28. Experience My First Writing Course with Me
Say it with me, "Thank you, Rebecca Ross!" & a few firsts: poll, recommended book, new links & writing course
A few weeks ago, I spontaneously signed up for a writing course with a good internet friend of mine. We both love Rebecca Ross, and I just got my paycheck, so I thought why not? It was amazing. I was struggling (as you could tell in last week’s post) with editing and the road after a first draft. Through this course, I have found some fantastic inspiration and really great questions to ask myself in order to develop my characters and world better. It has reinvigorated my curiosity and imagination. Here are the notes I took:
May 20th: Day one! I am so excited. She talks about the books as if they are sentient, their own beings. I think I need to do so as well. By seeing it just as words on paper, I keep it as words on paper. The story, the character, is all REAL. I am 7 minutes in and feeling inspired to really write again for the first time in weeks. She is magic and grace and happiness!!
May 22nd: Day two! Finishing module one by going through lessons two and three. Yesterday, I didn’t do lesson two because of a long day at work. Today, I planned to finish so I can ask my questions before the deadline. I was still procrastinating starting, but now that I’m here … why?? I feel more creatively energized since Monday - since I last started this. She is asking questions that I haven’t considered. Inspiring me to question a draft that I was thinking of leaving for awhile. These are fundamental questions that I need to answer and that make me feel excited. I also feel daunted. How have I never considered these things? How have I missed them?
May 26th: Our live Q&A! A lot more people in the course means a lot of questions asked. Some applied to me and others didn’t, but I think it broadened my thinking. I feel like it’s important to understand and appreciate other avenues of writing. Overall, I learned that my writing style is MY writing style, and to take what resonates and leave what does not. Also, I’m fascinated with the way her mind works.
May 27th: I binged through the second week in one day since I had the day off. This week didn’t quite hit the same, and it’s because I haven’t really dived into my magic system. I had an overview but not the details. However, this did help because I was a bit overwhelmed with how I was going to start the system, tie it into my world, and make it consistent through characters. This gave me questions to answer and places to start.
June 4th: I was out of town and missed the second Q&A. I want to get the course done tonight because I’m really busy and watching dogs for a few days. I feel overwhelmed.
June 6th: Doing the whole third module in one evening! Feeling intrigued as I haven’t given much thought into folklore. I still need to rewatch the second Q&A, but I’m not sure when. OMG, she’s like me - both discovery writers and don’t love revising, but also she plans better than me. This makes me want to reread Divine Rivals so badly. She is magical, the way she makes me inspired to write. Like how? I constantly feel so inspired and excited after watching her videos. Without them, all I see is the ever long road ahead of me. Hopefully now with these wonderful ideas and guides, I can continue my changes and writing.
Oh, and I was worried about not listening to the live Q&A? I just did it now.
June 8th: The final live Q&A. I just finished it. Why am I kind of emotional? I guess I’m really grateful for it and for the experiences Rebecca shared. We have so many similarities - we went to the same university, we are both discovery writers, revisions aren’t as easy as drafting, and we both love Margaret Rogerson’s books. It’s inspiring to see someone so much like me who is living a dream of mine. She shared tips for overcoming future brutal reviews, how to get past those stuck stages, and just showed that we can all get through it. I’ll leave you with one of the last things she said:
How do you write a book that stands out? Write about something you love.
If I think about the last few weeks, it has shown me that I need to look outside my brain for inspiration and guidance. Asking for help, taking advice, and learning from experts will help me. That even when my brain tells me to procrastinate something, I will probably end up enjoying it because I know it is something that I like. So, I should write and edit even if my brain turns whiney - I’ll probably be happier. To not give up and to take it slowly. To turn my characters into real people, my magic into a sentient being, my world into one that breathes and lives.
A note for all of the links: I didn’t love linking to Goodreads since the platform is incredibly frustrating. I found a website, bookshop.org, which is all about supporting independent bookstores. I am going to try it out this week, but let me know if you would prefer to go back to Goodreads or Amazon! (these are affiliate links.)
