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Posts by Carol Despeaux Fawcett

Oct 4

Knowing what motivates you will help you succeed as an author

What motivates you to succeed? Years ago, when I first started working from home, I was motivated by several things: the need to eat, the need to keep my home out of foreclosure, the need to keep the lights and heat on—the need to provide for myself and my son.

To do this, I set my sights on reaching the level of manager in the company I had joined. I had plenty of motivation. But something was missing. Months went by and I didn’t seem to be making much progress toward my goal. What was wrong? Read more

Sep 30

Where do you find the music of opportunity and the sound of potential?

We all get bogged down by life sometimes: work, bills, the car dying (again), a friend’s unexpected illness. Life happens. Death is inevitable. It’s the in-between spaces where we make our life count.

On a daily basis, I try to never lose sight of why I do what I do. Why do I write? What am I passionate about? How can I contribute?

If we look closely, we can find the music of opportunity and the sound of potential in the most unexpected places—as in the life of musician Patrick Henry Hughes. Watch his video here:

Sep 28

Is your elevator pitch missing this key component?

These days, authors need to be writers and marketers. Two professions diametrically opposed to one another. There are definitely aspects of both that I least like. In writing, it’s the first draft (I prefer revision—to me it’s where the magic happens). In marketing, it’s the verbal pitch that gets me trembling like a hamster on methamphetamines.

Pitching to a total stranger who could potentially change my life scares me more than an elevator full of zombies.

I’ve read articles, blog posts, and books on pitching but I always felt as if something was missing (from my pitch, not the information). Maybe it just takes me longer to “get it.”

Fortunately, a recent article by author and professor Luke Williams in the Atlantic magazine helped me realize what I was missing: the turning point. Williams quotes master storyteller and screenwriter Robert McKee who says that, “turning points have to surprise, increase curiosity, and present a new direction.”

If you want to sell yourself and your ideas, make sure this element is part of your pitch.

Read the full article here.

Sep 26

2 Comments

How a reverse outline can make your story stronger

Recently, I decided to turn a minor theme in my memoir into a major one. I knew this would involve another edit of my manuscript, which I was loath to do because I wanted to work on my next book. Plus, it’d been awhile since I read the manuscript so it would take a chunk of time just to immerse myself in the flow of it again.

I decided the quickest, most efficient way to do this would be to create a reverse outline (one that’s created after your manuscript is finished).

I didn’t create an outline when I began the memoir, because I didn’t know what my story would be. I’m sure that sounds strange—to not know what the story of your life is, but we all have multiple stories inside us—who we are and what has shaped us. Writing is an act of discovery and as time went on, I realized I needed to build out one of my themes to reflect the evolution of my story. Read more

Sep 22

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When do you call yourself a writer?

Some days, it seems as if everybody thinks they’re a writer. A few years back I was visiting my mother-in-law in Cherry Valley, California, where I spent the mornings writing at a local Starbucks. As I sat outside sipping my latte and working on my laptop, at least five people a day approached me to ask what I was doing. When I said I was a writer, most of the people proceeded to sit down and tell me their own writing dreams. Guess I just have one of those faces.

One woman, a teacher, hoped to retire and write full time. One man had already published a technical book but really wanted to write fantasy. Another man said, “Oh, my sister is a writer, too.” When I asked him what she wrote, he replied, “Oh, nothing yet. But she’s going to start soon.” Read more

Sep 20

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Three ways to feed your muse: writing away procrastination, Part 3

Throughout history, artists have called their sources of inspiration many things: ego, God, muse, daemon, genius, angel, their higher-self, or as Edwin Land, American scientist and inventor once said, creativity is simply, “a brief cessation in stupidity.”

Most days I feel about as creative as a slug on a morphine drip.

I have to fight for my creativity. I have to force myself to stay in my chair and to stay writing. Some writers call it “bum glue”—writing something without getting up twenty times to stare longingly at the chocolate pudding inside the fridge.

Why is it so hard to stay focused? Usually there’s a reason.

Yes, I run my own business and I have a zillion busy things to do each day. And, trust me, I’ve used that excuse a zillion and a half times to avoid my writing. But why do I find so many excuses to avoid what I love to do most in the world? Mostly, I think, it comes down to fear.

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Sep 16

How to make your book’s setting come alive

Ever read a novel that you were really into and then suddenly hit a dry patch of description that made you start to nod off? I have. If the story is really good, I might put up with it and skim over those parts. But if the story isn’t stellar, the author is in grave danger of losing me.

I used one of author and writing teacher James Scott Bell’s tips when I began writing my memoir. Though I grew up in the small town featured in my memoir, I visited the area again once I started writing the story, snapping pictures and traipsing through back roads.

Through research and immersing myself in the location, I discovered interesting facts about our town that I didn’t know growing up. It was helpful to go back, because as an adult and a writer, I have a different perspective.

Bell has produced a short video on how to make your setting and writing come alive. He gives tips for turning your setting into a character.

Read more

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