Write Away: A Year of Musings and Motivations for Writers

by Kerrie L. Flanagan, Jenny Sundstedt

Write Away; A Year of Musings and Motivations for Writers, can help you keep your writing on track. It provides resources, tools and inspiration to help you achieve writing success. Write Away; A Year of Musings and Motivations, combines monthly insightful and humorous stories about writing, with tips, tools and interactions that encourage writers to reflect on where they are and where they want to be. From Writing Naked to Writing an Effective Query Letter, the essays remind readers of the unique nuances in the life of a writer and provides practical advice for strengthening skills and knowledge. Each month opens with a place to record writing goals and action plans. A back section provides resources and tools to help writers stay on track and stay informed. Inspirational quotes, reflective questions, and short exercises keep motivation and writing energy flowing. Let Write Away help you to become the writer you always dreamed of becoming. “'Write Away'” promises to be a quintessential writer’s tool, proving to be useful, month after month, for years to come.It has something useful for every writer, from the novice in the coffee shop, to the published guru sporting his or her own section at Barnes and Noble." "Sage, supportive, and often very funny, the short essays step the reader through a year of reflection and inspiration, sweetening the goals and challenges of the writing profession with vignettes drawn from the fabric of daily life.The beauty of the book lies in this ability to inspire through the everyday." Add Write Away to your cart so you can begin creating the writing life you always dreamed of.

Genres: Writing

220 pages, Paperback

First published May 24, 2014

About the author

Kerrie Flanagan is an accomplished freelance writer with over 20 years of experience, writing instructor and author. She is the author of the Writer's Digest Guide to Magazine Article Writing in addition to 14 other books. She also writes with a coauthor under the pen names, C.G. Harris (Sci-Fi/Fantasy) and C.K. Wiles (Romance) In addition to her own work, she guides writers to reach their full potential through individual consultations, presenting at writers conferences around the country and teaching workshops.

When she is not writing you will find her hanging out with friends & family, enjoying the Colorado outdoors, sipping on good wine and eating potato chips.

http://www.KerrieFlanagan.com

Reviews

[Alan Livingston · Rating 2 out of 5]

As I post this, I am the first non-Coloradoan to rate this work. Of the four five-star ratings posted in Goodreads, one is the author, who is also the publisher (the second five-star rating). The third five-star rating is the current Director of “Northern Colorado Writers” (the author is the “founder and former Director”). The fourth five-star rating is an author in Colorado, but if she is part of Northern Colorado Writers, I neither know nor care. Those two also posted similarly wonderful ratings on Amazon, but the author seems to have not (at least not using her own name). Why the “co-author” did not put her own five-star rating, I don’t know; perhaps she has a conscience.

The technique of posting outstanding ratings of your own work, and getting others you know to do so as well is not mentioned in this book, but it certainly is effective. When I first saw the listing, I did not drill down into those wonderful ratings. I just saw the five-star overall coupled with a low price of $3.99 for the Kindle version. I bit the hook. Now I realize I could have enhanced my own sales if I had padded my own ratings like this author has done. Alas, I did not; will not; never will. I cannot imagine that any reputable author would ever do so.

Normally, I might refer to other readers’ high ratings as proof that there is value in the work that I simply did not see, chalking it up to my own shortcomings. With the qualifications noted above, that’s out the window. The good news is that this is a breeze of a quick read, set up in an intriguing format; a workbook attempting to guide novice writers through each month of the year.

“Musings…for Writers”? More like musings of two people during the kids’ naps, while the cookies are baking, or waiting in the car to pick up at soccer practice. It’s easy to visualize the “co-authors” taking out their little notebook and quickly jotting down thoughts that became these “musings”. It appears more time was invested in the creation of their Hemmingway-ish synopsis. If you can see yourself finding value by completing workbook sections guiding you to imagine your prospective characters walking the red carpet, this might be for you. If you’re likely to see a cheap rip-off of the George Clooney movie “Up In The Air” when it’s suggested you build your “Writing Knapsack”, then this may NOT be for you. (Although, a gold star for mentioning that Stephen King’s “On Writing” should be in that knapsack.)

“Motivations for Writers”? Different things motivate different people, it’s true. But, as described in their posting of their Amazon synopsis, “Promises to be a quintessential writer’s tool, proving to be useful, month after month, for years to come. It has something useful for every writer, from the novice in the coffee shop, to the published guru sporting his or her own section at Barnes and Noble”?? Wow. Really? Uh, “War and Peace” this ain’t.

There are many books on the market able to inspire and motivate writers much more successfully than I found this to be. I’ve rounded up to 2-star as acknowledgement this book may inspire someone.

I could recommend this to teenagers or people with similar short attention spans, or young moms who have precious few moments to invest in guidance to fuel their writing dreams. “Different strokes for different folks”, so for many, this might be just as wonderful as those padding ratings by the author and her friends suggest. For me, it was not.

[Sheala Henke · Rating 5 out of 5]

For me personally this book is a five star pick me up! It applies needed motivations in fun and engaging way for writers of all genres, ages and experience. My own personal copy is dog-eared and highlighted right down to the spine bone! I've already gifted out two other copies to friends and students who write and they have already started in with the current month of motivations and tips to propel their writing in whatever direction they see fitting their lives.

[Umma]

*review to come*

[Patricia Stoltey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good advice and lots of fun reading.

[Hot Chocolate Press · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kerrie Flanagan and Jenny Sundstedt's "Write Away" is a truly inspiring book that all writers should own. Part writing devotional, part planner, part motivator, the book is a wonderful resource that pushes its reader to the next level of writing. Whether you struggle with creativity, organization, procrastination, whatever your writing poison, Flanagan and Sundstedt are sure to inspire you to overcome any hurdle creating a block in your writing career.

"Write Away" is organized into motivational thoughts and snippets of illumination month by month. There's also room for notes, goals, ideas and even doodles at the end of section, which I really appreciate. So many times I read something, get an idea and forget it a few days later, but this resource makes sure I immediately get a chance to apply whatever the chapter's just taught me. In fact, each section is like a mini-class at a writing conference, something you can chew on and incorporate into your writing in the days ahead.

I would definitely recommend "Write Away" as one of the better writing resources I have ever read. It is the perfect mix of inspirational thoughts and practical exercises/ideas.