Connect and Get Updates
Recent Comments
Brenna on #WriteMotivation Continues!
Hey you! I haven't heard from you in a while, and this is old, so I was wondering how you...Jenn on #WriteMotivation Continues!
haha thanks!K.T. Hanna on #WriteMotivation Continues!
Oh I definitely agree. I think something writing related is still writing. Outlinging, Writing, Revising, Editing, Drafting out ways to improve...Jenn on #WriteMotivation Continues!
Thanks, you too! Oh...realized maybe I should have used my recommendation link for How To Revise...Ceridwen on #WriteMotivation Continues!
Good luck with your revision! And thanks for sharing the link. The site seems really interesting! :)
Wall-E Music
Filed Under Music | Leave a Comment
Define Dancing is a gorgeous song from Wall-E, and I love to write to it. If find it works especially well for moving scenes.
Mini Update 12
Filed Under Updates | Leave a Comment
It’s official. NaNoWriMo is not happening this year. Instead of scrambling to churn out 30,000 words this weekend, I’m going to work on my final for class.
Good luck to the rest of you!
NaNoFriPo 4
Filed Under NaNoWriMo | 3 Comments
Update:
Day: 26
Ideal Word Count: 43,342
Real Word Count: 17,038 and counting
Welcome back for the last of my NaNoFriPo series! This week, I’ll be discussing Motivation.
I bet you’ve told your friends and family that you were doing NaNoWriMo. I also bet they had no idea what you were talking about. I also also bet that when you explained it to them, they said something along the lines of “you’re crazy.”
And we are crazy, each and every one of us. Who else would try to write 50,000 words in 30 days?
It’s a challenge. Not everyone finishes. And why should they? You don’t get an award, you don’t get money. The prize of a measly certificate saying “Congratulations!” isn’t exactly the best motivation. You need something…more.
If you can spare the time from your mad rush to the end, think for a moment. Why are you doing NaNo? Because you love to write? Because you want to be published? Because your friends pressured you into it? Because somewhere, deep down, you love a good romance?
Knowing the answer won’t help you finish NaNo. But it will help you figure out what to do with your novel on December 1st. Stick it in a drawer, pass it around to your friends, send it out to agents – it doesn’t matter. As long as it’s what you want to do with your writing.
Good luck in these last few days! See you at the finish line!
In recent news, I won a contest! Lynnette Labelle will critique my query of The Narrator, and I’ll have a chance to revise it before the next critique. I can use all the help I can get before I officially start sending out queries. I’m itching for November to end so I can get back to revising Narrator. (Ha, didn’t think I’d ever say that!)
You’ll also notice I’ve switched up my progress bars. Shadows, Echoes, and Reflections was getting on my nerves, so I’ve moved back to Gatekeepers. My word count is split between those and another story, so it messed up my bar for Gatekeepers. I’ll correct it when I transfer my story from notebook to computer.
Novel Soup
Filed Under Tools of the Trade | Leave a Comment
Take a look at your backburner. How many novel ideas do you have simmering there? If you’re anything like me, there’s about a dozen, all at a different stage in the planning process.
To make your life easier – and your novels better – see which complement each other and can be combined into one great novel.
Maybe that romance you want to write would work better as a subplot for your epic fantasy. Maybe two or three characters from your murder mystery would offer more conflict when paired with the characters from your political intrigue mystery. Maybe…you get the idea.
Combining ideas can give you a better fleshed out novel, and it can help jazz up your conflict. For example, in Gatekeepers, I wanted to do a novel about the zodiac. I threw in an old idea about a girl being tricked by Coyote into taking his form, exchanged the coyote for a rabbit, and bam! Suddenly I had a much better conflict for my zodiac novel.
So go back to your list and start mixing and matching. You’ll be amazed what connections pop up and take hold of you!
NaNoFriPo 3
Filed Under NaNoWriMo | Leave a Comment
Update:
Day: 19
Ideal Word Count: 31,673
Real Word Count: 9,015 and counting
Welcome back for the third of my NaNoFriPo series! This week, I’ll be discussing Perseverence.
If you haven’t already crashed and burned this month, don’t worry. You will. You’ve reached the dangerous waters of The Middle. You’re probably as behind as I am, and losing hope of ever finishing.
Guess what? You will.
The point of NaNoWriMo isn’t to win. It’s to write. As long as you write every day, you’re doing great! Don’t worry that you’re writing crap or that you’ve left plotholes as big as your house.
You are writing.
And that’s all that matters.
Brought to you by Guest Post Alumnus, Will!
