#ROW80 Mid-Week Check-In 2013/07/24

Posted on 2013/07/24 by Tonette dela Luna

WRITING:

Camp NaNoWriMo and JulNoWriMo. Tweeting updates with @JulNoWriMo and #CampNaNoWriMo. Every Friday until September 21st, I’ll be writing update posts for WRITE YOUR NOVEL THIS SUMMER.

Fractured Tales Series Word Running Total for July: 60,170 words

Totals from April, June, and July: 224,029 words

Headway on the outline revision and HOPEFULLY steering this ship in the right direction. Believe it or not, it’s okay to be excited and terrified at the same time. I am and I’m okay with that. 🙂

This next bit goes in my unofficial Edification Category, but it falls under the WRITING umbrella:

1) I’ve taken part in Savvy Authors Summer Hike hosted by the wonderful Cathy Yardley and it’s another great way to have ongoing support and accountability as I achieve my writing goals. Since I surpassed the 50K word count goal awhile ago, I decided to spend the rest of the month revising my outline. It’s going to be like playing Jenga or Tetris with words. [SIDEBAR: I looked up the proper links to associate with the games and found this. Amusing, considering my previous sentence. I had no idea it existed.]

August, rather than WriMo myself into a black hole of Writer’s Burnout, I’ll give myself a little extra time to make sure my outline is solid. It’s something I’ve never quite done in previous WriMos. I shall not pants my plots anymore. Not even Bermuda shorts. I need to be rigid to ensure a smoother writing experience. My goal is to write and polish the first fifty pages of the novel by September 1st. That’s 12,500 and far less pressure on myself than I’ve been dousing since the start of the year.

2) I went back to that scary wildebeast of an assignment. There’s still a ways to go yet but I’m making progress in the outline’s refinement. Progress is always a good thing.

There are other activities and challenges that I’ve taken up and I’ll post updates in the next couple of posts. Good things ahead because it’s all things writerly.

READING:

Currently reading:

Next up:

(Although, I have read a few pages of each to get a taste of what’s to come.)

Total books read since June 23rd:

Fiction: 9

Non-Fiction: 3

Not freaking out that I haven’t finished a book yet this week. I have my own to work on. I’ll be a Beta Reader for fellow writers’ manuscripts and I think that’s an interesting endeavor. I’ve done it in the past and it helped me appreciate the skills I’ve learned and honed, as well as appreciating a story as a reader. I say this counts as as part of my reading challenge. I’ll be pulling double duty because there will be edits and critiques involved. Reminds me of a teacher who asked me if I wanted to be an editor. I certainly wouldn’t mind. These tasks, reading and editing, they’re just a couple of ways for me to improve my own writing.

SOCIAL MEDIA-ING (formerly known as BLOGGING):

Check-ins on Angelina C. Hansen’s blog for #wipmadness continue every Monday In July. I’m a newbie compared to how long my fellow WIPsters have been at the grind. This week we celebrate book deals, query submissions, and just getting the words on the page. We should all be proud of our efforts. Three Sunday #ROW80 check-ins and four Mid-Week Check-Ins, so far.

I’ve been on the lookout for insightful articles and websites for my FRIDAY FORAGE series. I’m not sure if I’ll post them during my summer writing challenge but it couldn’t hurt. The interwebs are a cornucopia of knowledge. I’m enjoying the scavenger hunt, so far.

OTHERS:

Duolingo is something I’m going to take a peek at on the weekends.

Speaking of… staycations. Weekend getaways either geographically or just in your own backyard. I highly recommend them. Get this, after the zany non-stop action with The Keysmashing Tots, you’ll never guess… I. Had. Fun.

Unbelievable, I know. But fun was to be had, rest was taken, my eyes, my back, my carpal issues. Come Monday (technically. Sunday night when I got back to the tykes), I had renewed energy and out of the gate, the words flowed with more ease than in the last fortnight. As part of my writing goals for the summer, I decided that, come August, I’ll take the weekends off, or at the very least, keep Saturdays as a catch-up buffer day, but Sunday is a writing-free day.

Did I mention how highly I recommend this?

How’s your July 24th?

Week in Review – 2013/07/15 – 2013/07/21

Posted on 2013/07/21 by Tonette dela Luna

WRITING:

Camp NaNoWriMo and JulNoWriMo. Tweeting updates with @JulNoWriMo and #CampNaNoWriMo. Every Friday until September 21st, I’ll be writing update posts for WRITE YOUR NOVEL THIS SUMMER.

Fractured Tales Series Word Running Total for July (as of yesterday): 52,984 words

Totals from April, June, and July (as of yesterday): 216,843 words

I aim to tackle that writing assignment again in the workshop that helped me see the error of my ways. I also have more specific goals to outline as it pertains to another writing group’s summer session. When those are up and running, I’ll post them here.

