Veronica Scott: Tuesday Two Cents' Worth

Welcome to the inaugural post for Tuesday 2 Cents' Worth, where authors and writers answer one question: If you could share one piece of writing advice with other writers, what would it be?

I'm pleased to introduce you to Veronica Scott who has kindly agreed to share her 2 cents today.

Thanks for inviting me to be your guest, Teresa! The single most important piece of advice I give to anyone who asks me about writing is sometimes the hardest – get words on the page, every day if you can. Sounds simple but with all the demands on an author’s time, plus the fun stuff like Twitter, Facebook and more, not to mention reading (because we all love to read or we wouldn’t be writers!)…it’s way too easy to let a day, then two or more slip by without actually getting new words produced for your latest manuscript. (And please note, although I started writing longhand as a seven year old author of an elaborate fairy tale, I soon switched to a very old Royal typewriter and nowadays I happily pound on my laptop keyboard instead, but they’re still “words on a page” to me.)

                The thing is, some days the Muse isn’t very co-operative and all you can produce is a measly paragraph, or a sentence, or just some scribbly notes on what the next scene may be like. That’s ok! You’ve still transmitted something that moves your story forward out of your mind to a place it can be read and worked on.

                Don’t talk about writing – WRITE.

                Which leads me to the second most important piece of advice I give, which is don’t  edit yourself as you go. Don’t be over-critical in the early drafts or you risk choking off the creativity and possibly never finishing a single story. First drafts are clunky. They have extra stuff. You’re going to have to return to these pages eventually and revise/edit/add/delete – it’s the process. But don’t examine each word  as you write it, ok? Maybe you know someone whose first draft is release-ready (but I kinda doubt it LOL). Even if that’s their process, you have your own process, unique to you. And nothing is ever truly wasted. I have entire chapters I’ve cut later, during the developmental edits, that have the potential to become additional material for a blog post or newsletter, or might even be the kernel for a new story.

                You’ll be pleasantly amazed how even a few words every day soon adds up to a complete first draft – you’re on your way!

Blog: https://veronicascott.wordpress.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/vscotttheauthor

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Veronica-Scott/177217415659637?ref=hl

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5428500.Veronica_Scott

Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/Veronica-Scott/e/B006CUCJ92/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1426864281&sr=1-2-ent

Veronica Scott is a three-time recipient of the SFR Galaxy Award and was awarded a NASA Exceptional Service Medal (from the day job activities, not for her romance writing). She has written a number of best-selling science-fiction and paranormal romances and is the SciFi Encounters columnist for the USA Today/HEA blog. She grew up in a house with a library as its heart. Dad loved science fiction, Mom loved ancient history and Veronica thought there needed to be more romance in everything. When she ran out of books to read, she started writing her own stories. Her most recent science fiction romance is  the award-winning Mission to Mahjundar.