What I'm NOT Doing

Current Project: NMMNG
Status: Page 30

Sorry for the late posting! What is the longest stretch you have ever gone without reading a novel? Back in college and graduate school, I would routinely go the 3-4 months of the term without being able to read fiction of my own choosing. I would then spend the breaks gorging on fiction. One of my favorite rituals was the day-after-finals library run. In the last six (GULP!) years though, I have become really spoiled. As you all well know, I am a voracious reader, and my book-every-other-day habit has sustained me through job changes, pregnancy, and early motherhood. For the past several years, I have known that if I truly want to write more, I should read less--it *should* be one of the easier things to let go. However, reading is my main form of stress relief, and I just haven't wanted to make that sacrifice. In the last two weeks, however, I have not finished a book. Instead, bedtime finds me with my book light still in hand, but with a yellow legal pad across my knees as I use the time for writing.

In the past, many of our speakers have lamented the fact that they are no longer readers with any great regularity, and I have secretly vowed to myself that that I would *always* sustain my reading pace, but in addition to simply *wanting* it more, something else has happened in the last year or so: I enjoy reading less. GASP. I found myself chucking more books against the wall, reading more like a writer--dissecting scenes and cliches, and really searching for the gems that let me truly escape. I found myself obsessed with nonfiction narratives about mothering and was stymied as to why until my best friend told me, "Duh! Bethany! Your mind wants you to give birth to and nurture a new book."

A light bulb went on and stayed brightly lit as I plotted this new book. The spark of wanting IT--the golden ring of success--grew and grew until I was willing to make some new sacrifices, and reading time was chief among them.

This worked awesome for about a week and half and the point of this blog was going to be about how the no-reading diet was working wonders for me, but like Debbie, I hit a wall writing wise and other stressors crept in and the NEED TO READ was this palpable beast following me around. I get discouraged that my paragraph by paragraph, page by page progress really isn't that much, and I get ahead of myself thinking about a tough winter term I have and if I will even be able to finish this book. Deep breath. And I need to read to escape those voices in my head. So I have played games with the need to read--I can read read after I write at least a paragraph which often leads to pages as I hit the momentum again. I carry my yellow pad and plotting book around with me the way I do my knitting, and word by word I am getting there.

Do you read less now than when you started writing? Has the trade off been worth it for you? If you read less, what other ways do you reduce stress? By reading less, do you enjoy it more when you do get a chance to read?

NaNo Day 9, Goals and Motivation Revisited

Current Project: NaNoWriMo 2009
Status: 7816 / 50,000 words

I've been blogging daily about my NaNoWriMo experience in my personal blog. Yesterday's post (NaNo Day 8, On Which I Hatch A Cunning Plan) was about trying to figure out why, at 7427 words, I suddenly experienced the dreaded "now what?" syndrome. While the post was meant to be a bit tongue-in-cheek, the topic was serious. (And I wasn't lying about the directed dreaming--I really did that.)

You see, I'd been chugging along writing scenes, getting to know my characters beyond descriptions on a worksheet, thinking we were all having fun, when wham! I came to a wall. A blank wall, at that. What the heck was wrong? I'd worked on plot (boy, had I worked on plot!). So why couldn't I figure out what came next?

Over the course of the day--spent mostly away from the computer--I came to realize that while my characters had strong personalities, their goals were weak and their motivations, tepid. I'd made the fatal mistake of confusing the huge world building of the story (i.e. the setting/framework for the story) with the, actual, you know, story of the story. Confused? Yeah, me too.

The "world" of my story is huge. It's set in the "multiverse" (an infinite number of alternate universes) -- and you can't get much bigger than that. But the story itself, I think, needs to be more intimate, at least, the story that I want to tell does. The problem is, I made it too small. Small enough to be resolved in a chapter, maybe two chapters if I dragged things out. Thus, the wall I hit.

