Those mid-NaNoWriMo reminders

I am 34,000+ words into this year's NaNoWriMo. Again, I aim for 60,000 words. Other than being seriously sick last week, 60,000 looks like it may just be in the cards again. Except for a few things.
One of the pieces of advice I recently took to heart was looking at making sure the characters did not always get what they wanted. And I realized, part of my current NaNoWriMo is boring because I am literally letting my characters get what they want. On the plus side, however, I have been re-working scenes (read I re-wrote them) and getting to those roadblocks.
Other things of note: I did not realize unto recently how lonely all of my characters are without associates in their lives to help guide them through life's journey. I get my characters happy with being in the lives of someone else but no one else is in their life at all. No sage, no friend, no comic relief. This is why my stories stop-start so abruptly. I need to work on that.

And I need to get back to work. I am too old to be doing this on a Friday night.

When the Push Isn't the Story

There is no secret, I'm constantly churning out at least a short story or two. But lately, my work hasn't been as fruitful. And it's definitely slowed. Certainly my life situations do really limit my productivity. Between the fact that I'm trying to find a grad school that will take me and testing for other issues related to getting into the grad programs I wish to get into.

So this is the first year in a long time I have access to the required reading block in my academic schedule where it's required that all students come in and read at the beginning of class. And to my unexpected pleasure, the teacher with whom I am partnered with this year, has a wonderful book collection. I am in book heaven. I spent the first three weeks of the school year devouring a new book and then I realized there was a book I "should" read. I picked up that book, it is a biography.

The medium of biography is not a focus of the type of writing I do: general descriptive non-fiction and fiction. But as I read this story and look at the life of another person who just had an opportunity like no one else could have ever believed. I haven't even gotten to the primary focus of the biography yet.

But this reminds me of two things: writers need to read everything and then reading helps writers get clarity in directions of the ways their fiction or non-fiction need to be able to appeal to a variety of readers.

Yes I am still writing. I am still reading as well. I hope to become more open to reading more genres.

When you think you are out of ideas, you aren't

One of the things I do from time to time is force myself to write about human experiences. It's a great excercise when you aren't that occupied and it helps me focus on one or two take aways as a writer. So the theme I had been working on was love and telling someone you loved them for the first time. It's especially meaningful to me that I have told people, especially people whom I am not romantically interested in that I love them and what it means for them to hear it from me.

So in that vein, I was gawking over a little voice telling me "I've always loved you." And I couldn't let that voice go. I could hear how much this character wanted to voice that to the person who needed to hear that the most.

I give you a second draft of the work for your amusement.

—----—---------————

He was hunched over on the polished wooden bench, a tiny silhouette that moved only because his legs were still too short to reach the floor. Gone were the echoes of "it's not fair!"

I walked up and knelt in front of him, I heard my knees crack. "Time to go buddy." I said softly.

As I straighten up, dusting my dry hands on my blue jeans, he grabbed a strap of the bright orange backpack and slipped off the bench, forcing himself to march down the polished hallway and after me out the double glass doors into the sunlight. 

I took his hand, all the while realizing he may just be too old to have his hand held while we crossed the street, but he was still just eight and while I may have been short, he still didn't make it past my elbow.

The car was unlocked and he climbed in the backseat. I took the driver's seat and put on my seatbelt. I looked back at him to check to see if his belt was on. He gasped and pushed his belt to click. The scratch down his face was a little startling, but he had been expertly patched up by the school nurse.

The car roared and then the blinker tisked as we pulled into traffic, heading out of town. Prisoners in the car together, the radio too low to hear over the air conditioner blowing hoping that the air in the car would soon be livable.

I heard the slow drum of my favorite song. Except there was a little person in the back seat. I changed stations. The last time I belted out my favorite tune with him in the back seat, I was given a scathing critical review and it distorted my love of that song forever. I couldn't lose anymore songs to sing on the road. He slumped in the backseat, buckled his eyes locked on the yellows and greens outside blurring agains the black asphalt.

The exit was coming to change directions from north south to east west, I got in the correct lane. 

