Five days into NaNoWriMo and I've written 5,659 words. I'm behind by a few thousand words, but I'm not too concerned... not yet at least. On day one I managed to hit the daily target plus 50 words, which I was thrilled about. I missed the 1667 daily goal on days 2 and 3 thanks to school, headaches and bad moods (not necessarily in that order lol). Yesterday I managed to play catch up and rocked my word count with 2,467 words (yes that's "rocking it" for me!). But today I woke up late, went to the dog park, then out to dinner, to the bookstore, and to the mall. By the time I got home from all of that, I had a nice migraine to keep me company. Two hours (and two excedrin) later my migraine has dulled but not completely disappeared, and has left me feeling exhausted when it's not even 10 pm yet.
I'm hoping I'll start to feel better in a little while, or at least better enough to bang out a few hundred words on my story so I don't have a day 5 word count of ZERO. Also I don't consider midnight to be the end of a day since I never go to bed before midnight. To me the day ends when I go to sleep, so my stats on the nano site are a bit off from my stats on my wonderful Excel tracker spreadsheet. So even if I don't feel better 'till 1 a.m. and don't do any writing 'till then, in my mind they'll still be day 5 words.
Either way I will have to start having more big word count days. This week is going to be rough b/c I have an accounting test on Wednesday that I really need to study for. And I have a group project to work on for another one of my classes, and we have to meet outside of class to work on it (which I'm thrilled about, of course). But at least I don't have class on Friday since it's Veterans' Day. Hopefully having a 3 day weekend will be helpful.
That's about it for me. Anyone else reading this and doing nano? How's your wordcount? And to those who are reading this and not doing nano, how hard are you laughing at those of us who voluntarily signed up for this torture??? *wink*
Saturday, November 5
Saturday, October 15
where I’ve been and where I’m (hopefully) heading
(note: I actually started writing this post a few weeks ago but then I got sick w/ a really bad cold, not to mention I’ve been swamped w/ school work.)
I’ve been in a funk for the past few weeks (months?). I haven’t done much writing. I haven’t done much of anything (besides the bare minimum of school work I can get away with doing while keeping my grades up). I usually love summer, but this summer was kind of a downer. The basement apartment I live in was almost always hot and humid. Thank goodness for the AC we got for our bedroom or we never would’ve been able to sleep at night! But who wants to spend the whole freaking day in their bedroom to stay cool? So it’s been hot, and I’ve been lazy.
But now it’s October. It’s been 2011 for ten months and I haven’t accomplished any of my writing goals. I’ve continued to take online writing workshops, but as far as working on my manuscript goes... that went nowhere. I actually was planning on attending the NJRWA conference (which is in two weeks), but I cancelled my registration a few weeks ago. A lot of it has to do with my monetary situation (my debt is slowly increasing since unemployment barely covers the bills) – I just can’t logically afford to go to a conference right now. But also, it’s because I’d thought I’d have a manuscript ready to pitch by now, and I’m not even CLOSE.
With NaNoWriMo coming up again soon, I figure now is a good a time as any to try again. I also think I need to write a serious outline for the new novel that I want to right. I think a lot of my giving up on my past manuscripts is that I get stuck 5, 10, 20 thousand words in and I can’t figure out what’s supposed to happen next, or how it’s supposed to happen. While I usually have an idea of where the story’s headed, I tend to leave the details to figure themselves out. And, as you might’ve guessed by now, so far they haven’t done a great job of it!
I’ve been working on plotting my NaNo novel thanks to Jennifer from Procrastinating Writers. I signed up for her “Creating Your NaNoWriMo Road Map” workshop and have been plugging along with the help of her worksheets. I think my idea is coming together nicely. It’s going to be a post-apocalyptic romance, a bit different from the two previous sci-fi romance manuscripts I worked on.
(Which also explains the aesthetic changes I made to my blog. I wanted to give it a more “end of the world” type feel, instead of the sci-fi, outer space one. You like?)
NaNo is definitely going to be tough this year, though. I have two papers due soon (for one class, our first draft is due at the end of October, but the professor is going to make us revise it if she makes changes to our draft; the other paper is due the first week of December but if I wait ‘till Dec. 1 to start it I’ll be screwed). Not to mention the usual school work and tests that come w/ five pretty hard classes (three of which have to do w/ accounting). So it’s definitely going to be a challenge, but I am gonna give it a shot!
So who else is w/ me this November? Leave me your NaNo name and once the buddy feature is working again, we can be friends! :)
I’ve been in a funk for the past few weeks (months?). I haven’t done much writing. I haven’t done much of anything (besides the bare minimum of school work I can get away with doing while keeping my grades up). I usually love summer, but this summer was kind of a downer. The basement apartment I live in was almost always hot and humid. Thank goodness for the AC we got for our bedroom or we never would’ve been able to sleep at night! But who wants to spend the whole freaking day in their bedroom to stay cool? So it’s been hot, and I’ve been lazy.
