Writing Again . . . Finally!

As you might have noticed, I haven't blogged in quite awhile. Oh, I've posted one here or there, but I haven't had a real pattern to my blogging since May 2014.

At first, I just wanted a break, so decided to take the summer off. But then I enjoyed the free time that not blogging gave me, and . . .

 

I started writing again.

It's been over two years since I really buckled down to write. Oh, I've written a few things, dabbled with the beginnings of various stories, but I haven't simply sat down and churned out the words.

I'm churning them out now. I have a small goal of 5,000 words a week.

I'm working on Dragon Days of Summer, book four of The Goblin's Apprentice series. Once I finish the rough draft, I'll have to spend quite a bit of time layering the mythical aspects, plus characterization, plus differentiating the characters. Kyte has a couple of new bff's . . . just saying.

What will I write after this?

I don't know.

But I do know that blogging too far too much creative energy. This doesn't mean that I won't blog, I will. It just means that I won't be blogging as often. So if you don't want to keep coming back to the blog to see if something new is posted, then you might want to have the blog sent to you via email. This way you will only get a message if I've posted anything new.

To that end. I need to go write.

Later, Peeps!

The Chapter that would NOT end . . .

IS NOW FINISHED!

I still have the second half of the book to deal with, but chapter 7, Double, Double, Toil and Trouble, was a doozie! It's around twenty typewritten pages which makes it almost double most of my regular chapters. This chapter included using ideas from my original draft of TROLL, written TWO years ago, but updated and merged with the new beginning of the story.

I'm slow when working this way. I'm so doing just plain old edits because I'm rearranging, rewriting and reading it aloud. So many other writers that I know finish editing their stories in two days, it takes me at least two weeks--AND my middle grade stories are half the length!

Anyway, I'll find out how much editing I'll have to do when I get it back from my CP.  But I think it will have to stay like it is with minimal cutting. Be gentle, my Meggie!

This next chapter will also include melding of old and new words, but I don't think it will be as intense. . . I hope.

Part of the problem is that when I wrote the first draft of TROLL, I had just finished writing FAERIE, but all I had was a logline.

That isn't bad, per se, but I think the fast writing lost my character's voice. AND to top it off, I didn't get around to even looking at it for almost two years. The biggest reason for that was my decision to self-publish my middle grade stories, and I had to get them edited, formated, find a cover artist, etc.

But I'm back!

Today, I'm working on Chapter 8: Just one little bite . . .

Later, Peeps!

Writing is like Gardening

This seems to be an odd statement, but a couple of days ago I had an epiphany.

"Lightbulb." (name the movie!)

As I've been posting some pictures of my backyard, I've come to realize how similar writing and gardening are.

When a writer first gets the germ of an idea, he lets it roll around in his head, thinking about all sorts of "what if's" before he puts his fingers on a keyboard.

When we first bought this house, the yard was sodded. No trees, no pool, no plants, no nothing, just grass. But as I found out when I mowed the yard, there were numerous 'microclimates' within the yard. There were stripes that were constantly green without the aid of above ground watering. Other areas were seriously hot from the western sun baking the earth. Some areas were very shady or only received morning sun. And so on and so forth.

The writer constructs an outline, deciding on characters and plot. The story picture is becoming a little more concrete. The writer has an idea of the beginning, the middle and the end. Perhaps the writer follows the three act structure or the snowflake method. But the story is beginning to take shape. This is the backbone of the story.

before

after new hardscape

The gardener plans the hardscape (the walkways, paths, stone), the location of trees (for shade, privacy, noise control), and the foundation plants (shrubs). This part of the work creates the backbone structure of the yard.

The writer writes the story, inserting dialogue, discovering subplots, works on characterization and adds emotion. The writer thinks about character arcs and overall story arc.

The gardener adds perennials, moves plants that aren't succeeding even though the "criteria" was appropriate when first planted. Remember, gardens grow, they aren't static. The gardener also thinks about seasonal flowering. You don't want the plants to only flower in the spring, that would make for a very boring summer and autumn.

Once the story is written, the work isn't finished. The writer will edit, delete scenes, words, rewriting entire sections of the story and rearrange story.

Trees grow, microclimates change, shrubs get too large. What used to be hours of sunlight, might now have reverted to only a few hours a day. The gardener will adjust his garden according to what he imagines as his final, albeit changing, garden.

During the last stage of writing, the writer will tweak sentences, find stronger words, and polish the final product for viewing.

The gardener adds colorful annuals--those plants that will only survive the season, but add bursts of happiness into a yard. The gardener will also weed, trim, deadhead and sculpt trees, shrubs and flowers.

A writer might tweak and change his story, but must eventually give up control if he wants to give readers the enjoyment of his words.

But the gardener is always able to tinker and change the look of his yard.

You might think that I'm exaggerating, but I feel that I've found a comparison that both writers and gardeners will understand.

What do you think?

Oh, the movie?

Despicable Me.

Minions RULE!!

Later, Peeps!

