DIY MFA Radio

Hey hey! Thanks for joining me for our very last episode in 2015. Today I'm talking about why I stopped making New Year’s resolutions and what I do instead. It’s been an amazing year here at DIY MFA. I’ve interviewed some awesome people this year and have gotten to share some major milestones with you, not the least of which is the DIY MFA book! OMG, word nerds, I wrote the book this year! How crazy-pants is that? But now down to business. Let’s talk about goal setting and why I don’t make New Year’s resolutions anymore. Get all the deets by listening to this episode. OK, before I dive in, let me give you some backstory. Once upon a time I loved brainstorming. I would get a huge high from dreaming up new ideas. I had tons of projects I’d started and never finished. But over the years I’ve started to shift away from being a dreamer to being a doer. To get a full picture of then vs. now, check out this chart.  I wish I could say there was a pivotal moment where I realized everything was different. But this shift was gradual. I don’t think I’m finished yet, either. This is just the beginning of a much longer journey. What I've discovered, though, is that New Year’s resolutions don’t work for me. Here's what does work... Caveat: There are lots of gurus and experts on the internet spouting "best practices" and magic-bullet solutions. But you're a word nerd, so I'm guessing you see through all that B.S. At DIY MFA we believe that the only "best practice" is the one that actually works for you. So I'll share some strategies that have worked for me, but it’s up to you to test them for yourself and decide if they work for you. And don't be shy about tweaking and adapting techniques to your own unique style. That's the DIY MFA way. Cool? Cool. My New Approach to Resolutions and Goal-Setting In my new approach, the huge leap no longer matters. There’s no more “I’m going to write a book next year,” or “I’m going to lose x pounds.” Instead of making sweeping goals that seem enormous and unreachable, I now set goals to take small incremental steps and repeating that action over and over and over. Where before the giant goal was the focus, now the repeated action takes center stage. I’ve noticed after working with hundreds of writers, when you stop focusing on the end goal and start emphasizing the repeated action, that’s when you make a breakthrough. Letting go of that end goal gives you the space and focus to do the work and actually reach that goal. As a writer, I find that irony kind of delicious. These days, I've stopped looking at writing as a short-term push and instead see it as a war of attrition. The truth is that the writers who want overnight success are not the ones who will stick with the process long enough to see it through.  The writers who have the tenacity to stick with it the writing gets tough, those are the ones who succeed. You just have to survive long enough so you're the only one left standing on the battlefield. Writing and creativity might be a battle, but remember that we aren't fighting each other; we’re all on the same side. In the end, the only person we're fighting against is ourselves. Our obstacles are internal and the battle is about trying to get out of our own way. So how do I do it? 7 Simple Steps: After working at this for a few years now, I have come up with a process for getting through my ideas and my goals as efficiently as possible. Again, this is just my own crazy process. Take in the ideas, test them out, then use what works for you and discard the rest.   Figure out your big picture.Lots of people get stuck focusing all their energy on this step alone. While I concede it’s important to know where you’re headed, I only spend, like, 10 seconds here, then I move on to step 2.  Take stock of recent progress.If you want to feel successful, you can’t compare yourself to the big vision, to where you want to be. You have to compare yourself to where you’ve been. That way you always come out ahead. Not only does it help motivate you to move forward, it helps you build mastery. In order to succeed, you need to feel that mastery of your craft. Use concrete data here, too. Don’t BS yourself over your accomplishments. How many words did you write last year? How many guest posts/blog posts/freelance articles? That’s the number to beat.  