One thing I’ve learned working with the AJC Decatur Book Festival over the years is that there are a lot of writers living in metro Atlanta, including tons of newbies and wannabe scribes. Since there’s no better time than the New Year to start that memoir you’ve always wanted to write or finish that book that’s been gathering dust in your bottom desk drawer, I asked local authors to share some tried-and-true tips for beginners who want to jumpstart their writing lives in 2021.
New York Times bestselling author Emily Giffin, whose latest novel is “The Lies That Bind,” kicks it off with advice about self-perception.
“Stop referring to yourself as an ‘aspiring writer.’ You might aspire to see your work published, but you are a writer if you write,” she says.
Credit: Emmanuelle Choussy
Credit: Emmanuelle Choussy
“As a corollary, stop worrying that you won’t be good enough, or comparing yourself to others,” she adds. “Don’t concern yourself with what others might think of your work, or whether it is commercially viable, or how it compares to some of your favorite published authors. Write what you feel, and be fiercely honest. If you don’t feel a deep connection to your characters and story, then chances are nobody else will either.”
A common complaint among writers is that they can’t find time to write. Colleen Oakley, whose new book, “The Invisible Husband of Frick Island,” comes out in May, has the solution.
“Commit to 15 minutes,” she says. “Everyone has 15 minutes. Even if you have to get up a little earlier in the morning or carve out some time on your lunch break. Some days you may only get a few sentences, while others you may be on a roll and write for an hour or more. But the key is to create a daily habit that feels doable — not daunting — and keeps the story fresh in your mind so you don’t lose your momentum.”
Oakley also recommends developing your own personal writing process by paying attention to what makes you most productive.
“Do what works for you,” she says. “Stephen King writes 2,000 words a day. Ernest Hemingway always stopped halfway through a scene so he had somewhere to pick up the next day. J.K. Rowling famously outlined ‘Harry Potter’ on a napkin, while Margaret Atwood wouldn’t dare plot first: ‘It would be too much like paint-by-numbers.’ The point is, there is no right way to get to ‘The End.’ Find a method that works for you, and stick with it.”
When it comes to sparking creativity, “The Magnetic Girl” author Jessica Handler has a handy trick. “Jot scene or topic ideas on index cards or sticky-notes as they occur to you,” she says, “and when you have the time or mental space to write, pull a card or a note from the pack, and write your response to that one prompt.”
If you’re in a creative slump, she suggests changing your environment. “Make a new and different writing space for yourself, even if that simply means switching to a different chair at the kitchen table, and notice what a new perspective can do for your creativity.”
Karin Slaughter, author of “The Silent Wife,” the 10th book in the Will Trent series, takes the age-old recommendation to “write what you know” a step further.
Credit: Alison Cohen Rosa
Credit: Alison Cohen Rosa
“Know what you are writing about,” she says. “If your characters are driving through the streets of Atlanta, drive through those same streets and make note of where the Dairy Queens are. Even if your characters don’t go into Dairy Queen, you should go inside and make sure the ice cream tastes OK.”
Slaughter also has her own antidote for when the muse doesn’t strike.
“If you feel stymied, get up and do something else for 10 minutes. Take a brisk walk. Pet a cat. Stare out the window. Then get back to it because you’re a writer, not a brisk, cat-petting window-starer.”
Mary Kay Andrews, whose new book “The Newcomer” comes out in May, recommends writers make like a Nike ad: “Just do it.”
“You can’t fix what you ain’t wrote,” she says. “Embrace the messy first draft. Force yourself to write through the self-doubt and self-loathing, all the way through to the end, then and only then, go back and revise and polish. Otherwise, you could spend months, even years, re-writing and deleting until all you have is a perfect, diamond-like first paragraph. And outside of Twitter, nobody publishes perfect paragraphs.”
Once your manuscript is ready to be launched in the world, Giffin has some closing advice.
“When you get to the ‘finding an agent’ stage, check out Jeff Herman’s ‘Guide to Agents.’ I found it to be very useful in that it gives a bit more background on agents and their general areas of interest,” she says. “Always keep in mind that publishing is very subjective and relationship-driven. Therefore, you really want to click with your agent and be sure that your work resonates with him or her, as they will be the person responsible for selling it to an editor at a publishing house.”
Her parting suggestion is sage advice: “Until those offers come in, resolve to have a thick skin. Rejection is simply part of the process. It happens to most every successful writer. And no matter what else, persevere, believe in yourself, and keep doing what you love.”
Suzanne Van Atten is a book critic and contributing editor to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. svanatten@ajc.com.
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