Part of the problem is my inexperience. I know that I'm still learning and until I actually complete a book, I'll continue to grope my way along. I understand that, tough as it is for me to admit ("I've been voraciously reading books all my life. You'd think I'd just know how to put one together!"). But another part of the problem is my personality. I dislike conflict in real life and I go out of my way to avoid it when possible. I like the characters I've created and I've discovered a blind spot I didn't know I had. I have a tough time making their lives difficult. Who knew?

My advice to myself? Get over it!

What I did on NaNo Day 9 was go back to the character drawing board and really examine character goals and motivation. I'm not quite done with that. I'd say I've raised the motivation temperature from tepid to warm and put a little pudding into the jello of their goals (ew! I really need to come up with a better visual for that!). Still, it was a realization worth having and changes worth making.

What about you? Do you (or did you) ever find yourself making things too easy on your characters? How did you get over it/solve that problem? A newbie (really!) wants to know.

Co-Writing

Current Project:For A Sister's Love
Status: 80 pages

I've been working on a project with another author. She approached me several months ago with an idea of two sisters who crossed the plains in a wagon train and their parents were killed. The girls were adopted by different families and our book takes place with the journey of the two young women trying to find one another. She is writing the journey of the younger sister, and I'm writing the journey of the oldest sister. Her thought was the sisters were different to start with and then being raised differently the stories should be told differently.

Anyway, after the initial, "yeah, this sounds like fun", we instant messaged three times, discussing the family background of the girls, what each girl would be like and the heroes that they would encounter on their journeys. After each discussion we'd both think about our story and characters and then we'd get together again and do more brainstorming.

What I've found interesting in this process, is the other author started her story first. The catalyst that starts that sister looking for her sister has to do with the hero my sister encounters. And what she writes about that character I have to know to make my story work with hers. So in a way, I'm writing to a synopsis in that I have to make sure the information that she imparts is incorporated into my story. Very little of what I write pertains to her story, until I write the epilogue when they find one another. (the other author wrote the prologue about how they became adopted)

I'm finding I like this corroboration. It makes me think ahead more in my writing and gives me more points I have to make work in my story. I'm finding it challenging and fun. I hope our efforts pay off.

Could you work with another writer on a project that is interconnected? Do you think it would be fun or hard?

SATURDAY CHECK-IN/NANO UPDATE

Current Project:The Baby's Bodyguard
Status: last chapter

Welcome updaters and Nanoers alike. Hope your past week was productive and satisfying.

You know how when you write a book you have a last chapter in mind, a last scene, say? That's how I do it, anyway. I write forward knowing where I want to end. It's like completing a gymnast move, it's the dismount. No matter how brilliantly you twist and turn in the air, it's how you hit the floor that will make or break you.

That's where I am -- only this week I realized the last two scenes I had planned for the ending weren't really going to work and that leaves me with one week to think of a better way. I also need to figure out who was responsible for each act inside the book -- there is more than one bad guy and truthfully (I can't believe I'm admitting this), I am not entirely sure who did what. I need to write it all down and make sure it fits and I need to do that before I go on. This book has been an interesting learning experience.

So, how is it going with you? I know we're all hoping our Nanoers will check in with an update but there are many of us with other kinds of goals, as well. It looks like a yukky day out there, a perfect day for writing. Have fun!

TOO MUCH OF A GOOD THING?

Posted by: Genene Valleau
Current Project: nine-book series
Status: Ideas leap-frogging!

Can you have too much of a good thing? Writing? Chocolate? Promo opportunities?

Ask an author on deadline who has gained twenty-five pounds and has a book coming out in two weeks and you'll get a different answer than if you talk to pretty much anyone else on the planet. DISCLAIMER: Said writer is a composite fictional character and any resemblance to a real person is simply coincidence. :)

Most of the time when we become overwhelmed, it's with negative events. We're chugging along pretty well with life and the kids get sick or the spouse needs emergency surgery or the washing machine dies or a variation of all these things happens in the same week. At least we can count on some sympathy from friends and family.