Not In Love by Ali Hazelwood (Romance): June 11, 2024
Swan Song by Elin Hilderbrand (Romance): June 11, 2024
The Rom-Commers by Katherine Center (Romance): June 11, 2024
The Friday Afternoon Club by Griffin Dunne (Memoir): June 11, 2024
How to Age Disgracefully by Clare Pooley (Fiction): June 11, 2024
The Paris Window by Kimberly Belle (Mystery): June 11, 2024
Books I’ve compiled from mainly the NYT Bestsellers List, but also the B&N Top 100 and Amazon Bestsellers in no particular order. I’ve decided to simply add the books I haven’t before, since I’ve caught up to the new additions. If you’re curious, last week’s post can be found here.
Camino Ghosts by John Grisham (Mystery)
Southern Man by Greg Iles (Thriller)
First Frost by Craig Johnson (Mystery)
Eruption by Michael Crichton and James Patterson (Thriller)
Codename Nemo by Charles Lachman (Nonfiction)
The Housemaid is Watching by Freida McFadden (Thriller)
I’m bringing back Rebecca Ross for this week. She was my first ever author of the week, and she is my Writing Guru and Inspiration from this writing course. Plus, we graduated from the same university.
I became introduced to Rebecca Ross through her New York Times Bestseller book, Divine Rivals. I was able to read it at the beginning of November, and it was incredible! The second book released in December, Ruthless Vows, and it was *chefs kiss*. I have also read her Elements of Cadence duology, and I am consistently blown away by her lyrical writing. She led the writing course I just finished, and I truly am so grateful that I signed up. She has helped me expand my way of thinking and inspired me to keep writing and always ask questions.
Ross is a graduate from the University of Georgia (same!) with her degree in English. Although she had been a vivacious reader her whole life, her first few post grad jobs ranged from a dude ranch worker to a school librarian. She (thankfully) began writing at the end of 2014, and we have been blessed with her work ever since! She currently lives in north Georgia with her husband and a pup. Besides theVows of Enchantment and Elements of Cadence, she has also written The Queen’s Rising duology and two stand alone books, Dreams Lie Beneath and Sisters of Sword & Song.
Here is your sign to read her lovely fantasy novels, for both teens and adults. To find more information on her, visit her website or her Instagram.
Just a reminder to submit any books you think others will love on the R&R page or to my email: thesundayreads@gmail.com!
I have something VERY exciting. My first recommendation submission!!
The Miracle Child: Traumatic Brain Injury and Me by Kelly Lang and Michael Lang
Kelly emailed me last week and asked if I would consider putting their book in my newsletter. To which I replied, of course! This husband and wife duo wrote this book, which recounts their experiences over days and years following a horrific car accident that changed their lives. I haven’t read the book, but it looks truly moving and important to read. Below is the book summary.
"Mike, this is Kristin. Kelly and the girls were in a car accident," the recording from my answering machine says in the stillness of my home. I hold my breath and wait for the next line, telling me, ". . . but everyone is all right." It never comes.
Imagine parents with two young children, the husband recently laid off, saddled with a mortgage on a brand-new house, when the family's minivan is hit and forced through an intersection by a reckless driver. Their lives are altered forever, but the family commits to each other through various hardships over fifteen years, encouraged when a pediatric neurologist calls their three-year-old daughter "the Miracle Child."
In The Miracle Child: Traumatic Brain Injury and Me, Kelly and Michael Lang share their alternating and unique thoughts over the days and years following the tragic car incident that fractured their family and their lives, revealing the power of persistence, faith, acceptance, and above all, the commitment of family.
That’s all for today. Much love
Izzy
thanks for updating us on your writing class experience. I feel like they can be very yes or meh when it comes to learning experience. Not every writer is meant to be a writing teacher. Do you think you will try another class?
Absolutely loved reading your thought process during the course! Was so great to spontaneously start it together - I will remember it for the rest of my life. 🥹
You’re so right about how incredible Ross’ mind is. I was the same in constantly thinking ‘how did I not realize I needed to ask myself these questions?!’ - It looks like we both gained so much insight into ourselves as writers and the stories we want to write in general. 🩵✨