Need to get organized?

Published on September 3, 2015September 2, 2015 by Jean M. Cogdell10 Comments

Do you need help organizing your writing?

Well, I do!

Because sometimes I’ve had so many files swirling around in my computer that I forgot which one was the last one.

I check the dates. Grab what looks like the right one, but lo and behold there is another one way over on the other side of a black hole.

Head slap! How in the hell did a 100 pages end up with the cookie recipes?

Listen, I’ve always considered myself a pretty organized person. I like the potato chips on the bottom shelf of the pantry. Drives me nuts when someone moves them around.

But sometimes my fiction runs rampant, and like scurrying little mice, stories duck into hiding spaces on the far side of my computer.

Glad I found the following article in my inbox.

Hope it helps you too.

How to for Authors…

Writing: How to Keep Your Manuscripts Organized by Betsy Talbot

Lots of terrific ideas to keep your murder and mayhem away from the cookie dough. So now I need to grab a dust cloth and clean out some files.

Whew! Half done! My file system is looking much better after a full day of weeding out stray stories, WIP, and ideas for the future.

The next issues is to remember what I named the new files. Hmm, maybe I should’ve made a cheat sheet. Oh well, that’s a project for another day.

Readers, you’ve made it this far so give me just two more seconds and hit Facebook and Twitter and share.

Thank you!

If you’re not already, I’d be much obliged if you would follow me @jeancogdell on Twitter or jean.cogdell on Facebook!

Don’t lose the big question!

Published on September 2, 2015August 26, 2015 by Jean M. Cogdell

Have you lost track of the Big Question?

Tons of little questions just muddying up your story?

I’m bad to get tangled up in a web as I write. But as Heather Jackson over at Write On Sisters all questions, like the roads of the Empire that lead Rome, all questions must lead back to the BIG ONE.

5 Reasons to Track Questions & Answers in Your Novel

So now I’ve got some untangling to do.

Sigh… Where did I put those scissors?

You’ve made it this far so give me just two more seconds and hit Facebook and Twitter and share.

Thank you!

If you’re not already, I’d be much obliged if you would follow me @jeancogdell on Twitter or jean.cogdell on Facebook!

All Roads Still Lead to Rome. Pt. II ~ U.S. and its Roman Origins

Avoid these Rookie sins

Published on September 1, 2015September 1, 2015 by Jean M. Cogdell5 Comments

Don’t let your writing be scarred with a scarlet R, Rookie!

Letter_R
Unto thine own characters be true. Treat each one as a shining star.

Remember, you can’t shrug a word.

Novelist, Chuck Wendig gives important tips on how to avoid Rookie Newbie Moves.

Check out his post.

I SMELL YOUR ROOKIE MOVES, NEW WRITERS

Now I’m gonna slink off and re-edit my last effort. Anyone got some whiteout?

You’ve made it this far so give me just two more seconds and hit Facebook and Twitter and share.

Thank you!

If you’re not already, I’d be much obliged if you would follow me @jeancogdell on Twitter or jean.cogdell on Facebook!

Writers Block

Are you crying as you write?

Published on August 31, 2015August 26, 2015 by Jean M. Cogdell2 Comments

Wow! This is, simply put, some of the best writing advice I’ve read in a long time.

Let yourself cry: Jennifer Niven’s inspirational top writing tips

I particularly like #4. No maybe #6 and #7. Wait, no, #9 is good too. Oh, forget it, I can’t pick a favorite. All 12 really hit home for me.

Her advice is simple in its beauty. Sometimes I think we as writers need to be reminded to stop and smell the story. To laugh, cry and fall in love with our story.