Claire Hadleigh

  Well, you've been doing that since the beginning of November and by now you're probably pushing hard to get as many words down before the midnight hour.  We've shared some thoughts about the process, the pitfalls, the ways a writer can build resilience and maintain stamina and the great swampy middle that trips up so many of us writers. I applaud you for what you've accomplished and encourage you to hit that submit button and know you did the best you could.  That's no minor thing.  It's a BIG thing!  Some people talk about wanting to write a novel (or factual), but it takes that next step to put words on paper, whether digital or tangible.  How many people simply do not take that step?  It reminds me of that famous line from "On the Waterfront" when Brando claims "I coulda been a contender . . ."   So what comes next?  I know, I know -- no one wants to deal with that at the moment.  Which is fine, but I encourage you to at some point in th

I'm sure by now with all the turmoil and hubbub of Thanksgiving and the beginning of the holiday shopping season, you're feeling frustrated and losing your momentum with the writing.  My suggestion?  Let it ride and don't angst that your writing schedule is beginning to look like a pile of doggie doo-doo.   How about we focus on what we've achieved to date?  Let's put a positive spin on things and remember to breathe.  So grab a few minutes to do something fun like create a small mood board and make little affirmation notes and pin them up where you can see them.  Whether you've written 500 words or 5,000, that's terrific!  Put that up on the board. In the past I've used ATC cards -- artist's trading cards, which are about 2" x 3";  I've also used blank  shipping tags, again quite small. But frankly anything will do.  Spend 15 minutes with some colorful markers, pencils and/or pens and decorate your affirmations. What can you celebrate?

So we're now solidly into the middle of NanoWriMo's 30-day challenge, and how are we doing?  The quote I use above is definitely something I'm going through as I hit the middle of my upcoming Regency romance scheduled to release later in December. And I am being pulled by the stars, for sure! At first I termed it stagnation. But now that I consider it, I believe it's more akin to avoidance. Yup, definitely avoidance. I don't like that my characters are not doing what I want them to do; don't like that I feel as if the story line is flailing about like a broken down donkey. And I definitely don't like that I feel bored.  I've lost control.  I'm tired, and I'm blaming everything and everybody because I can't seem to fix it. What to do? I'd prefer to walk away and ignore those pesky characters. Shove my outline and drafts in a deep, dark drawer and go off to have a nice lunch, do a little shopping, reorganize my linen closet,

      Hello again!  Okay, we're into Week #2 of NanoWriMo, and I'm sure everyone is whizzing along . . . er, maybe?  We're still contending with the time change -- at least for the majority of the United States -- and that could be posing problems for your pace and stamina.  For me, it's the loss of light in the late afternoon.  I hate the encroaching darkness at 4:30pm (sunset here on the East Coast) and can get depressed, fidgety and feeling confined.  For others, it's the morning that affects them.  Either way, it's there and we have to contend with it.     What are the experts reporting these days?   The time change may not be the real culprit.  Sure, we'll make some adjustments in our daily routines, but here are some of the things that are part of our daily life that may be almost invasive without realizing it.   > Digital detox expert Tanya Goodin reports that "sleepless nights may be caused by the constant blue light that shines from screen-b

  Okay, you've just shot out of the starting gate like a racehorse, pounding those keys, high with excitement and full of energy.   Maybe you've got your planning board in front of you or a ton of post-it notes stacked by your computer.   You even have a vision of hitting that magic 50,000 word count.   Great!   Have you planned on how to sustain your stamina and pace? No?   Well then, let's talk about that because you're going to slack off at some point, whether because you're tired, feeling stuck in the great swampy middle of your novel ( Jim Butcher, 2006 ), suffering from lack of sleep due to the time change next weekend or grappling with interruptions due to the holidays later this month - yes, Thanksgiving does fall at that critical point, only six days from deadline. Are you planning on writing 500 words a day?   1,000 a day?   More?   After all, NanoWriMo is a marathon, a physical challenge as well as a mental challenge.   Similar to marathon runners,