Iterate, iterate, iterate.I talked about iteration last year at this time, so I won’t spend a lot of time here. Just remember that iteration is vital and basically boils down to these five things:V = variables.  What will you measure to see your progress?I = information.  Collect your data. Track how much you’ve done each session.T = tripwire.  This is the signal for you to stop and take stock.A = analysis.  Look at the data you’ve collected and find the overall pattern.L = learning.  Take that information, figure out what it means, and then try something new. If something is not working for you, don’t keep repeating it because someone told you it was a “best practice.” Instead, make a small shift and try something a little different to see what works best for you. The key here is to (a) understand your baseline, how you operate in your natural state, and (b) shape your process within those constraints. Set your sights on a short-term target.What can you do in a 4 to 8 week period? Your "big vision" inspires this target goal, but it must be shorter term and more contained. Seriously, if you can't hit that target within 3 months (tops!) it's too big. Reverse engineer your action steps.The inspiration for this step came from Wishcraft: How to Get What You Really Want by Barbara Sher. Her process revolutionized the way I look at setting my goals. You need a plan to get from point A to point B, so take some time and work backwards from that goal.Don't start at the start, but with the goal, then figure out what you need to do just before you just before that. Keep working your way backwards until you've figured out your immediate next step. Remember to break your steps down to the smallest increments. Set your ground rules for success.This is another place you’ll find “best practices” galore, but you need to figure out what works for you.F ind ways to make the most out of your writing time. Remember, your time is precious! Here are some things that work for me: I focus on one thing at a time. I set a time limit so I know when I can stop and move on to something new. I make everything else off limits until I reach my goal. I bribe myself with a reward for success. Keep future projects on the radar without letting them get in your way.You want to know what’s coming next, but sometimes holding brain space to remember it can sap your mental energy. So make a space to write down your ideas and next projects and keep them for later. This will free up the brain space you need for what you’re working on right now. And sometimes getting ideas out on paper will help you to recognize what is worth pursuing and what will ultimately be unproductive. Remember, where you want to be down the road is not nearly as important as the path you take to get there. These steps focus on the day to day process. Getting your head around what you need to do today is vital to helping you move toward your goal without being weighed down by it. As you look forward to 2016, I want to challenge you to stop dreaming and start doing. Don't worry so much about the big vision, but focus on one incremental action that you can repeat again and again until you reach your goal. No more dreaming. This year I am DOING this: [insert goal here] http://ctt.ec/51x8H+ #DIYMFA  Tweet this. If you enjoyed this episode, I have included some links below to previous episodes that can help you with building your best practices. And if you want to dig deeper, join me for a "Stop Dreaming, Start Doing" workshop on January 12 at 8pm ET. You can find more information at DIYMFA.com/openhouse. Resources It's been a great year for DIY MFA Radio and we've had some great episodes. If you want to check out some past episodes but don't know where to start, don't worry. Here are a few best-of-2015 solo shows that will help you get that book from dream to done. Episode 23: Make Writing Resolutions that Stick Episode 24: My Go-To Productivity Tool Episode 26: Write Your Book This Year Episode 31: Finding Your Focus in Writing Episode 47: Honor Your Reality   For more info and show notes: DIYMFA.com/075

