9:00 a.m. My first client called saying she’s running ten minutes late. I chat with co-workers and play with my hair. More hairspray here, straighten side part, turn head side to side—done! Fabulous.

9:15 [...]]]> As a hairstylist, your day changes constantly. It’s full of surprises. A typical day could go something like this:

9:00 a.m. My first client called saying she’s running ten minutes late. I chat with co-workers and play with my hair. More hairspray here, straighten side part, turn head side to side—done! Fabulous.

9:15 a.m. My client arrives. Must listen to spiel about traffic. Shampoo her hair while she complains about water temperature.

9:20 a.m. My 9:30 client arrives. I listen as she informs me that her marriage is falling apart. “He won’t talk to me Katrina. He won’t even look at me. What do I do?” I crack my knuckles and put on my marriage counselor hat. She’s here for advice and I’m here to give it. 

10:00 a.m. I finally get my 9:30 client under the hair dryer, and begin styling my 9:00 client as she complains that I’m burning her ear when I’m are not even holding the curling iron. My comb is touching her ear. I explain that to her, but she stubbornly says that it’s my curling iron. I curl faster to get her out of my chair.

10:30 a.m. Shonda is coming, Shonda is coming, I chant as I twirl my curling iron through my client’s hair. You remember Shonda don’t you? Shonda loves to describe (in vivid detail) her new, *ahem* positions. Sadly, my fingers are not fast enough. She arrives and I learn, among other things, just how far the human leg can bend.

10:50 a.m. My co-worker just turned her client’s hair money green. I explain, (while keeping Incredible Hulk client at shampoo bowl. A screaming client is not a happy client,) how to correct the color.

11:00 a.m. My next client arrives.

12:00 p.m. My bladder is full, my stomach is growling, (in my client’s ear, no less) and my new shoes are pinching my left pinky toe. But I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Now, my days look something like this:

8:00 a.m. Daughter and I eat breakfast.

8:30 a.m. Begin morning lessons with daughter.

9:00 a.m. Let her watch Sesame Street, while I try to get writing done. Do not get any writing done. Spent an hour looking through author blogs, (hmmm…Tayari Jones posted fifteen links? Great, I’ll look through them all…)

9:58 a.m. “Mommy, it’s time to play dollhouse.” Great for imaginative play, bad for writing.

11:30 a.m. Daughter loves to be the Mommy when playing dollhouse. Being Mommy consists of: being on the computer, washing clothes, and saying, “Go to bed”. A lot.

12:15 p.m. Time for lunch.

12:30 p.m. Eat lunch and let her watch one episode of Wow! Wow! Wubbzy! Yes! Thirty minutes of computer time.

12:57 p.m. Play on Facebook. Nod head at Terry McMillan’s writing advice. Meditation and deep breathing before writing? Will do!

1:00 p.m. Nap time. Now, I can write. After I blog, play on Facebook some more, watch yesterday’s episode of Oprah and begin dinner (meatloaf or chicken?), I open up my Word document and see my darling daughter standing next to me. “I’m awake,” she announces.

My days were more exciting as a hairstylist, but I can definitely say that my days are more fulfilling now. I know that these days of being a stay-at-home mom won’t last forever. I cherish the days that I have with her.

I am guilty of either looking behind me, (“I miss the days when…) or looking in front of me, (“I can’t wait until…) that I miss right now. What is going on with me right now? I’m a wife, a mother, a good friend. I’m writing a book. Not only is my plate full, it’s full of things that are good for me. Looking in the past teaches, looking to the future builds hope, but looking at the here and now? That builds memories.

I was sitting at the kitchen table complaining about my lot in life. You know the whole ungrateful [...]]]> So I  mentioned to you last week, that my mother told me that I’m not all that. I have a loving mother and the comment sounds harsh, so let me give you some background information.

I was sitting at the kitchen table complaining about my lot in life. You know the whole ungrateful spiel us writers do sometimes:

“Why can’t my book get reviewed by (insert magazine here)?”

“Why can’t my book be published in hardcover?”

“Why can’t I go on a book tour, (sponsored by someone other than me?)”

My lovely, wonderful mother proceeds to provide me with a light bulb moment. “Because Katrina, you ain’t all that.”

“Do you think Oprah was always Oprah? She worked hard to get where she is. Do you think (insert well-known author name here) was always that way? They worked hard to get every reader they’ve got. Your book isn’t getting reviewed by People because you’re not ready for that yet. I put the emphasis on the yet,” she says as she touches my hand. “You did hair for over ten years. Would you expect a girl who has been doing hair for a year to get the same recognition as a veteran? No. Would you expect a hairstylist who had just finished her second client to announce that she is ready to work on celebrities? I don’t think so. Stop looking at everyone’s else’s cards and play the cards you are dealt. A debut author gets a huge advance and book is printed in hardback and gets reviewed in every magazine known to man? Good for them, but it ain’t happening to you. You’re supposed to be learning your craft right now, and you can’t do that by wishing your road was any different. You are a great writer, but don’t act like you know everything. You are still learning.”

