Monica Valentinelli

Take the Make Art Not War Challenge and Change Your World

Once More Into The Breach

This is going to be a ridiculous month of writing and holidays for me. By "ridiculous", I mean old contracts and zombie projects have reared their ugly heads. I'm SO ready for this, though! I did have to turn off the news and most of social media. Outside of work, I do feel a touch disconnected, but I've also noticed how many headlines have been blaring across the waves lately. That affected my focus without realizing it, and the ability to basically shut everything out to pound out massive word count is something I can't afford to lose.

Often, I'm asked how to write fast and how not to sacrifice quality. Here's the thing: writing fast comes with time and practice. Though I'm not well known for my original work, I have fifteen plus years of professional writing behind me, not including my time at uni. Working in games, where there's a high pressure to produce, can help teach you some techniques for sure. When I was working as developer for the Firefly RPG, for example, I developed and wrote well over a million words in a year. This was, in part, due to the way the back end was set up, but a common story in media/tie-in circles.

Writing fast isn't necessarily something I'd recommend for everyone and, to be clear, I don't think about it in terms of bragging rights. Some projects simply have very tight deadlines, and that leads to write-or-die. If I meet them? I get paid. If I don't, I run the risk of losing money and future work. So, if you write fast? Awesome! If you can't, that's fine, too. There's definitely more than one way to be a writer, and your mileage will vary. In the end, all that matters is whether or not you're happy with what you're doing. If you find you'd like to write faster, try outlines or writing sprints. They can help!

Hope you're all doing well. I'm definitely hanging in there! Check out my new 30 Day Make Art Not War Challenge--a perfect way to end one hell of a year.

- M

In the 11/30/2017 edition:
*|MC:TOC|*

New! December’s 30 Day Challenge to Make Art Not War

By Monica Valentinelli on Nov 30, 2017 10:31 am

Wow! What a year it has been! For several months, you’ve learned some things about yourself as an artist. You’ve made art! And, you’ve stuck with me on my artistic journey. Now, I have one last challenge for you. In lieu of a theme for December, I’m offering a series of fun daily activities for you to complete. Each one touches on some of the tips, advice, and themes I’ve offered throughout the year. Enjoy!

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MANW Check-In Week 48: November’s Progress and Finish Lines

By Monica Valentinelli on Nov 29, 2017 10:30 am

Hey, how did your November go? Mine went pretty well, despite two weeks lost to the flu. This month’s theme was FINISH, and by now you have either finished what you started this month or you’re struggling. There could be a lot of reasons behind your lack of motivation or slower progress, and I’ve often found that it’s important to record them. The point of finishing is not to hyper-analyze how you reach the finish line. Sometimes, it’s more important to type “the end” than it is to write it with a flourish or add a bit of poetry. From there, from your failures or setbacks, you might discover new goals or behavioral techniques you can use to move forward.

Here are some examples of setbacks and solutions:

Setback: Falling Behind. Your goal was to reach 50,000 words for a novel this month, but you felt overwhelmed and couldn’t figure out what to write. By the time you got that sorted, you fell behind.

Solution: To prepare for a month of writing, try your hand at outlining and character sketches beforehand. What do your characters want? What stands in their way? Where does your story start and end? Outlines can help keep you on track as you write, because they’ll offer goal posts where you didn’t have any before.

Setback: Lack of Focus. You knew what you wanted to write, but it was hard to focus. Every time you started, you quickly lost interest and didn’t want to write at all.

Solution: Being resistant to the work happens to all of us. To get past that mental block or stubbornness, you could try warm-up exercises, changing your environment/music, writing something else for fifteen minutes to half an hour, etc. Usually, when you’re slow or can’t focus there’s a reason for that. It could be something as complex as anxiety/depression or a consequence of heavily relying on online tools. It could also, however, be something simple. You’ve never written in that genre before, or haven’t used that technique. Fear can definitely be a factor, even on a subsconscious level, too.

Setback: Can’t Finish. You have no trouble getting into writing, but you can’t seem to finish what you start no matter how hard you try.

Solution: Try writing the end or middle of your story first. You might also benefit from mini-tasking, or taking your short stories and breaking them out by scenes instead. You might also plan to write for shorter periods of time, lke 15 or 20 minutes, until you rebuild your concentration. If you get distracted, I also find that having a journal or a tool like Evernote next to you can really help. That way, if you have a to do item you forgot or suddenly remember an important task you can write it down and get back to your manuscript.

The next time you have a setback, try identifying what it is and cooking up your own solution. This week’s check-in addresses some of the finer points I’ve been dealing with. Tune in later this week for a brand new 30 Day Challenge!

