Breaking up with your writing

I have finished the last story - which is now a novel - The Playmate.

And, I'm in remorse over the break up. Yes, you read it, I've broken up with The Playmate, and my upcoming novel Rogue.

It's not a forever break, but I've been through Rogue, a story about a man, Tristan Rogue, who is in way over his head when he falls in love with his mistress' daughter, and tries to battle through his own lies, sex and deciet in family of the Rogue - a powerful crime family who take their codes seriously and would kill Tristan for the sins he's committed.

I've been through Rogue three times, as far as, a re-write - making sure it's perfect. And, my novel and I need a break.

As a writer, you will never be completely in tune with your final project, and you can so easily over re-write and analyze it to death.

Killing a story by butchering it is terrible. So, I've taken two weeks to get a way from the world and take a moment, before I pull the story back up and finish it off so it can be put out there in the Self Published world.

As far as, the Playmate, well, I didn't need a break, but I took one. I love the story and there are so many ways to make it better. So, pacing myself before I start DELETING and rewriting.

The Playmate, Brynn Coolgate, the sole survivor from the biggest child killer and rapists, prepares herself for a battle that she knows is coming. The Playmate, hasn't forgotten about her, and eventhough she's twenty-years older, he still ones the friend that got away.

Well, that's all for now. I've been bored and scared to death that I've been actually sleeping nights instead of writing, re-writing.

THE POWER OF THE DELETE BUTTON

In the last post, I touched on Writer's block, and gave it a new name: Story Snags.

I was currently writing a short story to complete the So Thrilled collection, currently on Amazon.com under KaNeshia Michelle.

The last story, that is more now of a novel, the Playmate has been a challenging piece of work by far for the end of 2012.

When times are up, I'm knee deep in the story to my elbows and smiling all the way. When the story is getting good, and the writing is matching up, then everything is right with the world and it is really easy to smile and talk to strangers on the street.

But when the writing is bad, and it feels like a pile of quicksand, and no amount of hard work seems to find a good foot hold on the bad ground then you're most likely prone to sucker punch the first person that says 'hi' to you in a manner you don't like.

That why you have to answer the calling of the DELETE BUTTON.

For some writers, this is like the worse thing you could ever do. It could take years to crank out ten pages for some writers and getting rid of the work is like a bad omen. But, I have a solution.

Thanks to my Professor.

I use a DEVELOPMENT log to place my deleted prose. A few lines may not work, but that doesn't mean it's best to scrub the words off the face of the earth. Sometimes its best to copy and paste the bad stuff into a log. That way you know you'll always have it, and it's like a word bank, just in case a part didn't work in one place and yet it works in another place.

Bad passages in a story can ruin the story and lead you to a WRITER'S STORY SNAG. It's a frustrating time for a writer. Believe me, I know. That's why you have to exercise reading through your words and searching out the hiccups, and, on top of that, don't be afraid to delete it - but put the deleted words into a seperate file just in case you need it.

Writing is fun and easy, but we all need tricks to get through the rough patches.

Your mind and writing

I have come to learn that your mental stability is extremely fragile when you're a writer.

My job is mostly physical, but I have moved to a different department where I have more of a mental strain. And, it interrupts my writing when I get home.

Setting a time aside when you do nothing but write is a great idea, but in order for that to work and your time that you are writing to be effective, you have to keep a clear mind. Stress - mental stress - can have you blocked, completely unable to be effective in your works.

So there are exercises that I do to keep my mind clear throughout my day. I read, listen to music and try to pull a little time aside during my shift to write a little. It's important.

My college professor says that he doesn't believe in writer's block, but i have to say I do. It isn't writer's block, but STORY SNAGS...

One line can throw off your entire novel. And, if you're a writer like me, you tend to fall in love with your work and find it incrediably hard to get out of the block.

Clear mind, remember that. Read through your works and do not be afraid to delete. A delete button can be truly imposing. You can get rid of one line or an entire page or even more. Sometimes you have to do that. You have to get rid of that snag in order to iron out the problems.

Focus is the key and it's so hard in today's world. We may have jobs, kids, parents, just plain whole life that pulls us in different directions. Center yourself, pull that time you need to clear your mind, ease the dress, do exercises where you can calm down and stay in control.

Writing depends on your mental stability. Five minutes of pulling yourself together makes a difference.

Here is the facts so far

I never thought I would be a blogger.
Never thought anyone would want to read a blog, because it's nothing more than an online diary of sorts.
And, it's more, I get that, but, hey, work with me here.

As for my first blog, I want to get a few things straight. My entries may have tons of typos, errors, grammar oops, but it's my blog, my words.

Yes, I have an editor, but I use her for my published works. This is me, plain and simple.

To be clear, I am a story teller. Yes, a writer, but not just that. I enjoy stories. I love stories. I love things that take you away from life and place in you in another world where you can read other people's lives, go through their problems. You can watch a character either beat all the bad guys and win, or take the last stand and lose - it can be for an even bigger victory, or it can be for nothing.

I currently have several novels out in circulations, all under different names. Two other names than KaNeshia Michelle.

Back in those other novel worlds, I was feeling myself out, trying out new skins. KaNeshia Michelle is the skin I want to start out on and build that foundation.

As of right now, I have a short story called Ruck's Nightmare. It's a collection that will compose of three stories. This is my starting point.

I am not what you call a successful Author, or in my words: Story Teller.

No, I do not have a mountain of readers, but I do feel like I'm on my way and that's what matters. Writing is my life, the way I see life and that's all I can hope for. And, if no one but my mother reads my works than, hey, I've done something right.

Success is measured not by the money you make. Hey, money is great, don't get me wrong, but it's measured by how you feel about yourself.

I take one day at a time. I take a book, or a story, one word at a time. This blog is another form of taking a word at a time. I hope you share in this with me.

If you read this far, then thank you.