Fall in Love with Your Story
Do you remember the first time the idea for your WIP came into your life?
That moment when your mind and your heart went Yes. This is the one.?
I remember. And those moments are strangely sacred to me.
I was shoveling snow and my very bored brain figured out a way to write my LOTR fanfic into my own unique story.
I was hanging a stained glass lamp with my grandpa and he called me his “Chainlink Apprentice”.
I was playing bingo with my elderly neighbor and “Another One Bites the Dust” by Queen was playing in the background.
Whatever that moment was for you, it must have been good.
That idea was so beautiful, so unique, so special to you, that you decided to write that story. To stick with it from the beginning to the very end and maybe even beyond.
You chose to love that story.
But sometimes we fall out of love with our stories. And it’s really hard to keep going on something we once loved so much but feel stressed over or tired about.
I have been working on my current WIP, “The Deadly BINGO Society” for two years now. I am still writing my first draft. I have rewritten the beginning chapters over and over and over again. I am a slow writer. I get so overwhelmed by the juggle of work, family life, social life, and passions that I can’t balance writing with life. I battle the insecurities of my writing never being enough and of myself never being enough. I am a perfectionist and I can’t let the flaws go.
All of these things drop their heavy weight on the story I once loved. Pressure, stress, and unrealistic expectations cloud my stories once shiny facade.
It’s hard to write.
My dream is to get traditionally published some day. But that’s not in the cards right now. Although I take my writing dream and love for books seriously, I also realize that I am not writing professionally right now. I’m not on deadline. I’m not querying agents. I’m not heading down the indie publishing road.
Which means I am just writing for me.
And that lifts some of the weight off my shoulders.
So once we recognize the root of our writing fears or worries, how can you and I get back that original joy and passion for our stories?
*takes a long sip of coffee and cracks knuckles*
One of the first things you can do is to give yourself permission to write badly. Or goodly. Or in-betweenly. Give yourself permission to write whatever you want and whatever comes to mind because whatever you put on paper is writing. The pressure we put on ourselves can be astronomical. Let yourself off the hook a little and just write. Write those cliche scenes or those soft tropey scenes or those dramatic scenes or whatever you want! Write what you want to read. Just write. And worry about editing, content, and word count later. (Trust me, it’s for the better *winks*)
Next step is to have fun with it. Make aesthetic Pinterest boards. Rant about characters. Daydream about your story. Crank your epic music playlists and imagine your story and the world as if it were real. (Because - just between us writers - it is.) Take personality quizzes for your characters. Write their back stories. Make their favorite foods. This story is yours, enjoy it! Geek out over it!! Love it with all your heart!!! Writing is heckin’ hard so we might as well have fun with it.
Another step is to take a break when you think you need it. Honey, if you have been smacking your head against the wall for this story, take a break. You can’t write about life if you’re not living it. Make a yummy tea, light a candle, grab coffee with a friend, play a game with your family, watch your favorite TV show, take a walk, go on that vacation, eat that last piece of pizza, read that classic book you’ve been dying to read. Refresh yourself and your mind so that you can come back to your story with new ideas, fresh perspective, and a renewed love for words.
Honestly, that’s it. Write. Enjoy. Rest. Repeat as needed until you love your story again.
Oh! One last thought before I close.
Your words are never wasted.
Those paragraphs you’ve hated and deleted. That ending you keep rewriting. That cute scene that you love but doesn’t fit. Those snippets of dialogue you scribble on restaurant napkins. None of those words are wasted. Even if they never make it into a final draft, they aren’t wasted. You are a writer. You grow and practice by writing. Write and love every word that comes with it.
By giving ourselves grace, space, and joy to write for ourselves, we can find that love for our stories again even in the midst of stress and pressure. But it’s important. Because if we don’t love our stories, our readers won’t either.
And that would be bad.
So go give your story a hug.
What are three things (big or little) that you just LOVE about your WIP? I’d love to hear about them!
Until next time!
~ K.J. Haakenson
That moment when your mind and your heart went Yes. This is the one.?
I remember. And those moments are strangely sacred to me.
I was shoveling snow and my very bored brain figured out a way to write my LOTR fanfic into my own unique story.
I was hanging a stained glass lamp with my grandpa and he called me his “Chainlink Apprentice”.
I was playing bingo with my elderly neighbor and “Another One Bites the Dust” by Queen was playing in the background.
Whatever that moment was for you, it must have been good.
That idea was so beautiful, so unique, so special to you, that you decided to write that story. To stick with it from the beginning to the very end and maybe even beyond.
You chose to love that story.
But sometimes we fall out of love with our stories. And it’s really hard to keep going on something we once loved so much but feel stressed over or tired about.
All of these things drop their heavy weight on the story I once loved. Pressure, stress, and unrealistic expectations cloud my stories once shiny facade.
It’s hard to write.
My dream is to get traditionally published some day. But that’s not in the cards right now. Although I take my writing dream and love for books seriously, I also realize that I am not writing professionally right now. I’m not on deadline. I’m not querying agents. I’m not heading down the indie publishing road.
Which means I am just writing for me.
And that lifts some of the weight off my shoulders.
So once we recognize the root of our writing fears or worries, how can you and I get back that original joy and passion for our stories?
*takes a long sip of coffee and cracks knuckles*
One of the first things you can do is to give yourself permission to write badly. Or goodly. Or in-betweenly. Give yourself permission to write whatever you want and whatever comes to mind because whatever you put on paper is writing. The pressure we put on ourselves can be astronomical. Let yourself off the hook a little and just write. Write those cliche scenes or those soft tropey scenes or those dramatic scenes or whatever you want! Write what you want to read. Just write. And worry about editing, content, and word count later. (Trust me, it’s for the better *winks*)
Next step is to have fun with it. Make aesthetic Pinterest boards. Rant about characters. Daydream about your story. Crank your epic music playlists and imagine your story and the world as if it were real. (Because - just between us writers - it is.) Take personality quizzes for your characters. Write their back stories. Make their favorite foods. This story is yours, enjoy it! Geek out over it!! Love it with all your heart!!! Writing is heckin’ hard so we might as well have fun with it.
Another step is to take a break when you think you need it. Honey, if you have been smacking your head against the wall for this story, take a break. You can’t write about life if you’re not living it. Make a yummy tea, light a candle, grab coffee with a friend, play a game with your family, watch your favorite TV show, take a walk, go on that vacation, eat that last piece of pizza, read that classic book you’ve been dying to read. Refresh yourself and your mind so that you can come back to your story with new ideas, fresh perspective, and a renewed love for words.
Honestly, that’s it. Write. Enjoy. Rest. Repeat as needed until you love your story again.
Oh! One last thought before I close.
Your words are never wasted.
Those paragraphs you’ve hated and deleted. That ending you keep rewriting. That cute scene that you love but doesn’t fit. Those snippets of dialogue you scribble on restaurant napkins. None of those words are wasted. Even if they never make it into a final draft, they aren’t wasted. You are a writer. You grow and practice by writing. Write and love every word that comes with it.
By giving ourselves grace, space, and joy to write for ourselves, we can find that love for our stories again even in the midst of stress and pressure. But it’s important. Because if we don’t love our stories, our readers won’t either.
And that would be bad.
So go give your story a hug.
What are three things (big or little) that you just LOVE about your WIP? I’d love to hear about them!
Until next time!
~ K.J. Haakenson
Comments
Post a Comment