Okay. I just wrote fifty words for today, plus some extra words you maybe might consider a bonus. So . . . what do I win?
I should be in one of the multiple K a day threads, but lately, this has been more my speed. So count me in.
Dare I ask... Who has a whip? :icon_mrgreen: Off to look for a whip emoji. I'm certain we'll need one.
Okay. I just wrote fifty words for today, plus some extra words you maybe might consider a bonus. So . . . what do I win?
How about . . . wait for it!! ...
:banana-riding-llama-smiley-em
I wrote over 50 words today. Almost 80. :banana:Nice! I only got that much done because I took the day off work to write. :tap
I can do this, right?
Just wrote 284 words. Big death scene coming up.
Just wrote 284 words. Big death scene coming up.
Well done. And you got a black cat photo!
:catrun
I should be in one of the multiple K a day threads, but lately, this has been more my speed. So count me in.(https://agentsofdisrupt.files.wordpress.com/2018/10/lou.gif)
Dare I ask... Who has a whip? :icon_mrgreen: Off to look for a whip emoji. I'm certain we'll need one.
I should be in one of the multiple K a day threads, but lately, this has been more my speed. So count me in.(https://agentsofdisrupt.files.wordpress.com/2018/10/lou.gif)
Dare I ask... Who has a whip? :icon_mrgreen: Off to look for a whip emoji. I'm certain we'll need one.
Get to work!
Wow! Everyone is doing great.
Got 500 words and had to stop to find out...how do you build a fire pit?
Thank goodness for YouTube. :cool:
ETA: Recreational purposes only! Adding one to the back terrace in the story.
You looked up how to build a fire pit?
You're now on a watch list for sure.
You looked up how to build a fire pit?
You're now on a watch list for sure.
:hehe
Wow! Everyone is doing great.
Got 500 words and had to stop to find out...how do you build a fire pit?
Thank goodness for YouTube. :cool:
ETA: Recreational purposes only! Adding one to the back terrace in the story.
You looked up how to build a fire pit?
You're now on a watch list for sure.
I wrote over 100 words today. I'm thinking 117 but I don't remember.
I wrote over 100 words today. I'm thinking 117 but I don't remember.
It was actually 127.
Yesterday I wrote 259 words.
Today I wrote 1,600 words.
You are all doing so well! I'm really inspired to see how much success everyone is having each day.
I did not write anything yesterday. My kitty lost his fight to cancer early in the morning...holding on weeks longer than expected. He was a very sweet and very tough little guy.
:catrun
I did not write anything yesterday. My kitty lost his fight to cancer early in the morning...holding on weeks longer than expected. He was a very sweet and very tough little guy.
I did not write anything yesterday. My kitty lost his fight to cancer early in the morning...holding on weeks longer than expected. He was a very sweet and very tough little guy.
:catrun
I did not write anything yesterday. My kitty lost his fight to cancer early in the morning...holding on weeks longer than expected. He was a very sweet and very tough little guy.
:catrun
You are all doing so well! I'm really inspired to see how much success everyone is having each day.I'm sorry! It's such a terrible thing losing a furry babe. Hugs and much love to you. :heart:
I did not write anything yesterday. My kitty lost his fight to cancer early in the morning...holding on weeks longer than expected. He was a very sweet and very tough little guy.
:catrun
Only 22 words today. I may be kicked out of the thread.
Just finished 600 words. Things did not go as planned. Got to figure out how to get it back on track.
By the way, is it bad if the same character dies three times in the same chapter?
3658 for the day.
Only 160 today but it felt like more.
I'm at 7,107 words for the month so far.
420 words, but the big news is I FINALLY figured out how to open the 'magic' book! :cheers
420 words, but the big news is I FINALLY figured out how to open the 'magic' book! :cheers
Was it in a solid metal box?
Off to a good start. The first day of October, I wrote 75 words. Today, the first day of November, I wrote 330 words.
This is a long chapter though. I think around 3,500 words. And a lot. Of. Dialogue. Also, I need to remember to find beta readers since I haven't been in contact with my previous beta readers for over a year. Or more.
And what's going on with everyone else who used to participate in this thread? Have they graduated to the 2k a day thread and left us behind?
And what's going on with everyone else who used to participate in this thread? Have they graduated to the 2k a day thread and left us behind?
Maybe it was too dialogue heavy. :hehe
I finished my current wip last night, so today I've started editing. Does -48 words count for anything?
I wrote 510 words yesterday.
Dan, that's wonderful! Your word counts are great and your other book will be there, when you're ready. :goodpost:
756 words today.
Wonderful! I have 250 words so far and hope to write more this afternoon.^^^
Only 130 words written today, making for near impossible odds of November beating October in terms of word count.
I wrote 1,000 words before bed last night (which counts as today since it was after midnight) and another 250 a short time ago, putting me at 1,250 for the day.^^^
I wrote 1,020 words today. Finally got to do one of the scenes I had had planned for a long time.
After a frustrating week, finally a good day. 3,421 words.
This morning I put in a comma.
This afternoon I took it out.
This evening I drank a bottle of Gewürztraminer.
Writing is hard.
After a frustrating week, finally a good day. 3,421 words.
I wrote 900 words today which brings me to 10,065 words for the month so far which beats my October word count of 10,002 and approaches my November word count of 10,430.
I wrote 780 words yesterday.
I wrote 1200 words today which puts me over the 50k mark on this one.
I wrote 1200 words today which puts me over the 50k mark on this one.
I wrote 1200 words today which puts me over the 50k mark on this one.:clap:
I wrote 1,020 words today which puts me over 18k words for the month so far. If I can maintain my current average for the rest of the month, I might hit 25k words this month.
The past three days have totaled 3,055 words. As far as I know, my personal best is 6,752 words over three days which would have been an average of 2,233.33 words per day. So, I'm still not back to that level.
I finished my Christmas story! :smilie_zauber:
Happy Holidays!
I finished my Christmas story! :smilie_zauber:
Happy Holidays!
Only wrote 500 words today and I failed to get my newsletter out. Absolute deadline is December 31st now. I believe it will still count as a holiday issue if I get it out before New Year's Eve because I think New Year's Eve technically counts as a holiday so it will still be a holiday 2018 issue.
Happy holidays everyone!
Here's my word count for the past few days - listed in my ColorNote app. Days previous were written in an appointment book, but more or less the same rate.
122218 - 1. /Book 2 to a Series due March 2019:
1,019
122318 - 2. Book 5 of Main Series due Feb:
1,137
Book 5 - 1,740 (written in the evening)
122418 - Book 5 - 1,376
1,252 (written in the evening)
Dec 25th is lazy day.
Finished writing 2,305 words for today. Have to write just under 3,000 words before the end of the month to hit 25k this month.You can do it, Dan! :clap:
The past three days have totaled 3,055 words. As far as I know, my personal best is 6,752 words over three days which would have been an average of 2,233.33 words per day. So, I'm still not back to that level.
2,058 words today.
No words written for me yet today, unless you count the 699 or so words written to wrap up my newsletter which is finally finished and out the door and has already been downloaded by three people.
No words written for me yet today, unless you count the 699 or so words written to wrap up my newsletter which is finally finished and out the door and has already been downloaded by three people.
You got it done! Congrats. :dance:
Thanks to Lorri again for starting this thread and giving us all some accountability as well as achievable goals.^^^This.
Final December 2018 word count (14 days up to the 31st) - 32,423 words! Plus around 2,000 words as notes for two ideas in the pipeline. :dizzy
Quite an experience. I'll pace myself to something slower. :cool:
Only 122 words today with going back to work but I did have over 1000 words each of the previous two days.
Just over 1k words. Might try to get a little more done tonight. :writethink:
No words written for me yet today, unless you count the 699 or so words written to wrap up my newsletter which is finally finished and out the door and has already been downloaded by three people.
I'm going to join in..
Thursday 383
Friday I got just over 1k
Saturday 2,058
Today I have so many plans who knows how many words well see, but my mom is threatening me with bodily harm if i dont finish the scene i made her read.
429 words today (and I've left the bride in the middle of a meltdown)
Brutal day at work today, but I opened my story and wrote 130 words.
That's the point of this thread...even on a bad day, it feels good to get something done! :catrun
140 words today (the bride is slightly calmer but still emotional)
I wrote 1,075 words today which brings me back up (and a little over) my December daily average word count.
I'm almost at 3k. Going to try to finish this scene before bed. Wow did I like what I wrote today.
I've managed to stick with my 50+ routine every day and took my 18,000 word languishing WIP to a completed 54,000 first draft in the last couple months. Now I'm writing some short fiction while letting the novel rest before editing.
It really works - I know I'm committed now.
I barely did 50 word ugh what a day. Hopefully tomorrow is a good writing day. :shocked: :n2Str17:
I wrote 1,015 words today. Getting close to the 80k mark.
No writing in my WIPs (they've all made it to editing stage, eek!) but I did put 80-100 words in on my first newsletter.
I've managed to stick with my 50+ routine every day and took my 18,000 word languishing WIP to a completed 54,000 first draft in the last couple months. Now I'm writing some short fiction while letting the novel rest before editing.
It really works - I know I'm committed now.
Thanks to a snow day I am over 300 words for the day already (and have done a load of laundry, graded some papers, and run the dishwasher).
