Draft Four – Achievement Unlocked

So apparently January is better known as the “month of finishing drafts” for me. With the exception of the third draft, which I finished on July 1 last year, every draft of my 2006 NaNo novel has been completed in January: January 2007, January 2010, and now January 2013.

And apparently exactly 3 years apart as well. o.O

I cut out nearly a little more than 18,500 words (and 61 pages) between draft 3 and draft 4, tightening the story considerably and (God willing) putting it closer to a publishable word count. 123k is still pretty long, but it’s a far sight better than 142k or (I kid you not) 186k, which is what the second draft was.

On the plus side? Not even out of January yet and already accomplished one of my goals for the year. SWEET.

I get a beer!

I’m taking a long break after this one. I love this story and I love these characters, but I have rewritten and revised this novel twice in the past year. I need a break, because I am way too close to it to make any accurate judgments on it anymore.

So here’s what’s next on the writing docket:

- Rewrite my synopsis for this story 1, 2, 10 times in preparation for a contest deadline on February 1.
- Take out a couple of short stories and see if they’re ready for a contest deadline on January 31.
- And finish “This Is a Dare,” my 2012 NaNo novel, so I can send it to the people who have actually requested to read this monstrosity. Hopefully I’ll be able to get that done by the end of February (she says as the universe laughs and laughs and laughs).

How are your writing goals coming so far?

Beer picture by Bernt Rostad

The Goal Post for 2013

It’s that time again: time to look at the shiny new year and go “What do I want to accomplish in the next twelve months?”

Why, no, I’m not above making this terrible, terrible pun.

I reread the exercises I did last year over the last few days of 2012 and asked myself, “Does this still fit me? Is this still what I want to do/who I want to be/what I want to accomplish?”

When the answer was still (generally) yes, I moved on to the whole goal-setting portion of the program.

Last year I think I overshot a bit, particularly in overestimating just how much I can write. I’ve tried to keep my goals a little more in the “realistic and yet still a challenge” category for 2013, and I’ve rephrased several goals from last year to see if thinking of them in a new light makes them easier to stick with.

So, without further ado, here’s to 2013!

Physical
Work out at least twice a week for 30 minutes apiece.
Drink at least six glasses of water per day.

Writing
Finish draft 4 of my ’06 NaNo for CPs.
Finish a first draft for at least two of the three projects I want to complete (my NaNo novels from 2012, 2011, and 2008).
Attend the OWFI conference in May and the OCW conference in October.
Pick two of the pictures in my “holy cow I want to write a story about this” folder. Write at least a short story for each one.
Set up a Facebook page for my writing.

Blogging
Review at least one new movie each month. Except for months where the idea of actually giving money to a movie in the theater makes me sick to my stomach.
Keep to a posting schedule of twice a week.
Comment more regularly on the blogs I follow.

Career
Attend another CSS summit.
Up my coding game in PHP, MySQL, and JavaScript.

Intellectual
Read 70 new books in 2013.
Read all the unread books currently on my shelf/Kindle. (Or at least, attempt to.)
Read at least three non-writing-related non-fiction books.
Take more books off my gigantic TBR list than I add to it. (Borrowed from Marissa Meyer.)

What are your goals for 2013?

Goal post picture by Matt Denton

September #WriteMotivation – Week 1 Check-in

Header image and thumbnail photograph by Hugh Lee and licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.

Well, September is only just underway, and I’ve spent most of the weekend recovering from August. I’ve gone to the movies (hello, Batman, so nice to finally see you) and picked up a dozen new books (yes, literally, one dozen new books).

Of those books, included is the anthology that has “This Wicked Gift” by Courtney Milan, one of two books of hers I don’t yet have. (The other is the anthology Midnight Scandals, which came out about a week ago.) I think this officially puts me in the camp of “fangirl.”

I also think I shouldn’t be allowed near a bookstore for about a week.

1) Finish Buzz stuff by Sept. 10.
I’ve gotten started on both of my articles, and I’ve found about half the articles I’ll need for weird news. So we’re off to a good start here.

2) Edit 5 chapters of the ’06 NaNo per week.
It’s printed!

When you add all three drafts together, I’ve printed out more than 1500 pages. This is only draft three.

So over the next few days I’ll start going through it in editing mode, making my own notes, and then combine those with the feedback I’ve gotten from my CPs so far.

3) Post to the blog twice a week.
With this, I’ve posted three times in September thus far. Huzzah!

4) Post at least 2 reviews.
If I actually write reviews for everything I’ve seen and read over the past couple of weeks, I’ll meet this easily.

5) Comment on at least 3 other blogs each week.
Haven’t started yet, but I will soon!

Camp NaNoWriMo, June Goal Updates, and July #writemotivation

There’s something weird that happens in my brain when I type “The End.”

When I finished my first draft on this WIP back in January 2007, I ran around the house hollering like a banshee until my mother told me to be quiet and put up the dishes because the entire family was over for dinner. (Oops.)

When I finished draft two in January 2010, it was nearly 1 a.m. and I wandered the apartment like a ghost for thirty minutes, partly because I had been writing for almost six hours straight and partly because I had put my characters through hell at the end. (Yes, the end of the book changed drastically from draft 1 to draft 2. I have been assured it’s an improvement.)

