The Writers Aspirant Accountability Thread

@sconn I’m in a similar boat to @ease and @gideonpsmith. My ‘plotting’ is messy.

Usually I start with something that sparks inspiration—a non-fiction podcast that pairs well with a speculative element, a character I want to explore, or an atmosphere or a vibe I want my reader to dive into.

If you’re struggling with plotting, I highly recommend the non-fiction podcast method. That was my semi-finalist story. Take a true story from a podcast or a news site that hit you in some way— is it poignant, did it make you think? How can you introduce a major speculative element into that story framework that will dive even deeper into what sparked your interest? Put it in space, on another planet, in a fantasy realm.

This way you already have a basic ‘plot’ framework but then you can play with it, paint it up as your own, twist it in a way to make the reader examine their own beliefs (that’s what most good speculative fiction does, right?). You can also do this with myths, but I obviously don’t recommend doing this with another modern speculative fiction story.

@ease   I do what you describe in your Method #2. I agree it's not the most effective method.  However, I would not discount the "dreaming while awake" phase.  IMO that's what separates us from AI fiction. The dreaming helps us make artful connections and insights we might otherwise miss. Writing to formula is fast but misses something. Lee Irwin writes about this state of mind in Native American cultures. It's something mainstream culture tends to dismiss. https://www.jstor.org/stable/1185248   Now, combing your Method#1 and Method#2 -- that sounds good to me.  I should try it. BTW, I also write the scenes that come to me in vision first.

I think I neglected to post goals for July. June/July was slow in the writing department because of the kids being home for the summer, but I did finish a potential for Q4 story. I also submitted to several markets and got one acceptance for a flash piece (not paid, though). 

My goal for August is to finish a story I’m working on for DreamForge and maybe write another option for Q4. After realizing that I should have written something more WotF-esque for Q3, I’m really wanting to send in a strong piece for Q4. 

Just completed a rewrite on an SHM before submitting to other markets. I did it in preparation for work on my Q4 entry, now plotted.

Other work through this month will include chapter work on my first novel.

Ok, I have nine stories out on submission and have written three chapters of a novel. 

The goal this month, and the next few, is to finish the first draft of this novel. 

Had a personal rejection yesterday for a story that has been held for ages. It was a bit of a disappointment to be honest, though the feedback was welcome. 

On top of that I have a stinking cold and haven't written a word all week.

I failed ?

I didn't query anyone. Kind critique partners of the beginning of my novel made me realize that the main and titular character doesn't appear in the first three chapters. Which is all agents are going to see. So I'm rewriting them, which shouldn't take long, but I've still not managed to get them done in nearly a month. I have some excuses (have spent 40+ hours a week doing landscaping from my Honey-Do list, have in-laws and a challenging toddler nephew staying with us the entire month, and have worked 70-80 hours every week too) but they're just excuses. I should have got it done, and hope to this weekend.

I say all this because I want to make it clear that we're holding each other accountable to do our best but sometimes (often, even) we fail. And that's okay. So long as we don't keep failing. So long as we get back in the chair and put hands on the keyboard.

I hope you're all doing better than me with your August goals. There's still a few days left! 

And speaking of time remaining: there's just over a month until the end of Q4. Get those stories written! I can't say how much I'm hoping more of you join me in Hollywood next year! To that end, my inbox is always open for 450s, pro-bono.

I'd also recommend hitting up some past winners/finalists for critiques. I got a big push forward when I started doing it, and every one of them received my unsolicited pestering with kindness.

Posted by: @ease

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I want to make it clear that we're holding each other accountable to do our best but sometimes (often, even) we fail. And that's okay. So long as we don't keep failing. So long as we get back in the chair and put hands on the keyboard.

I might even go further and say, if you never fail, you're not setting hard enough goals. So congrats on "failing" this month @ease ! Because failing at least occasionally should be part of what we're striving for!

Posted by: @gideonpsmith

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@ease 

 

Goals for August:

I'm going to slow down in August. I have a family vacation and some work-stuff coming up which is going to make it a tough month for writing. Nevertheless:

1. Re-write the novel query letter. This one clearly isn't working.

2. Finish outline next novel. I have beginning and end, but the middle is still in a hazy mist right now. And not a good atmospheric mist. Just a soupy, no idea where I'm going haze.

3. Painfully, I also have a commissioned non-fiction piece I have to write and have been procrastinating on. Its deadline is August 24th, so somehow that *has* to get done. 

And talking of failing...  

