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Writing vs Being a Writer by Jessica Love

by Lindsey Hodder
Today we’re welcoming Jessica Love to the blog. Jessica is co-author of the popular Push Girl, and her debut as a solo author, In Real Life, published in March this year. Jessica has written a thoughtful post on remembering to write, that speaks to writers at all stages of their writing journey.

Writing vs Being a Writer by Jessica Love

Sometimes the best advice comes when you’re not even looking for it.

For me, the most game-changing advice I received at the 2011 SCBWI national conference in LA wasn’t a key line from one of the keynote speakers or something I jotted down during a panel. No, I heard this advice while I was sitting in the lobby bar, and it came from the person sitting behind me, an author whose debut novel would be coming out the next year.

She said, “You can only come to so many of these things without something happening for you before you’re just a publishing groupie.”

Now, she wasn’t talking to me. She likely had no idea I was listening like a creeper to her conversation with her friends. And I doubt now she even remembers saying this. But it lodged like shrapnel into my brain, and it started a fire under me.

It reminded me a lot of another piece of writing advice from William Faulkner. He said, “Don’t be a writer. Be writing.”

At that point, back in 2011, I was writing. I had a half-finished manuscript. I was struggling to complete it, but I was close to giving up. I was also trying to learn about the publishing business. I spent a lot of time on twitter stalking agents. Participating in writing chats. Going to conferences. Blogging, and commenting on the blogs of other writers. I was writing, yes, but I was spending more time “being a writer” than I was actually writing.

I was on the fast track to becoming a publishing groupie. Especially because the thought of actually finishing my manuscript and putting it out there terrified me. It was easier to not finish. It was easier to blog about writing and hang out in the lobby bar talking about writing. It was easier to “be a writer” than it was to write. It was easier to be a groupie.

That’s why this author’s comment hit me so hard. Did I want to come back to the SCBWI conference the following year with no progress made? Did I want to be here in two, three, five years still stalking agents? Or did I want to be where she was, with a deal in hand and a book on the way?

Now, I know there are so many things in publishing that are out of our control. I could complete several amazing books and never get an agent. I could have book after book go on submission to editors and never sell. But there were things that were within my control, like finishing my manuscript, no matter how difficult and scary it was. Like starting another one and finishing that one, too.

Like writing instead of just being a writer.

It’s easy to get caught up in the life of a writer, and to spend all our free time talking the talk. Just like it’s easy to keep starting books but never finishing them, or to have a notebook full of ideas and never do anything with them. But you can’t just live the life of a writer without writing…then you’re just a publishing groupie. You’re just the person showing up at the conference year after year after year still poking at the same manuscript because you’re too scared to move forward.

This author and her pretty harsh assessment of the publishing groupies helped motivate me to finish that manuscript I had been working on forever. (Seriously, it had been 3 years at this point.) Then I queried it and got an agent, and now I have books on the shelf. And I honestly don’t know if I would have been able to do it without that tough love kick in the pants from someone I had been eavesdropping on. Yeah, it was a bit of a groupie move, but it all worked out.

ABOUT THE BOOK


Hannah Cho and Nick Cooper have been best friends since 8th grade. They talk for hours on the phone, regularly shower each other with presents, and know everything there is to know about one another.

There’s just one problem: Hannah and Nick have never actually met.

Hannah has spent her entire life doing what she’s supposed to, but when her senior year spring break plans get ruined by a rule-breaker, she decides to break a rule or two herself. She impulsively decides to road trip to Vegas, her older sister and BFF in tow, to surprise Nick and finally declare her more-than-friend feelings for him.

Hannah’s romantic gesture backfires when she gets to Vegas and meets Nick’s girlfriend, whom he failed to mention. And it turns out his relationship status isn’t the only thing he’s been lying to her about. Hannah knows the real Nick can’t be that different from the online Nick she knows and loves, but now she only has one night in Sin City to figure out what her feelings for Nick really are, all while discovering how life can change when you break the rules every now and then.

Amazon | IndieBound | Goodreads

About the Author

Jessica Love is a high school English teacher who lives in Southern California with her husband and their two tiny dogs. She’s working on her Master’s Degree in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Spalding University, and her big love is contemporary YA romance. Jessica spends all of her free money on concerts, constantly tries to prove that blondes have more fun, and is pretty much always on the internet.

Lindsey Hodder

Lindsey is an aspiring artist, writer, zoologist/biologist and knower of random information.

