Okay, this is going to be hard but I know it has to be done. I have to make clean cut decisions and take control - I'll lose too much if I don't.
As I may have already said, I'm preparing for my final school exams: the ones that will decide whether I get to go to university or have to find some other direction for my life. I want to go to uni.
So here's the tough decision: I'm stopping blogging. Not forever - I'm not just going to end it here - but until these exams are over and there's nothing more I can to about them. There's just too much temptation to take time out of my studies and write a blog post (kind of like what I'm doing now), and I really don't need things drawing me away right now. This should only last for a month or two, as my exams finish at the end of June, but until then this is goodbye.
My other projects - painful as it is - are also taking a backseat, so my WIP will be put at a snail's pace and have to wait until life gets less serious. Fanfiction will stop and plot bunnies will be locked up at double speed. I need to focus on the real world for a while.
I feel I'm at a good palce to stop right now: I have four chapters of my WIP done and dusted and several more in progress, so I don't feel like I'm just being lazy (it's not much for most people but it's a good chunk for me - I like to get it as perfect as possible before I call it finished). I may take breaks and write little bits during the next month or so, but I won't be specifically looking for time to write - I'll just do it when I really need a break from work.
So this is it for now.
See you in July
W-O xxx
Monday, 7 May 2012
Thursday, 26 April 2012
Monday, 23 April 2012
Pros and Cons of Wordcounts
Okay, I'm writing this to (just about) coincide with two word count milestones that I've achieved in the last week.
First: I managed to clear the 1000 word mark on Chapter 2 of my WIP.
You may well say: "Hang on! You've been writing this thing for around six months (or more) now and you still haven't gotten past Chapter 2. Isn't that a bit slow going?" Well, yes, it is slow going at the moment, but I haven't been that slow. Chapter 2 has just been causing me problems for a while, I simply skipped past it and started work on Chapter 3 - which (for the record) I finished months ago - and the Chapter 4 (and 8 and 13). But last week I decided enough was enough and actually sat myself down and started really writing this chapter. It's now starting to properly take shape in my head and is no longer the blank spot it was a few months ago.
Secondly (and the more important milestone): the combined efforts on Chapter 2, plus additions to other chapters have meant I've now passed 9000 words!
It may not be much in terms of a novel, but it's giving me a boost right now and I just keep thinking: "Nearly at 10k!", which certainly does feel like quite the milestone.
Well, enough about me and onto my Thought of the Day: Is it good to keep a word count?
Right now my answer is an emphatic 'yes'. The thought that I've managed to get past 9k is giving me a boost and making carrying on just that little bit more enjoyable. It also lets me know how much further I have to go and lets me keep track and not write too much - which I tend to do.
But it has Cons as well:
First off is limiting you. There's a certain amount of emphasis today on not making books too long or drag out too much, as it makes the reader get bored and people can get turned away by just the sight of a large book (a la Breaking Dawn - it's massive! Though I'm not saying it's unnecessary.). But for some stories it may be necessary to get all of the important information in, or it simply is a long story (as I said). It depends on the book and plenty of people may feel pressured to cut things short, leaving their plans for the book unfulfilled.
Second, it may make you write more than necessary. Kind of the other side to the story. Aspiring authors will want their book to have equal shelf space with all the other novels out there. This can cause them to stretch things out; making a book that would be brilliant at 50k into one that drags along and comes in at 80k. There's no need for this.
So, my overall summary: write what is right for your book, do not follow trends of long or short books, finish your story when it feels right. So long as you do this - by all means - use word count as a morale booster, you're sure as anything going to need it sometimes, but don't let it dictate how much you write and what you write.
Not really much usefull in this post, but I felt the need to share my joy at getting past my markers.
Hope someone enjoys this.
W-O xxx
First: I managed to clear the 1000 word mark on Chapter 2 of my WIP.
You may well say: "Hang on! You've been writing this thing for around six months (or more) now and you still haven't gotten past Chapter 2. Isn't that a bit slow going?" Well, yes, it is slow going at the moment, but I haven't been that slow. Chapter 2 has just been causing me problems for a while, I simply skipped past it and started work on Chapter 3 - which (for the record) I finished months ago - and the Chapter 4 (and 8 and 13). But last week I decided enough was enough and actually sat myself down and started really writing this chapter. It's now starting to properly take shape in my head and is no longer the blank spot it was a few months ago.
Secondly (and the more important milestone): the combined efforts on Chapter 2, plus additions to other chapters have meant I've now passed 9000 words!
It may not be much in terms of a novel, but it's giving me a boost right now and I just keep thinking: "Nearly at 10k!", which certainly does feel like quite the milestone.