"Why did you come get me?" A truck passed us on the right as we chugged up the bridge over the rushing spring full river below.

"I went to get you because your parents asked me to."

"Oh."

I saw a burger place I thought he might eat at. I pulled off and drove to the drive through. "What do you get when you come here?" I asked as we waited our turn for the drive through.

"Burger. No cheese. Ketchup."

"Ketchup? I thought it was mustard!" 

He made a face. "No more mustard."

I ordered the burger for him, a few extra burgers for home, a few shakes, hoping to convince him to maybe lick some ice cream, and a couple of fries because I actually like the salt. The first window comes up and I pay. 

"Would your son like a sticker sheet?" The cashier asked. 

"Would you like a sticker sheet?" I ask him, cringing, hoping he wouldn't correct the poor high school kid that I wasn't his mother.

"No. Kids who get into fights don't deserve sticker sheets." And he began to wail. I take a heavy sigh and the kid at the window nearly shoved the stickers in my hand with my change. I hand back a tissue while I waited for the food.

The food is warm and I turn down the blasting air, hoping to preserve the heat in the fries. My hand sneaks into the bag and I take a golden crisp slightly dripping with hot oil and salt and offer it behind me as I navigate the last turn and head back on the street to his neighborhood.

"Take it Bryce." I urge. My fingers feel a little warm as the oils oozed over my fingers.

He stares at my hand as if it were the poison bottle. His eyes puffy and red.

"Little Dude, seriously, the only reason why people pick up food for other people is called the "fry tax" you get to eat a hot French fry on the way home."

Bryce took the fry and he put it on his quivering lip.

"That kid doesn't love me." He finally said.

My hands gripped the steering wheel a little tighter. "No buddy, he doesn't. And he doesn't have to. No one really has to love anyone."

"Do you love me?"

"Always have." I said. My knuckles were white and the car was a hair into ten miles over the speed limit. I stopped at the light before turning onto the freeway. The car protested the speed demands and then clicked over into the next gear.

"When did you know you loved me?" 

I wanted to slam my head on the steering wheel. My grip was beginning to hurt. I dropped my hands low on the wheel as I hit the correct speed and settled back for the twenty minute drive, checking a mirror before I merged left around a semi truck. "Um... Honestly not the first time I met you. It was a more recent love."

"Oh."

I looked up in the rear view mirror, even though I knew he wouldn't make eye contact with me. It was one of several things we shared. "You know, buddy, I really didn't know you until you started going to school. I've always known about you. I thought about you when we didn't live as close. Your mom has those cards I sent you."

"She does?"

"Of course she does... Somewhere...." I hoped.

Another left after the school, and then the crazy round about and I'm in front of his house. We stop and I wrangled the food and my backpack on one shoulder and he climbs out of the car and up the steps of his house in a neighborhood with photocopied manicured lawns. He presses the door bell, waiting for his parents to open the door.

"Hey Bryce, I want you to know I loved you. I loved you before I knew what loving you meant. But understanding that I loved you, that didn't happen, like I said, until recently. And I know you might not get it, but that's how I can tell you how I care."

"Do you think the kid at school feels the same way you do?"

"Probably not. But he is a kid at school. You're eight. Stuff like that generally doesn't matter to the other kids."

"Will you always love me?"

"Yeah I will."

"Will they ever learn to love me?"

"Let's aim for like. When they get to know you some will love you."

"Do mom and dad like you?"

"I hope so. I just got them dinner..."

The door opened and Bryce scampered into the house. I brought in the food and took my share and headed out.

As I stepped off the last stair, I was constructed by a pair of little arms. "I love you Auntie. I loved you before I knew how to love."

"Yeah," I said a little embarrassed. "I guess that makes me one lucky person."

"Sure does"

"Go on go have dinner with your parents."

NaNo2015 Update from 8 days in

There were plans. As a 60/40 pantser: there were plans. I swear there were. Especially around blogging this year.

And then POOF. Time. Life. Demands beyond belief.