At the very least, my goals for two out of three writing challenges have already been met as I’ve exceeded the 50K word count I set for myself this month. I’m going to spend the rest of the month restructuring my plot outline to make sure that the scenes I wrote fit organically and that my character and overall story GMC is ironed out. Next month, I’ll work on my revised plan. More preparation, less stress, I think that’s a better combination for what my schedule is looking to be for the next few months.

READING:

Here’s what I read this week:

Currently reading and on deck:

Total books read since June 23rd:

Fiction: 9

Non-Fiction: 3

The numbers aren’t bad considering I’m unofficially taking part in the 30 Books in 90 Days. So far, I’m ahead of schedule in that regard. The good thing, too, is that all the reading has helped with my plotting issues in my current WIP. The reading continues.

SOCIAL MEDIA-ING (formerly known as BLOGGING):

Check-ins on Angelina C. Hansen’s blog for #wipmadness continue every Monday In July. Three Sunday #ROW80 check-ins and three Mid-Week Check-Ins, so far.

My FRIDAY FORAGE was–to me, at least–shining, shimmering, and splendid. The week began on a low point and ended much better for me. With everything happening with my writing and home life, it’s good to remind myself that it’s okay for goals to change, to make certain adjustments here and there as life throws those ever-loving curveballs at us. The end goal remains the same, it’s just the method of getting there that changes.

OTHERS:

Duolingo is going to have to wait awhile longer while I fix my WIP glitches.

On the upside, this weekend involved a cleansing staycation at a hotel and I was treated to a much needed massage. It’s nice to have getaways with the Mothership and Sisterhood. Two days now without diapers and the children’s voices and scampering about were of those I didn’t know. It’s like I’m in a different country but the brain is recharging and the excitement to write is returning. Tomorrow–or rather, tonight–is already the start to another intense week, but I think I’m better prepared for it this time.

Tonight, the weekend ends with the Sisterhood and I taking part in a feast of fowl, a banquet of birds. Seriously. According to the blurb from the restaurant, we’ll be dining on 8 birds served 13 different ways.

Is the eighth bird chicken? They didn’t even show the eighth bird, why?! Please be chicken. Egads. I think the only chicken at this dining experience will be me. Here’s to new experiences, right?

Week in Review – 2013/06/17 – 2013/06/23

Posted on 2013/06/23 by Tonette dela Luna

WRITING:

JuNoWriMo and Kiwi Writers SoCNoC. Also tweeting word count updates using #JuNoWriMo and #SoCNoC hashtags.

Fractured Tales Series Running Word Count: 52,999 words

I’m not including today’s total yet because I still have some scenes I want to churn out. My weekend was on the higher end of the blerg scale and my super writing marathon didn’t end up happening.

Speaking of…

The WRITE YOUR NOVEL THIS SUMMER Facebook page has been quiet since the challenge started on Friday, June 21st. I’m hoping that it’s just because everyone’s busy writing. Even if that challenge doesn’t end up happening, I still have JulNoWriMo, Camp NaNoWriMo, and possibly Savvy Authors Boot Camp in July to keep me busy for at least the next six weeks. That’s triple the accountability. Good stuff.

My word count may not have poured forth, but I’ve done some plotting and more character sketches that will prove useful in the longrun. It’s a writing journey, after all, so I’m looking for that silver lining.

READING:

So, I’ve been psyching myself up for this 30 Books in 90 Days challenge that started today. Of course, I was finalizing my flexible reading list–which kinda makes it anything but final–and forgot that today was the start date. Haven’t read anything from the list yet, but hey, I’ve got 90 days. I suddenly went into panic mode for no reason so I think I’ll just post my list here and do the challenge unofficially, that way, I’m still reading without the added pressure. Here’s the list so far, but I’m willing to make changes and shift the order around.

