So many words. So little time.
Category: real life
I am DONE! Yay! Okay, so the story isn’t actually done. Far from it, actually, but I am done with it for now. Now I need to focus on finals this week, getting everything transferred so I can start school back in Texas in January, the actual move, and, you know, finding a job! But I’m through with NaNo! Done and won five years in a row now. I actually only wrote 17 days out of 28, which averages out to around 3k a day. Not too bad. Now, I’m off to much more mundane writing: my Sociology final.
Time to write has been at a premium lately, and I’m afraid I haven’t accomplished much. Writing, that is. I’ve accomplished a lot of other things (packing, homework, studying, working), but very little writing. However, I did get 4k in yesterday, bringing my total up to 15k for the month. In other words, only about 8k behind pace…I intend to be caught up this week, since everything is (mostly) packed, and almost all my homework is done for the week/semester (Just have to worry about finals in a couple of weeks.). The story is still flowing pretty well, and I just met my villain, so it should get very interesting very soon.
Week One of NaNo is over, and I’m sitting at 8,001 words. I’m happy with that, considering I only wrote four of those days, and 8,000 was my goal. I only have one more chapter outlined, so I need to work on that ASAP and figure out what comes next.
My best friend was in town this weekend, so we did a bunch of NOLA stuff. Had a lot of fun. We went to the French Quarter Friday night. Saw all sorts of things, which is always a given down there. Had the most amazing ice cream ever (Amaretto flavored Italian ice cream, yum!). Went to the French Market and shopped on Magazine Street. Went to St. Louis No. 1 cemetery and saw Marie Laveau’s grave (That thing always gives me the creeps!). Then, today, we went to the Louisiana Ren Faire and had a blast! We decided that next year we’re going back to Scarborough Faire in Texas, and we’re getting costumes. That should be entertaining.
And that’s about it, other than the time change beating me down! It always takes me a while to adjust, so I’m off to get some much-needed sleep.
…to NaNo, that is. Yes, I finally made up my mind: I’m going for it again this year! This will be my fifth year, and I’ve won every year. The last two years, I’ve set myself the personal goal of 100k, and I hit it both years. This year…I’ll be thrilled with 50k. I work full-time, I’m going to school full-time, and just for fun, I’m prepping for an out-of-state move the first week in December (Me? Trying to do too much? Nah…I’d never do that.).
I just decided two days ago what I’m going to write. While I have the beginnings of an awesome YA paranormal fantasy involving ancient Greek mythology, I don’t have time to develop that world as fully as it deserves. So…I’m going to be writing the sequel to my werewolf story. Most of the basic character development is already done, so I just have to come up with a few new characters and a plot. “Just”…Ha. (Cue manic laughter now…)
Good luck to anyone else out there about to embark on the insanity that is NaNo!
Well, midterms are behind me now, thank goodness! I’ve been so busy with school stuff I haven’t had time to do much of anything else. No blogging. No writing. Not as much gym time as there should have been, and definitely not enough sleeping! I don’t know if that will get better or worse before the end of the semester…
For various reasons that I can’t currently get into, I don’t expect to be very prolific on this blog for at least the next couple of months. Possibly in December, if everything goes well.
I’ve been thinking about doing NaNo. Toying with the idea. I really WANT to…I’ve done it four straight years, and it’s something I enjoy, I’m just not sure if I’ll have time this year, what with the four classes and all. Plus, my best friend is coming in for a visit the first weekend of the month, so there goes three writing days (Because I’d MUCH rather hang out with her than stare blankly at a computer screen!) But…I think I’ll probably end up doing it again this year, although probably only with the 50k goal, unlike the 100k I’ve shot for (and hit) the last two years. We’ll see. (Now if I only knew which story I was going to write…)
I’m subbing the Werewolf story right now. Have had some partial requests, but nothing else so far. I love this story a lot, so I hope it finds a home.
…it pours. And I mean that in all sorts of ways. First of all, it’s been what I call monsoon season around here for weeks now. Which means it rains every afternoon. And not just a nice, pleasant, little shower, either. No, I’m talking about a torrential downpour for an hour or so, then the clouds move out and everything starts steaming in the heat. Yeah. If I ever wondered what it was like to live in the rainforest (And I have), now I know.
