Total Immersion

I booked my trip to Italy today. Between now and next summer there are two very important things I need to do in order to prepare for this trip: the first is to put aside money for it and the second is to completely immerse myself in the Italian language once again.

I studied Italian in grade school and high school, but I didn't really learn it until I began to study for a translation exam in grad school. A friend of mine tutored me and he got me completely immersed in Italian. I was reading Italian magazines and novels, watching Italian television, and watching Fellini films. Before I knew it, I was understanding and reading without translating from English to Italian. I had completely grasped the Italian.

Then the University went and canceled the Foreign Language Translation requirement.

Whatever.

So, as the years went by, I lost the use of Italiano. But, now I want to be able to finally use it. So I broke out all my books, flashcards, videos, and other foreign language paraphernalia and began to reconnect those synapses in my brain.

The same goes for writing. When you are working on a piece of writing, you have to completely immerse yourself in the process. You need to take time to write, edit, get feedback, look at similar examples of the writing style you are endeavoring in. You also need to make sure your basics are up to par: how is your grammar and spelling? Do you know the proper structure for this piece? When looking for an agent, publishing house, or producer, do you know the proper way to query? Do you know what each individual market requests with submissions? Have you done your homework in these areas?

Do not go blindly into that dark night. There are better writers than you and I who were turned down numerous time who knew the answers to these questions. You need to be prepared. Immerse yourself in the life and work of being a writer. Once you have done this, you will find it easier to write and more opportunities will come your way.

Ironically, last night I wasn't sure what I wanted to work on for today. I knew I wanted to step aside from my query for a day or two because it isn't quite right yet. However, I didn't know what I wanted to work on in the meantime. So, I went to sleep thinking about what I would spend my time doing today.

Then, a funny thing happened: I dreamed an entire outline for a television spec script. I had forgotten I had wanted to work on one, but my subconscious hadn't. Because I had immersed myself in the lifestyle of a writer, my mind kept working when I was fast asleep. When I woke up this morning I sat down and sketched out a basic outline for a Supernatural episode.

The moral is: you never know what will come to you as long as you keep focused on writing.
Please check out my novel Luke Aloysius:  Bloodline on Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01GD9X8BE