My original intention for No Sugar Coating was to make it into a light and fluffy book. One that you could pick up, read in an afternoon, and put down feeling happy/emotionally satisfied. After outlining and writing the first few chapters, I realized it was the opposite. While you can, and should, fall in love with Hailey, her story is atrociously depressing at times.
It's her character that makes her so interesting to write. She has moments of teen angst, where she's disgruntled with the world. But most of her moments consist of this strange acceptance of the universe as it currently stands. Hailey's voice tends to be sincere and poignant, which is why it has been so fun to develop her character.
It ranges from the ridiculousness below:
I glanced around my room, and not having anything better to do for ten minutes, I opened up my book for English. I swear, if I had to read one more depressing poem about the tragedies of mortality, I was going to force myself to barf all over this book and tell my teacher that my dog did it.
I didn't have a dog, but I figured the puke filled pages would be proof in themselves.
To something a bit more meaningful:
I found the concept funny. It was amusing that normal people, people without my "problem," would fret over something as undeniably true as the past.
I fell in love with Hailey because she has so many layers. She wants that first high school love and simple things that the rest of us take for granted. I think her "problem" only adds to her voice.
I've written 24,000 words so far with an original goal of 45,000 (to self-publish as a novella). But the more time I spend writing Hailey's story, the longer I want it to be. Considering I just finished Part 2 out of 5, I doubt her story will fit inside the 45k words anymore. I hope to finish her story by the end of this month.
While I want instant gratification (share Hailey with all the readers!), I will wait until the book is fully edited and actually done properly. I refuse to sentence readers to reading a book littered with grammatical errors and typos.
Monday, April 8, 2013
Wednesday, April 3, 2013
April Goals
March went by and was decently successful. I have 23,000 words written of No Sugar Coating, my YA Magical Realism piece. Though, I think calling it Science Fiction and putting it under "Psychic powers" or something like that might be more accurate? It's contemporary, except the one, magical element. Which, these days, can arguably be either Magical Realism or Paranormal.
Where We Collide has four chapters left of first edit of the third complete rewrite. My critique partners have gotten me feedback on most of the chapters. I still need to work on this throughout the month, but I'm really close! I did rewrite my not-so-great query letter, so that least that's done.
I need to edit/rework the synopsis, focus on the first five-ten pages, and then send off queries. I am so excited!
This month, I also plan on finishing No Sugar Coating. Depending on the length, I might hold off on self-publishing and consider maybe seeking an agent for it. But if it ends up being novella length (my original intention), I'll self-pub. If I ends up being over 55k, then I might seek traditional publishing. I think it's a great story, I'm really proud of it.
And of course, April brings the dreaded Write-a-thon day. On April 13th, a few friends and I are participating in Camp NaNo's write-a-thon, but we've put our own twist on it. I'm excited, and nervous. In preparation, I've been outlining my top-secret-novelette project (which has a name that I won't announce until I get closer to the release date). It's YA Comedic Dystopian (that's the only sneak peek you're getting). I plan on writing it in one weekend, and I'm aiming for 20k. I figure if I outline enough then I might be able to pull it off.
So now I have a bunch of new goals, which include self-publishing the top-secret project by mid-June/early-July and creating an IndieGogo for The Unanswerable.
Yay for new projects! And yay for almost finishing old projects!
Where We Collide has four chapters left of first edit of the third complete rewrite. My critique partners have gotten me feedback on most of the chapters. I still need to work on this throughout the month, but I'm really close! I did rewrite my not-so-great query letter, so that least that's done.
I need to edit/rework the synopsis, focus on the first five-ten pages, and then send off queries. I am so excited!
This month, I also plan on finishing No Sugar Coating. Depending on the length, I might hold off on self-publishing and consider maybe seeking an agent for it. But if it ends up being novella length (my original intention), I'll self-pub. If I ends up being over 55k, then I might seek traditional publishing. I think it's a great story, I'm really proud of it.
And of course, April brings the dreaded Write-a-thon day. On April 13th, a few friends and I are participating in Camp NaNo's write-a-thon, but we've put our own twist on it. I'm excited, and nervous. In preparation, I've been outlining my top-secret-novelette project (which has a name that I won't announce until I get closer to the release date). It's YA Comedic Dystopian (that's the only sneak peek you're getting). I plan on writing it in one weekend, and I'm aiming for 20k. I figure if I outline enough then I might be able to pull it off.
