How to Get Re-inspired For Writing by Writing Longhand

Writing the beginning of a story is always a struggle for me because I have to warm up and set the scene for the story. That is one of the most difficult things about writing.
Therefore, over these past couple of weeks, I have tried to get over the hump of an awkward beginning and get my writing to flow. However, even though I was still interested in the story I was writing, the actual writing process discouraged me. I know that many writers say not to try to make the everything perfect, and to just write and get the story finished, but I was so uninspired by the writing process.
Over a period of time, I remembered how handwriting in notebooks as a kid made me excited, and got my creative juices flowing. Therefore, I decided to start writing longhand. I figured this was a way to keep me at ease because of its different medium, and its less structured way of writing as opposed to typing. Typing can feel overwhelming at times because it feels like everything has to be perfect. When writing in a notebook, I can just flow free and get words down quickly at any time of the day. I can carry it around and write in it in my spare time.

I got a blue flex leatherette journal at Rite Aid for $6.99 plus tax. It has 160 pages with 32 lines. This is a good size because it is not too big or too thick, but it has small enough lines to where I can get a lot of words on one page.

How I Outlined My Novel

I am currently in the works of writing the first draft of my young adult contemporary novel. I have always tried writing stories, but either stopped because I was bored with them, or had no idea where the story was going. I had previously gotten up to 32, 000 words with the same story I am writing now, but decided to stop because I felt like the story and the point of view were all over the place. That is when I decided I needed to outline. 

I tried outlining before, but I always gave up and just started writing the story because I could never find a way to outline that worked for me. I always wondered how much or little detail I should put in the outline, however, I feel like I have found a happy medium with my outline. I didn't want to put in too much detail so that I had no room to write, but I didn't want to put in too little detail in which it was too general.

Setting:

In order to start my outline, I figured out the setting and the characters before I started on the plot. Therefore, I first listed the possible settings in which my story could take place. I listed a couple cities and towns where the characters could live, and a link to Neighborhood Scout to help me find the right setting. This process is still in the works, but I have a general idea of where I want the story to take place. You don't have to know your setting right away unless it is an integral part of your story.

Academy of Art University at New York Fashion Week

This Friday I went to New York Fashion week to visit Academy of Art University's fashion show. The students designed and presented the clothing on the runway.

 I took this picture when I was walking down the street trying to find the place. That was it. I was like "wow, I get to go in there?"

 It was 9/11 so you could see the Empire State Building glowing red, white, and blue. 

My Top 5 Favorite Artists

I love a lot of music and artists but these are a couple of my favorite ones. I've found that some of my favorite artists changed as I expanded on music so I might do updates every now and then.

1. Switchfoot

Switchfoot is an alternative rock band started in 1996 in San Diego, California. I found out about them in sixth grade when I was listening to Slacker Radio after school one day. The first song I heard of them was "Mess of Me" and I was like what is this? because Jon Foreman's voice was so raspy to me and it sounded like he had made a mess of himself at one point in his life. I had never heard anything like that in my life because I had grown up listening to gospel or other types of Christian music; nothing that rocky. But now I love Jon Foreman's voice because it is so unique and differentiable because of its raspiness (I don't know if raspy is the perfect word to describe it). The second song I heard of Switchfoot was Awakening (still on Slacker Radio) and I fell in love. I was like wow, it just made me feel alive, and it paved the way for my future music taste. No band is like Switchfoot though, because of the band's talent and Jon Foreman's voice. I met them in the summer of 2012 in Indianapolis, Indiana. They were playing a free show, it ended up being fifteen minutes long but that was okay because I met them afterwards. Jon and Drew were the only ones there because Tim, Jerome, and Chad were at the Mall of America. I met them another time in 2014 at a concert in New York. I told Jon and Drew that I met them and they and Chad were like wow. But Jon was like "I think I remember you," but I don't know if he was telling the truth lol. I still haven't met Jerome though because he was busy having a baby at the time.

Top 5 Favorite Songs (In no particular order):
1. Red Eyes
2. Golden
3. Shadow Proves the Sunshine
4. Sooner or Later (Soren's Song)
5. Skin and Bones