Guest Blogger Sage Cohen on: Naming Your (Writing) Paradise x 4

Today's guest post is extremely well-timed though it wasn't planned that way. When I invited Sage Cohen to contribute a post during January, she picked this date. It not only coincides with the start of my *I Should Be Writing!* Boot Camp class, but it closely follows my post from last week about how I’d like to approach 2011 as a writer.

Please welcome Sage Cohen.

Happy New Year, writers! I’m delighted that Lisa has invited me to share a few ideas from my new book, The Productive Writer.

As we face the blank page of 2011, I propose that we set some intentions for who we want to be in our writing lives this year and what we intend to create. Dave Ellis, founder of Falling Awake and author of Becoming A Master Student, suggests that since we generally accomplish 25 percent of the goals we set, we should aim for Paradise x 4 in order to ultimately arrive at Paradise.

I have found this to be one of the simplest and most effective strategies in my writing life. It gives me permission to dream bigger than what seems realistic. As a result, my experience of reality has expanded significantly as I’ve achieved the majority my Paradise x 4 goals. I have come to believe that the inverse of “That which we resist, persists,” is “That which we name, we claim.”

Try it, I think you’ll like it.

The questions below are designed to help you start painting your own Paradise x 4 picture. Remember to aim wildly, embarrassingly high. And keep in mind that you’re not expecting to get all the way to Paradise x 4—just to hold it in your sights as you appreciate where you are today and tomorrow. In other words, don’t let your ideas of what’s possible stop you from answering these questions with your Big Dreams.

What do you intend for your experience to be each time you sit down to write? (Inspired? Energized? Meditative?)

How many hours do you intend to write every week? What would the ideal pattern/rhythm be?

What are you striving to accomplish?

- How much work do you want to produce each day/week/month?
- How will you know when a piece is finished?
- What are your intentions for finished work? (Do you want to publish it? Share it with friends? File it away?)
- What steps will you take to fulfill those intentions?

How do you define success, in any or all of the following:

- Publication—how many times/which pieces per year?
- Money—how much per month/year/decade do you intend to earn?
- Awards—What awards or contests would you like to win?
- Leadership opportunities—What/how many teaching or speaking gigs are you striving for this year?
- Freedom/flexibility/continued time to write?

What kind of writing community do you intend to create?

What is the ideal mix of time spent working (at a job)/sleeping/playing/with friends and family/writing?

Now, take one last look at your answers to these questions. If there’s anything that sounds more like what you think you might be able to get, versus what you really WANT, please revise to include your true heart’s desire. Trust me on this one. The cosmic deck starts reshuffling somehow when we are precise as a pencil point about what we want to create and attract in our lives.

Keep in mind that your picture of Paradise x 4 will be continuously evolving. Throughout the year, you may have new ideas about what to expect from your writing life. Let your list be fluid as you clarify your vision and hone your aspirations along the way.

I’ll be stopping by back here on Lisa's blog throughout the day today and will be happy to answer any questions you might have – just leave them in the comments section.

Note from Lisa: Sage is offering a free, signed copy of The Productive Writer through a random drawing of folks who comment on this post by January 14.

Also, find more of Sage's thoughts on all that is possible in the writing life at her blog, where you can download a free "Productivity Power Tools" workbook companion to The Productive Writer, access other free tools and sign up for a complimentary newsletter. While there, also check out Sage's generous scholarship offers for her online classes.

Friday Fridge Clean-Out: Linkety-Link for Writers

►Go to grad school, get stuck on bed rest, wind up on a bad weather vacation with people you don't like, or get a job as a book reviewer, and you too will learn to read a book a day, maybe even for a week straight. But a book a day for a year? That's what this blogger is doing, and she's nearing the end.

►Poets & Writers now has an MFA database, with a list of all U.S. program, as well as the top 50 (traditional) programs, and other MFA-related resources.

►Noah Lukeman, literary agent and author of The First Five Pages, has an interesting take on whether it makes sense to accept an offer from a small press to publish one's first book (via Backspace).

►Per writing nonfiction in which loved ones appear, I was glad to be reminded recently of this insight from Scott Rosenberg's book Say Everything: "Writers who tell stories about themselves, their families, and friends always walk a tightrope: you fall off one side if you stop telling the truth; you fall off the other if you hurt people you care about, or use them as fodder for your career. Dishonesty to the left, selfishness to the right." (via The Daily Rumpus)

►No, I won't be writing a novel, but I've signed on again for November's National Novel Writing Month. Last year, my goal was to write an average of 1800 new words each day, and by the end of the month, I did have 53,000 words of new memoir material. This year I have a slightly different project in mind, but the idea is the same – accountability and a shove. If you are having trouble sticking to a writing routine, need an outside deadline/accountability partner (or, say 15,000 of them – that's how many completed the program last year), or if you simply want to boost productivity, it may be worth considering.

►We writers are such strange creatures, no? For example, yesterday my day was made (really, I was dancing in my office) when I received what is probably the best personalized REJECTION email of my career, from an editor I admire, at a publication I love, for a column I'm dying to crack, only the day after I sent in an essay submission. Like I said, strange.

►How do you define a prose poem -- and know when it is a prose poem you are writing and not an essay? Know any good resources on the topic of prose poetry? Weigh in on this and other genre-splitting questions (and read the excellent comments/advice) over the Practicing Writing blog.

►Beginning poets might want to consider signing up for Sage Cohen's free monthly e-newsletter.

►The work of two of my writing buddies is featured over at the More magazine website –Dionne Ford's piece is about swimming with her Grandmother, in A Five Generation Vacation, and Sari Botton's essay covers Finding Forgiveness on Facebook.

►Blog reminder – tomorrow (Sat., 10/17) is the last day to leave a comment and become eligible to win a one-year (four-issue) subscription to Prairie Schooner, a wonderful literary journal.

►This terrific New Yorker piece, a parody/rant about the way publishers now expect their authors to do practically all of their own book promotion, would be truly hilarious if it were true. Oh, wait, what's that you say?

►From the Department of Shameless Self-Promotion: This blog was listed among the Top 100 Writing Blogs by the Daily Reviewer; the list is worth a look for the many other great blogs included.

And, finally, if you're not already reading literary agent Nathan Bransford's blog (and in that case, we really must talk), or The Rejectionist, then you missed this great post about the publishing industry. Whoa.

Have a great weekend.

Summer reruns from writers worth a second look.

It's August. In New Jersey. Land of the Triple-H weather forecast – hazy, hot and (horribly) humid. While I'm at the pool, here is a list of suggested blog reruns for you: all author interviews or guest posts which get a fair share of traffic, and in my opinion are all worth a second look.

Writing memoir – Sue William Silverman

A poet in nonfictionland – Susan Lilley

Lessons learned while writing a novel – Christina Baker Kline

The mind of the essay writer – Candy Schulman

How to interview scientists – Jennifer Gresham

Book publicity journey of a first time author – Vicki Forman

Planned productivity – Sage Cohen

And, here's a guest post I wrote for a friend's blog, about how writers often say no to ourselves before we even give others the chance to say yes.

Happy reading. Poolside, I hope.