If you could go back in time and give your new writer self some advice, what would it be? (With S.D. Grimm!)

We are kicking off our third week in July. I can't believe the summer is half over already! This week we have special guest author S. D. Grimm with us. I'm super excited to hear what writing advice she has to share. Here is a little more about her:

S.D. Grimm’s first love in writing is young adult fantasy and science fiction, which is to be expected from someone who has been sorted into Gryffindor, is part of the fire nation, and identifies as rebel scum. Her patronus is a red Voltron lion, her spirit animal is Toothless, and her office is anywhere she can curl up with her laptop and at least one large-sized dog. You can learn more about her novels at www.sdgrimm.com.

I had the honor of reading S. D.'s newest release, Phoenix Fire, for an endorsement, and I loved it! Check out what this story is about: 

After spending her life in foster care, Ava has finally found home. But all it takes is a chance encounter with hot nerd Wyatt Wilcox for it to unravel.

Now, things are starting to change. First, the flashes of memories slowly creeping in. Memories of other lives, lives that Wyatt is somehow in. Then, the healing. Any cut? Gone.

But when Cade and Nick show up, claiming to be her brothers, things get even weirder. They tell her she’s a Phoenix, sent to protect the world from monsters—monsters she never knew existed. It’s a little hard to accept. Especially when they tell her she has to end the life of a Phoenix turned rogue, or Cade will die.

With Wyatt’s increasingly suspicious behavior, Ava’s determined to figure out what he’s hiding. Unless she can discover Wyatt’s secret in time and complete her Phoenix training, she’ll lose the life, love, and family she never thought she could have.

Welcome, S. D.! Our first panel question of the week is:

If you could go back in time and share one practical tip and one piece of inspiration with yourself as a new writer, what would they be? 

Sarah: Have you read that gorgeous quote by Erin Hansen: "What if I fall?" "Oh, my darling, what if you fly?" It gets me every time. It sends shivers though my spine because, yes, this is scary. And hard. But the dreamer part of me embraces the possibility of flying, like I'm sure it does you. ;) So don't let fear win. Jump.

Stephanie: My practical tip would be: “Start using action and emotion beats instead of dialogue tags.” My writing became much smoother when it wasn’t so weighed down by the dialogue tags.
My inspirational tip would be the quote from Michael Crichton that, “Great books aren’t written. They’re rewritten.” I always had unfair expectations of what my first drafts should look like, and I know it would have helped me immensely as a new writer to know that edits are a natural part of telling a great story.

Shan: Oooo. I think my practical tip would be, “Don’t worry about being an author right now. Worry about being a writer.” We have a tendency to focus on career goals early on and while that may work for some people, it can distract from the process of actually writing your first novel. Write first. World domination later.

My bit of inspiration would be “Settle in for the long haul.” It’s a painful bit of advice, but it’s more true than anything else I’ve ever heard about writing. For most of us, becoming an author does not happen overnight. It’s not like you finish your first manuscript and someone hands you a diploma and a six figure salary. It’s painstakingly hard work and your schedule is not the only one you’ll have to navigate. There are a lot of professionals involved in the process of a traditionally published author. It is most definitely a long haul.

Jill: Practical tip: “Jill, stop worrying about scene structure. That’s not how your brain works, and that’s okay. Just enjoy writing the story and see how it turns out. That will serve you much better.”

Because I was obsessed with trying to make my scenes fit into Dwight Swain's scenes and sequels, and while it worked sometimes, sometimes it didn't. And I spent years agonizing about what I was doing wrong.

Inspirational quote: Steph stole mine! LOL! Seriously, though. That Michael Crichton quote is my absolute favorite writing quote ever, and I needed to hear it so badly when I was starting out. But Steph didn’t put the whole thing, so I think I can use it again: “Books aren't written—they're rewritten. Including your own. It is one of the hardest things to accept, especially after the seventh rewrite hasn't quite done it.” I needed to hear that about the seventh rewrite. I needed to know that was normal. And I needed to know that my book wasn’t going to be perfect the first time. When I learned to give myself permission to write a messy first draft as I floundered to find that story, I was finally able to create without stress.

What about you, writers? 

If you could go back in time and give yourself some advice, what would it be?