So now I have a bunch of new goals, which include self-publishing the top-secret project by mid-June/early-July and creating an IndieGogo for The Unanswerable.
Yay for new projects! And yay for almost finishing old projects!
Friday, March 8, 2013
Progress
I know editing is important, incredibly so. But when I'm editing, I feel like I'm stagnant. It's a frustrating feeling, especially when I have so many things to finish, polish, and improve.
Thankfully, this month brings a different tactic, since I'm determined to make progress with No Sugar Coating, I am writing a little bit every day. Editing is taking place in my downtime, but it's still happening. I have so much to do with Where We Collide before I can fully count it as "decent enough to query." It does stand much better than the original, so I'm happy in regards to that.
RUHE, however, is going to take a complete backseat. It was my first finished manuscript. Perhaps somewhere down the road, I'll take it out of the box and dust it off, when I feel like making a darker story, "going there" instead of easing off at the last moment. For now, I'm quite content to focus on my other two projects.
In other news, I've been reading, a lot. I've rediscovered the wonders of audiobooks. I know that sounds silly, but when I first listened to books on CD they were all kind of done in the same, drab narration. Now, they are punchy, have impact, and it's almost like watching a movie unfold.
The wonders of technology and the world we live in: I love it. I can listen to an audiobook, read a physical book at lunch, and take my ebooks anywhere I'd like. At this moment, I have three books in progress, one in each format. I think I'm honestly making up for lost time. So many days of my life were spent hating books because of my "required readings." But I wonder, now that I'm older and more in love with lyrical writing, if I would get more out of reading the classics now than I did then.
Maybe some day I'll revisit my old, required readings and see what I make of them. For now, I'm having too much fun getting lost in young adult literature, new and old.
Thankfully, this month brings a different tactic, since I'm determined to make progress with No Sugar Coating, I am writing a little bit every day. Editing is taking place in my downtime, but it's still happening. I have so much to do with Where We Collide before I can fully count it as "decent enough to query." It does stand much better than the original, so I'm happy in regards to that.
RUHE, however, is going to take a complete backseat. It was my first finished manuscript. Perhaps somewhere down the road, I'll take it out of the box and dust it off, when I feel like making a darker story, "going there" instead of easing off at the last moment. For now, I'm quite content to focus on my other two projects.
In other news, I've been reading, a lot. I've rediscovered the wonders of audiobooks. I know that sounds silly, but when I first listened to books on CD they were all kind of done in the same, drab narration. Now, they are punchy, have impact, and it's almost like watching a movie unfold.
The wonders of technology and the world we live in: I love it. I can listen to an audiobook, read a physical book at lunch, and take my ebooks anywhere I'd like. At this moment, I have three books in progress, one in each format. I think I'm honestly making up for lost time. So many days of my life were spent hating books because of my "required readings." But I wonder, now that I'm older and more in love with lyrical writing, if I would get more out of reading the classics now than I did then.
Maybe some day I'll revisit my old, required readings and see what I make of them. For now, I'm having too much fun getting lost in young adult literature, new and old.
Thursday, February 28, 2013
March on!
Okay, I know I'm a day early, but bring it, March!
I fought with February, goal wise. We threw down, took the gloves off, and went three rounds. In the end, this is what I accomplished:
I read seven books in February. My husband and I joke that I'm now addicted to reading. I think he's right. I continue to go to the library and buy books when they are on sale. I have 10 books on my desk that are all unread. Maybe I'm just a book hoarder... Better than the other alternatives, I suppose!
March Goals:
Just to update my word count, I've written 46,768 words this year! Okay, okay, I included some rewrites, but hey, that's work/words towards my end goal. So I have a right to brag about it just a little bit ;)
Feeling good about March, since the majority of the edits are done, I'm excited to start my new project in earnest.