Edit: finished with 1902 words and that was editing some as I went. Bigger news: the short story is done! Well, the first draft at least.
I've been staring at my computer all week and failed to do anything. Today I finally got my butt in gear. 1600+ so far. I was cracking along at about 10k a week, but since December and real life reared its unpleasant head, I've been missing my mojo. Perhaps I'm finally getting it back.
I wrote 1,035 words today which put me over the 80k mark. No idea if I can end it within the next 20k words though, considering my MCs are split up and they still have to get back together and move on to fight the big bad.
Blow up the world in 19k words. It's the perfect ending.
I wrote 1,555 words today. A minor villain kidnapped some children and plotted evil things to do to them.
Though in all seriousness, careful with that the only thing less funny than evil things with kids is evil things to animals. You can kill a million people in a book but not an animal.
So far for today, I'm at -1 words. Also, I did a quick count and one character has died 23 times so far.
So far for today, I'm at -1 words. Also, I did a quick count and one character has died 23 times so far.
LOL Is this the romance?
500 words yesterday and decided it was a great place to end part 2 of my story, so I published it!
Starting part 3 today. :cheers
500 words yesterday and decided it was a great place to end part 2 of my story, so I published it!
Starting part 3 today. :cheers
Last night, I realized the chapter title I'm using on the chapter I'm writing doesn't quite fit and that it would be more appropriate for the next chapter. And then I came up with a title for the current chapter that did fit. Didn't write it down because the computer was off and I figured it was so obvious and easy that I'd remember it the following day which is today.
I remember that it was three words long. Maybe. Other than that, no idea.
I wrote 1,250 words today. Two characters have gotten out of the library.
I'm over 30k words for the month so far, just 100 words short of 31k. Even if I quit now, I'll exceed December's average daily word count.
How long are fantasy adventures supposed to be? I'm at around 94k words now and not even close to the ending.
I haven't written a word in days except 250 last Saturday. I really need to get my butt in gear.
I think a story should be as long as it needs to be.
I think a story should be as long as it needs to be.
I agree but sometimes I feel like I'm in the minority on that.
Also, I guess there are reader expectations about such things too. But it's always struck me as odd that certain books need to be this long or that long to be considered "proper" novels in specific genres.
Dan, I used to worry about it...then I realized the story dictates how long it should be. I'm not saying we should never edit or keep a story from wandering around too much, but some stories take longer to tell than others. I keep telling myself to write the story as it wants to be told. :cheers
After a frustrating few weeks of inactivity, I finally got my focus back and wrote 1,068 words today.
My dog was being groomed today so I popped over to Panera for lunch and writing while I waited. I fell short of my usual Panera sessions, but then I had the grilled cheese sandwich and it's usually the spinach/artichoke souffle that inspires me. I did manage to get down 1,473 words.
What shall tomorrow bring?
My dog was being groomed today so I popped over to Panera for lunch and writing while I waited. I fell short of my usual Panera sessions, but then I had the grilled cheese sandwich and it's usually the spinach/artichoke souffle that inspires me. I did manage to get down 1,473 words.
What shall tomorrow bring?
I think the grilled cheese turned out to be fairly productive. :dog1:
I wrote today for the first time in forever only 450 words, but they were decent so I cant complain. I'm hoping for more tomorrow.
I wrote today for the first time in forever only 450 words, but they were decent so I cant complain. I'm hoping for more tomorrow.
One of my goals is to write a novel that's over 1,000,000 words long.
Lorri, you are my hero.
I've written 635 words today. No big deal, right? I used to have 5k days. Often.
But not lately. I've been too busy caught up in all the writing stuff. No more. I'm going to write every day on this thing until it's done. I started this novelette back in October. It's way past time to finish it.
It's not as though I'm talking a major undertaking. Really, I should be able to finish this thing in a week. I've even got it plotted with turning points.
Anyway, thanks again. :)
One of my goals is to write a novel that's over 1,000,000 words long.
One of my goals is to write a novel that's over 1,000,000 words long.
Let me know when the print version's available. :icon_mrgreen:
One of my goals is to write a novel that's over 1,000,000 words long.
Let me know when the print version's available. :icon_mrgreen:
The regular or the large print edition? Amazon might need to deliver the latter by motor freight. Hopefully, you have Prime. :hehe
One of my goals is to write a novel that's over 1,000,000 words long.
Let me know when the print version's available. :icon_mrgreen:
The regular or the large print edition? Amazon might need to deliver the latter by motor freight. Hopefully, you have Prime. :hehe
Whichever one takes up the most shelf space. The goal here is to impress onlookers with my reading prowess. :cool:
Perhaps a hot air balloon with a favorable wind?
Perhaps a hot air balloon with a favorable wind?
Thanks. I actually looked that up the other day when I was looking for a solution. My quick research indicated using a hot air balloon would not be the best idea as you couldn't control which direction it would go.
I think you would have more control with a sail. If the wind was going the wrong way, you could take the sail down whereas on a hot air balloon, you just go with the flow.
Plus, they have no money, so they can't buy or rent a hot air balloon. They can't buy or rent a boat or wheels either for that matter.
Unless they find something abandoned. Hmm . . . More thinking required.
Could they hot-wire a car? If it helps, they could steal the car of someone who really does have it coming, like maybe an ex-spouse. Just a thought.
Maybe a bicycle. The average person can travel upwards of 6miles an hour.
Perhaps a hot air balloon with a favorable wind?
Thanks. I actually looked that up the other day when I was looking for a solution. My quick research indicated using a hot air balloon would not be the best idea as you couldn't control which direction it would go.
I think you would have more control with a sail. If the wind was going the wrong way, you could take the sail down whereas on a hot air balloon, you just go with the flow.
Plus, they have no money, so they can't buy or rent a hot air balloon. They can't buy or rent a boat or wheels either for that matter.
Unless they find something abandoned. Hmm . . . More thinking required.
Maybe a bicycle. The average person can travel upwards of 6miles an hour.
Now if it was McGyver, he would rig up a sail on the bicycle using an old kite, shoe laces and chewing gum. Maybe a couple of little flags he swiped from a car dealership just of fancy it up.
Now if it was McGyver, he would rig up a sail on the bicycle using an old kite, shoe laces and chewing gum. Maybe a couple of little flags he swiped from a car dealership just of fancy it up.
No words yet today. I remembered a character who is where the other characters are now and that character can help them travel several hundred miles in a short span of time.
The problem is trying to figure out if that character is actually there yet or not. I have some established dates as well as a statement regarding the passage of time. Which means I need to research my own previous work to determine whether that character is in that location or not, because with the data I have now, he could either have been there for about seventeen years or he is there presently or he won't be there for another year.
I should have kept notes. And, by "kept", I mean I should have written more details down. Instead of, you know, keeping track of things in my head.
I've always made notes at the end of my file. Really, really helpful. Sometimes I can't even remember names much less what they look like.
Only 640 words written yesterday. So much for my 1k+/day goal for February.I've always made notes at the end of my file. Really, really helpful. Sometimes I can't even remember names much less what they look like.
I have notes too. Some at the beginning, others at the end and sometimes both. Also separate files too. Also a spreadsheet with timelines.
In this case, the date in the spreadsheet doesn't seem to align with the number of years count in the one novel. So, either I have overlooked a date somewhere or the number of months and days indicated along with the number of years was arbitrary or my math was wrong or I used the wrong date. No telling. I can change the date in the spreadsheet to bring everything into sync, but if I referenced that date already in any published work, then I cannot. There's a way around it, but it wouldn't make sense unless a date was already indicated. Guess the only way to know for sure is to re-read my stuff to confirm one way or another.
In 1991, Diana Gabaldon published Outlander setting the date as 1945. At some point in the books, she mentions 1967 (it's time travel). When the book was published in England, it was pointed out to her that the conditions she described in Inverness were not correct in 1945 and that she should change the date to 1946. She did not change the date in subsequent editions but she changed the timeline so that in the next book, 1967 became 1968 which was supposed to be twenty years after she returned to present day, but wasn't. She didn't correct the timeline or the ages of the characters in that second book, either, just the year. I'm not sure she ever did an author's note but being arabidfan, I followed her blog and found out.
If DG can get away with you, you might be able to.
In 1991, Diana Gabaldon published Outlander setting the date as 1945. At some point in the books, she mentions 1967 (it's time travel). When the book was published in England, it was pointed out to her that the conditions she described in Inverness were not correct in 1945 and that she should change the date to 1946. She did not change the date in subsequent editions but she changed the timeline so that in the next book, 1967 became 1968 which was supposed to be twenty years after she returned to present day, but wasn't. She didn't correct the timeline or the ages of the characters in that second book, either, just the year. I'm not sure she ever did an author's note but being arabidfan, I followed her blog and found out.
If DG can get away with you, you might be able to.
Those are the kinds of things that would drive me nuts. ;)
Like, hiding Luke Skywalker from his father Darth Vader by hiding him with Vader's stepbrother on Vader's birth planet under Vader's original Skywalker surname. :icon_think:
On the upside, my spreadsheet has all the dates for my novels before Bad Fiction which means I only need to re-read Bad Fiction to sort out dates mentioned in it. On the downside, Bad Fiction is also my longest (so far) published novel.
