Writing Archives - Page 2 of 2

Celebrating Progress

July 4, 2017December 8, 2019 Denise M. Colby

It might be slow, but I’m making progress.

A great part of being involved in writing organizations are the opportunities to get your material in front of published authors, agents and publishers through contests. The feedback they provide are valuable and instructional.

My local chapter of RWA – the OCCRWA – hosts the Orange Rose Contest every year for unpublished authors. You send in the first 35 pages and a synopsis of your story.

The first time I entered was in 2015. I took all the feedback and made several changes and decided to enter again in 2016 to see if those changes made a difference.

First Place Certificate from Orange Rose Contest for Unpublished Writers — I Won!

What a shock to find out I won 1^st place in the inspirational category!

I received this really pretty certificate and got to stand in front of my peers who all cheered me on.

Then a month later I found out that those who placed first receive an engraved award at our Annual Birthday Bash.

Here’s a picture of me giddy with excitement after being presented with my award (yes I had to give a little speech).

And then I found out,

my name was listed in the Romance Writers Report Magazine

Seeing my name in print made it even more real.

I still feel as if I’m on cloud nine.

And, it gave me the confidence boost I needed to continue moving forward with my goal of publishing.

And what was the next step? Turning Pro!

For an RWA member to turn Pro, you need to submit your complete manuscript to show proof of your work. In January of this year, I uploaded my document and held my breath. I received word they accepted it and voila! My status was updated to Pro.

What I didn’t know at the time – and I was jumping up and down when I found out – I would receive a rose from my Orange County Chapter for going Pro.

Denise M. Colby receiving her Rose for turning PRO with RWA — Receiving my rose

What’s the big deal about the rose?

Every month at our meetings, authors receive roses for selling books, novellas, and other stories. Each color rose means something – Red=Novel, Pink=Novella Length, Purple=Self-Published, Yellow=Non-Fiction, White=Articles, Peach=Turning Pro.

I’ve been watching everyone receive roses for a few years and couldn’t wait to receive one. I even purchased a vase a while back to hold my roses in. So when I found out I would be receiving one for going Pro, it was difficult to contain my excitement (just ask my husband!).

Not only that, I received a PRO pin to wear on my badge with pride AND I got my name printed in the RWA National Magazine on the PRO page.

It feels like all of this happened quickly, but I’ve been working up to this point for a while. It’s nice to be able to see progress in my work. I’ve included pics – I have to document it all – it helps encourage me when I have those days I don’t like my writing.

Now with these goals met – I have my eyes set on new ones for the rest of the year; Find a critique partner, edit Book #1 and finish writing Book #2.

As a writer, there is never an “I’ve arrived” moment in our career.

It’s not about the end result. It’s all about the journey!

Thank you for letting me share mine with you.

Blessings, Denise

Writing

So Long 2016, Hello 2017

April 1, 2017December 8, 2019 Denise M. Colby

Another year, another beginning. I love to be able to reflect on the previous year and see all that occurred over the last 12 months. Parts were bumpy and other parts inspiring. In my writing I had many ups and downs, wondering if the fruit of all my labor would really be anything worthwhile. When I chose the word BELIEVE for my word of the year in 2016, I had no idea how applicable it would be.

I found the word everywhere. At the gym. In a quote on the wall at the doctors. On a t-shirt. On a charm holder which I had to buy and now holds my keys within my purse. Every time I saw it, I was reminded of two things. I believe in God and His Word. To keep believing in my writing.

This was my second year to enter the Orange Rose Contest from my local chapter of RWA. The first year I received such valuable feedback that I wanted to enter again to see if the changes I made would be received any better. I was so surprised when it was announced that I won 1^st place in my category! First place! Me! And it was then that my word took on a completely different meaning – someone else believed in my writing too.

That gave me the shot in the arm I needed to keep editing, keep rewriting and moving to the next step.

As 2016 turned into 2017, I had some new goals for the year. Never thought I would accomplish them all in January, but I did.

In the RWA world, turning PRO is one of the steps in getting closer to being a published author. You have to upload your entire manuscript for proof of your writing and then they review it and approve it. When I completed my first round of full edits, I sent it in and was so excited when I got the email telling me ‘it passed’. I also decided to enter the national contest for unpublished authors – the Golden Heart. Even if I do not final, actually sending it in was a huge milestone for me and already helps me push ahead for more this year.

I have a new word for 2017 and I will write about that in a different blog post. But let’s just say I am super on fire for what can happen in 2017. Stay tuned as I will hopefully have more news to share throughout the year.