When I tell you that my health is taking a dive here, you might want to believe it. The phone call to my personal physician is also on "the list" for December.

But I'm on schedule to finish 60,000 words 11/30. I'm working on 2 short stories at the same time, which is useful when I'm struggling with one scene, I can pop over to the other story and write in information I feel necessary so I can think about something else for a little while.

But I forage on. One day, I'd like to be someone who tries to get 50,000 in over 2 days or something. As it is, I'm about 2000 words in a dedicated hour. Something that I thought would be easier.

I love NaNoWriMo, if nothing else, to remind me to focus, and drown out all the issues that plague me and worry me because my writing is really soothing in the end. That's why I started blogging. That's why I started writing through NaNoWriMo.

I love to write. I will continue to do so.

NaNoWriMo Count Down

I'm not that crazy. I mean I do know there are 34 days until I can rev up my writing engine and get out all the work necessary.

I have five story ideas that are ready to go for this year's NaNo. I'm really looking forward to being able to get those ideas out and the characters to become more than just a few spare ideas.

Most of all, this year, I would like to break 60,000 words. I know I squeaked by in 55,000 last year, but I would really like to put in that effort, and breaking a personal record makes me wonder if it is at all possible.

I think I'm set. I just have to register and go. But first: birthday party palooza. I have no less than 3 babies in the next few weeks who turn 1. I haven't decided what to do for them all yet, but it's on the list to focus on.

Copy rights and other things

A good author should always be writing. The problem with my life: I'm not always doing so. Some of it is there are parts of my life that are not involved with writing; sleeping, eating, self-entertaining (TV/media), friends, and stuff writing related (research, illustrating, and editing).

So when I announced at the end of last month I had finally produced a second edition to a book I had written two years ago, I was over the moon with joy. Today, I'm sitting and waiting for the physical proof of a second book in a series to arrive so I can check it for publishing. 

I have also started five new projects, two of which I sent to a pay to use publisher that was about a week of work for both. The remaining three non-fiction projects include intensive research one that requires reading Homer. I've got to say that while I am versed and highly skilled in research, even before the advent of Google, research is a pain. You've got to be extraordinarily organized and prepared for anything that you will uncover.

And then there are no less than three fictional works in progress. I realized last year during NaNo, I was feeling rusty, as if my written work was suffering from my lack of connection to the worlds I was building, even if the world as we see it wasn't that different than the world in the piece I was writing. The good news is that these written works have been started, yet they are hardly publishing level. I don't know if they will ever be ready. I worry about that because that is my goal, to have work prepared for people to share. 

Then there is blogging, I need todo more of it, and hold myself to the deadlines because clearly that works during the 8 months a year I blog for the Company. I am getting better. 

An announcement of no small proportions, I've just formally registered for a copyright for one of my books. I'm thrilled and scared all at the same time. Hopefully the Office of Copyright will see fit to bestow one of their precious certificates on me. I won't know for 8 months. Previous works are actually protected by common copyright law. Having been published is enough to generally protect the work but this last step is an important legal step.

There is a lot going on in the world of writing. I enjoy [almost] every minute of it.

While I have you here: I'm now a part of a campaign #BetterTogether. Using this hashtag is meant to help promote inclusive communities for people with disabilities. Hopefully I will have cause to use it soon.

Long Plot Line of Continuity

A general I have three little "plot bunnies" for fiction work I'm working on. One of which, yesterday, I was about to let out for someone else to claim as their own but I was thinking about how vividly I dreamed and how much I thought the ending would be an interesting twist. So I kept the plot bunny. I'm looking at these three and realizing how much I love the short story. Even with twists, they are to the point, and they don't require elaboration in the case of no one cares what they eat for lunch on Tuesday. Unless it really matters to the plot.

Other important issues before I get to the point of why I'm writing today, I finished submitting and the process for publication of yet another book for the company. Since having finished that book, I continue to bounce around ideas for releasing the second book this summer. I have yet to finish setting it up, I'm afraid of finding a huge error right now. To complicate matters, though I backed up everything and the old hard drive is still accessible, I got a new hard drive in the laptop, but it isn't the old set up which is its own problem. I can't quite find if there was a "D" file and gaps in my research show that I may need to hold onto this book just a little bit longer.