Secondly, school. It’s a lot of work (Pretty sure I’ve mentioned that…), and I’m trying not to get completely overwhelmed or lose track of anything I’m supposed to be doing. But it’s a struggle. And I just realized I have midterms in about three weeks. Yikes! As for writing, well, that’s not currently happening.
Then, to top it all off, I’m trying to get everything together for the big move in December, and now there’s family drama with one of my brothers to add to it. I’m worried about him, which is stressing me out more, so it’s generally just SNAFU all the way around.
But hey, it could be worse. I still have my head above water…for now, anyway.
How much work school is, that is. Seriously. I’d forgotten just how busy it kept me, and that was when I was taking regular classes. And not working a full-time job. Online classes are just as much work (if not more), and I haven’t had time to do any writing in the past…week and a half or so. Nor any revising. At all. And I’ve decided not to worry about it. I’ve got the bulk of my homework done this week already, and I only have two quizzes to study for (as opposed to the three quizzes and a test I had last week), so if I get time, I’ll do some writing. Or maybe some revising. And if I don’t get time, well, I’ve given myself permission not to stress about it.
I’m still trying to decide whether or not I’ll be doing NaNo this year. The thought of NOT doing it bothers me a lot, I’ve done it the last four years, and I enjoy it. Yet, logically, time will probably be an issue, even though we don’t have classes the week of Thanksgiving, and I could probably get a lot done. Guess I’ll have to see. I have finals the first week of December, and I’ll be moving back to Texas shortly thereafter (Yay for going home!), with all that entails, so I’ll just have to wait and see. For now, I’m just trying to take it one day at a time.
So, I’m back from vacation. I’m not exactly thrilled to be back, really more…resigned/annoyed, but I’m back. I had a great time, except that now I’m tremendously homesick. But hey, what are you going to do?
I’ve actually been writing on the 2YN sequel some since I got back. Not a lot, or anything. I set myself some really modest goals. I only got about 250 words yesterday, and about the same today. But it’s a start. It’s progress. And considering what else I have going on…I’m happy with it.
I also started back to school. Online classes, but I haven’t taken any classes in…we’ll just say “a long time”, so I’m a little worried about the adjustment. I’m taking four classes, and hoping/praying I don’t get overwhelmed. So far, so good, but it just got started, so it’s really too soon to tell.
My goal is to keep up with all my classes (definitely the priority), write about 2k per week, and try to do a little bit of revision on last year’s NaNo story (the faerie story). Oh, and TRY to hit the gym four days a week (which is why I’m up at the crack of midnight). Not to mention work full-time. And possibly try to sleep a little bit in there somewhere…zzzzz…..
In a BIG way, this week. I’m getting towards the end of the revision for the werewolf story, which means all my scene “revisions”…are writing new scenes from scratch (due to the great computer malfunction, a.k.a. sporadic backup habits). So each scene is requiring a little bit more work than just revising already existing scenes. The good thing is that I have written most of the scenes before, so I have a feel for what needs to happen. The bad things is, well, having to write them again. My own fault, but still annoying.
At this point in the week, I intended to have six new scenes done. How many do I actually have done? Two. Yep. Just two. But I have a plan…I have an appointment for academic advising this morning, then I’m going to the job early, to spend some quality, internet-free time writing before I actually have to BE at work. I’m hoping that will get me another couple of scenes. Then, possibly, I’ll have time to do some extra tomorrow and/or Friday. Which leaves me with Saturday (again, my goal is only two scenes), and Sunday–to finish up all of the “hands-on” part of the revision.
The angel story is languishing a little bit right now, but I’m hoping to get a few lessons in on it this week, too. And I wouldn’t be quite so behind, except I’m baby-sitting a 4-month-old puppy this week. Do you have any idea how hard it is to do ANYTHING when there’s a puppy with severe separation anxiety around, one that insists on being underfoot every second, and whining and howling when he’s crated for the night? NOT EASY, I tell you. So I’m not sleeping much this week, either….
Or, to be more accurate, I’m not doing much of anything. The revision is still going. No writing. Making progress on the angel revision as well. Other than that, nada. I haven’t even had time to read! I hope someone out there is making more progress than I am!
Tomorrow Is Another Day 