I am seldom without a story idea. Some ideas are good, some are mediocre and some, upon retrospect, are just plain stupid. Thus, I rarely have a problem with coming up with something to write about. What I do have a problem with however, is staying focused, keeping my mind on the story at hand and my fingers on the keyboard channeling it from my attention-challenged brain to the ‘page.’

As my summer writing project, I am going through author Holly Lisle‘s “How to Think Sideways” writing course and a goal of the lesson I am presently working on is to identify my writing “Sweet Spot.” From this spot, a writer is be able to compose more comfortably, creatively and with more focus regardless of genre or requirement—a good skill to have considering today’s lightening fast and ever changing market. Thus, I was delighted to read author Brent Weeks’ July Writer’s Advice post on the subject of “Staying Focused.” As I read, I immediately saw parallels and connections between writing from the “Sweet Spot” and maintaining focus.

I’m not a big fan of re-posting (it kinda feels like cheating to me), so I offer a link to Brent’s site and the blog in question. The article may not have the same impact on others as it did me considering my present project, but it is a good article nonetheless containing excellent advice and concrete strategies for the focused-challenged writer.

I have heard that some author’s want their blog missives re-posted (credit being given where credit is due, of course) to presumably boost traffic to their sites (?). I’m not sure about that ‘tribal’ blog tradition and will have to look into it.

As an aside, I am about a fifth of the way through Beyond the Shadows, the last book of Brent’s epic fantasy “Night Angel” trilogy, and heartily recommend the set for a fun summer read.