Sometimes, we need a reminder of why we started writing in the first place and that writing is a journey. One that takes time and requires discipline. Author, Kandi J. Wyatt is with us today for Wisdom Wednesday.
Welcome, Kandi!
Name: Kandi J. Wyatt
Genre: Fantasy
Latest Release: An Unexpected Escapade
Writing Tip:
Keep writing. No seriously, the best thing you can do for your writing is to write. So many writers think they’re doing well, but they haven’t finished a first draft. Nothing can be done without a finished draft. Even if it’s sloppy, finish it. Then you can revise and edit.
It will be sloppy, believe me. I’ve heard of first drafts described as throwing up on paper. Embrace the sloppiness, and view it as the beginnings of a masterpiece. Author Tosca Lee says that the first draft is like throwing clay on the potter’s wheel. You first must put clay on the wheel before you can do any pottery.
When I get discouraged or when time gets away from me, I remember this advice, and I keep writing. I plug away in the sloggy middle-ground where my characters feel flat and unexciting, and I write. Eventually, I finish a draft and give it a break. Then I can go back to it and see the good things, take out the bad, and adjust the mediocre. Without a first draft, I’d have nothing to work with. It’s been this mentality that has allowed me to publish eleven books and finish writing another three novels for future publication.
Great advice! Years ago, I used to let perfection keep me from finishing rough drafts. Now, I love the rough draft process.
Advice For New Writers:
My best advice comes from a Twitter conversation with Margaret Weis four years ago. Earlier there had been a conversation with other authors about ‘making it big’. The advice I’d been given was being an author is for the long-haul. It’ll take at least five years before you start to see results. The same week as that conversation with my publishing team, I came upon a conversation between Brian Rathbone and Margaret Weis saying that she was told when she started out to not expect any fame for the first six years. I think it’s wise advice. Many people think becoming an author will lead to immediate success, but that’s not the case. It will take hard work, many years of labor, and hundreds of thousands of words before people will begin to notice you.
This is an excellent reminder to all of us to keep writing and keep going. It does take time and lots of persistence.
Protect friendship, family or a creature that’s not supposed to exist?
Ana and Daisy have been friends since third grade, but a rift in the space-time continuum in their little town may change that. When a unicorn waltzes into the pasture with Daisy’s appaloosas, a poacher, who will stop at nothing to gain the unicorn horn and its healing tears, shows up. Daisy is focused on saving the unicorn while Ana’s parents face sudden life-threatening health issues. When Ana learns about the healing tears, she’s forced to choose between friendship and her family’s health.
Can the girls and the grace to compromise and save Ana’s parents and the unicorn?
Even as a young girl, Kandi J Wyatt, had a knack for words. She loved to read them, even if it was on a shampoo bottle! By high school Kandi had learned to put words together on paper to create stories for those she loved. Nowadays, she writes for her kids, whether that‘s her own five or the hundreds of students she’s been lucky to teach. When Kandi‘s not spinning words to create stories, she’s using them to teach students about Spanish, life, and leadership.
Social Media:
Website: http://kandijwyatt.com/
Facebook: http://facebook.com/kandijwyatt/
Google: http://plus.google.com/u/0/+KandiWyatt/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/kandijwyatt
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/kandijwyatt
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/13817774.Kandi_J_Wyatt
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Kandi–J-Wyatt/e/B00ZTC4T10/
Before you go, take a moment and connect with Kandi on social media and check out her latest release, An Unexpected Escapade.
Leave a Reply