Hey there Word Nerds! It’s the week before Christmas, and I wanted to do something a little bit different from the interviews we’ve had these many weeks. This week’s topic is something I’ve been wanting to talk about for a while and then I received a question via email from one of our listeners and I decided it was time to dive in. Shout-out to Kayla for sharing a great question. I'll paraphrase it here, but it essentially came in three parts: How do I know if my writing is good? Is there a certain amount of “literary-ness” I need to include in my writing for it to be good? What are the people who judge my writing (editors, agents, critics, etc.) looking for? In the past I have wondered the same thing. What did the readers want me to say? What am I supposed to write? And what if people don't like what I have to say? Having a strong, authentic voice boils down to who you are. Remember, too, that you are not alone in wondering about this. At some point every writer asks themselves: Is my work any good? What do people want from me? This question isn’t about getting published. It’s about being true to yourself. Who are you as a writer? Is your author identity being authentic to who you are? You may hear a lot of advice from writing gurus telling you to “craft your authentic voice” as a way to promote your work, to better connect with people who will want to buy your book. Authenticity is not a marketing strategy. It's about being who you are. Authenticity at it’s heart is being vulnerable, being honest with your readers. And it’s scary! Every time I share anything remotely vulnerable with you all on the podcast or in my newsletter, I’m afraid that you will like me less for doing so. But it’s never a marketing strategy for me. Vulnerability, authenticity, it’s who I really am. And it should be who you really are, too. It’s not a schtick. Should I put on a persona as my author voice? So should you put on a persona as you develop your author voice? Well, I have answers for both sides of this question. Mainly, don’t try to fake your voice. You’ll end up sounding phony, and that will come across to your readers. Who are you? What does your natural voice sound like? That is the voice that will sparkle. Share that voice. What happens if you "put on" a voice and it's actually successful? Are you prepared to stick with this voice forever? What if your agent or editor loves that persona that you’ve created? What if your readers love it? Are you going to leave them in the lurch? If you decide to drop this not-you voice, are you prepared to face the consequences? Suppose you "put on" a voice for a while, then you decide to flip the switch. Your readers might feel like you've pulled bait-and-switch on them and many might ditch you then and there. More importantly you will have to work hard to earn back the trust of those readers who decide to stick with you through the switch. When you try to be someone you’re not, when you’re not being true to your voice and your own goals, it will come back later to haunt you. You’ll have to ‘fess up eventually. So how do you “craft” your author brand then? “Always be a first-rate version of yourself instead of a second-rate version of someone else.” Judy Garland The best version of yourself, that’s what I call your author identity, your author brand. The person you put on the page is still you, but a more focused, more coherent, less wacky and hairbrained version of you. Your author identity is like a laser beam. A laser is focused light, and your author brand is focused, crafted, still you but the strongest version of you. Crafting the narrative of your author identity Can an “author identity” be truly authentic? The way you present yourself online will, of course, alway have some manner of crafting and shaping. The goal is to be as naturally you as possible. “To be natural is such a very difficult pose to keep up.” Oscar Wilde As a writer, if you try to write in a voice that isn’t really your own, you’re going to become exhausted. But in beith authentic, you can’t just let your voice and your focus be scattershot. You have to find your voice and your focus, the best version of yourself. That’s the person that you put on the page. I’ll be who I am. You be who you are. And we’ll be authentic together. Have a wonderful holiday season. We’ll see you soon! For more info and show notes: DIYMFA.com/074

