Stuck On Seven

So, I've been uninspired lately. Nothing is worse than fighting your way to finish a chapter. For a while I was utterly repulsed by how it turned out. Needless to say I avoided it by any means possible. Earlier this week I finally managed to sit down read it and start the long process of editing out all the 'yuckies' as I call them.  Its a whole lot of work. I'm still combing through it and it's Friday! Hopefully my friend will read it and be able to help me get on the right track. Transitions are the hardest part of a story.

The good news is I'm done with my mad mission to up my word count. All my chapters are 2380 words or more! Yay. Which gives me a grand total of 17102 words (this includes my stinkish seventh chapter). So I'll just keep pressing on. I'm slowly making progress.

Word Count is everything!

For the past couple of days I have been working hard at getting my word count up to par.  I've done some math and figured that in order to reach my goal of 50,000 words for 21 chapters I need to have 2380 words for each chapter. So I've been working on getting that fixed, though I have exceeded that on more then one occasion! I'm pretty pleased with my progress so far.

Other than adding words and writing like a maniac I haven't got much to say here. So...until tomorrow!

For my fellow Inheritance cycle nerds!

Today's pep-talk was by none other than Christopher Paolini! Since I have a few friends who share my interest with his series I thought I'd post it. This pretty much says it all!!

Dear NaNoWriMo Participants,

No doubt you are currently hard at work on your novel for this year's contest. As someone who once wrote 200,000 words in three and a half months, I know exactly what you're going through.

So. Here's my advice based on over 10 years of working to deadlines.

First, writing your book is going to be difficult. Know this. Accept this. Embrace this. It may be fun as well, but make no mistake, what you're attempting is a major undertaking.

Second, pace yourself. Because it's going to be difficult, you don't want to burn out. Save the late nights and early mornings for the last week, week-and-a-half of your effort. You may be writing at a quick jog, but don't break out into an all-out, fear-driven, there's-a-bear-behind-me pace until it's absolutely necessary. Conserve your creative strength. You're going to need it. (On a related note: avoid making big decisions not related to your writing. A person can only make so many good decisions over the course of the day, and you want them to go into your novel.)

Third, if you haven't already, think about where your story is going next. If you're going to be flying headlong through the pages, it's good to have a road map. That said, don't be afraid to deviate from your plan if a good idea strikes you during the process.

Fourth, if you're stuck, go for a 15-minute walk. If you don't feel like going, that means you've been sitting at the computer/typewriter/paper for too long. Get up and get the blood flowing. It'll make all the difference.

Fifth, don't worry about punctuation, spelling, or formatting. Those are easy to fix. Instead, worry about pacing, characters, and setting. Get those right, and no one will care that you put a comma in the wrong place.

Sixth, a casual tone (like this letter) is quicker and easier than formal. Nevertheless, use whatever voice best suits your story.

Seventh, tea is a big help. Black or green tea in the morning—Lapsang Souchong is a favorite of mine—cinnamon in the afternoon. Why cinnamon? For some reason, it helps keep my mind sharp. Don't have black or green tea later in the day unless you're in your last big push, then you can have a second in the afternoon, when you start to flag.

Eighth, try to relax when you can. Watch a movie, have dinner with your family, blow up enemies on an Xbox 360 or PS3. Just don't think about the book.

Ninth, try to reach for your word-count goal every day. But, don't feel bad if you get less on a certain day. You will get less on some days. Trust you'll also get far more on other days.

And tenth… don't give up! You can do this! It may not seem like it day to day, but as long as you keep putting words on the page, you will get to the end of this. And who knows? People may actually like what you've written. And that's the best reward of all.

Fellow authors, I salute you. Luck in battle.

– Christopher Paolini

Chapter 5!

Last night I wrote my behind off and managed to get half-way finished with chapter 4. This morning I finished the chapter and am about to start chapter 5. I'm feeling good.  I have 6740 words. Really insignificant compared to what I had before I got on restriction. But if I keep writing like this I'm confident I can reach my goal.

I wish I could make this post longer but my story won't write it's self. Adios!