I have eight active projects I rotate through these days. Two on similar topics but are presented differently and the rest are all history based. I will eventually return to science, I have a whole new section to add, but it's also going to be much harder. I am also working on finding illustrations to accompany each section. It's a lot harder than it sounds because I'm mostly preparing all of these photographs for each chapter. Right now, I have an estimate on my hands that one of my books will be 300 pages--pushing its retail price into the $60 range. I'm hoping to bring down the cost, and yet every time I think about cutting a corner somewhere, I realize I'm short changing some piece of the layout.

But all of these are minor plot points in my goals of publishing and writing. Both professionally and informally, my writing forms this grander story arc. Unlike my writings: I don't know where this is headed ultimately. It certainly isn't for fame. And it isn't bound for riches. I've made my peace with those two points. Maybe one day, but certainly not now.

But TV plot lines have gotten a little crazy lately. Sometimes they remember the point of everything. Sometimes they make you remember information from three seasons back. And sometimes, each season might as well be its own thing and have no basis in reality. Some shows are very disjointed from reality to begin with, but others make you wonder how many times they will fire the entire writing team and start over. Just because the writers preserve the characters and their background stories does not mean that the writers understand what they've done the last forty episodes, or even the last two weeks of filming.

I also realize that most people no longer watch an episode a week, instead turning to 'binge' watch in a batch. But then: even having all the episodes with quick turn around means that some things may make even less sense. I am very bothered by this.

Four Hour Work Window

Because it is summer time, in order to conserve electricity for more important uses like air conditioning, I tend to only have a four hour work window. This is from around eight in the morning until noon. During this time I also have things like doctor appointments, getting things set up for the work day, or other errands that tend to occupy my time.

So, those are pretty big stumbling blocks considering I've only been out of official work since Thursday afternoon. But apparently chipping away at a revised edition since last September has finally paid off. Six days after getting out of work: one book is at the 99% completion mark as per my publisher's requirements right now.

Some things I regret about the second edition: I pulled out the beautiful, yet useless, map art work pages. There were ten pages dedicated to just pure artwork. And it took some convincing on my part to let those pages go. They were pretty, as far as computer art without depth goes. But since they didn't really contribute to the book, and they were taking up valuable physical space, they were pulled. I also removed over fifteen pages of communication icons. Those were useful, however, due to the nature of the publisher I am using, I can't leave more than two pages blank and then, the communication icons wouldn't be as accessible as possible. However, they are published through another website and are easily purchased for a few dollars.

I also took advantage of some formatting changes and aligned the glossary to look more like the glossary of the Just the Words series and the upcoming books that may partner with Finding It in the World: Geography.

But I'm pretty excited. I should be able to "sell" the book soon. Meanwhile, my four hour work window has closed. Time for me to find non-electronic work to focus on.

What Is My Brand?

I've been entrenched in branding for the better part of nearly four years now. I had to "brand" a company when I first created it. This means I had to (and my partner would have to agree at the time),

• What colors would be used in the company logo?
• What direction would the company head?
• What social media platforms would we use to communicate with the world and why?
• How to convey messages through the platforms?
• When to update and why?
• How to document the journey of being a really small business doing some pretty big things.

This is completely separate, and why we bothered to set up the company, and why when my business partner left, I continued on and had to do the extra leg work to get the company back up to speed as a sole proprietorship.

But as an author who publishes separately from the company: what is my brand?
Is it me?
Is it the professional me?

Sure, me the person and me the author share a LOT in common. For example: we are both HIGHLY motivated by awesome chocolate chip cookies. I like to write. I've enjoyed it even when I didn't know which words were going to come next on a page or when I typed. And yes, I'll say "we", went to architecture school.While I currently Tweet as myself online, it doesn't necessarily mean I've tweeted as an author, nor does it mean I've set up a Page as an author through Facebook or even Google+.

