Joan's Office

The Power of Wave Energy

2012-02-26T09:11:00.000-08:00

Week of Feb. 26, 2012 - Beating Boredom for Writers

2012-02-25T11:06:00.000-08:00

By Joan Whetzel

As a nonfiction writer, it's essential that I remain curious about a multitude of topics. Curiosity is what compels me to research a topic, to write, and to see a project through to completion. Sometimes, though I find myself in a period of boredom. Usually it only lasts a day, though I've had it extend to a week or longer. The daylong boredom episodes, I don’t worry about too much. They usually indicate that I simply need a brief break from writing. If the boredom lasts longer, I start getting worried. So what's a writer to do about cycles of boredom?

How Do You know You are Bored?

I know I'm bored when I look at my topics and story outlines and must resist a terrible urge to delete them because they no longer interest me. I also find that I can't concentrate on the material, my mind keeps wandering to things that aren't important - like the next episode of Project Runway, what the weather radar looks like, or what do I want for lunch (when it's only 9AM). I also know I am bored when I keep putting off starting a writing project - I can't turn off the morning news, I'd rather answer e-mail than write, the online and desktop games call to me.

Causes of Writer's Boredom

There a few reasons why boredom sets in. Familiarity, is my worst boredom excuse. Familiarity is that feeling you get when you've been writing on one topic or in one topic area for several articles, until you are so familiar with the subject area that you want to scream if you have to write one more sentence. Another cause is listening to the voices in my head that whisper that they're bored with a project and that they would rather go outside and play on such a beautiful spring day. Yet another reason for the boredom, is that I get partway into the research or writing process, and I can't figure out where the information is taking me, or how the article wants to be written. Sometimes, I am just plain tired of writing and words. After all, I deal in words all day long. My favorite games are word games. I've gotten to the point some days where I can't even take a shower or lay down to go to sleep at night without words running through my brain - how to spell them, thesaurus alternatives to certain words, how to reword other peoples' phrases and sentences better. It's a clear indication that I've gotten stuck in a word rut, that I have been ignoring my need for other creative projects that provide visual and tactile creative stimulation.

Ways to Beat Boredom

So how does a writer get out of these boredom cycles? Here are a few things to try.

1. Walk Away: That's right. Take a break. Sometimes you just have to do something else, take your mind off that project - of list of projects. Resting your brain, not allowing yourself to think about anything related to my projects, actually entices me to want to get back and get them finished. If for no other reason than that it gets them off my desk so I can move onto something else.

2. Get Out of Your Head: Getting so deep in a project or subject area, means that I begin to think only in the language of that topic. I need to go out and find other ways of expressing those same ideas. Perhaps I need to make more use of my thesaurus or dictionary. Maybe I need to borrow terminology from another field. Or I may need to use plain, simple, everyday words and phrases to describe what's going on.

3. Change Your Perspectives: When the voices in my head are trying to entice me to do fun things instead of writing, I have to remind the voices what an educational challenge this project is, and try to make the writing project a fun one for my inner child (i.e. the inner voice doing the most complaining).

4. Read Out Loud: When I can't figure out where a piece is going, reading it out loud shows me where the problems are, what needs fixing, what questions still need answering, and what information I still need to collect. If reading it aloud still doesn't help bust the boredom spell with a piece of writing, then I need to save to a file, and tuck that file away in my story ideas file. "Out of sight, out of mind" so to speak. Usually letting it simmer gives the story time to show me what it needs. Sometimes, I'll find the necessary information or ideas for where to take the story while researching other stories.

5. Change Writing Implements: If I've been writing on the computer for long periods of time, then I change it up by writing with pen and paper. Different types of paper and cool colored pens, tend to jar my brain a bit. On the other hand, if I've been writing by hand too much, my handwriting gets so sloppy I can't read it, which is a clear indication that I need to get back onto the keyboard.

6. Change Locations: Sometimes it pays to pay attention to the inner voices enticing me outside. Going out the local park and writing at a picnic table or while laying out on a picnic blanket, placates the inner voices enough for me to get my work done. Other times it's a trip to Starbucks and writing while sitting in one of the comfy, overstuffed chairs with a cup of tea and a scone.

