I can't stand it, ya'll! Finishing is all I think about. To finally have the first draft done. To have some raw material with which to work. To set down with a bunch of post-its and a red pen. To fix all these things that have been needling my brain. *deep sigh* It will be a dream come true. I've been working on this since the end of December and it is about to happen. Hopefully, in another week, week and a half, I'll be able to attack it.
I've also decided not to enter any contests that involve winning a critique until I've edited and revised a good deal of my MS. I jumped the gun when I first started getting involved in this online writerly community. Now I see that what I have so far is so not worthy of submitting to anything.
In other news, I came across the most amazing website. If you're checking out my blog, you probably already know about it, but I must link to this awesomeness anyway. The Bookshelf Muse is ssssoooo helpful! I'm pretty sure I'll have it up and running any time I'm writing from now on.
Alright, that's all I have for today. I intend on whipping the WIP's butt today!
Friday, February 25, 2011
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Aw, Shucks... I Got An Award!
The rules are:
1. Acknowledge and link back to who gave you the award.
2. List 7 things about yourself.
3. Pass the award to 10 other bloggers.
7 Things About Me
1. I can knit and crochet.
2. I dream of one day owning my own cupcake/dessert/coffee shop.
3. I breastfed both of my sons for the first year of their lives. I don't care if that's too much information, folks. I'm super proud of that :)
4. I am a huge Boston Celtics fan! I bleed green, baby!
5. I'm a horrible waitress due to being clumsy and awkward around strangers which is why I don't do that anymore.
6. When children aren't present, I cuss like a sailor. Its like I have to meet my quota before the kids come home again.
7. The first movie I can remember seeing in a theater is Willow.
And since I'm new to the whole Blog-O-Sphere, I'm only going to give this out to 5 people.
Melissa Dezendorf
Teralyn Rose Pilgrim
Deborah Burns
Veronica Gutierrez
Uncorked and Unwined
Day 65: Tedious Questions...
So, the end is in sight, people! Pretty soon my first draft will be finished and then I'll be ready to edit and revise FOR REAL. I do have a couple questions that I'll need to look into, though:
1. What is the protocol when it comes to mentioning actual movies, TV shows, music, etc.. in my book?
2. What about famous quotes?
I'm sure there's more but those are the two that concern me the most. I'm sure I could just google this but if anyone that's dropping by here has the answers and is feeling generous, I'd super appreciate the input :)
Anyway, today I plan on going to the store and buying a good red pen with a fine tip ('cause that's how I roll, ya'll) and I will promise myself not to open it until the MS is finished and printed out. Heck, maybe I'll tape it to the wall above my computer as incentive to get this sucker finished! Using an opened piece of office supplies as incentive is weird, I know, but I luuuurrve spankin' new office supplies.
I also have another kind of general question to ask: If you know it will take more than one book to tell your story, how far ahead do you plot? Are all the plot points planned out before you even query you're first book? Or do you just kind of see what happens and hope you'll be able to figure it out if the time comes?
1. What is the protocol when it comes to mentioning actual movies, TV shows, music, etc.. in my book?
2. What about famous quotes?
I'm sure there's more but those are the two that concern me the most. I'm sure I could just google this but if anyone that's dropping by here has the answers and is feeling generous, I'd super appreciate the input :)
Anyway, today I plan on going to the store and buying a good red pen with a fine tip ('cause that's how I roll, ya'll) and I will promise myself not to open it until the MS is finished and printed out. Heck, maybe I'll tape it to the wall above my computer as incentive to get this sucker finished! Using an opened piece of office supplies as incentive is weird, I know, but I luuuurrve spankin' new office supplies.
I also have another kind of general question to ask: If you know it will take more than one book to tell your story, how far ahead do you plot? Are all the plot points planned out before you even query you're first book? Or do you just kind of see what happens and hope you'll be able to figure it out if the time comes?
Monday, February 21, 2011
Day 64: Sundays Rock!
Sunday is quickly becoming my favorite day of the week, because of our literary club. It feels insanely good for Melissa to read my work and hear her giggle or make an "Uh-oh" sound. Makes me feel like I'm on the right track. Her WIP is also coming along nicely. I read a scene of her's yesterday that was definitely heart wrenching. We have a lot of fun discussing different aspects of writing. What we could do better? "Is this character too over the top?" Etc... We talked about everything from the pros and cons of e-publishing to why we love Twilight so much. It just warms my heart!
Amazingly, she asked me if I had any romance novels. Now, I'm a firm believer in a well written Romance. I love regency romance, paranormal, and a few contemporary ones (Cruisie's Bet Me being one of my favorites). I don't have many actual books anymore because I kinda made the switch to ebooks a few years ago and took like two or three big boxes full of paperbacks to the local used book store. I have so much credit there, I don't think I'll ever buy something from there at the full price.
So, I decided to give her my old Sony E-Reader. That thing was my best friend for like two years, but it felt good to pass it on to someone I knew will take care of it. I loaded it up with some stuff I think she'll like: a couple of series from Mary Balogh (my fav. regency writer), some of Charlaine Harris's series (Mel liked the Sookie books), the Aisling Grey series, the House of Night series, and The Hunger Games (soooo good!), among others.
So, there you have it. Our literary club is a definite success even if it is just the two of us.
In other writing news, I hit 40,000 words on Saturday!!!!! I was so proud of myself that I had a few beers and got into a Princess Bride quote battle on Twitter with @thatwritergirl7. Go follow her because anyone who knows as much as I do about The Princess Bride has got to be awesome!