Hey there, Word Nerds. Thanks for joining me for another installment of DIY MFA Radio. Today I’m talking to Drew Chapman. Drew is a thriller author. His debut novel, The Ascendant, was published in 2014 and the sequel The King of Fear is currently being released as a serialized eBook and will be out in paperback come February 2016. A fellow New Yorker, Drew grew up in NYC, got a BA in History from the University of Michigan, then eventually moved to LA to work in the movie business. He directed an indie film Stand Off, was a writer on the animated feature Pocahontas for Disney, and most recently wrote and co-executive produced the second season of Legends (a spy show for TNT). Now working mostly in television, he has been writing for networks like ABC, Fox, and TNT. Drew lives in Seattle with his wife and kids. In this episode Drew and I discuss: The difference between writing for TV and film and writing novels. What his process is like for writing his characters. How the craft of storytelling differs based on the medium you choose. Writing serial fiction. The art of the info-dump. When to use back story and when to leave it out. "The thing that writers need to worry about is finding their voice. Know what you want to say about the world." ~Drew Chapman Resources: If you want to know more about Drew you can follow him on Facebook and Twitter or visit his website. For more info and show notes: DIYMFA.com/073  

Hey there word nerds! Thanks for joining me today for DIY MFA Radio. I’m so excited to share this episode because I’m interviewing literary agent Janet Reid, AKA the Query Shark. *Cue shark music from Jaws in 3... 2... 1...* Janet is a literary agent at FinePrint Literary Management in NYC, where she represents mostly crime novels and thrillers, with some narrative non-fiction in history and biography as well. Her list of clients reads as a veritable who’s-who of bestselling authors. When she’s not doing busy being an agent, she blogs at JetReidLiterary.blogspot.com, and answers questions from writers, talks about what she loves about her job and the city, and (occasionally) rants about things that drive her crazy in publishing. Janet also runs the Query Shark blog, where she posts and critiques query letters submitted to “the shark” (with permission from the writers, of course). Writers have the opportunity to revise their queries based on her comments, and you can see the step-by-step revisions that took a query letter from meh to a resounding “YES.” Want to know what an agent really thinks about a query letter? The Query Shark blog will give you that inside look. IMHO, this site is hands-down the most valuable query resource available to writers online. Most importantly, Janet is a kind, sensible human being who helped make the publishing world a slightly less scary place for me, when I was a bright-eyed, bushy-tailed newbie writer. It is truly an honor to have Janet Reid, AKA Mme. Shark, on DIY MFA Radio today. In this episode Janet and I discuss: What inspired the Query Shark blog. What a query letter is and why you need one. Query pitfalls and pointers so you can make yours shine. What happens after your query gets accepted. When persistence pays off and when it doesn’t. Plus, Janet’s #1 tip for writers. To learn about Janet, follow her on Facebook and Twitter, or visit her literary agency blog or her website. You can also find her query-related pearls of wisdom on her Query Shark blog. For more information about FinePrint Literary Management visit their website. For more info and show notes: DIYMFA.com/072  

Hello hello Word Nerds and welcome to Episode 71 of DIY MFA radio. Today I’m talking with Lorin Stein, editor of The Paris Review  and we'll be talking about literature and reading, and what makes stories great. We'll also be discussing the book he recently edited called The Unprofessionals: New American Writing from The Paris Review. Lorin joined The Paris Review as its third editor in 2010. During his tenure, the Review has received two National Magazine Awards, as well as Webby honors, Pushcart Prizes, and O’Henry Awards. Stein’s criticism and translations have appeared in The New York Review of Books, the London Review of Books, n+1, and Harper’s. He is also an editor-at-large at FSG (an imprint of MacMillan) and he lives in New York City.   In this episode Lorin and I discuss: Literary fiction What he looks for when discovering new voices in literature. The importance of reading as a writer. What makes interesting writing. The benefits that writers can gain from writing and reading short form literature. Plus, Lorin’s #1 tip for writers. For more info and show notes: DIYMFA.com/071

Hey there Word Nerds. I’m so excited to bring you this interview today with Robert Crais, a #1 New York Times bestselling author of crime fiction. In this episode, we talk about how to persevere as a writer, and let me tell you, if anyone can speak to this subject it's Robert Crais. He began his career as a TV writer, working on some of the biggest crime dramas. This experience has shaped his perspective on writing novels, and has taught him numerous writing skills. Listen in hear Robert's insights about what you can learn from writing outside your comfort zone. You'll hear about his journey from writing for TV to writing novels, and what writing for the screen taught him about crafting stories for the page. Plus, animal lovers (especially dog-lovers) will get a kick out of this this episode because you'll hear Robert talk about how captured the POV of Maggie, the K9 hero in his latest book The Promise. Unlike other books that anthropomorphize animals, making them seem like humans in an animal body, Maggie feels very real. The sections in her point of view are quite true to how you would imagine a dog perceives the world. I think Office Cat could sense the animal-friendly vibe during this interview, because she cuddled up to the mic while we were recording this episode. (Bonus points to anyone who can hear her purring in the background.) In this episode, Robert and I discuss: Capturing animal characters’ perspectives in your writing. The process of optioning the film rights for your writing. How writing for TV prepared Robert for writing novels. The challenges of writing a novel versus writing for the screen. Plus Robert's #1 Tip for Writers. About the Author Robert Crais is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of nineteen previous novels, fifteen of them featuring private investigator Elvis Cole and his ex-cop, ex-Marine partner Joe Pike. His novels have been translated into more than forty languages and are global bestsellers in more than sixty nations. Nominated for every major crime-writing award (for a total of twenty nominations), Robert has won the Anthony, Barry, Shamus, Macavity, Gumshoe, and Ross Macdonald awards, among others. In 2014, he received a Grand Master Award from the Mystery Writers of America, which represents the pinnacle of achievement in mystery writing. A native of Louisiana from a family of police officers and oil refinery workers, he lives in Los Angeles with his wife, three cats, and many thousands of books.  If you want to learn more about Robert and his amazing books, follow him on Facebook and Instagram, or visit his website. For more info and show notes: DIYMFA.com/070

