Get the story out of your head

 

Get the story out of your head

One of the great things about having a creative mentor is they don’t hold any punches and tell you like it is no matter how it makes you feel. I have just one of those types of mentors. Don’t get me wrong he doesn’t tell me anything that is going to hurt my feels, but he does raise my awareness by giving me critical feedback that if you look at it the wrong way, you might think he is being seriously harsh. But as writers and creative individuals we need that type of slap upside the head at times, right?

During one of his check up calls as he called them, he asked me how much writing I achieved for the book I was working on called “Last Wish”. My response was simple, I’m still on the first page, I’m stuck on all this grammar and editing as I go. He was not only frustrated with my response he hung up on me. I was like damn I pissed him off. Two hours later my phone rang and he apologized for the dropped call. His cell phone died and he had to fully charge it before he could call me back. He clarified what I had said about only being on the first page and even though he was frustrated with my response he said the one thing that I needed to hear – Get that damn story out of your head and forget about the grammar and editing, that’s what an editor is for.

So, I’m going to tell you the same thing. Stop coming up with excuses as to why you’re not writing. You said you have a story concept idea, get it down on paper then.  Create a place that you can work without interruptions, open your laptop, open a word document and start writing. Doesn’t matter if you make mistakes, you can correct them later, just close your eyes and get that damn story out of your head and onto the paper. Once you start allowing the creative juices to flow, you won’t be able to stop writing. Within a few months, you’ll have about one quarter or half your book written. In my case, once I sit down to write, as long as I’ve done all the preliminary concept research and decisions laid out, I can pound out a book in about three months – first draft that is. That’s because I have now stopped writing the book in word upfront, instead I write the movie script first, easier because it’s only about 75 -100 pages to write. Once that is written and I love the way it came out, I then print it out and follow it to write the actual book. It’s easier for me because I’m a visual person and I can see the scenes in my mind, location, who is in the scene and what are they doing or saying get it down on paper. This way once I start writing in Word, I can elaborate on the scene, what are they wearing, thinking, who else is with them, what does the scene look like, etc. Fleshing out the scene basically. 

Every writer has their way of writing, mine is as I said, write the movie script first then the book. Now when he calls me, I can tell him I’ve got so many pages written and he’s excited for me. He’s a great motivator and mentor who I love dearly. Every creative person needs a person in their lives that is an encouraging influence that sparks them into action with a smile. Find one and remember to thank them often for all their help and advice.

Author Elizabeth Kilbride is a former political operative, author, scriptwriter, historian, journalist. business professional, and creative artist, and life coach consultant. Ms. Kilbride holds a Masters in Criminology and a BS in Business Management who stepped out of the loop for a while, but who is now back with a powerful opinion and voice in the direction of this country and our economy. As a life coach, she is available to counsel individuals to enjoy their dreams and a better life. Ms. Kilbride loves to travel, photograph her surroundings and is also a gourmet cook who loves to garden and preserve food for the winter months.