Have a Merry Writerly Christmas

by Annette Lyon

Here are some last-minute Christmas gifts for the writer in your life.
(If you're reading this, you're probably the writer, so forward this post to your loved ones . . . or buy some of these for yourself!)

An AlphaSmart Neo.
I can't live without mine when I'm in drafting mode. Read all about this handy toy tool here.

Paper
This may be an inexpensive item for normal people, but for the writer who goes through a lot of reams, this is a welcome gift.

Toner
You do have a laser printer, right? Ink Jets go through ink way too fast and end up costing you more than lasers in the long run. Toner cartridges may cost twice as much, but they last four times as long. Another welcome gift for people who print a lot (using that paper).

Books
Most writers are book freaks. 'Nough said.

Books on Writing
Check out this post for some of my favorites.

Bookshelves
On which to put the book freak's books. It's hard to have too many bookshelves.

Bookends
This site has tons of really neat ones. Like these. Aren't they cool?

Shirts, mugs, and more

Cafe Press has lots of fun products with goofy writer sayings, like "Will write for chocolate" and "Please do not annoy the writer. She may put you into her novel and kill you." Just search for, "writer" or "writing" and see all the fun stuff that pops up.

New York Public Library Gift Shop

Check out their ties, book earrings, bookmarks, and two really cool totes, one with a stylized image of Shakespeare and the other with a collage of stylized female writers.

They've got an entire jewelry section that include typewriter key bracelets and Scrabble tie cuff links. Fun stuff.

Journals/notebooks

Get a nice hardback book (preferably with a spiral inside so it can be laid flat). Perfect for brainstorming and jotting down ideas on the run.

Sony voice recorder
Catch those ideas on the fly while driving or doing laundry. You can find several digital recorders that are reasonably priced. This one's under $60.

The Oxford English Dictionary (The OED)
This is the most exhaustive dictionary in the English language. Use it to find the earliest known use of a word, look at date charts for the most common uses, discover etymologies, and more. Subscribe to it online or get it on CD here.

Writer's Digest subscription
Get it. Read it. Don't let your subscription lapse. It's a great magazine for both beginner and expert. Get the actual magazine; the newsletter is good, but it's not as complete as the magazine itself.

Some ideas for Stocking Stuffers:
Paper Clips
Sticky Notes
Sticker Flags
Nice pens.
Red pens
Bookmarks

And finally, the best thing you can get for any writer: TIME
Organize a writer retreat for overnight or even just an afternoon. Give your writer a chance to get away from distractions and just WRITE!

All In the Name of Research

By Julie Wright

One of the coolest things about writing is the stuff I learn while writing. I dropped out of college my sophomore year because the stress was too much. I was taking a full load of credits on classes I didn't care anything about just because some one somewhere said that was what I had to learn in order to be well rounded. I don't regret not having the piece of paper that says, "Look at me! I graduated!" But I do miss the fact that I missed an opportunity to take classes I genuinely cared about. I regret not learning about the things that truly fascinate me. I would have loved archeology, and ancient civilizations. I would have loved photography and film making. Sigh. Oh, wait a minute, I'm not posting about past lamentations.

I'M POSTING ABOUT WHY WRITING ROCKS!

It's all about the research, baby. I love doing research. I love trying new things all in the name of research. I learned how to rock climb just because I wanted a rock climbing scene to be right in a book. You have to get those details right. People who really do go rock climbing will recognize your ignorance if you don't research out the details well enough. If you're having a portion of your book take place in Disneyland, then darn-it-all you just might have to take a little vacation for research. (there is one writer who missed this concept, and made some grievous errors in his novel. Those of us who love Disneyland will forever be irritated by his book. No I won't name names)

My latest book has been a blast to research.

The things I learned while researching for my current book:
1. Thimbleberry bush leaves can be used for toilet paper because the leaves are soft, large, and non irritating.
2. Choke cherries can be eaten in the wild, but usually at the time they are ripe enough to eat, they are full of worms, and they are so bitter and sour as to make people sick to the stomach.
3. The worldwide birthrate is on a major decline--specifically in "civilized" nations, however even tribal nations are feeling the pinch of a aging population and no youth to bear the burden of work and societal needs.
4. Three out of every five teenagers are sexually active.
5. Four out of every five of those sexually active teenagers have a sexually transmitted disease.
6. When Mount Rainier finally blows its top, the possible death tolls stretches over 150,000 people.
7. A lahar is like a swiftly moving wall of wet concrete.
8. The people living in the path of a lahar would have less than a 45 minute warning to seek higher ground.
9. The city of Orting Washington is settled on six meters of deposits from the last Mount Rainer eruption.
10. Combining the declining birth rate and the amount of sexually transmitted diseases that cause sterility in both men and women, it will only take three to five generations before humanity puts itself into a precarious situation.
11. The climate of the entire world is affected by volcanic eruptions. Major eruptions cause worldwide "cold spells" or "winters" where crops die, animals die, and everyone finds themselves a little colder and hungrier than they were the year previous.
12. An electron can "skip" from one allowed orbit or energy level to another.
13. Quantum physics is awesome.