Original idea for Nano vs. current Nano novel

Before I explain my title let me just apologize for the lack of posts.  It may sound funny but believe me, it wasn't my choice.  Let's just say my computer privileges have been 'cut off' for the past week.  Now that I'm off restriction I can once again resume writing.

Now I shall explain the meaning of my title. Long before Nano even began I was busy preparing by writing an outline to a story that I had been mulling over in my noggin for quite some time. Even though I had the final chapters planned out there were still some minor details to attend to.  Unfortunately before I was able to oversee these changes I lost the notebook which contained my entire 21 chapter outline.  You can imagine my distress, this was every writer's nightmare!

So when November rolled around and Nano began I was forced to come up with a whole new story. Only when I was put on restriction did I actually think to look under my bed.  Much to my glee I found it! So now that I'm a week behind on Nano I have decided to start from scratch on a totally new story.  Sounds reckless...I know.  But I do believe I can do it!

Now I must stop procrastinating and get to work.  This 21 chapter novel won't write itself!

Day 9 still 37197 words to go

Normally I post on my blog after I've at least written something in my story.  I just finished with my school for the day and haven't quite gotten to it yet.  Fine...*sighs* my guilty conscious is nagging me...*rushes off to write a paragraph in the story* There now I have 37101 words to go.

Anyway, this post was merely designed to tell a little bit more about Nano and what it offers.  By far the most exciting feature would have to be the free paper back copy they provide if you reach your word goal.  I deeply regret not ordering my free copy back in 09 when I first tried Nano. In a way it would have been nice to have, even though it wasn't that good of a story.

Also Nano has several guest authors that write short pep talks.  I'm mostly excited about Christopher Paolini's. I love his books and am eager to see what he has to say, being a fairly young writer himself. I'll post it here once it shows up.

So, until tomorrow.  I guess I have some writing to do...huh? Good thing I feel refreshed and my creative juices are flowing. I'm determined to exceed the daily goal of 2101 words...even if it is just by 1000 words.

Constantly Catching Up! ~37197 more words to go

I feel like I'm constantly struggling to get caught up.  Since Sunday, I was so busy I didn't get to write, I have been lagging behind.  I have 12803 words all together, though. I find that the stat tab is very helpful when it comes to me seeing what needs to be done and how much I need to write in order to make my goal.

Today I was determined to meet my goal but found myself to uninspired to continue for tonight.  Hopefully tomorrow I'll be able to get the goal for the day.

My story is going fairly well.  I have so many plans but am not sure how to proceed with them... It will come to me...eventually.

Caught Up ~43262 words to go

My fingers are weak...I spent almost all evening speeding to catch up.  Only seconds ago did I actually type in my word count and I'm officially caught up! Can you hear that? It's my sound of relief! At this point I'm actually surprised to find that I want to keep on going! Even though I feel as though my fingers want to escape this torture.  But once I get going it's hard for me to stop! Though the quality is undetermined I'm pretty satisfied with what I have.  Perhaps now that I'm caught up I'll apply for a cover...finally! I've been meaning to for a while now but just haven't gotten around to it.

Who, might you ask, actually makes my covers.  Well my favorite go-to girl is ir0nna.  She has made many covers for me in the past and she is amazing! So if you're in need go to her forum in the Art section...you won't regret it!

National Novel Writing Month...again!

I can't believe that it's November already!  Time flies by so quickly.  Although I was unable to last year, this year I'm participating in Nanowrimo, the young writer program. This blog will be how I track my progress.  I realize that I am three days behind and I'm crunching to catch up!  My word goal for today is 5,000 words.  That will get me caught up...hopefully.

If you wish to learn more about my novel please visit my Nanowrimo page.  You can find me under DandyGirl1314. I'm looking for a volunteer to make me a cover so shoot me a nano-mail.

Since I haven't been on the website for so long I can't help but notice all of the changes.  There are changes to the Writing Buddies tab and a whole new tab to help track your novel's progress.  I must say, I'm most excited about that!

So, keep reading for updates on my novel.  Lets see if I can reach the 50,000 word mark! Keep your fingers crossed!