1. I did re-write my query letter. So goal 1 achieved. But what goal 1 really meant was re-write to a final form and I;m not sure that was achieved as I did send the re-write to some writing friends none of whom liked the re-write, so I haven't yet used it. Am sitting on it, pondering for now as I'm unsure I agree with the feedback (two reviewers - opposing feedback, neither of which really resonated with me)

2. Got nowhere with goal #2. I read some more craft books but they did not answer the barriers I have been having.

3. Goal 3 was procrastinated on further but submitted on August 23rd. Hoping the editor now procrastinates a bit in looking at it as I can't stand to have it back in my inbox too quickly!

4. Un-declared goal - Q4 going in - which went in some time ago. I am claiming this as a goal post hoc so that my ratio of success:failure is not too dismal  

Posted by: @gideonpsmith

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Posted by: @ease

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I want to make it clear that we're holding each other accountable to do our best but sometimes (often, even) we fail. And that's okay. So long as we don't keep failing. So long as we get back in the chair and put hands on the keyboard.

I might even go further and say, if you never fail, you're not setting hard enough goals. So congrats on "failing" this month @ease ! Because failing at least occasionally should be part of what we're striving for!

I used to ice skate a lot, and one thing my friend and I said before every session was, "If you don't fall, you haven't been skating." Towards the end of every session, if we hadn't fallen yet, we'd push it harder and harder until we did. Otherwise it'd've been a waste of three hours!

Posted by: @gideonpsmith

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Am sitting on it, pondering for now as I'm unsure I agree with the feedback (two reviewers - opposing feedback, neither of which really resonated with me)

Send it to me! Maybe I can be a tiebreaker.

Posted by: @gideonpsmith

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2. Got nowhere with goal #2. I read some more craft books but they did not answer the barriers I have been having.

Have you tried Libby Hawker's Take Off Your Pants (not an affiliate link)? I got a lot of good outlining advice out of it, myself.

And congrats on getting Q4 in already! Way to get ahead of the deadline.

I don’t think I even set August foals because meeting any goals for my craft just became impossible for awhile.

But guess what?! I finished my new novel(all edited aside from typo clean-up), about 88,000 words, sci-fi. And it is being well received by my alpha readers.

Now I have September goals to set:

Finish a Q4 story

Make at least three pro-market submissions.

Finish my Q4 illustrator submissions.

I apologize for my long absence and just popping back in. I was so overwhelmed.

Posted by: @ease

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Send it to me! Maybe I can be a tiebreaker.

 

 

Absolutely! Thank you ? 

@clfors Eeee! Nothing better than printing THE END at the end of a novel's first draft. Congratulations!

Those are three wisely-achievable goals: I'll be rooting for you and looking forward to hearing 'mission accomplished' in a month.

And no apologies needed. We all get overwhelmed sometimes. Always do whatever needs to be done* to return to your most authentic self ? 

*this is not endorsement nor permission to commit crimes or evil, especially if you might be caught.

In bodybuilding, the expression is "to failure". Each set is rep after rep until you fail. Then you stop, rest, and start again - until you fail again.

That's how you grow.

@tj_knight good analogy!

Ok, I have 12 stories out on submission, a few agent queries floating about in the ether, and a novel on the go.

August is never a good month for me but I've managed 8600 words or so on the novel. This month the intention is to get a lot more done on that. I just need to catch up on a little sleep and clear my head first. Should hopefully get back into the saddle and the swing of it over the weekend.

I was definitely ambitious in thinking I would get any work done on vacation. ? So I guess my September goals are to

1. Start writing my Q4 entry (which I thankfully plotted in July)

2. Finish writing and editing my Q4 entry

3. Submit my Q4 entry

I'm not expecting to do much more than that since school's starting, but perhaps I'll surprise myself.

August Goals: Quasi-success

• Life, and family, are my priority right now - Success
• 70% of a new story for Q4 written - fail on moving that one forward, although I did get some good comments from a reader.
• I did have a couple good ideas to fix up a HM, but want that to be Q1 submission - Quasi-success - moved it forward, but didn't complete. Almost ready
• Added goal, worked on another HM that I could submit for Q4 - Success (because it was an added goal) - moved it forward and just smoothed it some section based on good comments from a reader. Still need to tighten up ending.
• So, not sure what I'm doing from day to day right now. Success (may not complete what I knew I needed to do, but I at least know I should be doing it. haha)
• Added goal, had two ideas for new stories - roughed in idea and leaving for another time

September Goals: 

• Finish new story that is 70% completed for possible Q4 submission
• Finish edits on HM for possible Q4 submission
• Finish edits on another HM for possible Q1 submission
• Revisit two ideas for new stories from August and see if one could be a possibility for Q1 submission

@tj_knight Amen. I was taught slightly different: 7 reps of a weight one notch down from your personal best. 7 reps of a weight matching your best. Then as many reps as you can with a weight one notch higher. If you reach 7, time to reallocate your personal best. In writing terms, I guess that would mean: set an easily achievable goal, an achievable goal, and a tough one. Do the easy, do the achievable (or have a damned good excuse why not), and then try your best on the last, knowing that failure is imminent/likely. As such, my new goals for this month are:

• Write ten words
• Get one good night's sleep (I actually got one last week! First time I've slept through the night at home without a child's interruption in six years and seven months! AND I didn't even get a work call until gone 8am!)
• and sell my novel and ten short stories...