Oh, yeah, I never understood the Skywalker thing either.
Well, Darth Vader wasn't his father in Star Wars. That was something added in The Empire Strikes Back.
Oh, yeah, I never understood the Skywalker thing either.
Well, Darth Vader wasn't his father in Star Wars. That was something added in The Empire Strikes Back.
But, then George Lucas piled on and made it worse. I mean, Skywalker could have been a pseudonym. Darth Vader could have been Anakin Starkiller instead of Anakin Skywalker. Tatooine may have been where Luke was raised, but that doesn't mean Anakin had to be born there. I think that was added in the prequels, as was Owen Lars being Anakin Skywalker's stepbrother. I mean, c'mon.
:HB
Han shot first!
I'm past caring about anything to do with Star Wars. Why can't they just end it, like Harry Potter or The Hunger Games? No, they have to condemn it to a slow, tortuous death. Ugh.
There are seven Star Wars movies: the original trilogy, the prequel trilogy and Rogue One. The rest were stuff Han Solo was hallucinating while frozen in carbonite. :hehe
like Harry Potter
So on Saturday, I wrote 685 words and today I wrote 1,130 words.
Searched through my book, Bad Fiction, and notes, looking for any confirmation of dates and ended up with a wider variety of possibilities. LOL. Wish I remembered the reference point the published book referred to. I think I figured out a workaround that will leave it open to correction in a future book, should I remember or figure it all out.
I'm at around 109k words now. Would a 200k word novel be too long? :hehe
The length might make it "epic fantasy" at this point, but I don't know how "epic" it could be considering that the characters seem to talk a lot. On the one hand, I seem to frequently worry my characters talk too much. On the other hand, when a group of friends hang out together and go on trips or whatever, it seems pretty normal that they talk a lot, and argue about seemingly silly things. I mean, I remember years ago I had a discussion/argument with my neighbor over who won the Civil War (American). And it wasn't one of those philosophical debates over who really won something; it was a debate over who factually won. (And, just so there is no question, I was the one who was right.)
Maybe I can rest easy on the possibility that TV sitcoms have conditioned readers to expect that characters will talk a lot and that talking moves storylines along further than standing around doing stuff. Fingers crossed!
I would definitely have a few beta readers go through it.
Dan, picture the older pilot chanting, "Stay on target," as they're coming up on the wombat-sized widget that they have to blow on the Death Star. Besides, 3k is pretty good. :)
Dan, picture the older pilot chanting, "Stay on target," as they're coming up on the wombat-sized widget that they have to blow on the Death Star. Besides, 3k is pretty good. :)
It's not impossible. I used to bulls-eye womp rats in my T-16 back home. They're not much more than two meters.
Important question since I'm avoiding writing today. What's bigger an ROUS or a womp rat?
Important question since I'm avoiding writing today. What's bigger an ROUS or a womp rat?
Probably a womp rat, but I wouldn't want to mess with either species up close. :icon_eek:
Dan, picture the older pilot chanting, "Stay on target," as they're coming up on the wombat-sized widget that they have to blow on the Death Star. Besides, 3k is pretty good. :)
I only wrote 1,110 words today. Close to the point where a character from a previous book is supposed to enter but I cannot seem to get my humor mojo back. Feels like everything I try just falls flat.
I only wrote 1,110 words today. Close to the point where a character from a previous book is supposed to enter but I cannot seem to get my humor mojo back. Feels like everything I try just falls flat.
Maybe try writing something serious, dark and dangerous? That's usually when I start thinking of something funny. Always easier to write what you don't need at the moment. :catrun
I only wrote 1,110 words today. Close to the point where a character from a previous book is supposed to enter but I cannot seem to get my humor mojo back. Feels like everything I try just falls flat.
Maybe try writing something serious, dark and dangerous? That's usually when I start thinking of something funny. Always easier to write what you don't need at the moment. :catrun
I did dark yesterday. It stayed dark. :icon_think:
I only wrote 1,110 words today. Close to the point where a character from a previous book is supposed to enter but I cannot seem to get my humor mojo back. Feels like everything I try just falls flat.
Maybe try writing something serious, dark and dangerous? That's usually when I start thinking of something funny. Always easier to write what you don't need at the moment. :catrun
I did dark yesterday. It stayed dark. :icon_think:
Somebody needs a squirting flower in their lapel.
Although I also got through another 50 pages of editing. I keep telling myself that I just have to tweak my habits until I find something I can sustain. :smilie_zauber:
I only wrote 1,015 words today. The characters are split up again. Two are back together, but now they need to escape where they are and rejoin their other friend so they can resume their journey. Then, after that, they need to formulate a plan to defeat the villain and we're already 122k words into this thing and that seems a long way off yet because they still haven't reached the certain milestones they need to reach before beating the villain.
I'm beginning to worry this one may end up being my 1,000,000 word novel. :shocked:
Serialize it? :cheers
I wrote 1,860 words today, putting me within under 2k of 130k and that's when I had previously estimated to wrap things up between 100k-120k. Long way to go, though I did work in some foreshadowing of things to come.
They finally (sort of) hit milestone #1. As soon as they escape their current mess, they can hit milestone #2. Maybe. Hopefully. Then it's on to milestone #3. Then, they can take on the bad guy. And then, well, it won't be over yet. Did I say this might wrap up at 150k? It's starting to look like it may be closer to 200k.
They still need to encounter a character that shows up in the future in a different book and it's this book they have to meet her in, so I still need to get that in yet too. And, you know, make it a natural fit rather than shoehorn it in. Oy.
And then I'll have to self-beta read and self-edit. Fun times ahead!
Sounds like you started a series and you just don't know it. Maybe think about those milestones being a dividing point and make a trilogy.
I wrote 1,270 words today. Two characters are currently being pursued by killer kitchen utensils.
I wrote 1,270 words today. Two characters are currently being pursued by killer kitchen utensils.
Uh-huh. Alexa just told me how dangerous toasters are.
Those things can be very cruel. They beat the eggs and whip the cream. :icon_eek:
Guess I haven't updated here in a couple days.
Here we go:
February 24: 620 words
February 25: 1,105 words
February 26: 1,470 words
February 27: 1,575 words
I'm at 1,030 words for today so far, but I am going to try to do some more writing later tonight, after Gotham and The Orville.
Also, I needed a character name for the scene I just finished, so Jeff, Lorri and Maggie have a character kind of named after them. He didn't die, but he was turned into a bullfrog. So, look for that scene when you never read my book. :hehe
You named a guy after us? This is going to be a very unique story. :cheers
Well done, Dan! :cheers
I rarely meet my own self-imposed deadlines, though.
I’m going to jump in. I’m finally finished with my first book launch and as much marketing as I can figure out at this point. Seems like it’s time for book two. I wrote 441 words yesterday and 590 today.
My problem is that I never know where the heck my story is going. I only seem to be able to see bits and pieces of it. So I guess I will just peer ahead and write whatever scenes I can see, then piece them together later - which is how it went the last time. I was hoping I could plan it out...but so far that is not happening.
I wrote 625 words today.
Also, missed that yesterday put me over the 150k mark for real.
I managed 271 words before I had to do some research.
:HB :rant :dizzy :help :writethink: because what I found out is that probably 75% or so of the historical facts are totally inaccurate. PIFFLE. The overall history is correct because I've been researching that right along. It's the details ... important details ... that are wrong.
For example, my story takes place in 1237 in Wales and I used the title baronet. First, that title wasn't created in England until 1611. Second, English titles weren't used in Wales until mid-16th century. I'll do more research, but I'm afraid I'll have to either change the story drastically, or change the location.
:HB :HB :HB :HB :HB
I only wrote 195 words yesterday.
Also, had an idea for yet another story. Wrote this one down lest I forget it and end up a couple weeks from now wondering what that great idea I had was. Initially, I had thought about using it as a chapter in one of my current WIPs or as a book in one of my future series and even told an author friend about that plan, but then got to thinking later that it would probably be more effective as a standalone that would be written in first person. I think it would be scarier as a story someone is telling you happened to them as opposed to something in third person describing how it happened to other characters. The latter might work if it was an episode of a TV show but as a book I think first person will work better. The goal is to have it be really, really scary, which means this is somehow going to end up as a comedy. :confused:
You can put some erotic scenes in it. Add beastkin, OP protagonists, some manga/hentai references, reverse harems, regular harems, irregular harems, a bare torso cover, and voila! - the best of all worlds! Those genres seem to be in vogue these days. Bestsellers, even. :)
You can put some erotic scenes in it. Add beastkin, OP protagonists, some manga/hentai references, reverse harems, regular harems, irregular harems, a bare torso cover, and voila! - the best of all worlds! Those genres seem to be in vogue these days. Bestsellers, even. :)
No puppies?
I wrote the last few days. I forget to note down the starting number so I'm not sure how much - close to 2,000 over 3 days. But the good news is that I'm writing and the story is becoming more clear. I forgot that I actually like writing. With all that editing and marketing I kind of forgot...
No writing this week. I've been getting ready for a Book Fair tomorrow at my library. It's my first and probably my last book signing.
No writing this week. I've been getting ready for a Book Fair tomorrow at my library. It's my first and probably my last book signing.
