The 12 1/2 Rules of writing. . . .is that it?

I saw this poster the other day on Pinterest and thought I would share it here. I found it lovely that there are only 12 1/2 rules to being a writer. Sounds easy enough right? :)



But really when you break it down, it resembles more closely the daily ins and outs of writing. Here are the ones I need to work on to become a better author:
1- Writing every day, finding the time, chasing down the muse and pushing through the wall.
2-Stepping back and really being honest with myself about my writing. Did I just skip that paragraph? yeah, I did. My reader will to. Sharpen it or pull it out.
5-Widen my characters interests and looks. I don't fit perfectly in a social norm box, and neither should my characters, make them memorable and as unique as people really are!
8-Some stories are there to just be enjoyed, not necessarily to have a moral, don't stress if mine is on the enjoyment side.
9-Inspiration strikes when you can't find a paper or pen, I'm sure of it. I have many grocery receipts and eyeliner scrawled notes from moments I was caught unprepared without pen and paper.
12- I've personally found that if I'm stuck, I think of what the story would sound like written from another characters POV and I find I can break through my wall of worry and get back to the scene I have to finish.

And there you have it!

 What rules do you like best?

Resolve

It's January! we've made it through the delightful chaos of the holiday season. Now ready to make some resolutions for the new year. So how did it all get started?

Wikipedia says this:

The ancient Babylonians made promises to their gods at the start of each year that they would return borrowed objects and pay their debts.

The Romans began each year by making promises to the god Janus, for whom the month of January is named.

In the Medieval era, the knights took the "peacock vow" at the end of the Christmas season each year to re-affirm their commitment to chivalry.

At watch-night services, many Christians prepare for the year ahead by praying and making these resolutions.

The concept, regardless of creed, is to reflect upon self-improvement annually.

So I'm reflecting on the resolutions I made last year and deciding what worked and what was completely ignored, and what do I want to work on this year. This is what I decided. I need to make only a few goals to work on--focus to achieve. :) And they need to be in categories.

I came up with five categories that work best for me:

Church

Writing

Family

Personal

Financial

Next I thought up no more than two goals for each, and I wrote them out in detail. I read once that goals need to be specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and time-bound. The time length is already taken care of--one year, and I wrote them out in detail so that checks off my specific requirement so I need to make them relevant, measurable and attainable and I'm all set.

I'm looking forward to working on my own goals this year, and excited to see what the new year brings!

Friday Feature

Bastille - Pompeii


Lana Del Ray - Young and Beautiful

Tom Odell - Can't Pretend

Pinterest For Writers

I love Pinterest and I know that I'm definitely not the only one who spend a few minutes (hours) on the site each week. A healthy handful of my blog views are referred from the site each week as well. So how does writing and pinterest go together? Here are a couple writing pinners that I follow:

Social Marketing Writing
This pinner has a few boards that I like better than others are I feel are more applicable than others to writers/writing such as Social Media Tips and  Marketing Tips 
To follow them click here: http://www.pinterest.com/smwriting/

Writing Soul
This pinner has a board called Writing Life. It has inspiration, writing prompts and quotes all posted conveniently in one place. Another board I like is Poetic Notions and while I personally do not write poetry, I do like to read it and learn about it.
To follow them click here: http://www.pinterest.com/writinginmysoul/poetic-notions/

EcellenceInWriting
This last pinner has a few boards all specific to the craft. Personal writing, education, books to read and even homeschooling ideas. One board I like is called Grammar It only has a few pins but a couple are funny and there's an info-graphic that covers common grammar mistakes. Another is called Writing It has prompts, cheat sheets and ways to help children in their own stories.
To follow them click here: http://www.pinterest.com/iewriting/

What pinners do you follow to improve your own craft?

Things that are Pinteresting

Here's my most recent five pins:

To visit these pins, click the #. One, Two, Three, Four, Five.

I love looking through pinterest and finding ideas for dinner, decorating and character profiles. Recently I like to find some word or idea to put into my writing as a little challenge. For example, the last image talks about table manners, so I'll look for a place to add in table manners or maybe the word humorous. It's been a helpful way to keep writing interesting. I find that there are always scenes that have to be written that I don't feel particularly excited to write, those are the scenes that I use writing prompts such as the word play from pinterest.

What do you do to keep yourself writing?

To follow me on pinterest click here

Registration Now Open

Save The Date

Do you like going to writing conferences? Do you like to keep some cash in your wallet? Do you like to learn hands on and practice as you are being taught? Great! Me too.

Winter Workshop

If you are a writer, and if you like to learn how to better your craft, there's a workshop in Provo, UT on Saturday, Jan 21. And it's Cheap too! $30.00 and that includes your lunch.

Where: The Utah County Building 100 E Center St. Suite L600 Provo, Utah
Cost: $30.00 a person, Lunch is provided.
Time: Registration is at 8:30 Classes start at 9am – 2:10pm

Topics:Canda Mortensen: Head Hunting for POV
Tristi Pinkston: I Just Have a Feeling- Writing Emotion and Making it Stick
Greg Park: Killer Hooks
Rebecca Shelly: Taxes and You- Figuring it Out
Cindy Hogan: Savvy About Story Structure

Also: These are hands on classes, be prepared to work on your manuscript (1-3 ch.) A laptop is recommended. There will also be a cash only bookstore available before classes and at the end of the day.

Go to:  http://iwritenetwork.com/conference.html  to sign up and please use paypal to pay :)

Hope to see you there!