1k-a-day Day 25

Tami's day 24 word count:
Tami's July word count:
Overall word count:
Cups of coffee drank:
Music:
Mindset:

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Well today was a lot better. After icing it, my digit is looking almost normal and I'm hopeful the ol'wedding ring can go back on soon. But the good news is - I could type after all....lol....so I got in my 1k!

Tracy's day 24 word count: LI: 1322, WS: nadda
Tracy's July word count: 27 106
Overall word count: LI now: 43 206
Cups of coffee drank: non-stop Chai tea
Music: I had High Fidelity playing in the background. I love that movie.
Mindset: While I spent a few hours lost in the Dictionary of Symbolism I took out from the library, I did manage to focus and write for Losing It. The dogs behaved and took their afternooon nap at my feet, even the boxer. ;)

I know this month has been tough. But I'm proud of us all for writing more than we would have without the challenge. Only a few days left to make a dent in those stories!

1k-a-day Day 24

Tami's day 23 word count: 0
Tami's July word count: 11,700
Overall word count:
Cups of coffee drank: 2 with Oreo cookies...mmmm. If you've never dunked a Oreo into a warm cup of coffee, it's a must.
Music: nothing
Mindset: Didn't get a chance to write today. I still have the night (it's 6:30) but am still exhausted from the trip. Busy day at work, but it didn't help the day go by quickly unfortunately!

How did your day go, Tracy? I envy your day yesterday. I love going to a coffee shop, enjoying a warm cup and cookies while writing. Can't get any better than that!

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Tracy's day 23 word count: Big goose egg
Tracy's July word count:
Overall word count:
Cups of coffee drank: Not enough!
Music: Dogs barking and snorting.
Mindset: Frazzled. Well, it was a zero day for writing. I'm puppysitting a boxer this week and now have three huge beasts wandering the house. The door bell rang and I was fielding the dogs and got my hand caught in Willow's collar. I kind of sprained a finger. There was pain. There was swelling. I managed to get my wedding ring off before it cut off my circulation. After that I just kind of hung out with the dogs and moped. lol...oh well, I still can't get my ring on (the knuckle is too puffy), but at least the aching throb has stopped. I'll try to write in my notebook today and not worry about typing too much.

Let's hope our 1k-a-dayers faired better than we did!

1k-a-day Day 23

Remember, this is week 4; almost the end of 1k-a-day. Time to buckle down and squeeze out what we have left in us!

Tami's day 22 word count: 1,112
Tami's July word count: 11,700 (or there about)
Overall word count: 7,105 (for Worst Days)
Cups of coffee drank: 2
Music: I had my iPod on random. Man, I haven't done that in a LONG time and I have some WEIRD stuff on my iPod. LOL
Mindset: I am so tired. The time difference and just getting back into the swing of things is killer. I had to use Write or Die to get my 1k for the day. Luckily, I was able to do it in a little less than 30 minutes. I hope it comes easier for me tomorrow. I'm floundering with both stories right now so it's not fun and easy times.

How did week 4 start for you, Tracy?

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Write or Die - so glad you introduced me to that little torture device. ;) I've used it a few times this month as well, although I'm always stressed without my BBF, spell check.

Tracy's day 22 word count: LI: about 1000 words (6.5 notebook pages)
Tracy's July word count: 25 784
Overall word count: LI: 41 884
Cups of coffee drank: several at home and 1 skinny chai latte at Beantrees, our local java joint.
Music: Nothing really. They had music at the cafe, but I didn't pay attention to it.
Mindset: I needed a change of scenery yesterday and went to a cafe for a ginger cookie and a chai. I was able to write a few transitional scenes in Losing It that I had been putting off. Nothing like getting away from the house, the Internet, etc. to force you to do the essential, but not as fun stuff. We're going to be puppy sitting a boxer for a few days. That makes 3 dogs and 1 cat to monitor. Finding time to write may be challenging.

How's everyone else doing?

1k-a-day Day 22

I hope everyone had a great week 3, but we are now on to week 4! We can see the home stretch and don't stop now! There are a few people still playing along and a ton of books left to win. Speaking of which, don't forget to post your week 3 word count in today's post by tomorrow (7/23) night. I will post the winner on the 24th!

Also, to karinlibrarian, don't forget to send us an email at YAedge @ yahoo.com (without the spaces) to let us know what book you'd like from your week 2 win!

Tami's day 21 word count: 541
Tami's July word count: I've lost count but will figure this out tomorrow hopefully!
Overall word count: 541 (Just a short story that I came up with at the airport)
Cups of coffee drank: 1 REALLY REALLY bad cup of plane coffee
Music: nothing actually. The sound of an airplane?
Mindset: I can't explain to you how much I needed that vacation...but I'm back and ready to jump back into this. I didn't get to write a lot, and unfortunately didn't have wifi/internet access on the trip except for my husband's iphone (when it was working). I learned many things about myself and writing on this trip and one of them is it's hard to write when on vacation visiting your in-laws.

