In the chapter titled, “How to Finish What You Start,” of David Fryxell’s book, Write Faster, Write Better, Fryxell offers a short quiz to determine whether or not you are phobic about finishing. Without plagiarizing his words, here’s the gist of his quiz:
- Do you have half-finished projects lying around your house?
- Make a list of projects you’ve completed in the past six months. Of projects you’ve started but that are still “works in progress.” Which list is longer?
- Are you impulsive or driven?
To learn more about how to tune-up your “completion drive,” check out Fryxell’s book. That chapter goes on to give not only psychological explanations as to why we procrastinate, but offers a practical plan for getting past our hangups, therefore allowing us to complete those tasks that are nagging us and press onward toward success.
Remember, this is the book I accidentally purchased twice. Leave a comment this month on any of my blogs to have your name placed in a drawing for my extra copy. The drawing will take place February 29.
Article written by Linda Fulkerson
You learn something new every day, I suppose. I recently learned to double check my shopping cart at Amazon.com before clicking the “check out” button. You see, I’d accidentally put two of the same book in my cart without realizing it, and now I own two copies. That’s good news for you, though, because first of all, it’s a great book, and second, I plan to give away the extra copy in a drawing the end of February from the names of all who leave a comment on my personal blog, my main web site, or Fiction Fundamentals site during February 2008. (Sorry, Spammers, but you don’t get your name put in the pot!)
The book, Write Faster, Write Better, by David Fryxell, is excellent for those who, like me, can find almost anything else to do besides actually write. Fryxell takes the lessons he learned from years of writing on a constant deadline in a 3-column-a-week job and presents them in a way that any writer, both fiction and nonfiction, can use. In fact, Fryxell’s book has special sections for nonfiction writers and novelists.
Whether you’re time-challenged, organizationally challenged, idea-challenged–whatever is keeping you from getting it done, Fryxell has a plan that can help you write faster and better. The book offers tips for overcoming writer’s block, disorganized writing, and even a spiel about overcoming “finishphobia” with tips on bringing your writing to a satisfying ending.
From the back cover:
Every writer has felt the pressure of a deadline. Writing is a challenge: there are the problems of getting started, feelings of writer’s block, and numerous interruptions lying between you and a finished piece. This book is your guide to getting through that obstacle course with success.
In Write Faster, Write Better, author and editor David A. Fryxell shares his secrets for writing faster while boosting your creativity and the quality of your work. He guides you step-by-step through the writing process to help you create a publishable manuscript in less time. You’ll learn how to:
- Organize your time, ideas, and files
- Find your focus
- Develop story-worthy ideas
- Think like an editor
- Use smart Internet search strategies
- Pull it all together to beat writer’s block
- Write faster fiction, nonfiction, scripts, and humor
Each chapter is full of rich examples to help you put Fryxell’s principles into practice. You’ll find specific exercises to help you start writing faster in your own work and overcome the challenges you face. Liberate yourself today with the proven techniques found inside Write Better, Write Faster.
Article written by Linda Fulkerson
January 29th was a pretty good “this day in history” in the world of wordsmiths. The Raven was first published on this day by the New York Evening Mirror (in 1845); Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet was first performed (1595); American Revolutionary leader and author of Common Sense Thomas Paine was born on this day (1737); plus, it’s Tom Selleck’s birthday.
If you’re wondering what Tom Selleck has to do with the literary world, then you obviously weren’t a teenage girl during the 1980s. I was only a teenager for one year of that decade, but hey, that was long enough to fall in love with Magnum PI.
Happy Birthday, Tom!
Article written by Linda Fulkerson
While wading through web sites concerning colonial Louisiana, I ran across a lot of interesting information. I knew, having lived in Arkansas the better part of my adult life, that the names of many communities were derived from the French influence in the 18th Century. I did not, however, guess, nor would I have ever guessed, that Smackover, Arkansas, was originally a French settlement.
Yes, Smackover, a small town in one of the southern most counties of the state, a town that boasts (proudly, according to their web site) the state’s one and only “center of the road traffic light,” was originally dubbed “Sumac Covert,” (pronounced “co-vair”), which, in French, means “covered with Sumac.” However, the English (and, yes, I can trace my roots to a long line of Hartleys, Hamptons, and the like), being, well…English, pronounced this graceful name that gives honor to the bright-colored weed that adorns many Arkansas roadways still today “Smackover.”
No wonder the French and English never got along.
Article written by Linda Fulkerson
Sometimes the reason huge projects, like writing a novel, don’t get finished is because they don’t get started. Writing fiction can be an overwhelming undertaking. I’ve read many articles about procrastination, and oftentimes, the writers spend more times stressing that procrastinators need to know “why” we procrastinate and offer a lengthy laundry list of things to do to prevent putting things off.
For example, write a personal mission statement. Now, I have nothing against personal mission statements, but if I’m already sidetracked from my “to-write” list enough to browse Internet articles on procrastination, then pausing to ponder over my personal mission will give me just one more “reason” to put off whatever it is I’m dreading doing.
Putting things off, for me, usually stems from being busy to the point I get overwhelmed and am often unsure where to even begin the projects waiting to be finished. But I find myself being more “busy” and less productive a lot of the time. I stumbled upon an idea that I hope will help.
Project management people use a term called “timeboxing” to increase productivity. Basically, timeboxing is a method where one sorts his or her projects into “boxes of time.” Working for small segments of time, (30 minutes to 2 hours), puts a dent in the task at hand, easing stress and giving a quick sense of accomplishment. Continue to schedule more “boxes” of time until the project is complete.
Susan Messiner touches on this topic (without using the term “timeboxing”) in her 300 pages in 30 days seminar. She discusses a plan for mapping out your novel into 30 segments (or, I suppose we could say, “boxes”). If your schedule permits completing one segment each day, you can have a 300-page draft in a month.
Whether your novel gets done in one month or 10, the point is to just write it!
Article written by Linda Fulkerson