Welcome back, Mojo!

Well, I'm busy putzing around this morning on the blogosphere.

But I'm excited to announce that I got my mojo back! YAY!

Last week, I didn't know what to do with my writing self so I called my friend Cyndi. I wanted to get back into my second middle-grade novel, but was stuck. I needed brainstorming help. For my story, I wanted a human element of growth along with the fantasy adventure story. I wanted Rhee's antagonist (popular kid) to have a secret, a secret she would be embarrassed for her friends in the 'cool kid' group to find out. I thought about having her dad lose his job. I thought about him being an alcoholic. I thought about him hitting her--but I really didn't want to open that particular can of worms. Just talking it out with Cyndi helped me come up with the right answer for this story. And no, I'm not telling you what it was! Only Cyndi knows the concept. :-)

I love having someone to brainstorm with. I tried it once with my hubby, but he got upset when I didn't take his suggestion. Uh, the key to brainstorming is to offer all sorts of solutions--including the stupid ones--to get the writer's mind open to all sorts of possibilities. When I was writing Leprechaun I needed some way to kill a manticore (part man, part lion, part scorpion). I wanted a solution that would work for my story in the setting I had written. We did this brainstorming session in our goals chat room. Donna gave me a ton of suggestions: hit by car, steam roller, guillotine, etc. BUT just by suggesting ridiculous solutions, I came up with the one I was happy with. It pithed itself :-) but there was the excitement of the fight before that it tried to kill my hero when he sat on it's neck.

So, I'm back, and I'm off to reread what I've written on FF, deleting the part that I KNEW was wrong. Ugh, I don't want to even think about how many pages are going bye-bye!

I hope everyone is having a happy and productive Monday! And keep going NaNo friends. BTW: Dale from my goals group crossed the 50,000 word mark last night!! WheeWhoo! 50K in 15 days! FANTABULOUS!!

Write on!

Day Four

Another non-productive day! :-( Again, no real reason except that it was chopped up and I couldn't get my mind around my story. My day is actually longer than posted, but in theory this is my writing time. No, I don't function AT ALL after dinner, so no late night writing for me!

8:15 submitted two first paragraphs (DC and RM) to Lori Brighton's contest to bejudged by Kensington editor. Both are in first person POV, not holding my breath. At least the top 20 will know that it 'fits' Kensington's lines.
8:35 walked kiddo to school
8:45-9:45 goofing off and blog hopping. Erica Orloff did an impromptu pitch feedback session. Subbed MOGG. Good feedback, needs a little more to make it better.
9:45-11:00 hubster called, meeting early for lunch, tried to get back to computer, but cat had vomitus ups issues, did laundry, cleaned up cat room--only to have to clean it again due to him using the litter box and sprinkling crunchies around the laundry room.
11:00-1:10 Lunch, shopping at fabric store, back to his work to get flu shot
1:10-2:00 Shopping at new Target. Of course, the layout is freaking different. And why the hell are the light bulbs near the baby clothes???? Okay, they are near the automotive and furniture area, too. But still across the freaking store?
2:00-3:15 put up groceries, stared at computer, updated FB status--felt like crap. Due to shot or front moving in?
3:20 got child from school
3:30-4:15 helped child with homework
4:15-6:00 started Chicken Tortilla soup while kiddo watched new Tinkerbelle movie, worked on my farm in Farmville

There you have it, my non-productive day broken down into segments.
Arm still hurts from shot, but my Tylenol PM did the trick and I 'feel' better, except for my shot arm.

Margaret: 4,504/15,000 completed--no new words. Okay, a few words, but I'm saving them for today's total.
Jody: No new words. Day job stuff. Tuning air guitar for Halloween/birthday weekend
Karin: MIA

I HAVE to get it together today. I just found out the kiddo is out of school tomorrow.
What's up with that Union School District???

Write on!

To make candy or write . . .

Well, I'm making Christmas candy this week, BUT I'm thinking about my story. A lot of writing involves thinking about scenes or characters or plot twists or how to get a character from point A to point B without the boring crap (driving in car, getting breakfast at McD's, etc) of reality in between.

I write by the seat of my pants. I have an idea. I know the ending. And I might have an idea of a couple stops along the way. I learn about my characters as I write them, which means I tend to rewrite the beginning of my novel many, many times. That's it. I'm a pantser.

Plotters on the other hand. Write detailed character arcs, character interviews, long synopses detailing everything, etc. I know there's something I'm missing in this, but I don't plot so I don't know what it is. :-) For me, plotting to this depth takes away from the freshness of the story.

So even if you don't put fingers to the keyboard to write daily, you can still be thinking and working on your story. When you are in the shower, taking a walk, driving the car, waiting in line and, *gulp* forgive me God, even in church, you can think about your story.

Write on!