But now it’s October. It’s been 2011 for ten months and I haven’t accomplished any of my writing goals. I’ve continued to take online writing workshops, but as far as working on my manuscript goes... that went nowhere. I actually was planning on attending the NJRWA conference (which is in two weeks), but I cancelled my registration a few weeks ago. A lot of it has to do with my monetary situation (my debt is slowly increasing since unemployment barely covers the bills) – I just can’t logically afford to go to a conference right now. But also, it’s because I’d thought I’d have a manuscript ready to pitch by now, and I’m not even CLOSE.
With NaNoWriMo coming up again soon, I figure now is a good a time as any to try again. I also think I need to write a serious outline for the new novel that I want to right. I think a lot of my giving up on my past manuscripts is that I get stuck 5, 10, 20 thousand words in and I can’t figure out what’s supposed to happen next, or how it’s supposed to happen. While I usually have an idea of where the story’s headed, I tend to leave the details to figure themselves out. And, as you might’ve guessed by now, so far they haven’t done a great job of it!
I’ve been working on plotting my NaNo novel thanks to Jennifer from Procrastinating Writers. I signed up for her “Creating Your NaNoWriMo Road Map” workshop and have been plugging along with the help of her worksheets. I think my idea is coming together nicely. It’s going to be a post-apocalyptic romance, a bit different from the two previous sci-fi romance manuscripts I worked on.
(Which also explains the aesthetic changes I made to my blog. I wanted to give it a more “end of the world” type feel, instead of the sci-fi, outer space one. You like?)
NaNo is definitely going to be tough this year, though. I have two papers due soon (for one class, our first draft is due at the end of October, but the professor is going to make us revise it if she makes changes to our draft; the other paper is due the first week of December but if I wait ‘till Dec. 1 to start it I’ll be screwed). Not to mention the usual school work and tests that come w/ five pretty hard classes (three of which have to do w/ accounting). So it’s definitely going to be a challenge, but I am gonna give it a shot!
So who else is w/ me this November? Leave me your NaNo name and once the buddy feature is working again, we can be friends! :)
Monday, August 15
So much for that idea...
I actually DID sign up for Camp NaNoWriMo, and wrote for three whole days in a row. Of course I didn't meet the word count goal on any of those three days, which was disappointing and un-motivating. Then I didn't get a chance to write on day 4 (I can't even remember why), which led to me not writing on day 5, or day 6, or... you get the point. I got a total of 2,531 words written in those three days, and since then I have only written 73 more (one whole paragraph). I have been doing some plotting exercises for a workshop I am taking on savvy authors called Quilting 101: Patchworking the Perfect Plot. It's a cool, informative workshop and I'm glad I signed up for it. But unfortunately I haven't been progressing with my WIP.
I bought a book called Write Your Book Now! because I read a review for it on some blog (I can't remember which one). It wasn't bad, but it wasn't exactly what I was looking for. The product description says: "Ideal for aspiring authors who only dream of actually finishing their works in progress, this guide features proven, field-tested tools guaranteed to successfully complete that romance, expert guide to business success, or great American novel..." First, I felt like the book was geared much more towards non-fiction writers than novelists. Second, the "tools" were basically (a) outline your book and (b) make a writing schedule for yourself, two things I already knew. I would recommend the book to anyone writing non-fiction, but not to a novelist.
Then I found a review for Shut Up and Write! in this month's "The Writer" magazine. So I ordered that. I'm still waiting for it to be delivered so I can't give you my opinion on it. I hope it'll be more inspirational than the previous book. It has all 5-star reviews on amazon and I liked what I read about it on the author's website (here if you're interested). As soon as I finish reading it I'll come back and let ya'll know what I thought of it.
Do any of you have "motivational" writing books to recommend that have helped you break through a slump? I'd love to hear about them if you do! I know a lot of people rave about Stephen King's "On Writing", which I have read and I did enjoy. But I wouldn't say that once I finished it, I was filled with a great urge to go put pen to paper and get going on my story. I liked it, but it's not my favorite book on writing of all time. I like his fiction a lot better... but that's a whole other blog post! 'Till next time...!
I bought a book called Write Your Book Now! because I read a review for it on some blog (I can't remember which one). It wasn't bad, but it wasn't exactly what I was looking for. The product description says: "Ideal for aspiring authors who only dream of actually finishing their works in progress, this guide features proven, field-tested tools guaranteed to successfully complete that romance, expert guide to business success, or great American novel..." First, I felt like the book was geared much more towards non-fiction writers than novelists. Second, the "tools" were basically (a) outline your book and (b) make a writing schedule for yourself, two things I already knew. I would recommend the book to anyone writing non-fiction, but not to a novelist.
