Just like lawyers need law books, and doctors need medical manuals, a writer has many tools of their trade. For me, my greatest tool is reading the type of literature I like to write. Two of my favorite authors are Stephen King and James Patterson for their ability to take an idea and turn out beautifully crafted prose that both frightens and entertains me. After reading one of their books, I don’t want to turn the lights off and I’m leery of any shadow or movement. Once I start reading a King or Patterson book, I can’t put it down!

I want to be able to write like both of these brilliant authors. My writing interest lies in writing literary pieces based on characterization rather than plot. I recently submitted two of my short stories to magazines. One tale is about a woman going to any lengths to be someone else. My second story shows the dark side of being a twin. By reading what I like to write, I was able to turn out a few interesting stories of my own. I’m still waiting to hear back but, no matter the outcome, I know I’ve submitted my best product.

Another tool of writing is involvement with a writer’s community. At the present moment, I am a member of an online writer’s community where we exchange ideas about writing and post works to be critiqued. Because the critique section is password protected, I feel assured that my writing is read and critiqued by others who are serious about this art. My next step is to either find a local writing group, or to create one. Either way, my online writing community will remain a necessary tool for the support I give to and receive from writers all over the world.

I am excited about attending an upcoming writer’s workshop later this month by a published writer. I have been told to bring either my laptop or plenty of paper. As a writer, it is important that I work hard to perfect my writing skills. Writing workshops and seminars are excellent tools. Besides learning about how to make my work product better, I will congregate with other writers of varying skill level.

Finally, I try to write something every day. Writing is what a writer does. I’ve dusted off the first daft of a novel I wrote 10 years ago. I want to continue writing short stories on a regular basis and submitting them for possible publication. My goal is to write at least 1000 word per day. Well, now that I’ve written these 4oo some odd words, I’d better get to work on meeting my word goal for today…

© 2007 Susan Littlefield

Lately, I have been thinking about what it means to be a writer. In my online writing community, I come across numerous writers who are published and/or work in the publishing industry. I also come across some excellent writers who have never been published, or who have one or two random pieces in magazines. My question- does being published make one a writer?

I think not.

To be a writer, one needs to put some type of energy into writing something that is publishable. The truth is that some published material is substandard and some unpublished works are excellent. I believe part of getting published is a mixture of luck, persistence and knowing where to submit their work. Talent may be part of the bigger picture, but hard work is the bigger ingredient

As for myself, my goal is to work, research markets, work, work and submit my writing, and then work some more!! But, published or not, I am a writer.

Imagine yourself driving long, winding roads flanked by towering redwoods, the pouring down rain beating your windshield. For miles, as day moved into dusk, few cars traveled this road. While Don navigated the twists and turns, and we shared random conversation, I found myself drifting into daydreams, snippets of what could be my next story.

After a few hours of driving, we found ourselves at our destination- Mendocino, California. If you’ve never been to Mendocino, this tiny quaint community sits on cliffs overlooking the ocean. The buildings are colorful, historic, and well cared for. The town reminds me of a fictional town in a movie, or story, a small village set on the East Coast, where a good mystery unfolds or a romance blossoms.

Our main purpose in Mendocino was to attend the screening of a movie. Don’s band, the Hot Frittatas, contributed some of their recorded words for numerous scenes in the movie. They were invited to the screening as guests, as well as entertainment before the screening. Needless to say, they were a hit both live and in the movie!!

As people mingled before the movie, I was taken in by the strong community atmosphere where most people seemed to know one another. At first, I felt a bit like an outsider. Then, strangers began coming up to me, introducing themselves, drawing me into conversation. By the end of the evening, I learned that at least half of the people in the room were somehow involved in the movie. The other attendees were community support for the filmmaker, either family or friends, or support for someone who had contributed to the movie.

When we visited Rockport, Massachusetts last summer, I fell in love with the English style town lining the Atlantic. The dreamer in me yearned to stay, to pretend I could just fall into life on the East Coast, but the realistic part of me knew I had a life to go back to in Santa Rosa. This last weekend, I felt that same yearning, but the realization was different- I’m free to visit Mendocino anytime I want.

One of the best parts of this trip was staying at the quaint motel on the beach in Fort Bragg, a neighboring town. Late at night before sleep, as I listened to the rain, I wondered what secret lived within the history of those walls. For many years, people had come and gone, went on with their lives. What kinds of situations had transpired in that room? Of course, he writer in me imagined a good mystery, leading me right into dreamland….

© 2007 Susan Littlefield

Today, as Don played his guitar and I wrote on my story, I shared a bit about what I’m working on.

“I’m nearly finished,” I said. “But, I don’t think I’ve got it quite right yet.”

“Well, that’s okay,” he said. “You just rearrange all the parts until you get it right. It’s not like a soufflé where it has to come out of the oven perfect the first time.”

How true, I thought. But, how often I want to just sit down and write my story and have it come out perfect in the first draft. After all, isn’t that the way it happens for the famous writers? They take an hour and write a saleable short story, or they write a bestselling novel in 30 days? Why can’t I do that!

When writing stories, my greatest dilemma is following through on plot without leaving behind loose ends. For example, my current short story involves a woman who is unhappy and wants a different life. She receives a telephone call intended for someone else that has her name. She goes on a quest to find out all she can about this other person, and eventually tries to take over this other woman’s life. My first draft contained many loose ends that really had nothing to do with the plot. In writing my second draft, I concentrate on cleaning up the loose ends by either reworking them as part of the plot or getting rid of them entirely. I’m certain I’ll go through several drafts before being satisfied with the final work.

Once I have completed a draft I am satisfied with, or even a portion of a draft, I’ll take it to my writing peers for critique. A common pitfall for all writers is seeing the errors in their work. Fresh eyes can see problems that I, the writer, am unable to see. Something may seem like it fits into my story, but the reader may think it makes no sense. In the end, I decide what to keep and what goes, but other writer’s opinions are extremely important. I have never received a critique that I thought was harsh, but I’ve often wondered if someone has given me a sketchy critique because they don’t want to hurt my feelings.

Now, as I go back to work on my story, I know I don’t have to get it perfect the first time or at all. But, my final product needs to be my best work, something that I can be proud of and that editors don’t have to throw into a slush pile because it was poorly written.

If a story I write end up back in my mailbox, at least I know it’s not because I haven’t put my best product out there.

© Susan Littlefield

It has been my experience that editing is one of the most difficult tasks of writing, as well as one that is often not done well. I can use my own work as an example: what an embarrassment to edit numerous misspellings in my own articles published here in my blog!! I did initially edit using my spell-checker here in the blog editing interface. However, this particular editor does not pick up words repeated next to each other as misspellings, nor does it do a language check. From now on, I will do my final editing in my Word program.

I have read published writer’s work often contain spelling and grammatical errors before the editing process, as well as extraneous stuff that needs to be cut. Nobody is a perfect writer, and most writers go through numerous versions of editing and rewrites before their work is ready for submission. As a writer, it is essential for me to make sure my work is well edited and my best work before publishing anywhere, including to my blog and the writer’s forum for critique.

Lesson learned.

© 2007 Susan Littlefield