Wednesday's Writer's Tip - Orson Scott Card - How To Write Science Fiction and Fantasy

Today I'll finish up the advice from Orson Scott Card. What he says in this book applies to writers in all areas of genre fiction. What he ended the book was advice or almost lecturing in areas of a writer's life. I won't mention them all but if you want them all, find a copy of the book.

Of the 7 areas he gives advice Discipline heads the list. This is something I know very much about. Being disciplined as one strives for a career in writing fiction is a must. One can't wait for the muse to strike. Writing every day even when you do feel like writing is a must. I'll share a bit here. Writing can be an escape and for me it was. Almost 20 years ago, my husband was having major surgery. He had an aortic anuyerism at the point where the aorta leaves the heart. The doctor told me the surgery had a 50/ chance of success. The procedure took many hours. I'd brought a clipboard and the mss I was currently working on to the hospital with me. Writing during that stressful time allowed me not to think about what could or not go wrong. When I looked at what I'd written after that time, most of it was great. Would those words have been as intense if I'd not grabbed discipline and worked. I don't know.

Patience is another thing for a striving writer to hold on to. I doubt anyone succeeds over night, And there are those long weeks one has to wait after submitting a story to a publisher. But don't just wait, the trick is to grab onto the discipline and sit down and start a new story.

The final one I'll touch on is prospective. For me this means not allowing discipline to take over my life. There is more to life than writing.