Best of luck!
Got about 6k words written the past two days and finished my book! :banana-riding-llama-smiley-em
Got about 6k words written the past two days and finished my book! :banana-riding-llama-smiley-em
:dance: :banana: :dance:
Since the last update . . .
Thursday: 170 words
Friday: 600 words
Saturday: 320 words
Today: 785 words
So, quite a dip in productivity versus the past couple months. For March, I ended up with a daily average of 580.81 words and a total of 18,005 words for the month. Quite a drop from February's 40,030 words and January's 34,500 words.
Getting closer to the end though. The characters encountered an unexpected obstacle in reaching their last milestone before reaching the villain. It should have stretched out longer than it did but when one of the characters is a wizard, it's kind of hard for someone who doesn't know that to fight them.
The book is right around 155k right now. Should have been wrapped up by now had I maintained the same productivity level as February. I'm thinking it should be finished in another 20k-25k words which means two and a half weeks at February's daily average word count or a month and a half at March's.
Or like ten really, really productive days. LOL.
Since the last update . . .
Thursday: 170 words
Friday: 600 words
Saturday: 320 words
Today: 785 words
So, quite a dip in productivity versus the past couple months. For March, I ended up with a daily average of 580.81 words and a total of 18,005 words for the month. Quite a drop from February's 40,030 words and January's 34,500 words.
Getting closer to the end though. The characters encountered an unexpected obstacle in reaching their last milestone before reaching the villain. It should have stretched out longer than it did but when one of the characters is a wizard, it's kind of hard for someone who doesn't know that to fight them.
The book is right around 155k right now. Should have been wrapped up by now had I maintained the same productivity level as February. I'm thinking it should be finished in another 20k-25k words which means two and a half weeks at February's daily average word count or a month and a half at March's.
Or like ten really, really productive days. LOL.
You're so close! I think you'll have it finished soon. :clap:
Since the last update . . .
Thursday: 170 words
Friday: 600 words
Saturday: 320 words
Today: 785 words
So, quite a dip in productivity versus the past couple months. For March, I ended up with a daily average of 580.81 words and a total of 18,005 words for the month. Quite a drop from February's 40,030 words and January's 34,500 words.
Getting closer to the end though. The characters encountered an unexpected obstacle in reaching their last milestone before reaching the villain. It should have stretched out longer than it did but when one of the characters is a wizard, it's kind of hard for someone who doesn't know that to fight them.
The book is right around 155k right now. Should have been wrapped up by now had I maintained the same productivity level as February. I'm thinking it should be finished in another 20k-25k words which means two and a half weeks at February's daily average word count or a month and a half at March's.
Or like ten really, really productive days. LOL.
You're so close! I think you'll have it finished soon. :clap:
It seems like your characters keep moving the finish line on you. Hope this is the last time.
Since the last update . . .
Thursday: 170 words
Friday: 600 words
Saturday: 320 words
Today: 785 words
So, quite a dip in productivity versus the past couple months. For March, I ended up with a daily average of 580.81 words and a total of 18,005 words for the month. Quite a drop from February's 40,030 words and January's 34,500 words.
Getting closer to the end though. The characters encountered an unexpected obstacle in reaching their last milestone before reaching the villain. It should have stretched out longer than it did but when one of the characters is a wizard, it's kind of hard for someone who doesn't know that to fight them.
The book is right around 155k right now. Should have been wrapped up by now had I maintained the same productivity level as February. I'm thinking it should be finished in another 20k-25k words which means two and a half weeks at February's daily average word count or a month and a half at March's.
Or like ten really, really productive days. LOL.
You're so close! I think you'll have it finished soon. :clap:
It seems like your characters keep moving the finish line on you. Hope this is the last time.
Mine do that! In fact, they did it this morning and I had to add an extra chapter before I could finish the story. LOL
:angel:
Got about 6k words written the past two days and finished my book! :banana-riding-llama-smiley-em
:dance: :banana: :dance:
On to the next one! :writethink:
Doing better. Average is up to 591.3 words per day.
April 17th: 645 words
April 18th: 905 words
April 19th: 710 words (unless I write more later)
Also, I took a break from writing, stole a car and led the police on a high speed chase. The response was kind of disappointing as they only sent out three cars. I was able to evade them by driving through an unlit tunnel, locking the steering wheel in place with a branch I had picked up ahead of time, then climbing out the window and jumping into the bed of a truck coming the other way. The car didn't go far after that, but I managed to get out of the truck when it stopped near a field and disappeared into the woods where I hid out for an hour. It made the local news, but I'm not a suspect so all is good. Also, I wore gloves so no fingerprints. I later shredded them and flushed them down the toilet. Oh, and none of that actually happened; I was just checking to see if anyone was still reading this thread.
Dan, what kind of a car was it?
I'm taking a break from writing (typing) because I have a possible rotator cuff tear. I set up Dictate in Word and got a mic but so far inspiration hasn't come. I'll keep trying.
Dan, what kind of a car was it?
I'm taking a break from writing (typing) because I have a possible rotator cuff tear. I set up Dictate in Word and got a mic but so far inspiration hasn't come. I'll keep trying.
Ouch! Hope you feel better soon. :dog1:
Is this different from your normal day? :angel:
Dan, what kind of a car was it?
I'm taking a break from writing (typing) because I have a possible rotator cuff tear. I set up Dictate in Word and got a mic but so far inspiration hasn't come. I'll keep trying.
Ouch! Hope you feel better soon. :dog1:
Is this different from your normal day? :angel:
Usually I coverup and take my stealth vehicle to stop crime but today I felt I needed to brush up on the mindset of a criminal with firsthand experience.Dan, what kind of a car was it?
A red one.I'm taking a break from writing (typing) because I have a possible rotator cuff tear. I set up Dictate in Word and got a mic but so far inspiration hasn't come. I'll keep trying.
Ouch! Hope you feel better soon. :dog1:
Ditto. :catrun
You do know that red cars get stopped and ticketed more often by police than any other color. Next time, steal a baby blue car. They'll just sit in front of the donut shop and snicker.
On another note, I calculated that, at my current rate, it will take me approximately 84 years to finish all my WIPs.
On another note, I calculated that, at my current rate, it will take me approximately 84 years to finish all my WIPs.
Much better than me, Dan. Me and my dragon have managed about four paragraphs of dictation, but having to dictate so slowly, keeps the wordage from flowing. I've deleted every single word so far.
April 8, 0
April 9, 1952
April 11, 3925
April 12 5022
April 13 7175
April 14, 9113
April 15, 10,885
April 16, 12,461
April 17, 14,822
April 18, 16,486
April 20 18,009
April 21, 20,632
April 22, 22,783
April 23, 24,667
April 8, 0
April 9, 1952
April 11, 3925
April 12 5022
April 13 7175
April 14, 9113
April 15, 10,885
April 16, 12,461
April 17, 14,822
April 18, 16,486
April 20 18,009
April 21, 20,632
April 22, 22,783
April 23, 24,667
Well, that was scary. At first, I read the line that you can write 3,000 words in an evening and then I jumped to the list, where I thought those were your daily word counts. I was impressed at 10,000; I think that surpasses Amanda Lee. Then you hit 12k and 18k and 24k and geesh. If I could write 24k words a day, I'd have all my WIPs finished in 6 months. LOL.
I was a bit relieved when I figured out it was the cumulative total.
Dan, if I could transcribe, I could type it directly into the laptop without a recorder go-between. Even typing a few paragraphs aggravates the shoulder.
Dan, if I could transcribe, I could type it directly into the laptop without a recorder go-between. Even typing a few paragraphs aggravates the shoulder.
Sorry, I meant you could transcribe it later, when you're all healed up.
Our voicemail system at the office automatically transcribes messages and sends them in an eMail. They are usually very, very wrong, but it might make for some entertaining writing. :icon_think:
Giving up the battle for now. But not the war. Never the war.
I have to dictate so slowly, nothing makes sense and I have to toss what I've allegedly written. Or I try to type and after a short while, my arm starts to hurt so bad I have to stop. I can't get enough momentum for the words to flow and everything I write is crap.
I think I'll concentrate on training my dragon by reading into it. Maybe after a week or so, it will accept my voice.
Keep up the good work everyone. Hopefully, I'll be back before long.
I wrote today--but not counting. All I'll say is it was enough to qualify for this thread. And enough to know I've hit a wall. :HB Pondering whether to pound through said wall or have a glass of wine. Too early for wine, so . . .
This is not an "I love writing" kind of day. :tap
I wrote today--but not counting. All I'll say is it was enough to qualify for this thread. And enough to know I've hit a wall. :HB Pondering whether to pound through said wall or have a glass of wine. Too early for wine, so . . .
This is not an "I love writing" kind of day. :tap
(https://media.giphy.com/media/Rxi58QcF8b2c8/giphy.gif)
Crash through the wall...then the wine? :banana-riding-llama-smiley-em
I wrote 1,925 words today. The big bad's soldiers have been defeated, but the big bad is still alive. However, now one of the good guys is dead and the surviving good guys plus the big bad have all been captured by the big big bad. Also, it occurs to me maybe I shouldn't be talking about spoilers like this. :icon_think:
First real productive day yesterday on first draft of book three in my series, 1783 yesterday
I wrote 1,925 words today. The big bad's soldiers have been defeated, but the big bad is still alive. However, now one of the good guys is dead and the surviving good guys plus the big bad have all been captured by the big big bad. Also, it occurs to me maybe I shouldn't be talking about spoilers like this. :icon_think:
I love Cliff Notes. Sorry about your dead good guy. I'm sure he meant a lot to you.
