Hannah Roberts @writerhannah - Tumblr Blog

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“Because you don’t have to be perfect. You don’t even have to be okay, and it is still good to write that story...Because your story is a gift to the world, and you have all the time in the world to go back, and back, for draft ten, draft twenty-five, draft thirty-five, draft forty-five, and go back again and again, and make things bit-by-bit incrementally better...And that’s what being a writer is. Improving by centimeters.” • I’ve been struggling with the blank page lately. I look at my prose, my characters, my plot, and I see just how far I have to go. I forget that revision is the next step and that I’ll have time to make the book better. For some frustrating reason, my internal monologue has been telling me that the book has to be perfect the first time. Which is insane, by the way. • I woke up this morning needing inspiration. Even though it’s NaNoWriMo, I haven’t been writing. In fact, I’ve written significantly less this November than I have any other month this year. I know myself, and I know that the pressure of NaNo isn’t good for my creative process, and yet every year I try again, because I desperately want to be *that* writer. The writer who writes every day, who can churn out a first draft in a month. So, feeling terrible about myself, I checked in with one of my all-time favorite podcasts @88cupsoftea and discovered a new episode featuring Kelly Barnhill. • If you’re a writer and you’ve ever experienced a moment of self doubt, do yourself a favor and listen to this episode. Kelly is brilliant, both in her writing and in her advice to writers. She talks about giving yourself time to grow, the reality of fallow periods, and the importance of writing the story, regardless of your level of skill. I was horrified and amazed to learn about her revision process, a big part of which is erasing (so to speak) the first draft and starting over once she has complete clarity on plot, characters, motivation, and stakes. Terrifying as that is, when I finish this NaNo novel, I plan to do just that. Maybe her process will work for me. ❤️ @insufferable_blabbermouth . . . . #nanowrimo2019 #nanowrimo #kellybarnhill #88cupsoftea #amwriting #writersofinstagram https://www.instagram.com/p/B42jikhAKIh/?igshid=1e2dp985x3xmy

#nanowrimo2019 #nanowrimo #kellybarnhill #88cupsoftea #amwriting #writersofinstagram

NaNoWriMo has been a rollercoaster. • I haven’t posted much here since NaNo began because, honestly, I had no idea what to say. At first, the words were flowing. Then I hit a wall. I’m not sure if it’s a lack of compelling story or a lack of compelling characters, but I can tell something is missing. I’ve spent today writing by hand, documenting the things that still excite me about the story and figuring out what might need to change. I know this isn’t how NaNo is supposed to go, but I’m at the point with my writing where I am not willing to write words I’m certain will need to change. Hopefully by the end of today, I’ll have clarity. • Anyway, I hope your NaNoWriMo is going better than mine. But if it’s not, know that you’re not alone. Most writers cannot finish a book (or write 50k words) in 30 days. And most people never write a book at all. 📖❤️. . . . . #amwriting #writersofinstagram #writersonig #writerscommunity #writingcommunity #amwritingfantasy #amwriting #nanowrimo #nanowrimo2019 #writerslife https://www.instagram.com/p/B4vNj0hABfk/?igshid=916kguaxjn3w

#amwriting #writersofinstagram #writersonig #writerscommunity #writingcommunity #amwritingfantasy #nanowrimo #nanowrimo2019 #writerslife

Happy NaNoWriMo Day 1! • I’ve participated in NaNo for several years, but I’ve never hit that elusive 50K in the month of November. I try to remember that any words I do write are words I might not have written otherwise. And there’s nothing like the energy of a million+ writers all racing toward their goals together. • So whether you’re trying hit 50K in the next 30 days or you’re a NaNo rebel—good luck! We can do it! . . . . . #nanowrimo #nanowrimo2019 #amwriting #amwritingfantasy #amwritingya #writersofinstagram #writer #writersonig #writerslife #authorsofinstagram #authorlife https://www.instagram.com/p/B4VTHG_A9Ys/?igshid=y3ed3mdaq8rd

#nanowrimo #nanowrimo2019 #amwriting #amwritingfantasy #amwritingya #writersofinstagram #writer #writersonig #writerslife #authorsofinstagram #authorlife

#TBT to a rainy day in Venice. ☔️ • I love to travel. I’m so fortunate and privileged to be writing full time right now (thanks to my long-suffering and hard-working husband), but it means we haven’t been able to travel much lately. So instead I’ve been dreaming about where I’d go next if I could. Top of the list: Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. Every picture I’ve seen is so stunning and atmospheric, I just know it would inspire incredible stories. • If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go? . . . . . #travel #wanderlust #traveling #traveller #italy #venice #cafe #coffee #coffeeshop #globetrotter https://www.instagram.com/p/B4AYkkgA2PP/?igshid=xsaio1qds4d8

