Someone, please save me from myself!
I have a slight confession, that no one will be surprised by, but I haven’t been preparing for NaNoWriMo.
If you read my long rambling post last week where I basically made 3 or 4 excuses about how busy my life became and how I am barely able to handle it, then this really should be no surprise to anyone.
Last November I participated in NaNoWriMo for the third time and as the saying goes the third time really was the charm. This was the first NaNo round that I won and I’m super excited about it. I originally saw a post called WIP Wednesday but I wanted to post this today mostly because I don’t have anything else lined up today.
Does anyone else not like posting multiple posts a day? I used to post quite a few a day but my blog didn’t really do as well as it does even I just post every day.
I wrote out multiple NaNoWriMo updates (1, 2, 3, 4) but I went back and read them over again and I realized that I never talked about what I was going to write about because I wasn’t ready back then, but I think I am now. I guess if I realize that I’m really not ready to talk about it then I just won’t post this and no one will ever know, works for me.
Continue reading “An Update on my NaNoWriMo project and an Excerpt”
November was a slow reading month for me, I was doing NaNoWriMo and so that didn’t give me as much reading time as I would have liked. This does mean I’m going to have to dedicate a majority of my time in December to reading if I want to reach my goal of 200 books. At this point, it seems like a stretch but it also seems doable.
Trial by Fire
by Josephine Angelini
my rating: 2 out of 5 stars
I wish I had liked this more than I did, I found myself wanting less of the angsty romance and more about the parallel worlds.
The Darkest Night
by Gena Showalter
my rating: 3 out of 5 stars
I picked this up after several friends recommended it to me, several different times. This took me a long time to get into, the characters were frustrating at points. Maddox is definitely not the brightest crayon in the box and that got old very fast, there’s also a lot of alpha machoness that drove me crazy.
Saga Volume 9
by Brian K Vaughn and Fiona Staples
my rating: 5 out of 5 stars
I don’t have words for this, but anger because I heard that the series is on hiatus and I need the next issue right now!
Kingdom of Ash
by Sarah J Maas
my rating: 5 out of 5 stars
I really enjoyed this, I was immensely satisfied with the way things wrapped up, I went into this without really many expectations.
Some Kind of Perfect
by Krista and Becca Ritchie
my rating: 5 out of 5 stars
I wasnt sure what to expect from this, but I ended up really loving it. It was a nice way to say goodbye to all of these amazing characters.
Wicked Plants
by Amy Stewart
my rating: 4 out of 5 stars
I picked this up to help with some research for my NaNoWriMo project and this was very helpful and fun to read. I was a tad disappointed when some plants I was looking for werent listed and it wasn’t as long as I wished it could have been. I found myself wanting more information.
Its always sad to say goodbye.
I can’t believe that NaNoWriMo is over and I can’t believe that I actually hit 50,000 words. I didn’t think I would be able to make it, I had to say goodbye to my 18-year-old cat and I stopped caring about my project. I couldn’t bring myself to care when my heart was hurting so much. But on day 30 I was talking with a friend and she reminded me about all my struggle to get here, all the hard work I’ve put in, and how close I was. I could grieve and finish the story at the same time, I could tap into my feelings and use them. It was hard but I am satisfied that I pushed through. I’m just not as happy as I wish I was.
What I plan to do differently for Camp NaNoWriMo-
I wish I had kept a tiny journal of a daily summary of what I wrote and the word count. I wasn’t super diligent about using the NaNoWriMo word tracker so I wish I had something to look back on.
Current Word Count- 31,461, Im pretty far behind but what else is new.
Songs I’ve been listening to- Sarcasm by Get Scared. I dont know why but I have been obsessed with this song and I practically have it on repeat.
My favorite sentence so far- Unfortunatley nothing comes to mind, I know Ive written a few that Ive been fond of but I cant remember what chapters they belong to.
Some favorite snacks- I just baked a batch of brownies and they are everything that I wanted.
NaNoWriMo User Name- Miss_Ivy
Current Word Count- 23,000 words. I’m still a little behind but its no big deal, I think I can catch up today and if I can, I am going to reward myself with going to Barnes and Noble and buying a book for every 1000 words I write. If that’s not motivation then I don’t know what is.
Songs I’ve been listening to- Champion by Fall Out Boy
This song has been so inspiring to me. Especially the lyric “If I can live through this, I can do anything!” I just feel like I can take on the world and also take on this novel, I hear that song and I think “yes I got this!”
My favorite sentence so far- I will walk forward, hand in hand with betrayal and heartbreak, as they are my constant companions.
Some favorite snacks- homemade Pumpkin bread, oh my this is so good, I got the recipe years ago from one of my best friends and its her grandmother or great grandmothers recipe. Also white cheddar rice cakes, I don’t know why but they are so addicting!
Anyone else doing NaNoWriMo?
NaNoWriMo User Name- Miss_Ivy come and be my friend on NaNoWriMo! We can be writing buddies 🙂
Current Word Count- 8,889 words!
I’m a bit behind, I know, but I plan to try to catch up over this weekend, my goal is to get to 15k and that honestly doesn’t feel daunting, like I think I can do that.
Songs I’ve been listening to- Ship to Wreck by Florence and The Machine. My favorite lyric from this is “I can’t help but pull the Earth around me, to make my bed,” and that lyric is just perfect for my main character.
My favorite sentence so far- “Everyone likes to bring up that that are two sides of every story until the villain wants to tell their side.”
Some favorite snacks- Salt and Vinegar chips and chocolate cake. Not together but I have been craving those things like nothing else. I’ve also been chugging water like I’m gonna run out, weird right? I plan on picking up some clementines and have those to snack on.
Are you doing NaNoWriMo? Hows it going for you?
Also, I need some snack ideas, what do you like to snack on?
