishers want to discover the bright new star or hang on to someone who has a long and bright future ahead of them.

Instead of what, I assume, they mistakenly believe will be a one hit wonder leading to a quick and timely death.

That is why age matters to them.

HOWEVER – age does not matter. Many great poets and writers were “discovered” well after their 29th birthday: Toni Morrison, J.K. Rowling, Janet Fitch, Billy Collins, among many, many more!

You are not too old to learn the craft, you’re not too old to start writing, you’re not too old to submit, you’re not too old to publish.

When vexed by the youth, I remember that I can read a mapbook, I can light a fire, I know how to address a letter for post. If all technology were lost, I’d be able to survive.

Help! I’m blocked!

Published on February 22, 2019February 11, 2019 by Noreen LaceLeave a comment

writers-block1-1 Writer’s block is the writer’s arch enemy.

And though it can be solved, one of the problems is that it takes faith to believe it can be overcome and it does take work.

Someone, recently, asked me how to get over a block and I gave him the following advice. He responded, “that’s too hard!”

Too hard???

If you want to get through a block – you have to push. If you are not willing to do the work, then why are you here?

One way – and it is just one idea – to get through writer’s block is to write your way out of it.

Use a separate document, handwrite it, get out of the story you’re working on and write somewhere else – but write, and keep writing – it might take you ten pages to get to where you need to be, and you might get two or three good pages out of that – but guess what, you will have written yourself out of the block. 692757fb38878f2d80969e191c54a4cc

Ten pages not enough? Still feeling blocked? Keep writing!

Think of it this way – something is in your way. If you were driving somewhere and the road was blocked, would you turn around and go home, go back to bed, and give up? Or would you use mapquest to find a different way to get there.

Something is in your writing way, get off that street (document), look at mapquest (other ideas, roads, methods, ways), and get moving.

To Publish or not to Publish – is that really a question?

Published on February 19, 2019February 9, 2019 by Noreen Lace1 Comment

To some people it is.

I have a friend who picks and chooses where he wants to be published so carefully that he submits maybe once or twice a year at most. He hasn’t been published in maybe 6 or 8 years.

He’s an extremely good writer. Better than I. colllins

He says, he wants to only be published where his name will be seen, where it will matter.

I took this to mean he didn’t approve of my many publications with small presses, some of which no one has ever heard.

What do you value and why? Ask yourself.

Billy Collins, btw, began publishing in what he refers to as fly by night or small presses of which no one ever heard.

Write Lightening

Published on February 17, 2019February 9, 2019 by Noreen Lace1 Comment

How did the three blind mice meet?

Why were they chasing the farmer’s wife?

Go – Write it!

blind mice

Neil Gaiman

Published on February 16, 2019February 7, 2019 by Noreen LaceLeave a comment

gaiman

Don’t you agree?

Be inspired; choose to make a change in your life! A guest blog by Linda K. Ford

Published on February 15, 2019February 17, 2019 by Noreen LaceLeave a comment

The start of a New Year is a great time to re-evaluate your life, and discover a new direction!

You can start the ball rolling by simply making a choice, “I am now ready for my life to change!”

This in itself is a powerful acceptance. On making this choice you are nudging the door open, ever so slightly, to new opportunities.

The next step is to create clarity by reassessing your life. Take the time to think about how you would like your life to be? What is working for you and what is not! Also include how you are feeling emotionally, for example are you happy, sad, feel loved or unloved, motivated? What changes would you like to make?

Formalise your conclusions by making lists, which you can refer back to, and expand on. If you are unsure of how to change your life and the steps to take, this is ok, as it will come. If the mind has clarity and guidelines from you, then anything is possible. You are basically opening your life, to new opportunities.

Take the time to put energy into your new choices, to move them into creation. From time to time go back and look at your lists – also importantly set yourself tasks with a time frame.

On accepting a new choice, opposition on the subconscious level may arise, and unknowingly you may create an obstacle in your path. At these times it is important to seek to understand what is actually happening, and let go of the negatives, and continue to affirm your positive, new choices. Keep going, be determined, hold to your dream and you will get there!

STRENGTHENING POSITIVE CHOICES -AFFIRMATION

Life is a matter of choice. I choose to prosper, to be aware, to be strong, to be adventurous and safe. I choose to be happy, to be confident!

Visit Me Here for more Inspiration

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thanks, Linda!

noreen

Interruptions…

Published on February 12, 2019February 11, 2019 by Noreen Lace1 Comment

I’m going to interrupt the flow of this blog , but we really should talk about how we deal with interruptions to our work.

I try not to take phone calls during my work time; however, sometimes I have to. A doctor appointment, a work call – all important, can’t wait until later. At least with those, you know you won’t be on the phone long.

The other day a friend called me. I hadn’t talked to him in over a month, so I wanted to see how he was. We live in different times zone, which makes scheduling time for a chat rather challenging. I told myself, even upon answering, that I wouldn’t talk long. But we did get carried away in catching up.

Set boundaries. I finally did tell him I needed to get back to my writing. He understands. Many people don’t, so I don’t regularly say that. I do tell them I can talk to them later or that I’m in the middle of something – both of which are true.