But how much of "me" am I sharing? Did something I do with my characters resonate with the way my life went? Certainly not always.

"Me the author" really likes to write romance. And it took "me the person" a while to come to terms with that fact. In fact, perhaps, this may be the first time I've publicly admitted that fact although I've not made that the focus of my previous publications.Look, there is no more poerwerful force on earth than love. Love between family, love between people willing to tough it out and start a life together, or love between a person and their pet. [Please do not confuse that previous statement with "having sex with".] Love is a binding force of our universe. Perhaps greater than all four of the types of gravity that are recognized in physics. (Oh, by the way "me the person" is a pretty astute geek and nerd on the side in case sometimes you forget.)

I can also admit, "Me the person" often decides that "me the author" will just have to "wait" while I play video games, run a million errands, or spend time with friends.

I find that my brand as an author takes a different roll every time I open the first draft of my latest work. And I am writing again. Perhaps it will work out this time and I will get a chance to publish. But first come ParaEducate's publications. I publicly announced two months ago, I would be releasing at least one book. I'm nearly ready on a second book which means I should probably start designing covers. Or other projects. Or video games. Or family, eating, sleeping, working jobs that pay a regular paycheck, or friends.

I think I found my brand: Always busy.....

"And..." The Compounding Compound

I really do not like 'and'. When struggling for words or ideas, I really go for those long lists and eventually I do hit the requirement for an 'and'. But, 'and' is such a quantifier.

I am female and I am an educator.
I like music and I can read music.
I draw by hand and on the computer.

And.

And.

'And' is about the more. The more things I can do or say adds this layer of complexity that sometimes isn't necessary at all. When I leave the house I like knowing I have twelve or fifteen things on my list to accomplish for the day. That's it. When then there is an 'and now we have to go...' or 'and now I have this idea/desire for', this inhibits the list there is a sudden growth of more. And that's anxiety causing.

And it is lonely.
And it is frustrating.
And it is stressful.

'And'.

'And' is the loading of an argument. 'And' is the fear that things will be unnecessary.

As a writer, the 'and' is a requirement. My characters need to fulfill my desires and have their own voice. My characters have to make the plot points and get there in interesting manners. My story needs to be original and be interesting.

I am working on three books right now. Two are for Project Delta, looking at vocabulary building. The third is probably never going to get published, but another foray into romance writing. I know the market is saturated, my voice is hardly going to get heard, but it is time to get into some writing where I can build a world again.

And remember to blog more often.
And remember that my blogging = writing.
And enjoy the journey.

Diversity in Writing and Television

I spent a chunk of my morning today watching a Charlie Chan movie. If you've missed them, Charlie Chan happens to be a man of Chinese descent with thirteen children, a wife, and is a well versed homicide detective. One of the trademarks of Charlie Chan's character is that he speaks in an accent. It is easy enough to understand, but there are nuances that are built into the Charlie Chan character that are a part of the world of the 1940s.

There are parts of me that would love an updated Charlie Chan. Charlie Chan, as a character, was not easily fooled. Even when his older children, and eventually his grandsons, tried to help him, he was not at all bothered by the mess or noise that came with the world of excited youth. But, making a movie or even a television remake might be mired in misdirection these days.

Which leads me to other considerations of diversity. I'm a huge TV watcher. Thank goodness for the development of the DVR. I can write and work on watching some TV all at the same time. But there are two shows I spend a lot of time on, that sometimes I wonder about.

The first is "Two Broke Girls". The girls are working as waitresses in an up and coming neighborhood in a diner run by a man who happens to be Asian. This man is a recent immigrant to the United States and over the four seasons has been the subject of many jokes the least not of which is his height. I can promise you it has been demonstrated through the show multiple times that both the man and the two women that they mutually care for each other, the jokes are a part of how they show affection. But initially, and even if you step away from that, it does look like they are going round for round in the quest for who can be the most cruel.

