Ingrid Law: How I Write #COBookMonth

Today, Ingrid Law is stopping by for a Q&A feature for the “How I Write” Colorado Book Month Edition! Many thanks to Ingrid for answering my questions!

 

Are you a planner (outline, etc.) or do you “pants” it?

I am a plunger, or a ‘pantser,’ at heart, but I’m working on improving my planning/plotting skills in order to become a more balanced (and hopefully more productive) writer. As writing styles go, both plunging and plotting have their strengths and their weaknesses. Becoming skilled in both can only be a plus… I’m guessing.

Do you write daily or sporadically when you’re inspired?

These days, I try to write daily. But, as a plunger/pantser, one inspired writing day can be worth a week of uninspired days. Still, I make the attempt nearly ever single day.

Do you have any writing quirks?

I have to change the place where I write every few months. Whether it’s moving to a different chair in the house, renting a small office space, taking up residence in a local library, or finding a random quiet place with a table and a chair (like the cafeteria at a hospital, or the public waiting area of some office building), I need to mix things up. As soon as a place starts feeling like ‘work’ to me, I ditch it. I never want writing to feel like drudgery. But I don’t write well in noisy places… so, no coffee shops for me!

How do you overcome writer’s block?

I could lie and tell you a load of bunk about how I just power through, or how I don’t believe in writer’s block, or how I have a magic spell that makes me write up a storm whenever I feel blocked. In truth, I usually just mope around and cry a lot. Then I tell myself that the spark WILL return. It always does, but sometimes it takes a wretchedly long time to catch flame. Still, someone famous once said that the hardest thing to fix is a blank page, so I always make an attempt (THEN I mope and cry).

What are your thoughts on traditional publishing vs. self-publishing?

I believe a lot of things are changing in both arenas right now. I think the stigma surrounding self-publishing, the old-fashioned idea of self-publishing being a ‘vanity project,’ is fading rapidly now that e-readers and e-books are becoming so prominent and people are loosing patience with the many obstacles that come into play when trying to get in with a large publishing house. That said, I would truly miss the support of my agent, my editor, and my publisher… school/library department folks, marketing and sales reps, my publicist… they all do so much for me. I feel that my books are better, and more widely read, because of these people. It will be interesting to watch and see what the future brings for the publishing industry.

What types of writing events have you participated in (NaNoWriMo, conferences, workshops, etc.)? Which was your favorite?

Being an inveterate introvert (Oh! That was nice alliteration, no?), I haven’t attended too many conferences and workshops as a writer. Though, the ones I have participated in have been very helpful. My favorite was a conference called Writing for Young Readers, at BYU, that I attended about a decade before I ever tried to get published. I got to spend a week writing with Tim Wynne-Jones in the mornings, then attending break out sessions in the afternoon. My favorite break out session was Eve Bunting’s: Getting through the Miserable Middles. So helpful! My favorite conference that I attended as a speaker, after my first book was published, was the Summer SCBWI Conference, in Los Angeles. SCBWI is a great organization for aspiring writers.

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