On Retreat: Getting Away From It All and Writing

Writing Retreat

Good morning everyone! I'm terribly excited today as today is THE DAY. I leave today for a weekend long retreat to refresh myself, rediscover my creativity and write. For the past eighteen months or so, I've been immersed in a sea of self-doubt. I find it hard to maintain enthusiasm for anything, and with a few notable exceptions, like the resurgence of Story Orgy Mondays and the ongoing drama that is Pulp Friction 2014, haven't written a lot.

People, other writers, readers, editors, frequently laud the benefits of conventions and gatherings of like-minded people, and I've envied them the way they return from these events keyed up and raring to go. It's just not possible for me to attend such an event though. For one thing, I don't travel well, for another I can't deal with crowds.

Then it struck me the other day.

I don't need to be a part of a larger group that would create anxiety instead of bringing peace. I find my peace and inspiration in the rising and the setting of the sun, in the whisper of the wind and the hum of life in the countryside.

That's what I needed to find again.

And it probably can't be found in a big city at a huge hotel or convention.

But…

There are other ways.

I put my somewhat clumsy google foo to work and found a place nearby, so the travel won't wear me out, that's fairly remote, on a lake, and before those aforementioned self-doubts could tell me I was being an idiot, I reserved a cabin on a wooded lake shore for a long weekend.

Lake of the Ozarks

This weekend, I'll be watching the sun rise over the Lake of the Ozarks, drinking my coffee and soaking in the things that make me feel like the world we live in is still a pretty good place.

I've got some rules set up and some goals written down.

Chief rule?

No internet.

I'll be working on a laptop with no wireless access, so I should get a lot done, but won't be around at all from Friday morning to Tuesday morning.

Just thought I'd let you know, so you don't miss me.

 Last time I disappeared for a day or two, I ended up with an inbox full of concerned emails- 

I think that means I'm usually too much on web :P. 

So wish me luck, and I'll see you on the 8^th!

Can't Find the Word I Want...

Why won't my editor let me do this? 

Sometimes, no matter how hard you try, the word you want just stays out of reach, wouldn't it be great to be able to just make something up that fits?

If you've used any of these words in your manuscript, dedicate your next book to The Bard. 

Addiction

Bedazzled

Belonging

Eyeball

Cold-blooded

Dishearten

Eventful

And SO many more! 

More about this topic can be found at 

MENTAL FLOSS

Meanwhile, I've got to get back to my little WIP and find the exact word I want because my editors are not so forgiving of made up words as Will's must have been! 

FREE UNTIL JULY 13! PICK UP YOUR COPY TODAY! 

The dark eyes lit with a glitter of interest. The boy glided forward, strangely graceful, plump ruby lips stretched in a flirty smile. "I'm Caspar Thorpe. People don't usually see me back here. It's nice to meet you, Trevor." He extended a pale hand. Trevor wiped his own damp palm on his jeans and reluctantly took Caspar's hand. It was soft and cool in his grip, oddly soothing and he felt nearly as reluctant to release his grip on the hand as he'd been to take it in the first place.

ONLY AT ALL ROMANCE EBOOKS!

On Writing: Success

"Success is a finished book, a stack of pages each of which is filled with words. If you reach that point, you have won a victory over yourself no less impressive than sailing single-handed around the world."
--Tom Clancy

I measure success in my writing by a variety of factors, and any way I look at it, April has been a successful month so far. 

I finished the third episode of my Chances Are serial, completed edits on a Regency Romance due out May 1st from Evernight, and finalized preparations to release another short story this month in the Sweet Exchange Pulp Friction line. 

Of course, the list of items left to cross off my list is still growing faster than I can keep up with it. 

Most of all though? 

I count my success by the number of readers who have purchased my recent release, Setting the Trap. Thank you to everyone who has visited ARE or Amazon and picked up a copy. Setting the Trap has flirted with the bottom of the Amazon Top 100 Gay Romance list, and is in the Top 20 of the Drama category at ARE. 

On Writing: Or the Lack Thereof

One of my favorite distractions from writing is British television...

Unfortunately, I only have two seasons, six measly episodes of Sherlock on Netflix. Benedict Cumberbatch is the most intriguing interpretation of Sherlock Holmes I've seen in a long time. He's got the whole asexual, egotistical, genius thing down perfectly. 

I need more. 

I think I'll get back to writing now, I don't like the look on his face- it seems I've displeased him, and that can't be good. 

"The heights by great men reached and kept were not obtained by sudden flight. But they, while their companions slept, were toiling upward in the night."

- Thomas S. Monson

So even if you only add a few hundred words a day, keep at it. Message received. Back to work on 50/50 Chances Are and Rake #4. 

Well, it's a good month for sales! I nearly forgot, but ALL GLBT titles are 20% off this month at the Breathless Press publishing site! That includes pre-orders on titles like Setting the Trap! 

Breathless Press

On Writing: April 2

Trying to work again- but work consists of so many things, and the weekend with the family was so chock full of moments that are currently intruding on my memory, and the sun is shining...Hell, I don't even need the internet to be distracted today! 

That sun...he's trying to lure me out into the world, to the park to take a hike or something... I think he's the worst today, keeping me from getting on with working on Fifty-Fifty Chance.

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On Writing: Sylvia Plath

And by the way, everything in life is writable about if you have the outgoing guts to do it, and the imagination to improvise. The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt.
Sylvia Plath 

Do you ever feel like there's nothing left to say? Like it's all been said and done before? Doubt is one of those things that keeps us from pursuing our dreams, and valuing our creativity as we ought. Many times a reader tells me how they love something I've written and it strikes me anew that hey, I wrote that. I think the doubt is one of the things that helps us to perfect our work.  

When doubt strikes me, I switch on the Tom Petty and let music soothe my soul. 

How do you deal with doubt? 

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Writing Help

Sometimes, I just need a little boost to get me going and keep me on track. 

Sadly, this one didn't work, though I did spend ten minutes jotting down notes for a short story he inspired. 

Perhaps he'd be of more help to you? 

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Writing Quotes: Freedom

“Writing is a form of personal freedom. It frees us from the mass identity we see in the making all around us. In the end, writers will write not to be outlaw heroes of some underculture but mainly to save themselves, to survive as individuals.”

Don Delillo