Holy Crap, I Did NaNo!

In the interest of full disclosure, I didn’t win NaNo, but what I learned changed my writing life.

Beta Readers Weigh In

I’ve gotten comments back from all my beta readers now.

Brass Tacks #10

The busy season is here! Lots of concerts, holidays, doctor appointments, and changing work schedules going on at le Chateau Carmel lately. Not to mention five days recently without the Internet, compliments of Mother Nature and a falling tree branch.

I’m sure you’re probably in the same boat. It’s a challenge to find enough quiet time and mental space to work on creative projects, isn’t it? Well, if nothing else, it’s comforting to know we’re dealing with similar issues.

C’est la vie, right?

While my overall output has decreased recently, my spirits haven’t. Well, not too much, anyway. The difference this time is that I keep coming back, working a little bit each time. I see that gorgeous light at the end of the long-ass tunnel I’ve been in and want to get to the end.

It’s so close now.

After finishing the big, big revision I’ve been working on for months, I realized that working with one word processing file was unwieldy and truly awful. Now was the time to buy Scrivener. After all, people have only been raving about it for years. I wanted it not only for breaking the one huge file down into more manageable chapters and scenes, but also for the compile and format features when I want to publish. After that, I can’t wait to dive into the great stuff available while I’m drafting my next story. (Ideas are already pinging in my skull!)

So, I imported my file into Scrivener. It took me a while to separate the scenes and figure out how to print it. Now, I’m reading through (for the bazillionth time), mainly for grammar, spelling, flow, etc. Along the way, I’ve caught a couple of things I missed, rewriting a paragraph here and there. But, I’m this close to finishing!

And then it’s on to beta readers!!

I can’t tell you how freakin’ happy this makes me. I’ve been working at this writing gig for nine years. Granted, I’ve worked on two major projects in that time, but I’m seriously ready to get my work in front of readers.

Anyway, that’s what’s going on with me. How about you? What projects are keeping you busy?

 

Brass Tacks #9

Hmmm. It’s been a while, hasn’t it? Well, I’m back and Happy Friday to you!

Despite my lack of blog posts, I’ve still been working on my WIP steadily. Here’s what I’ve been doing:

• I finished writing the new climax and ending. Wa-hoo!
• I did the type-in of my first revision which I had hand-written on the printed pages of my first draft.
• After a read-through (which was fun, because now it’s starting to take shape!), I wrote a list of things I needed to fix. So, now I’m filling plot holes and seeding the new characters and situations that support the new ending into the rest of the story.

I’ll continue that last one for a little while, though I’m almost done. Then, I’ll switch focus to language. I can’t have everyone sound the same, now can I?

Though my life doesn’t look like it’s going to slow down any time soon, I’ll attempt more regular updates. Thanks for reading and thank you for your encouragement!

Brass Tacks #7

Finally, a good week!

Brass Tacks #3

What a difference a week makes.

Last week, I was a complete and utter mess. This week, I’m still a bit of a mess, but I had story ideas popping into my head and was able to actually write!

Getting Down to Brass Tacks

Now, doesn’t that sound a bit more interesting than “Accountability?”

On Motivation and Planning

January is mostly gone and the time has come to finally kick my butt into gear.

First Draft Finished

I’m so out-of-my-mind excited to announce I’ve completed the first draft of my new paranormal novel with the working title Haunted Town.

One thing that just blows my mind – what a different writing experience this one has been!

I bit off way more than I could chew with my first novel. It was epic fantasy, with lots of moving parts, and it was loooong. Well, epic, right? The first draft took me over a year to write, while I was taking a writing course. I then revised for the next 4 or 5 years. I wrestled with that thing way longer than I should have, ended up hating it, and just stopped.

Haunted Town is shorter, from only one point of view, and tells a smaller story. See, I learned something! I started planning it in February, started writing in March, and 8 months, 9 days later, the first draft is complete.

Obviously, the first one was my learning novel. With Haunted Town, I already considered myself a writer (psychologically important), had developed decent writing skills (and continually learning more) and a writing habit (that may be the most important thing, actually). The subject matter is lighter, with humor, and I enjoyed writing most of it. Sure there were sloggy days in the middle. Overall, though, this was a much more positive experience.

So, now I’m giving myself some time to play around with a short story idea and a couple other things. Then, it’s on to revision.

Image courtesy of Alexandre Normand via Flickr Creative Commons

 

 

 

 

Good Riddance Winter, Hello New Project

Whew. Am I glad Winter is over.

Of course, as I’m writing this, we went from sunny and warm the last few days to rain, sleet, and snow today. Yuck! But that’s western N.Y. for you.

Thank you to those who sent get well wishes to my family and I. We had about a month and a half of someone (and usually more than one at a time) sick with colds, lingering coughs, and other maladies. Round after round of it. Needless to say, it’s taking me a little while to catch up with things.

Though illness wasn’t the only reason I’m behind…