Then I found a review for Shut Up and Write! in this month's "The Writer" magazine. So I ordered that. I'm still waiting for it to be delivered so I can't give you my opinion on it. I hope it'll be more inspirational than the previous book. It has all 5-star reviews on amazon and I liked what I read about it on the author's website (here if you're interested). As soon as I finish reading it I'll come back and let ya'll know what I thought of it.
Do any of you have "motivational" writing books to recommend that have helped you break through a slump? I'd love to hear about them if you do! I know a lot of people rave about Stephen King's "On Writing", which I have read and I did enjoy. But I wouldn't say that once I finished it, I was filled with a great urge to go put pen to paper and get going on my story. I liked it, but it's not my favorite book on writing of all time. I like his fiction a lot better... but that's a whole other blog post! 'Till next time...!
Sunday, July 31
Camp NaNoWriMo anyone?
I'm debating signing up for Camp NaNoWriMo this August (if you haven't heard about it yet, click the link). I failed NaNoWriMo last year (2010), as well as in 2009 and a few others years that I attempted it. So what makes me think I can succeed this time? I really don't know. I do know that in order to win, I need to believe I can. Considering I've barely written a few hundred words over the past month, writing 1667 words a day will be quite a challenge for me. But August is the perfect time for me to try. My online summer class ends on the 4th, and I don't start my fall classes until September 1st. I have nothing coming up that I need to work on, nowhere to go, etc. If I'm going to bang out 50k words in a month, the time is now.
Whaddya think? Should I go for it? I'll have to stop sleeping 'till noon - 1 pm every day, for starters. But I want to do that anyway. I need to go back on Weight Watchers starting Monday too. And I need to start exercising. So if I start getting up at a decent hour, I can find plenty of time to write. Can I find the motivation to write is the question. That is what I've been severely lacking the past few months. Having a concrete goal (50k in a month) is a good place to start, but I'm just not sure if it will be to overwhelming for me.
Hmmmmm. I'll letcha know what I decide in a few days. How 'bout you? Are you doing Camp NaNo yourself in August? Did you do it this July? Do you think NaNo should just stick to November? I'd love to know what you think :)
Whaddya think? Should I go for it? I'll have to stop sleeping 'till noon - 1 pm every day, for starters. But I want to do that anyway. I need to go back on Weight Watchers starting Monday too. And I need to start exercising. So if I start getting up at a decent hour, I can find plenty of time to write. Can I find the motivation to write is the question. That is what I've been severely lacking the past few months. Having a concrete goal (50k in a month) is a good place to start, but I'm just not sure if it will be to overwhelming for me.
Hmmmmm. I'll letcha know what I decide in a few days. How 'bout you? Are you doing Camp NaNo yourself in August? Did you do it this July? Do you think NaNo should just stick to November? I'd love to know what you think :)
Sunday, July 3
I survived RWA Nationals 2011 :)
So this week (Wed, Thurs and Fri) I attended the RWA conference in NYC. While a lot of people (mostly non-NYers who just come for a few days to sight-see) find Manhattan to be a wondrous, exciting place, I consider it to be an overcrowded, traffic-ridden nightmare. If you don’t understand how I could think such a blasphemous thing, try commuting to Manhattan on the LIRR (Long Island Rail Road for those not in the know) and pushing your way through Penn Station in the middle of morning or evening rush hour(s). Try battling for a cab (or if you’re the peaceful type, you could just wait on line for anywhere from 10 – 60 min) or walking (read: shoving) through hoards of people for countless city blocks. I’m sorry, but Manhattan is just NOT the place for me.
Oh, and not to be a Negative Nelly, but I do have one more complaint: the food. In a word, it sucked. The same exact thing 2 days in a row, except that Wed it came with spinach (I think – it was too dark in the ballroom to even be sure what I was eating) and on Thurs it came with asparagus instead. Chicken and mashed potatoes. Yuck. I know a good percentage of the population likes mashed potatoes, but I don’t. I never eat them… unless of course I’m starving and there’s nothing else to eat, and I paid $525 for a conference so I’ll be damned if I’m not going to eat the only free lunch I’m getting. All they gave us to drink was ice water and coffee. And, worst of all, NO DESERT at either lunch (which they claimed was due to the high cost of hosting a conference in NY. To that I say: bite me.) I do believe they were in cahoots with Starbucks, the only place in the hotel where you could get a small snack for under $5.
But, moving past all that, Nationals was a pretty good time. I met some nice women (special shot-out to Michelle M. who’s in Kat Duncan’s Savvy Authors class with me, who managed to spot me in a crowd of women outside the elevators on Wed) and had interesting conversations. I’d say ¾ of the workshops I attended were as good or better than I’d hoped they’d be. A couple were less than thrilling and I actually snuck out the back halfway through, but that’s to be expected at all conferences. It’s hard to discern what an hour long workshop is going to entail from a little blurb 1 or 2 sentences long, so you make an educated guess as to what will interest you the most, and you cross your fingers and hope for the best.