The second show I watch is "Jane the Virgin". Pushing aside issues arising from the main plot line of the story, again here is a show about diversity in the world. I appreciate this show because Jane is a worthy character in her world. Ignoring her pregnancy and the plot lines involving directly to her pregnancy, she contributes and wants to contribute to her world. She views the world with both feet planted in thing that is most important to her: her family. This is in direct contrast to a Pilot episode of "Cristela", also of Latin background, that exists on another station. I'm annoyed at Cristela because while I can accept the family dynamic, Cristela is disregarded at work as just someone who happens to not be white. Cristela has a lot to contribute but her contributions are the punch line. I realize in the same breath of contrasting directly to Jane and Cristela: Jane is a telenovella, a drama, Cristela is a half hour comedy. But where Jane is valued and even when all the things she wants does not work out; Cristela is a series of gags at Cristela's expense.

And then this leads to the mid-year replacement of "Fresh Off The Boat". I saw early trailers for this TV show, and frankly, I will be surprised if it makes the rest of the season. An Asian family leaves their mostly Asian community and moves to a community where they are the minority. There are several culture clashes, namely when the oldest son goes to school and the smell of his lunch puts off his classmates this leads to the son asking for a more American lunch. While I think some of the interactions beyond the home in this comedy prove to be useful and not intentionally limiting, as an entire show, I don't know how to place value on this contribution to culture.

I am reminded of one of the first Asian family comedies: All American Girl with Margaret Cho. And that show completely resonated with me. The desire for cultural conditions that did not exist in with the complexities of traditional Asian American expectations. While I was much younger and some of the nuances did probably fly past me, the show was great at not isolating the family. 

But why bother with looking at these issues? Partly because I have been following the work of the Geena Davis Institute. They are primarily an organization that tracks and shares data on the equality of gender in the entertainment industry. They've done exhaustive research on the number of male/female characters and executives making shows in all sorts of shows and movies. The study that caught my attention was one that recently discussed the impact of non-named characters in shows. That the camera panning around a room setting the scene has not been 50/50 male/female. Even the perception of a charcter's gender in a background is default selected as male. The problem that this leads to: little boys and girls do not get a chance to see themselves as those characters. Not just in shows that are aimed at the kids, but shows their parents watch that kids might walk in on or hear their parents talking about.

Does this matter to shows I watch that take place in history? Not at all. If the goal of a historical drama or comedy is to represent that era then there is nothing wrong with the show not necessarily reaching the same benchmarks. There are more subtle, historically correct, manners to accomplish a certain goal, but social awareness should not the end goal of historical fiction.

So this leads into writing. I admit I have been profoundly affected by my mostly white washed upbringing. There is nothing wrong with being of European descent. The majority of my friends are from some European country, several generations ago, some as recent as having been made citizens in their life time. But I also know that there is nothing out there for me: a multi-ethnic person. So while shows like "Fresh Off The Boat", "Two Broke Girls", "Jane the Virgin", and "Charlie Chan" all have given snippets of truth in my life they have not been able to classify my experience through drama or through humor. And I put a lot of stock on humor.

So how do I help contribute? I really find it off putting to describe someone's physical characteristics. I think that's one of my weakest points in my writing. Even if I were not to be blunt about the physical features of my characters and more poetic, I know as a reader: I ignore those tidbits. And then the role of a person by ethnicity matters too: roles of leadership, roles of cleverness/intelligence, and roles of fear are not limited by ethnicity, physical ability, mental ability, or gender. But for me as a writer: all of these aspects have to be natural. They cannot be formulated like a boy band. Unlike the rules for a hero's journey or aspects of a continual plot, characters know no limits. At least in writing, unlike performances where I am limited to the types of people who have come forward. I am not shackled in my imagination.

I really do hope, one day, television will be better about social equality in modern settings. As a writer, I need to work on being more inclusive in my characters.

The Post NaNoWriMo Blog Wrap-up

My NaNoWriMo has been validated. And an impressive 55, 118 words was the final count.

What I learned this year: I have gotten rusty when it comes to fiction. I am not reading enough different materials anymore and I am not developing my characters the way I need them to develop into deep creatures of habit.