Post © Elizabeth Dawson and/or Adventures in YA Publishing. All rights reserved.
Posted: Apr 27, 2016
Category: Imported from AYAP
Tags: WOW Wednesday | Writing Inspiration

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The first slide is an animation of a science/magic room in a castle. A cartoon character of a mad-scientist looking man in in the foreground says: “Hello! Dr. Frankenstein here to say, Well Done on kid lit zombie week! I’m an expert at reviving the dead, and let me assure you, with a little spark, you can bring dead projects to life. Especially if you dig up parts from other dead things. I’ll even let you have a sneak peek at my laboratory’s store room to consider potential parts for your dead project. If you see something with a yellow glow, that means you should click it. Have fun!”

He points to the right side of the screen and a new scene slides in of a castle science/magic storage room. There are various cartoon Frankenstein body parts scattered around. Some of them have a yellow glow. If you click on them, the images below appear (I’ve added alt text to them, so I hope it works).

The Heart of your story is the main character. The protagonist is the beating core that truly brings your story to life. If your MC doesn't make kids (and their grown-ups) care within the first few pages, your story will flatline. </p> <p>Your main character needs to be:<br /> • Relatable enough for kids to see themselves<br /> • Unique enough to stand out in the slush pile<br /> • Active enough to drive the story<br /> • Memorable enough to survive multiple readings at bedtime</p> <p>Where do you find this amazing donor heart? It might be the very thing you loved so much about the manuscript you want to revive. It might be the younger sister from your shelved YA novel. Or maybe it’s the hilarious kid you blogged about meeting at a school visit. Find a character beating with potential and place it in the center of your story.<br />
The Brain of your story is the theme or central message. The theme is the big idea that controls everything else. Picture books are more than stories - they're tiny life lessons disguised with humor and heart.</p> <p>But your theme needs to be:<br /> • Subtle enough not to trigger the dreaded "didactic" rejection<br /> • Clear enough for a four-year-old to grasp<br /> • Universal enough to speak to both kids and adults<br /> • Fresh enough to prevent agents and editors from responding with "Not another sharing/bedtime/first-day story!"</p> <p>Check your other dead manuscripts to see if there is a recurring theme, something that really seems to be speaking to you. Find the bit of poetry you scribbled on the back of a receipt to see what theme inspired it. Reread the pep talk you texted your critique partner at 1am. Pick the theme that will drive your story, giving it purpose, direction, and deeper meaning.<br />
The Legs of your story is the plot. Not to be confused with a grave plot.🤪 The plot is what keeps everything upright and moving, as well as providing support for all the other elements. You have very few words to use in a picture book, so you need to do a lot with each plot point.</p> <p>In general, your plot should:<br /> • Hook readers fast<br /> • Build tension that a child can follow<br /> • Create page turns that feel natural<br /> • Wrap up in a way that satisfies</p> <p>You can borrow a plot twist (a leg) from one manuscript and the opening (the other leg) from a different manuscript. Consider if the subplot of the middle grade novel you trunked would work better as a picture book. Or maybe your Facebook post about a disastrous camping trip could become a story for kids. Just keep putting one foot in front of the other until you have your storyline.
The Arms of your story are the side characters.
The Torso of your story is the setting. Setting helps a story breathe and connects all the elements of the story. It isn't just where your story lives, it's what makes your story ALIVE. It's the difference between "this happened in a park" and "this happened in that park, the one with the twisty slide that burns your legs and the creaky swing that sounds like a baby crying.”</p> <p>Your setting should:<br /> • Make your character's world feel real<br /> • Contain your story in a way that makes sense to young readers<br /> • Connect different scenes and moments organically<br /> • Give your illustrator enough room to add visual subplots</p> <p>Half-finished manuscripts are a great place to dig up settings, since you worked out the place details before the plot petered out. Or maybe you had to cut a second fantastic location from your chapter book. You can also revisit the detailed caption from your Instagram carousel documenting your tour of that delish candy shop. Disinter a robust setting that can house all of your story's vital organs.

After you press the Click When Done circle button, the lights flash with the sound of electricity buzzing. Then the screen goes black and lightning zaps across the screen with the sound of thunder.

The screen then lights up to show the storage room, and all the Frankenstein pieces have been assembled into the whole monster. An upbeat song plays in the background. Then a speech bubble pops up with the words, “I’m alive! I’M ALIVE!” Then the screen goes to black. 

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