7. Get Visual or Tactile: To break out of the words-only rut, I need to get creative in other areas. It could be visual creativity like drawing with pastels, taking photos, sewing, or doing needlepoint. At other times it might be tactile creativity like crocheting (the feel of the yarn and the repetitiveness of the stitches does the trick), cooking (also feeds my senses of smell and taste), exercise, going to the fabric store just to feel the fabrics.

8. Mix it All Up: This means having a variety of projects going. The stories are not only on a variety of topics, they are also in varying stages of the research and writing process. If I'm getting bored with one story, I can put it away and get work on one of the other stories. The simple act of switching gears keeps my creative writing juices flowing. I also find that when I switch gears like that, that I find the solution to the problems with the other stories I'm writing. "Wait, I could try this, that or the other thing." I'm always having aha moments this way.

It always amazes me that I can earn money from writing, express myself with the written world, inform and maybe even inspire others. And writing nonfiction, opens the door to being able to write on so many different topics, for so many different publishing opportunities. So I don't find myself bored very often. That's what I love about this job. How many people can claim they love their jobs this much, and get paid for doing what they love? No, I won't get rich off my writing, but I can help with household finances. It's a great job, and with a bit of effort, I rarely get bored.

20 Inexpensive Self Pampering Activities

2012-02-24T07:58:00.000-08:00

20 Inexpensive Self Pampering Activities

Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Hex Nut Measurements

2012-02-22T08:58:00.000-08:00

Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Hex Nut Measurements

What is The Purpose of Direct Mail?

2012-02-19T10:33:00.000-08:00

What is The Purpose of Direct Mail?

Week of Feb. 19, 2012 - Playing Word Games

2012-02-18T10:32:00.001-08:00

By Joan Whetzel

One of the pleasures of being a writer is that I get to work with words. I love words., and my love of words extends to word games of all kinds. Anyplace I can find a word game, I'm going to play it. Some of my favorite games I can find on my computer, in newspapers and in game books.

Online

My favorite word games on the computer right now are under the Yahoo games tab.

· Bookworm is a game with a bunch of jumbled up letters, where the object of the game is to string as many of the connecting letters (vertically, horizontally, at an angle) to create words. You get points for any word 3 or more letters long. The game throws in a few twists like red squares that burn up the letter tiles under it, green and yellow tiles that up the point value for your words, and bonus words that gain you even more points if you can get the letters together to create that word.

· Text Twist gives the player 7 letter tiles to create as many words as possible from 3 to 7 letters long. The only way to win each round is to create at least one 7 letter word from the letters given. The more words you create, the more points you get.

· World Mojo Gold is kind of like a scrabble game, only the player is given 6 tiles instead of seven. The idea is to create words that cross other words. When a letter tile lands on a colored spot on the board, that letter is added to a list to be used in the bonus round at the end of each round. The bonus round earns extra points based on point value of each letter used. The idea is to have a minimum number of point to pass the round and move on - after the bonus round.

Newspaper

· Crossword Puzzles. Everybody knows what they are. I love them, even when I can't figure out all the answers.

· Word Jumble puzzles give the player several words to figure out from a set of jumbled letters. The words, if spelled out correctly, will land some of the letters inside circled spots on the playing board, Those letter then need to be unscrambled to find the answer to a comic like picture puzzle.

Puzzle Books

· Cryptograms are substitution ciphers. If you can figure out one of the smaller words (I'm, I've, and, the, or, of, it, is, in), that's generally enough to get you started. It's a matter of pattern recognition after that in order to figure out the sentence or paragraph.

· Logic Puzzles give the player a table to fill out and a list of clues to check off on the table. From the clues you can figure out who did what, with whom, when, how much it cost, etc.

Sometimes these word games give me new words that I have to look up. But I love that too. I'm always learning something new from these games.

Us Freedom of Information for Writers

2012-02-16T09:29:00.000-08:00

Us Freedom of Information for Writers

Figurative & Evaluative Language for Writers

2012-02-14T13:50:00.000-08:00

Figurative & Evaluative Language for Writers

12 Easy Meal Ideas with Ground Beef

2012-02-13T10:16:00.000-08:00

12 Easy Meal Ideas with Ground Beef

Valentine's Celebrations - at The Last Minute

2012-02-10T14:43:00.000-08:00

Valentine's Celebrations - at The Last Minute

Flood Warnings: All About Flooding and Flood Preparedness

2012-02-10T14:00:00.000-08:00

THis new article was posted to my HubPages.
http://joanwz.hubpages.com/_qdi6amxlbyfq/hub/FloodWarningsFloodPreparedness