Hey there Word Nerds! I’m so excited to share with you today my conversation with Mark McGuinness. Today we’re talking about motivation and creativity, two very important topics here at DIY MFA. About Mark McGuinness Mark is a poet and coach for creative professionals. He’s based in London, UK, and coaches creative professionals worldwide via the magic of the internet. He has also published a popular blog for creatives for the past 10 years, and has just finished his second book titled Motivation for Creative People. In this episode Mark and I discuss: Myths and misconceptions that creative people have about motivation. Strengths and challenges that creative people have. How motivation works. Being ready to capture inspiration when it hits. Plus, Mark’s #1 tip for writers: "Write for love. Always write for love." For more info and show notes: DIYMFA.com/069

Hello Hello Word Nerds! I’m so excited to share my interview with author Elizabeth George. Today we’ll be talking about writing psychological suspense and what it takes to build a great suspense novel with a lot of interesting psychological twists and turns. I hope you enjoy our conversation. In this episode Elizabeth and I discuss: Why it’s important to know where your story needs to start. Writing deeply flawed yet deeply sympathetic characters. Writing complex female characters and their different attitude toward feminism and female-ness. How point-of-view helps strengthen the reader's understanding of and sympathy for characters. Plus, Elizabeth’s #1 tip for writers. Elizabeth George is the author of highly acclaimed novels of psychological suspense. She won the Anthony and Agatha Best First Novel awards in America and received the Grand Prix de Litterature Policiere in France. In 1990 she was awarded the prestigious German prize for international mystery fiction, the MIMI. Her novels have now been adapted for television by the BBC. An Edgar and Macavity Nominee as well as a New York Times and international bestselling author, Elizabeth George lives on Whidbey Island in the state of Washington. Her latest novel, A Banquet of Consequences, is out now. To learn more about Elizabeth George and her fantastic books, you can follow her on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, or visit her website. For more info and show notes: DIYMFA.com/068  

Welcome, welcome Word Nerds! I am so excited to share today's interview with author Ken Murray with you all. Ken Murray is a writer and creative writing teacher. He teaches multi-genre, using fiction, nonfiction and poetry to help students get started, listen to their work, and amplify the opportunities therein. Ken teaches at University of Toronto School of Continuing Studies and also at Haliburton School of the Arts. He is a graduate of the MFA program at The New School (like me!), and also the Teaching Artist program at Community Word Project. Ken writes mostly fiction and Eulogy is his first novel. Originally from Vancouver, Ken grew up in Ottawa and has lived in various locations across Canada, and also New York City. He now divides his time between Prince Edward County and Haliburton Ontario, and teaching at the University of Toronto School of Continuing Studies. Beyond reading and writing, he can most often be found dabbling in various sports, or doing broadcast work with 99.3 County FM in Prince Edward County. In this episode Ken and I discuss: the impetus for Eulogy the process of going from writing shorter pieces to writing a book-length work teaching writing and writing workshops "Get started and be open to whatever comes out of your pen." ~Ken Murray Plus, Ken’s #1 tip for writers. Resources: If you want to know more about Ken Murray, you can follow him on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn, or visit his website. For more info and show notes: DIYMFA.com/067

Hey there word nerds! Today's episode features one of my most favorite authors EVER: Austin Kleon. If you don’t know who he is, Austin is the New York Times bestselling author of three illustrated books: Steal Like an Artist: 10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative, Newspaper Blackout, and Show Your Work!: 10 Ways to Share Your Creativity and Get Discovered. His latest project is The Steal Like an Artist Journal: A Notebook for Creative Kleptomaniacs and it's in stores now. If you haven't read Austin's books yet, go to it! Seriously, these books will change the way you think about creativity, writing, and--most importantly--life. In this episode Austin and I discuss: Honoring your reality, both the world around you and your personal reality. Learning from your mistakes instead of focusing on your failures. Practicing by copying other people’s work by hand. Different tools for different types of writing. How practicing “less is more” can help your craft. Plus, Austin’s #1 tip for writers. For more info and show notes: DIYMFA.com/066