Writing Life: July IWSG

If you’re here for the Insecure Writers Support Group blog hop, welcome! My writing life has been full of good stuff lately, and it’s so fun to have the IWSG community to share with here, both here and on Twitter.

First, I had the opportunity to write a guest blog on a topic I’m really excited about. That will go live in a few days, so be sure to subscribe to my mailing list if you want the link as soon as it’s available! (There’s no spam, just a ping in your inbox when I post.)

Then, the results of the next round of judging in the ACFW writing contest were announced.

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I didn’t advance to the finals, but I did get my scoresheets and comments back from the judges, and their insight and feedback is an invaluable help. If you’re thinking about entering the ACFW Genesis contest in the future, my advice is: go for it. Seriously! You’ve got nothing to lose and your writing will be stronger for it.

And finally, I wrapped this manuscript up and sent her out into the world for her first taste of the query trenches. I use QueryTracker and a homegrown spreadsheet to keep up with important details, but I also made a colorful flowchart on the whiteboard right behind my desk. It makes me HAPPY every time I see it.

But hold on. Let’s be honest. There’s never a ‘finally’ in this writing life. Because even though my completed manuscript is done-enough-to-query, I’m not done. No, I’m still getting up at 5:00 a.m. to make a cup of good coffee and flip on the desk lamp and write. There’s a new WIP [work in progress] brewing, this time with a single main character and no time slip.

Oh, and I’m also loosely researching for another story idea (by which I mean, there’s a topic that intrigues me as a jumping-off point for a plot, so I’m listening to podcasts and reading books and articles about that topic… I feel a story percolating in the far reaches of my brain, but I’m not sure yet whose story it is or where they are or how it’s going to unfurl.)

Which brings me to the July IWSG Question: What personal traits have you written in to your characters?

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I think my first manuscript may have been the closest I’ve come to writing characters who had my personal traits. It seems to me that a lot of writers ‘accidentally’ write an autobiographical character now and again, but the best characters are the ones who aren’t US.

The novel that’s out in the trenches right now has two main characters: one’s in her sixties and the other’s in her twenties. Both of them materialized pretty fully in my mind’s eye, and they’re definitely not aspects of myself. They don’t share my penchant for reading, coffee, or a village full of friendships to keep them on an even keel. I suppose both of them are great in the kitchen, and I do love to cook & bake–but that’s it. My new WIP is still a glimmer in my eye with a half-formed protagonist, but I won’t intentionally give her any of my personal traits.

So talk to me, friends: do you ever guest blog? Do you love it? Have you ever participated in a writing contest–good, bad, or ugly? If you’re querying, what do you use to stay organized and happy through the process? I’ll make my way through as much of the IWSG blog hop as I can. I’m excited to read your answers to the July question!