We made it to another Friday! Yay!
What you’ll find in this newsletter:
I updated my website!
Writing tip: Give yourself a gift
Writers, want me to give you a mini-challenge?
Some bad-writing snippets from the book I’m working on
Three, two, one…
I’m sure you are wondering what sunsets, good butts, and pizza rolls have in common.
One, they are all somewhat round, I suppose?
And two, they are all related to the Love, Lists, and Fancy Ships and Luck and Last Resorts freebies I’ve thrown up on my website.
While I was stuck at home recovering from covid, I spent a few days updating my website. Here are some changes you’ll find there that might interest you:
An updated “resources” tab with my book club kit, FAQ.
Dedicated pages for Love, Lists, and Fancy Ships and Luck and Last Resorts (Including a sneak peak of chapter 1. The LLR one isn’t the beginning of the first chapter, but about halfway into the first chapter, FYI. But I wanted to give you a little taste of Nina and Ollie’s dynamic!)
A “For Fun” section with some freebies (just random phone wallpapers right now) you can download. Many of these are related to Luck and Last Resorts, so you might be like ????, but maybe it will be a little tease about what’s to come!
I am currently working on adding a “For Writers” page within the resources section with writing tips, querying advice, etc. (This one is still in progress, but I hope to have some stuff written up about how to get an agent and how to get published, along with some writing tips soon!
Writing tip of the week: Give yourself a gift
Today, I want to talk about the gifts we give ourselves in our writing.
I think when we trust ourselves as writers, incredible things slip into our work that we’d never expect. These are usually small things that, on the surface, seem totally random, but after some repetition and revision, turn into powerful symbols.
I never “set out” to put a symbol into my work, though there are at least a few by the time I’m done with a book. Symbols can be anything: a necklace, a hole in the stairs, a flower, a scar, pizza rolls (not joking). They tend to show up unexpectedly, at least for me. I’m not always sure what to do with them in that first draft. I don’t even realize they’re symbols until they keep appearing.
Symbols, emotion, theme, they show up when you show up. Even when the words are bad, and you’re wading through a shitty first draft. Even if you rewrite the whole thing, the gifts you leave yourself will stick. They’ll transform into powerful images if you open yourself up to the messy process writing is and trust yourself to figure our what your story brain is trying to say. (Sometimes the story brain really makes me work for it, though.)
So here’s my advice: When you’re writing, let those random/silly/irrelevant things slip in. Sure, they might be useless and you may cut them. But you might surprise yourself. Those pizza rolls your character keeps thinking about might just be a gift!
Speaking of gifts…
One of my favorite things to do is give myself a silly challenge for a scene. So, I’ll challenge myself to make aliens relevant, or to make doing cartwheels make sense.
A few months ago I invited my instagram followers to send me a 1-sentence summary of a scene they were working on/stuck on, and I would send them a “mini-challenge.” (Something they had to try and work into the scene.) People really loved it, so I’m going to do that again now!
Comment or reply to this email with a 1-sentence summary of a scene you are working on/stuck on, and I’ll reply with a mini-challenge picked out just for you!
Curious about the bad writing is currently in my first draft of Potential Book 3?
One of the things I am missing about Instagram during my social media break is getting to share snipped of my awful writing. I love sharing with aspiring writers the truth behind bad drafts. I am NOT just being humble when I say my early drafts are bad. They really, truly, and sincerely are awful.
So I’m going to share a few snippets with you! These are actual passages from the book I am working on right now.
“Wanna make a bet?” She says.
“On what?”
“What percentage of these do you think is garbage and what percentage is actually something I need to keep? Winner buys X.”
THEY DO THAT.
Raine is talking about the pile of receipts in her pocket, but I think her question can apply to first drafts as well. (The answer? Probably like, 50% is garbage.)
EXCITED FOR TRIVIA NIGHT. OH THAT WOULD BE A GOOD QUESTION. BET OVER WHO WILL LIVE, SHE IS VERY EXCITED WHEN SHE SURVIVES, AND HE LAUGHS BE HE ALREADY KNEW. SHE’S LIKE OMG! RETURN TO PUB TO GET READY FOR TRIVIA NIGHT.
Yup. That is currently the opener to chapter 13.
“However,” I interrupt. “I think you can relax a little here. It’s not like I’m hoping to…climb the ladder. Climb the…liquor shelf?”
“JACK SAYS WHAT IT’S CALLED.”
If anyone knows what it’s called, uh…lemme know, thanks.
SOMETHING SOMETHING PLANS FOR DUBLIN
Ah, yes. Great summary for chapter 16, Sarah.
Right before I left home, I went through a huge Dolly phase. Screaming “9-5” in the car on my way to quit my job. ANOTHER SONG when I DID SOMETHING. ANOTHER WHEN I DID SOMETHING ELSE.
Ah, yes. Better get listening to a lot of Dolly.
“Everything okay?” Raine says when I trudge across the lobby to where she’s XYZ. “You look like you’ve been SOMETHING TOTALLY RANDOM ONLY RAINE WOULD THINK OF.”
[REDACTED]
“Oh,” she says, and SOMETHING SOMETHING SOMETHING. “Well, SOMETHING SOMETHING.”
When I open the door to the room I feel my entire body burning in embarrassment, because this is absolutely over the top. I read an X that tells me Y an 18th century SOMETHING.
Wow. Riveting.
I drop my hands from my eyes and see stars for a moment. “THE THING. I totally forgot it, even after you reminded me. Why is this always happening to me? And now I’ll have to DO SOMETHING, AND THEN ANOTHER SOMETHING, and THEN THERE IS ONE MORE SOMETHING.”
“Raine, it’s okay,” Jack says, DOING SOMETHING AND LOOK IT’S THE THING!
RAINE IS LIKE: HOW?
Nice.
HAPPY HAPPY EATING BAGELS AND CHATTING.
Another incredibly useful chapter summary.
Want more bad writing snippets? Check out the “Writing Sux” highlight on my Instagram.
Three, two, one…
Three things I’m grateful for…
New music from Harry Styles and Glass Animals.
Warmer weather
Having the opportunity to speak at my alma mater last night
Two things I’m looking forward to…
SUMMER. Classes end April 20th and I am HERE. FOR. IT. I desperately need the focused writing time. Book three is proving to be my most challenging book to get a complete draft of yet.
Getting to announce [redacted] soon.
One thought I’m having…
OMG am I ever going to finish this book? Why won’t it write itself? I’ve been working on the same 150 pages for three months.
(Don’t worry, It’ll be okay….I think…)
Bonus: ZERO
I’ve been reading…nothing. (I know! I know! But I’m a professor in April, what am I supposed to do? Be a functioning human being?")
That's all for now, friends!
(Writers! Don’t forget to comment or reply to this email with a 1-sentence summary of a scene you are working on/stuck on, and I’ll reply with a mini-challenge for you!)
XO, Sarah