Why am I sharing this with you? Because I love writing. I love the tidbits of fact that I get to manipulate into my stories. There have been days where I've run little scientific experiments to make sure a thing is possible before I make an idiot of myself by including it in a book without checking first. I've learned more on more topics than two years of general education classes taught me in college. And it's been a whole lot cheaper.

I'd be interested in knowing what fun little tidbit(s) all you writing-on-the-wall readers have learned while working on your own writing.

Don't you just love what we do sometimes?

The Rewards Happy Authors Deserve

By Julie Wright

Writing is sometimes a thankless job with no reward. We spin words on thousands of pages that no one but our moms have read; we mail off queries and get back rejections. We smile over gritted teeth when our friends get contracts, and try to remember that we love our friends, and we're really happy for them. It's hard to stay motivated

If you want a child to do something—to get a chore done—I’ve heard that reward is the greatest tool. If that doesn't work you can try taking away privileges or punishment to motivate the child.

But what happens if you want an *adult* to do something. What happens when you want *yourself* to do something?

I am not easily motivated. As an adult I am no longer swayed by enticements of candy or cookies. I can get those things if I want them--anytime I want them. I'm an adult. That's the perk of being an adult.

And I know what you’re thinking. You’re thinking that I should up the reward. Okay fine, if I get my book written, I'll get to go on an exotic trip to Tahiti. Except, I know what my checking account contains (or doesn't contain, as the case may be . . . hello? I'm an author . . .). So I have to be responsible. That's the non-perk of being an adult.

Motivating someone who already knows what they can and can't do is a tough proposition. But I still think it can be done with a few tips to make it easier.

• Self Control--It's necessary to use good self control to make sure your motivating factors are really motivating. With kids, it's easy to reward or withhold a reward when they do the things they do. You put the cookies up on the higher shelf. You lock up the x-box and hide the key. But when we are self governed it's a little harder. We know where the keys are, and we can reach that high shelf with very little effort. Being honest with yourself and refraining from partaking of an unearned reward will make the reward that much sweeter when you genuinely earn it.
• Set a daily goal, a weekly goal, a monthly goal, and a final goal. And reward yourself at special milestones. So let's say every fifty pages, you get a manicure, or a massage, or you get a movie night. It makes the journey of writing a little sweeter. I know that our very own Annette Lyon uses chocolate as a motivator. When she finished a daily goal she rewarded herself with a little bit of the really good chocolate. We're not talking Hershey's here. Were talking real CHOCOLATE.
• Make the final goal something a little bigger. Most of us cannot afford a trip to Tahiti, but maybe you can get play tickets or a weekend getaway to somewhere close by, or season tickets to whatever your favorite sport is. I reward myself with books. When I finish writing a novel, I allow myself to read. I allow myself to read five to ten books in between each novel I write. This makes it so much easier for me not to get distracted in other people's stories and provides me something to work for. I will buy a book (or several books) that I REALLY want to read and put them up on my desk where I have to look at them, knowing I cannot crack their spines until I am done.
• Make submission goals as well as writing goals. It's great to get a book written, but if you don't submit it to anyone . . . so what? You can't exactly make a goal that states, "I will be published by June." You can't control the publishers and agents. So keep your goals within the realm of things you can control. Set goals for submitting: I will query five different agencies every week for the next six months.
• Make networking goals. Attending writer's conferences provides you further education and builds friendships with people who understand what you're going through. Make a goal to attend one major conference a year and to maybe attend several smaller ones to help you stay at the top of your game. Make a goal to meet with at least two agents or editors at every conference you attend. Gather business cards.

I have to be honest, as far as rewards go, writing for me *is* the reward. If I don't write, I find myself stuck in depression I can't readily get out of. If I obtain my daily writing goal, I find satisfaction in every other aspect in my life. I love writing. It makes me happy. I can't think of a better reward than that.

So reward yourself and write. You totally deserve it.