Tag: books

creativity

In the pause: Finished the second chapter of the prequel to my novel

Christa Avampato

On Thursday night, I went to a networking event and then had a chunk of free time before meeting my friend, David, for a drink after his show. I grabbed a piping hot slice of cheese pizza, eating properly off of a paper plate while walking around Hell’s Kitchen. It was a perfect, cool evening that filled me with inspiration and possibility. Then I settled in for dessert, coffee, and wine at the wine bar where I was meeting David. I sat down and wrote the second chapter of the prequel to my novel, long-hand in my notebook. It’s told from the perspective of Oliver, Emerson’s father. It didn’t go at all the way I planned. I didn’t see any of it coming until the words came flowing out of my pen.

This is what happens when we spend a lot of time with characters. We don’t have to worry about what they’ll say or do next. We just sit down, tune out our world, and tune into their world to watch, listen, and get it all down as authentically, honestly, and quickly as we can. The story broke my heart. The characters say and do things that they regret. They hurt each other and love each other in equal measure. They’re stubborn, intelligent, and righteous. They’re real people with deep flaws and immense gifts. They’ll be their own undoing and their own saviors. They’ll have to be.

This second chapter will be released to the members of my mailing list on Saturday, July 1st. To receive this exclusive content, add your information to my mailing list.

creativity

In the pause: The difficult and uncertain trade-offs of creative work

Christa Avampato

“It’s a real book!”

That’s what my friend, Alex, said to me when she saw the layout proof of the first page of my novel. She’s right; everyday Emerson becomes more real. For many years, her spirit lived in my mind. I had to introduce her to the world. So I started to write down her story. There were nights I didn’t go out. Places I didn’t go, things I didn’t do, people I didn’t see because I chose to stay home and write. I could have poured that time and effort into many other things. Some people thought I should (and told me so); they thought writing the book was a waste of time. All creative work looks like a waste of time until it’s done.

Now that the book will be published on November 1st, it’s easy to say and see that I wasn’t wasting my time, that it was worth the effort. But that’s not always the case. I toiled for years with no outward progress on it. Many times creative projects are like that—slow, uncertain, and frustrating. The thing is that I couldn’t stop writing the story. It would have haunted me. Emerson’s voice would have gotten louder and louder and louder until I had to sit down and write it. Creators have to create as much as they need to breathe, eat, and sleep. It’s a vital process.

So if you’re in the midst of a creative project, one that’s taking longer than you’d like, one that other people don’t understand, it’s okay. Every person who’s ever created anything has felt exactly what you’re feeling at some point in their own process. That’s part of the journey. Do the work you know you need to do, and tune out the noise. When it’s done, and I promise you that you can finish it!, the amount of pride and gratitude will be overwhelming in the best possible way.

creativity

In the pause: Finishing the first draft of my second novel by Labor Day

Christa Avampato

“Why don’t you finish your second book in the Emerson Page series by Labor Day?” my friend, Colleen, said to me.

My response: Blink. Blink. Whaaaaat?

But since she said that to me, I can’t get the thought out of my mind. I’m moved into my new apartment, I’m interviewing and job searching, and I’m catching up with friends. I can do this. I wrote my first novel, Emerson Page and Where the Light Enters, while working full-time at a startup in a new city.

The first novel sets up so many threads for the second and the world building piece, the heaviest lift, is done. I just need to get it all down so why not set a wild writing goal for myself? And look, Toni Morrison wrote her first novel in 15-minute increments before falling into bed each night while she was a single working mother. She made time to write. I will, too.

Thank you for the push, Colleen. I’m going for it. First draft of Emerson’s second book has a deadline of Labor Day, September 4, 2017.

creativity

In the pause: Chapter 1 of the prequel to my novel is arriving in inboxes right now

Christa Avampato

I’m so excited to announce that Chapter 1 of the prequel to my novel, Emerson Page and Where the Light Enters, is arriving in inboxes at this very moment. I created it to send as a free gift to everyone who signs up for my mailing list. I’ll deliver a new chapter on the first of every month between now and October as we lead up to the launch of the book on November 1st. The only way to get the prequel is to sign up for the mailing list.

Each chapter will be told in the first-person and from the perspective of a different main character. All of the chapters take place on the same day so readers will be able to see this critical event in the book from many different angles.

Chapter 1 is a diary entry from the perspective of Nora Page, Emerson’s mother, as she makes the decision that will change Emerson’s life forever. Simply sign up for my mailing list and I’ll send it right over to you!

creativity

In the pause: Write your stories now

Christa Avampato

“I like stories where women save themselves.” ~Neil Gaiman

Screw patience. Do what makes you happy now. If someone asked me how I got to the point I am in my life now, as a person and as a writer, my answer would be “I’ve always been my own savior.” I’ve never expected anyone to fix anything or do anything for me. I don’t want or wait well. All I really know how to do is roll up my sleeves and get to work. Sometimes that work is with other people like my experience in theater, and sometimes that work is on my own like sitting down to write my book. Some call it feisty, others call it fiery, and I call it building a life I love.

