How many of your New Year’s resolutions are already forgotten
or discarded? Many of us make promises to “do better” in the new year but set
impossible goals that we couldn’t possibly manage. We get discouraged and
instead of modifying our methods, we just ignore our original good intentions.
Did you tell yourself during the final months of 2012 that
you would make time to write more and let your creative juices flow in 2013?
Did you vow to be a “better writer” this year and earn more money?
These are good goals – but you need a plan of action to get
there. Don’t just give up and ditch your intentions, make them accessible.
First, for your resolution to make more time to write this
year, plan a short term schedule, one week to a month. Consider your
responsibilities, the real ones not just the ones you think you should be doing
like cleaning house or laundry. Plan days or blocks of time when you can sit in
a designated spot and WORK. Remember, your writing is work. Adjust the schedule
as needed for your next short-range plan to make it the most effective for you.
Be sure to factor in when you normally feel the most creative.
What do you feel you need to do to write better? If you want
to increase your vocabulary, open a thesaurus and read a few pages every night.
You’ll become familiar with words that can easily be substituted and with that
you’ll learn spelling as well as the usage of the words. Word puzzles like
crosswords, word jumbles and anagrams will help you get the words flowing.
Timed skill games like the kind you find on your computer will also help train
you to think fast. Read, anything, the more you feed yourself words the more
you can literally spot them out. Schedule some study and play time regularly on
your path to becoming a better writer. And free write every chance you get.
If you want to make more money you have to actively pursue leads.
No matter how much you write each day, if you don’t find a market for your
labors it won’t earn you a thing. Schedule time every week to scan for open
markets, send query letters, review your resume or CV, and don’t let the envelopes
sit on your desk. Clip the editor’s name from each of your favorite magazines
and contact them with articles that fit that publication’s style. Keep a record
of every query and response. If you’ve been writing for any length of time you
already know that you will most probably receive more rejection than acceptance.
So don’t throw away your resolution list, keep your goals and
build yourself a road map to get there.
Writing Exercise: Finish the sentences, be creative: (1) They really weren’t
dangerous, they were… (2) That was the best dinner I ever had, it reminded me
of… (3) I didn’t expect that generous a gift, certainly not… (4) The most
relaxing thing I ever do is… (5) Did you ever finish cleaning out the… (6) She
had a complete pet menagerie in her home, she even had… (7) I haven’t seen you
since you decided… (8) I disagree with the old adage… (9) Ouch! What idiot put …
there? (10) The biggest value I ever found when I went shopping was…
Writing Prompt: Homonyms are words that
sound alike but have different meanings. Make a list of every homonym you can
think of. (ie: pear, pair, pare). Using two or more columns, see how long you
can make the list.
