Every day, when you sit down to write, the hardest thing to find is the right word to say. You have so many ideas, but for some reason there are these times when it is nearly impossible to put that idea down on paper. It isn't quite Writer's Block, but you can't seem to write the way you like.
In this series, I'm going to help you discover the hardest thing to find.
I've been writing for about eight years, which means I started when I was five. Needless to say, it didn't start out so well. I still have some of my old stories... but there is no way I am letting them see the light of day! They were badly written, obviously, with more grammatical problems then you could count and random word choice. But I kept practicing, because I wanted more than anything in the world to become a published author. Or at least finish a book.
About five years later I started another story after being discouraged by so many other failed attempts, and I actually started to go somewhere with it. I wrote about 200 pages of fairly good material--sure, it had many errors, but it was still something. I started to get excited! Was I seriously about to fulfill my dream? Finish a book and publish it and become the most famous person in the world? I mean, guys, I was aiming for J. K. Rowling status with my little book that I had created. I was so ready to finish and edit it and everything, when suddenly.... I ran out of inspiration. And when ran out of inspiration, I did the exact thing that I shouldn't have done--I gave up. I basically just said, "Forget it." And walked away from my creation I had worked so hard on. I had failed so many times, and I was so disappointed. I had gotten so far and then the story had just.... stopped. I had a great plot, great characters, but no inspiration.
A year ago, I pulled out that story and read it again. I hadn't realized how badly written it was before, when I was so excited with it. The characters were weak and the plot was pointless, but still. It was probably the best story that I had written yet. When I read it, I was reminded of how disappointed I had felt, when I had given up my dream of being an author. And then and there, I decided that I wouldn't let that dream die out. I would try again. Think of new ideas. Get new inspiration. Somehow.
So last year I started a few new books. The ideas were random, and seemingly pointless, but I thought and I thought and I scrounged up every piece of inspiration I had. I even got a friend to edit for me. And sure enough, I made something with strong characters and strong plot and *gasp* good grammar.
You guys don't even know how excited I was about my new stories, and I hope that you are just as excited with your own stories. Don't give up! Make something. Make something great out of nothing because that is the power of being an author. You're taking these stupid pointless ideas and shaping them into something awesome. And I don't know if you've been a similar situation, where you've just thrown the towel in and said "Forget it!" because of all other failed times you tried to write down your ideas.
But you can make something. You can be J. K. Rowling if you want. Sure, it may take time, and patience, and I whole lot of tears, but you have it in you. You can learn, you can create, you can practice! Don't give up.
So in this blog series, I will be sharing the ways that I get inspiration and keep up my writing spirit. I hope that they help you as well and that you create something that you love. :)
Keep writing,
Emilie Graye
"The worst thing you write is better than the best thing that you did not write." - Unknown
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