But what if your writing project is going so well that you want to work on it far into the night? Or some freelance jobs come in that will pay your property taxes and buy Christmas presents? Then a couple friends send e-mails about opportunities that will be perfect for the promotion you wanted to do with your books? And by the way, we get sunny weather for a few days in a row so you can squeeze in another yard project you thought would have to wait until spring. Is it sympathy or sarcasm when a friend or family member says, "You poor dear, your life is too wonderful"?

I hit Overwhelm Mode last year after my first three books were released within a ten-month period, promo was in full swing, and a number of other good things were happening. This year good things are hoppin' again. But I'm prepared for them! I read an article about how quantum physics says you can slow down time. I'm not sure that means I can sleep an hour longer and still get as much done, but it's worth a try. I've also had a year to practice focusing on priority projects and not become so distracted by shiny new ideas. And I'm headed into the end of the year with a Thanksgiving Attitude of being grateful all these good things--even if they are sometimes disguised as challenges.

How about you? Have you ever been overwhelmed by good things? If so, please share your survival suggestions. Chocolate and recommendations for good books are welcome--no sympathy needed!

PSST... THERE'S A DEAD FISH IN YOUR PUNCH BOWL

Current Project: THE BABY'S BODYGUARD
Status: page 263

A couple of days ago I had a little down time with my WIP. I just couldn't seem to go forward so I went back. I fussed with scenes. I rewrote dialogue. I beefed up action scenes and love scenes. I changed a character's name and gave another character a complete make-over. Too many blue cars, make one a white van. Stuff like that. I busied myself for days fixing the details, cleaning up many of the little snags I knew were back there such as time jumps and characters without a purpose and red herrings that didn't belong.

Then I sat back, confident that I was now ready to go forward again.

Only I couldn't. Wait. Maybe it wasn't the distant past of the book that was halting progress, maybe it was what I had just written. So, I went to work on that. By the end of the day, the last scene was tight, the dialogue snappy, everything was set to go. Launch time: the next morning.

Next morning: well, the scene was still good and I was still dead in the water. About that time, it occurred to me I had killed the wrong man. Back in my novice days of writing, something like that would have tickled me to death. In fact, I can still recall a call from a good friend who informed me (with wonder in her voice) that she'd had the wrong the villain through the whole book, that she'd just changed to another man and it was perfect. We both thought her mistake was wonderful -- it was like an affirmation of her subconscious imagination.

But now it just struck me as careless. I went downstairs and talked about it with my puppy. First I explained victim A -- who killed him and why. Then I started in on victim B and realized there was no one who would actually murder this guy. That cut to the chase, victim A won. Bye-bye.

Which leads me to the title of this blog. I had been racing around the house getting ready for the party. Fluffing pillows. putting out trays of canapes, arranging flowers and choosing music and all the while, there was a dead fish in my punchbowl. The reason I am telling you all this is because I realized that I do this all the time. Somewhere in my subconscious, the internal editor that we all are told is an evil accomplice at best, KNOWS when I have screwed up. I picture her stomping down the hall and busting open the muse's door. With a stranglehold, she demands the muse stop work right that moment. And the muse, who doesn't give up easily, then flutters around trying to fix the unbroken while the fish in the punch bowl goes belly up.

Have you done this? Have you refused to face the big picture, or perhaps not understood you should? Have you spent time working and reworking details in an effort to make things work when a good look at the punch bowl might be in order? Try this -- the next time you get stuck, examine what you just wrote and not for how lyrical the prose is or how much you liked the dialogue. See if you haven't written yourself right out of the tension of the story or taken a one way street to nowhere when the interstate exchange is just another few miles along. I have a feeling a lot of books lose momentum when excited writers take a wrong turn and don't know it.

Technology

You knew I'd include this pic. Purple fairy, a geisha, and the devil.


Current Project: Untitled RS
Status: moving along

Late post for me. Our Internet has been spotty since Friday. I hate to see how reliant I've become on being connected to the world. When our Internet is down, I can't pay bills, chat, or post a blog. My BlackBerry has a browser, but it is difficult for some functions. Simply looking at websites is easy but try to pay bills? Forget it. At least I can receive and send emails with ease.