I wrote 1,925 words today. The big bad's soldiers have been defeated, but the big bad is still alive. However, now one of the good guys is dead and the surviving good guys plus the big bad have all been captured by the big big bad. Also, it occurs to me maybe I shouldn't be talking about spoilers like this. :icon_think:
I love Cliff Notes. Sorry about your dead good guy. I'm sure he meant a lot to you.
Said character has been fated to die in this battle since very early on when I started writing the book. At the time, it was meant to be more humorous but the book has since taken a more serious tone, so maybe it's a bit more tragic now. Not sure. I'll have to go over the scene again when I'm finished to make sure the death comes off well.
No animals die though, unless you count the mutants that are part squirrel.
One of the worst death scenes was Sirius Black. Bad enough that a beloved character got Kadavra'd, but it was almost like a throw away line. Maybe it was two lines. I had to go back and read it a few times before it sunk it. As fast as I read, I might have even missed it.
The squirrel thing depends. Was it the squirrels who became part human (or whatever they mutated into), or the humans who became part squirrel. If it was the former, then it definitely counts as a dead squirrel, although they are considered rodents in England and probably a lot of other places.
Guess I've missed updating for a few days.
May 7th: 1,095 words
May 8th: 1,215 words
May 9th: 4,250 words
This novel may never end. LOL. The big bad is on the run. The big big bad has been dealt with. But . . . quite unexpectedly, a big big big bad has arrived on the scene. So now the characters have to figure out how to both take care of the big bad and also figure out how to defeat this new big big big bad. And do so without the help of the character that was lost in the big battle. Also, they are out of weapons.
Almost 3k words today! And my two book series is going to be three...but trilogies are good, right? :angel:
I'm stuck in finals for a few more days...how is everyone else doing? I hope to start writing again on Monday. :banana-riding-llama-smiley-em
Two 1K days in a row Grin
I'm back and hoping to write tomorrow! So glad to have a little more free time for a few weeks. :smilie_zauber:
I've got a plan to do some writing tomorrow. Hope my plan doesn't slide into the mud like my Sunday plan did. But, I think I have a better plan this time around. :Healing:
513 words. Spent the majority of the day with family celebrating my niece's baptism :)
513 words. Spent the majority of the day with family celebrating my niece's baptism :)
Congrats on both counts.
Another 1K day to keep my streak going!
My characters just had a short discussion about doughnuts; I'm thinking this scene might need a little more meat to it...
Almost 2k words yesterday. Hoping to finish this book in about a week. :smilie_zauber:
Finished latest historical Western few days back, always get the blues when a book is done. Single malt and choc ice cream usually cure. This time feel so down I'll have to mix the two together to get boosted back to fulltime writing. But I did manage 50+ words this morning and that's a spark of light at tunnel's end.
65 words today.
I might write more later but still pretty tired from driving 18 hours over three days for a wedding reception several states away.
65 words today.
I might write more later but still pretty tired from driving 18 hours over three days for a wedding reception several states away.
Amazing after that marathon drive you found the energy to even write 65 words. Dedication! :tup3b
65 words today.
I might write more later but still pretty tired from driving 18 hours over three days for a wedding reception several states away.
Amazing after that marathon drive you found the energy to even write 65 words. Dedication! :tup3b
Thanks! Although today's grand total is still at 0.
I'm trying to work out the next part of the story but really it's just a day of procrastinating...
I'm not even trying today. My muse hides on laundry day. I don't blame her at all. BTW, her name is Fiona.
Book 2 is done! Now, to start book 3 in the series. We're hoping to have it finished before the end of August. :catrun
Book 2 is done! Now, to start book 3 in the series. We're hoping to have it finished before the end of August. :catrun
Yay!!! :banana:
I've had so many do-overs this year, I'm not sure when (or even if) I'm going to be able to say that. :shrug
I won't post daily totals since it's been almost two months since I last posted.
I think the day of or after I last posted, our family dog went to the vet, then to the emergency care facility the following day. Then, stayed in the doggy hospital for a couple days, then had surgery. Came out of surgery okay and came home a day or two later. Then back to the doggy hospital that Saturday morning where she passed away.
I didn't get a lot of writing done during that time, or after
as it stands right now, this novel is 252,133 words long with 68 chapters
Book 2 is done! Now, to start book 3 in the series. We're hoping to have it finished before the end of August. :catrun
I've had so many do-overs this year, I'm not sure when (or even if) I'm going to be able to say that. :shrug
Aw, Dan, I'm so sorry about your doggie. It's heartbreaking, I know, to lose a fur baby.
Dan, so sorry about your dog. It's never easy.
So sorry to hear that, man. I know how tough it is to lose a pet. :icon_sad:
Sorry for the loss of your dog, Dan :(
Quoteas it stands right now, this novel is 252,133 words long with 68 chapters
That word count translates to somewhere in the neighborhood of a 1000-page ebook on Amazon. :icon_eek:
1018 written. Also fixed the formatting for the inside of the paperback version of the first novella in my trilogy (now if I could just get KDP Cover Creator to let me delete and rewrite some text, I'd be good to go!)
I was waffling about going to the library this morning (I do my best writing there) because I had some errands to run this morning, but my muse (Fiona) had other ideas. Started to walk out the door, but I automatically picked up the messenger bag with my AlphaSmart in it and drove to the library. Wrote 1254 words. Fiona obviously knows best.
Visited a haunted building, edited one chapter in the epic fantasy and wrote 1,285 words in the lame space opera today.
I was waffling about going to the library this morning (I do my best writing there) because I had some errands to run this morning, but my muse (Fiona) had other ideas. Started to walk out the door, but I automatically picked up the messenger bag with my AlphaSmart in it and drove to the library. Wrote 1254 words. Fiona obviously knows best.
Good job!
1005 words today for me
Pretty good morning at the library. 1174 words and just for fun I strolled down the aisle where four of my books are shelved. Lovely. Keeps up the motivation.
1015
Plus waffles with a friend and family time all through the afternoon
Only 759 words today. I suspect I had waffles on my mind.
Visited a haunted building, edited one chapter in the epic fantasy and wrote 1,285 words in the lame space opera today.
Research or fun?
Sounds like the lame space opera isn't so lame with all those words you've been adding.
Visited a haunted building, edited one chapter in the epic fantasy and wrote 1,285 words in the lame space opera today.
Research or fun?
Business.Sounds like the lame space opera isn't so lame with all those words you've been adding.
It's not good.
I wrote 1,085 words on it on Saturday and another 1,065 words on Sunday. (Giving my a five day average of 1,134 words per day.) Or, I should say I rewrote that many words. I started this lame space opera in May of 2016 before it went on the backburner for a while. I've worked on it sporadically ever since. Then, when getting close to finishing the fantasy epic, I started looking at it again as the next book to finish. I realized I had what I had so far in it, plus a short story from several years ago that would be usable, plus a different short story from around the same time plus a series of three shorts I wrote a few years after that. They were all space humor stuff and I figured by merging characters and rewriting the whole thing, I could marry them all together into one cohesive book that I could finish relatively quickly and get out prior to my other space opera being finished.
But, it's not going so well. I'm trying to keep a lighter tone with this one, especially coming off the fantasy epic which had some dark (and adult) moments in it, and one of the short stories had an adult scene. But, I've managed to silly it up (I hope) which makes it less adult despite a couple characters being completely naked in the scene. But then the three story series that are the bulk of what I have written and would thus become the bulk of this book are a completely different style than everything else.
Melding the styles into one style is proving more difficult than merging characters.
Would possibly be easier if I hadn't apparently completely lost my ability to write humor.
You shouldn't have to tie yourself in knots to write a story. Hard to type that way, anyway. :writethink:
Would possibly be easier if I hadn't apparently completely lost my ability to write humor.
650 or so on a pirate cat mermaid short story for an anthology submission.
Jumping in.
2351 on book 3 of my steampunk series, just starting things off. It's always fun in the beginning. Didn't get to my edits of book 2, really need to just finish those last few chapters, so I will make an effort tomorrow. ARC readers chomping at the bit.
650 or so on a pirate cat mermaid short story for an anthology submission.
650 or so on a pirate cat mermaid short story for an anthology submission.
Congrats!
And you have me intrigued with this one! :smilie_zauber:
Wrote 1,015 words yesterday and 1,455 words today on the lame space opera. Still mostly rewriting while adding some new content in the mix. Still not merging well, but getting a better feel for it as I continue rewriting the old content to fit into the new. Will need a larger rewrite later, but getting it merged and in place will help with that.
Edited eight chapters in the fantasy epic. Keeps getting longer as I do. LOL. So, it will probably stay over 250k in length. Only forty-three chapters left to go!
about 500 words today :confused: My motivation slipped away today.
Must have been in the zone today. Wrote 2003.