Blessings, Denise

Writing

#Writeastorychallenge

September 9, 2016December 8, 2019 Denise M. Colby

One of my writer friends issued an August writing challenge to create a short story using one word prompts and writing just 1-3 sentences daily.

Anyone participating posted on their Instagram account and copied the two authors who sponsored it. I found it short enough to do in my notes app while I worked out at the gym.

Since these words were more 2016 then 1869, I found it fun to try something completely different and I allowed myself to write whatever came to mind. I decided not to edit it, but leave it as it is. Each day I had to veer the story to fit the word. Some days fit better than others, and I think it turned into a cute, silly story and I wanted to share it with you.

So without further ado – here is my August #Writeastorychallenge. The bold words are the daily prompts.

“Would you like to go get a cappuccino when you are done?” He asked.

“Um. I don’t drink coffee.” Liz responded.

She continued to trim his hair, watching his expression at the same time, seeing the determination on his face and realizing he wouldn’t take no for an answer. She hurried through the appointment, applying gel last, the slimy substance cool in her fingers as she massaged it into his scalp.

Her suspicions were affirmed when he asked her again.

“How about even a glass of water?”

She decided not to provoke him further. “Okay, I guess.” Trying not to show too much enthusiasm.

If there was a God in heaven, this drink date won’t last too long. It wasn’t because she didn’t like him-No, it was very different from that. In fact, her fear was she liked him too much and felt he was way out of her league.

She considered herself as simple as a square and him, well, she saw him the interesting shape of a star, shooting off charm no matter which direction he pointed.

As they walked out of the building together, he held the door for her, then led her to his car, a Dodge Charger. Of course it was shiny and new, the moon reflecting off the black paint.

His phone rang before they made it to their destination. He answered it by pushing the button on the dash, putting the call on speaker. “It’s time.” was all that was said.

And then she heard the most wicked laugh, ever.

To her horror, it didn’t come from the speaker. No, it came from the person sitting beside her, dominating the entire inside of the car. What did she get herself into?

Before she answered her own question, date guy reached across her lap and pushed a button. She didn’t know whether to scream or fight.

“Cheese?” Was all he said.

Perplexed she looked to where he pointed and there sitting on a mini-shelf sat a plate with cheese and crackers.

“It’s Colby Cheese. Try some. I made it myself.”

Liz started to reach out to try some then yanked her hand back, wondering if it was a trap. Just at that moment, her stomach rumbled reminding her she hadn’t eaten dinner yet.

She looked longingly at the cheese which looked heaven-sent. Slowly she reached for the cheese and tried a bite.

Liz didn’t consider herself an exuberant person, but the taste made her shout out, “wow!”

“You like it? Good.”

She looked at him, questioning his response.

“I’m entertaining some bigwigs and serving this cheese as well as a few other delicacies. You confirmed this was a good choice.”

She wasn’t sure what to say, so she unscrewed the cap off the water bottle he handed her.

Fabulous. She thought as she took a sip, laughing on the inside as she drank the water he offered her. Her date was now complete.

Her original plan was to reject any other advances, but his odd behavior intrigued her.

“What makes the cheese taste so good?”

“Herbs.” He replied.

“I made a spread too. Smother some on a cracker and let me know what you think.”

She did as he asked. “You could sell buckets of this stuff. It’s really good.”

“I’m glad you like it.” Appreciation laced his words, so she looked over at him and caught him staring at her, a smile from ear to ear. His voice sounded both pleasant and alluring. She was a goner.

And just like that she was filled with disgust for how easy she fell for him.

He pulled the car back into the parking space he occupied when they first left. True to his word he took her for a drive and water. She chuckled a little louder than she planned.

“What’s so funny?” He asked.

“How educated you are on making cheese. I had no idea.”

He smiled, his appreciation apparent. “There is a lot of things you don’t know about me. I’d like to change that. I’m glad you agreed to come with me tonight.” He paused and looked out the window. ” I wasn’t going to take no for an answer.” He looked back at her, his blue eyes sparkling. “Although I think you knew that.”

His smile locked her in place and all she could do was nod. It was in that moment something connected them and drew them together.

Their lips were almost touching when a knock on the window startled them both. There stood her coworker Robbie holding a broom.

“What are you doing Liz? He chastised. Stunned all she could do was watch him open the car door, no clue with how shallow he was being. Didn’t he know she was on a date with an amazing guy and just about to be kissed.