Our time is so precious and so short. It flies by despite our efforts to slow it down. Every day matters. Don’t bottle yourself up or tell yourself , “Someday, I’ll do what I love.” Do it now. Some day is today, every day. I promised myself a long time ago that I wasn’t going to die with the music, or the books, still in me. I was going to live and write out loud. However improbable my book seemed, I was going to find a way to get it done. And I did. You will, too. Keep writing.

creativity

In the pause: Making a writer’s life on the streets of New York City

Christa Avampato

In New York City, I find inspiration on every corner. My novel is set on the Upper West Side of Manhattan and deep below the streets of New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Central Park, and the Hayden Planetarium at the American Museum of Natural History figure prominently into the story and serve as powerful settings for the events that unfold for Emerson and the other characters. This weekend, I walked through areas of the Upper West Side that inspired bits of dialogue and the actions of the story. I could feel them as I walked down those streets. I could see scenes play themselves out. Being a writer is the best virtual reality system there is—all of a sudden the world becomes a stage and you create every detail of the players who move through it. I wonder what stories are still waiting for me on those magical streets.

creativity

In the pause: As a writer, you can shake the world

Christa Avampato

“In a gentle way, you can shake the world.” ~Gandhi

Writers, you are leaving a legacy with every word you get down. Your words can change hearts and mind. Thy can connect you to people, and connect people to one another. If you write what you wish to see, you can then build it and inspire others to help you create that vision. You are brave to tell the world what you think and how you feel. So many people keep themselves and their thoughts locked away from others. I urge you now to tell your stories. There are people who need to hear them. There are people for whom your stories will help them get through a difficult time. Your work has value but only if you share it. Sharing is caring. Writing is giving. Care and give.

 

creativity

In the pause: Food, books, and the spirit

Christa Avampato

“I have the audacity to believe that peoples everywhere can have three meals a day for their bodies, education and culture of their minds, and dignity, equality, and freedom for their spirits. I believe that what self-centered [people] have torn down, [people] other-centered can build up.” ~Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

I heard this quote yesterday at the Capital Area Food Bank’s Hunger and Health Summit. The excellent panel of nonprofit leaders and doctors explained that we may be on the doorstep of realizing as a society that healthy food is the most critical social determinant of health, that food is to our health what books are to our minds, what freedom is to our spirit. In these past weeks, I have been thinking about what I can do with the Breaking Bread Podcast to bring together my passions for food (particularly in terms of providing healthy food for those who are challenged with food insecurity), books, and meaningful conversation. If I toss all of that into the blender, there’s something there. I’m not sure exactly what it is just yet, but it’s starting to become clearer. I’m open to ideas and suggestions so if you’ve got ’em, fire away.

 

creativity

In the pause: People will tell you that you’re not a writer. Ignore them and write.

Christa Avampato

“There are always going to be skeptics. Prove them wrong.” ~Robert Kiyosaki

10 years ago this month, I made a pledge to write every day and it’s a pledge I’ve kept. Being a writer was the only thing I ever really wanted to be. I had a lot of people in my life who were very supportive of that path. But there were skeptics, some of them very loud. Once a close friend of mine told another close friend of mine that I was wasting my time trying to be a writer. I should just focus on my business career because that was something I was good at, and being a writer wasn’t. I was shocked and hurt. It stung. A lot. To be honest, it still stings all these years later. It shouldn’t, but it does.

On your path as a writer, wherever you might be right now, you may encounter similar people. And it may surprise you who those people turn out to be. Skepticism can really hurt, but it can also make you very strong. When my friend said that about me, I was upset and I decided right then and there that I was going to prove him wrong. I was going to keep writing every day and I was going to get good at it, very good at it.

And you know what I found? His opinion really didn’t have anything to do with my writing. I wasn’t writing for him. I was writing for the people I could help, and I was writing to bring myself joy. I love writing. I am intensely passionate about my craft, sharing my work, and inspiring others to write. It’s the work I’m meant to do.

The skeptics are always going to be there. Turn down the volume of their voices to zero. They aren’t for you and you aren’t for them. Send them on their way—in the opposite direction that you’re going. Move toward your own voice and your own writing.

 

creativity

In the pause: How every author writes a book

Christa Avampato

“When your why is big enough, you will find your how.” ~Les Brown

From the base of the mountain, the climb always looks long and difficult, even impossible. Every climb, no matter how tough, progresses the same way—one movement at a time. Every book ever written has been written the same way—one word at a time, by first time authors and master storytellers alike. When you sit down to write you are taking part in a great ritual that has been around since the beginning of human language. Let the strength of that ritual carry you.

There are plenty of reasons to not do the work. Our distractions are endless, and when we use up the distractions we have, we can always find or make new ones.

Do this: give yourself five minutes. Just get something down. Anything. See where it takes you. It doesn’t have to be great. It doesn’t even have to be good. It just has to be yours. One word at a time. That’s all you have to do right now.