Since most of you have never met me, I thought I’d start by sharing three things about me that may give you a glimpse into my writing world. 1) I procrastinate. 2) I have never missed a deadline. 3) I obsess. The procrastinating and obsessing go together and they both connect with being a perfectionist. My dad thinks the perfectionist part of me is a good thing (probably because he can say I get that from him), but it can drive me crazy. This website is a classic example. It took me forever to finally launch this thing (OK, not forever, just like 2 months) and it was through no fault of my awesome web designer (Hi, John! You rock!). Nope, it all came down to me worrying about my first blog post (it’s awesome so far, isn’t it?), what text to put on my home page (oh gosh, I wish I was kidding), and how to arrange my bios. Totally ridiculous, I know. But I wanted to get it just right (which is what, exactly?). It’s not like these things can’t be changed or won’t be. It’s not like someone will look at the text on my home page or bio, think this is the height of my writing talent, and refuse to buy my book (or so I tell myself). And yet, I obsess anyway. Some of you reading this are drawn even more to me now, right? You find my neurosis adorable, don’t you? But, just in case, it’s repelling you, let me show you how this connects with my writing.
I can’t say these are my favorite traits about me, but they have helped at times. One example is revisions. There is definitely such a thing as too much revising, but I have yet to cross over to that dark side. I have enough of a feel of my characters, setting, and plot to know when to stop, to know whether cutting that extra scene or adding a new one is one revision too many. And even when that little voice is hammering at my brain and asking if maybe spicing things up with an alien is the way to go, I know enough to tell it to be quiet. The perfectionism is handy, however, when it comes to adding details–when my lazy side is the one that wants to dominate. There are many times I have wanted to just leave my MCs in their parkas when a bikini would have been more appropriate or insert a dead/deadbeat mom or dad because writing in another character was more than I could handle that day. So those days when I try to convince myself that a parka in July is perfect, chic, totally smokin’, I’m thankful for the part of me that knows better and won’t allow it.
I’ve talked to other writers and have been told I’m not special. We all obsess, we all are neurotic, we all want the story to be completely perfect. Most of them have never missed a deadline either, so what’s the harm, right? I have also learned strategies that lower my freak-out factor and that make my quirks work for me. That’s kind of where this blog comes in. I want it to be a lot of things: a place to interview other writers and people in the business (e.g. editors, agents, publishers, etc.), a place where I can share what I learned and chat about everything from the writing process to how Panera’s sandwiches inspire me, and a place for other writers to share their WIP and get advice and encouragement on anything from an idea to a poem to a chapter. I hope you’ll keep dropping by and maybe share some of your own oh so lovable quirks as well.
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