#tbt #travel #wanderlust #traveling #traveller #italy #venice #cafe #coffee #coffeeshop #globetrotter

What are you researching today? • I like to give my characters passionate interests, something they can strive for outside of the larger plot. For my current WIP, one of my characters is a musician, but I know nothing about music. 🙈 So today is all about research! . . . . . #amwriting #amwritingfantasy #amwritingya #amresearching #writerslife #writersofinstagram #authorsofinstagram #authorsofig #nanowrimo https://www.instagram.com/p/B3-AUMggvDa/?igshid=15asg4n5xfc1n

#amwriting #amwritingfantasy #amwritingya #amresearching #writerslife #writersofinstagram #authorsofinstagram #authorsofig #nanowrimo

What’s your favorite piece of writing advice? • There’s so much great advice out there, I’ve got an entire stable of bookmarked tweets, screenshots, and scribbled notes to remind me that writing is hard. But time and again as I draft, I find myself coming back to some variation of Victoria’s advice. I’m paraphrasing her, and no doubt her original quote is so much more eloquent than what I’ve written here. But this short sentence has stuck with me for years. I don’t even remember when or where I first read it. And so often when I’m writing, this is what I need to hear. ❤️

#writing advice #amwriting #victoria schwab

Are you prepping for NaNoWriMo? • This year I’ll be working on an idea that’s been in my head since 2013. It’s terrifying and intimidating and exhilarating to finally be tackling this story. I’ve lived with these characters for so long—what if I can’t do them justice? • But, you know, the book will never be perfect. I’m going to do the best that I can as the writer I am now. And come December, revisions are a beautiful thing. 📖🖊

#amwriting #nanowrimo #irish mythology

avelera

Stuff I Learned at My Writing Workshop (That I’m Kicking Myself in the Head for Not Realizing Sooner):

- The difference between a book that grabs you from the beginning vs. one that you’re on the fence about tossing out the window is winning your trust. It’s why it’s “easier” to read books by authors you already know, or fanfic where you’re familiar with the characters. Winning the reader’s trust as quickly as possible should be your first goal as a writer when you’re going back and editing your first draft. This can be accomplished by things like: speaking authoritatively about the subject (even if it’s utter bullshit), graceful prose, or establishing quickly in the story what it’s about. For example,“Character A had a problem. Character B didn’t love them back, so Character A was going to kidnap them so they would.” Maybe it’s not a story you want to read, but you are now firmly couched in what you signed up for in this story and the promise the author is going to deliver on before the end.

- Characters need goals. They need goals in every moment and in every scene. Every character needs a goal in every moment and in every scene. Maybe they’re not directly pursuing that goal right this very moment but it’s probably always at the back of their mind. Romances and detective stories are the easiest to deliver on this need. Character A wants to win their love. Detective A wants to solve the case. Even when they’re having tea with grandma, their thing is at the back of their mind. Keeping your character and your story focused on this thing they want helps pull your reader along and keeps them engaged on the “So what?” and “Why are we reading this scene?” questions of why they should keep reading.

- Characters shouldn’t just have things they like, they should have obsessions. This is the one I’m kicking myself for. The scientists in Pacific Rim are eccentrically obsessed with studying their thing. Thorin in the Hobbit is obsessed with regaining his home. Katniss Everdeen is obsessed with protecting her sister. Every crazy whackadoodle fandom darling character is obsessed with something. What do they have in common? They’re intensely obsessed with the thing that they care about. We love characters who are obsessed with things beyond reason, whether it’s reclaiming their home stolen by a dragon, or building artisanal bird houses, saving your sister, or studying monsters. Everyone “likes” things, but people and characters who are obsessed with something fascinate us. Examine the characters you’re most attracted to writing in fanfic, and examine your original characters if you’re trying to build those, and figure out what are they obsessed with and how does that inform their character. That’s the thing that’s going to make readers care about them.

writerhannah

This is BRILLIANT

tvandfilm

heikala

School of Magic Inktober day 7

alessiajontrunfio

The Brightest Witch of Her Age.

ranawaytotelltheworld

elodieunderglass

oh. ohhhhhhhhh. oh nooooooooooooooo

dr-dendritic-trees

[A mom and baby otter are floating together. The baby otter is sleeping on his mom’s tummy so he’s still all dry and fluffy. She keeps giving him little otter kisses.]