We all have days when it’s just not happening. And taking a break from writing is sometimes good; it can help you take a step back, relax, and refresh yourself for when you come back in with a vengeance. But sometimes, after a few days off, you don’t want to come back to your current Work In Progress at all. “I’m tired of this trite plot, these weak characters, this boring conflict,” you might say to yourself. And you’d be wrong- your story is a great one, or you wouldn’t have started writing it. But convincing yourself of that is another matter. I have these days all the time, so here’s a few tips to write when you really don’t feel like writing.
5. Take a short break, and then get right back in it. A few minutes’ worth of break here and there will do wonders for your writing. Just don’t make it too long.
4. Change up your writing habits. Get some art that inspires you for your writing area; play music if you like silence, or try silence if you like music; switch to a notebook in the park, a laptop in your bed, a typewriter in a musty basement. This one’s guaranteed to either infuriate you or get you writing again.
3. Write something else. As long as you’re in a mood to write, you’ll get some writing done. But if you’re dissatisfied with your current Work In Progress, start another. Or many others! Write whatever you feel like writing at the moment, and you can come back to your other work when you feel refreshed by your efforts.
2. Read something else. Whether it’s a friend’s efforts at The Great American Novel or one of your favorite authors, reading something else will get you in the mood to write again. (Just make sure to learn from their styles to make your own, rather than copying theirs!)
1. Take another day off. Sure, it may seem like you’re getting nowhere on your writing if you don’t write, but sometimes it’s just necessary to keep away from it for a bit longer. The key is to not use this as an excuse to stop writing entirely. As long as you only take days off when you really need them, you’ll come back to it. You’ll start to miss your writing eventually!
AnimeUSA
Filed Under Tales from the Author's Desk | Leave a Comment
Artists Alley, picture by Kailer
AnimeUSA, my first con ever, was a blast! I really enjoyed meeting new people, seeing their costumes, listening to panels about anime and writing, and just all around absorbing the geek atmosphere.
Being on staff was definitely the way to go. I got to share my experiences with those who visit the website while receiving free entry, a free hotel room, and some free food. Yay for staff.
Obviously, there wasn’t enough time to do everything, and I stayed away from some of the more…risque events. But it was definitely a positive experience and I can’t wait until my next con!
For a more in-depth look at my weekend, check out the AnimeUSA blog.
Mini Update 11
Filed Under Updates | Leave a Comment
NaNoWriMo is half over! Am I working hard to catch up right now? No, not particularly. Instead, I’m at AnimeUSA! I’m blogging for them. If you’re there, maybe we’ll randomly meet. It’s my first convention, so I’m excited!
Narrator is taking a break on my digital shelves. Once December rolls around, it’ll be time for the next round of editing/polishing, and then I can finally start querying! Huzzah!
Shadows, Echoes, and Reflections was a bit stalled this week, but thanks to the suggestions of my writing group it now has a worthy First Book of Trilogy plot that doesn’t involve questing! (Gosh, I hate questing.)
NaNoFriPo 2
Filed Under NaNoWriMo | Leave a Comment
Update:
Day: 12
Ideal Word Count: 20,004
Real Word Count: 7,236 and counting
Welcome back for the second of my NaNoFriPo series! This week, I’ll be discussing Method Writing.
By the end of the second week of NaNoWriMo, you should have a pretty good idea of how you like to write. Table vs. bed, morning vs. night, paper vs. computer, all of these things play a role in whether or not we feel creative. (If you can write pretty much anywhere, including crammed up against the wall on the metro, more power to you!)
According to Betsy Lerner, writers force themselves to use crutches by relying on a writing “method.” It’s a stall tactic, a chance to excuse your inability to write.
Sometimes, however, we don’t have a choice in how we write. The only time I can write is on the metro and at lunch, which means I can’t lug my laptop around with me. Notebook in hand, hoping not to get crammed up against the wall, I try to write during my commute.
Normally, I wouldn’t do NaNo by hand. It takes longer, and there’s no nifty word count tool in a composition book. But I am finding some advantages:
- It limits editing. Once I’ve counted a word, I want it to stay counted. I don’t want to mess up my count by adding or deleting words several pages back. I have to move forward.
- My characters cooperate. My characters usually prefer to go their own way, despite the goals I have laid out for them. This time, they’re being very well behaved – but still adding their own flair to the page.
- When it’s time to write, I write. Having only a limited number of minutes to write each day is a big motivator to get things done. Even if an idea is only half-formed.
Do you have a method to your NaNo madness? Discovered anything interesting about your writing habits?
Welcome
Official Progress
4/21 segments
A narrator hijacks a cliche fantasy story, much to the chagrin of its characters.Status: Second revision
A young noblewoman with strange powers must choose: her king or her soul.1,639/70,000 wordsStatus: First draft
When a girl's heart is stolen, she's plunged into a world of magic and shadows - but can she get her heart back before she loses it completely?1,087/70,000 wordsStatus: First draft
-
