So yesterday was the first day of NaNo. I wanted to blog about it and wish everyone well, but I was just so busy trying to get the writing done that I had no time for blogging. So here I am, wishing everyone good luck on their writing journey!
Yesterday was the perfect day to stay indoors and write. It was cold, grey, and rainy. Fingers felt like ice after a mere minute outside. Even the magpies were rooting in the woodchips in an effort to stay warm. I took a few pictures to share, since I was surprised that there was still so much fall colour after that crazy snowstorm we had a month back. Thankfully, the snow is still gone for now, and it’s even going to get into the teens this weekend, so you might see some pictures of the sun.
Today, I will continue to write while my stealthy cat watches me from the shadows. From the looks of things, he’s not happy with the arrival of NaNo wrimo or the cold weather. He loves going outside, but not in the rain. Good luck on day 2!
I’m behind this week, not just in the posting but in life thanks to a horrible bout of food poisoning. But I’m hoping to get back on track before November 1st, when my favourite month begins (well, except for maybe August because of the beautiful weather we get then). This week writing went well until the sickness hit. The past two days I’ve written nothing, but as I am currently 44,461 words ahead of my annual goal, I’m not worried about it. I have to say that beginning this annual goal with the 3-Day Novel Writing Contest was a great idea because that means I’ve been ahead on my word count ever since week #1, and it is amazing not to be behind in something for once.
Focus in on Your Goal
I’m actually coming along this week with a very slow word count centring on outlining my NaNoWriMo project. I’m at that tipping point, thinking about making a last minute change from one project to another. I have 2.5 days left to solidify my decision before it’s back to full-time drafting. I’ll be glad to get to rewrites in December I think, which should slow things down for me again for a while. But, if I do manage to stay so far ahead on my 365K goal, then I will definitely have a lot of new projects to work with at the end of my year.
How about you? Do you prefer writing or re-writing?
Well, I’ve finally finished my rewrites and edits on Twisted Currents, and am now waiting for editorial and cover art. Whew! *Take a big breath*
If you read the title of this post, then you already know I’m talking about how busy self-publishing is. The real work that goes on behind the scenes. If you’re a self-published author, you’ll know what I mean about being busier than ever before. Unless you’ve published and made millions (which is so, so rare), then you likely aren’t sitting on a beach in Mexico sipping drinks from coconuts. Instead, you’re probably huddled in a dark corner of your basement, hoping to squeeze in two more minutes of writing/editing/promo time.
Where I’m Not
If you’re a reader of this blog, then you’ve probably noticed the slow down in blog posts over the past couple of weeks, the lack of book reviews, and the lack of posting in general. And that’s mostly do to those pesky rewrites I’ve been working on. Rewriting is the most difficult part of the writing process for me. It’s that time when I sit down and think: Does this part really make sense? What is the symbology of that? How would this character say it? It’s a lot of work. And it’s even more work when self-publishing because there is no one to help you out. Though, you can remedy that by finding beta-readers or hiring an editor, for me, part of self-publishing is doing it on my own and writing something that is nearly 100% mine, and not 50% mine and 25% feedback from beta reads and 25% changes made by an editor I may or may not know. The editing I pay for is generally typo/grammatical only, which means the creative part of my novels are all mine. But it makes me so busy!
So what takes up all my time?
Writing the Draft – This takes me at least 40-60 hours of straight work for an 80K word novel. I’ve tried to do this all in one week before, but mentally it’s exhausting, so I usually spread that 40-60 hours out over a month or two.
And Then There’s Cat Distraction Time…
Rewriting the Draft (at least once) – I rewrite at a speed of 10 pages per hour (on a good day), for an 80K word book, that’s around another 40 hours. Again, this is spread out because yes, I do have a day job, and yes, I prefer to write at night, making it my “night job”.
Editing the Draft – This is slightly quicker, because at this point I’m only making small changes, but it still takes around 30 hours.
Getting Someone Else to Edit the Draft )and making those edits into a Final) – Most hired editors will get an 80K words novel back to you in 1-2 weeks. So there is the waiting time (where you can at least do other things), and then the review of those edits, which takes about another 5 hours.
Formatting – I hate formatting. This is probable the bane of my existence. This takes me anywhere from 1-10 hours (or maybe a million, I’m not sure, but it certain feels like FOREVER).
Blog – This is just a constant process. And fun (I love blogging)
Tweeting – I should really tweet more than I do (15 min per day)
Facebook – I should definitely Facebook more than I do (15 min per day)
Cover Art Design (hire out or do my own) – I currently hire out my cover designs, though I do the text myself. While my artist is working on the drawing, there is a feedback process to make sure the image is going in the direction I need. In total, cover art probably takes around 2-3 hours, and that’s because I don’t draw (if I did, I would love to do my own art but I imagine it would take me another 40 hours at least).
