Sharpen your Saw!

         There’s a story you might have heard about a man chopping wood. He’s having a hard time of it, though, because his saw is dull.

         A friend sees him and comments.“Why don’t you stop and sharpen your saw?”

         “Oh, no, I can’t do that,” the man responds. “I don’t have time. There’s too much wood to chop.”

         The fact is if that man stopped and sharpened his saw, he could chop more wood in a shorter time with less effort.

         Do we fall into the same trap? Do we keep working at our characters, our dialogue and our descriptions, when we really ought spend a little time “sharpening our saw”?

         Classes are one way to sharpen our saws, to improve our craft. (Books, Conferences, Writing Retreats, all topics we’re discussing this month, are other saw-sharpening activities.) I love classes. Especially online classes. I have a folder on my computer labeled “Classes”. There are 25 other folders in that Classes folder, each one a class I’ve taken. I like classes!

         Kitty and Shonna and I have mentioned Author MBA. They now offer their courses in pdf (we took them via email). Lots of good information in every one of those classes.

         Another place to go for workshops in Writer University. They have a new course every month. I’ve taken several and have enjoyed them all. The most recent one I took at Writer Univ was Margie Lawson’s “Defeating Self-Defeating Behaviors”. It was just what I needed to get back into the writing groove after the holidays. I’m also planning on taking “Deep EDITS” in May. She is a great teacher. (She also offers an intensive class at her home that I am dying to take.)

         I belong to an online chapter of RWA (FTHRW) that offers a workshop every month. We have had some great workshops and most of them are in the archives for members to access at any time. Well worth the membership fee.

         As you can see, there are plenty of places to find classes to help you sharpen or hone your writing skills. If you live in a larger city or near a college, I’m sure there are face-to-face places you can take classes, too. Just be careful that writing classes don’t take over your writing life. It can happen. As great as these classes are, we must keep them in perspective.

         So Sharpen Your Saw! Responsibly.