Camp NaNoWriMo

As if I didn't have enough on my plate, I have enlisted myself into Camp NaNoWriMo.

The Unanswerable, which a lot of you have probably seen excerpts of over time, is finally being written.  It has a 50-60k goal as a self-published novella about the "end of the world."  It will be stand alone, but I might write about other people in the same world, but different area, different circumstances.

It is now 12,892 words done (7k of that was already written prior to Camp).  It feels great to finally get some progress made in this story.

What's on my plate, besides Camp:

• Working with three other writers in a critique group - doing one-two chapter critiques a week for each person, as well as editing one-two chapters of Ruhe weekly.
• Received my edits back from Taryn.  They are spectacular, but I have a lot of work to do.  I'm still sitting on the new idea/replotting what has to be changed.  I'm not even attempting these changes until post-Camp.  So, July is Rioss rewrite month.  I plan on getting it out to my six or seven beta readers as I make changes.
• August brings about the second Camp.  I'll be completely rewriting Anthony's story A Good Criminal Heart.  My seventeen year old writing was just not as good as my twenty five year old writing.

Basically, a lot of rewriting.  As much as I want to start new projects, and I am allowing myself to work on The Unanswerable, I really need to sit my butt down and finish my other projects to query level.

But The Unanswerable and "My Summer Vacation by Terrance Wade" will both be self-published.  Which means, I have legitimate reasons for wanting to work on them.  They are great stand alone pieces and attest to my capability as a writer.  Not only that, but I think they are downright fun.  And it's a good "test" to see if I can get an audience through self-publishing.  If not, I'm saving my other three books for the real thing.  I don't care how long it takes me, I am going to become successful at my craft.

Just you guys wait and see ;)  I'm a very determined keyboard monkey.

Or maybe a Golden Tamarin. 

I love those.

Shiloh - Books that made me love reading challenge

For some reason, I really thought that Shiloh was a sad story. I don't know why my childhood mind made up this idea, but for whatever reason that's how I remember it.  Strange what time and memory really does, huh.  It could be that I'm getting Shiloh and Shiloh Season confused - or maybe I just remember the graphic, bloody part better than the rest.

When I was younger...
I guess what I really enjoyed about Shiloh was the actual dog.  I was animal obsessed to the 1000th degree and really thought that someday I would be a vet.  (Then I realized that I can't physically cut into anything without become queasy).

Now...
I start to peel back the layers and realize there's much more substance to the story than I previously thought. The main character, while he lied to his parents, learns an important life lesson about keeping true to his word and being a generally good person.  He faces an enormous amount of hostility and adversity from Judd, but with his perseverance and strength of character, he reaches his goal.  It is one of those stories where you end up believing that anything is possible if you work hard enough.  Which, isn't that what all kids should be taught?

Of course, being older and a little more cynical (or realistic), I realize that this isn't always the case.  Sometimes, no matter how hard you work, you will still be pushed in a different direction.  But I do believe that the different direction might sometimes be a better fit than where you once where.  And I think that's what I take away from this novel - work hard and eventually get rewarded, though sometimes the reward can surprise you.

Graphic Design: Although fun, not a cure for writer's block

I'm at it again.  I can never stick with one project for too long, and doing too many projects at once usually makes me feel overwhelmed.  But recently, I've decided to deviate from writing (for just a little hiatus) and tap into some of the other creativity I have. 

For those that don't know:  I love graphic design.  Not all the time, of course, but I enjoy photo manipulation, working with Photoshop, and generally doing random things.

This weekend, I created the cover for "My Summer Vacation by Terrance Wade," which is still open for suggestions.  I also worked on this super nerdy crossover, where FVII meets Van Gogh.

Basically?  I spent my whole weekend not writing.  I haven't been in the mood to write - I've been in a slump of sorts since post-honeymoon.  So I'm curious, other writers:  What do you do to get out of a slump?

While being creative is good for me, no matter what I end up doing, it isn't helping me finish my stories.  RUHE is sitting without being edited for a third time (and after editing one chapter, believe me, it needs it).  "My Summer Vacation by Terrance Wade" isn't even finished yet.  And I have tons of reading to do for fellow critiquers.

Conclusion:  The slump needs to end.  ASAP.

