Seekerville: The Journey Continues

 A quick look back while Ruthy's kitchen is torn apart and her mystery is due in three weeks!

Words as true today as they were three years back! 

by Multi-published, Award-winning author Ruth Logan Herne

You're a planner.

You're a plotter.

You're a pantser.

Guess what?

It doesn't matter. Not all that much. Not nearly as much as some would have you believe.

How you write isn't nearly as important as how you spend your time. If you're spending all of your time planning or plotting or researching and not writing, well... then your production may drop. Or be non-existent.

What does that mean, you ask?

Simple. We follow the math. Some creative types hate to look at numbers. It stifles their creativity.

(YAWN....)

Like so many things, it comes down to numbers and a writer is actually running a small business. You need to know and understand the numbers of your business to make it work, right? We'll keep it simple, I never get complicated if I can possibly avoid it.

If you plan or plot your book for a month... then write it for two months and have a full book 90 days in:

GO YOU! BONUS!!! YOU ROCKED IT!!!! :)

And I mean that most seriously.

If you didn't plan or overly plot and you still have a book done at 90 days, YOU ROCKED IT, TOO!!! PARTY BONUS FOR YOU AS WELL!

So you're equal, correct? Both with a book done at 90 days, equating the possibility of 4 books/year if they're 70,000 to 80,000 word books. Leaving some editing time there.

You two can go grab coffee now. I'm not talking to youse at the moment. I'm talking to them.

You know who you are...

You've over-plotted four books and haven't finished one.

You've written three great openings, and sent them out to editors and EVEN GOT A BITE ON ONE, a request for a full manuscript, but alas... you haven't finished a manuscript.

And therein lies the problem.

It's not the writing for some folks.

It's the finishing.

When someone does the dishes and leaves them on the counter to air dry: UNFINISHED TASK.

When someone walks out of a bedroom leaving the bed unmade: UNFINISHED TASK

When someone adds pool chemicals but doesn't vacuum the weird things on the bottom: UNFINISHED TASK

When someone washes a car, but doesn't wash the inside of the windows: UNFINISHED TASK

Do you get what's similar about all of these tasks? They look good on the surface. Effort has been expended. Stuff's gotten started, but nothing is finished.

That's a common conundrum, and the basic reason why many authors never get published...

Because writing the whole book isn't easy. It's not the fun part. It's a challenge on a daily basis.

Now I love what I do. Like that cute GMC truck commercial, and the wife that claims the big gray truck, exclaiming "I LOVE IT!!!" And the crazy cute guys acquiesces and nods toward the big red SUV. "I like red."

That's me and writing. I love it.

So maybe I'm jaded because I love what I do, but if you also love it, then why aren't you finishing things?

Here's a probable cause: Your conflict isn't strong enough and your characters are under-developed.

That's another common cause of the malady they call "Writer's Block"... when the brain just can't wrap its head around the story, it's usually because the story is too weak to write. Once you've added layers of conflict, reasons to avoid one another, and big bumps in the road, the kind that are organic to the story, not just thrown in for the author's page count, you have the depth to keep writing. Otherwise it's very hard to know what on earth these characters should do next?

(THAT WAS A VERY LONG, BAD SENTENCE. DON'T DO THAT, OKAY?)

We are all guilty of this at one time or another. And the world didn't end. We re-write.

We deepen the conflict, we add reasons why the characters can't ever get along (Mother/daughter, sister/sister, hero/heroine) and then we have them creep toward the middle...

Not like Justin Timberlake in "Can't Stop the Feeling"... 

And by the way, Justin can creep up on me anytime. The guy is two thumbs up stinkin' adorable, but I digress...

And along those lines, as an author I would be REMISS to not remind you about my newest Love Inspireds "A Cowboy in Shepherd's Crossing", a great story about a cowboy who thinks he know just who he is, what he's doing and where he's going...

Until he finds out he's been living a lie for thirty years.

Great story. Heart-grabbing characters. And a beautiful Western Idaho setting that makes you want to move there, like right now.

I've got a copy to give away to one lucky commenter. It could be you... and I promise: It's a really good story.

What's your plan for this brand new year with no mistakes in it yet? Well, hardly any!

Let me know below and I've got the Keurig set up, delightful creamers and raw sugar. You know you love raw sugar.

I just love saying it!

Raw sugar.

What's the plan, Stan? Answer and I'll tuck your name into the cowboy hat for this latest Shepherd's Crossing book... and a favorite of readers nationwide already!