Now, I’ve finished draft three, and I’m sitting on the floor in my room, not quite sure what to do with myself. I am trying to convince my brain that yes, for the love of all that’s holy, IT’S OKAY TO CLOSE THE WORD DOCUMENT.

So here’s the skinny on my goals for June:

1. Finish current edits on 2006 NaNo WIP!

2. Outline 2008 NaNo novel, aka my Camp NaNo project.
This will probably get bumped to August.

3. Write 30,000 words on said Camp NaNo project.
Well, I wrote around 3,000 words on it! So 1/10th of the goal.

4. Finish Buzz articles by June 11.

5. Read at least one novel for a brain break.

Camp NaNo: Final Update

Mmm, s’mores and writing.

Minimum word count for June 30: 50,000/50,000

My current word count: 46,728/50,000

Adventures in NaNoing: I realized around 11 p.m. on June 30 it was very unlikely I would hit 50,000 words, and mentioned this to my roommate.

“Sure you can,” he said.

I looked at him as though he was crazy. “Um, no. I’ve got about four thousand words to write. I don’t think I can do that in less than an hour.”

“Oh, that’s easy! ‘He mounted his trusty steed. “Giddyup! Giddyup! Giddyup! Giddyup! Giddyup! Giddyup! Giddyup! Giddyup! Giddyup! Giddyup! Stubborn horse! Giddyup! Giddyup!…”‘”

I hope you guys laughed as hard as I did. And NaNo people, I’ve got a new dare for November.

Very Short Excerpt:
Completely unedited.

Kiral scowled at the fire. “I suppose I ought to apologize to you, then. It’s fairly clear you didn’t want me to kiss you.”

She heard a groan from the direction of the table. “Don’t say that.”

“Don’t say what? That I kissed you?” She turned to look at him, a formless shadow across the room. “I did. And then you apologized, which I can’t begin to fathom. I thought we’d established you aren’t responsible for the actions I take.”

His only response was a low, repetitive thudding. Kiral wondered if he was beating his head against the table.

July #WriteMotivation

Also known as “The Critic Needs a Brain Break.”

1) Finish Buzz articles by July 13.
2) Read 1 book a week.
3) Update blog twice a week.

I know I said my goal is to read one book a week, but let’s be honest here:

My God, it’s full of stars.

You guys aren’t going to see me for a month.

Camp NaNoWriMo & June Goal Updates – Week 3

A hilarious thing I discovered this week:

Author Jennifer Armintrout started a chapter-by-chapter recap of reading 50 Shades of Grey back in April, which has made me come closer to spitting tea on my laptop than just about anything else this week.

(Well, okay, maybe this video: Trolling Saruman)

No, I have not read 50 Shades, and given the excerpts Armintrout has posted on her blog and my feelings on Twilight, it’s safe to say I probably won’t. (From her descriptions, my guess is it would be “book meet wall” by about chapter 8 or 9 for me.)

However, reading her commentary on the book is just, well…here are a couple of choice quotes:

“When she shakes his hand, Ana has some kind of short circuit situation that makes her blink like a malfunctioning Furby.”

“Still, even though he is, by her own description, an arrogant control freak who does weird things with his fingers while looking at her, Ana is completely, sexually paralyzed by his stunning physical appearance, which, as far as I can tell from the numerous superlatives Ana breathlessly recounts, is like looking directly at the face of God if God were an orgasm dipped in chocolate and the perfect pair of jeans.”

And this is just the very first chapter. As of right now, she’s got 24 more of these things up on her site.

On a related note, I will make it my life’s mission to work the phrase “blink like a malfunctioning Furby” into everyday conversation.

June goals!

1. Finish current edits on 2006 NaNo WIP!
Chapter 28 is in the bag. Chapter 28 was much longer than anticipated. Chapter 29 has started. I love chapter 29. And chapter 29 should not take me a freaking week to finish.

2. Outline 2008 NaNo novel, aka my Camp NaNo project.
Pretty much where it was last week.

3. Write 30,000 words on said Camp NaNo project.
Well, I have broken 30k, though it wasn’t on the “technical” Camp NaNo project.

4. Finish Buzz articles by June 11.

5. Read at least one novel for a brain break.
I definitely did not reread the first two books in Courtney Milan’s Turner series this week. Nope. Not at all.

Seriously, after I finish this draft, you guys aren’t going to hear from me for a month. And when you’re all, “Hey, Critic, what’s up?” I’m going to say “Nothing” and “Nothing” will actually mean “I’ve read every book on my shelf, beaten every game in the Final Fantasy series, and rewatched Doctor Who and White Collar for the umpteenth time.”

And now, a Camp NaNo update!

Mmm, s’mores and writing.

Minimum word count for June 22: 35,000/50,000

My current word count: 30,108/50,000

Adventures in NaNoing: So say you have two really good friends. And you guys go a month without seeing each other, because you know, crazy stuff happens.

