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Tara

Writer

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Writer's blockhead

When I was seven years old, I wrote my very first book.

It was a salute to Valentine’s Day. Inside its stapled, college-ruled pages was a story about a pauper girl being swept off her feet by the prince of the land. Not the most original plot, I admit, but at the time, I was very proud of it. In addition to being author of the piece, I also doubled as artist, and filled in the white space with whatever images my Crayola collection could come up with.

I titled it “My <3’s Special Day,” and yes…I drew in the heart.

I remember being so excited that I couldn’t wait to show my mother, who (of course) couldn’t withhold her praise. The very next day at school, I handed my teacher the copy, only to have her burst my bubble upon reading the title.

“’My Heart’s Special Day?’” she said, looking at my adolescent face like a disappointed college professor. “Don’t you mean ‘My Love’s Special Day’?”

No (biotch), I did not. I meant my heart, as in that red, pulpy thing hanging out in my chest. After all, you can’t turn a single street corner around February 14 without seeing pictures of it, so wouldn’t it stand to reason that Valentine’s Day is the “heart holiday?” Geez.

Eventually, I got over my teacher’s editorial criticism, and life went on. For some reason, writing stuck with me all these years, and I eventually fell into journalism and blogging for the incredible Skirt audience. I find something so compelling about being on this site, and not to sound lame, but it’s almost like another home to me. That’s why I could think of no better place to ask for the following advice but here.

How does one write a book?

I know some of you gals are published authors, and I congratulate and envy you. Personally, I can whip up a news story in less than 30 minutes, and God only knows how many books I’ve ghost written on dating and relationships, but writing a book is an entirely different deal. For some reason, when it comes to putting all of my thoughts into one big, chunky manuscript, I break out in cold sweats.

The document folder on my computer is filled with “first stabs” – a couple of pages of what I meant to become an entire book, but for one reason or another, they never quite made it that far. I never delete any of those files, because there’s no telling if I’ll ever need any of them again. Maybe I’ll send them in as Skirt editorial submissions.

I don’t know what my deal is. I’m not lazy, and I genuinely do desire to make this dream a reality. Maybe I feel kind of hokey about it. After all, isn’t it the dream of every American to one day write a book? Why on earth would my manuscript stand above all the rest? Then again, why wouldn’t it?

Do you want to know what the real problem is? There are just too many thoughts, emotions, and memories floating around in my head to even begin organizing them. Some of these thoughts cater to fiction of various genres: romance, suspense, comedy…you name it. On the other hand, wouldn’t it be nice to tweak my actual life story in order to serve a point?

There are just way too many options.

I’ve been freelance writing during my unemployed spare time. Most of these projects require me to ghost write eBooks for clients, which is fine. The money’s decent, and it helps to feel as though I’m contributing something to mankind (in the form of sex advice for guys who just don’t have a clue.) The words for these books flow effortlessly from my fingers, but when it comes to my book, not so much.

It’s far too important for me to just half ass.

So tell me (any of you established authors), what worked for you? Did you ever suffer from writer’s block to the tenth degree, and if so, how did you overcome it? Was there a method to your madness, or are you just that good? Who am I kidding? Of course you are! With that said, please consider me your student, and teach me your ways.

I actually Googled “how to write a book,” as though it were a science of some sort. And who knows – maybe it is. But the majority of advice I found said that the surest way to tackle writer’s block is to just write. Don’t put too much thought into what you’re saying, or what others reading it might think. Pretend as though you’re putting the piece together simply for personal satisfaction, and nothing more.

Hmm, I’ll have to try that.