My Own Writing Journey – The Dream Meme

Early last week, I had the pleasure of being included in Bob Younce ’s Dream Meme Finale. Bob’s site has been extremely helpful to me since I began my own journey. His blog offers not only valuable information for freelancers, but also inspiration to keep working towards attaining our dreams.

For those who aren’t familiar, a meme is:

The term may refer to the content that spreads from user to user, the idea behind the content, or the phenomenon of its spread. Internet memes have been seen as a form of art. (Wikipedia)

Instead of the usual meme form of tagging only a select few bloggers, he tagged all of his subscribers. I have been reluctant to participate because I’ve noticed my blog content straying from my original purpose. But, I’m going to do it anyway.

Bob’s rules are simple:

• Write a short paragraph describing your dream. What is it that you want to accomplish? Your dream doesn’t have to be related to your blog, though it can be. It can be anything – what you dream for your family, your career or anything else you want out of life.
• Identify three tangible goals you can accomplish in the next year that will bring you closer to fulfilling that goal.
• Describe one action – just one – that you will take, today, to work toward your goals.
• Link back to this post , if you please.
• Feel free to post a link in the comments back to your post.
• Tag specific folks or all of your readers – however you prefer.

So here goes:

My Dream:

I would like to be a successful short story and fiction author. I’d like to hone and perfect my writing skills and establish a clear writing style and voice. I’m a talented writer, but I’d also like to be a successful novelist. With that success, I would like to be able to live comfortably, further my academic pursuits, and travel to Ireland so I can drink a pint of beer in a genuine Irish Pub.

My Goals:

• Increase my writing output by 50% and my own marketing efforts by 70%.
• Apply to a University Graduate Studies Program and work towards earning a Master’s Degree in Psychology.
• Edit and submit my novel for publication.

Today:

I’m placing my manuscript on the shelf above my monitor as a constant reminder of where I was, and where I want to be.

Thank you Bob, for allowing me to participate. I hope by announcing my dream to everyone I’ll be more motivated to see it through to the end. Whatever that may be.

If you read this: Tag! You’re it!

Pamela

6 Tips for Conquering Writer’s Block

I am a writer.

And as a writer, I frequently suffer from Writer’s Block.

Don’t get me wrong, when it comes to writing for my clients, I have no problem finding the words, image or emotion that will drive their copy and get results.

When it comes to writing for myself, I sometimes have a hard time establishing a flow. Running your own business can consume your thoughts. It’s often difficult to focus on your own goals when you find it so much easier to focus on someone else’s.

Writer’s Block is debilitating.

One of the techniques I use to get ‘unstuck’ is writing backwards. Not in a ‘zyxwvutsrqponmlkjihgfedcba‘ way, but in a way that establishes the conclusion first and then works backwards to make each sentence more vague as you reach the end of the piece.

I know, it doesn’t make sense. It’s not supposed to.

While trying to find inspiration, I stumbled on some great techniques for overcoming Writer’s Block.

Here are a few of the techniques that I thought would be most useful:

1. Create a list of the wrong ways to approach or write the project.
2. Sit back and think, what would your favorite writer/hero do?
3. Determine if there is something you can research or learn to help you find your flow.
4. Write from the perspective of someone who believes the opposite of what you want to write.
5. Break the task into smaller pieces. What can you accomplish right now?

By the way, all of these techniques can also be applied to your marketing plan.

If you happen to be stuck and you aren’t really sure what your next move should be, associate some of these techniques with your business marketing plans.

Using these ‘unblocking’ methods might help you gain a fresh perspective of your goals, and drive your marketing energy in a direction you hadn’t anticipated.

What do you do to to energize your flow when you get stuck?