unsticking – Page 2 – The official blog of Michelle Tuckett, word ninja.

Guest Post: Embracing Incoherence (or, Rambling for Focus)

November 18, 2012

It’s me again, taking over so you don’t have to. A lot has happened in the last couple weeks, but we’re now 18 days and some change into November, just a smidge past halfway. If you multiply 18 days (and some change) by the Golden Ratio (1.618, a.k.a. “Phi”, a.k.a. “ϕ”), you get 30, or … More Guest Post: Embracing Incoherence (or, Rambling for Focus)

NaNoWriMo Tips: Write in the Cracks

November 8, 2012

Goodness, time is moving quickly. Normally, I would be going at a good pace for a normal month, but at 13,000 words, I am behind. And I know from some of your wonderful messages, that many are feeling the same. Last month was busy, and now I am in the process of very, very slowly … More NaNoWriMo Tips: Write in the Cracks

NaNoWriMo Prep: Write Something You Want to Read, with pep talk

October 14, 2012

Choosing what to write for NaNoWriMo is a challenge. It has been a challenge every month this year for me, and sometimes I lose a few days at the beginning of the month to just trying to find that thread of plot I feel has the energy to carry me through. There are a lot … More NaNoWriMo Prep: Write Something You Want to Read, with pep talk

NaNoWriMo Prep: Clear the Decks

October 13, 2012

As we all know, it's that time of year again. NaNoWriMo. Thirty days of literary abandon, the chance to cast aside our normal lives for a time and to finally write a novel. I have done some seven NaNos before this year, some much more successful than the others. Some years my schedule was fairly … More NaNoWriMo Prep: Clear the Decks

Unstuck: Do Something Else

October 13, 2012

Sometimes, it is impossible to get started. We sit at the paper or computer, and as soon as we clear some mental space for ourselves and look for what we want to say, our minds crowd with The List. You know The List. It's a demonic little thing that pops up and tells us all … More Unstuck: Do Something Else

Unstuck: What to Write When You Don’t Know What to Write – Retell a Story

October 11, 2012

Retell a fairy tale. When I was a little girl, we had an in-wall space heater in the basement rec room, the kind I've only seen in cheap hotels, but I am sure that the original decorators thought it was the height of interior design. Anyway, in the winter, my dad and I would pile … More Unstuck: What to Write When You Don’t Know What to Write – Retell a Story

Unstuck: What to Write When You Don’t Know What to Write – Write Reality

October 11, 2012

This approach is for the kind of stuck that just keeps us from writing anything at all, even a small practice piece or blog, when words simply won't come and we are left feeling empty and alone, abandoned at the start, and we are lost and frozen in space, searching for he brilliance we are … More Unstuck: What to Write When You Don’t Know What to Write – Write Reality

Are You Actually Writing?

October 5, 2012

Things that are not actually writing: Looking for that tab you had open as reference material for a blog entry Outlining Complaining about not writing Practicing your quick-draw technique in case of a duel Sharpening your samurai sword Slimming down your collection of 5,000 fonts Tweeting Facebooking Searching the web to see of other people … More Are You Actually Writing?

Nine Down, Three (four) to Go! Or, what it is like to write 16,000 words in a day.

October 1, 2012

There is no other way to say this: September was a bitch. It didn't come smoothly, despite finding regular writing times every week, and despite my efforts to not fall behind. But I did. Again. On the bright side, I only had 16,000 words left on the last day of the month instead of the … More Nine Down, Three (four) to Go! Or, what it is like to write 16,000 words in a day.