NaNoWriMo Follow Up

It's been two weeks since NaNoWriMo finished up. I wish I could say I successfully did something during the challenge. I didn't break the 5000 word count much less finish.

I tried to get into a daily writing habit, but couldn't manage that.

I struggled through my writing, already re-writing in my head as I went.

Anxiety, fear, as usual, were my enemies. I was my worst enemy.

I haven't yet decided where to go next, or worse, if I even want to.

The Dawn of NaNoWriMo 2015

Here it is... the dawn of NaNoWriMo 2015. Day One. I have spent weeks pushing as much off my plate as I could. I have tried to make my life as simple as possible for this month. I'd like to apologize to my kids in advance for macncheese being on the menu twice every week. Hopefully I come out the other side with a finished manuscript.

One Word

Sunday
Sleeve
She stood up from the pile of leaves. Her face was sternly set. She wasn’t laughing any more. He reached out to pull a leaf from her hair, her sleeve, and he wanted to pull her close. He wanted to kiss her, but that’s what had driven her out of the leaf pile to start with.


Tuesday
Anatomy
The body has a system. A set appearance. An anatomy of systems. This is a dumb word. What is this? grey’s anatomy. what makes up stuff. be your anatomy.

One Word

So while you're all waiting for the next book or soap review, here's something to keep yourself entertained.


One Word. As I'm prepping for NaNoWriMo - writing up my plot outlines, scene outlines, psyching myself up to actually do it, and getting the rest of my life in order so crap doesn't fall apart - I'm also putting my brain into writing mode. Just getting some darn words on paper and not editing myself to the point of NOT writing.


The idea is simple. One random word. 60 seconds to write about it. Try it - I'd love to see your One Word in the comments!


Thursday
Styled:
Kayde couldn't hide behind anonymity. Her looks, her voice, her actions were carefully styled to make her stand out. She wasn't meant to be normal. She wasn't meant to fit in.


Friday
Past:
She couldn’t move past it. The hurt was too raw. The horror was too mind numbingly real. She had seen his eyes, open, heard his cries. She had watched the truck fill up with water. She hadn’t found the wrench fast enough.

How To Write A Great Book And Get It Published

How to Write a Great Book and Get It Published by Tom Evans
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

This was a fast read (it's less than 50 pages). In some aspects there was good information - especially regarding self-publishing - but in other aspects the information wasn't really information at all, but just plain old common sense. I felt this was more an advertisement for the author's business and website than an actual "how to" book.

Synopsis: Now it is easier than ever to publish a book - especially with great sites like Smashwords - it makes sense to write a great book. This free guide from author, poet & mentor, Tom Evans, has loads of useful tips to take you into the Written & Published section of the population.           

Recommended Reading:
Write That Book Already by Sam Berry
The Hands Of The Buddha by Susan Brassfield Cogan
Write Good Or Die by Scott Nicholson

If You Want to Write

If You Want to Write: A Book about Art, Independence and Spirit by Brenda Ueland

My rating: 3 of 5 stars
This was just in time to get me inspired to write for NaNoWriMo. Once you get used to the footnotes (excessive), and the constant references to Blake and Van Gogh, there is a lot of inspirational advice in this book.

Synopsis: But we must try to find our True Conscience, our True Self, the very Center, for this is the only first-rate choice-making center. Here lies all originality, talent, honor, truthfulness, courage and cheerfulness. Here lies the ability to choose the good and the grand, the true and the beautiful.

In her ninety-three remarkable years, Brenda Ueland published six million words. She said she had two rules she followed absolutely: to tell the truth, and not to do anything she didn’t want to do. Her integrity shines throughout If You Want to Write, her bestselling classic on the process of writing that has already inspired
thousands to find their own creative center. Carl Sandburg called this book “the best book ever written about how to write.” Yet Ueland reminds us that “whenever I say ‘writing’ in this book, I also mean anything that you love and want to do or make.”

On Writing

On Writing by Stephen King

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Stephen King is an amazing writer which made it a real treat to crawl inside his head. The biography parts of the book where interesting and added real value to King's writing advice. This book is must read - whether you're a fan or an aspiring writer.

Bird by Bird

Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
A practical guide to writing. Enjoyed this book very much.

Synopsis: Thirty years ago my older brother, who was ten years old at the time, was trying to get a report on birds written that he'd had three months to write. It was due the next day. We were out at our family cabin in Bolinas, and he was at the kitchen table close to tears, surrounded by binder paper and pencils and unopened books on birds, immobilized by the hugeness of the task ahead. Then my father sat down beside him, put his arm around my brother's shoulder, and said, 'Bird by bird, buddy. Just take it bird by bird.'

Lamott's ( Operating Instructions ) miscellany of guidance and reflection should appeal to writers struggling with demons large and slight. Among the pearls she offers is to start small, as their father once advised her 10-year-old brother, who was agonizing over a book report on birds: ``Just take it bird by bird.'' Lamott's suggestion on the craft of fiction is down-to-earth: worry about the characters, not the plot. But she's even better on psychological questions. She has learned that writing is more rewarding than publication, but that even writing's rewards may not lead to contentment. As a former ``Leona Helmsley of jealousy,'' she's come to will herself past pettiness and to fight writer's block by living ``as if I am dying.'' She counsels writers to form support groups and wisely observes that, even if your audience is small, ``to have written your version is an honorable thing.''

Recommended Reading:
Writing down the Bones : Freeing the Writer Within by Natalie Goldberg
On Writing Well : The Classic Guide to Writing Nonfiction by William Zinsser
On Writing : A Memoir of the Craft by Stephen King
Plan B : Further Thoughts on Faith by Anne Lamott