Newsletter Takeover! Welcome Jacqui Murray!
Random winner announced!
Today I’m excited to introduce you to my friend, talented writer, techie, and teacher, Jacqui Murray.
Many who followed my blog on Word Press already know Jacqui.
Her latest book Natural Selection released on October 20, 2022.
She’s here today for a peek into the mind of a writer.
If you have questions for Jacqui, please post them here rather than a private email to me.
5 Excuses Why Writers Don't Write and 9 Ways to Overcome Them
With my latest prehistoric fiction, Natural Selection, finished, I should start on the next trilogy, This Savage Land. I know the overarching theme--to explore how man survived one of the worst natural disasters in Earth's history, when volcanic eruptions darkened the sky for years, massive tsunamis crossed the ocean in crushing waves, fires raged across the land burning everything in sight. Nature seemed intent on washing the blight of man from her face. Scientific evidence shows man's numbers worldwide fell below 75,000. I have a full page of plot ideas, another with character details, and dozens of research notes to bolster the story. Since nothing else is going on in my life, I decided to devote mornings to marketing Natural Selection, afternoons to the new venture.
But, each afternoon, I end up doing something else. I write blog articles, watch YouTube videos, or play with the dog. The fresh page I set aside to write the story remains ... pristinely white.
Every writer knows this feeling. You promise to write a thousand words a day with no guarantees about quality or editability. Just write the d*** words! And then, you tell yourself you need to shop or garden or walk. All great excuses, but their real purpose is to avoid writing.
I was curious how other writers talk themselves out of writing and found this long list of eighty-three excuses. Here's a sampling:
I have writer's block (even though I know it doesn't exist)
My story stinks
I'll start next week--or when I retire
My muse isn't available
Writing is hard (well, yeah!)
I've written eight fiction books over the period of a decade so used excuses like those, and then overused them. I knew I couldn’t give in and had to come up with ways to overcome the malaise. Here are nine solutions (with varying results):
My writing would get farther with a cup of coffee and a keyboard than just the coffee.
Embrace the suck (If you follow my blog, you know I've tried this before).
Writing doesn't include participation trophies. You have to do the work.
Find the guys with the toes to step on. That'll get things started.
Remember that old Country Western song--"I’m not as good as I once was, but I’m as good once as I ever was." Go for it!
Writing is the greatest show on Earth. What could you do that's better?
A silent keyboard might as well be a paperweight.
Don't be whelmed. Be that person who marches into the breach, head high, snarling at your muse.
To quit writing isn't one of the hills I will plant my flag on.
Now, if you delayed writing to read this article, get back to work!
Jacqui Murray is the author of the popular prehistoric fiction saga, Man vs. Nature which explores seminal events in man’s evolution one trilogy at a time. She is also author of the Rowe-Delamagente thrillers and Building a Midshipman , the story of her daughter’s journey from high school to United States Naval Academy. Her non-fiction includes over a hundred books on integrating tech into education, reviews as an Amazon Vine Voice, a columnist for NEA Today, and a freelance journalist on tech ed topics.
Connect with Jacqui!
About the book!
In this conclusion to Lucy's journey, she and her tribe leave their good home to rescue former-tribemembers captured by the enemy. Lucy's tribe includes a mix of species--a Canis, a Homotherium, and different iterations of early man. In this book, more join and some die, but that is the nature of prehistoric life, where survival depends on a combination of our developing intellect and our inexhaustible will to live. Each species brings unique skills to this task. Based on true events.
Set 1.8 million years ago in Africa, Lucy and her tribe struggle against the harsh reality of a world ruled by nature, where predators stalk them and a violent new species of man threatens to destroy their world. Only by changing can they prevail. If you ever wondered how earliest man survived but couldn’t get through the academic discussions, this book is for you. Prepare to see this violent and beautiful world in a way you never imagined.
A perfect book for fans of Jean Auel and the Gears!
This week’s random drawing winner of a $15 Amazon gift card is Betsy Kerekes!
Betsy, please email me before November 20th to claim your prize.
*Remember, you must be an email subscriber to be entered.
Thanks for reading!
Jill
Always there to support Jacqui!
Good tips on getting back to writing. I just cleaned a bathroom to avoid getting back to having the computer do a final "read aloud" on the first book of my Africa trilogy. Then I checked out my email and visited this blog to see what you were talking about today. Now, I shall get back to my novel! Thanks for the push. Pat Spencer, author of Story of a Stolen Girl.