Phone calls and text messages are easier to put on hold – put the phone in the other room or turn it off. It really is not that hard. Having children or spouses is a whole different topic, which I’m going to talk about during another blog.

Right now, as I said, I need to interrupt the flow of this the gold tooth.jpg blog with an announcement.

You can win my short story, The Gold Tooth! Click here. This is only for a limited time.

Long lost sisters are reunited at the reading of their mother’s will. Celeste who has cared for their mother in her declining years is awarded a small, broken music box. The force of nature, Nancy, who hasn’t been seen they were teenagers, is awarded the entire estate. Before they leave the office, Nancy is given the option to exchange the estate for the box. Nancy laughs off the incredible offer and moves into the estate. What’s discovered in the music box could cost one sister her freedom and the other her life.

It Hurts!

Published on February 11, 2019February 4, 2019 by Noreen LaceLeave a comment

yoga Writing hurts – no, seriously, sitting for long periods of time makes my back ache.

Now, we have standing desks, but studies show that’s only moving the pain around, not really as good for you as first thought.

My trainer recommends getting up every fifteen minutes to stretch and walk around. But, when I’m in the flow, three or four hours have gone by and I’ve even forgotten to eat!

Longfellow may have been the first yoga3 to use a standing desk; he alternated between sitting and standing, which I think is a good idea.

Charles Dickens described his writing as “prowling rooms, sitting down, getting up….”; It’s purported he owned “all manner of comfortable easy chairs.”

It’s more about the way we sit and stand that is hurting us. Our shoulders coming forward and our heads hung puts far too much pressure on the back of our necks and can cause permanent damage.

Laptops don’t help. When we had yoga4 our desktop computers, it was all about raising the screen to eye level, sitting in an ergonomic chair, with our arms at a comfortable angle. With laptops, either our head is tilted down or our forearms at a strange angle.

Yoga to the rescue! In order to keep our backs and legs healthy, there’s a few simple yoga poses (you could even do some of them at your desk!).

Spinx pose will help with those rounded shoulders and neck pressure.

Child’s pose and/or downward dog will also relieve some of the yoga2 pressure.

Thread the Needle Pose is one of the best.

These are the easiest, but writers can benefit from a regular yoga class or a yoga routine.

Approaching Authenticity – Creativity, Psychology, and Christian Faith by Bozena Zawisz

Published on February 8, 2019January 31, 2019 by Noreen Lace1 Comment

bozena Something I often hear as a counselor is clients speaking about the weight of expectations they feel they’re carrying on their shoulders; and the frustration, guilt, or resentment they feel in relation to them.

Many of these expectations are often tied to a particular role they “fall into,” that contains within it: unexamined assumptions relating to some action(s) they feel they should be doing, rules for communicating (what they feel they should be saying, and how), pressures to take on board “shared” viewpoints…

Often they express feeling as if they lost their center or connection with themselves.

Some roles are consciously/purposefully chosen. I choose to relate to clients within the boundaries of a counselors’ role. At other times, individuals can fall into an interaction where there is an expectation/pressure to engage in a “role-play”… mindlessly… pulled by some emotional pathway, deeply engraved by a lifetime’s worth of conditioning… For example, many adults continue to feel strongly affected by their parents’ perceived expectations of them…

Sometimes individuals’ roles within relationships include assumptions about hierarchy (in some cultures more than others), expectations relating to distributions of privileges, expectations relating to the division of weight that is placed on the inner experience of each individual. Often, the language which does not fit an expected role-script is unwelcome, discouraged…

One of my favorite historical examples of a figure who modeled the importance of rising beyond roles and cultural expectations, and embodied authenticity and inner strength, was Jesus. I admire the way he kept right away from describing himself via popular roles or politically loaded terms of the time, which he perceived as a poor fit with his life’s journey and purpose.

I love the way Jesus preferred to describe his inner experience and communion with God using creative metaphors-that beautifully made use of people’s familiar associations (e.g. used imagery such as harvests, laborers, etc.) yet transcended the language of the well established familiar social and political roles, traditions, expectations, and their underlying beliefs and perceptions.

Jesus had a hard time with the Pharisees. Perhaps they perceived his non-compliance with the established roles that reinforced their power and privileges-most unsettling. Jesus smacked too much of personal power, disregard for the authority of political/social pecking order…

Possibly to connect with a sense of inner peace, he was documented to withdraw into solitude oftentimes, perhaps in this way he restored his strength by nurturing his connection with God. Just as in his case, I believe that it is a helpful first step in our journey towards authenticity to find ways to connect with a loving place of self-care and strength within ourselves.

Given the powerful focus our society (and at times other people) have on trying to hijack strong within_front our attention and encourage us to look to the outside of ourselves for fulfillment–creative expression of, and reflection on, our inner experience allows us to re-center and reconnect with our inner journey of transformation.

And, support us in reclaiming control over reconstructing our experience so that it resonates with our values, faith, the direction of our journey, and more closely aligns with our truth.

Bozena Zawisz

Website

Neither Innocent or Guilty

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Many Thanks for sharing!

noreen