1) THE GIVER – LOIS LOWRY

2) GATHERING BLUE – LOIS LOWRY

3) MESSENGER – LOIS LOWRY

4) THE STORYTELLER’S DAUGHTER – ONCE UPON A TIME – CAMERON DOKEY

5) BEAUTY SLEEP – ONCE UPON A TIME – CAMERON DOKEY

6) SUNLIGHT AND SHADOW – ONCE UPON A TIME – CAMERON DOKEY

7) GOLDEN – ONCE UPON A TIME – CAMERON DOKEY

8) BEFORE MIDNIGHT – ONCE UPON A TIME – CAMERON DOKEY

9) THE WORLD ABOVE – ONCE UPON A TIME – CAMERON DOKEY

10) BELLE – ONCE UPON A TIME – CAMERON DOKEY

11) WINTER’S CHILD – ONCE UPON A TIME – CAMERON DOKEY

12) WILD ORCHID – ONCE UPON A TIME – CAMERON DOKEY

13) THE FORT – ARIC DAVIS

14) THE PERKS OF BEING A WALLFLOWER – STEPHEN CHBOSKY

15) THIRTEEN REASONS WHY – JAY ASHER

16) THE SELECTION – KIERA CASS

17) THE PRINCE – KIERA CASS

18) THE ELITE – KIERA CASS

19) THE SUPERNATURALIST – EOIN COLFER

20) LEAPING BEAUTY – GREGORY MAGUIRE

21) WHAT-THE-DICKENS – GREGORY MAGUIRE

22) SHELTER – HARLAN COBEN

23) SECONDS AWAY – HARLAN COBEN

24) THE EYRE AFFAIR – JASPER FFORDE

25) BEASTLY – ALEX FLINN

26) BEASTLY: LINDY’S DIARY – ALEX FLINN

27) BEWITCHING – ALEX FLINN

28) CLOAKED – ALEX FLINN

29) ANGELFALL – SUSAN EE

30) OCEAN AT THE END OF THE LANE – NEIL GAIMAN

I might read more than one at a time, I might stop reading one altogether, if I lose interest, but the point is, I want to increase word counts both written and read for the rest of the year.

BLOGGING:

The third round of #ROW80 starts on July 1st. I need to take stock of my goals by then. The next 80 days will certainly be busy (just take a look at the challenges above).

Kim Baccellia’s blog hosts the June check-ins for the fantabulous #wipmadness community. Everyone’s working hard on their WIPs. Two more weeks until we switch hosts but the peer support continues.

OTHERS:

All my ‘gold star’ achievements have dwindled with Duolingo. Apparently, they want you to use the app on a regular basis. I get that. I suppose I was miffed that a glitch ruined my fifteen day streak. I used to get all happy when I’d receive an email saying that I’m doing well. Sure it’s automated but I thought it was super duper progress. Turns out I can learn Spanish beyond my family and my friends Dora and Diego.

No treadmill last week but The Keysmashing Tots did the equivalent of intense cross training with me. I totally believe those studies that show two football players completely spent after taking care of a two year-old for a single day.

June’s almost over. How’s your first half of the year been, so far?

#ROW80 Mid-Week Check-In 2013/06/19

Posted on 2013/06/19 by Tonette dela Luna

FINAL CHECK-IN FOR ROUND TWO

This was my first time doing #ROW80 and it was quite a ride.

APRIL:

Camp NaNoWriMo. Wrote the beginnings of a YA Fantasy Series. Book One turned into more of Book Two (more on that later.) Working titles are BOOK ONE: HAMELIN and BOOK TWO: THE CURSE OF BRIAR ROSE. I’m still stormin’ the brain for the Series Title.

Savvy Authors Boot Camp. Wrote contemporary fiction. Title: A LOVE LESS ORDINARY. Like the YA Fantasy Series, it’s the first time I tried writing in this genre.

Blogging A to Z Challenge. A month of firsts, I created this blog for the purpose of chronicling my progress. Then I discovered this challenge. It was interesting to keep this going while writing two stories at the same time.

#ROW80, Round Two. Yeah, so I figured with all that on my plate for April, I couldn’t say no to this awesome method of accountability. It certainly kept me on my toes.

MAY:

Last year I joined a lovely group of writers where we checked in with each other each Monday for pep talks, moral support, celebration and commiseration of our writing efforts. #wipmadness and two years of March Madness has kept my creative juices flowing and definitely served as a catalyst to my foray into the online writing community.

In May, one of my fellow WIPsters, Deb Marshall hosted #middlegrademay. I read ten books, though if you saw my TBR list, you wouldn’t have noticed the dent. Reading all the great MG books out there reminded me how important it is to be on both sides of the book, so to speak.

JUNE:

Reading books was a nice reprieve for my aching digits. So, I originally said I’d skip JuNoWriMo and just plan for July’s Camp NaNo and Savvy Author’s Boot Camp. It didn’t take too much arm pulling from fellow writers to get me all excited to write NOW, so I ended up doing the following (and am still in the midst thereof):

JuNoWriMo and Kiwi Writers SoCNoC. This time I decided to devote my words–and brain–to the Fractured Tales Series. Formerly known as Fractured Fairytales, the universe has since expanded to include other notables (and less notables) from lore, myths, legends, and other fictional worlds (that I can legally include). In April, my attempts to blend the stories of The Pied Piper and Sleeping Beauty turned too epic even by April’s standards.

I moved the Sleeping Beauty element (previously a subplot in Book One) to have it’s own focus for Book Two. The Pied Piper is my protagonist for the series and BOOK ONE: HAMELIN will serve as an origin story. Therefore, a complete overhaul was needed, characters rewritten, expanded, new angles, backstory, the gamut. It’s been a trip and I my brain’s churning out the scenes faster than my digits or dictation software can record them.

