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Friday, November 22, 2013

It's okay to cheat...sometimes...

No, I'm not talking about cheating on your significant other (that's never okay), or cheating on tests, or even cheating on your taxes. I''m talking about cheating on your manuscript.

C'mon, you know you've done it before, turned to some shiny new toy after the luster wore off the old one. I know I have. But I've come to the conclusion that it's okay, in fact, it might even be a good thing. Why? Because it's writing. It's practice. And the more we practice the better we get. It's inevitable. Right? Anyway. I'm not going to feel guilty about it anymore. I'm just going to write.

What lessons have you learned lately?

yep, another one of the son's pics...

ps come back on Monday and say hi to Julie Flanders who will be stopping by to chat - and have a great weekend. Do something fun!

pps Dianne Salerni and I still have three slots open for First Impressions in December and we'd love to see your page :)

20 comments:

  1. I only have one idea at a time, so I don't even get to cheat when it's all right!
    Will be back for Julie of course.
    And I'm on a roll with my outline and world building, so will continue that this weekend.

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  2. yes, and when you cheat with others you sometimes actually realize how much you love the first one :)

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  3. Cheating is GREAT. It gives me a way to procrastinate while still being productive. I can put one idea away and work on another and feel like I'm getting away with something, when really I'm still writing. I can only manage about two at a time, though!

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  4. I highly recommend throwing new projects into the mix. It makes your brain operate in a different way. A necessary break.

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  5. Somehow, I don't have the brain capacity to do more than one project at a time. I just can't concentrate, and I lose the threads of plot, character, everything. I need to go to the braincell store and trade in the old, lazy ones for some new! lol

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  6. Lavishing attention on a new sweet young thing writing project can be invigorating, especially if it's vastly different from our ball-and-chain WIP. (And of course, I mean that in the nicest way.) Anything that stretches our imaginations and makes us create in new ways is good for our writing physique. (Now our actual physique? That's another thing entirely.)

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  7. Recently, I learned not to count on auto-save.

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  8. I almost never cheat on my manuscripts. I plow through and try to rediscover the love that brought us together in the first place.

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  9. I don't consider that cheating. That's balancing projects. I do the same thing with my knitting.

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  10. I have three manuscripts going at the moment, so I cheat like crazy! The most important thing is to keep yourself going, because like you said writing pretty much anything will fine-tune your skills further. I've learned lately the absolute joy of slowing down a bit and letting the emotions simmer into my manuscript through careful word choice and descriptives during my revisions.

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  11. I used to never cheat, but that's changed. :)

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  12. That photograph is gorgeous!

    Regarding writing lessons: they never end. :)

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  13. Every now and again a stray idea comes a calling, but I have firmly pushed them aside. I really want to finish this WIP. However, I will consider your thoughts on this matter. As you say, writing is writing.

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  14. I have learned that the only way to learn how to write a novel, is to write a novel. Someone famous said that. I forget who. But it is so darn true.

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  15. As long as we're writing, it's all good. I usually have multiple manuscripts at various stages in the process. When I burn out on one, I jump into another. Eventually, they all get the attention they deserve.

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  16. Lovely picture! I'm not in a good frame of mind where writing is concerned right now but I'm of the mind that whatever works for you is what you should do- even if it is, as Oscar Wilde put it, removing one comma in the morning and putting it back in in the afternoon.

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  17. Sometimes you NEED to take a break from your manuscript in order to make further progress on it.

    And writing something new can be recharging!

    Only hardcore writers recharge themselves for writing by writing something else, right? ;)

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  18. Ooh another fantastic pic. Thanks again for having me here tomorrow, Marcy! :)

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  19. I haven't gotten to the guilt-free part of it yet, but yes, I've definitely cheated on my manuscript!

    Shannon at The Warrior Muse

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  20. Breaks are important. So much so I feel.

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