Wow, right? Told you I have a great Mama!

I know I have a tendency to rush things. With my writing, I set up these crazy, unattainable goals for myself and get let down when I can’t reach them. Why? All so I can be like this person, or write like this person. What happened to writing like me?

Case in point. I wrote a novel that didn’t sell. While I was writing it, I deemed it my breakout novel. It was supposed to be my BIG book, you know the one all of us authors think will take us to the next level? I put so much effort into this book, and I have to admit was more than surprised when the rejection letters piled in. I focused so much of my efforts on what was supposed to happen that I didn’t look at what was happening—that in all my effort to be this serious writer—that the book didn’t ring true. It wasn’t me, or my voice. It took a full year for me to step away from that novel, and to take the criticisms that were scribbled on the bottom of those rejection letters:

“Great writing, nice flow—wrong story.”

“It’s potential here, but not in this book.”

So I took a deep breath and promised that I would never try to write like anyone else again. That if I was to continue to write, I would not flirt anyone else’s style. That I must write stories that are inherently mine, something that says, “This sounds like Katrina.”

It can be a hard pill to swallow as a writer to see your limitations. To know that there are stories in your head that you are not talented enough to write yet. Was I ready five years ago to write the story I’m writing now? No way. But I am now. So I wrap myself in my mother’s words that I’m not all that.

Yet.

As I write this, I am sitting behind a 23 inch monitor on my brand new computer.

I’m not bragging.

Really, I’m not.

Never in a million years would I think that Virginia Deberry and Donna Grant would be stopping by my blog this Friday. Lately, I’ve added author interviews to some of my blog topics and I enjoy doing [...]]]> Reached 49,266 words. Don’t know what spurned writing, but Church’s chicken probably didn’t hurt.

Never in a million years would I think that Virginia Deberry and Donna Grant would be stopping by my blog this Friday. Lately, I’ve added author interviews to some of my blog topics and I enjoy doing them. I like getting into author’s heads, finding out how their road to publication happened and learn something from the writing advice most of them share. And of course I love it when I see how different authors take care of their hair. Remember, this is Curl Up and Write—we can’t forget about the hair.

But with interviews you always wonder how far can you go. Can I really just email a bestselling author and expect them to: 1) reply back, and 2) say yes? Everyone is so busy, and it can be hard for authors to find the time to fill out a questionnaire. But surprisingly, in my experience I have found the bigger the name, the more gracious the authors are. (Mind you, this is in my experience. Not everyone will agree.)

When I went looking for authors to blurb Six O’clock, Essence bestselling author Mari Walker was gracious enough to reply with a winning blurb. The same went for Unbeweavable, Essence bestselling author Victoria Christopher Murray, loved my book. Both of these women probably would have never heard from me if I hadn’t made contact.

The lesson? Stop assuming that the authors (this really goes with any profession) with the big awards, the New York Times bestseller behind their name will be rude, snobbish and insensitive. Most of them remember when they too were new authors and they have empathy for us newbie’s—especially in this challenging market.

Like Mama always said, it never hurts to ask.

Bribe: anything given or promised to induce a person to do something against his or her wishes.

I bet if I my desk was made of Butterfinger’s, I would be sitting there [...]]]> I did write today. But the word count was so pitiful I couldn’t share it. Just trust me, it was bad.

Bribe: anything given or promised to induce a person to do something against his or her wishes.

I bet if I my desk was made of Butterfinger’s, I would be sitting there all day, writing. Write, nibble. Write, nibble. Yep, it’s getting that bad. I have to bribe myself to sit my butt down and write. But since I started Weight Watchers, I can’t use food. (Bye, bye Butterfinger…)

Here are a few of the things I plan to give myself if I push past the middle of my WIP:

A manicure and pedicure. Nothing like sitting your hands and feet in bubbly scented water to make you want to write.

Make-up. Particularly blush. I love blush.

Perfume. Because who doesn’t want to smell nice?

Now these rewards don’t come easy. It’s only after I add 5,000 words to my novel. Then, I get a treat day. Hopefully this works. If not—Hello Butterfinger!

In other news…

I have BIG, BIG, BIG news to share! This Friday, superstar authors Virginia Deberry and Donna Grant are stopping by Curl Up and Write! We dish about their new book Uptown, the publishing business, and of course, hair. Tomorrow, I’ll share how I got the opportunity to interview them. (Does not include any of the following: begging, arm-twisting, hair-pulling. Well, maybe a little bit of begging…)

So tell all your friends/writing buddies and stay tuned this week!

I’m losing it. [...]]]> 47,819 words. I know. I know that number hasn’t changed since my last post. Things are getting…rough. That word that I hate is starting to creep up my spine, telling me that I can’t finish, that I won’t finish, that I shouldn’t finish. Doubt. I am beginning to doubt myself…

I’m losing it. I was there guys, I swear. I was in the zone. The perfect writing zone where you can see yourself finishing your book in a couple of weeks. Sure, you have a mountain of revisions, but you’re close to the end…so close that your fingers keep wanting to type, THE END, at the end of each chapter.

