Create Your Writer's Life: A Guide to Writing With Joy and Ease

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Cynthia Morris. Create Your Writer's Life: A Guide to Writing With Joy and Ease

Chapter One. Your Writing Life

Elements of the Program

Exercises and Stretches

Journal Writing

Stretch

Impulse Writing

Consistent Work on Your Writing Project

Writer’s Rewards

Exercise - Identify Your Rewards

Chapter Two. Create Your Writing Practice

Making Time for Writing

Structuring Your Writing Practice

Exercise - Identify Your Ideal Writing Conditions

Writing Space as Sacred Space

Communicating Your Needs

Writing Retreats

Going Away

Closer to Home

Home Retreats

Chapter Three. Taking Stock

Exercise - Writer’s Assessment

I. Motivation

II. Your Writing Practice

III. Your Writing Style

IV. Putting It Out There

Stretch

Exercise - Writer’s Biography

Chapter Four. Overcoming Resistance and Your Gremlin

Exercise - Meet Your Gremlin

How to Live with Your Gremlin

Permission to Write

Exercise - Write Your Own Permission Slip

Chapter Five. How to Focus: Choose Your Project

Exercise - Prioritize Possibilities

Exercise - Refocus an Existing Project

Setting Powerful Goals

Exercise - Goals Achievement Plan

Chapter Six. Values and Themes: The Foundation of Your Writing

Exercise - Identify Your Values

Themes

Exercise - Identify Your Themes

Chapter Seven. Develop Your Writing Process

Scheduling Writing Time

Writing Tools

Your Unique Process

Organizing Your Words

Lists

Mind Mapping

Exercise - What Works for You?

Language: The Writer’s Tool

Exercise - Watch Your Language

Stretch

Chapter Eight. Legwork: Research and Reading

Exercise - Research Assignments

Active Reading

Chapter Nine. How to Receive Feedback and Revise

Incorporating Feedback

Revision

Exercise - Revision in Action

Chapter Ten. Create Your Writing Systems

Additional Considerations

Exercise - Make Your Systems Work

Chapter Eleven. Your Writing Community

Writing Buddies

Your Writing Ancestors

Exercise - Identify Your Writing Ancestors

Writing Workshops

Your Local Writing Community

Writing on the Cheap

Chapter Twelve. How to Balance Life and Writing

Exercise - Identify Your Commitments

Exercise - Recognizing Signs of Burnout

Seasonal Plan

Exercise - Seasonal Plan

Month One

Month Two

Month Three

The Body Writing: Exercise for Writers

Exercise - Integrate the Physical and the Creative

Chapter Thirteen. Celebrate Completion

Exercise - Writer's Portfolio

Acknowledge & Celebrate Progress

Exercise - Noting Accomplishments

Writer’s Obituary

Exercise - Obituary

Going Forward

Exercise - Big Picture Plan

Conclusion

Appendices

Appendix I. Resources

Web Sites

Additional Resources

Appendix II. Bibliography of Writing Guides

Encouraging Books

Craft Coaches

Additional Bibliography of Writing Guides. Getting Past the Blocks

Writing with Exercises

Poetry

On the Writer’s Life

Basic Writing Tools

Selling Your Work

YOUR NOTES HERE. YOUR NOTES HERE. YOUR NOTES HERE

About Original Impulse

Coaching

About Cynthia Morris

Отрывок из книги

Imagine that you are going to spend the day climbing a 14,000-foot mountain. You would probably make a list of things you need to bring, pack lightweight food, arrange your gear, and assemble the clothing that would protect you from the elements. You’d study your maps, choose a trail, and let someone know where you are going in case of mishap. You would plan for an early departure time and get a good night’s sleep.

Now imagine that one day you have the idea to hike a ‘fourteener’ and the next morning, without any preparation, you set out. Without proper water, food, clothing, or any idea of where you are going, you flounder on the mountain by midday, becoming parched and discouraged. You head for home, get caught in the afternoon thundershower, become frightened, and vow never to try that again.

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Go back to an old journal and open it at random. Let this process be loose. Spend some time reading through. Look for themes. Listen for your voice. Notice where you were honest with yourself and where you lied or stretched the truth. Do this even if you are the writer who starts a journal in a pretty new notebook and writes for ten pages or so then stops. Notice where you stopped writing.

Then, pick up your current notebook and write about what you discovered about yourself and your writing process. Ask yourself these questions:

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