Well, enough about me and onto my Thought of the Day: Is it good to keep a word count?
Right now my answer is an emphatic 'yes'. The thought that I've managed to get past 9k is giving me a boost and making carrying on just that little bit more enjoyable. It also lets me know how much further I have to go and lets me keep track and not write too much - which I tend to do.
But it has Cons as well:
First off is limiting you. There's a certain amount of emphasis today on not making books too long or drag out too much, as it makes the reader get bored and people can get turned away by just the sight of a large book (a la Breaking Dawn - it's massive! Though I'm not saying it's unnecessary.). But for some stories it may be necessary to get all of the important information in, or it simply is a long story (as I said). It depends on the book and plenty of people may feel pressured to cut things short, leaving their plans for the book unfulfilled.
Second, it may make you write more than necessary. Kind of the other side to the story. Aspiring authors will want their book to have equal shelf space with all the other novels out there. This can cause them to stretch things out; making a book that would be brilliant at 50k into one that drags along and comes in at 80k. There's no need for this.
So, my overall summary: write what is right for your book, do not follow trends of long or short books, finish your story when it feels right. So long as you do this - by all means - use word count as a morale booster, you're sure as anything going to need it sometimes, but don't let it dictate how much you write and what you write.
Not really much usefull in this post, but I felt the need to share my joy at getting past my markers.
Hope someone enjoys this.
W-O xxx
Sunday, 8 April 2012
Having The Time Of Your Life Vs Acting Your Age
I've noticed it's been a while since my last update, so I'm going to do something about that. So, here's my Thought of the Day:
Okay, I will confess now: I love acting like a kid. It's so relieving to suddenly drop all your responsibilities and worries and just run around giggling, as if the world is just a giant playground. I miss my innocent days. Also, there's frankly it's funny to see those who are meant to be sensible suddenly act like they are five again: it reminds us that we all have the capacity to have fun.
Some of my best memories are when I got to forget everything and throw myself into something, like a water fight or Trick o' Treating at Halloween (plus you get free sweets with that one). Deep down I'm still a little kid waiting for the games to begin.
This is all very well, but sadly at my age I'm expected to act with a little more maturity than that. A part of me embraces the independence of it, while another feels pressured and closed off by it all. I don't like to feel like my whole life rides on my decisions - which they more-or-less do nowadays. There is immense pressure to grow up quickly and learn the ways of the world, so that you can survive in it, but is it at the cost of our childhood?
I know what I face in terms of fast growth is nothing when compared with a few centuries - or even decades - ago: I'm not expected to marry by the time I'm 15 or live with the effects of wars (not noticeably anyway). I know I'm incredibly lucky to have the life I do and I am grateful for it, yet I'm still plagued by doubts and wishes to be elsewhere.
Think about it: by the time we're five years old we're in school and having to learn life skills; soon homework starts to appear and you're expected to do it or face the consequences. These are small children who are being made to worry about getting things done, when really this is the time of their lives when they should have very few worries. Okay, I may be being melodramatic here, but my point still stands: children are being made to grow up quickly. By the time the summer rolls around I'll have been in full-time education for 13 years - that's an awfully long time! These years have certainly been fun - I'm not going to deny that - but there's been an awful amount of stress, too, and they certainly weren't the carefree days that childhood is often portrayed as.
So I'm going to embrace every childish moment that comes around. I will do until I'm in my fifties and sixties, because we all need some time to be carefree - completely carefree, not with the threat of something looming over us. You can't be serious your whole life.
Okay, I may have deviated from my original topic a little but I think most of this makes sense.
Hope it's interesting to someone.
W-O xxx
Okay, I will confess now: I love acting like a kid. It's so relieving to suddenly drop all your responsibilities and worries and just run around giggling, as if the world is just a giant playground. I miss my innocent days. Also, there's frankly it's funny to see those who are meant to be sensible suddenly act like they are five again: it reminds us that we all have the capacity to have fun.
Some of my best memories are when I got to forget everything and throw myself into something, like a water fight or Trick o' Treating at Halloween (plus you get free sweets with that one). Deep down I'm still a little kid waiting for the games to begin.
This is all very well, but sadly at my age I'm expected to act with a little more maturity than that. A part of me embraces the independence of it, while another feels pressured and closed off by it all. I don't like to feel like my whole life rides on my decisions - which they more-or-less do nowadays. There is immense pressure to grow up quickly and learn the ways of the world, so that you can survive in it, but is it at the cost of our childhood?