I fought with February, goal wise. We threw down, took the gloves off, and went three rounds. In the end, this is what I accomplished:
- Edited 60k of Where We Collide (10k left)
- Plotted the entirety of No Sugar Coating
- Wrote 8k of No Sugar Coating
I read seven books in February. My husband and I joke that I'm now addicted to reading. I think he's right. I continue to go to the library and buy books when they are on sale. I have 10 books on my desk that are all unread. Maybe I'm just a book hoarder... Better than the other alternatives, I suppose!
March Goals:
- Finish editing Where We Collide - get it to CPs
- Finish CPing
- Write 20k of No Sugar Coating
- Consider editing RUHE - discuss with Betas/CPs if they think it might be better if I make it darker... I still feel like it's not as strong as it could be
Just to update my word count, I've written 46,768 words this year! Okay, okay, I included some rewrites, but hey, that's work/words towards my end goal. So I have a right to brag about it just a little bit ;)
Feeling good about March, since the majority of the edits are done, I'm excited to start my new project in earnest.
Wednesday, February 13, 2013
Winners and February Update
I just emailed the three winners from February - congratulations to those who won - and thank you everyone else for following!
There will be more giveaways this year - but probably not for a few months. It's an exciting time in my head/house, but I've got a lot of work to do and not much time to do it (that's the norm for everyone, it's it?)
My husband received good news on his side of the creative career fence, so this year is shaping up to be great.
I wanted to take the time to go over what I've done so far this month - and what I'm still working on.
Edit Where We Collide again - working on it! I'm working with my two awesome critique partners and getting feedback, but I'm trying to do this as fast as humanly possible. If I didn't have to work 8 hours a day, I would be working 8 hours a day on this. Consequently this also covers my update on "Get Where We Collide to CPs"
Finish CPing - We're working on it. I'm really loving the piece I'm critiquing (or maybe I'm just saying that because she reads my blog - Shout out, hello!). But in all honesty, I adore her piece, though she can probably tell from the insane amount of commentary I put in the margins ;) It's like how I only yell at television shows when I'm invested in the characters (Walking Dead spoiler: RICK, RICK, GO AFTER HIM, RICK! ARE YOU SERIOUSLY LETTING HIM LEAVE?! AARRGGGG!!)
Plot No Sugar Coating - Done! The 45k YA Magical Realism novella is plotted. Though if it ends up turning into a novel, I wouldn't mind ;)
Write Part One of No Sugar Coating - This takes a backseat while I finish Where We Collide, but I did write 8k of it.
In addition, I posted a new page for my 2013 goals, so you can keep track of where I'm at for each month. Lots to do if I want to publish The Unanswerable this year - and No Sugar Coating the next!
Hope everyone has a wonderful Valentine's Day!
There will be more giveaways this year - but probably not for a few months. It's an exciting time in my head/house, but I've got a lot of work to do and not much time to do it (that's the norm for everyone, it's it?)
My husband received good news on his side of the creative career fence, so this year is shaping up to be great.
I wanted to take the time to go over what I've done so far this month - and what I'm still working on.
Edit Where We Collide again - working on it! I'm working with my two awesome critique partners and getting feedback, but I'm trying to do this as fast as humanly possible. If I didn't have to work 8 hours a day, I would be working 8 hours a day on this. Consequently this also covers my update on "Get Where We Collide to CPs"
Finish CPing - We're working on it. I'm really loving the piece I'm critiquing (or maybe I'm just saying that because she reads my blog - Shout out, hello!). But in all honesty, I adore her piece, though she can probably tell from the insane amount of commentary I put in the margins ;) It's like how I only yell at television shows when I'm invested in the characters (Walking Dead spoiler: RICK, RICK, GO AFTER HIM, RICK! ARE YOU SERIOUSLY LETTING HIM LEAVE?! AARRGGGG!!)
Plot No Sugar Coating - Done! The 45k YA Magical Realism novella is plotted. Though if it ends up turning into a novel, I wouldn't mind ;)
Write Part One of No Sugar Coating - This takes a backseat while I finish Where We Collide, but I did write 8k of it.
In addition, I posted a new page for my 2013 goals, so you can keep track of where I'm at for each month. Lots to do if I want to publish The Unanswerable this year - and No Sugar Coating the next!
Hope everyone has a wonderful Valentine's Day!
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