Friday, April 10, 2015

Poem: The Problem With Friendship

     To be published in an anthology entitled Beyond the Sea, with Eber & Wein publishing.



And I could take or leave
Anyone, Anyone else,
No tears, no shouts, no call;
But all you have to do is falter
And I will
Fall
     Fall
          Fall
               Fall
Until there is not falling left to do
Or cruel Gods drunk off my dependence
Lead me falling back to you.

Wednesday, April 8, 2015

Writing Game: Seven Minutes In (Writing) Heaven



     This is a little writing game designed to get your mind working and the juices flowing.  You can use it as a warm-up for before you start the brunt of the day's writing, or as a pass-time when you've got down-time and want to keep your writing skills sharp.  Whatever you want to use it for, here's how to play Seven Minutes In (Writing) Heaven.
   
Note:  Closet neither included nor required

What You'll Need:

3 containers of a reasonable size
Paper
At least one die
Writing materials
A stop watch or other time-telling device

Set-Up:

1.  Get all your things together in one place (always useful)
2.  Tear your pieces of paper into small slips
3.  Separate your slips into three piles
4.  Take the first pile; on these slips of paper, write the names of all the characters you might be using.  In the second pile, write down a number of locations, real, fictional, inside, outside--whatever you can think of.  In the third pile, write out a number of events or conflicts that you might want to use.
5.  Put each pile into a separate pile; shake and mix liberally

Game Play:

1.  Roll your dice.
2.  Whatever number you come up with, that's the number of characters to pick from the first container
3.  Pick one slip from each of the remaining containers
4.  Set your timer/observe the clock; you now have exactly seven minutes to write a short story using the criteria you've gathered.  With any luck, you'll produce something you can use either as a scene in a story, or at least learn a little bit more about your characters, their motivations, and relationships.

Sunday, April 5, 2015

Word Count Hangman



     It can be hard to meet your word count goal.  Whether you're writing a novel, a poem, or a short story, sometimes we get hung up or frustrated, or (most insidious of all) we convince ourselves that we can "just do it tomorrow," which as many writers know is how books end up six feet under.
     To help with this process, you can check out a tricks-and-tips article here OR you can play this nifty little game I made up called Word Count Hangman.  It's like regular Hangman, only word count-ier

The Set Up:

     Print out a picture of one of the following:

          ~You
          ~Someone you love
          ~A beloved character from your current project

     I recommend option three if you're dealing in fiction, but they all work.  Just make sure that it's a full-body image, and not the original.  Cut off each of the limbs and set up a piece of cork board (or a piece of construction paper, etc.) above your writing space and get some tape or tacks together; set up the gallows, decide on your word count, and get to work!

The Game Play:

     If you miss your word count for the day, a body part goes up.  If all the body parts go up, you lose and your character/loved one is dead!  You can add your own consequences for a loss, or go up against another writing buddy to see who is the last to miss all X# of writing days (or hang the other one first, if that's what gets those fingers tapping!).
     If you have no one to compete against and want to make the game a little more interesting, add a second board; one for heroes and one for villains.  For every word count goal you MISS, your protagonist comes one step closer to their untimely demise, but for every goal met your ANTAGONIST comes another step closer to death.
     The game resets every so often, depending on your expertise: once a week for beginners, once a month for experts, and once a year for those of you who really want to murder something you love.

The Rules:

1.  Be honest.  The only person you hurt by giving yourself slack is you; if this isn't motivating enough a game for you, maybe you should give something else a try.
2.  If you're competing with someone else, make sure to discuss things like resets and limb numbers beforehand to level the playing field.
4. Possibly the most important rule of all, have fun!  What is the purpose of writing if not to enjoy oneself?

If you have any suggestions to spice up the game, just let me know!  Maybe they'll make it into version 2.0 ;)

Friday, April 3, 2015

A Few Ways To Elevate Wordcount



     Camp NaNoWriMo has come, and if you're anything like me, you may be throwing yourself whole-heartedly into the fray.  Also like me, you may, at any time of the year, have some trouble meeting your daily word count goals.  But never fear!  TheSpiderWriter is here, and with a few different methods to help you reach them!


1. Hold yourself accountable.

     Yes, yes, this seems fairly self-evident, but for some people it works really well!  Just set a goal for yourself, and take something you enjoy doing, then don't allow yourself to do it until you finish.        Conversely, you can take something you dislike doing, and force yourself to do it if you don't meet your goal--like drinking straight vinegar or (if you're a vinegar-loving freak like me) playing the game you most hate with your most insufferable family member at least once through.
     But if that doesn't work, you can always....


2. Have someone ELSE hold you accountable.

    Sometimes asking yourself to not give in to temptation is just too much; how can you resist the siren song of white chocolate chip cookies?  How can you say no to a dip in your jacuzzi (u successful author superhero u)?  Why would you stick your paper-cut hand into a vat of lemon juice?  In cases like this, sometimes a little external motivation is necessary, which means that it's time to bring in a partner in crime.  Ask someone close to you to do the "holding accountable" for you--give them the key to your DVD chest and ask them never to allow you into it if you can't show them a verified word count first, or have them wake you by dousing you in ice cold water if you didn't meet your goal the night before.
     As long as it gets you working, then it's a success!


3. Pit yourself against someone

     For some people, rewards and punishments just don't work.  Maybe you don't have the resources available to you to make the reward/punishment system feasible, or perhaps you find the rules a little too arbitrary to follow.  Whatever the case, there are alternatives.
     Competition is part of nature, and some of us are more competitive than others; writers are usually very self-competitive, so you could do something like try to beat your record for most words in a month; to make it real, set up a winner's wall where you record your score every time you push the envelope, or a shame space where you record each new low.
     If that doesn't work, ask your friends and family.  There are bound to be other writers in the thick of the it who are looking for the same upper you are.  If there's no one around, hit up Twitter or Tumblr or (spirit of the season!) sign up for Camp NaNoWriMo and spend time competing with strangers.  You never know who might turn out to be a true fiend at the end of the experience, either.
     It's worth a shot!

4. Stay in your lane

     It seems like a silly thing, but make sure you stay within your range.  I mean, it seems obvious if you tend toward high counts not to pick a battle with someone too low, but don't reach too high, either.  Yes, you want someone who's going to challenge you, but not someone who's going to smother you!  I've been the person leagues ahead of another, and as much as I try to encourage my friends, it only seems to hurt them.  You become daunted by the task ahead and give up, feeling that you'll never catch up to the giants around you.
     If your nightly word count is 150, you might want to try to befriend someone whose count is around 200; the competition is more fair and the two of you will be more able to help each other grow and pick up speed.  The same is true of the 4.5--6k range, or the 1--2.5k range; the more equally skilled the players, the fiercer and more beneficial the competition.

     But above all, my wonderful witticising writers, don't forget to keep your expectations of yourself realistic.  You can set all the 100,000 words-a-night goals you want, with all the rewards and punishments and support systems you think appropriate, but all you're going to do is kill yourself.
     Unless that goal is somehow realistic for you, in which case please share with me your secrets, as I, too, would like to exchange this mortal coil for the eternal rewards of deification, and would be happy to offer my companionship as compensation.
     And the rest of you mortals out there, let me know about all your down-and-dirty tricks--it's bound to help someone!