But now I’ve lost it. I’ve lost some of my joy—for the past couple of days writing has felt like torture.

I hate that word. Torture. I use to roll my eyes at my Writer’s Digest when I read about a famous author’s writing angst.

“It’s not brain surgery,” I use to think to myself. “There are real people out there suffering and they’re complaining about writing? Shame on them!”

And now, shame on me. I look at my calendar, my word goal scribbled in a black Sharpie, and my heart feels with dread. So I cover papers over it—my daughter’s latest Crayola creation, a Victoria’s Secret catalogue, a Weight Watchers magazine—anything that will block out the promises I made that I would write that day.

So when I straightened my desk this morning and I see the total word count I had for the end of this month, my stomach plunges. I’m nowhere near that. What happened?

I didn’t feel like writing on those days. And now, I’m kicking myself for not making myself write. I’m a newbie, but with two books under my belt I do know this—the more you write, the more you feel like writing. Writing everyday kept my characters fresh in my head. I was excited to know what they were going to do that day. But now, since I haven’t written anything in awhile, I’ve lost touch with them. It’s sort of like when you’ve haven’t called a good friend in a long time. You’re next phone call is spent just catching up. But if they’re a good friend, you find that when you do catch up, you don’t miss a beat—it’s like you talked to them yesterday. So that’s what I plan to do with my WIP—get back in the groove with my characters and treat them like a good friend. Like I talked to them yesterday.

�

I like prologues. I like knowing what situation I plan on reading later in the book. In Unbeweavable, I start the book with a prologue. In my WIP, I start with a prologue. The unpublished book [...]]]> Up to 44,451 words on the work in progress. Feeling excited, like I’m in the zone.

I like prologues. I like knowing what situation I plan on reading later in the book. In Unbeweavable, I start the book with a prologue. In my WIP, I start with a prologue. The unpublished book that’s collecting dust in my drawer—prologue. I see a pattern here… 

So you guys can tell that I’m all for prologues. And since we’re on the subject, here’s a sneak peek of the prologue for Unbeweavable. Enjoy!

Prologue

July 15, 2009

Snip, Snip.

“Why you taking your weave out so early? This is some good hair,” Tameka said, her scissors gliding through my weave as another track fell to the floor.

“You know, just trying something different,” I said, looking at the weave that cost a month’s rent surrounding me.

“You should at least save some of this hair,” Tameka said, smacking her Juicy Fruit in my ear.

“No that’s okay,” I said feeling the stainless steel blades of the scissors remove my weave, my heart, my life.

“Don’t worry, you got a cute face. You can still rock a short ‘do. So what you in for today, a relaxer, a shampoo, what?”

“Um, today I just want to remove the weave. I can wash it at home.”

“What? Girl, in the three years I’ve been doing your hair you’ve never washed it yourself. Now stop playing and tell me what you really want.”

What I really wanted was to keep rocking my weave. It was my best friend, my baby, my soul. I couldn’t live without her. It wasn’t fair that this was happening. First my job, now my weave? What else could go wrong?

“You have a lot of confidence to do this, you know. My man would have a fit if he saw me without my weave. You don’t have to worry about that though. You don’t have a man.”

Another track hit the floor and I cried.

Half-way is the scary part of your novel where [...]]]> I have written 41,221 words on my latest work-in-progress. I’m happy that I have so many words down on paper, but it’s not time for cheering yet. Technically, I’m only half-way there. (I like my novels to be about 85,000 words before I begin revisions.)

Half-way is the scary part of your novel where you’re too far in to start over, and too far away from finishing. With two novels under my belt, I know I can get through this part to get to the sweet victory of the end. But with every book, I find myself asking, “How am I going to get this done?” A few tricks that help me:

Buy a Desk Calendar and Make Appointments To Write

Most days are filled with an objective word count that I want to hit. Why not everyday? Because for me, it’s unrealistic. I can’t write everyday and saying that I would sets me up for failure. I have a life outside of my writing. But I do try to keep the appointments I’ve set up, and most of the time, I’m successful.

Know When To Quit

I’m not talking about my book. No, never that. I know when to stop for the day. On some days writing can feel like torture, like pulling my fingernails out one by one. (Well, not that bad I’m sure, but you get the picture). I still make myself write on those days, but I don’t force myself to hit my word count goal for the day. If I’ve been sitting in my chair for a considerable amount of time and the words aren’t flowing, I give it up and try again later—preferably the next day.

Use Scenes Instead of Word Count

Sometimes thinking of getting down 1,500 words a day can seem daunting. On the days that it does, I decide to write the next plotted scene, or sequence of events. Most of the time, I get my word count in, but without all the added stress.

Most of these tips keep me going until I can type the sweetest words to any writer’s ears—THE END.