Writing Tips by the authors of Life Choices: Navigating Difficult Paths

If you feel “stuck” in a situation that appears to be beyond your control, these stories will show you how others have coped with crisis and uncertainty, made tough choices and positive changes in order to find deeper meaning and satisfaction in their relationships and learned to live with purpose every day. Rarely do we find a book that addresses so many different challenges. Life Choices does this in a powerful and inspiring way. This book is about experiences, the people who lived them, and how they created successful lives. From values and self-fulfillment to legacy, this book offers new resources for people who have tough choices to make every day.

Filled with wisdom and love, this book is a soothing companion for anyone searching for the courage to make a choice to change his or her circumstances. These authors and their stories prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that success belongs to everyone, no matter where they come from or what has happened to them. They are living proof that miracles can and do happen. You can be one of these people. You can navigate through difficult times and find your pathway to the life you choose to lead. Put the strength of others to work for you. Courage is not the absence of fear or pain. Courage is taking the steps to move through it.

The authors of Life Choices: Navigating Difficult Paths would like to share their writing tips:

I am one of those people that wakes up earlier….. early being about 4:00 am. My thoughts seem to be clearer at that time. The clutter of the day has not had time to intrude. I sit down at my computer and let my thoughts roll through my finger tips. Then later in the day, I come back and sort out my thoughts. If I try to make it all nice and tidy to begin with, I lose sight of what I really wanted to say. I also carry a notepad with me so if I have a great thoughts,,,, you know the kind that you just absolutely do not want to forget… I write it down!

-- Andrea Chestnut


The best tip I've ever gotten is to write. It doesn't matter what you write, just write. Three pages a day...every day. Not everything you write will be published. Most of what you write will never be used. If you have a specific project, some of what you write will fit, some won't. The more you write, the easier it becomes to write.


--Charlotte Foust


I find that meditation makes all the difference for me when I write. I take time to ‘tune-in” and center myself before beginning to write. Listening to my inner voice first lets my thoughts and feelings roll onto the page with more ease and clarity.


--Ginette Osier Bedsaul


The best writing tip is to set aside a certain amount of time, preferably at the same time each day, to focus on your writing. Early morning, when I am my freshest and everyone else is asleep, works best for me. I carry note cards with me to jot thoughts and ideas down through the day. The first thing I do the next morning is to incorporate the previous days thoughts into my work.


--Nancy Todd


I usually start out with several lines of random thought, just a lot of typed words. I read it out loud, and ask myself, "What I am trying to say?" I decide what the message will be. I take out anything that is not working, or just doesn't make any sense. I fill in with more complete sentences that will bring the message home.

--Deborah Clark

Create a diary of how long you write and what you write about. Visit your diary several times per week. This will help you monitor your commitment and keep your promise to yourself.


--Jesse Ferrell


When writing your non-fiction book tell a story to re-enforce every point. The story gives your reader a better understanding and serves as a memory device. Each story must be on-point. Remember that real life is boring! Fictionalize each story to make it interesting.


--Bob Walker


I write music reviews for an internet magazine as the event is happening. This gives me real time action right through the concert, allowing me to brush up the mistakes and fill in comments and "critiques" at a later time. Generally, I drive myself to get the whole thing done within a 24 hour period so the information is fresh and the key points still stand out in my mind. If I am working on "an assignment" basis, I get the job, let it bounce around the "little gray brain cells" for awhile then strangely, I enjoy listening to men singing in foreign languages in the background, the sound of the human voices blending without trying to figure out the words allows my mind to open up and find more creative phrasing possibilities for the writing.


--Susan Haller


There are two things I always try to remember whenever I write. The first is to make sure my subject is something about which I know or am passionate. If not, then I must do some research. The second thing is not to be afraid to edit. Less is usually better than more.


--Anne Abernathy


JUST DO IT! The greatest journey begins with the first step. I "wanted" to write for 27 years before finishing my first book. Find your own way, your own voice and your own style. Some advise that you write an hour a day, but it takes me a day to just warm up! I dive deep and set aside days or weeks to create a momentum to get into the "flow." Just write like a stream of consciousness and then do the fine tuning or analysis paralysis will stifle your creativity. Commit to a specific time and decide on the perfect space or place that is free of distractions. I choose the ocean.


--Edie Raether


When ideas come to me I try to capture them right away. I don't try to make the thoughts make sense or think of how they will work until later when I am under the right circumstances. The funny thing about my writing is that most thoughts come to me as I'm driving either to or from work so I often have to record them during stop lights!


--Vickie Lane


First I need a lot of quiet, no distractions. I need to THINK. Then I need to get in touch with the inner me - the one living deep inside that is completely honest. I read everything I write with a very critical eye. Am I being honest with myself first and then with my reader. I never want to insult my reader's intelligence and I want so much for them to come along for the ride.


--Sandra Gore Nielsen


Write….every day. Submit stories …wherever they are accepting stories…Be sure to tell the publisher why your book/story will sell….and then make sure it does.


--Judi Moreo

You can visit the book's website at www.lifechoicesbook.com.

2 comments:

  1. I've tried three kinds of writing: non-fiction (book and blog), memoir, and now fiction. Each one is very different and requires a new mindset.
    I chose to write a novel after "Life Choices" and my book "Sex and the Zen of Shopping" because I wanted to see if I could even write fiction.
    Once I started "The Red Mirror", the story began telling itself. That is an experience unlike no other - I put the characters in a scene and then see what they do.
    I told my husband, "Wow, I'm really shocked about what happened today." He laughed and said, "Shocked? Aren't you writing the story?"
    Sandra Gore Nielsen, author
    "A True Love Story" in Life Choices
    http://www.sandragorenielsen.com

    ReplyDelete
  2. I'm back cause there was a problem with eblogger blocking access to my profile.
    I hate to be lost in cyberspace!

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