by Katherine Reay, @Katherine_Reay
When writing blogs about writing, we often lead or close with “Write something great” or “Write strong today” or something else equally encouraging.
And we all need those words – writing is hard work and encouragement is hard to come by. Having someone say, “Go write brilliantly” is a call to arms. It’s inspiring and it gets the heart pounding, the hands poised over the keyboard and the little grey cells firing…
But how do we make that happen?
My daughter’s volleyball coach kept telling the girls to “elevate” this season. Finally, another coach stepped in and commented that not a single fifteen-year-old girl knew what that meant. They needed to first be taught the mechanics of a good approach and a proper jump. Elevation would then happen naturally. So, I’m happy to say, they backed up their teaching and revisited the fundamentals.
So what are our fundamentals? What does it take to write brilliantly? Positing it here means I might have a handle on an answer – and if you’ve read any of my books you might quibble about that. 😉 But I can name a few suggestions I trust, regardless of how well I execute them…
- Write what you know. That does not mean all my books have to be about moms, runners and chocolate addicts. But it does mean I need to have an organic connection, an innate understanding, of the emotions and the underlying tensions I want to explore. As you get more adept, branch out and stretch your boundaries here, but as you begin, I suggest you stay close to this tenet… It’ll help with #2 below.
- Write with vulnerability. You need to metaphorically bleed onto the page. It sounds a little over-the-top, but if you aim for bleeding you may just reach unguarded. Readers know when a writer is pulling back and not going to edge in both a scene or with a character. I remember an agent once telling me that he met with his NYT Bestselling author who said, “I could never make my character do that!” And that’s exactly what the agent insisted she write. He demanded she write into that uncomfortable place. Try it – even if it’s just for yourself and see what happens.
- Write with regularity. You can’t expect to write brilliantly if you only sit to write sporadically. A few minutes every week or every month isn’t going to do the job. Even if it’s only 10 minutes a day, mark it on your planner and stick to it. Then turn that 10 minutes into 20 and build from there. Regularity increases the likelihood for brilliance.
- Write with abandon. Leave the inner-editor behind for those first brushes at a scene. No one else needs to see them and they will change regardless – so, at first pass, push a character and scene as far as you can as fast as you can. Enjoy the risk and see what develops. The inner editor will have her say soon enough.
- Write with Joy. That’s a personal one for me and it’s probably my #1 really. Writing is a prayer. Writing expresses my hope for us all. So I hope you too can enjoy your call to write and the gift of your vocation, and the beautiful privilege it is to share your stories with others. That, I promise, will translate to the page.
There you go…. Now go write brilliantly. And – as I always say – have fun too!
Thanks for sharing a few moments with me today…
Katherine
Mary Davies finds safety in her ordered and productive life. Working as an engineer, she genuinely enjoys her job and her colleagues – particularly a certain adorable and intelligent consultant. But something is missing. When Mary’s estranged childhood friend, Isabel Dwyer offers her a two-week stay in a gorgeous manor house in England, she reluctantly agrees in hopes that the holiday will shake up her quiet life in just the right ways.
But Mary gets more than she bargained for when Isabel loses her memory and fully believes she lives in Jane Austen’s Bath. While Isabel rests and delights in the leisure of a Regency lady, attended by other costume-clad guests, Mary uncovers startling truths about their shared past, who Isabel was, who she seems to be, and the man who now stands between them.
Outings are undertaken, misunderstandings play out, and dancing ensues as this company of clever, well-informed people, who have a great deal of conversation, work out their lives and hearts.
Katherine Reay is the bestselling and award-winning author of Dear Mr. Knightley, Lizzy & Jane, The Bronte Plot, A Portrait of Emily Price, which released in November 2016 with Starred Reviews from Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and a Romantic Times TOP PICK! Her latest, The Austen Escape released November 2017. All Katherine’s novels are contemporary stories with a bit of classical flair. She holds a BA and MS from Northwestern University and is a wife, mother, rehabbing runner, former marketer, and avid chocolate consumer. After living all across the country and a few stops in Europe, Katherine now happily resides outside Chicago, IL. You can meet her at www.katherinereay.com or on Facebook: KatherineReayBooks, Twitter: @katherine_reay or Instagram: @katherinereay.