Suggestions?

Almost 200 Followers

One follower away from almost 200 has me thinking.  I should probably make a post with my favorite quotes from all of my current works in progress.  Short and sweet, but fun fun fun.

"My Summer Vacation by Terrance Wade" - Short Story, Humor
My dad always told me, "Terrance, if you see your mom trying to get in through that door, you lock it - you understand?"  So when my mom comes in through the window, I'm thankful it's not that door.

Rioss - YA GBLT Urban Fantasy
He opened his mouth to answer me, but before he could get any words out black and red bile spewed from his mouth.

RUHE - YA Contemporary
Delia threw her arms out in an elaborate gesture.  "My messenger name is Delialovesyou.  I know, super cute, right?  Totally.”

Soul Therapy - YA Paranormal Romance
She never really could get used to the underlying sense of desire he exuded. It oozed out, and he always seemed too eager, which is why Jess hadn’t done anything with him. She hadn’t decided if he was worth it.

2042 - Science Fiction

    "Okay, no, really... who put you up to this?  Albert?"  I hollered down the hallway.  Albert poked his head out of the office.  I got up out of my chair and pointed to the machine thing, it was still reaching for me.  "Did you get this guy?  What is it, a new kind of robot-ogram?" Albert walked towards me and stopped as he saw the clunking machine.  The machine's eye refocused on Albert.

    "Albert Stevenson?"

    "Kayla, I think you should..."  Albert stammered out a few words before the robot interrupted him.

    "Albert Stevenson, you should really return those DVDs."  Its voice boomed.  Albert's face whitened.

Good Criminal Heart - YA GBLT
Blood trickled down the back of my head and my knuckles were dropping blood.  My blood, and Nick’s blood, in one beautiful mess that spread throughout the hallway floor.

Kingdom of Obsession - Contemporary
“But nothing, Cat.  You and David split for the same reason in my ‘dream.’”  I rolled by eyes, “And mom only found her cancer because of the accident that never happened… but did happen.  In my...” Other life, second life, dream, memory, “Whatever, it was as if that accident never happened.”

That's all the teasers I have for today.  Rioss is officially in the hands of an editor!  And yes, it is one that I am paying for, but she's crazy amazing, and I'm excited for her feedback.  I have a good feeling about this one, folks!

Flash Fiction

I've been in a bit of a rut as far as writing has gone.

"My Summer Vacation by Terrance Wade" is sitting at home - too far away for me to work on it on my lunch break.  And Rioss is finished, hopefully getting edited soon.  Rioss II is a project that I don't want to undertake until Rioss is being queried.  I should probably finish my other projects too.

"My Summer Vacation by Terrance Wade" is about Terrance Wade - a precarious little kid that gets kidnapped by his mother over the summer vacation.  He tells an epic tale of adventure, even though he should be scared because he's been kidnapped.  But that's not Terry's style - he likes "seeing the world."  This might end up being my first self-published short story - as I'm aiming for 5-10k, and it sits at 2.5k right now.  A small goal, but I think I need smaller goals right now while Rioss is in the balance.

But, I'm still writing.  Here's my silly little flash fiction piece:

Sometimes the scratching is more than I can bear.  It seeps into my head, swirling around my brain and crawls deep within the recesses of my nervous system. I want to scream.  I want to claw and tear out my own skin, but they tell me that’s crazy.  There’s nothing there, it’s all in my head.

But what you can’t hear, I can.  It sounds like distant clicking of tongues mixed with a small undertone of bee hums.  And they dance around in human flesh, pretending to be normal.  Pretending to be like us.  After a few too many drinks, after they let their guard down, after they overindulge on the fantasies and pleasures earth promised them, you can see it.  Just a flicker, just a moment, but the whites in their eyes flash to black.  And their pupils shrink to the size of a pin.  The color of their eyes turns bright yellow.  

And they say I’m crazy, but the woman who made that decision is one of them.  I’m sure of it.  There’s no such thing as aliens, and they certainly don’t wear human skin.  They are wrong.  So so so wrong.  And as the humming gets closer and threatens to burst my cells from the inside out, I see him.  He’s the one that I’ve been waiting for.  He’s their leader.

He’s beautiful.

He must die.