Cupcakes and Writing: Classic Vanilla

 For me, cupcakes are kind of like my writerly mascot.  Well, so begins the Cupcakes and Writing series.  Each Wednesday another cupcake flavor will be compared to an aspect of writing.  Well, until I run out of flavors, or inspiration, whichever comes first.  Bon appetit!   

Classic Vanilla: Writing Authentically

Flavors, nuts, food coloring, chocolates, you name it, a cupcake can have it. But classic vanilla, now that's different. It has one distinct color and taste. Nothing to compete with it. And I think that's the way we're supposed to be as writers. Pure and focused on our writerly journey.

Too often I'm caught in it: The Comparison Trap. I compare my writing to others. Or I compare how many books they've written, how many books are published, how many Followers they have. And I find I'm no longer focused on my own journey, but on others and along the way I've added other flavorings, other colorings to my cupcake base and it is no longer vanilla, but it is most assuredly not any other recognizable flavor either. It tastes bitter.

The social networking thing is awesome. I love connecting with other writers, seeing what they're learning, I can encourage them and share my own ideas with them. Now, I'm not saying we can't learn a thing or two from the writers we look up to and incorporate it in our writing. But it shouldn't come at the expense of losing our own flavor.

Remember, everyone's writing journey/flavor is different. Don't let it effect your own. Remain true to yourself and write like YOU were born to. And when you give a reader a taste of your writing, they'll like what they are experiencing.

Fellow Writers, Look What I Found!

All right, so here's a list of a few of my new favorite writerly things....

1)  Well, baby #2 is due in August, and the hubster and I are packing up our belongings and our little boys and moving out of state end of September.  I've been participating in NaNoWriMo for years, and was sad to think that I wouldn't be able to this year with a new baby and moving and all.  I think I'll be a little busy and REALLY tired in November.  Cue Camp NaNoWriMo!

Think NaNoWriMo, but for the summer, rather than for November.  When you sign up for Camp NaNoWriMo you can choose if you want to participate in June or August.  Betcha can't guess which month I'm signed up for? ;)


2)  So, I'm a list person.  I also like writing notes and ideas for my stories in notebooks.  The problem with this is I sometimes lose my lists.  Or forget which notebook I wrote my story outline in.  Or put the wrong notebook in my bag for my solo trip to Starbucks.

But thanks to Evernote, I've been so much more organized!  Seriously, downloading this free thing to write notes, make checklists (complete with check boxes I can check off on my computer or with the Evernote app on my phone) has been awesome!  Love, love, love having all my notes in one place, they're easy to edit, and I feel so much more organized without notebooks and pieces of paper in random places around the house.

3)  I had heard that Kristen Lamb is the go-to gal on social media for writers.  And she definitely is.  I bought both of her books, "We Are Not Alone: The Writer's Guide to Social Media" and also "Are You There Blog? It's Me, Writer."  I learned a few things from the first book, and was inspired by a few others in the latter.  I would recommend you check out We Are Not Alone, if you want to learn more about using Twitter, Facebook Fan Pages, Blogs, etc to build your writing platform.  If you just want to be inspired to continue writing and to keep up with your blog, check out Are You There Blog?  Both books are available for $4.99 for the Kindle on Amazon, and I think that's a great price for the nuggets of gold you'll glean from these books.  And if you don't want to read the entire book/s, then check out her blog, full of helpful social media and writing advice.

4) If you're a writer and you haven't read Save the Cat! by Blake Snyder, then you are truly missing out!  That book is awesome for helping you plan out a story line if you're in the brainstorming/outlining process, or fabulous for helping you tackle your revisions to help you understand what your story may be missing.

Apparently, I've been missing out too.  I learned today that Snyder wrote a second book, Save the Cat! Strikes Back which I just ordered.  I can't tell you yet if it's as awesome as the first book, but I'm definitely excited about what I'll learn from it.

Or have you used/participated in/read any of these things I've mentioned?  Or plan to?  Any writerly finds you've made recently?

Cupcakes and Writing: Red Velvet

I've mentioned before I love cupcakes.  For me, cupcakes are kind of like my writerly mascot.  Well, so begins the Cupcakes and Writing series.  Each Wednesday another cupcake flavor will be compared to an aspect of writing.  Well, until I run out of flavors, or inspiration, whichever comes first.  Bon appetit!  

Red Velvet: The Messy Writing Journey

I must admit, red velvet cupcakes with cream cheese frosting is up there as one of my fave cupcake flavors.   I remember one time I determined to make a batch myself.  Before I knew it, I had cupcakes baking in the oven, but my fingers and my counter were stained red.  My counter still hasn't quite been the same.  But whoa, those cupcakes sure tasted good!  And with that cream cheese frosting (I must confess, it was from a can, I wasn't brave motivated enough to make my own) it seemed like perfection.  I was so proud.

Lately I've been thinking a lot about writing.  We get an idea and we start brainstorming and typing away.  And then, when you look back at it, all you can see is the mess of the rough draft and the doubts creep in.  You're proud you have something on paper, and that it has the potential to be something great.  But all you can see is the red food coloring on your counter and fingers and you wonder if it was worth it all.

The same goes for later on in your writing journey.  You get a critique that brings about doubts and insecurities about your story.  Or another form rejection pops up among your email.  For me personally, it's easy to let the stains of those things keep me from writing for anywhere from minutes to months.  And I focus on the mess, and not the cupcake that's been baking for a while now, it's awesome aroma making my mouth water.  I focus on the bad and not the joy that has been my journey.  My growth.

And then, oh my goodness, I have a flash of brilliance and my fingers are flying over the keyboard.  Or I push through the mess and start spreading some of that cream cheese awesomeness on top of that WIP that's been sitting in a drawer for a while.

It's time we frost our manuscripts.  We need to let go of the stains and the mess on the counter and enjoy the baked goodness of a moist red velvet cupcake with that awesome cream cheese frosting on top.