Writing Wednesday: Tracking and Motivators

One of the big reasons I like NaNoWriMo is the word count tracking and the challenge of it. I occasionally wish I had that same thing all year round – I might never get anything else done, but boy would I get books written. I thought maybe I’m not alone in that desire and I had a site pointed out to me earlier this week that might fit that bill. I’m giving it a try and see how the freebie version works out. I’ve gotten a few tips like this over the years and maybe they’ll be useful to other people.

Pacemaker: I’m giving the free version a trial run to see how it goes but I like the goal setting and the challenge and the tracking aspects of it so far. I’m interested to see how easy it is to use and how user friendly.

The 52-Week Writing Challenge is a little too open to work for me but not every writer is like me.

Of course there’s an app for that. The Writing Challenge App has several interesting features – prompts, timers, the ability to turn it into a group game, and something that looks like it might be a plotting assistant and that’s really neat if that’s what it is. I’d love to hear opinions if anyone has used this or tries this.

4 the Words is a paid game but it does have a 30 day free trial so you can see if it’s worth it to you. It does seem to have a save function and the idea is brilliant. NaNo is generally enough for me but I can totally see this game being something to help set up good habits and have it be fun also. At $4 a month, I may give this one a try come January when winter has set in (and all the Christmas crafting is over).

Written?Kitten is one of my friend’s favorite motivators. For every 100 (or whatever amount you choose) words written in the box, you get a picture of a kitten (or puppy or bunny)! Just remember to copy/paste it into a regular document as there is no save function on this particular motivational tool.

If you have any sites like this to add, please tell me in the comments. I’m always looking for things like this to share.

Halloween at the Museum

Book Table at Weirton Area Museum and Cultural Center – come out and say hi!

Today is the Halloween at the Museum event in downtown Weirton (right on Route 2) from 2-9:30 with special things for kids and adults and a lot of great artists and crafters (and there’s a really awesome critter maker who I already bought a tiny crow from because of course I did and my favorite local comic book maker also).

If you’re in the area (or able to get to the area), come say hi, look at all the cool halloweenish art, make a monster, learn a little history, stay awhile and listen to the Ohio Valley Cloak & Dagger Company who are doing a Poe reading at 7pm (I think there’s a small admission fee for the Poe thing).

It should be a really fun day!

Hindsight makes many things clear

I’ve been having a weird sort of month – it’s definitely on the upswing and it wasn’t entirely RA/Fibro related. I’ve been really struggling with fatigue lately – every time I turn around, I’m asleep again. It’s actually very annoying. I’m getting something of an upswing and that’s when it occurs to me that I’ve probably also been dealing with a bout of depression along with the other stuff. I know it hits me most Octobers and has for a very long time. I should know this just to know it but it never occurs to me when I’m in the thick of it that that’s what’s going on. I just know I’m tired and spacey and want to snuggle with my dog (who is super snuggly as long as my husband doesn’t have food).

I might not be all the way out of it this year – as evidenced by the lack of Halloween in my house. It’s very strange but at this point, not exactly worth putting it all up either. But, if I schedule an hour a day to work on house stuff for the next month (and actually stick to it more often than not), maybe I’ll be all set to put up Christmas on time (that’s what my house does while so many people push and shove on Black Friday). So, I’m just trying to take it easy and one project at a time. Today, my main goal was to hem a table runner for my book table this weekend at the Weirton Museum, fire cider, bread, and a roast. I’ll be managing three of those things. I don’t think I’m going to manage bread. I ended up napping instead of kneading. I got the runner done this morning, got most of the things I need for fire cider and made a small batch with prepared horseradish to have on hand. I’ll make a proper batch when I get my hands on real horseradish. With my meds, most cold and flu remedies are out but fire cider, vapor steams, and all the soups are not contraindicated so, hoping my fire cider helps keep those colds to a minimum this year. And the roast is ready to be seared and roasted and that’s my only plan for dinner so… that’s kinda gotta happen.

I’ve been very annoyed with myself for not being more on top of things and for stupidly simple things, like running errands, completely sapping me of all my energy. I don’t know how people deal with all this crap and work regular 9 to 5 or physically laborious sorts of jobs and am in awe of them for sure. Hopefully, tomorrow is even better than today was – today only required a 40 minute lie down. Saturday, I’ll be on my feet most of the day but fortunately, the Halloween art show and maker’s fair at the museum is a costumey sort of thing and my gnarly cane suits my costume perfectly so that’s nice. And set up is friday so I won’t have to do any heavy lifting before hand which is also very nice.

If you’re local, come say hi to me Saturday at the Weirton Area Museum and Cultural Center and look at all the neat, weird, halloweenish things that are on offer.

Writing Wednesday: Timelines

Sometimes, when you’re writing a particularly involved or complicated plot, you can cross your streams, backtrack, and leave gaping plot holes without realizing it. I know sometimes I get so caught up in the creating that I’m certain I set the stage when I only partially did. One of the things I like to do before I sit down to do any of my rewriting is read the whole draft with a pen and notebook in hand to write down major events and the dates and whathaveyou that it covers. I did this a lot with Hunter’s Crossing because there is so much driving involved in the story and I didn’t want to not give them enough time to get from point A to point B.