I know what I face in terms of fast growth is nothing when compared with a few centuries - or even decades - ago: I'm not expected to marry by the time I'm 15 or live with the effects of wars (not noticeably anyway). I know I'm incredibly lucky to have the life I do and I am grateful for it, yet I'm still plagued by doubts and wishes to be elsewhere.
Think about it: by the time we're five years old we're in school and having to learn life skills; soon homework starts to appear and you're expected to do it or face the consequences. These are small children who are being made to worry about getting things done, when really this is the time of their lives when they should have very few worries. Okay, I may be being melodramatic here, but my point still stands: children are being made to grow up quickly. By the time the summer rolls around I'll have been in full-time education for 13 years - that's an awfully long time! These years have certainly been fun - I'm not going to deny that - but there's been an awful amount of stress, too, and they certainly weren't the carefree days that childhood is often portrayed as.
So I'm going to embrace every childish moment that comes around. I will do until I'm in my fifties and sixties, because we all need some time to be carefree - completely carefree, not with the threat of something looming over us. You can't be serious your whole life.
Okay, I may have deviated from my original topic a little but I think most of this makes sense.
Hope it's interesting to someone.
W-O xxx
Thursday, 8 March 2012
Getting Behind and Staying in Reality
Okay, I'm a rather ashamed to admit this but - I haven't been working on my WIP as much as I should have lately.
This isn't just forgetting to write a couple of times. I went at least two weeks now without writing a word on it.
This. Is. Not. Good.
Not only does it mean I'm behind on my plan, I'm also pretty ashamed about it. I told myself I would not let this happen, and yet I let it do just that.
After realising this huge failure of mine I immediately set out to correct it. Hence I have now added over 1000 words to my WIP in less than two days. This is progress. It has also brought me very close to the 8000 word mark *breaks into happy dance*.
So the point of this post is (it seems at the moment not a lot of my posts really have a point):
Don't ever give up. Keep writing until that manuscript/ blog post/ article/ anything else you may be writing is finished.
Don't worry if you're writing complete tosh - you can always go back and redo it later. The point is that you finish it. Not matter how good or bad it is, you will have gained something and can say "Yes, I have managed to do this." It's a nice little ego boost for you.
Second point:
Know your priorities.
(I know I've done another post on this, but I will say it again because it is feeling relevant to me right now.)
We all can struggle with prioritising. We may know there is something important hanging over us and yet we carry on with something else. For me, writing is the 'something else' most of the time - much as I wish it were otherwise. I cannot pretend to myself that my schoolwork and getting into University do not matter to me that much. They do matter. A lot.
And they take time and energy. Things that I would often prefer to spend writing. But I know that writing is not usually a very lucrative career choice and I'd have a much better chance of earning money if I follow the school -> university -> job path.
So this is my second piece of advice: don't let the world pass you by. Writing may be your way of escape and - you never know - you could turn out a very successful author/journalist/*insert other job here*. But if that doesn't work out, you need a firm base in reality (I think it's a good idea not to starve).
If you're young, focus on schoolwork and get your qualifications. If you've left school, don't quit your day job until you're certain writing is enough. You don't have to take this advice, but (for once) I don't think it's bad advice (I'm not normally good at this sort of stuff).
Okay. I think I'm done being serious and responsible for now.
I apologise for the very down-to-earth post. I got some exam results today, so this sort of thing has been on my mind a lot.
Hope this was useful to someone.
W-O xxx
This isn't just forgetting to write a couple of times. I went at least two weeks now without writing a word on it.
This. Is. Not. Good.
Not only does it mean I'm behind on my plan, I'm also pretty ashamed about it. I told myself I would not let this happen, and yet I let it do just that.
After realising this huge failure of mine I immediately set out to correct it. Hence I have now added over 1000 words to my WIP in less than two days. This is progress. It has also brought me very close to the 8000 word mark *breaks into happy dance*.
So the point of this post is (it seems at the moment not a lot of my posts really have a point):
Don't ever give up. Keep writing until that manuscript/ blog post/ article/ anything else you may be writing is finished.
Don't worry if you're writing complete tosh - you can always go back and redo it later. The point is that you finish it. Not matter how good or bad it is, you will have gained something and can say "Yes, I have managed to do this." It's a nice little ego boost for you.
Second point:
Know your priorities.
(I know I've done another post on this, but I will say it again because it is feeling relevant to me right now.)
We all can struggle with prioritising. We may know there is something important hanging over us and yet we carry on with something else. For me, writing is the 'something else' most of the time - much as I wish it were otherwise. I cannot pretend to myself that my schoolwork and getting into University do not matter to me that much. They do matter. A lot.
