HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!
Current tuneage: All I Have To Do Is Dream - The Everly Brothers
So last week I was just finishing up a short story and debating on whether or not to cut it back 700 words so I could send it in to a short story contest. Honestly, I still haven't decided. Clearly it didn't make the 10/27 deadline, but I still have several weeks for the Dec. 1st deadline. So while I'm pondering that...
I'm participating in NaNoWriMo this year!! For those of you who don't know what NaNoWriMo is, it's National Novel Writing Month and takes place every November. (I believe this year is the 10th anniversary). Starting at midnight tonight over 100,000 writers from all over the country begin writing a novel. The goal is that by midnight on November 30th you have 50,000 words written (or 175 pages). That's 1167 words a day to stay on par... I can do that, right?
It's something I actually heard about last year, but didn't have the opportunity to participate since I'd already begun novel #3. But this year, I figure what better way to get started on novel #4!? So this week I've been preparing all my material, character bios, plot outline, etc. so that I will be ready!
I'm really hoping the dicipline it's going to take to complete NaNoWriMo successfully will help me in my future deadline endeavors...
wish me luck!!
TGIF!!
Friday, October 31, 2008
Friday, October 24, 2008
Word Counts and
Current tuneage: Getaway Car - The Jenkins
Happy Friday!! Well, this week has gone by surprisingly fast. I've FINALLY finished my short story and have almost finished editing it. There are a few contests I'd like to enter it in and one of them that I just found has a 10/27 deadline! The other has a Dec. 1st deadline and a word count limit. That's what I seem to be struggling with right now. I really like the story the way it is. Could I cut it down to 1500 words? (it's currently at around 2200) Probably. But I'm trying to decide if it's worth it just to be able to send it into this contest. Or if I just write another one that's under 1500 words. Such a dilemma.
On another note, I sent in my final follow up query letter. This particular agency has had my novel (1st) since the end of March and they are the only ones that haven't responded. It's a little sad to think this is the last chance for that novel (at least for now). I'll assume that it's either not good enough for publishing or needs some serious work before it will be ready. Either way, I think it's time to move on. There are a lot more story ideas brewing around in my head and I don't have the time or emotional capacity to get hung up on one story. On a similar note, I was reading an agent's blog a few weeks ago and she mentioned how she never likes to hear that it's a writer's first novel. She knows how rare it is for those to get published and it's not typically until a 4th or 5th novel that the writer has figured out the formula well enough to make a really great book (or at least one that's going to be able to sell).
Check out the link to that blog post here: http://bookendslitagency.blogspot.com/2008/07/how-much-to-tell.html#links
So with that in mind, I'll keep writing, not holding my breath and being patient while I get better at writing. I have all the time in the world...
In the meantime, I'll keep writing!
TGIF!!
Happy Friday!! Well, this week has gone by surprisingly fast. I've FINALLY finished my short story and have almost finished editing it. There are a few contests I'd like to enter it in and one of them that I just found has a 10/27 deadline! The other has a Dec. 1st deadline and a word count limit. That's what I seem to be struggling with right now. I really like the story the way it is. Could I cut it down to 1500 words? (it's currently at around 2200) Probably. But I'm trying to decide if it's worth it just to be able to send it into this contest. Or if I just write another one that's under 1500 words. Such a dilemma.
On another note, I sent in my final follow up query letter. This particular agency has had my novel (1st) since the end of March and they are the only ones that haven't responded. It's a little sad to think this is the last chance for that novel (at least for now). I'll assume that it's either not good enough for publishing or needs some serious work before it will be ready. Either way, I think it's time to move on. There are a lot more story ideas brewing around in my head and I don't have the time or emotional capacity to get hung up on one story. On a similar note, I was reading an agent's blog a few weeks ago and she mentioned how she never likes to hear that it's a writer's first novel. She knows how rare it is for those to get published and it's not typically until a 4th or 5th novel that the writer has figured out the formula well enough to make a really great book (or at least one that's going to be able to sell).
Check out the link to that blog post here: http://bookendslitagency.blogspot.com/2008/07/how-much-to-tell.html#links
So with that in mind, I'll keep writing, not holding my breath and being patient while I get better at writing. I have all the time in the world...
In the meantime, I'll keep writing!
TGIF!!
Friday, October 17, 2008
wow it's been awhile...
Current tuneage: How I Disappear - My Chemical Romance
Well, I apologize for the massive hiatus. I was just reading a literary agent's blog and she happened to mention that she always tells her clients to never start a blog... and neglect to update it. So I felt horribly guilty and here I am.
Lots has happened since I last blogged... eek... almost three months ago. My husband accepted a new position back in Indiana, so we're getting ready for some pretty big changes! Tyson is getting bigger by the day. I took him to the vet just the other day and he weighs 86 pounds now--and he's only 8.5 months old!!
On the writing side of things, I went through kind of a funk. I went through a similar one about this time last year and I'm beginning to wonder if it's just when I happen to finish a novel or the time of year. Because as soon as fall weather starts I'm back in full writing mode--like there aren't enough hours in the day to get the story from my brain to the computer screen.
So that's been going good. I'm still trying to squeeze in time to edit my second novel. Much longer on that and I'm going to start thinking I have an editing phobia. I believe in a previous post I discussed wanting to work on short stories for contests and literary journal publication and I'm nearly done with one of the short stories. Writer's Digest is having a pretty big contest with a Dec. 1 deadline, so that's what I'm working towards right now.
I was just counting the other day and I think I have 4-5 projects I'm working on right now. I actually think this is a good thing because as soon as I get stuck on one of them (regardless of the reason) I open up another one and start working on it. I guess it's really just another way of beating writer's block, but whatever works, right?
Well, I think that's about all for now. I promise, I'll be better about writing more frequently. I'm not sure I can handle the daily thing (surprisingly I don't think I have enough to say to do that) but at least once a week.
TGIF!!
Well, I apologize for the massive hiatus. I was just reading a literary agent's blog and she happened to mention that she always tells her clients to never start a blog... and neglect to update it. So I felt horribly guilty and here I am.
Lots has happened since I last blogged... eek... almost three months ago. My husband accepted a new position back in Indiana, so we're getting ready for some pretty big changes! Tyson is getting bigger by the day. I took him to the vet just the other day and he weighs 86 pounds now--and he's only 8.5 months old!!
On the writing side of things, I went through kind of a funk. I went through a similar one about this time last year and I'm beginning to wonder if it's just when I happen to finish a novel or the time of year. Because as soon as fall weather starts I'm back in full writing mode--like there aren't enough hours in the day to get the story from my brain to the computer screen.
So that's been going good. I'm still trying to squeeze in time to edit my second novel. Much longer on that and I'm going to start thinking I have an editing phobia. I believe in a previous post I discussed wanting to work on short stories for contests and literary journal publication and I'm nearly done with one of the short stories. Writer's Digest is having a pretty big contest with a Dec. 1 deadline, so that's what I'm working towards right now.
I was just counting the other day and I think I have 4-5 projects I'm working on right now. I actually think this is a good thing because as soon as I get stuck on one of them (regardless of the reason) I open up another one and start working on it. I guess it's really just another way of beating writer's block, but whatever works, right?
Well, I think that's about all for now. I promise, I'll be better about writing more frequently. I'm not sure I can handle the daily thing (surprisingly I don't think I have enough to say to do that) but at least once a week.
TGIF!!
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