Interviews as a Part of a Writer's Research

2012-02-07T14:49:00.000-08:00

Interviews as a Part of a Writer's Research

Frequency, Hertz, and Waves

2012-02-07T09:29:00.000-08:00

Frequency, Hertz, and Waves

Tuning Fork Physics

2012-02-05T10:25:00.000-08:00

Tuning Fork Physics

Week of Feb. 5, 2012 - My Writing Process

2012-02-04T13:53:00.001-08:00

By Joan Whetzel

Like every writer out there, I have my own writing process. I use the same process virtually all the time, though I vary it a bit to fit what I'm writing. I may omit a step one time or vary the order in which I perform each section at other times. As long as I generally work the process pretty much the same way when writing, it makes writing go faster and easier, which increases my output capacity.

Idea Collecting

First I collect ideas on several topics that interest me. I keep running lists of ideas. Each week, then I pick a few for each of the websites that I'm writing for. and begin a page for each of those ideas. For one of the sites I also begin a folder so I can collect pictures to upload with the article

Brainstorming

Next I brainstorm where I see each article idea going. I begin a rough outline for each with headings titling the main subject areas. Sometimes I can't really brainstorm the outline of the article until I start the research. In those cases, I have to see which way the research seems to be leading or what direction the research seems to want to go before deciding on a layout.

Researching

Next I research and take notes. For me, the "direct quote" or "cut and paste" method of note taking works the easiest. I know, I know. This method smacks of plagiarism. What I'm doing is getting all the ideas I have researched into the article "outlines" so that I have the ideas in their word-for-word structure. Now I have the choice to combine the ideas in my head to make them my own, or use the pasted items as direct quotes.

At the same time as I'm cutting and pasting, I'm leaving myself reference notes that cross reference the bibliography I'm creating at the same time. This way I know which Quote belongs to which bibliography entry - so I can correctly attribute it. Besides if I always take notes the same way, then I always know that these are someone else's words, and that I either need to make the ideas my own or use the words as a quote or paraphrase - and give the other author attribution.

Rough Draft

Sometimes I create a rough draft and sometimes I don't I use it for articles that I have more time to write an submit for publication. otherwise I just write one draft.

Revisions

If I write a rough draft then I do revisions before moving onto the final draft. Otherwise, I skip this step.

Final draft

Once I've done the research, if it's an article that's easy to write (one of those topics that comes easy to me or that seems to write itself) I skip right to the final draft. I do a grammar and spell check and read through in case it needs tweaking. By tweaking, I mean minor tightening and grammar corrections.

Publishing

Then I publish to the appropriate website or submit for publication. For the websites I write for, I also post the articles on Facebook, Twitter, LinkdIn, StumbledUpon and Digg, as well as my blog site.

When to Toss an Idea in the Circular File

Sometimes toss out ideas. There are several reasons for doing this. 1) I couldn't find enough information or any information to write the story. 2) The resources where I found the information were iffy or questionable. 3) The information I found was way too boring, repetitive (everybody's quoting each other), or it's the same information - word for word - everywhere (everyone's plagiarizing each other). 4) The information was way over my head and I couldn't figure out a way to put it into plain English. Or 5) I realized I wasn't really as interested in the topic as I thought I was.

When to Put It On the Back Burner to Simmer

Sometimes, after I've collected as much information as I can, it either doesn't feel like enough or it feels like something is missing. I need to look elsewhere for additional information, or another way to spin it so it's different than what's out there. In these instances, I save what I have and let it simmer. Usually, at some later date, when I'm researching in a similar area of research, on a similar topic, the answer comes to me. Then the article writes itself.

I didn't reach my writing process overnight. Initially, it would take me weeks to get an article researched and written. Of course, part of this was due to the fact that, in the beginning - back in my early days of writing - there wasn't much out there on the internet, and most of that was questionable and iffy. This meant trips to the library. Also, back in the early days, I hadn't refined my writing process. I was still stumbling around trying to figure out the best ways to do it all. I've learned along the way what works for me and what doesn't. It was an evolutionary process. And in some ways it's still evolving. After all, not all material is published in magazines - like in my early days - and not all of it will be published to websites in the future. I'm still learning the finer points of uploading articles and pictures, as well as navigating and using all the features of the online publishing websites. The publishing world will never stop evolving, and neither will my writing process.