It's great to be back, Tracy. Thanks for holding down the fort. How'd it go in your neck of the woods on the last day of week 3?

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I agree that it's liberating to unplug, but I can only do so if I'm forced to. The first few days are too tramatic...lol. But when life happens and I have to take a break, I feel like I did when I first quit smoking (15 years ago) and food began to taste and smell fantastic - when I'm unplugged, the sun seems brighter, the world more interesting, my mind gets clearer and then - wammo - I get an idea for a story and have to get to the nearest computer to share the plot with my crit partners. ;)

Tracy's day 21 word count: WS: 1424 LI: nadda
Tracy's July word count: 24 784
Overall word count: WS now: 20 953
Cups of coffee drank: 1 pot
Music: It was punk day at my place: The Ramones, The Clash, The Pixies, The Velvet Underground (I'm Sticking With You really, how can you not love that tune?)
Mindset: A little lost. Yesterday wasn't a great writing day. I plotted for both projects, debated on scraping them both and starting fresh. Then I went to see Harry Potter and came back all inspired. I decided to focus on WS, but I had no flow and wrote bits and pieces of scenes out of order and couldn't figure out the best spot to work them in. Ugh! Here's to a smoother day 23.

It's lovely to have Tami back with us!

1k-a-day Day 21

Tami's day 20 word count:
Tami's July word count:
Overall word count:
Cups of coffee drank:
Music:
Mindset:

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Tracy's day 20 word count: Zero
Tracy's July word count:
Overall word count:
Cups of coffee drank: Lots
Music: My iTunes mix
Mindset: I didn't actually write a single word of my own yesterday, but I went to the public library and wrote notes from books on world mythology, Psychology Today magazine, and an awesome book, Dictionary of Symbolism: Cultural Icons and the Meanings Behind Them byHans Biedermann. I'm gleaning ideas for Witch's Shadow and it's sequel, Witch's Ladder. I love research, after all, I am a library technician. ;) I have lots of info to weave into the story today.

I'm feeling kinda lonely now....no Tami, no 1k-a-dayers, no chocolate (rotten diet). Where's all my peeps?!

1k-a-day Day 20

Tami's day 19 word count:
Tami's July word count:
Overall word count:
Cups of coffee drank:
Music:
Mindset:

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Haven't heard from Tami in a few days...she must be having an awesome vacation. I bet she'll come back with incredible word counts, too. ;)

Tracy's day 19 word count: LI: nadda, WS: 1294
Tracy's July word count: 23 360
Overall word count: WS now: 19 529
Cups of coffee drank: Many. The river of java never ended.
Music: I think I have a new procrastination tool. When I'm stuck on a sentence or a scene, I go onto iTunes and shop. This is not good. This is addictive. This is expensive. But....oh well. Yesterday's acquired tunes: 21 Guns (Green Day), Everything is Alright (Motion City Soundtrack), Ain't No Rest for the Wicked (Cage the Elephant), and more. Fun stuff - until my iTunes card runs out.
Mindset: Fully charged. I've been changing up my workout schedule. I learned the hard way that writers have to make time to exercise, as well as write, or our asses grow faster than our word counts. Anyway, since I'm already up freakishly early (5:30am) I eat breakfast, write for an hour and then workout (instead of in the evening). When I return to my laptop, I'm recharged and ready to take on the world. Today, I just might even venture back into the land of Losing It.

So put on some tunes, get those bodies moving and then sit down to write your rock-the-world novel!

1k-a-day Day 19

Tami's day 18 word count:
Tami's July word count:
Overall word count:
Cups of coffee drank:
Music:
Mindset:

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Tracy's day 18 word count: LI: nadda, WS: 1141
Tracy's July word count: 22 066
Overall word count: WS now 18 235
Cups of coffee drank: 1 pot, plus a few
Music: Out of the tunes I purchased, I think I listened to Heartless by The Fray the most.
Mindset: Revved up. I can't believe how many words we've managed to write in just 18 days! All of us have produced more than we have if left to our own devices and so the July challenge has already been worthwhile - and just think - it's not over yet! We have 13 more opportunities to reach that infamous 1k-a-day. Don't stop now, guys.

I know it can be difficult to block out time to write. But you have to. I was searching the net for ideas on time management and discovered this most excellent blog post by C. L. Wilson at Writers at Play: Making Time to Write.

Check it out. And then WRITE!