Wrote 3k today. Yay!Wow! Well done. :smilie_zauber:
Wrote 3k today. Yay!
Three chapters of the fantasy epic edited and 1,400 words written in the lame space opera, plus 297 words written in the regular space opera.
Three chapters of the fantasy epic edited and 1,400 words written in the lame space opera, plus 297 words written in the regular space opera.
How do you keep it all straight?
The story is moving too fast again. I'm up to a total of 17.5K words and I need to hit at least 50K. At this rate, I'll have the mystery solved by the end of the week without reaching my goal.
Wrote 1667 this morning, but then I added a bit when I had to make some corrections.
The story is moving too fast again. I'm up to a total of 17.5K words and I need to hit at least 50K. At this rate, I'll have the mystery solved by the end of the week without reaching my goal.
The story is moving too fast again. I'm up to a total of 17.5K words and I need to hit at least 50K. At this rate, I'll have the mystery solved by the end of the week without reaching my goal.
Add in a character that's a moron and keeps messing things up.
Wrote 1667 this morning, but then I added a bit when I had to make some corrections.
The story is moving too fast again. I'm up to a total of 17.5K words and I need to hit at least 50K. At this rate, I'll have the mystery solved by the end of the week without reaching my goal.
Add a romance? Maybe an obstacle to finding the next clue? Have fun with the story!
Five chapters edited (only fifteen chapters to go!) and 1,465 words written in the lame space opera.
And 41 words written in the regular space opera.
Five chapters edited (only fifteen chapters to go!) and 1,465 words written in the lame space opera.
And 41 words written in the regular space opera.
Just can't walk away, can you. :tap
Still fighting this cold. Wrote 2410 words today before I got dizzy/light-headed and had to stop.
I have finished editing the fantasy epic. Yay. It closes out at 252.9k words.
Now I need to line up a second beta reader volunteer somehow.
And finish the cover design.
Oh, and write the acknowledgments section, but I usually do that last, after the beta readers (but usually before editing . . .).
I have finished editing the fantasy epic. Yay. It closes out at 252.9k words.
Now I need to line up a second beta reader volunteer somehow.
And finish the cover design.
Oh, and write the acknowledgments section, but I usually do that last, after the beta readers (but usually before editing . . .).
3254 words today on the main book. Still haven't touched the short story with the cat pirates/merkitties this week, really need to make time for that because it's due at the end of the month and I want time to polish it.
3254 words today on the main book. Still haven't touched the short story with the cat pirates/merkitties this week, really need to make time for that because it's due at the end of the month and I want time to polish it.
You must be feeling better. Grin
Finally got some writing done! Added about 1k words and happy with story now. :smilie_zauber:
Back to playing with covers tonight! As soon as I finish this book, I'm going to write some mysteries. :catrun
I haven't been sleeping so that makes it hard to focus. I wrote 664 words yesterday, none on Tuesday.
Wrote 205 words yesterday in the lame space opera.Oh man that stinks. Sympathies. Good luck recreating it.
Just spent about a half hour drawing an alien. Was almost finished--only had to draw the hands--and the drawing program froze and I lost the whole thing.
Wrote 205 words yesterday in the lame space opera.
Just spent about a half hour drawing an alien. Was almost finished--only had to draw the hands--and the drawing program froze and I lost the whole thing.
Wrote 205 words yesterday in the lame space opera.
Just spent about a half hour drawing an alien. Was almost finished--only had to draw the hands--and the drawing program froze and I lost the whole thing.
Piffle! Hope you can recreate him/her/it.
Oh man that stinks. Sympathies. Good luck recreating it.
I spent last night making a video that I hope will get people to try my books. We'll see. LOL :pdt
Dan, I'm glad you recreated your drawing! And Maggie, your book sounds very intriguing.
I spent last night making a video that I hope will get people to try my books. We'll see. LOL :pdt
Power went out last night during a thunderstorm, so no writing for me.
Power went out last night during a thunderstorm, so no writing for me.
It was back on this morning, so maybe I'll get some words down tonight. :writethink:
Wrote 1,040 words today for the lame space opera.
Didn't write anymore on the regular space opera yesterday and have only written 35 words for it so far today.
As for the sketch I had to recreate the other day, here he is for a limited time:(http://www.dcrblogs.com/clients/dcrwrites/mesmerizing-alien-20190721-1304.png)
An eight year-old could probably do better but it is what it is.
Aww, he's sweet.
Dan, nice drawing! What's that logo on his shirt? :smilie_zauber:
So far, zero words written in the lame space opera and 7 words written in the regular space opera.
The lame space opera's word count is likely to drop from 35k to 7k today. I am thinking about scrapping about 28k of it and starting over at chapter 3. I'll still use some of that 28k, but will work it in as I revamp this thing.
Unless I change my mind once I get into it. LOL.
But, as I was thinking of it last night and this morning, I think that may be the best way get this story on track. I mean, it was supposed to be a short work to begin with, 30k-40k words I figured, and it's at 35k words and nothing has happened. Plus two characters that were supposed to be in the main cast have fallen by the wayside and haven't been mentioned since the first chapter. And there's thirty-three chapters so far!
So, I think I'm going to go over the characters, maybe do some trimming and merging, and see if I can get this thing on track.
Today's alien:
(http://www.dcrblogs.com/clients/dcrwrites/alien-commander-20190726-0121.png)
Not as sweet as the other one, but a very inventive alien.
Today's alien:
(http://www.dcrblogs.com/clients/dcrwrites/alien-commander-20190726-0121.png)
Neil DeGrasse Tyson has a few rants about how badly designed we are. Like, placing our breathing in a place where we can easily choke to death on our food. But his most fun observation is about our crotch: It's like building an amusement park in a sewer!
Not sure why this came to mind, so, carry on!
But his most fun observation is about our crotch: It's like building an amusement park in a sewer!
Four engineers were sitting around one day trying to figure out what kind of Engineer God is.
The first engineer says "I think God is a Mechanical Engineer, because of joints and muscle and sense of balance." The other three nod there heads and say "Yeah, could be."
The second engineer says "I think God is an Electrical Engineer, because of the nervous system and neural network." The other three nod there heads and say "Yeah, could be."
The third engineer says "I think God is a Chemical Engineer, because of hormonal balances and metabolism." The other three nod there heads and say "Yeah, could be."
The fourth engineer snaps his fingers and shouts out "I know, God MUST be a Civil Engineer!"
The other three ask "Why?"
"Well" says the fourth engineer, "who else would put a waste water drainage right through a prime recreational area?"
No writing, but I did update two covers.
And I have a question...if my book gets up to #1 in a free category on Amazon, does that make me a BestGiving author? :hehe
A good 1572 words today. Up to about 28K now.No writing, but I did update two covers.
And I have a question...if my book gets up to #1 in a free category on Amazon, does that make me a BestGiving author? :hehe
You're entitled to that honorific. I've never even made it to #1 in Free.
A good 1572 words today. Up to about 28K now.No writing, but I did update two covers.
And I have a question...if my book gets up to #1 in a free category on Amazon, does that make me a BestGiving author? :hehe
You're entitled to that honorific. I've never even made it to #1 in Free.
Only made it to #9 in espionage so far, but thought I'd ask. :angel:
For today, 220 words written for the lame space opera and 21 words so far for the regular space opera.
For today, 220 words written for the lame space opera and 21 words so far for the regular space opera.
I keep wondering if you're going to put "Lame Space Opera" as the title. :hehe
For today, 220 words written for the lame space opera and 21 words so far for the regular space opera.
I keep wondering if you're going to put "Lame Space Opera" as the title. :hehe
It was originally going to be Dan's Lame Space Opera but now it's [super secret title] a.k.a. Dan's Lame Space Opera.
You'll get there, Dan! :tap
I had a similar problem with my series but finally, came up with a solution. :cheers
I may have jumped the gun with today's wordage (1132). I've got to stop moving ahead so fast. :writethink:
Not a word count update but a new sketch I did earlier today:
(http://www.dcrblogs.com/clients/dcrwrites/alien-science-officer-20190804-0043.png)
His mouth is right near his stomach for convenience. Also means he doesn't have to worry about choking on his food because his nose holes are nowhere near his stomach intake orifice. Makes wearing standard-issue uniforms problematic though.
If I could actually draw, I would do a comic book with some of these characters.
Not a word count update but a new sketch I did earlier today:
(http://www.dcrblogs.com/clients/dcrwrites/alien-science-officer-20190804-0043.png)
His mouth is right near his stomach for convenience. Also means he doesn't have to worry about choking on his food because his nose holes are nowhere near his stomach intake orifice. Makes wearing standard-issue uniforms problematic though.
If I could actually draw, I would do a comic book with some of these characters.
I made it up to 450 today :banana: Just 10,000 to go to get this short story done.:tup3b
Maybe, try it anyway? The drawings are unique and your fans might enjoy it! :cheers
The characters are great and you don't have to be Stan Lee to do comics just like we don't have to be James Patterson to write a thriller. I say go for it. These are wonderful drawings and you can put your own humorous stamp on the story.
I want to see the owl in a suit drawing, sounds cute!Me too! I am pro-owl.
By popular request, I guess . . .