I’m a modern comforts addict.

A few years ago my cell phone was dead, and I didn't have a car charger. It drove me crazy to leave the phone on the counter to charge when I needed to run an errand.I picked up twice to put in my purse. Like carrying a dead phone would be of any use.

In 1996 we lost power for four days after the wind storm. Remember that one?? Thank goodness I didn’t have kids. John and I simply packed up and moved in with my parents. If they hadn’t had power I would have gone to hotel. Assuming there was a room available and they had power.

When we lost power during the great snowstorm last winter, I got worried. Our house quickly dropped in temperature. I used sheets to close off the kitchen and family room and kept the kids in there. John was at work with our (my) 4WD, so we were stranded. Phones didn’t work, we didn’t have a gas fireplace, and we didn’t have wood for our regular fireplace. But the worst was no TV. My kids went a little nuts. We dug out board games and played Monopoly and Puppyopoly. My cell phone was fully charged, but I was very aware of the short battery life. I could use Word on my laptop but once again, no Internet access.

The power came back on in five hours. Phew.

John has relatives in North Dakota. They get snowed in for days. No problem. It’s a way of life. I’d die. My mother keeps suggesting I use their empty house in southern Oregon for a writing getaway. Uh…no Internet. And a four + hour drive. I’ll pass.

Writing research without the Internet? How did authors do that in the past? Who would consider using manual typewriters and white-out? No wonder one book a year used to be the standard. When I have a request for a full MS and it’s not via email, I moan. Print out the 400 pages or use Kinkos and then pay for postage. I prefer click, click, click, done.

Even now, I'm in the parking lot at Les Schwab to steal a little of their free wireless. My Starbucks charges for wireless and I'm too cheap to buy it.

What modern marvels can't you live without? What do you wish was never invented?

What did I sign up for?!?

Current Project: Derby book
Status: First draft

I signed up for NaNoWriMo. EEEEEK! It's November 2 and I'm already behind, but that's not a surprise. If I can get caught up today, it won't be as big of a hill to climb. I've done NaNo several times before and "won" it twice. Those two times I reached 50,000 words, I never picked up the book again to finish it. Let's hope that won't happen a third time, shall we?

I'm quite nervous about hitting the goal. I'm hopeful, excited, motivated and all of those other words that could be inserted - but, is it just me or is November a horrible month for NaNo? Work is always busy in November, it's right in the middle of the term (and fall term is always tough). I'd much rather do NaNo in January, once the holidays are over. Or March, before the weather gets really nice. I've tried to do my own NaNo in other months, but the motivation isn't there. It's the fact that I have friends doing it across genres, which makes it an easy bandwagon to jump on to. The fact that you can see it in the media, random mentions on facebook and online. It's everywhere this month - you can't escape it. It's a good reminder to get writing!

Finishing books is clearly not my strengh, but I'm especially determined to finish this one. I think the topic (roller derby) is hot enough to sell right now, even in the tight contemporary romance market. And the fact that I'm actually going to be doing roller derby gives me inside knowledge and and a good promotion opportunities. Hopefully there aren't a lot of romance-writing roller derby girls out there ;)

These are my 10 strategies for finishing NaNo:

1) Write every day;

2) Never get more than one days' word count behind (1,667 words per day);

3) Try to write 2,000 words per day so I can get some free days when homework is too heavy or I'm too tired;

4) Write throughout the day so I don't have 1,667 words looming over me at the end of the day after I'm exhausted from work, homework and derby practice;

5) Think of some rewards for meeting weekly goals, or for getting significantly ahead of my word count (but not food rewards!);

6) Take Scrivener full-screen so I'm not distracted by IM, email, Twitter, etc;

7) Turn off my cell phone if I become desperate for word count - no texting;

8) Make a music playlist that keeps me entertained so I don't feel tempted to turn on the tv while writing;

9) Keep in touch with others doing NaNo to rejuvinate my enthusiasm;

10) Just write, darn it!

Any strategies you can think to add?