Advice to the newbie

I found out a few days ago that my niece has started writing in her free time. Of course, I sent her an email, but haven't heard back from her yet. My brother, her uncle, is the one who sent me a note about her endeavors, and here is one of his comments, "Perhaps you can share some lessons learned that she need not suffer through, unless this is some necessary rite of passage for any author to be any good at all." I thought his comment was funny as hell, though I don't think he meant it to be. Yep, if I'd been drinking coffee when I read this the spray would have ruined my monitor.
Writing is a tough biz. 90% of the population wants to write a book. 10% actually starts writing a book. 1% finish a manuscript. And less than 0.01% actually publishes a book.
well, crap, I was cleaning up my blog and deleted the rest of it. Guess, I'll have to try to remember what I was going to say, other than AARRRGGGHHH!
In the current economic downturn, very few publishers will want to extend contracts to untested debut authors. Oh, there will be a few, but you have to remember they are only going to bet on the sure thing, the guaranteed money makers, such as celebrities. And you have to remember that mid-list authors will be fighting for what little money is available, and they are already a proven entity.
Use this time to hone your craft, learn all aspects of the business, research your story, and discover your writing voice. Finish that manuscript and start another, and another, until you have more to offer when you get picked up.
Write what you love, because your passion will shine through.
And remember, they aren't rejecting you, it's just business.

Blathering insomnia

It was between the hours of midnight and two in the morning when I lay in bed and watched the digital numbers slowly change that I realized I had the wrong puppeteer.
Oh, don't get me wrong, the guy I thought it was would still make a great evil doer, but not for this story. I think I'll let him percolate for book 2.
I don't often get insomnia. I think it was due to some cold medicine that I took. Out cold for two hours, then up for two, and finally four hours of moderate sleep. Yeah, I still feel like crap, but shit happens.
Anyhoo, I started thinking about a Scooby-Doo movie along with an Agatha Christie novel--trust me, there is a common intersection--and I realized that the person responsible for committing the crime was already 'dead'. Not dead dead, though it would work since this is an urban fantasy and vampires do make an appearance, but thought to be dead. It gives the character leeway to create all sorts of havoc, and I like making my characters suffer.
If I feel like crap, then they can, too.

Writer's Block

This question was posted by a prolific writer on one of my loops this week. And I have to say there were various answers to the question of how do we deal with it. The answers ranged from: force yourself to write to research and read.
I was the one who suggested reading and researching. I do this to help refill the well, jarring the writer out of a dead-end funk. I've tried the write through it phase and all I had was a bunch of crap that I had to delete. . . and it was more frustrating than it was worth. If I think about the problem for a day or two (walking is a great way to sort it out) or read to get my mind off it, then I seem to come up with an answer.
The key is to find a way that works for you.
What tricks do you use to keep working on your manuscript?

The timer trick

Ah, once I finish tying up a few loose ends (getting the first load of laundry in the washer, heating up a cup of joe, emailing a rose reminder to my chapter, eating-because if I don't I'll faint from hunger or dive into the kiddo's Halloween candy) I'll be starting my timer set for 30 minutes.
Why 30 minutes?
Because it's doable. It might take the first 5 or 10 minutes to get into the groove, but BICHOK for 30 minutes--not a problem! When I tried two hours--hell, then I'm up and wandering around and wind up spending less than 15 minutes total actually writing. Whereas, I can do 4 30-minute segments, and really write for 2 hours.
After I write for 30 minutes, then I can take a 30 minute break: to read email, refresh my coffee, move the laundry to the dryer, etc.
Try it, you just might like it!

In the middle of the night . . .

I woke up as a conversation played through my mind. Not a normal conversation, but one every writer out there has experienced, it was a conversation between characters.
I've been researching and thinking about a new series that I want to write and for some reason, I feel the need to have a gargoyle involved in it. His name is Michael, though he has some unpronounceable Mesopotamian name as his given name. I really like him: he's not really 'good', but he isn't 'evil', just misunderstood. Like you've never heard that one before! I think he will have a major part in book 2, though I will intro him in book 1, and I suspect he will pop in from time to time to check on my heroine.
So after feeding the fuzzy critters, I started writing the scene. 500 words into the scene, I still haven't introduced him yet. I NEED to get this scene down, but I have to get dressed, get the kiddo to school and go to the doc to check out my gimpy knee before I get back down to biz.
I'll get there.

Writing and life interferences

Yesterday was a good writing day. I edited 5 pages from the previous day, wrote 6 and edited them. Wow, for me this is EXCELLENT. I'm on a roll!
But wait. I have a retreat to get to today. I have to do laundry, pack, get the critter's food/meds ready for poppa to take care of them, and then there's the kiddo's jog-a-thon. . .
Weekend? Retreat, remember? And it's a lecture retreat. Yeah, I'll get ideas, but writing isn't in the cards.
Okay, how about Monday? I'll be raring to go after the stimulation of the retreat. Monday...oh, then there's laundry and chores. Tuesday, got it. I'll shoot for 6 new pges. Wednesday? Uh, no, kiddo's on fall break. (sigh).
How about the next monday? Then I'll start my writing momentum again.