Folks, if you need a wake up call, I’ll give you one right now.
It really helped me, so I’m going to share it with you too.
Your book will not write itself (unless you’re getting ChatGPT to do it).
There will also never be a right time to get started or get back to it. You can put it off all you like and make excuses, but your book isn’t going to get any longer, refined or finished if you do that.
How do I know this? Well, because that’s what I was doing. I was waiting for the right time. I was procrastinating. Why? Because I didn’t know where to start. It felt like I was standing at the bottom of Everest, looking up and thinking “this is going to be a huge task.”
And I’m not wrong – writing a book is a huge task! It’s possible – but not without a bit of elbow grease.
It’s very easy to get wrapped up in thinking:“but where do I start? I don’t have time. There’s so much to do.”
If you’re in a similar place, where your book is gathering cobwebs in the corner, or your project hasn’t been updated in a while, or you don’t know where to start, here is my advice:
Take action. Just start, and do a little at a time.
I took action and I’m back working on my book – and you should too.
Remember: this is your dream, your goal!
You’ve got to take action because the hard truth is … it’s up to you. Unless you have a ghostwriter, the person who is going to write the book has got to be you.
But how?, I hear you ask. Well, how do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time. What does that mean?
Just put one foot in front of the other. Write down the ideas for your new book. Set aside time to work on it. Pick up where you left off, whether that was a month or six years ago. Tell your family or friends that you are working on your book and have them hold you accountable. Remember, you don’t have to do this alone!
Slowly and surely you will get to where you want to be – and your future self will thank you.
Now, go! Isn’t there a book you’re supposed to be writing??
On the surface, lyric writing and creative writing might appear to share similarities. In other aspects of the writing process, however, they couldn’t be any more different, as I learnt today from my interview with Indie pop artist Lucy Lou.
Scroll down for Lucy’s new single & full list of socials!
Inspiration
We began by talking about Lucy’s song-writing background. She started writing in 2017, when she joined a music school known as the “School of Rock”, except this one didn’t have Jack Black. Lucy said that she had to explore writing original songs and that “up until now I’ve been writing my own music.”
I then asked where she finds inspiration for writing a song:
“It just depends really … I think the best songs come from things you’ve experienced.”
Lucy also invents her own stories, or thinks of a scenario, or a an event which has happened in real life, and romanticises/dramatises it.
What about those ‘a-ha!’ moments? I asked if Lucy had ever thought I have to write a song about this, to which she said “definitely. If I’ve been on a night out and something happens to me, or I’m really struggling with my mental health, or something, that’s when I’ll be like I need to express this in a way other than journalling.”
Writing
With an idea in mind, Lucy told me she prefers to go straight to her guitar, and pen and paper. Here the music brainstorm begins. It can be as simple as one lyric that really sticks, Lucy told me; “then I build the whole song around that one lyric.”
Timing wise, Lucy said she can write a song in a day, or it can take up to a week. On the topic of process, and if she has a step-by-step formula for song-writing, Lucy said she enjoys writing songs from the start.
“The verse is where you introduce what the song is about … laying the foundations for what’s going to come next.” However, she noted it depends: “Sometimes if you write a solid chorus first, it can be the anchor for the song. The chorus is probably the most important part of the song, it’s the thing that people remember, it’s the catchy part.” And the all important bridge, she told me, is an opportunity to “go out of the box, compared to the rest of the song.”
A lot of great songwriters that Lucy admires are poets themselves, and she believes that having a background in poetry, english and creative writing is a good skill to have in song writing:
“I love songs when I have to sit down and figure out what the writer is trying to say … versus you just telling the story – it’s that show, don’t tell thing. You want to leave some room for exploring the lyrics and the deeper meaning of them.”
And what happens when the flow state is interrupted by writer’s block? Lucy said that she tackles this in two ways. Firstly, by taking a break: “if it’s not going anywhere, it’s not going anywhere.” And, secondly, by trying to stay in the creative state. This might look like trying to write a chorus, even if it’s difficult, or thinking of an idea.
