Write Your Book With Novelist Holly Lisle
July 2nd 2009 18:31
Do You Have a Book Inside You Struggling to Get Out?
If you've envisioned the perfect plot for a blockbuster novel or have a fantastic idea for the next non-fiction best-seller, yet have found it difficult to motivate yourself to get started or stick with it for very long, you may just find the inspiration you need by writing your book with novelist Holly Lisle.
Let Holly Help You Get Your Book Written!
Holly Lisle, an experienced author with over 30 books to her credit, who offers various courses in fiction writing at her website, HollyLisle.com, has brainstormed a fabulous idea for helping her fellow writers find the initiative to get their books written. She calls it Write a Book With Me.
A Group Writing Plan That's a Little Different
Perhaps you've participated in other community writing efforts, starting out enthusiastically enough but losing steam partway through because the high daily word-counts were difficult to maintain. You may have fallen behind and catching up simply required too much effort. If so, I have good news for you: You won't have that problem with this absolutely pressure-free group writing plan. Holly has made it almost ridiculously easy for any writer to participate and stick with the program by requiring (and I use the term loosely) a minimum of only 250 words per day, five days a week, and by not requiring that missed days' word-counts be made up later. What more could a writer ask?
A Program That's Not Just Fun but Guilt-Free
Holly also gives the reticent writer a convenient "out." Should you try her writing plan and decide it isn't for you, you simply quit—without recriminations. Here's the way Holly explains it in her "official" rules:
You acknowledge that all this has to be is fun—it isn’t work, a competition, or a form of self-flagellation—and if knocking out your words at this pace stops being fun, you walk away with no guilt.
Well, that certainly is refreshing, isn't it? Writing without guilt—and having fun doing it! I hope you'll pardon the pun when I say, "What a novel idea!"
You'll Enjoy the Flexibility of Holly's Plan
As you can see from the points mentioned above, flexibility is the hallmark of Holly's cooperative writing plan. In fact, the most important "plus" that I see in it (aside from actually getting your book written) is that, no matter what you do, you absolutely can't fail. And, in our often stress-burdened lives, there's certainly a great deal to be said for that! (You can also join this group writing plan regardless of your book's current stage of completion--another obvious indicator of its flexibility.)
So, what are you waiting for? Check out Holly's "requirements" for participation and then get started. Now's as good a time as any—and probably better now that this super-flexible plan has been developed—to get your book written!
Holly's plan may be just what you need to free your Muse and get your creativity flowing.
Happy writing! (And I do mean happy!)
Jeanne
Do you have a book "in you"—one that you've always dreamed of writing but never gotten around to? Or, have you started your book, only to lose your enthusiasm part-way through? Perhaps you've joined other cooperative writing programs that were more of a challenge than you were prepared to undertake and quit soon after. I'd just love it if you'd share your experiences with us. What were the positives and negatives of the programs you've been involved with? What do you look for in such programs? Or are you a lone-wolf writer? If writing alone is your preferred modus operandi, what don't you like about writing along with others?
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Comment by Karen Swim
Comment by Jeanne Dininni
Writer's Notes
Wouldn't it be nice if life would do that?!
High word-counts can really kill initiative, because as much as we may want to complete that many words, we tend to find the task so daunting that it's too easy to give up before even reaching our stride. Then we lose our inspiration before ever really gaining it.
I think Holly's program will work wonders for many writers, who may just find that they do better than they've ever done with this low-pressure system--despite the low daily word-counts. After all, what good are high word-counts if we give up after a day or two? We won't get very many words written that way!
Thanks for stopping by!
Jeanne
P.S. Thanks for visiting and commenting on my Facebook photo albums too! Really appreciated your kind words!