Weekly Check-in

My Original Make Art Not War 2017 Challenge pledge:

• I pledge to devote one hour a day to my original art.

• If I don’t feel motivated, I pledge to write down the reasons why I wanted to take this challenge for fifteen minutes or one-to-three pages whichever comes first.

• I pledge to mark down on the calendar whenever I complete a day’s efforts.

• As the challenge creator, I pledge to create a weekly accountability post every Wednesday beginning on January 9th. Comments will be open. Hashtag #makeartnotwar2017 #manw2017

• I pledge to check into social media twice a week for personal use, and once a month with my local community of artists and writers.

Here’s my current status:

• Diary of an Aspiring Alchemist is going strong. William Sand finally got the job after a confusing and rocky series of appointments. He’s currently stuck in an archive, reading old books about alchemy and the occult

• Motivation hasn’t been the issue for me, but I did have a challenging time trying to work while I had the flu. I’ve got a strong routine down now, and need to add back in a few other things. Looking forward to it!

• So, I’ve been using a new technique on Evernote to mark down progress. It’s been very effective!

• As the challenge creator, I pledge to create a weekly accountability post every Wednesday beginning on January 9th. Comments will be open. Hashtag #makeartnotwar2017 #manw2017

• I’m good re: social media. I’m mostly using it for work right now, and I may extend that into 2018. We’ll see how this month goes!

Hope your month went well and better than expected. Write soon!

Mood: Focused. Tired. Deep-fried.
Caffeinated Beverages Consumed: Going to hit the caffeine hard. Vrooooom!
Work-Out Minutes Logged Yesterday: Some walking.
In My Ears: Us Against the World by Coldplay
Game Last Played: Pokémon Go
Book Last Read: A mega-ass ton of anthologies.
Movie/TV Show Last Viewed: Lucifer Season 3
Latest Artistic Project: Make Art Not War Challenge eBook now available!
Latest Releases: Over the Edge for Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition, Legacy of Lies for V20 Dark Ages.
Current State of Projects: Read my latest project update. New project update coming when I get time.

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[Recommending Reading] Writer’s Yearbook 2018

By Monica Valentinelli on Nov 25, 2017 02:28 pm

December is a great time to reevaluate how the rest of your year went. I’m opting out of such a summary, if only because 2017 had more ups and downs than a rollercoaster. That said, I find it’s always a fantastic idea to take a pulse and see how my methodology and experiences measure up to other writers.

The other day, I picked up the Writer’s Yearbook 2018 from a local bookstore. (You can find it in the magazine aisle.) There’s a lot of material in this handbook, and the advice is spot on. Some gems:

1. Just Say No to Click-Bait. pp. 48-49. Written by Brandon Ambrosino, the article specifically focuses on the issue of chasing volume. He writes: “Because such [e.g. click-bait] content is fleeting and flames out quickly, writers feel compelled to churn out more and more of it in order to remain viable in a writing landscape that is largely sustained by social media.” The article goes on to offer solutions that help writers be more proactive and make better decisions with their time.

2. Get Down to Writing Business. pp. 51-53. This article takes a nuts-and-bolts approach to the business aspects of writing from a ghostwriter’s perspective. John Peragine writes that: “The key is to view yourself not as a contractor–always at the mercy of the next job–but as a business: in control of how you operate.” This type of operations management may seem intimidating, but I felt the article is applicable to any writer.

3. 101 Best Websites for Writers. pp 68-78. This is a descriptive list of websites separated into several categories: Creativity, Writing Advice, Everything Agents, General Resources, Publishing/Marketing Resources, Jobs & Markets, Online Writing Communities, Genres/Niches, and Just for Fun. There is a lot of information jam-packed into the list, and a few sites you may not normally consider.

I feel that this is well worth your time, and there’s a lot of advice mixed in with practical experiences from seasoned writers. If you’re mildly interested in getting a leg up in your freelance writing or authorial career, be sure to check it out.

Mood: Too much ho-ho-ho.
Caffeinated Beverages Consumed: I’m drinking decaf tea. It’s a sacrilege.
Work-Out Minutes Logged Yesterday: Some walking.
In My Ears: Some coffee house mix designed for teenagers.
Game Last Played: Pokémon Go
Book Last Read: A mega-ass ton of anthologies.
Movie/TV Show Last Viewed: Beauty and the Beast live action. It was something.
Latest Artistic Project: Make Art Not War Challenge eBook now available!
Latest Releases: Over the Edge for Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition, Legacy of Lies for V20 Dark Ages.
Current State of Projects: Read my latest project update. New project update coming when I get time.

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