WRITE TIME AND AGAIN

High Winds

Posted on November 30, 2022 by L. M. Montes

High winds blew all of the leaves off my backyard trees in one swoop night. They were blown bare, which leads me to my next observation. As they stand there, a statement is being made by them in their own way. “Winter is coming, and we’re ready to go the distance.” In the spring, of course, they come back to life and grow to their fullest once more.

As writers, sometimes life blows in and knocks us down in one swoop. Whether it’s family issues, living issues, medical issues, writer’s block, a review your not happy with, or your motivation just isn’t there. Know this: set backs are temporary. There will be a Spring of sorts coming your way, and you will flourish again. Don’t allow the winds of life to knock you down and keep you down. Spring back to life.

Poetry

Weather’s War by L. M. Montes

Posted on November 10, 2022January 29, 2023 by L. M. Montes

The rising sun kissed the horizon,
peeking shyly above the edge of Earth,
as it climbs in steady gait
beaming arms of light ready themselves
to slice through the day.

Clouds compete,
and waft across the sun,
arresting light till the day is done.

Then in gusts wind blows its breath,
and rescues sun’s beams glory light.

On and on this fight is fought,
until the elements blame and gust,
not caring who below it harms,
as long as all gets what they want.

Plot/Story

Developing Story Ideas

Posted on November 10, 2022February 23, 2023 by L. M. Montes

Steps to developing your story ideas don’t have to be difficult. Here are some ways to do this.

Create a Character

Describe his/her physical attributes, personality, their likes and dislikes. You can include their race and ethnicity. What is their job? What other details about them are there?

Identify Your Character’s Desire

What is it specifically that drives your character into action?

Choose a Resistance

What or who will stand in your character’s way?

The Change

Decide on how your character will grow throughout the story.

Captivating Settings

What is going on in and around your character’s world?

Putting it all together

When you first start your story idea, the above will work as a guideline. Jot down some ideas in a journal or notebook for each of the above areas to get yourself started. Then go back and develop each area in more detail. Continue this process until you have enough details written in each of the above areas to bein your story. However, when you begin writing, your story will be up to you. Everybody is different. You may not need many details to start, but others will.

Poetry

Whispers by L. M. Montes

Posted on November 9, 2022 by L. M. Montes

A whisper gently tickles,
as one’s words politely trickle,
whether kind or filled with angst,
the mind will sing or sink with pangs
of what it does not want to know.
But do we sit and let it fester
or set it loose on water’s flow?

The Cross’s Key

The Kindle/eBook version and all formats of my new novel are now live on Amazon.

Editing

Reading Backwards

Posted on October 31, 2022October 29, 2022 by L. M. Montes

As many of you know from a previous post, I finished my second novel this past July of 2022. Since then I’ve been editing, re-editing, and then editing some more. How many time does one need to read their work before it’s polished? How ever many times it takes. You will know when it’s just right. When you’re done with editing it, give it to another editor who knows what they’re doing. They have those editor’s eyes that will see something you missed that you didn’t think was an issue. Also, give your final draft to a beta reader (or a test reader). Yes, you want to do this. They will give you valuable feedback about your story. Trust me, if there is part of your story that isn’t making sense, your beta reader will spot it.

Before you go beyond the editing YOU are doing, read your story/manuscript backwards. Yes, start with the last page of your story and read each paragraph starting from the last paragraph and working your way backwards. Doing this will allow your brain to focus more on the mechanics of each sentence rather than the story. Think about it. When you are reading a story, the story is flowing through your mind. Your brain is focusing on the story itself and not on the mechanical issues you may have that must be fixed. Therefore, you will end up missing mistakes that need to be fixed. By reading it backwards, the story itself won’t get in the way.

Sears Tower, Chicago, Illinois

Image• Posted on October 30, 2022October 29, 2022 by L. M. Montes

Writing

Sticking to It

Posted on October 4, 2022 by L. M. Montes

It is said that as an author/writer one must write every day. Well, yes, that is true. It takes self-discipline. How much it takes depends on the person because we’re all different. But if you are one who does not have much self-discipline, it can be learned. You just have to turn it into a habit. How do you do that? By writing every day. I am not going to kid you. Some days it won’t be easy to write because you won’t be in the mood. That’s ok. Do something, anything. Just write. You don’t have to write a lot. Just write. Once writing daily becomes a habit, you will look forward to the task more.

Now comes the question, what if I don’t do any actual writing? What if I am only working in my journal or planning out my story? Yes, those tasks are considered writing. There are times when I am in the middle of writing a scene, and I get stuck. I don’t know how to proceed with the story/scene. So I stop, close out my story, get my shoes on, and go for a walk. On this walk I am thinking about the scene. I let the breeze refresh me and my mind. I allow my characters to ‘walk around’ (so to speak) inside my mind and take a break from the page. When I do this, the answer comes. For you it might not be a walk that you need. It may be something else. My point is that these walks are considered my writing time as well because the story in a way is still being worked on. It also makes the process fun and less tedious.

So, stick with it. Do not give up. Make the process of writing/creating fun. Just stick to it.