Justine's Writing Journal

I just read this great article (link to the original provided) that, if you are struggling to get your writing right, is rather comforting.

From Janet Reid - If you're a writer, read this.

"For the first couple years you make stuff, and it’s just not that good. It’s trying to be good, it has potential, but it’s not.

But your taste, the thing that got you into the game, is still killer. And your taste is why your work disappoints you."

This particular statement is worth remembering: "It is only by going through a volume of work that you will close that gap, and your work will be as good as your ambitions."

From Getting Past the Gatekeeper - The "Rules" of Contemporary Romance -- from a major romance reviewer

After reading what I think amounts to at least two hundred trashy romance novels (note that not all romance novels are trashy, and not all trashiness is romantic) in the last two years, I am beginning to consider myself a reluctant expert on the subject.

I decided that the only way to maintain my sanity is to foist off what I've learned onto anyone who will listen. Writing a contemporary romance? Great. You should know the rules (some consciously adhered to, some not) before you break them.

Yes, these are tongue-in-cheek.

And yes, these are the rules I hope you will break. Please see my conclusion before you get your lingerie (specifically chosen for that rich, romantic vampire) in a twist.

Hee! These are all good, but I do think I like this one the best: "#2-- A career is something that happens while you're waiting for a rich man (or in some cases, a rich vampire) to sweep you off your feet. If there is ever a choice between pursuing your career, maintaining friendships and enjoying daylight versus becoming a blood-sucking immortal fiend of the night who forsakes all human contact and can't practice medicine anymore, a woman will always choose her man."

Yes. ALWAYS. *eyeroll* This one's worth the read. :D

From Nathan Bransford - How to Write a Novel

If you try and hold the entire novel in your head all at once and attempt to imagine it in its entirety and all of its various ins and outs, your brain will suddenly become so heavy that you will topple over backwards and pass out.

I love that he walks you through the process, linking to posts he's done in the past on specific topics. Oh, and a random link to a Bachelorette article. This one's definitely something to bookmark, even if you don't agree with everything he says.

From the Guide to Literary Agents blog, here's a link to a recent article on Urban Fantasy you may find interesting:

Urban fantasy has become a catchall phrase for contemporary-set fantasy and magical realism. It draws on many traditions of fantasy, horror, hardboiled crime fiction and even romance, blending them together in differing degrees to give us new stories with old tropes. It first really broke out with Laurel K. Hamilton’s Anita Blake series in the 90s and has been growing by leaps and bounds ever since, cross-pollinating additional genres as it goes, including of course young adult. By this point, it’s a mature subgenre and very crowded. So can a new author still hope to break out? Of course!

Here are a few things to keep in mind as you go about breaking out ...

Ever wonder if you focus too much on the nitpicky details when you're writing? Ever lose sight of the story while stressing over grammar? I'll admit I'm ridiculously picky about grammar, spelling, etc., but I do try not to let that interfere with the flow of writing when I'm getting words down for my first draft.

Here's some great advice, from Agency Gatekeeper (click for link to full post):

If you write with the constant fear of being wrong--if your sentences evidence a word-by-word, micromanaging quality--if we can picture you writing with a normal pen in one and hand a red pen in the other--your nervousness will come through. We'll get antsy. And then we'll start looking for tiny errors, too.

We don't want to be looking at what's wrong--we want to be dazzled by what's right.

You can always go back and correct errors. You can't go back in and add awesomeness.

I dunno ... I figure you could always go back and add in a sparkly vampire or two. ;D