One presenter that I enjoyed immensely both last year and this year was Cherry Adair. She is a pisser. She is full of energy and excitement, and so friendly. She spoke right from the heart, not from a page like some presenters. That’s 1 thing that really bores me at workshops. Obviously I understand that a presenter will have notes to follow and read from when talking. But when the whole workshop consists of the person reading off note cards or power point slides, you might as well hand me a pillow cuz I’ll be taking a nap. Thankfully there were only a few workshops like those that I stumbled into. The rest were pretty interesting and informative.
Overall I’m glad I went. But the conference experience just isn’t the same when you have to commute to it every day. I wish I had stayed at least 1 night in the hotel and saved myself the aggravation of the train and all that walking. I had a much better time at the conference last year when it was in Orlando. Of course, staying at the Swan & Dolphin really helped. What a beautiful hotel. (The Marriot was a nice hotel as well, though the elevator situation was insane. They had 20 (?) elevators going to all different floors, and you had to press the # of what floor you were going to on a little screen and then the screen would tell you what elevator to get on. But I did sneak a peek inside one of the rooms and it was very nice, and spacious too.)
That’s about it for me. I’m thinking about signing up for a Round of Words in 80 days, a writing challenge which starts tomorrow. I’m hoping maybe having to “check in” with people every week will help keep me motivated to write. That is definitely my biggest problem – staying motivated. I’ll letcha know if I end up doing that or not. Meanwhile, I hope everyone is enjoying their 4th of July weekend! Eat, drink and be merry!!!!!! :)
Oh, and not to be a Negative Nelly, but I do have one more complaint: the food. In a word, it sucked. The same exact thing 2 days in a row, except that Wed it came with spinach (I think – it was too dark in the ballroom to even be sure what I was eating) and on Thurs it came with asparagus instead. Chicken and mashed potatoes. Yuck. I know a good percentage of the population likes mashed potatoes, but I don’t. I never eat them… unless of course I’m starving and there’s nothing else to eat, and I paid $525 for a conference so I’ll be damned if I’m not going to eat the only free lunch I’m getting. All they gave us to drink was ice water and coffee. And, worst of all, NO DESERT at either lunch (which they claimed was due to the high cost of hosting a conference in NY. To that I say: bite me.) I do believe they were in cahoots with Starbucks, the only place in the hotel where you could get a small snack for under $5.
But, moving past all that, Nationals was a pretty good time. I met some nice women (special shot-out to Michelle M. who’s in Kat Duncan’s Savvy Authors class with me, who managed to spot me in a crowd of women outside the elevators on Wed) and had interesting conversations. I’d say ¾ of the workshops I attended were as good or better than I’d hoped they’d be. A couple were less than thrilling and I actually snuck out the back halfway through, but that’s to be expected at all conferences. It’s hard to discern what an hour long workshop is going to entail from a little blurb 1 or 2 sentences long, so you make an educated guess as to what will interest you the most, and you cross your fingers and hope for the best.
One presenter that I enjoyed immensely both last year and this year was Cherry Adair. She is a pisser. She is full of energy and excitement, and so friendly. She spoke right from the heart, not from a page like some presenters. That’s 1 thing that really bores me at workshops. Obviously I understand that a presenter will have notes to follow and read from when talking. But when the whole workshop consists of the person reading off note cards or power point slides, you might as well hand me a pillow cuz I’ll be taking a nap. Thankfully there were only a few workshops like those that I stumbled into. The rest were pretty interesting and informative.
Overall I’m glad I went. But the conference experience just isn’t the same when you have to commute to it every day. I wish I had stayed at least 1 night in the hotel and saved myself the aggravation of the train and all that walking. I had a much better time at the conference last year when it was in Orlando. Of course, staying at the Swan & Dolphin really helped. What a beautiful hotel. (The Marriot was a nice hotel as well, though the elevator situation was insane. They had 20 (?) elevators going to all different floors, and you had to press the # of what floor you were going to on a little screen and then the screen would tell you what elevator to get on. But I did sneak a peek inside one of the rooms and it was very nice, and spacious too.)
That’s about it for me. I’m thinking about signing up for a Round of Words in 80 days, a writing challenge which starts tomorrow. I’m hoping maybe having to “check in” with people every week will help keep me motivated to write. That is definitely my biggest problem – staying motivated. I’ll letcha know if I end up doing that or not. Meanwhile, I hope everyone is enjoying their 4th of July weekend! Eat, drink and be merry!!!!!! :)
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