So what I may end up doing next year is finding characters I have already worked on or at least tried to work on previously and finding a deeper story to provide the depth and the generous story quality I know I can create.

I also happen to know that I am not creating those moments for my characters, moments that I hold in deep emotion. Those have been harder to create this year.

The best news: the growth out of the deep dark that I can write was not nearly as bad this year. I could write a dark, emotionally haunting scene, and as an author I could walk away and not feel the emotion boiling over limiting my ability to recover.

I don't know if that is a reflection of maturity as a writer, or the fact that I did not care about my work this year.

As for my company books that are pending: I have five or six books lined up and I just need to get them to be organized.

So new goals:

1. Write more. This isn't a quantity, this is a discipline. And more in fiction.
2. Remember that I can only improve. Or at least that is my goal to continue to improve.
3. Ignore the goal of publishing. It would be great if I was worth lots of money from my writing, but it is not the only thing I can do.
4. Know that I am in this for the long haul. I like writing. I always have. 

NaNoWriMo 2014: done. And now a little time to relax while I prepare some books for my company for publication.

More Rantings from the NaNoWriMo Side

I don't think I've ever blogged so much in one month through this account. Let me tell you something, it's for a great cause.

So to date: at this moment I've written 12,001 words. That last word was a hard won fight.

Here's why: I realized that I'm telling a story about a character who has no likes or dislikes. She has no attachments, and her relationships last only as long as a few breaths.

Shouldn't she be a secondary character?

The character challenge. Building characters because they have nothing is pretty key here. Not because they rise from nothing to become nothing, but the character who cannot do anything, shackled by oppression...it's almost 18th century French or Russian literature...And then they drift into the aether of existence.

I didn't know that when I chose this character to follow. I thought I had another story here. Wow. I love this journey.

Near future: I need to cross into 16,000 word territory to make up for the 2 nights this week I've skipped writing. I need to focus on the world around my character more. I'm excited and giddy. Right now I'm also worried that my goal of 60,000 with being happy cracking 55, 000 is going to be too much. But I'm going to try. I've got nothing to lose right?

Why NaNo2014?

Or better yet, why NaNo at all?

As a person who generally walks down the street, I am normally not thinking about the sidewalk, or things I see, hear, or smell specifically in much detail. My world lives and dies the way I write, the way I think, and the way I need to convince someone else to think.

Writing is probably the easiest way for me to do this. I've been very reluctant orally to express my thoughts.

But while I write describing every last item within reach of my characters, I know completely that over half of that dribble will be cut away. None of it matters, but it mattered to me because I am trying to build a world that I know almost nothing about even if it is very similar to my own world.


So far, so good, crossing 2000 words after an hour and a half of writing yesterday. Going to try for some more today. My goal this year officially is 55,000 words. I would _really_ like 60,000 just to say I was able to make it.

Other complications: the blogging I do for the Company. That's at least an hour or two once a week to develop the topic, edit what I have written (sometimes rather poorly I might add) and then send it through the social media whirlwind.

But I can't abandon the idea of NaNo after nine years. I like the dedication I am required to have to help hone discipline I rarely use in the rest of my life. Although, upon brief reflection that discipline would serve me better if I used it more often outside of NaNoWriMo.

Time to get cracking. Another 2000 words await being placed on the page.

Two books, one summer, and onto other things

First, don't let the title scare you. I'm going to keep going here.

But my "paying job" has begun. I use the paying term losely. While I make more than minumum wage, I shouldn't complain as I am employed, but I honestly don't make enough at a shade under 40 hours a week to be successful and financially careful.

But here to announce book #2 of this summer: The Bard In Stick Figures. It has 130 illustrations, of which 110 are original illustrations. By the third story, I had a really good method for getting the characters into the scene and into position.

It includes both interpretation and direct quotes.

I might be able to re-release that book I wrote last summer in a second edition, but not before December.

I've started the first new books, prepping for release next summer.

This life of publishing is awesome.

Onto NaNoWriMo.

