National Novel Writing Month--otherwise known as NaNoWriMo--is nearly upon us!
Last year was my first time participating, and I loved it. I got a complete novel written, and it happens to be one of my works that I'm the proudest of (don't worry, there's been plenty of editing involved as well).
Because I wrote Return to Sherwood last November, I thought it only fitting that this year I write book 2 in that series; A Promise to Keep. Also, I haven't been able to get my creative self to sit down and simply write book 2 in the various months that I have tried to do just that, so I thought giving myself a deadline and the chance of public humiliation would be more likely to get it done.
November is filled with late nights of trying to write 50,000 words in 30 days, and October is the prep time before you get to those sleepless nights. So have I been prepping? No. I have not.
Let me explain; A Promise to Keep is a sequel to Return to Sherwood, so except for a few new characters we'll run into, I already have detailed Character Profiles for every named character in this story. I also have a rough outline drawn up because Return to Sherwood did not take the story as far as I originally thought that it would, so A Promise to Keep shares part of that original outline. Plus, since I have attempted to write A Promise to Keep over the last year at various point in time, I did make an updated, more detailed outline as well. I have Character Profiles, an outline, and I've done research on the time period already. What more could I possibly need? That is why I haven't been prepping for November.
What I have been doing is rereading Return to Sherwood to get back into the feel and flow of that story. Every book I write has a slightly different voice, and because A Promise to Keep and Return to Sherwood are so closely connected I want their voices to resemble one another.
I am excited for November and to see how much of A Promise to Keep I can get written. I am also looking forward to the camaraderie and even the stress of NaNoWriMo. There is no environment quite like it, and I love it!
In the meantime, Happy Writing, everybody!
Tuesday, October 9, 2018
Tuesday, October 2, 2018
Quarterly Writing Goals #4 [2018]
Okay, well, due to July being crazy this year...and just me being lazy, in general...I did not post my third quarter writing goals blog. Oops. Regardless, I did, in fact, have goals and I did do some of them.
But first things first! What are Quarterly Writing Goals? They are simply goals that I wish to accomplish that have to do with writing a book, editing a book, marketing a book, etc. I choose to charge myself with completing these tasks in three months time. I make goals because they keep me motivated and productive.
Man, I've got that spiel down pat.
So, those goals that I never posted...what were they?
1) Edit The Story of Gisbourne, which did, in fact, happen; 2) Publish The Story of Gisbourne, which also happened; 3) edit/rewrite Return to Sherwood, which I did most of; 4) Write the sequel to Return to Sherwood, which I did not do very much of; 5) Name the sequel--which I totally did! 6) the book launch for The Story of Gisbourne; and 7) social media and vlogs...which was as hit and miss as always.
So what are my goals for the end of the year?
Write A Promise to Keep This is the sequel to Return to Sherwood, which I only have a very wee little bit of actually written. I am planning on writing this novel in November for NaNoWriMo.
Explore IngramSpark This is the platform that I will now be publishing my books through. I want to get comfortable with the process--which is slightly different than CreateSpace--so that when I am ready to publish I know what I am doing. So, basically, research.
Update all the things Because I will be writing under a slightly different pseudonym in the future, I need to update my blog, social media, etc. to reflect this change.
Outline The Cure This is my fantasy novel that has been brewing for several years. I'm finally ready to write it. So when I'm not doing A Promise to Keep--which will be my November book--I'll be working on this novel.
Worldbuild The Cure This is a fantasy story set in an unknown world. I need to figure out as much as I can about that world so that I can write a story set in it that actually makes sense.
And of course, social media and vlogs.
When the new year hits, we shall see how much of this I actually accomplished (or if I added more to my list along the way, as I often do).
In the meantime, Happy Writing, everybody!
But first things first! What are Quarterly Writing Goals? They are simply goals that I wish to accomplish that have to do with writing a book, editing a book, marketing a book, etc. I choose to charge myself with completing these tasks in three months time. I make goals because they keep me motivated and productive.
Man, I've got that spiel down pat.
So, those goals that I never posted...what were they?
1) Edit The Story of Gisbourne, which did, in fact, happen; 2) Publish The Story of Gisbourne, which also happened; 3) edit/rewrite Return to Sherwood, which I did most of; 4) Write the sequel to Return to Sherwood, which I did not do very much of; 5) Name the sequel--which I totally did! 6) the book launch for The Story of Gisbourne; and 7) social media and vlogs...which was as hit and miss as always.
So what are my goals for the end of the year?
Write A Promise to Keep This is the sequel to Return to Sherwood, which I only have a very wee little bit of actually written. I am planning on writing this novel in November for NaNoWriMo.
Explore IngramSpark This is the platform that I will now be publishing my books through. I want to get comfortable with the process--which is slightly different than CreateSpace--so that when I am ready to publish I know what I am doing. So, basically, research.
Update all the things Because I will be writing under a slightly different pseudonym in the future, I need to update my blog, social media, etc. to reflect this change.
Outline The Cure This is my fantasy novel that has been brewing for several years. I'm finally ready to write it. So when I'm not doing A Promise to Keep--which will be my November book--I'll be working on this novel.
Worldbuild The Cure This is a fantasy story set in an unknown world. I need to figure out as much as I can about that world so that I can write a story set in it that actually makes sense.
And of course, social media and vlogs.
When the new year hits, we shall see how much of this I actually accomplished (or if I added more to my list along the way, as I often do).
In the meantime, Happy Writing, everybody!
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