Journaling...Phrase

Today's One-Minute Writer prompt is:  Phrase--Write about an unusual phrase or saying one of your parents/guardians liked to say when you were growing up.

There was an after-school special about never giving up and in it, they would say to the main character, "You can do it, Duffy Moon!" My mom used to say it to us all the time...and still does!

ROW80...I'm Back!...and The One-Minute Writer

Well, I tried to make it back earlier in May, but...you know.  We did finish our moving.  Still have A LOT of unpacking to do.  We're talking 3000+ books here, people! But I'm ready to jump in again and see if I can salvage what's left of this round.

So, here are my goals once again:

Spend 1 to 1 1/2 hours daily on the following:

--researching WIP
--reading books on the craft, even if only one page
--daily journaling

Part of my journaling will be participating in this new journal prompt site I found, The One-Minute Writer.
Every day, C. Beth posts a writing prompt on the blog and we have one minute to write on it.  She even has a nifty little timer on the blog for us to use!



Today's prompt was Unexpected -write about something unexpected you experienced yesterday.  Here's what I wrote:

My son came home without his homework.  First, he said he didn't want to bring it.  Then, he said, "I didn't have time to get it!" Grrrr! It turned out that he just didn't want to get it.  More work for Wednesday!


I will be posting my One-Minute Writer journals here every day...after I've written it in my journal.

And how are you doing on your ROW80 journey?

ROW 80 Check-In--4/17/11

I'm taking a short hiatus from ROW80 until early May (hopefully).  We decided to give up our house in December and while we are already moved into our apartment, we still do not have everything moved out of our old house.  We found out recently that the house will be auctioned on April 28th.  We're not sure if we have to have everything out by then, but we're not taking any chances.  We still have the rest of my books to move and we have a lot of stuff to put in storage over at my mom's house.  My husband and I are doing this by ourselves and it's a lot of work so I really have to focus on that right now.  My plan is to jump back in with ROW80 the first week in May, if all goes well.  We shall see!

Hope everyone else is having a successful time this round!

ROW80 Goals--Round Two

I am SO ready for this round because I feel that I'm better prepared and ready to really get some work done this time out.

Here is my list of goals:

• one hour daily--devoted initially to research, later to be devoted to the writing
• 1/2 hour daily--reading about the craft (Thanks, Liz!)
• daily journal entry

I think these are modest and manageable goals.  We'll see how they evolve as round two progresses.

Cheers to the other writers participating this round.

ROW80--Round 1 Final Check-In

Although I did not accomplish as much as I wanted this round, I did at least dip my toes back into the world of journaling, which is one thing I have been wanting to do.  I am looking forward to the next round.  Although I feel I could have done more, I am looking at it like Round 1 was a warm-up for Round 2.  I'm going to spend the break getting organized with my to do list and brainstorming more story ideas.  So here's to Round 2! Let the journey continue.....

Want to see how others did in Round 1?  Go HERE.

ROW80 Check-In--3/9/11

I'm still here! Just keep missing updates.  The cattle prod needs to be utilized to get me to post these updates.  Anyway, I feel like I'm on the verge of a breakthrough.  I can't explain it and I'm not sure if other writers experience this (I'm sure they do), but the feeling is there nonetheless. 

I was at the library today printing out some stuff and checking out some research material and I came across this book:  The Secret Miracle:  The Novelist's Handbook edited by Daniel Alarcon.  Here's the synopsis from goodreads: 

The world's best contemporary writers -- from Michael Chabon and Claire Messud to Jonathan Lethem and Amy Tan -- engage in a wide-ranging, insightful, and oft-surprising roundtable discussion on the art of writing fiction.

Drawing back the curtain on the mysterious process of writing novels, The Secret Miracle brings together the foremost practitioners of the craft to discuss how they write. Paul Auster, Roddy Doyle, Allegra Goodman, Aleksandar Hemon, Mario Vargas Llosa, Susan Minot, Rick Moody, Haruki Murakami, George Pelecanos, Gary Shteyngart, and others take us step by step through the alchemy of writing fiction, answering everything from nuts-and-bolts queries -- Do you outline? -- to perennial questions posed by writers and readers alike -- What makes a character compelling? -- From Stephen King's deadpan distinction between novels and short stories ("Novels are longer and have more s**t in them") to Colm Toibin's anti-romanticized take on his characters ("They are just words") to Manuel Prieto's mature perspective on the anxieties of influence ("Influences are felt or weigh you down more when young"), every page contains insights found nowhere else.

With honesty, humor, and elegance, The Secret Miracle gives both aspiring writers and lovers of literature a master class in the art of writing.

Some of my favorite authors are featured in the pages of this book and it's really inspiring to hear them talk about different aspects of their writing.  And it's broken down into categories so I can just read the parts that I find most helpful. 

The journaling has stagnated somewhat, but I'm renewing my efforts on that front.  And I'm working on utilizing the list method like my friend J. at 365 Days of Novel Writing.  Hopefully, I'll have a good system in place, be journaling in full swing, and have the bud of a story by the time this round ends.  I will say...I'm determined. *puts on determined face*

ROW80 Check-In: 2/23/11

Well, I guess I'm back from my 'hiatus'...really just a two week rut.  No motivation whatsoever and swimming in self-doubt, I just couldn't seem to spend even an hour a day.  I had come up with a new idea and had started researching it, but then I started second guessing that too.  Now I'm not so sure if it's a good one or not...or I guess what I'm saying is that when I get stalled on how to transition the idea from research to the actual story, I just freeze.  So that's something I'm working on, hoping I can work through it in journaling.  That's one positive note...journaling.  I was watching the brilliant mini-series "Any Human Heart" on Masterpiece Classic (PBS) the other night and the main character in the film is a dedicated journal writer.  I was inspired! I have returned to the daily journaling.  Now, I think I'm going to do some brainstorming, decide if I still want to go with this story idea or come up with something else.  I'm also going to spend some of my daily time referring to some of my writing books to see if I can get some tips on transitioning from the research to building the story.  Still aiming for one hour per day.  We'll see how it goes.

On a positive note, regarding ROW80:  without this challenge, I would not feel accountable and old me would have just stayed in the rut.  ROW80 is holding me accountable and that in itself is just brilliant!

Note:  If you share your ideas for what motivates you, I will give you a virtual cookie. =O)  (the image don't lie)