Music
At some point, the song must be introduced when songwriting, and Lucy said she writes this first: “I typically would write my lyrics second, so I always write the music first, because chord progressions allude to the emotions of the song.”
This is a fair point. As Lucy said, sad songs and hopeful songs have different chords. Similarly with certain genres and their tropes, all songs have their own list of ingredients. However, she said that she is trying to write lyrics first now, adding, “with music it’s different, because it needs to flow rhythmically”.
The editing phase in songwriting is also markedly different to book writing. “Demo stage is the draft stage,” which Lucy told me is essentially the idea of what an artist wants the song to sound like. Production day is when she might rethink structure or the lyrics: “working with a producer is a great opportunity for two creative people to work together.” She notes how working with someone else, and seeing how others write, is all beneficial to the end product.
Stream Lucy Lou on Spotify
Lucy is currently working on an EP (Extended Play), which you could consider as a selection of short stories. She said they are upbeat heartbreak songs that listeners can boogie to, adding “no tears will be shed at Lucy Lou’s concerts”.
As a final word of advice for beginners to the music industry, Lucy said “do it for yourself. This is your music at the end of the day.”, and that you need to remember your why.
Lucy’s latest Single Last Summer is now available to stream on Spotify. Follow Lucy Lou on Instagram @its_lucy_lou and Tik Tok @itslucylou for updates!
Ok, before you make a b-line for the unsubscribe button, you’ll be happy to know this show is among my favourites. It truly is a work of art – but I didn’t get to experience the beauty of this show without some convincing.
Like many people, I was dissuaded by its cartoonish style and, no shade to Nickeloden, but I figured it was a kid’s show. How could this be relevant to me? I hadn’t grown up watching Avatar: The Last Airbender (ATLA) and it was a show I wasn’t all that interested in watching. When people desperately begged me to watch it, I was never that keen, no matter how amazing they said it was.
I thought it was just a cartoon.
Left to right: Momo, Aang, Sokka, Toph, Katara
Eventually, I did give it the chance it deserved and my perceptions were sorely wrong. Each season became richer and the stakes kept getting higher and higher. I was hooked and it blew my expectations of a kid’s show out of the water.
Why? In a war-torn world, these tweens and teens are pushed into the roles of adults, not unlike many youth who stepped up in World War I and II. Our protagonists sacrifice their childhood to be warriors, leaders, and, in Aang’s case, to be the saviour of the world. This bildungsroman, or ‘coming of age’ story, shows us how each character navigates their way in an unforgiving world. Indeed, the themes of war, genocide, oppression, politics and power shape the narrative. It breaks the mould for what can be included in a kid’s show and, for this reason and boldness, ATLA has been praised and received countless awards.
It’s so much more than just a cartoon, and I highly recommend you watch it.
Being an early bird
I’ve never been a morning person. I never thought it could be for me. There was zero appeal in seeing the sun rise, leaping out of bed and pursuing a life that started before 10:00am. It baffled me that people could have so much vim and vigour that early in the day.
I admit, I am a bit of a bear. I enjoy my sleep and love a good lie in. If it was an olympic sport, I’d have many a gold medal. I thrive in the evening, where most would start to dip in energy. But the world isn’t designed for sleepy bears like me and, eventually, I had to swap my sleepy ways and join the hordes who wake up early.
And wouldn’t you know, I actually don’t mind it.
The peace of the morning is unmatched. You get more out of your day. Sure, the inertia after waking up feels terrible, but give it five minutes and boom, it’s actually bearable. Yup, even a sleepy bear like me can change their sleep schedule – with the help of the snooze button and a bunch of alarms.
Art by Jennifer Thermes
If you want to wake up earlier, but think it’s not for you, I’d honestly say don’t knock it til you try it.
Wonka
I didn’t even want to see this movie, I had my mind so fiercely made up. I didn’t see the point of adding yet another Charlie & The Chocolate Factory movie to the world. It’s a cash grab, I would say. I stood so strongly with Johnny Depp’s portrayal of Willy Wonka that nobody could move me.