Hurricane Season, Knowledge Is Power

2012-02-02T15:09:00.000-08:00

Hurricane Season, Knowledge Is Power

Thermos Physics

2012-02-02T09:07:00.000-08:00

Thermos Physics

Assessing Pain with the Visual Analog Scale

2012-01-31T14:21:00.000-08:00

Assessing Pain with the Visual Analog Scale

Pulling Up with Pulleys

2012-01-31T08:45:00.000-08:00

Pulling Up with Pulleys

Three Classes of Levers, 10 Levers

2012-01-31T06:55:00.000-08:00

Three Classes of Levers, 10 Levers

45 Great Websites for Writers and Researchers

2012-01-29T15:12:00.000-08:00

45 Great Websites for Writers and Researchers

Week of January 29, 2012 - Other Periodicals I Read on Occasion

2012-01-28T14:18:00.001-08:00

By Joan Whetzel

I enjoy reading and scanning magazines on just about any subject. Some magazines, I have subscriptions to, mainly because I also like to write on these subjects and have a strong interest in them. Others I occasionally pick up on the newsstand because they have something in them that interests me, or because I occasionally like to see what's new in these areas.

Photography

I like photography magazines because they discuss techniques and cameras and locations for taking pictures. More and more, these publications are into digital rather than film photography. As I am getting into digital photography, I find I am increasingly in search of up to date information.

Drawing, Pastels, Artists

I am into drawing with pastels. So these publications intermittently provide ideas for technique, pictures to draw, and colors. I like keeping up to date on anything art related. It feeds my visual creative nature.

Woodworking

I received a wood burning kit for Christmas. So I have started to pick up woodworking magazines to learn about woodworking in general - wood types, how to work with different types of wood, the pros and cons of different types of woods as well as woodworking techniques.

Astronomy and Science

I love astronomy and science. I just wish I could have the science without all the math. If they ever invent a science that doesn't require math, I'd be in heaven. In the mean time, I live my scientific dreams vicariously through popular magazines on any science topic.

Psychology and Spirituality

These publications feed my mind as well as my spirit. I'm always open to new ideas in the psychology and spirituality fields, though I may not agree with everything I read, it's still interesting to find out what others think, feel and believe.

Yachting and Boating

I've had a dream of living on an island for some time now. I should probably call it a fantasy really, because it' highly unlikely that this one will come true. Besides, I never know when the information in their stories might inspire an article.

Travel

I've always wanted to travel, at the very least around the US. While I have gotten some travelling in, I find I can't do much of it, financially. So I lie this dream vicariously through the travel magazines .My favorite is Texas Highways. This one gives me ideas for travelling in Texas, which is something I am much more likely to accomplish since I live in the state, and many of the locations discussed are near enough to visit at low cost. And again, I never know when one of the articles might inspire an article of my own.

Miscellaneous

I briefly had a subscription to a firefighters magazine. Yes, they do have one for this specialized field. What fueled my interest was the fact that I have firefighters in my family. I mostly found photos and information on fire trucks, though there were also articles on firefighting equipment and techniques as well as firefighting boats. One other type of magazines that I like to scan occasionally are those about log cabins - another fantasy of mine. I like looking at the floor plans, the locations they're built in, and the ways people have decorated their log cabins. I've also read a few copies of a magazine on fairies. Yes, I know they aren't real, but I like the whole fantastical fantasy world surrounding fairies. It feeds my imagination, which in turn, feeds my writing.

Some of my dreams and aspirations are unrealistic or fanciful, but who cares? Having dreams and fantasies of things that may never come true is fun, not to mention inspiring to my imagination. Having dreams, fantasies and an active imagination invite the muse to come and live with me in my home office, to play with me while I'm writing. But I have to feed the muse first.

Proper Disposal of Old Medications

2012-01-26T13:36:00.000-08:00

Proper Disposal of Old Medications

APA and MLA Format for Academic, Research and Term Papers

2012-01-26T10:13:00.000-08:00

APA and MLA Format for Academic, Research and Term Papers

Understanding The Right of Privacy for Writers

2012-01-24T14:09:00.000-08:00

Understanding The Right of Privacy for Writers