Writing

When It All Clicks

August 12, 2016December 8, 2019 Denise M. Colby

laptop keyboard represents the writing and editing process

Being new at all this writing stuff, I admit I had no idea what I was doing when I started my book, so I wrote individual scenes mostly, almost as if they were mini individual stories. Some scenes connected into others, while others were an idea I wasn’t too sure about, but wrote anyway to try different dialogue, character arcs or action sequences.

I think I was afraid of defining how my characters would act since I didn’t know what I wanted them to do yet. I found creating characters a scary responsibility, but I will dig into that part of my writing journey in another post. All in all, let’s just say, with my first draft complete, I know my characters more and what they are doing.

And so, with my first draft complete, I’m on to a completely new skill called editing.

This is when I read the mumble, jumble of what I originally wrote and remove unnecessary words and find better words to communicate the story. It also means I now need to connect all those individual scenes to tell a cohesive tale, turning it into something someone else would want to read.

Some of it is challenging as I have to really figure out particulars. However, the parts us writers constantly search for is when it all clicks together. When everything falls into place and connects scenes in a way the scenes wouldn’t mean anything on their own.

And I’m finding this part to be a lot of fun. It seems when the details fall into place, when everything clicks, it becomes a real story.

So now, I write for those aha moments, no matter how much work it is. Doesn’t mean it’s easy. I still have to make myself stay seated in the chair at times with my fingers on the keyboard to work through it. Sometimes I’m a pushover to get up and find something else to do because I’m not sure what to write next.

All in all, I’m thankful for these moments when I’m able to connect the dots and the writing clicks. It’s one more step in my journey, helping me get another step closer to my goal of publishing my book.

Writing

Taking Time to Reflect…

June 10, 2016December 8, 2019 Denise M. Colby

Sometimes I look at my manuscript and feel I have so much to learn still, so much to do, before my work is print worthy, and this awful feeling of hopelessness overcomes me. What am I really doing? Will I ever get it right? And then I start telling myself other authors don’t run into this same problem, do they? Maybe I’m not cut out for this.

And then I go to one of my writing groups and realize I’m not the only one to feel this way. Writing is such a solitary experience, yet when you get together with other writers you share all the same questions, concerns, and thoughts. I love the writing groups I’m a part of. In person and online, I’ve met so many wonderful people and have learned so much. When I think about the meetings, online classes, and notes I’ve taken over the last two years, it makes me realize how important it is to take time to reflect back from where I started and see just how far I’ve come.

I knew nothing of the writing world terminology, yet I now can have a conversation and understand most of the lingo, spouting off terms such as ms, dialogue tags and gmc. I know now, authors don’t get it perfect the first time, sometimes writing through three to four edits after the rough draft.

I’ve learned about understanding your characters more, figuring out what the hero/heroine goals, conflicts and motivations are. I can throw stuff at them to see how they will respond. I’ve seen a character take a life of their own and get themselves into a whole heap of trouble. And how fun it is to watch it evolve on the page.

I’ve learned how to set up my website, social media accounts and write my author profile. I’ve figured out my author brand, audience and the genre I prefer to write. I’ve read several new authors, expanding my knowledge both as a reader and a writer.

I’ve entered contests and learned what “on the nose” dialogue is, that passive voice does not mean the same thing as past tense, and to be really careful not to tell but show action and how hard it is to do. I’ve learned my initial writing is full of data dumps and I now can delete words without panicking. I’ve survived receiving constructive feedback and now know, it’s not the end of the world.

As I reflect back, I realize, even though I have so much still to learn, I have come so far and that is something to be really proud of. It’s nice to know I have made many new friends who are rooting for me each step of the way.

I am so thankful for these writing groups and all the wonderful writers who have opened their hearts and minds to share what they’ve learned to us newbies. I look forward to someday being able to do the same in return.

Writing

I did it!

December 30, 2014November 24, 2019 Denise M. Colby

I created my website. I’m so excited to be working on this next step in the journey. I’ve thought about it for a long time. The conversations in my head went something like this:

I need to create my author blog – but what would I write about? and who would want to read it?

I know, I know. Being an author I should want people to read everything I write. But I find myself completely guarded. I don’t want to make a mistake. Offend someone. What if what I write about isn’t any good.

And as I wrote a few sample posts from my heart, I found that I wasn’t writing opinion or an article. I was writing what was in my heart. And the light bulb went on. So even if nobody wants to read it, I have a place to write what God is placing on my heart. My feelings, fears, thoughts. So here I am.

Of course now I have a new question? Now what do I do?

Blessings, Denise