And they take time and energy. Things that I would often prefer to spend writing. But I know that writing is not usually a very lucrative career choice and I'd have a much better chance of earning money if I follow the school -> university -> job path.
So this is my second piece of advice: don't let the world pass you by. Writing may be your way of escape and - you never know - you could turn out a very successful author/journalist/*insert other job here*. But if that doesn't work out, you need a firm base in reality (I think it's a good idea not to starve).
If you're young, focus on schoolwork and get your qualifications. If you've left school, don't quit your day job until you're certain writing is enough. You don't have to take this advice, but (for once) I don't think it's bad advice (I'm not normally good at this sort of stuff).
Okay. I think I'm done being serious and responsible for now.
I apologise for the very down-to-earth post. I got some exam results today, so this sort of thing has been on my mind a lot.
Hope this was useful to someone.
W-O xxx
Thursday, 1 March 2012
Julie Kagawa ARC Contest and Learning More About Blogger
Okay, first things first.
The wonderful author of the 'Iron Fey' books series, Julie Kagawa, is hosting a giveaway over on her blog for a signed ARC copy of her new book, The Immortal Rules. It's international, so you don't have to worry about where in the world you live and it definitely looks like a good book :)
The linky for it is here.
And onto a slightly more serious topic - though not much more!
I've been on Blogger since November-time. So far I've worked out most aspects of the Dashboard and how to write, edit and decorate my blog. Unfortunately my expertise does not extend much beyond that.
Up until about ten minutes ago I had no idea how to put in a hyperlink. As shown above ^ I have now worked out how it is done.
But I realised when I first joined that I'd have to learn a lot, in order to make my blog interesting.
Sadly I still haven't worked out how to put pictures in, therefore so far my posts have not been very exciting in that respect.
If anyone knows how I include pictures, please, feel free to share your knowledge with me. I won't bite (much).
This probably won't be a very useful post to anyone, but thanks for taking the time to read it anyway.
W-O
The wonderful author of the 'Iron Fey' books series, Julie Kagawa, is hosting a giveaway over on her blog for a signed ARC copy of her new book, The Immortal Rules. It's international, so you don't have to worry about where in the world you live and it definitely looks like a good book :)
The linky for it is here.
And onto a slightly more serious topic - though not much more!
I've been on Blogger since November-time. So far I've worked out most aspects of the Dashboard and how to write, edit and decorate my blog. Unfortunately my expertise does not extend much beyond that.
Up until about ten minutes ago I had no idea how to put in a hyperlink. As shown above ^ I have now worked out how it is done.
But I realised when I first joined that I'd have to learn a lot, in order to make my blog interesting.
Sadly I still haven't worked out how to put pictures in, therefore so far my posts have not been very exciting in that respect.
If anyone knows how I include pictures, please, feel free to share your knowledge with me. I won't bite (much).
This probably won't be a very useful post to anyone, but thanks for taking the time to read it anyway.
W-O
Sunday, 26 February 2012
Joys and hardships of Plot Bunnies
They're lovely, fluffy little things that jump around and make us smile. They are there to be played with, nurtured and allowed to grow into fully-fledged adult bunnies. We love them dearly.At the same time, we hate them with a passion.
Sure, they're cute and cuddly and stop us from getting bored, but they are a lot of work. And things get very difficult when we have a lot of them: we neglect some while playing with others.
They're adorable little distractions.
I've heard lots about plot bunnies, and the problems they cause writers, while searching the interwebs. People often get side-tracked from one plot by another and end up abandoning their original to pursue the new one - only to repeat the same process a month or so later. This definitely doesn't get things done and leaves many, perfectly good, stories abandoned and unfinished (such a waste).
There are many arguments for leaving bunnies by the way-side: "this new one is better/ more commercially viable" or "I don't like this one any more". I have to admit, I've considered dropping things before; because I have a block that I can't seem to get past, or I start thinking that it isn't really that great a story.
But - in the end - what I'd say to these arguments is: if you can't finish this project, how do you know you'll be able to finish the next?
Even if your current story never actually goes anywhere, just sits in your Documents gathering figurative dust, you'll still have gained something from it - be it the confidence to finish something else or an actual improvement in your writing. You never know, in a few years you may look back on it with a more objective view and decide it's actually worth something. Maybe with some re-writing and/or editing it could actually be a good book in itself.
What I'm really saying is: every plot bunny deserves to be played with and allowed to grow, but you can't just leave one to shrivel and die because it is no longer your favourite.
