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Turning Inspiration into Habit

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Each year several hundred thousand people sit down to write with the goal of composing 50,000 words on a novel. That’s a challenge for a new writer. So how many people reach that goal?  From some surveys that I’ve taken informally, I think about 15%. Are those novels any good?  Certainly, some will go on to be published. The question becomes, how can you have a successful Nanowrimo experience?  As a writer with over fifty novel-length works published, I know the secrets. Here are a couple of keys.
  1. Turn your inspiration into discipline.  Sit down each day and write, so that writing becomes a habit.  Don’t beat yourself up if you don’t hit your writing goal for a day.  The fact that you sit down and write every day will help you reach your goals.  Some days, you will exceed your goals. As the month wears on, and you feel worn out, keep writing every day.  Like exercise, writing can become addictive.  You’ll soon find that you don’t feel whole until you’ve written that day. People often get writer’s block simply because their whole brain—both left and right halves—aren’t focused on writing.  The creative mind is occupied trying to solve other problems, the ones that you are thinking about at work, or in your family life.  So you have to focus your mind on your writing by working on your prose every day, both first thing in the morning and last at night.
  2. Practice isn’t enough.  You must also study.  If you’re going to proceed with confidence, you need to understand stories.  You need to feel assured as to what your next steps may be. With that in mind, I’ve put together a little Nanowrimo guide, filled with daily lessons and inspirational thoughts in order to keep you writing and to help you write better. 
318R Creative Writing Course
Twenty years ago, Dave taught his legendary 318R writing class at BYU. Some of his students included Brandon Sanderson (Way of Kings), Dan Wells (I am Not a Serial Killer), and Stephenie Meyer (Twilight). Dave’s approach worked well because he put emphasis not just on writing but also on the business of writing, so that an author doesn’t waste years of his or her life by making costly career mistakes. We have a few audit seats still open where you can be a "fly on the wall" when you audit it, but we will be closing registrations soon. Click here to Learn more about the class.
Apex Writers Group David Farland
Consider joining the Apex Writers Online Writing Group If you’re a highly motivated writer committed to doing what it takes to make it in the publishing world, this group is for you. With Apex, you’ll be mentored by one of the world’s most successful writing teachers, David Farland. Once you join, you’ll be given access to all Dave’s online courses and seminars, such as The Advanced Story Puzzle Writing Enchanting Prose Editing to Greatness Promising Starts Magnificent Middles Powerful Endings Publishing in 2021 And Many More—(a $2400 value) In fact, new lessons are added weekly, all designed to help you either break into the publishing industry or move you up the ladder to becoming a bestseller. You’ll even get in on Dave’s calls where you can ask your own questions and get answers. You’ll be invited to join Study Groups—to go through workshop materials, study genres, publishers, and agents Writing Groups—to critique each other’s work Accountability Groups—to help you set and meet goals Writing Rings—where you can join like-minded authors and help boost each other’s sales by advertising to one another’s fan base Our private forum where you can research topics and network Our closed Facebook Group—network with hundreds of writers. We want to help bestselling careers, and you can do that better by networking with hundreds of writers who will help you boost your signal on social media when you sell your books, train you to market your work well, and help you break into Hollywood as your sales numbers grow. JRR Tolkien and CS Lewis had the Inklings. Ernest Hemingway worked with Faulkner and Steinbeck to achieve greatness. Now it is your turn! So what are you waiting for? The annual cost for the group is only $239, and you can pay monthly. Just click here to fill out an application.

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