When I was forced along to the movie, I sat with my arms folded, enduring the 1 hour 56 minutes. But I didn’t endure it. I actually left the movies in a state of shell-shock. While my mum and my sister spoke excitedly about how much they’d loved it, I was speechless. I couldn’t believe how horribly wrong I’d been about this movie.
The storyline was original and heart warming. The songs were catchy and we proceeded to blast them as soon as we got home.
I went back to see it again and the tone was completely different. I actually let myself enjoy it – I had the movie experience I should’ve had the first time. I laughed, I bobbed my feet and saw Wonka in a whole new light.
It’s easy to get protective over our favourite movies and the constant reboots and poorly written sequels (Mufasa, for example). I’m glad I went, because I would’ve missed out on such a sweet gem of a film.
Have you had any similar experiences? Let me know below in the comments!!
Hi everyone!! And if you’re new here, hello!! Thank you so much for subscribing! It really does mean the world 🙂 I hope you are all doing well! How is it June already??
As you can tell, I haven’t been active on the blog for a couple of months now haha BUT I want to get back into blogging! I’m lacking a bit of writing inspo at the mo and I’d love to hear from you guys about what you would like to see on rebekah writes stuff. or any ideas you have!
I’ve made a little survey, it’s just 2 slides. You can write me a suggestion or select from my own list of ideas – or you can do both! Hopefully it works!! Also it closes on the 24th of June. You guys are the best :))
Hey blogsters! Bloggeroonskiis – it’s April! I thought I would answer a few questions. I haven’t done something like this before, so let’s get into it!!
I started blogging for a bunch of reasons: I wanted to practice writing, I wanted people to read my writing and I wanted to be more confident (especially posting my writing!). I definitely struggled getting posts out when I first started and perfectionism really blocked my flow. I worried a lot about what people would think of my writing. Plus, physically setting up a blog seemed so daunting! I’m glad I just decided to give it a go. It took a few tries on different platforms, and now I’m pretty happy with my WordPress blog.
Interestingly, the less I worried about what people might think and whether my writing was perfect or not, the better the words flowed. I’ve realised that the more I blog about stuff I enjoy, and because it brings me joy, the easier it is to press publish!
What’s my favourite blog post so far?
I think my favourite blog post is the thing with spicy food. It was genuinely a lot of fun to write and such a funny concept. I’m not great with spicy food – a mild curry is about my limit – and it made me think lol this could be a fun and relatable post to write about. Everyone has an opinion on spice, you know? They either love it or hate it!
How’s your creative writing journey going?
Yeeeeeah, it’s fair to say I haven’t even looked at my novel drafts in well over six months. It’s hard when you’re busy! I spent a while working on my novels and they say it’s good to take a break and come back with fresh eyes – and I will! Besides, blogging is fun and a good way to keep the writing muscle ripped.
I would definitely like to talk more about my writing and any tips I’ve learnt along the way and hear about your guys’ writing journeys too!! Are you an aspiring novelist like me? Do you want to be traditionally published or self published? Or are you already published?? Let me know!
What advice would I give to new bloggers?
Just wing it! As a new blogger myself, I’m still getting my head around it! It can definitely seem quite daunting. I think it’s helpful to remember why you wanted to start a blog in the first place: i.e to write about whatever it is you are passionate about or that you enjoy or think is interesting! Pizza, movies, cooking, whatever! I write about pretty much anything I think is interesting because I enjoy it!
Don’t get too bogged down about views and statistics. It’s easy to look at some blogs and accounts and compare. Remember, you’re just starting out! Sometimes I feel disheartened when I don’t get many views on a post or followers on instagram – but so long as my stuff is out there and I’m writing, I honestly don’t really care too much! It’s a win when I publish a post! And when I do get a like or a new subscriber or a follower, it always makes my day. I appreciate my little community!! Shout out to you who is reading this! 🙂 So yeah, as a relatively new blogger, just focus on actually writing and getting your stuff out there and the little wins along the way.
rebekah writes stuff. 