The date of the story isn’t always something that’s specified but I find it useful to know for my own sake, especially if I mention any constellations or moon phases. I really like to have all of those things line up correctly. I keep a note file usually in with my draft files with major characters birth dates, important things to note about that, death dates if applicable, and the general timeline of events that happen in the story. I’ve found that, if I don’t do that, I might leave my Chekhov’s gun not unfired but unplaced to begin with. I love a story where the little throwaway details turn out to be important and I tend to write that way.

If you use Microsoft Office, there are even templates available for Excel and Word to make your timelines prettier if you like that kind of thing (like I do). The great side benefit to making a good timeline is that it really helps keep things consistent if you write a continuation or sequel or develop the project into a series. It’s especially helpful if you don’t work from an outline in the planning stages (like I don’t). Knowing dates can help with major world events, weather events, star positions, moon phases, astrology, available technology and anything else like that. It isn’t always something the reader needs to know and it doesn’t always make it into the story itself but it’s darned handy for the writer to know.

 

Happy writing!

Writing Wednesday: Nano Prep

National Novel Month is fast approaching. Some writers go into the challenge with little more than a notebook or a blank document. Other writers have full outlines, character sketches, and backstories already ready to go. There is no wrong way to participate in NaNoWriMo just as there is no wrong way to write. Poor pacing, clunky writing, cutout characters can all be fixed in edits, just write until the story is done. If you need an outline, use one. If you need a board full of snips and profiles, put one together! You’ve still got 15 days (or so) to hammer out that foundation work.

I don’t do a lot of prep work but I do tend to have the most basic idea and maybe a working title and usually a general playlist. I use Pandora and put together my music choice based on the sort of feelings I want my characters to be feeling. I write to music. I write best with headphones on, volume up, and dog tucked in beside me. I am not looking for the tone of the book or theme or even what I want the reader to feel, that will all come organically if I get the characters and their emotions right.

On rare occasion, I’ll hit up Pinterest and look for wardrobe pieces or jewelry or just the right sort of car. I do have boards for some of my books and I’m sure I’ll have more as time goes by. Some writers I know prefer tangible resources – pictures ripped from magazines, notes on sticky notes or pinned to a board or glued into a binder. It’s old school Pinterest like my wish book (I used to have a binder full of things I want or things I want to make).

There are a lot of character sheets out there but I tend to use DnD character sheets when I use them. They’re structured well for the way I do things. Ywriter (the program) has character profile sections and setting profile sections that can be really useful if you need to have all the prep work before the writing happens. And yWriter keeps it all in one handy dandy place.

If you are a writer who needs that foundation before you can write, there is still time to get on that and come join the rest of the crazypants people who dedicate their Novembers to creating new books.

Sometimes Opportunity Wears a Different Face

I wrote earlier this year about this year being my Brave Year and, amazingly enough, I’ve kept to that, as best I can anyway. One of the things I’ve learned this year is that opportunity doesn’t always look like what I thought it would. I haven’t snapped up every opportunity that’s come my way, but I’ve tried to and I’ve tried to follow up on all the potential door-knocks that have come my way this year. I’ve gotten back to doing crafty fair events and I’ve got a few more on the calendar this year and each one has brought an opportunity I didn’t expect, not just for myself but in some cases, opportunities for me to pass along information and potential opportunities to other people and places too. I’m in a very pay it forward kind of place right now.

Sometimes opportunity is a new friend, a lead on another event, a contact that might be interested in a custom order, or someone looking for something I don’t make or have but I know someone who does or can. Maybe these sorts of things were always there, right under my nose, and I wasn’t looking or seeing them or maybe it’s just this year, that I’m ready to reach out and grab them, I’m not sure which and I’m not sure it matters. I’m making the best of now.

Upcoming Events:

Halloween At the Museum event on October 26th from 2pm to 9:30 pm at the Weirton Area Museum and Cultural Center, at where I’ll have a book table and a few pieces on display – Voodoo Shop in a Box and Rags.  There will also be ticketed performances by the Ashley Marie Performing Arts Center and the Ohio Valley Cloak and Dagger Company, music, candy, historical exhibits, and children’s activities.

Holiday Craft fair for the Carlynton cheerleaders on November 3 at Celebrations near Robinson PA from 12-2 PM.

Writing Wednesday: Endings

A few weeks ago, I wrote about beginnings and how sometimes it’s hard to figure out where a story should really begin. The same is true of endings. Especially if you write in a genre where people have come to expect a sequel from all books. That’s not to say I don’t love a good series – I’m a huge fan of the In Death books by JD Robb/Nora Roberts and Richard Kadrey’s Sandman Slim books. I’m not discussing series in this instance but stand-alone books that have two or even three chapters worth of information after the story is over and the quest is finished.

Sometimes, as epilogue is called for – wrapping up the last little bit of story, showing that happily ever after (or happily for now) conclusion. Most times, I find it to be like the prologue – good information for the writer to know but not really needed for the story to keep it’s flow and punch. Post climax, there shouldn’t be a huge chunk of story left anyway. Ending close to the punch makes it just a bit more memorable.