Then you meet up again and one friend is all “Hey, Bob proposed and we’re going to Cabo next month to get married!” And the other friend goes “OMG that’s great! I’m pregnant!” And then you sit back and say “Well, I got a new job and I’m moving to Hawaii!”

And you guys spend the next five hours comparing gossip on what’s happened to you and what’s happened to your families and how on Earth you’re going to make it to friend A’s wedding and friend B’s baby shower while still packing to leave for Hawaii on time.

You know that?

That was chapter 28 for me. Four characters, haven’t seen each other in about 3 weeks, catching up on all the crap that’s happened in the past 17 chapters and figuring out what to do next. Only it was less “babies and marriage” and more “demons and riots and by the way, brother dear, I can use magic, did you know that?”

Screw engagement, I want to have THAT conversation with my friends. “What have you been up to these past three weeks?” “Oh, you know, killed a demon, quelled a riot, single-handedly stopped a fire from devouring Woodland Hills Mall. How was your June?”

Very Short Excerpt:
Completely unedited.

Mason shook his head. “So…wait. She’s Ruby?”

The tone of Mason’s voice had changed, and Ari had the uncomfortable feeling he was in trouble. “Yes?”

Mason coughed delicately. “Don’t tell His Highness that it’s his sister who fought a demon with you.”

Ari had no intention of telling the prince any more than absolutely necessary of what had happened in the past few weeks. He could just imagine the man’s reaction.

“You did WHAT?”

Unfortunately, it seemed the princess did not share that same intention.

Camp NaNoWriMo & June Goal Updates – Week 2

Fun analytics fact: The most popular post on my site in 2012? The Netflix Queue: White Collar.

I attribute this to the number of times I have used the words “netflix,” “White Collar,” and “season three” in the past few months.

Also, it’s just an awesome show.

I’ll take any excuse to post this, seriously.

Goal updates!

1. Finish current edits on 2006 NaNo WIP!
I am halfway done with chapter 28, and I have five more chapters to go. So close, and yet so far.

2. Outline 2008 NaNo novel, aka my Camp NaNo project.
Pretty much where it was last week.

3. Write 30,000 words on said Camp NaNo project.
Pretty much where it was last week.

4. Finish Buzz articles by June 11.
Okay, so I thought I had set the second Sunday in June as my deadline. That was what I’d done last month, right? And I just wasn’t able to get the weird news finished on Sunday, but I figured it was okay because I got it submitted on Monday. Just one day off…or so I thought.

Turns out me-at-the-end-of-May was actually pretty smart, because, if you’ll notice, June 11 was NOT Sunday, but Monday. Which I didn’t notice until right this second, as I’m making this update. So yay, go me!

5. Read at least one novel for a brain break.
Remember how I said I would have to watch myself, because if I wasn’t careful, I would go nuts and read multiple books? And remember how I jokingly said last week, when I found out Courtney Milan had another series I hadn’t read, “Goodbye, productivity, it was nice knowing you“?

Yeah. I didn’t read one novel this past week. I read four.

I read both Proof by Seduction and Trial by Desire by Courtney Milan, and then reread Lord Perfect and Last Night’s Scandal by Loretta Chase. (Frankly, I’d forgotten how much I adore Olivia and Lisle, the couple in Last Night’s Scandal, who are children in Lord Perfect.)

They are all awesome. Why haven’t you read them?

And now I am not allowed to touch another book until I finish these edits on my WIP.

And now, a Camp NaNo update!

Mmm, s’mores and writing.

Minimum word count for June 15: 25,000/50,000

My current word count: 22,732/50,000

Adventures in NaNoing: This past weekend was our June write-in, which just four people attended, including me. That was all right; it’s summer. I know people have travel plans and vacations and what-not.

After the write-in, the lot of us trooped over to Rebekah’s new house to help paint! Because that is something else writers are good for: painting. Okay, painting and talking about how to kill people using only what you could find in a garage. (What? Don’t look at me like that. Right now, I’m trying to think of new and interesting ways to immolate people. IT’S FOR THE BOOK I SWEAR.)

Anyway. In part because of the painting, in part because of the “Oh hey site launches!” part of my job this week, and in part because I read four books, I think I wrote a grand total of about 5,000 words during week 2.

Also, I changed a secondary character’s name. This would not normally be such a big deal — BOY did it need changing — except that she has had the same name since I was fourteen years old and wrote the original short story. To say it’s been difficult to break the habit of typing the old name is a bit of an understatement.

Very Short Excerpt:
Completely unedited.

Kiral turned to the new voice. Emelyn stood in the doorway, holding a folded dress. She shifted from side to side. “Ari told me to bring you clothes and help you change.”

She prayed her voice wouldn’t quaver. “Did he now?”

Emelyn nodded, her dark eyes huge in her face, still pale after so many months of illness. “I asked why you needed me and he said your ankle was hurt and you were probably too cold to do it. He also said you’d probably argue but I am supposed to tell you to be quiet and let me help so you don’t catch a cold and die, you hard-headed crazy lunatic.” She cocked her head to one side. “I told him ‘crazy lunatic’ meant the same thing and he said some words I’m not supposed to say.” She sighed and stepped into the kitchen. “He gets so irritable when he’s cold and tired.”