(http://www.dcrblogs.com/clients/dcrwrites/sharply-dressed-owl-20190806-0104.png)
Cue the disappointed groans. :hehe
My kids want you to name him Bill. Just a suggestion.
My kids want you to name him Bill. Just a suggestion.
I think Bill could be our forum mascot!
79 words (after working a yard sale for 6 hours and then doing curriculum work for an hour--can I count some of those words? :help)
I thought I might take today off, then I kicked myself out of my lethargy and did 532 words. I'm up to 148 pages. My goal is 160 minimum and I'm confident now that I'll make it.
85 words today and only 3 hours at the yard sale
85 words today and only 3 hours at the yard sale
Hope it was successful.
1382 and I didn't think I would get that far tonight.
I had to quit at 570 words because I realized I'd messed up my timeline. Back to the drawing board.
Here are a few days' worth of disappointing word counts:
8/8 105 words
8/9 120 words
8/10 50 wordsI had to quit at 570 words because I realized I'd messed up my timeline. Back to the drawing board.
The downside of being a slow writer is that I sometimes forget where the characters are. Well, not where specifically, but like whose sector of space they are in. I long for my younger years when I could remember these details for years rather than days.
But, yeah, timelines too. Like I have had to recalculate stuff to try to figure out how old characters were when certain events occurred which has been a bit troublesome because one character is older and the other is younger but the younger one had to be old enough to have done a certain thing when the older character was at a certain event and also the event has to be long enough ago that it feels like ancient history.
I think I'm going to have to make the grandparents the great-grandparents and kill them off. Nah, I'll let them die peacefully in their sleep.
I think I'm going to have to make the grandparents the great-grandparents and kill them off. Nah, I'll let them die peacefully in their sleep.
Unlike the screaming passengers in their car. :hehe
I think I'm going to have to make the grandparents the great-grandparents and kill them off. Nah, I'll let them die peacefully in their sleep.
Unlike the screaming passengers in their car. :hehe
:icon_rofl:
I think I'm going to have to make the grandparents the great-grandparents and kill them off. Nah, I'll let them die peacefully in their sleep.
Unlike the screaming passengers in their car. :hehe
:icon_rofl:
It's from a joke I heard long ago.
"When I die, I want to die like my grandfather who died peacefully in his sleep. Not yelling and screaming like all the passengers in his car."
Not sure the original source. The Internet, which is not always the most reliable of sources, seems to indicate Will Rogers (which seems a bit unlikely since he died in 1935 and it feels like a more modern joke) or Will Shriner who was born in 1953 so perhaps he is a bit more likely? I don't know. Who knows, maybe lots of people died when Model T drivers fell asleep at the wheel.
I knew the joke, Dan, but I had to laugh anyway.
Had to make up for two lazy days so I wrote 2009 words this morning. Also had a flash of brilliance that told me how to fix my historical romance. But that's going to have to wait. Mostly, it'll be timeline changes. I need to compress everything together.
PS: I passed the 40K mark. :dance:
Had to make up for two lazy days so I wrote 2009 words this morning.
Wrote 105 words on Friday and 95 words on Saturday. I'm at 105 words for today so far. Only way I can even match last month's daily average is if I write 1,500+ words per day for the rest of this month. That seems unlikely.Had to make up for two lazy days so I wrote 2009 words this morning.
Ten words short of the year. :shrug
PS: I passed the 40K mark. :dance:
I really need to boost my daily word count. If I use this month's daily word count average and apply that to all my WIPs with their target word counts, it would take me 44 years to finish writing all of them. If I use my daily word count average for the year so far, it would take me just a little over 13 years to finish everything.
I have survived the worst part of my move. Been too exhausted and sore to write most days. Did squeak in a few words here and there, I don't remember them all anymore since I didn't keep track.
But today I was sitting around a lot while work was getting done on the house (cleaning up a bad rat infestation, so much fun) so I actually did several solid hours of writing. 3581 words was a great chunk to catch up! I'm at 45k now so definitely halfway done, I planned this at 85k but I tend to write at least a little over, probably 90k in the first draft.
I really need to boost my daily word count. If I use this month's daily word count average and apply that to all my WIPs with their target word counts, it would take me 44 years to finish writing all of them. If I use my daily word count average for the year so far, it would take me just a little over 13 years to finish everything.
I really need to boost my daily word count. If I use this month's daily word count average and apply that to all my WIPs with their target word counts, it would take me 44 years to finish writing all of them. If I use my daily word count average for the year so far, it would take me just a little over 13 years to finish everything.
Now that you've put this idea in my head, I have to go figure out my own timeline and weep. :icon_cry:
First day of the new school year done and almost 200 creative words :)
First day of the new school year done and almost 200 creative words :)
Our kids started a week ago. I can't believe how early they start. We used to start the day after Labor Day.
First day of the new school year done and almost 200 creative words :)
Our kids started a week ago. I can't believe how early they start. We used to start the day after Labor Day.
Probably a sneaky way to get us to adopt a year-round school year. They just slowly tack on days until it is year-round.
Wrote 145 words yesterday.
So far today, I wrote 262 words before, ahem, falling asleep and ending up with a couple lines of gibberish. And ants. Yes, ants. Some special symbol keyboard opened up and I had a series of numbers plus a line of ants.
On the plus side, at least I didn't (apparently) end up accidentally deleting large portions of text or accidentally open up a weeks-old draft and add to it instead of the current draft.
Since we are no longer a farming economy, it makes sense to have school year round.
Since we are no longer a farming economy, it makes sense to have school year round.
If I recall, some teachers made the same or more money at their three-month summer jobs than they did the other nine months.
Plus, I think having three months off school is good.
In other news, my beta reader reported back that she's enjoying the book so far, so that's encouraging, even though she hasn't gotten to some of the darker stuff yet. :worried: Oh, we don't have an emoji for worried. We have like five thumbs-up emojis but not a single worried emoji. :confused:
UPS just pulled up and I don't have anything on order. How disappointing.
UPS just pulled up and I don't have anything on order. How disappointing.
I know, right? The FedEx truck stopped outside our door at the office earlier today, but then left. It's like, don't tease us like that!
We should start one of those online petition things to demand delivery drivers NOT stop outside places they don't have a delivery for. It's a form of mental torture. :hehe
1753 words today.
It would be nice if I never had to move again. I was in my last house for almost ten years, which is the longest I've ever lived in one place. The thing is that we accumulated a lot of things by staying in one place for so long. Two years ago, we knew we wanted to start saving up to move so we actually did a major house purge/reorganization because we knew moving would be painful with so much stuff. Even still, it was chaotic and disorganized and I'm still trying to figure out how to get the last few big things from the old place without renting another moving van. Wish I had a good friend with a pickup truck or something.
But if it's at least another ten years, I'll be happy. Maybe by then I can have a runaway bestseller, become a multimillionaire, and then I can hire professionals to do all the work when I move into my fabulous mansion. ;)
1268 tonight. That puts me at 45.5K words and 192 pages. I'm probably going to change part of what I wrote. I think I got the guy shot too soon. I'll see how it goes.
1268 tonight. That puts me at 45.5K words and 192 pages. I'm probably going to change part of what I wrote. I think I got the guy shot too soon. I'll see how it goes.
Han shot first.
3693 words today.
Han shot first, and I should take that as a lesson not to revise things too much. Sometimes the first instinct is the best one.
1418 this morning. Just broke 50K and I'm up to 210 pages.
I'm sure the first draft will be done by the end of the week or even sooner.
1418 this morning. Just broke 50K and I'm up to 210 pages.
I'm sure the first draft will be done by the end of the week or even sooner.
Congrats!!! :goodpost: :cheers
207 words to sneak over the 2K mark in the newest piece.
Speaking of sneaking, I snuck in another 1238 words tonight. Now that I'm in the habit of writing when my alarm goes off at 8pm to take my meds, I can't seem to skip a night either. I'm under the Imperious Charm of my phone alarm.
3693 words today.
Boy, you're just barrelling right along. How many words are you up to now?
1173 words tonight and I'm up to 220 pages. A lot of dialogue. I do so love writing dialogue.
Wrote 515 words yesterday. Around 300 so far today. When I finish this and start to work on the next, I really need to go back to outlining.1173 words tonight and I'm up to 220 pages. A lot of dialogue. I do so love writing dialogue.
I get more words down when there's dialogue. I worry characters talk too much.
2450 words today, pushed me over 60K.
670 words today! Finally, back in the story.
Even better news, this is the last book in the series!!! I will miss the characters but excited to move on to a new adventure. :smilie_zauber:
Wrote 1,568 words tonight for a total of 55.6K and 234 pages. I'm getting pretty close to the end and I composed a last, short scene in my head for the ending. I may even finish tomorrow night, but if not, I'll hopefully finish Friday.
Getting ready for Hurricane Dorian.
Getting ready for Hurricane Dorian.
Getting ready for Hurricane Dorian.
Getting ready for Hurricane Dorian.
Getting ready for Hurricane Dorian.
Wouldn'tcha know it, I'm going away for the weekend with the return trip scheduled to land in Orlando --at the same time as Dorian. :HB
So they finally named a hurricane after a literary figure? ;)
Stay safe for those in its path. Tornadoes are bad enough; can't imagine having to go through a hurricane.