Multi-published, award-winning inspirational author Ruth Logan Herne is living the dream of writing books that touch the heart-- and soul-- and leave the reader wanting more. Book #50 will be published in 2019 and she is over-the-moon about that! Find her on facebook or Twitter as Ruth Logan Herne, stop by her website ruthloganherne.com and email her at loganherne.com to sign up for her newsletter or just to chat. She's a people person most days, as long as caffeine and chocolate are involved!

  Missy Tippens

Do you like to visually plan your stories--mind maps, poster boards, sticky notes, charts, Scrivener cork board, notecards, and/or timelines? If so, I’ve discovered a great new app I wanted to share with you today!

Plottr. It helps you create visual timelines that can assist you in generating your outline/synopsis.

I bought the program back in May and feel as if I’ve barely put a dent in all I’ll be able to do with it. Plus, as they get feedback from authors, they’re releasing new features constantly. I’ll just share a few of the features I’ve been using and really like.

One of my favorite things is being able to use a template. I have a hard time seeing the big picture in a story, so this really helps me keep on target. They offer many templates, some of which you’ve already heard of or used. Just a few examples are The Hero’s Journey (Joseph Campbell), Romancing the Beat (Gwen Hayes), 12 Chapter Mystery, The W Plot, and Story Circle (Dan Harmon). I played around with two or three and finally settled on using Romancing the Beat. I love it!

What’s great is that you can fill in each beat as is, or you can move things around to suit your story. Everything can be dragged and dropped. You can have multiple plot lines. You can have multiple views (vertical or horizontal). You can use multiple colors. You can pull up your story in outline mode or timeline mode.

Here’s an example so you can envision how the timeline works.

You can create plot cards and also store info about your characters. You can even keep track of a series! You can create a story bible. You can store photos/images. Here's an example of storing information about Places:

You can tag things, so that if you want to do a search—for example one particular character—you can pull up everything with that tag and follow that character’s scenes. You can also tag particular plot lines (romance, character arc, faith journey, etc) so that you can keep up.

Here’s an example of tagging and filtering:

Once you have your timeline filled in, you can auto-generate an outline.

I just discovered you can even add dialogue snippets if they hit you while you’re working. :) I’ll be using that soon.

I also thought it might help to see the timeline in vertical view in case your brain works better seeing it that way:

I could go on and on. Here's a link to Plottr so you can check it out. (No affiliate links. I just wanted to include a link to make it easier for you.) You can download a free trial to see what you think of it. They also have demos you can check out.

Plottr was created by Cameron Sutter. Cameron was a software engineer by trade who was writing novels but having trouble figuring out how to plan them and be able to keep track of notes, and manage story elements that changed all the time. A friend in his writing group suggested a visual tool for planning stories. So he got to work on one using his software background!

I’ve used the Scrivener corkboard for planning my stories (it’s the only feature I use in Scrivener). But I find Plottr works much better for me. I can do a lot more with my plot (scene/beat) cards. I’m pleased that I can get a visual grip on my whole story. And for those who do use Scrivener, you can export to Scrivener. You can also export to Word. Another feature in the works now at Plottr…you’ll eventually be able to sync with Scrivener. 

I’ll be here today to answer questions. As I said, I’ve only scratched the surface. One nice thing is that there’s a Facebook page for users to ask questions (or just lurk like I do). :)

If you like to plan your stories visually, I hope you'll check it out. Let me know what you think!

After more than 10 years of pursuing her dream of publication, Missy Tippens, a pastor’s wife and mom of three from near Atlanta, Georgia, made her first sale to Harlequin Love Inspired in 2007. Her books have since been nominated for the Booksellers Best, Holt Medallion, American Christian Fiction Writers Carol Award, Gayle Wilson Award of Excellence, Maggie Award, Beacon Contest, RT Reviewer’s Choice Award, and the Romance Writers of America RITA^® Award. Visit Missy at www.missytippens.com, https://twitter.com/MissyTippens and http://www.facebook.com/missy.tippens.readers.

First, some things to help keep you from deadline panic mode 

• Don’t Set Yourself Up To Fail
  Most of us have a say in the deadlines before they are set in stone. Make sure you know your capabilities, whether it be words/day or words/week. And keep in mind this is a number you can maintain consistently. For me that number is fairly low – 750 words/day with an occasional 1200 word day. Then I pull out a calendar and block off holidays, conferences I plan to attend and family events such as vacations. I also bake in time – for me it’s 3 days a month – where I cut my word count in half to allow for research and other unexpected interruptions. After I’ve laid all that out I see how long it will take me to get the first draft done. Then I add 3-4 weeks for polishing and revision.
  
  By the way, I’m a spreadsheet nerd and have a handy-dandy spreadsheet I’ve developed over the years to track all of this – if any of you are interested in obtaining a copy just let me know.
   