So, I'm about to start the third act, if you will, of my book today and I'm extremely excited! LET THE EPICNESS BEGIN!
Amazingly, she asked me if I had any romance novels. Now, I'm a firm believer in a well written Romance. I love regency romance, paranormal, and a few contemporary ones (Cruisie's Bet Me being one of my favorites). I don't have many actual books anymore because I kinda made the switch to ebooks a few years ago and took like two or three big boxes full of paperbacks to the local used book store. I have so much credit there, I don't think I'll ever buy something from there at the full price.
So, I decided to give her my old Sony E-Reader. That thing was my best friend for like two years, but it felt good to pass it on to someone I knew will take care of it. I loaded it up with some stuff I think she'll like: a couple of series from Mary Balogh (my fav. regency writer), some of Charlaine Harris's series (Mel liked the Sookie books), the Aisling Grey series, the House of Night series, and The Hunger Games (soooo good!), among others.
So, there you have it. Our literary club is a definite success even if it is just the two of us.
In other writing news, I hit 40,000 words on Saturday!!!!! I was so proud of myself that I had a few beers and got into a Princess Bride quote battle on Twitter with @thatwritergirl7. Go follow her because anyone who knows as much as I do about The Princess Bride has got to be awesome!
So, I'm about to start the third act, if you will, of my book today and I'm extremely excited! LET THE EPICNESS BEGIN!
Saturday, February 19, 2011
Day 62: Epiphanies and Merlot...
...always seem to go together, don't they?
I spent most of the day yesterday writing. I didn't hit the 5k mark but I did get 2k and did some revising. I also did some thinking on improving the story. And after a slow glass of red wine, I had an epiphany! It is an event that will happen in the book that is so awesome and unexpected. I love the idea and can't wait to write it.
The kids were at Grandma's for the evening so the DH and I had time to talk about my book. And since he's the super amazing man that he is, he actually liked helping me out. He's always saying, "Yes, that sounds so cool. I can't wait to read it! Go write! Now!" I'm such a lucky duck, ya'll :)
I also realized last night that my book might not end up being the length that I predicted. That's nothing to be freaked out about, though. 80,000 words is a little on the long side for a YA fantasy, I think (but really I have no idea, being the big, honkin' newb that I am). Now I'm looking at around 65k to 55k. But, who knows what it'll end up being. I can't count on anything when it comes to this story because as I write, as I analyze it, parts of it get thrown away as I add things that I believe are better ideas.
I've been trying my hand at writing a book for many years now. But, as I think I've said before, none of those were ever as promising and complex as this one. I've never believed in an idea as much as I do this one. So, I want to do it right!
Anyway, I see a lot more writing in store for today. My coffee cup is almost empty which means the brain is about to start working double time. This is my favorite time to write. I guess coffee and high word counts always seem to go together.
Here's a song by a chick that I'm a little obsessed with right now. Her stuff is a little poppish which I'm not usually interested it, but her voice is unique and the music is a little quirky. Enjoy! (could say 'a little' just a little bit more, grrr)
I spent most of the day yesterday writing. I didn't hit the 5k mark but I did get 2k and did some revising. I also did some thinking on improving the story. And after a slow glass of red wine, I had an epiphany! It is an event that will happen in the book that is so awesome and unexpected. I love the idea and can't wait to write it.
The kids were at Grandma's for the evening so the DH and I had time to talk about my book. And since he's the super amazing man that he is, he actually liked helping me out. He's always saying, "Yes, that sounds so cool. I can't wait to read it! Go write! Now!" I'm such a lucky duck, ya'll :)
I also realized last night that my book might not end up being the length that I predicted. That's nothing to be freaked out about, though. 80,000 words is a little on the long side for a YA fantasy, I think (but really I have no idea, being the big, honkin' newb that I am). Now I'm looking at around 65k to 55k. But, who knows what it'll end up being. I can't count on anything when it comes to this story because as I write, as I analyze it, parts of it get thrown away as I add things that I believe are better ideas.
I've been trying my hand at writing a book for many years now. But, as I think I've said before, none of those were ever as promising and complex as this one. I've never believed in an idea as much as I do this one. So, I want to do it right!
Anyway, I see a lot more writing in store for today. My coffee cup is almost empty which means the brain is about to start working double time. This is my favorite time to write. I guess coffee and high word counts always seem to go together.
Here's a song by a chick that I'm a little obsessed with right now. Her stuff is a little poppish which I'm not usually interested it, but her voice is unique and the music is a little quirky. Enjoy! (could say 'a little' just a little bit more, grrr)
Friday, February 18, 2011
Day 61: Time to Bust This Thing Out!
I feel very determined today. It feels like a 5k word day. Let's do this thing!
That's it. That's all I have for today. Peace out!
That's it. That's all I have for today. Peace out!
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Day 60: Music...
After reading Stephanie Perkins's blog post yesterday, I went on a music hunt. She posted a completely amazing song that hit a nerve with me and my WIP.
So, I thought maybe discovering some new music would get me out of this writing slump I'm in. I was looking for weird, unique, dreamy, and pretty music. I hit up my Facebook friends and got a lot of good suggestions. Here's some of the stuff I came up with.
Got anymore suggestions for me? Is there music that you always listen to when you write? Or does it depend on what you're writing?
So, I thought maybe discovering some new music would get me out of this writing slump I'm in. I was looking for weird, unique, dreamy, and pretty music. I hit up my Facebook friends and got a lot of good suggestions. Here's some of the stuff I came up with.
Got anymore suggestions for me? Is there music that you always listen to when you write? Or does it depend on what you're writing?
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