25,000 Words in 7 Days was an ambitious challenge. Made it just shy of 18,000 words but that was because there’s so much material to work with when you have a Fractured Tales Series. Once I got going on certain scenes, it took someone to nudge me from my spot for me to realize how long I’d been typing away. Unfortunately, this time around, I was only able to get two to three hours per night for writing. The rest went to The Keysmashing Tots. They kinda trump everything.

WRITE YOUR NOVEL THIS SUMMER starts this Friday-GAH! Two days–June 21st and runs until September 21st. Meh. I shouldn’t really be surprised. Considering I want to get this series out of my brain by the end of the year, I’ll be participating in every variation of WriMo from now until New Year’s. It’s exciting to be this excited about something. You know what I’m talking about here.

Not to be outdone. Reading made a comeback with THE 48 HOUR BOOK CHALLENGE, June 7th to 9th, and continues with 30 Books in 90 Days starting June 23rd. Should keep me busy, yeah? When not with TKT, I should have a book (or ebook) in hand or should be writing one. How’s that for keeping me in the creative mindset? 🙂

Apologies if I’ve left something out. As you might have noticed, it’s been a busy 80 days. 🙂

I smile as Round Two draws to a close, mainly because I’ve been super productive. I’ve written close to 200,000 words and have read almost 3,000 words of other authors so far. Many, many more words to come: written, read, spoken, and otherwise. I’m already chuffed about my Round Three Goals post. The line-up is expected to be full of wordtastic opportunities. I look forward to Round Three and am grateful for a fabulous writing community that keeps me motivated to keep on keepin’ on.

See you in the next round.

Week in Review – 2013/06/10 – 2013/06/16

Posted on 2013/06/16 by Tonette dela Luna

WRITING:

JuNoWriMo and Kiwi Writers SoCNoC. Also tweeting word count updates using #JuNoWriMo and #SoCNoC hashtags.

25,000 Words in 7 Days was an ambitious challenge. However, a busy schedule and a nearly wiped out exhaustion during the weekend had me fall short of my word count goal. Rather than ploughing through, I think fatigue took over–and I let it. No sense trying to squeeze crap out of a stone, right? I’m happy with the new directions my characters led me or let me lead them towards. New scenes, fresh perspectives, new twists and correlations I hadn’t thought of before. I’d say that’s a success in itself.

Word Count over the past seven days: 17,772 words

Fractured Tales Series Running Word Count: 37,638 words

–> I’m revising my work from Fractured Fairytales to Fractured Tales as it encompasses fairytales, lore, myths, legends, and other fictional characters (that are old enough for me to use without legal fallout).

WRITE YOUR NOVEL THIS SUMMER starts this Friday, June 21st and runs until September 21st. My participation will be concurrent with whatever WriMo (or variation thereof) will be running that particular month. The Fractured Tales Series continues.

READING:

I’m excited to get all blurry eyed again. My reading list for 30 Books in 90 Days is taking shape. Is it considered cheating if I read novellas or non-fic? Many of the books I’d like to read are in the high 300s. I figure, the shorter the book, the more I can dig through in ninety days. hehe I’m aiming for both quality and quantity. Hopefully I won’t discover too many overlapping challenges in the next ninety days that might compromise any reading time–already challenged due to pre-existing writing time and the priority of TKT. We’ll see how it goes. I’ll post my tentative list next Sunday and see how many of those I can cross off my endless TBR list.

BLOGGING:

This round of #ROW80 is almost over but I’ve had a blast these past eighty days.

Check-ins continue this month on Kim Baccellia’s blog with the fantabulous #wipmadness community. Everyone’s working hard on their WIPs. Encouragement from our peers really keeps me going.

OTHERS:

I haven’t revisited Duolingo yet and I know I should. I’ll get on that to keep my brain muscles flexed. I have maintained my treadmill schedule while reading. Usually three times a week, I missed Friday because I went downtown for the day. Commuting with an overnight bag, (containing my laptop among other things), and walking to and from the theater counts, right?

It was nice to watch Les Mis but all that emotion after a physically and mentally draining week with writing and TKT? Let’s just say I was a lump of uselessness and didn’t get much done this weekend. Recuperation barely lasted a day because I was back with TKT earlier today and have been with them and typing with one hand the rest of the day. Dictation software only works if you’re the only voice the computer recognizes. I use my onboard mic without issues, but can’t with TKT. If I wear the headset, well, you know how that turns out. I’m just glad I can get some work done. They inspire me anyway, so all the time I spend with them is cherished, tiring or not. 🙂

Half of the month of our annual halfway mark has gone hasta la bye-bye. We’re cruising through blockbuster movie season, mid-season shows resume. I’m finding myself enjoying those more. At least, when I marathon them because live TV isn’t something I experience any longer. haha Soon, the kiddies will be back to school and the holidays will be here and… 2014 already?!

How’s your 2013 going (aside from ‘by rather quickly’)?