• Don’t Over Commit
  Whether it be to another writing project that comes up unexpectedly that you hope to squeeze in, or other social or family projects or activities that you’re tempted to participate in, be realistic when you evaluate how they will impact the deadline you’ve already committed to. Learn the power of saying no.
• Don’t Procrastinate
  This is a biggie for me. I’m especially bad about this when I reach the 40-50% point in my WIP. It’s at that point that I start wondering if this story is any good, if I’ve lost my ability to create a coherent story, if I’ve taken a wrong turn somewhere. Once I hit this wall it’s easier for me to do just about anything else than to face my writing demons and push through. One solution for this is to have an accountability partner, someone you check in with once a week or so. And hopefully this is a program you can turn to if you need help brainstorming your way past a story wall or imposter syndrome type feelings.

Some things to help if you do find yourself in deadline trouble 

• Eliminate Distractions
  Staying focused at this point is absolutely crucial. As difficult as it may be for many of us, shut down all social media sites, let family members know when you’re writing you aren’t to be disturbed except for emergencies, and put off or delegate whatever chores or errands you have on your plate until your deadline is met.
• Adjust your work hours
  To the best of your abilities, increase the amount of time you dedicate to your writing each day, even if that means you get fewer hours of sleep on a temporary basis. Of course, this is a strategy of diminishing returns – it’s not something you can maintain for a long stretch of time.
• Take breaks
  This may be counter-intuitive, but taking (short) breaks is a good way to keep your mind focused and sharp and your creativity flowing. You also need to make sure you eat regularly and keep yourself hydrated. Just make sure you keep the breaks brief and don’t get lost in social media or other distractions that can sabotage your plans. Set a timer if you need to.

And what do you do if worse comes to worse and you actually miss a deadline?

• Communicate
  It's absolutely critical that as SOON as it becomes obvious you’re not going to make it, inform everyone it’s going to impact – your agent, your editor any freelancers you’ve contracted with. They need to know as soon as possible so they can make the appropriate  adjustments. And if you negotiate an extended deadline, whatever you do make absolutely sure, barring acts of God, that you’re able to hit it
• Learn From Your Mistakes
  Analyze what went wrong. Were you were optimistic in how much you can produce daily/weekly on average? Did you fail to take interruptions into account - like holidays, travel days, edit & promo activity on previous books? Did unexpected illnesses or family emergencies hit you? Whatever the case, try to figure some way to learn from it and factor that lesson into your next occasion to negotiate a deadline.

• Four-book contract for new series (I was finishing up the last book in another series that would fulfill my current contract, so this was in realm of possibility)
• Quarterly newsletters
• Posts on my personal blog
• Attend RWA
• Attend ACFW
• Shop Round Top Week (twice-a-year massive antique fair not far from where I live, yet I never seem to get there)
• Visit Ouray
• Get back on my eating program
• Write a holiday book
• Update camphouse

Three-time Carol Award nominee, Mindy Obenhaus, writes contemporary romance for Love Inspired Books. She’s passionate about touching readers with Biblical truths in an entertaining, and sometimes adventurous, manner. When she’s not writing, she enjoys cooking and spending time with her grandchildren at her Texas ranch. Learn more at www.mindyobenhaus.com

1. What led you to create a writing planner to share with other writers?

2. What makes your planner different from others targeted specifically for writers?

3. What if you’re not a planner-type person? What does the MBWP offer for those with less-structured preferences?

4. What’s your favorite section of the planner?

5. Receiving the planner and opening it up is quite an experience in and of itself. What prompted you to go the extra mile with the packaging to make getting that rainbow box such a special event?

6. Inside the planner there are places to track things other than writing, which makes the MBWP more than just a writing journal/tracker. What areas were you keen to focus on when creating the planner?

7. The planner is printed in black-and-white, with lots of open space to encourage colorful creativity when filling out the pages. Do you think being creative within the planner will spark creativity in our writing?

8. Some of the features are so common-sense that they can be easy to overlook, like the elastic band to keep it closed, the pocket in the back for holding extras, etc. One of my favorites is the spiral binding that allows the planner to be laid flat for ease of use. Do you have a favorite ‘extra’ feature?

9. We’re fast approaching the craziest month on the writing calendar, November, which is National Novel Writing Month. How can the MBWP help prepare writers for NaNoWriMo even before 2020 rolls around?

10. Can you talk about the bonus online class that comes with every MBWP purchase?

11. Where can writers learn more about the My Brilliant Writing Planner and get their hands on a copy for themselves?

About Susie: