the write stuff: Thanksgiving

Showing posts with label Thanksgiving. Show all posts

Friday, October 9, 2009

Off-Task

Do you ever write something you've already done on a list just so you can cross it off? I just did that, and it felt pretty good. I looked at my academic planner for the week and realized I wasn't very accomplished so far this week because I hadn't crossed anything off... then I realized I had barely written much down to begin with. So I started writing in things I had already done, just to cross them off. Now I feel much more accomplished for this week ☺

In other news, the next 51 days will be pretty busy for me. NaNo starts on Nov. 1, and I haven't done a lick of pre-planning for it. This will be my 2nd year attempting (I finished last year a hair above 50K words) but my first year doing it while being in school full-time. Should be fun. And, to add to that, I don't even know what I'll write. I was sick for 3 weeks in September so I got behind on everything -- schoolwork, writing, housework, Christmas stockings... everything. So, I think I'm gonna wing it for NaNo! Also, I'm headed to Florida on October 22!!! Going to check out the UF campus and linguistics program and try to make a decision about my future after graduation -- which is exactly 7 months away. That's still a ways off, but much closer than I've ever been (obviously)!! We'll be in Florida (hubby and I, that is) over our anniversary too, but will most likely spend that day on a long-ass plane trip and in and out of airports (8 hours for a 1.5 hour flight... not much faster than driving, it seems). Add a couple of final projects, including a website for IPW (Insanity Pro Wrestling, my husband's wrestling company), and extra IPW shows that I must attend due to an arrangement with said hubby.... oh, and holiday dinners! I love cooking Thanksgiving dinner for the fam... well anyhow, the next 51 days are going to be super busy.

But for now, I'm just trying to get through my list and cross everything out. And maybe get some extra done. Oh, and head to Kokomo to visit my grandpa, who had a stroke on Sunday. :( Busy, busy!!

Friday, November 28, 2008

NaNo: The Home Stretch

My current word count is 38,672. I have to hit 50,000 by 11:59pm EST on Sunday. That gives me 3 whole days to write 11,328 words. I had been on track til last week, and now I'm playing crazy catchup. But I wrote 4,000 words yesterday, so if i can keep that up, I'll be set.

Thanksgiving was good. We spent it at my sister-in-law's house, where the whole family gathered for the first time in forever. And we played Phase 10 until 11pm, which was amazingly fun. Then I came home, wrote 1700 words in an hour, and crashed. No Black Friday shopping for the poor!!

That's it for now. Not much to say. MUST WRITE!

... Excerpts coming, I promise. Hang in there, Mandy!!! ☺

Sunday, November 23, 2008

Stupid Computers!

So I just wrote a post to check in real quick... then there was an error and it wouldn't take. Now I have to write it all over again. In a nutshell, here it was:

There are 8 writing days left until the end of NaNo, and I'm 4 days behind schedule. Blame it on cooking Thanksgiving dinner for my family, sans Lillie and her mom and dad, last night, and the two days of preparation for it. The dinner went well, although the stupid turkey took over 4 hours to cook when it usually only takes about 2-3, so it wasn't done til everything else was eaten. But I made a kick-ass pumpkin cheesecake. Mmmm....

As far as my book goes, it's coming along. I just haven't had time to sit and write cuz I've been cooking and cleaning and running errands. I've gotten about 50 words in the last couple days. But I've been jotting notes down like crazy, so when I sit down to write tonight and tomorrow I know I can get caught up.

I'm sad that I haven't seen Lillie in a week, and her parents are being idiots so I probably won't get to see her for a while. :( I still don't have a job, which makes the holidays really depressing. And I've had to dip into my money for school next semester/summer so now I don't know if I'll be able to go, since the money I had wasn't quite enough in the first place.... Yay, stress!!!

That's it for now. In the next couple days, Internet-willing, I'll post some more updates, including an excerpt or two! :)

WIPs (Works in Progress)

Providence - My Alpha, in editing status currently. Providence introduces Quinn Johanning and Joss Merrick, two normal people who stop in to visit the idyllic beachside town of Providence, Florida, and discover that it's full of all sorts of secrets - and so are they. Providence is currently my Alpha-revision, and I plan to have her polished sometime in 2011.
Haven - My NaNoWriMo 2010 novel - shelved for now, but not for long.. Haven is the sequel to Providence, 2009's NaNo novel. At this point, I have my old characters and setting from Providence, a few new people to throw into the mix, and a couple of concepts I want to try out. I am busy editing Prov, though, so Haven and all it's vagueness will have to wait.
Isaac's Eyes - My Beta-revision. IE follows Sophia Ramsey as she evaluates decisions she's made in life and love - decisions which are complicated when her former sweetheart moves home after years in the Army. Sophia must decide if the life she's settled for in his absence is worth throwing away on the chance her fantasies of adventure and passion are real. IE started as a short story, but 5,000 words was not enough to hear the whole story. I lived and breathed Sophia, Trent, and Isaac for two years (until NaNo 2008 and IE was relegated to Beta status). She currently sits at about 92K and is halfway through a complete overhaul of a second draft. My love of fantasy and the supernatural has kept me from finishing the revisions, because without any ghosts, sirens, or vampires, Sophia's world seems a little small. But IE will get finished - soon - because Sophia's story is one that still plagues my thoughts daily.
Sawyer - My SuNoWriMos 2009 novel about a genius psychologist with an affinity for criminology. She stumbles across a ghost problem that may or may not have something to do with the hunky mechanic she's just met. And her detective friends really need her help solving this case... which may or may not have to do with her ghost. And her mechanic. Sawyer is currently only 10K long because life got in the way and I realized I needed a plot overhaul. But she and her friends will have their story told!
Vaampyr - The Beta novel-turned-Alpha during NaNo 2008-turned, uh, Deltaish after that. I wrote 50,302 words in 30 days and now have roughly 40-50K more. This untitled novel is a futuristic sci-fi about genetically altered vampires and werewolves. The history of the world is complex and fascinating, but bringing that to life without backstory dumps has been a challenge.
Home Sweet Home - a supernatural story I began in collaboration with my dad in August 2008. We got about 50K into it and hit some major plot holes. Dad and I discussed it often but didn't make much progress, and now that he's gone I keep telling myself I'd like to finish it. Given that I've learned a lot and my writing style has evolved and improved, I don't know how much of the current draft is usable - but I plan on finding out. Soon.
Then & Now - The one that got away. This is the working title for a psychological drama I started working on in late 2006. I wrote like crazy for 30K words then ran out of steam. I think about her sometimes - waiting for me, restlessly, to come and save her from the emtpiness of Unfinished First Draftland. We will meet again, T&H.