Looking Through a New Set of Eyes

For me, December is never a huge month for writing. The holidays get in the way and to be honest, I'm just plain burnt out by NaNoWriMo. This year is no different. The thought of writing right now is exhausting, but I must admit, I miss it. I decided to do the next best thing...the four letter word to some writers...

Edit.

Now, I know that's not very unusual. A lot of people edit their first drafts in the month of December. Their NaNo stories are still fresh in their mind and they can continue the flow and pace they kept up all in the month of November. To finish the draft and begin to make it coherent (because, seriously, how many NaNoWriMo words seriously survive the first edits?). See, this is where I'm doing something different. I have decided to push away the two new stories I've been working on (the one I started about six months ago, and my NaNoWriMo project) and focus on something that I'm not so close to anymore.

I've started editing the story, Lost and Found, that I queried about a year and a half ago. I'd pushed it out of my mind, pushed it far in the depths of my drawers and my computer folders. I realized last month, it may be the time to bring it back into the light. It has been awhile since I've even thought about it, much less read it.

It's funny how different each word looks on the paper now. How foreign the words are to me. I used to know this story by heart, it was a map of my mind. Now, it's just words on a page and that is exactly how I want it to be. I'm able to edit from a distance. See the mistakes that were always there, but I was unable to pluck them out because I always knew which word came next.

I hope I can be objective through the whole process and begin to query again the next few months. I love the story, and I want others to love it as well. Wish me luck!

Second Skin Booktrailer

So thrilled to announce the trailer for Second Skin, sequel to Under My Skin, is now available for viewing. Madison at M2 Productions is a media marvel. She's been doing trailers for authors since she the age of 17 and is now in film school. Go figure. If you're an author looking for someone to whip up a stellar trailer for your work, look no further.

Here's the blurb:

With FIENDS Like Eryn…
Eryn struggles to resist the beast clawing at her soul as darkness settles over her like a second skin. She’s made a deal, and she can’t let a dead man down. Not unless she wants her friends and family to relocate – six feet under.

When Eryn and her crew each face their own demons, loyalties are tested and temptations abound. Can she share a future with the brooding, noble, human Alec – the hunter after her heart? Or will she succumb to her enemy’s son, Wade, a seductive predator as bloodthirsty as she is?

What happens when you’re both the beauty and the beast?

And the trailer:

What a Month!

Sorry we've been so quiet the past week or so of the month, but Tracy and I have been hard at work on our NaNoWriMo projects. Now that December is here, we can all breath a sigh of relief. I know I am. I will be focusing on getting my crochet and knitting projects finished for Christmas, which in some ways is just as stressful as NaNo is!

As you can see here, I won! This is the first time it has taken me all 30 days to complete NaNoWriMo

This year I had a different approach to NaNoWriMo. I was working on a project that I dreamed up (literally, the idea came from a dream). I went into it knowing that it probably wouldn't be a project I would see to the end, but instead would just get me back into the groove of writing every day, or at least most days. It did just that. I had a great time writing it, without the pressures of wanting to take it through the editing stages and beyond. Instead, I wrote where the story and characters took me, not worrying how crazy or silly it was getting. It was great just to write freely and it even sparked a few ideas for other stories.

Another thing this NaNoWriMo project showed me, I'm probably better suited to write contemporary YA, opposed to fantasy/paranormal, etc. Contemporary YA speaks to me, and my writing style is best suited for it. My lovely crit partners have been saying that for awhile, but I think I needed to see it for myself to really understand what they were talking about.

NaNo was just about writing this year for me, not writing the best book, or the book that could maybe lead me to an agent after endless edits, it was about having fun with writing again.

What did you learn this year from NaNoWriMo about your projects and yourself?

NANO End Approacheth

And so the end of NANO draws near. I know I won't reach 50k, I'll be lucky to get 25k, however the experience has been worthwhile. I've moved faster with this WIP than with previous first drafts and I was inspired to work on a short story as well.

I'm hoping to keep this pace up for December/January and see if I can produce 25k each month - that's a decent first draft and in 3 months. Managable for me, I think.

Many of my NANO buddies, Tami included, are already nearing 50k or have won already. YOU GUYS ROCK! I'm amazed at your commitment. Whoopa! On December 1st I expect you all to have a decent shower, do your laundry and RELAX...you've earned some serious downtime.

Me? I'll still be plugging away. ;)

I did want to share one of my fav lines from my superhero NANO project. In this scene, Scarlet has just crashed into Jordan with her car. Jordan doesn't want to report the accident she never should have survived.


“So you’re saying you don’t want to involve the cops?” Scarlet rephrases. This is a seriously unexpected twist. Who gets hit by a car and doesn’t want to report it or get checked over?

“That’s right.” Jordan waits and in that waiting is life or death. Jordan’s life. Scarlet’s death. She waits for Scarlet to process her words. To react. And based on that reaction, Jordan will either reach for Elijah’s deathray gun resting in her coat pocket, or she won’t.

Do you have a fav few NANO project lines you want to share?? Let's have them!