@pdblake Will keep fingers and toes crossed for your submissions and queries!

@writhmic Keep it short! 4000 word stories win, and they're so much quicker to write and edit. Obviously, a story needs to be as long as it needs to be, but keep the number of characters and scene changes as low as you can bear and you should find it easier to write short. V41 Q1 can be for a long-ass story if you need to write one, long, or at all 😉

And to anyone writing query letters, feel free to hit me up (I've studied the crepe out of them, even if I struggle to do them for my own works) but I'll also recommend talking to @gideonpsmith. Hope you don't mind me volunteering you, Gid. He shared his query letter with me and it is fantastic. Made me regret not being a literary agent. 

Posted by: @toddjones

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August Goals: Quasi-success

• Life, and family, are my priority right now - Success
• 70% of a new story for Q4 written - fail on moving that one forward, although I did get some good comments from a reader.
• I did have a couple good ideas to fix up a HM, but want that to be Q1 submission - Quasi-success - moved it forward, but didn't complete. Almost ready
• Added goal, worked on another HM that I could submit for Q4 - Success (because it was an added goal) - moved it forward and just smoothed it some section based on good comments from a reader. Still need to tighten up ending.
• So, not sure what I'm doing from day to day right now. Success (may not complete what I knew I needed to do, but I at least know I should be doing it. haha)
• Added goal, had two ideas for new stories - roughed in idea and leaving for another time

Sounds like you did great, overall.

Posted by: @toddjones

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September Goals: 

• Finish new story that is 70% completed for possible Q4 submission
• Finish edits on HM for possible Q4 submission
• Finish edits on another HM for possible Q1 submission
• Revisit two ideas for new stories from August and see if one could be a possibility for Q1 submission

My two cents would be to put your focus on that first one. New beats revised, by a good margin, in my opinion. You learn more, it's fresher, you normally have more passion for it, e.t.c.

Posted by: @ease

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You learn more, it's fresher, you normally have more passion for it, e.t.c.

 

The fresher and passion part are very true. I struggle with being enthusiastic on revisions. In part, because the story has been gone through in my brain so often that I'm tired of it. Although, I do get excited about figuring out why it was an HM to determine if it just needs some smoothing and polishing or if there is a large crater in the story that isn't worth filling in.

I have three (3) HMs that I know have better stories in them than they currently are. Those children I want to nourish and then set out into the world once again to find a place for them. 

On the other hand, writing a new story is very exciting. Especially when you are a quasi-pantser, like me. The characters grow as I write and the story sometimes even takes a pleasantly unexpected turn. So much fun.  

August check-in:

Kids made it through the first two weeks of school. House is cleaner now. Closets have been organized. Hot breakfast has replaced the kids’ daily cold cereal of the last few years.   

Oh, the writing goals? [checks notes] I almost met my goal. The story I was writing for DreamForge is a couple hundred words away from completion, and I submitted two stories to respectable markets. For September, I plan to write a third story that may replace one of my intended stories for WotF/DreamForge and then, of course, I’ll submit. ?

Kudus to all of you who have accomplished so much despite your busy lives! And thanks @ease for keeping us motivated!

August has been a mixed-bag for me. Writing has been hampered by a very busy time in work, and summer holidays. I hit a wall (again) on my WIP for Q4. Originally my story for Q3, I just can't wrestle an end to it despite major plot changes. It may end up being my Vol 41 Q1 as I am running out of time this quarter. I started a new story last week, which has more momentum and a I have a clearer idea of where it is going and it should come in around 4,000 to 5,000 mark if shorter, so more manageable too. That's now my focus. Just over three weeks to go, I think it is doable. Though may not have time for crits.

I actually submitted (revised) WotF entries. One is out at the moment, one came back with (minor) personal feedback, which I will take as a positive after a series of form responses. I have a few other stories that, with a few hours / days to fine tune, could go out to market. But I think that will be for next month once I finish and submit my Q4 entry. If I can get an entry in this quarter it will be five on the bounce (my longest streak) and for the first time I will have submitted once each quarter of a volume, which was one of my writing goals this year. While I am trying not to get too focussed on WotF alone, the repeat deadlines are a great target to hit and I think doing so is developing a general skill as a writer. So I am very keen to get this entry in.