Book Launch Planning – If you’re going this, look at spending 5-6 hours over the course of a month to choose the sections you want to read, what kind of treats you want to serve, sending out e-vites, preparing other promotional material, and practicing your reading.
Readings/Arts Fairs/Public Events – This is similar to the launch, and a similar amount of time.
Writing a novel is a long, slow process. Writing a series is a slightly more fast-paced process that is just as much work. I have to admit, I’m glad to be concluding the Black Depths Series for the moment, because I need a breather. After a week of getting sampling edits back from potential editors so that I can find the right editor at the right price, I’m just about burnt out. But I’ve timed this perfectly, because now that the book is off to the chopping block, I have time to sit back, read, relax, and blog prior to starting NaNoWriMo in exactly one week.
Join me tomorrow when I post my first blog about my 2016 NaNoWriMo preparations.
Let’s start with a pretty picture so we can cheer up about the weather:
That’s right, it’s still snowy here. Oh well, I’ve come to covet some Reading Socks, and I’m thinking they might be my quarterly reward if I remain ahead of my word count on my 365K words in a year goal. This week was pretty good, even with Thanksgiving in the mix. I didn’t write on two of the seven days, but on the other five I did over 1000 words on each. I’m currently 13,000 words ahead of my goal, and hope to remain that way at least until Christmas time. I’m still trying to write everyday, and write at least 1,000 words, but it’s a lot harder than it sounds. After a long day, the last thing I want to do is sit down and be creative. It feels like pulling spaghetti noodles through my brain sometimes. One at a time. It can be torture. I’m still hopping that with more practice it will be come more automatic, more habit forming, but I think time will yet tell. This week I’m shifting back to rewriting, so that can be a challenge to write something new (even if it is just part of the rewrites. In a couple weeks, I will be done with the Black Depths Universe, and moving on to my NaNoWriMo project, and I’m hoping the momentum of the event, along with the forums, will get me moving.
How’s your writing going? Are you doing NaNo this year?
This week was a good week (winter storm aside). I wrote every day, and only one day did I write less than my goal of 1K words. It was Saturday, and I really wanted to write that day. I managed 200 words, it was late at night, and I was so exhausted from a long day, but I have to admit, I just quit. I flopped down on my bed and I said, “I can’t do it.” Which was WRONG, I could have done it. So I’m going to try really hard not to do that again. Overall, I wrote over 13K words this week, which is over my goal of 7K. So I’m pretty happy with that. As for the gym goal… Let’s not even talk about that one. I hope to do better with that next week too.
Today, the snow kept falling. And will keep falling. This was the view out of my day-job-office window. Yikes! Good thing I LIKE to stay in and write.
This week I’ve been working on the draft of Twisted Currents, which will wrap up the Black Depths Universe before NaNoWriMo 2016. I had a bit of a breakthrough yesterday, which made me feel really good about where I stand with this project. I’m also going to start my NaNo prep next week, after the Thanksgiving long weekend, during which I’m sure not to get much work done at all. Though I do hope to do a lot of reading.
So how about you? Do you have writing goals? How are they going?
I’ve already been blogging for a few weeks about how much I love fall. I’ve been collecting pictures of all kinds of fall goodness that I want to share with you. Enjoy!
My favourite Pumpkin Spice Latte all cozied up in one of my favourite scarves.
Colourful Displays
Pumpkins
Leaves
Pumpkins, leaves, and colourful displays, oh my!
Trees, trees and more trees.
Birds!
And my absolute favourite tree. I wish they came in this colour all year round!
Over the past weekend I was very busy participating in the 3-Day Novel Writing contest, which was awesome. I expunged an idea that occurred to me a while back. It felt good to get it out and put me way up on my 1,000 words a day goal. I wrote 22,000 words over the weekend, so I guess now I don’t have to write until September 23rd, but that’s not the point. The point is to write 1,000 words per day until next September. I’m hoping it really is habit forming, and that the year will teach me just to get it done!
Today however, I headed out on a five hour trip for my day job (almost all writers I know have one). I kicked it off by getting a pumpkin spice latte and browsing the bookstore. I did not, however, buy any books because my shelf is overwhelmed with books right now. But I am pretty tempted to pick up Empire of Storms on ebook.
I am currently in my hotel room, ready to wind down after spending 5 hours listening to the audiobook of Daughter of Smoke and Bone, by Laini Taylor. I actually am excited for my 5 hour drive home on Thursday because of this book! I’ll post a review on the weekend.