Muses and upcoming

I have spent most of my writing career getting material on the road. I have conveniently arranged my life to try and figure out how to work my way into Los Angeles and to see my friends.

Almost six years ago now, my friend Jane found a kitten. The kitten joined a large family of other cats, but fit in rather well. The car was named "Trainwreck". In the early years, I would work on the couch while visiting. If my friends went to work, I would stay and work from my laptop. And Trainwreck would come over for cuddles. In those early days, there were long nights and sometimes, naps. Trainwreck seemed to understand that my napping in front of the computer would be detrimental to my success. And though I was pretty allergic, I would find some cat claws deep in my leg.

I'm back right now, and Trainwreck is outside. But clearly my muse remembers who I am. A half squeak from this cat and I'm awake. Actually, right now, she is sunning right out of the window while I work on the last few pages of the new book I am about to release.

I haven't nodded off yet, but when I do, I'm certain, Trainwreck will find away to get me up and working. So close on the new book.

What have we learned?

So, I am excited to announce that I have selected "Approve" from the publisher. And they must have been thrilled too because within 5 hours the amazon page was up. I know. They had all then information for weeks, wouldn't take them long.

And I'm exhausted. Not as exhausted as I was at the release of "Finding It In the World", but enough that I know what I will be looking for in the next book.

The primary, early complaint, was simply "Just the Words:Science" was set up as busy work. So the challenge as I approach the History series (which is 6 volumes by the way!) is to find a way to take it out of busy work, reach for the stars, and connect it to relevant CCSS. 

But before all of that can happen, first, a week off, then straight to the library, we have a lot of research to sort through.

How many times? And for what integrity?

The thing that frustrates me the most about non-fiction is the amount of detail that needs to happen. With fiction, of course, as an author, "Well that was explored, but not important to ultimate outcome." But with non-fiction, if a little hair is out of place, it's questionable.

I've spent the last week fixing errors after error that were minor. And the things that should have been minor that exploded into reformatting.

What have I learned?

1) Apparently with my multi-platform set up, I can only handle 240 pages total. Anything beyond that, and the document dies.

2) My thoughts for the History set up is going to change a little because of this lesson. In addition, History will be approached with different purpose.

3) Early complaints about the new book included, "It looks like busy work" And unfortunately, yes, busy work does have a purpose in Education. And busy work can lead to some other things. I will defend later. I apologize for being vague, I'm really tired of trying to stand on this leg of defense of busy work.

4) I _really_ hope that this is the last update. I'm glad I've been vigilant in fixing the errors, it'll look better long term. But otherwise, I'm at the desperate "please let it be done" of the design and finishing.

Creative Bursts

I have found that as I've grown older, that my discipline is much more fickle. I know I should write for at least twenty minutes every day, but I find that if I go away from my work, it makes sense and I will be much more thorough about my creativity. All the parts that need to be completed are filled with more attraction to my senses.

But what about those unfulfilled ideas? Well they are valid, I was thinking about them, they're half baked. They aren't any less than a fully formed idea. No this isn't symbolism for some other opinion in my life.

I know I have a finite amount of time in an undefined spectrum. I have a lot of projects just for work that need my complete attention. I will get to them all. And post regularly here as an author.

Horrible, Horrible Blogger

There comes a point in every blogger's life: do I keep going or do I just stop.

I have admittedly been overwhelmed with my life. And I just completed my 8th NaNoWriMo where I decided to try and aim for 60,000. I will tell you it is possible as long as you do not succomb to doldrums in the middle for any reason.

NaNoWriMo is about removing the excuse of "Oh, I can't write." So that seems silly on the surface that someone who is a NaNoWriMo veteran like myself can be stymied by something so simple as life. But life happens.

And things like running multiple blogs gets shoved aside.

Disappointments happen. I don't think my NaNoWriMo is as strong as it could have been. I also know I did abandon my NaNoWriMo early due to early setbacks in my month that had nothing to do with my writing.

I think in the future, I will find other things to write about. I will eventually have enough to work on shortly. But for now, do not get crazy if I do not post regularly.