We are so excited to have Lisa and Laura Roecker on the blog today. They call themselves the Kardashians of the Young Adult writing world only smarter, funnier and with significantly smaller bank accounts. Thanks so much for being here, ladies!
I called Lisa the other day in an effort to determine the best piece of writing advice we’d ever been given or could hope to give. As usual, an hour passed as we discussed our kids, our husbands, Lisa’s new puppy Gus, the weather, anything but the task at hand. We complained about how busy we were, how our houses were a mess, how there wasn’t time to do anything. For over an hour. And we hung up without ever deciding on advice.
We’re either the worst advice-givers on the planet or a couple of geniuses who are sacrificing our own productivity to serve as an example for writers everywhere. I prefer the latter. The advice is obvious: stop dicking around.
I’m sorry if this sounds harsh/crass/trashy/immature, but it’s the only word that appropriately describes what Lisa and I do on a daily basis, and what I imagine many other writers struggle with as well. If we’re not trolling the Internet for new light fixtures we’ll never end up buying or sinking into a Twitter abyss or being smothered by pins or talking on the phone for five hours a night, we’re sitting blurry-eyed in front of Love It or List It or Interior Therapy with Jeff Lewis. If even a quarter of that time had been spent working on the outline we still have to write or a character sketch or, I don’t know, READING, we wouldn’t feel quite so dirty.
Writing, especially when it’s scheduled into a busy day, shoved in the beginning before anyone in the house is awake or tacked onto the end after everyone is sleeping, is a drug. It’s like a great workout when your body is so sore you can barely lower yourself onto the toilet. You might complain about the pain, moan while attempting to stand up or sit down, but deep down, you couldn’t feel more satisfied. Or proud.
We say it all the time. To be a writer the only thing you have to do is write. And write. And write. And read too, but mainly write. It’s our go-to advice and something we’ve struggled with all summer. Because it’s hard. Like that daily workout, it’s sometimes hard to find the time. Lisa has a day job, a busy day job. Laura has a son who climbs on drawer pulls and plays with cords. And don’t forget the rejection. No matter who you are, how famous, you’ve faced it. Bad reviews. Rejection letters. The no’s.The not for me’s.The start over’s.
But here’s the secret: The majority of people out there who say they want to write a book, only say they want to write a book. The majority of people who start a book, never finish. By finishing, just finishing, you’ll beat the odds. And you can worry about all the other stuff later.
Because I don’t know about you, but I am so in the mood to run a marathon. To train and have sore muscles and be in the best shape of my life. And not just a few jogs here and there, but the real-deal. I want to cross the finish line with everyone cheering me on and remember the feeling, so when I have a rough summer, when life gets so busy I’m not sure I’ll ever find my way back out, I can start scheduling in those early morning or late night jogs again, using the muscles, feeling the burn, writing the story.
About the Authors
Lisa and Laura Roecker are sisters-turned-writing-partners with a love of all things Young Adult. Some call it arrested development, but the sisters claim it keeps them young. Plus, its cheaper than Botox. Lisa and Laura live in Cleveland, Ohio in separate residences. Their husbands wouldn’t agree to a duplex. THE LIAR SOCIETY and THE LIES THAT BIND are the result of too much Christopher Pike and Lois Duncan in their formative years. Their third novel, THIS IS W.A.R released in July 2013.
The sisters are represented by their favorite may-jah agent Catherine Drayton of Inkwell Management.
About the Book
This is not a story of forgiveness…
The mystery of their best friend’s murder drives four girls to destroy the Gregory family. Emily Thorne would be proud.
Everyone at Hawthorne Lake Country Club saw Willa Ames-Rowan climb into a boat with James Gregory, the Club’s heir apparent.
And everyone at Hawthorne Lake Country Club watched him return. Alone.
They all know he killed her. But none of them will say a word. The Gregory family is very, very good at making problems go away.
Enter the W.A.R.—the war to avenge Willa Ames-Rowan. Four girls. Four very different motives for justice and revenge, and only one rule: destroy the Gregory family at any cost.