One way to combat this would be multi-tasking and trying to write several stories at once (when I was younger I often had hundreds of fanfictions on the go at the same time - though I never wrote any of them down). However, this isn't an easy thing to do and puts more stress on you as a writer - that's what I've found anyway.
So far in my writing process I haven't had to worry too much about plot bunnies, as my brain has decided to be cooperative and only focus on one thing (for once!). But two days ago it - once again - decided to throw another idea into my head in the form of a dream (though thankfully not involving any hot, blood-sucking men). I was really quite surprised how well-formed the idea was, considering its source (my subconsciousness is not known for its rationality), but I know I can't work on it at the same time as my current WIP.
What I've decided to do is put the rest of my bunnies on ice or slow-growth food while I work on my book. I write the all the ideas down, in a newly-designated 'Plot Bunny Notebook', as they come to me: including all the details or plot that I've come up with so far and any images that stuck in my mind when thinking about it (I had a lot of images in that dream!).
Then I leave them.
Let them sit until my WIP is done and dusted, then I'll get out the notebook and decide which bunny I want to write next.
Another technique, that I've untilised on a fanfiction that I'm working on, is the slow-burn method. I don't focus much time or energy on this project. Just occasionally when I'm going through a slow patch with my WIP or I need another way to get the creative juices flowing, I sit down and write a chapter or two on my fanfiction. Fanfictions don't require much character development or world-building as a novel - most of it's been done for you - but it's a good way of warming up your writing muscles before you get on with your own book. And of not letting that other, smaller, project drop.
So, that's my thoughts for the day.
Hope someone finds it useful.
Thank you to those of you who are actually reading this blog - especially RaeAnn your comments always cheer me up :)
W-O
Sure, they're cute and cuddly and stop us from getting bored, but they are a lot of work. And things get very difficult when we have a lot of them: we neglect some while playing with others.
They're adorable little distractions.
I've heard lots about plot bunnies, and the problems they cause writers, while searching the interwebs. People often get side-tracked from one plot by another and end up abandoning their original to pursue the new one - only to repeat the same process a month or so later. This definitely doesn't get things done and leaves many, perfectly good, stories abandoned and unfinished (such a waste).
There are many arguments for leaving bunnies by the way-side: "this new one is better/ more commercially viable" or "I don't like this one any more". I have to admit, I've considered dropping things before; because I have a block that I can't seem to get past, or I start thinking that it isn't really that great a story.
But - in the end - what I'd say to these arguments is: if you can't finish this project, how do you know you'll be able to finish the next?
Even if your current story never actually goes anywhere, just sits in your Documents gathering figurative dust, you'll still have gained something from it - be it the confidence to finish something else or an actual improvement in your writing. You never know, in a few years you may look back on it with a more objective view and decide it's actually worth something. Maybe with some re-writing and/or editing it could actually be a good book in itself.
What I'm really saying is: every plot bunny deserves to be played with and allowed to grow, but you can't just leave one to shrivel and die because it is no longer your favourite.
One way to combat this would be multi-tasking and trying to write several stories at once (when I was younger I often had hundreds of fanfictions on the go at the same time - though I never wrote any of them down). However, this isn't an easy thing to do and puts more stress on you as a writer - that's what I've found anyway.
So far in my writing process I haven't had to worry too much about plot bunnies, as my brain has decided to be cooperative and only focus on one thing (for once!). But two days ago it - once again - decided to throw another idea into my head in the form of a dream (though thankfully not involving any hot, blood-sucking men). I was really quite surprised how well-formed the idea was, considering its source (my subconsciousness is not known for its rationality), but I know I can't work on it at the same time as my current WIP.
What I've decided to do is put the rest of my bunnies on ice or slow-growth food while I work on my book. I write the all the ideas down, in a newly-designated 'Plot Bunny Notebook', as they come to me: including all the details or plot that I've come up with so far and any images that stuck in my mind when thinking about it (I had a lot of images in that dream!).
Then I leave them.
Let them sit until my WIP is done and dusted, then I'll get out the notebook and decide which bunny I want to write next.
Another technique, that I've untilised on a fanfiction that I'm working on, is the slow-burn method. I don't focus much time or energy on this project. Just occasionally when I'm going through a slow patch with my WIP or I need another way to get the creative juices flowing, I sit down and write a chapter or two on my fanfiction. Fanfictions don't require much character development or world-building as a novel - most of it's been done for you - but it's a good way of warming up your writing muscles before you get on with your own book. And of not letting that other, smaller, project drop.
So, that's my thoughts for the day.
Hope someone finds it useful.
Thank you to those of you who are actually reading this blog - especially RaeAnn your comments always cheer me up :)
W-O
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