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[sarina-writes]

writing diary: Saturday, May 6, 2023

I have definitely been building up a consistent practice this week. Reading (or, rather, listening) to Austin Kleon's "Steal Like An Artist" trilogy was helpful: it provided the appropriately inspiring sound bytes I needed to feel invigorated to dedicate 30 minutes per day this month toward my novel... I'm happy to share that I've been keeping that up.

Here's what I've done so far this week:

I bit the bullet and bought myself a new Moleskine journal in the loveliest springtime lilac color. It's going to be my dedicated space throughout this novel-writing journey to capture all my thoughts and ideas.

I've started to map out my protagonist's main motivation throughout the novel (unsurprisingly, for a second-gen, Fil-Am middle child, a desperation to prove herself to her parents, her peers, and herself). Her name is still TBD...

I'm brainstorming some major milestones for her to encounter throughout the year. I do like the idea of modeling the novel into three major parts reminiscent of an academic school year: fall trimester, winter trimester, and spring trimester... I also keep waffling between making "the big event" at the novel's climax be her sister's debut — is that derivative? Expected?! Am I overthinking it???

I'm also enjoying diving into my comps reading list. This week, I'm reading "Eleanor & Park" — I have some thoughts on how the story is progressing so far, but I'll save them for a more extensive book review in the near future...

This weekend, I'm focusing on resting. I still have a full-time job in which I'm getting adjusted, and it's important for me to, first and foremost, avoid burnout in my writing.

[sarina-writes]

Step 0 of Writing a Story

Everyone has a different method of planning and writing a story, whether it’s a novel, novella, short story, fanfiction, or anything else. The steps can look different for everyone and go in many different orders depending on what works for you.

But I want to talk about Step 0: developing the premise.

Many of us will use story premise and story concept interchangeably, but they’re quite different. The premise takes your concept and focuses it, including the basic bare-bones of the plot. A premise should have a few things: a protagonist, their motivation, obstacles they will face, and a setting.

The Protagonist

In the last couple of weeks, I’ve discussed characters and how to build a character arc; this comes into play here. Your protagonist is your main character, and the story revolves around them and their actions, motivations, and goals.

Your protagonist does not need to be the “hero,” “likable,” or “relatable.” They can be anything you would like them to be, so long as the story centers on them and their actions. Who is the story about? What is their name, and who are they at their most basic?

It’s important to know what the protagonist’s motivations are regarding their goals. What is their goal, and why do they want/need to achieve it?

The Setting

The setting is where the story takes place. This part can be a lot of fun! But when writing your premise, be sure to keep it concise. Worldbuilding comes later, and the premise is mostly about the plot.

What is most important to know about your setting? Is the world magical? Are there zombies? Condense it down to a sentence or two.

The Obstacles

The bread and butter of your premise comes down to what’s stopping your protagonist from achieving their goal immediately. As romance writers put it: why can’t they be together now?

The obstacle can be an institution, a person, or a group of people. The conflict between the protagonist and the obstacle is the core conflict of the story. Condense this struggle down to a sentence or two.

Drafting Your Premise

Now it’s time to put it all together. Some tips for drafting a strong premise:

Cut out extra words - imagine you’re trying to fit your premise into a tweet. What can you cut without losing meaning?

Use active voice

Leave room for curiosity

Your premise can be your guiding light for the rest of your story, from outlining to drafting to editing. The premise is there to help you build your story concept into a fully-fleshed project. Your premise should be short and to the point, something you can explain in an elevator.

– Indy

[sarina-writes]

[sarina-writes]

reading list: May 2023

For a writer, it's just as important to read as to write. (Or so I've heard.)

Here's what's on my reading list this month!

Creative Motivation & Inspiration:

The Steal Like An Artist Audio Trilogy, Austin Kleon

Comp Reading - YA/Romance/Identity:

Eleanor & Park, Rainbow Rowell

Patron Saints of Nothing, Randy Ribay

Misc. Reads:

Gods of Want: Stories, K-Ming Chang

The Humanity Archive, Jermaine Fowler

[sarina-writes]

writing diary: Monday, May 1st, 2023

This month, I want to focus on consistency.

There are so many ideas bubbling in my brain for my novel. And while I've worked piecemeal on a variety of things, I know that I can only bring these ideas to full fruition if I sit down with the actual intention to specifically work on my novel.

So, this is what I'm committing to doing throughout the month of May:

Spend 30 minutes per day dedicated exclusively to working on my novel: whether through research, outlining, refining character profiles, drafting, comp reading, etc.

Attend every weekly co-writing session with my writing cohort: in hopes that public accountability can influence signifanct progress!

Write and share a writing reflection here, every Saturday.

In May, I want to be less concerned with the outcome (i.e. an outline, a certain number of pages and/or chapters, a pitch deck, etc.) and more focused on developing the practice (i.e. showing up to do the work on a regular basis).

I have my eyes set on a more extensive novel writing challenge in the summer. Here's hoping that this practice to which I'm committing in May will set a good foundation for the summer months...

[sarina-writes]

I have ink in my heart.

I don't know from where it came. Maybe it has been there since birth.

I have a notion that I received it from those who came before me. Those who gave me my wide flat nose and my melanated skin, who gave me the lingering bruises from their trauma and the resilience in my limbs. Those who could not give me their language, whose lives and names I, unfortunately, do not know.

But their truths have been passed down through the ink that fills my veins, through the stories that die on my tongue yet somehow spill out when I put pen to paper.

I have ink on my skin.

It has lost its vibrance. It has faded with stress, with age, in the California sun. Yet, the ink is still there. Reminders of my love. Of my religion. Of my health. Of my joys and ambitions. Of who I am and who I want to be.

Through the faded black ink that marks my skin, my body has become a platform to house my truths. And, during a time when I thought my pen had stilled, when I believed that my stories had dried up and my voice had been silenced, when I thought that the version of me who had ink running through her veins had been abandoned for the sake of corporate ambition, I, unknowingly, had tattooed my deepest secret...

The ink in my heart bloomed onto my skin in the form of a pen, a quill, and a pencil that sprawl across my right arm — my dominant arm, my creator's arm.

The image reminds me that, even when I thought I had nothing more to share, when I believed I had no stories left in me to tell, I am, at my core, a writer.

And, by God, I still have so much — so much — that I can say.

I have ink on my fingertips.

It smudges from the pages I hurriedly scribble under the covers, at my kitchen table, on the side of the road, at my desk...

I feel compelled to catch up, to make up for lost time (because, God, I feel like I have lost so much time...).

Will I be able to share what I want to share? Will my stories reach those for whom I write?

Will she, my younger self, ever forgive me? For losing so much time, for stilling our pen, silencing our voice?

I cannot answer, so I write. I write and write and write, and the ink coats the grooves of my fingerprints.

I have ink in my heart.

It flows through my veins and spills out when I put pen to paper.