If you find yourself writing whole chapter after the end of your story, then your story isn’t over. Either you’re actually writing a series or you need to restructure your story to move the all important climax of your story closer to the end, where it belongs. That’s the greatest thing about the editing process, once you’ve got the whole picture in front of you, you can move elements around, increase tension in places, sprinkle in some foreshadowing to give your climax even greater impact for your reader.

The girl, the song, and the arachnophobic mother

The last few days, I’ve been sharing some of my favorite music for this time of year on my Facebook page and yesterday, I posted a song that goes with a bit of a story. It was too long for a comfortable Facebook post but I thought maybe I’d share it here.

Sometime in 1987 or 88, when we were living in the Pacific Northwest, I was practically joined at the ear with my new radio. I heard a song I hadn’t heard before and like any music lover who hears a neat song is prone to do, I started singing it a lot. This song happened to be Boris the Spider by The Who.

A little background is needed here. First: my mother had music in her blood. She was never not singing something. Music was her happy place. She loved all music from all eras and knew the words to more songs than most people have heard. Second: my mother was incredibly afraid of spiders. Like scream and squeal and make the very small kid squash it afraid of spiders. Third: I have a very vivid imagination and do tend to remember my dreams pretty clearly for a day or two after a humdinger.

I was singing this song again, and trying to do the gruff, gravelly voice as it said “Boris the Spider” over and over. As an 8 or 9 year old girl, yeah, it probably didn’t exactly have the tone I was going for. My mother asked me what I was singing and I told her I wasn’t sure but I thought I’d heard it on the radio. Over the next few days, she managed to convince me that I’d made it up. My mom knew every song, if she said I made it up, I figured I probably had. Except there was always a little voice that was certain I’d actually heard it somewhere else.

If my father had said I made it up, I would have figured he was wrong. He never understood music at all. He put up with it when he came to visit me because he had no choice. My parents weren’t a good fit for each other for a lot of reasons but one of the big ones was my father’s lack of appreciation for music of quality. He didn’t even hum when he was cooking. My mother, I believed. Mostly.

For years, every once in a blue moon, I’d think of it, hum a bit, figure out the notes on whatever instrument I was playing at the time (the gruff gravel part is most fun on a sousaphone). And then I went to college and, for the first time, had access to the Internet (I know, I was late to the party). One of the very first things I typed into a search bar was “Boris the Spider.”

I understand why she lied. I have a problem with interesting songs. I hear one, I love it, I find the album, and I play it over and over and over until I’m the only one who isn’t sick of it. Well, me and my younger son who does exactly the same thing. If she had told me what the song was or who it was by, I would have bought the record or the tape and she would have heard it a lot over the next few months. The song gave her the creepy crawly heebee jeebees and she did not want to have to hear it over and over and over.

I’m pretty sure I might have been tempted to do the same thing in her shoes.

Writing Wednesday: NaNoWriMo

National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) is coming up quick – November 1st always comes too fast when I’m trying to enjoy my Halloween and then, it’s back to work! The idea is to write a 50,000 word draft of a novel, start to finish, in 30 days. It sounds like a crazy idea. It’s really not though. It’s about the community and the accountability of it and really, it amounts to 1667 words per day. That’s an hour of writing if you write 28 words per minute. When you chop it up into bites, even an elephant can be eaten.

I personally like the accountability of it. It’s helped me focus on just one project for a set period of time. The years that I’ve been successful, I wrote the first drafts of Guardian of the Gods, Eldercynne Rising, and Hunter’s Crossing (and the book I’m currently pitching places and one I’ve set aside for a while).

NaNoWriMo is an excellent tool for people who struggle not to constantly rewrite and revise. In my experience, one of the hardest lessons to learn is that you have to let your work be awful. Write it from start to finish and let it be as bad as anything you’ve ever written. Sure, make notes about ideas you had for the beginning as you’re slogging through the middle, but don’t go backward. Go forward all the way to the end first. Find your plot lines first. Show yourself the whole story first. I understand maybe you outline, maybe you think you know how you’re story ends, and maybe you really do, but my experience has been that, when I’m in the thick of the story, a better path nearly always shows itself.

The most common complaint I hear from newer writers is that they just can’t seem to get past the first section/chapter. They keep rewriting it, going back and fixing it. That’s why I’m such a huge fan of splat drafts/zero drafts. Start to finish, barely readable, certainly not publishable, splat drafts are just to get the bones down. Once you have the foundation, you can Winchester House your story all you want (if you’ve never heard of the Winchester House, please Google – it’s an interesting story). Once you’ve reached the end of a book the first time, subsequent books will always be less intimidating because you’ve already done it. It’s a bit like Harry Potter and his patronus – he knew he could do it because he already had (except logic and timey wimey stuff there’s issue with but whatever).

Nanowrimo helps boost good daily writing habits too. I’m terrible at writing every day unless I’m working on something specific and November and nano are always a good reset for me. I start the year out great but by November, I definitely need a bit of a reboot and it’s nice knowing that so many people are out there doing the same thing.