And On We Go...

Hello happy NaNoWriMoers. At least, I hope you're happy. How's the word count going? If you're in the US, are you already dreading the Thanksgiving break, trying to write around time with the family?

This week was big for me. Not only did I totally catch up, I am now ahead. As of Thursday night, I have 32,031 words. I hope to stay ahead so that I don't have to pull out all the stops when I get back from the holiday the last two days. Is it just me, or is Thanksgiving super late this year?

My story is going good, the pacing could be better, but that's not what's important for NaNo. I'm still enjoying the concept and getting to really know my characters so it's fun each and every day. It's the words down on the page, telling the story in a messy first draft. That's what the following months are for, to make it a GOOD manuscript.

If you're a little behind, don't worry. There is still time to catch up. It's possible. Believe me, I've done it. If you're having trouble concentrating, try to get out of the house to write. Whether you have a laptop, an Alphasmart or just the simple pen and paper, you would be shocked how much you can get done away from distractions.

I hope all of the US YAedgers have a great Thanksgiving! Eat lots of turkey, read lots of books and oh yeah, don't forget to write a few words, too!

Shifting Gears: From Paranormal to Steampunk

For my NANO project (which is moving slower than I'd hoped), I decided to diversify and skip my usual genre, paranormal fiction. I had intended on this piece to be completely supernatural/magic/fantasy free, alas...the rotten thing had other ideas. A few pages into Rogues Gallery, the story of four looserish teens uniting against a common foe (the town's superhero) I knew my underachieving overachievers wouldn't stay contemporary YA. Nope, all too soon they managed to work in fantastical elements and I could only sit back, type and watch it happen.

However, this is definitely not paranormal fiction, so I feel I've had a measure of success with my effort to branch out. If anything it's more steampunk/supervillain/dark comic - but set in the present day. Sooo, how's that for mashing up genres?And though you may argue that steampunk uses science and gadgets....said gadgets are fantastical, impossible things, not contemporary "real life" YA in any sense.

Steampunk and superheroes/villains conventions complement each other - both have braniac mad scientists to be defeated, there are nifty gadgets that help save the day and strange man-made creatures. A Rogues Gallery of villains with quirky abilities is (are??) always nice, as is a failed romance or unrequited love. Toss in a rival for the true love's affections and possibly the end of the world and whoopa - you've got yourself one hell of a tale.

Really, paranormal fiction isn't too far off. I've just traded gadgets for magicks. Now if I can only get my butt in gear and shift into PLAID....I might be able to get to 50,000 by the end of the month. If not, I can always use my handy cross-over SUV (aka mini-TARDIS - it's much bigger on the inside) to go back in time and fit in more words.

Hmmmm....perhaps I'm watching too much Doctor Who. Ya think? Good luck meeting your word counts, my mad NANO friends!

Week Two Almost to a Close

The weekend is almost here, and that means that week two of NaNoWrimo is almost over. It was a bumpy week for me, but only because of laziness. Last Friday, I was on track, doing so good. Maybe a little too good, because I only wrote a few hundred words on Friday. See, I had an excuse, I was busy making this for my niece as a Christmas gift. Why were you so panicked when you have over a month left before Christmas, you ask? Because, I'm stupid and decided to make everyone's gifts this year. And yes, I am panicked that I won't finish and will have to run to the mall on Christmas Eve with all the other stupid people who wait until the last minute.

Then came Saturday. I felt so accomplished, finishing the bag and sitting pretty with my NaNo word count that I didn't write. Instead, we went to Long Beach for a fun short road trip, visiting a local yarn store and a tiki bar. There was always Sunday. We had no plans, the day would be a writing day, right? Wrong. Sunday came around, and though we didn't necessarily have plans, we still had to do stupid errands like go to the market that take way too long. By the time I got home, that last thing I wanted to do was write.

Flash forward to today (Thursday as I type this, at 6pm). I am caught up to where I should be, sitting at 18,431 words (actually a few words over the end goal for Thursday). Easy, right? Wrong. I've worked my butt of this week, sitting in the same chair each day for 6+ hours. I have felt accomplished as the days come to a close, but I felt as if I was fighting a losing battle. Every morning I would wake up only further behind.

There was no way I could climb back up, I thought on Monday, then Tuesday, and then on Wednesday, but I did. Each day I had to write 2,500+ words (Thursday I wrote 3,037 words) to get there. It wasn't easy, but I did it and you can too.

If you're behind and feel like there is no way you can do it, think of me. Sure, I had to work hard each day, but I got it done. If you focus and put your mind to it, it's possible. Right now, I will say, I learned my lesson. I will be writing 2,000+ Friday. I may not hit my writing goal on Saturday and Sunday, but I plan to get something down, even if it's a few words added to the final count. Every little bit helps, right?

Tami's word count at the end of day 11: 18,431

I hope everyone had a great Veteran's Day in the US and Remembrance Day in Canada yesterday. I wanted to thank all the soldiers for risking their lives to make ours better.