Oh, and last but not least, Tales of a Redheaded Sea-Witch is on tour this week, with reviews and some guests posts. If you haven’t seen them yet, here are a few links:
Well, I finally did it. I finally read those last ten pages of The Shadow Hour by Melissa Grey. Yay. It might have taken me forever, but I loved this book. I really wish that life hadn’t been so full of interruptions and that I could have read The Shadow Hour (associate link) in a shorter time frame, since I hate when I begin to forget what’s happening.
I read Girl At Midnight last summer, and ever since I’d been looking forward to the sequel, and it didn’t disappoint. Echo is a lovely heroine, the right amount of fierceness and vulnerability. The characters are all stars, really, but Jasper was my favourite in this book. Full of action, The Shadow Hour didn’t disappoint. There were a few nit-picky things about it though, like the purposeful use of cliches’ that grated my nerves just a little bit, but for the most part, I could forget about these lines and move through the story. There was a lot happening, and rarely a slow moment, so it was easy to keep moving (when life didn’t interrupt).
Now, the only thing I hate about reading new releases is how long you have to wait for the next book in the series. Summer 2017 can’t come fast enough, I can’t wait to read more of Echo’s adventures.
5/5 Stars
JEH
J. E. Hunter is the author of the Black Depths Series. Tales of a Redheaded Sea-Witch, and Broken Tide, the first two books of the series can be found on Amazon, Kobo, iBooks, Barnes and Noble, and Smashwords. The third book, Dark Shores, was released April 1, 2016. The fourth and last book of the Black Depths series, Twisted Currents, will be released in the fall of 2016, after Dead Water and Doomed Seas, two Novellas featuring Caesar.
I haven’t been a student for a long time, but September has continued to feel much more like a New Year to me than the much more celebrated date in January. Maybe it has something to do with the season change come September, or all the new school supplies I still buy (hello, notebooks!), but I just love this time of year. Fall always brings with it a new start, and this year I’ve decided to set some new goals. I’ve been talking about it for a few weeks now, and as it’s almost the end of August, I’m finally going to tell you just what it is I’m planning.
Here’s my cat sitting on my goal book. Is he trying to deter me? I won’t let it happen!
I’ve been getting busier and busier. I’m getting ready to wrap up the Black Depths Universe (for now, at any rate), and have new drafts that need rewriting. I also have a storm of ideas in my head that need writing. This all adds up to one thing: I need to get to work!
So here’s what I’m going to do:
I’m pledging to myself that I will write 1,000 words everyday, for a total of 365,000 words from September 1, 2016, to September 4th, 2016. Why September 4th, you ask? Because that will be the end of the 3-Day Novel Writing Contest 2017, which—just in case I fall behind on this massively huge goal—will give me the chance to make a mad dash to the end. But, I’m truly hoping that pledging to write a modest 1,000 words a day will become habit, and therefore highly achievable.
I will use that 365,000 words to finish 5 pre-determined projects which have been banging around my space in various stages of completion for the past couple years. I’m not coming up with anything new in the next twelve months. Or rather, I’m going to keep new ideas to simple jot-notes and very vague detailing. I’m not going to get sidetracked *firmly crosses-arms*. I’m going to stay ON TASK.
I will go to the gym once a week (or run). Yeah, this has nothing to do with writing. But I’m putting it down here anyway because it’s important. And I’m only pledging once a week because I do have 1,000 words to write a day. Also, going from 0 to 1 seems like a pretty big jump, I’ll have to see how I handle it.
I will check in on my blog once a week to update my goal progress (I’m shooting for Thursdays—we’ll see how that works).
Alright, those are my goals. As I’ve said, i’ll update here once a week to make sure I stay on track. If you feel crazy enough to join me in any or all of the above goals, comment on the post, and after each weekly post you can check in, too.
Next week, after a massive start doing the 2016 3-Day Novel Writing Contest, I’m going to update about one of those 5 pre-determined projects. Now, Ready, Set, Write!
JEH
J. E. Hunter is the author of the Black Depths Series. Tales of a Redheaded Sea-Witch, and Broken Tide, the first two books of the series can be found on Amazon, Kobo, iBooks, Barnes and Noble, and Smashwords. The third book, Dark Shores, was released April 1, 2016. The fourth and last book of the Black Depths series, Twisted Currents, will be released in the fall of 2016, after Dead Water and Doomed Seas, two Novellas featuring Caesar.
(associate link) in a shorter time frame, since I hate when I begin to forget what’s happening.
J. E. H U N T E R 