5 Tips from Shery Ma Belle Arrieta-Russ

5 Tips for Achieving Your Writing Goals
by Shery Ma Belle Arrieta-Russ (mailto:shery@writesparks.com)

1. Make your goals achievable.

By achievable, we mean realistic and attainable. You might unconsciously have set a goal even others will have a hard time achieving, even if they had the means and the time to do so.

Here's what you can do: break down your goals into small, realistic goals set against reasonable time frames. Oftentimes, you'll achieve your bigger goals if you work on achieving the smaller goals leading to those. The important thing is that your make your goals as realistic and as achievable as you can.

2. Believe in your abilities.

Success hugely depends on one and only one person -- you. So, do you believe enough in yourself and in what you can do to achieve your goals? Self-doubt is your biggest adversity and the biggest obstacle on your way to success. Is it possible you lost focus of your goals because you have unconsciously set aside having to deal with your self-doubts?


3. Devise a feasible plan.

You know what you want, but do you know how to get what you want? Do you need technical or artistic training to achieve your goals? Or perhaps further studies? Do you have a set plan of action that will lead to the achievement of your goals? What things, both tangible and intangible, do you need to aid you in reaching your goals?

Take a moment to sit down and list the things you need and make your plan of action. This is a good time to break them down into small, realistic goals and then tackle them one day at a time!


4. Resist spreading yourself too thinly.

Sometimes, it's better to work on one goal at a time, rather than doing and shooting for so many all at the same time. Work on so many goals at one given time and you'll find out you're nowhere near achieving even one goal. You won't be able to focus your full energy on one goal.

Prioritize your goals and start with either your top priority or your most realistic goal. You'll discover you're able to do more and achieve more using this approach.


5. Don't be easily disheartened.

Along with believing in your ability to achieve your goals, this is the second most important thing you need to do. Yes, you do the steps necessary to achieve your goals, but after one or two failures, do you give up and stop trying?

Persistence and patience are the keys to achieving your goals and eventually success. Always remember that it's very rare for people to achieve total success or attain their goals on the first try. If they did, there'll be no need to build self-confidence, patience and persistence.

Now that you've read these five tips, start your way to attaining your writing goals today!


Copyright (c) 2004 Shery Ma Belle Arrieta-Russ

[ And just in case you have a web site or publish an e-zine, feel free to reprint this article. Just don't forget to include my resource box below. And please publish my article as is, without any alteration. ]

=> Resource Box <=

Shery created WriteSparks! - a software that generates over 10 *million* Story Sparkers for Writers. Download WriteSparks! Lite for fr*e - http://writesparks.com
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Here are 5 prompts to try out this week, Francia. They're from my book, WEEKLY WRITES: 52 Weeks of Writing Bliss!, which contains over 365 writing activities, prompts and ideas to fill up your journal.

1. List at least 5 situations you hope you never have to find yourself in. Then write the courses of action you would take if you do find yourself in those situations. (Week 14 - Indecision)

2. What are some of the things you expect from yourself? List ten to fifteen of these expectations, pick one and then write about it for ten minutes. (Week 40 - Expectations)

3. Build a story from this weird or absurd news: "In an attempt to get a date, a man in Turin, Italy arranges at least 500 bump-and-stop car accidents with young female drivers." (Week 22 - Absurdities)

4. Create a superstitious society. Invent omens and superstitions and make these the driving forces behind the actions of the people in your society. (Week 38 - Warnings)

5. Someone you have never gotten along with for years suddenly steps up and says hello to you while you are walking in the park, shopping or having coffee. She strikes up a conversation as if the two of you are the best of friends. How would you react? (Week 15 - Reactions)


Lately, I've been receiving inquiries from WriteSparks!(tm) Lite users if I intend to compile the WriteSparks!(tm) articles in an e-book so they'll have one file to open up whenever they feel the need to go back to the articles and inspirations. I always do my best not to disappoint, so compile the articles I did :o)

The previous 27 articles, including the writing sparks, are now in an e-book. It's a PDF and readable using Adobe Acrobat Reader.

=> http://writesparks.com/wsarticles.zip
(Download this file if you have Winzip. Unzip the program to your Desktop.)

=> http://writesparks.com/wsarticles.pdf
(Download this file if you do not have Winzip. Choose to save it to your Desktop.)

And if you want a print copy of the article collection and you're in the US, send $5 to my Paypal address, sheryruss@gmail.com. I'll mail you a print copy and throw in a booklet containing 365 prompts taken from the WriteSparks!(tm) software. If you're outside the US, send $10.

So knock yourself out, Francia... be inspired and motivated, and most of all -- keep on writing!


Best,
Shery Ma Belle Arrieta-Russ
WriteSparks! creator
http://writesparks.com


PS: Start journaling in 2008! My book, The Authentic Self: Journaling Your Joys, Griefs and Everything in Between, will get you started right away. You'll be journaling all the way through 2008. Order an autographed copy today and receive a bo.nus gift. Shipping is fr.ee anywhere in the US :o).

=> http://writesparks.com/lm/link.php?id=419ba85authenticself

The Forces of Nature in Your Stories by Shery Ma Belle Arrieta-Russ (mailto:shery@writesparks.com)

Nature plays a big role in stories. Nature can make a character more authentic because it can influence his/her action or behavior.

If you ever find yourself stuck on to how to describe one of your characters, add a force of nature in your character description. Describe how your character behaves or reacts during a bad (or good) weather.

Take for example a few movies where forces of nature were vital. Imagine how the characters and the plots would change if the following forces of nature were taken away:

~ the tornado in the Wizard of Oz
~ the lightning in Phenomenon (John Travolta)
~ the volcanic eruption in Dante's Peak (Pierce Brosnan)
~ the icebergs in the Atlantic in Titanic (Leonardo diCaprio)
~ the avalanche in Vertical Limit (Chris O'Donnell)

Try to substitute another force of nature in the examples above and see how it affects the story and the characters.

Try it yourself on the following:

1. Deanna Ball possesses a strong sense of duty. She's stuck in a traffic jam. Force of nature: Earthquake

2. Randall Graves is people-oriented and works well with others. He's in a bar watching afternoon football with friends. Force of nature: Snowstorm

3. Dessa Woods has an intimidating personality. She's on vacation with a couple of friends. Force of nature: Avalanche

4. Geoff Earhart is organized and methodical in his approach to everything. He's been ordered to recover a vital piece of equipment from a capsized ship. Force of nature: Lightning storm

5. Mac Taylor is the persistent type. He's been trailing a woman who looked like his best friend's dead wife. Force of nature: Torrential rain


Copyright 2004 Shery Ma Belle Arrieta-Russ