As I get closer to the point of publication, I’ve found myself diving into writing guides, manuals, and handbooks looking for the confidence I feel that I am lacking. I’ve decided to share that progress with you, my small but wonderful audience.
This week, the book I am working through is “The Productive Writer” by Sage Cohen (Writer’s Digest Books). I’ve owned the digital version of this book for five years and have never read it. It’s just been sitting in my computer, in a file marked “Cathy’s E-books to read,” and waiting for me to make it a priority.
Two weeks ago, I purchesed a physical copy of eight of the books from that folder and made it a goal to get through them. I’m the kind of person who needs multiple inputs to retain information. So, I’m physically reading the books while NaturalReader Text to Speech reads the e-book to me. I’m taking lots of notes and filling the book with post-it flags and notes.
Nobody told me in 2007 when I suffered a traumatic brain injury that learning would be so much harder for me. Over the years, I’ve learned to adapt to the world around me and find ways to make things work. One thing that I do a LOT is read physical books while listening to the audio companion (or through a text reader if no audio companion is available). If you suffer comprehension problems like this, it’s worth a try!
If you’ve never heard of the book but you aspire to write, I highly recommend it! It covers many common sense topics like time management, social media, and revision strategies. But, it goes beyond all of that, as well. There are sections about organizing your own bookshelfs to make them work more efficiently for you, ideas for filling your wasted time, and some pretty great methods for keeping track of all of the scraps of writing that writers collect. I have stacks of index cards, post-it notes, and scraps of notebook paper with snippets of ideas, character details, and important locations.
The one idea I’ve already implemented from the book is the “Acorn File” on my computer. This has become the digital dumping ground for all of these index cards and post-it notes. And, I gotta be honest, it was motivating just moving them from paper scrap to digital file. It felt like PROGRESS.
This week, my focus is on running through a final round of edits on “The Covid Christmas Story” and getting it ready for the self-publishing process.
Have a fantastic day!
Cathy Marie Bown
Cathy Marie Bown 