Posted by: @ease

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And to anyone writing query letters, feel free to hit me up (I've studied the crepe out of them, even if I struggle to do them for my own works) but I'll also recommend talking to @gideonpsmith. Hope you don't mind me volunteering you, Gid. He shared his query letter with me and it is fantastic. Made me regret not being a literary agent. 

Thanks for the shout-out @ease - happy to look at anyones query letter, though despite the above endorsement not sure I really have any expertise! My own one took many, many, many (you get the idea) many tries and while I am happy with it, the proof will be in the pudding as they say.

ps - the above comment also makes me regret you are not a literary agent 😉

@ajschultz6, @clfors, @writhmic, @pdblake, @annax, @kz_richards, @toddjones, @joel-c-scoberg, @storysinger, @physa, @pegeen, @kent, @jeschleicher, @sconn, @gideonpsmith, @ericstallsworth - it's Thursday! Literally and figuratively. Delighted by many of the results that y'all have shared. To those who didn't get the results they were expecting/hoping for, do not be discouraged! You submitted, which is 99% of the battle. There are plenty more Quarters ahead, and so long as you keep submitting, writing, and improving, you'll get where you deserve to go.

I hope everyone's Q4s are going well. Sixteen days left! And don't worry about submitting early: @johngoodwin confirmed on the latest podcast episode (with our own, the venerable @martin-l-shoemaker) that the reading doesn't begin until they're all in. Great episode, by the way, I recommend giving it a listen.

Posted by: @ease

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And don't worry about submitting early: @johngoodwin confirmed on the latest podcast episode (with our own, the venerable @martin-l-shoemaker) that the reading doesn't begin until they're all in. Great episode, by the way, I recommend giving it a listen.

Well @ease you just answered one of my long time questions! I always wondered when the reading began and if submitting early meant they had more time to fall in love with it/find the faults lol

Posted by: @ease

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To those who didn't get the results they were expecting/hoping for, do not be discouraged! You submitted, which is 99% of the battle. There are plenty more Quarters ahead, and so long as you keep submitting, writing, and improving, you'll get where you deserve to go.

I hope everyone's Q4s are going well. Sixteen days left! 

Thanks for the encouraging words. I am disappointed on my Q3, I really thought it was a good story. 

Q4 isn't going well. I've edited a previous HM for a backup, but I'm really trying to work out kinks in a new story. I'm kind of stuck on the try/fails to make the ending not seem too easy.

I went into a deep depression when a friend of mine, Danny "Fingers" Davis passed unexpectedly. He was the best guitarist I ever shared a stage with.

We won contests together and played more than a hundred live shows. I really miss him.

It hasn't stopped my writing, only makes it hard to focus on the task at hand. RIP Danny. The words are blurred for some reason.  

Posted by: @storysinger

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I went into a deep depression when a friend of mine, Danny "Fingers" Davis passed unexpectedly. He was the best guitarist I ever shared a stage with.

We won contests together and played more than a hundred live shows. I really miss him.

It hasn't stopped my writing, only makes it hard to focus on the task at hand. RIP Danny. The words are blurred for some reason.  

I'm really sorry to hear this, Don. Though how wonderful that you have so many lively, exciting memories of your times together.

I hope it gets easier to cherish his memory.

So I came onto this thread to post my September goals as I never did that - and then I saw Don's sad news, so first of all I want to take a minute and just offer my condolences. These things are hard. At times like this its natural to want to withdraw but that can be counterproductive and I hope that this community is at least one refuge for you. I appreciated very much your taking a look at one of my stories a few quarters back and I'm sure there are many others here that treasure you as an active member of this community.

Though the above is a perfect example of why we should not get too upset with contest results - there are clearly, far more profound and important life issues - I will go ahead and post my September goals, so that @ease and @storysinger and the rest of this wonderful community can keep me accountable.

1. Get a few more eyes on my 41/Q1. This story has really been through the wringer. But its landed somewhere I like, so I'm confident another market will like it if WotF doesn't, though of course WotF remains my preferred placement.

2. GOT to get some more agent queries out on the novel

3. I've been in 'planning stages' with the next (unrelated) novel for something like 6 months now. September 2023 is the time to put pen to paper and write one chapter. Thats all I'm asking of myself. One. 

4. I'm also in a novel workshopping group and so a lot of time has been, and likely will continue to be, workshopping not the next novel, nor the one I'm querying, but the one before that, which still has 'issues'.

I think that's more than enough. I also updated my webpage this month to reflect a few more non-professional rate fiction sales and an upcoming article in the BSFA Focus magazine.

@storysinger I’m so sorry. Losing people sucks. So many virtual hugs for you.