Websites I use:
Scrivener is more a software but it’s my favorite writing program. It offers more freedom to control formatting and a lot of other very useful features that I couldn’t begin to go into. In my defense, it is a complex and wonderful program. Buying the software/desktop version is $40. However, there is a free 30-day trial, perfect for 30 days of NaNoWriMo 😉
I love the Hemingway app, it is one of my favorite sites to go to but it is more for editing rather than writing. Simply copy and paste your words into the site and the Hemingway app will highlight complex sentences, adverbs, show if any of your sentences are using a passive voice, and if any of your sentences are hard to read. From there it will show you what reading level you are writing in.
Write or Die is horrendous, intense, yet wonderful writing website. Depending on the consequences if you stop writing different things happen; a picture of a spider might pop up or if you choose the kamikaze mode and you stop writing it will start to delete your words. It really keeps
The Thought Room can be a really handy website to have in your NaNoWriMo arsenal. If you’re anything like me then your mind is always racing and sometimes you have distracting thoughts. Go to the thought room and simply type whatever is on your mind and watch it float away. It can be very helpful in quieting your mind and helping you focus.
And if you experience negative thoughts about your work or your goals just type them in and watch them fly away from you. It’s quite satisfying.
Do you love the sound of rain on the windows? What about the sound of a small storm? I live in Washington and get a lot of rain but on the rare days that it’s not raining here I simply miss it so much that I pull up Rainy Mood. No, not really, but I find the sound soothing and it helps me focus.
Foods:
Coffee- Coffee is always a necessity in the Littlebookcottage household. The BF and I have been known to experience panic attacks when there is 1 pot worth of ground coffee left.
I’m really excited because I just ordered the Death Wish Coffee and I am really looking forward to trying it! I’m not sure if I’m going to be trying it in the afternoon when I get it (I have a feeling that I’ll be up for hours!) or if I’m going to force myself to wait until the morning and have coffee as usual. I know that waiting until morning is the reasonable and practical option but I have no patience and usually want things now.
Tea- I’ve been known to sip a cup of tea every once in a while. My favorites are peppermint, Paris (by Harney and Sons), and a Blackberry and Sage blend from the Republic of Tea which sounds weird but is delicious.
Candy- The BF is a lover of candy so we always have a plethora of candy available in our house. My favorites are chocolate covered espresso beans, peanut butter chocolate cups, peanut butter snickers. (in case you haven’t noticed I really love peanut butter.) Kit Kat bars, Hersey’s chocolate kisses, and basically anything with chocolate. Luckily for me, the bf isn’t fond of the peanut butter and chocolate combo so I’ve kind of taken advantage of that. Actually, the bf doesn’t like chocolate period. I’m about 90% sure that he’s an alien.
Soups- In general my meal plans are expected to be 30 minutes or less, I don’t like when meals take longer than that to cook. I plan on making some soups, lots of pasta, and I will be using my slow cooker a lot!
CopyKat Gnocchi Soup – This is my second favorite thing to order at Olive Garden (after the salad of course) and I am so happy to have a recipe so I can make it myself
Sweet Potato and Black Bean Chili I have made this already and it’s fantastic! It’s filling and healthy and it warms you up which is perfect for November.
Chicken Bacon Ranch Pasta This is one of our favorite things to make at home, it’s quick and delicious. It also makes a lot of leftovers. I love it!
Snacks- apples and peanut butter, veggies and hummus, I love having smoothies as a snack, almonds, greek yogurt and fruit. Yes, I am one of those annoying healthy snack eaters.
Supplies:
Pens
Highlighters
Dictionary/Thesaurus- I like having a physical copy, it minimizes the potential for internet distractions. Ignore the travel writing reference books, those are from when I wanted this blog to be a travel blog and I was given these as Christmas gifts. Despite how dusty it is, The Only Grammer Book You’ll Ever Need is so incredibly helpful! I love it.
Notebooks
Laptop
Prompt Jar- A while ago I searched for writing prompts on Pinterest. I picked out my favorites and printed them all out and now they reside in this jar. So if I’m writing and I get stuck, I’ll pull out a writing prompt and start writing from there.
note cards- I outline with note cards and then tape them to a huge poster board for a visual guide of how I would like my story to go.
Flash drive- think of a flash drive as an insurance policy. It ensures that your work will not be lost. You absolutely do not want to lose your work.
Character worksheets- I discovered these through Pinterest as well, they’re little questionnaires for your characters. The more you know about your characters the more life like they are to your readers. I like having these nearby for a multitude of reasons; they help me see how a character is more likely to react in a situation.
My story: I honestly don’t know what story I am going to do yet, I have a draft of one story that I worked on during NaNoWriMo last year, that story is 12,000 words in so I’m trying to decide if I want to take on that story do I add on the 50,000 word goal onto the existing 12,000?
or.
I have another story idea in the making, I have some characters ready, some situations and scenarios but no plot, which sucks because I love this character that I created but I don’t know how to tell her story yet.
Eventually I want to start posting my short stories to Wattpad, and eventually, I want to enlist some other book bloggers to read my big WIP, and give some constructive criticism. My goal is to start that hopefully in the new year.
I’m hoping to post updates weekly where I’ll talk a little bit about my story and also I’ll probably talk about the meals I’ve made, probably review the Death Wish Coffee, and anything else that has been on my mind.
So that’s it for my NaNoWriMo prep kit, I still have a couple things to take care for my stories, like decide and outline. But I’ll get there.
Thank you for reading!
If you’re participating in NaNo leave your buddy name down below in the comments so we can be buddies! If you are participating good luck, may the force be with you, and I wish for all the words to come to you!
If you are participating good luck, may the force be with you, and I wish for all the words to come to you!
Take care,
Cassidy
The Little Book Cottage 