Too pooped to write. In line to fill the gas cans for half an hour. In line at McD's drive through for forty minutes. After that, I didn't feel like writing, but my phone alarm made me sit down and do it.Good luck and stay safe! And the fact that you wrote anything in light of what's coming and all the prep is awesome.
I'm not going to post my word count because I kept falling asleep while writing it. Since I have very little idea what I wrote, I think I'll wait until tomorrow to either fix it up, throw it out, or finish it.
Too pooped to write. In line to fill the gas cans for half an hour. In line at McD's drive through for forty minutes. After that, I didn't feel like writing, but my phone alarm made me sit down and do it.Good luck and stay safe! And the fact that you wrote anything in light of what's coming and all the prep is awesome.
I'm not going to post my word count because I kept falling asleep while writing it. Since I have very little idea what I wrote, I think I'll wait until tomorrow to either fix it up, throw it out, or finish it.
Still prepping. I forgot to get cash and I need to pop a few things into my safe deposit box. Forgot to get pads for my poor :dog1: who won't be able to go outside for probably a day or two. So, still running around.
Writing at least gives me a break from prepping.
Hat trick achieved! Wrote 105 words yesterday.Still prepping. I forgot to get cash and I need to pop a few things into my safe deposit box. Forgot to get pads for my poor :dog1: who won't be able to go outside for probably a day or two. So, still running around.
Writing at least gives me a break from prepping.
Has your dog used the pads before? I know from experience that, even when they are used to using them, sometimes they think they just need to have their paws on the pad and it counts. (It doesn't, especially when their front two paws are on the pad and, well, the waste expulsion orifice(s) is well off the pad.)
Stay safe!
I was concerned he wouldn't use the pads myself. While I was in Target, a woman was buying a blue plastic kiddie pool. The clerk told me the idea is to put sod in the pool. I've got the perfect thing for it. A rectangular planter with a grid halfway up. I can put the pads under the grid and the sod on top. When I need to change the pads, we'll just have to lift the grid and put down fresh pads. Sounds good when I say it. Now I'll wait to see if it works. If it doesn't, thank goodness for tile floors.
I was concerned he wouldn't use the pads myself. While I was in Target, a woman was buying a blue plastic kiddie pool. The clerk told me the idea is to put sod in the pool. I've got the perfect thing for it. A rectangular planter with a grid halfway up. I can put the pads under the grid and the sod on top. When I need to change the pads, we'll just have to lift the grid and put down fresh pads. Sounds good when I say it. Now I'll wait to see if it works. If it doesn't, thank goodness for tile floors.
Yep, wood is no match for doggie waste, no matter how much you wax them. The floor, not the dog.
There are also astroturf doggie waste collection devices. It's a large sheet of astroturf on top of a plastic platform maybe an inch or so high, as I recall. The astroturf has holes in it so liquid waste goes through and collects in the bottom. I don't remember if you put a pad on the bottom or just spill it out. Solid waste you just pick up. Then, the whole thing can be sprayed with a hose or washed in a large laundry tub or whatever when it needs cleaning.
At least this time, I don't have a rock garden to bring in.
At least this time, I don't have a rock garden to bring in.
Did you already move that in? ;)
I hope no one sustains too much damage from the hurricane. On a similar note but much smaller scale, I have had three grandchildren (6, 4 and 1) here for the weekend, so the interior of the house looks as if it's been hit by a small hurricane. I still managed to get about 750 words written tonight after they went home. Whew.
hopefully I'll remember the reason why when I resume writing as I fell asleep in the middle of the characters' conversation regarding why they are making the aforementioned side trip.
Wrote 575 words yesterday. Figured out why they are taking a side trip instead of just going directly to where they need to go; hopefully I'll remember the reason why when I resume writing as I fell asleep in the middle of the characters' conversation regarding why they are making the aforementioned side trip.
Wrote 575 words yesterday. Figured out why they are taking a side trip instead of just going directly to where they need to go; hopefully I'll remember the reason why when I resume writing as I fell asleep in the middle of the characters' conversation regarding why they are making the aforementioned side trip.
Maybe they had to stop by Tosche Station to pick up some power converters. :nerd:
The space bar wouldn't work unless I paused for a second, then pressed hard. Can't get anything done that way.
The space bar wouldn't work unless I paused for a second, then pressed hard. Can't get anything done that way.
Seems to me I had a keyboard with a similar issue. Might have been on a laptop. No delay, but I had to hit the space bar hard to get it to register. So, you'd type everything normally but have to remember to really whack your thumb on the space bar if you didn'twantyourwritingtolooklikethis.
Long before that, I had a keyboard with a broken key. I don't remember what letter it was that was broken but, until I got a new keyboard, I got around the issue by copying the letter from a pre-existing document and then using the keyboard shortcut for "paste" whenever I needed to use that letter. Did that for a couple months, as I recall, by which point I had gotten rather proficient at using that keyboard shortcut whenever that particular letter was required.
You can try blowing the keyboard with some compressed air, use a hair dryer with no heat, if you have nothing else. The pause is weird, but needing to press the key hard may indicate some crud in there.
Yikes, Maggie Ann, I hope you're safe from the hurricane (and you got that keyboard issue sorted out).
I finished the last of the work on my old house, so my move is all done except for the unpacking. Much as I want that to all be done with since I'm sick of staring at piles of boxes, we need to take it at a slower pace now because everyone is tired and sore. Hasn't helped my carpal tunnel, either. slowly getting back into a more normal routine but we mostly took off the three-day weekend to just recover.
Wrote 1062 words yesterday. Wrote 2008 words today. And somewhere over the weekend I wrote about 1700 words of a new project which was going to be a short story but will probably become a novel/series.
Also, my pirate cat mermaid story wasn't accepted into the anthology so I'll self-publish that one myself when I can find the time. Right after I figure out what kind of cover you put on a story about pirate cats and cat mermaids that doesn't look like a children's book.
I did start book 2 today and I think it's off to a good start. Wordage was 1305.
74 little words which is more than I thought I'd get a half hour ago
No words yesterday. 3770 words today. I'm doing everything I can to manage my carpal tunnel right now but I may just need to push through the pain to make this looming deadline. If I can finish it, I can take a rest while my editor works on it.
285 words today. Now stuck looking at granite countertops. They're remodeling the kitchen in the story. :shrug
Oh man, this is the best part of the job isn't it? I love looking at house stuff for stories. Check out the vetrazzo, recycled glass.285 words today. Now stuck looking at granite countertops. They're remodeling the kitchen in the story. :shrug
Personally, I'd go for quartz. Grin
285 words today. Now stuck looking at granite countertops. They're remodeling the kitchen in the story. :shrug
Personally, I'd go for quartz. Grin
Oh man, this is the best part of the job isn't it? I love looking at house stuff for stories. Check out the vetrazzo, recycled glass.285 words today. Now stuck looking at granite countertops. They're remodeling the kitchen in the story. :shrug
Personally, I'd go for quartz. Grin
Today, I'm researching sperm donation, artificial insemination and plan b.
285 words today. Now stuck looking at granite countertops. They're remodeling the kitchen in the story. :shrug
Personally, I'd go for quartz. Grin
I know. My co-author really wants granite and it makes sense for the character. I think we're going to use River White Granite and a soft blue glass subway tile. Their view is Puget Sound in the San Juan Islands...so blue seems like a good choice with the white cabinets.
Here's our inspiration picture from Pinterest. We've had this for a while.
(https://scontent-sea1-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.15752-9/69952314_924362964597248_8008206882646786048_n.png?_nc_cat=103&_nc_eui2=AeGEKMOh8jXSk5cwdp4SjI7otjXsprAevX4dn1dYbxbIXxHLid1xnH0QEal6Z4QiyY_c8mknz86aHaEFmFmx7PqnP896dSnTOAhPPOeQH4FIVg&_nc_oc=AQn9_BJGv0r6UqYevJ8Vwcr2uO19gMKxJ6Wk6vheUF6zVegUEPsPywK9HZx_CrtrJLE&_nc_ht=scontent-sea1-1.xx&oh=169ada2a166dfdc7cc066cfefe8370c5&oe=5DF44805)
I priced the vetrazzo for my tiny island kitchen in my old house. 2 ft by 4 ft. It was ridiculous.Oh man, this is the best part of the job isn't it? I love looking at house stuff for stories. Check out the vetrazzo, recycled glass.285 words today. Now stuck looking at granite countertops. They're remodeling the kitchen in the story. :shrug
Personally, I'd go for quartz. Grin
Today, I'm researching sperm donation, artificial insemination and plan b.
Here I was so happy with my quartz countertops. I'm still happy with the kitchen quartz, but I used Formica in the bathrooms. Now I want the glass for my bathroom but it is a really, really long countertop. I should never look at home improvement stuff.285 words today. Now stuck looking at granite countertops. They're remodeling the kitchen in the story. :shrug
Personally, I'd go for quartz. Grin
I know. My co-author really wants granite and it makes sense for the character. I think we're going to use River White Granite and a soft blue glass subway tile. Their view is Puget Sound in the San Juan Islands...so blue seems like a good choice with the white cabinets.
Here's our inspiration picture from Pinterest. We've had this for a while.
(https://scontent-sea1-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.15752-9/69952314_924362964597248_8008206882646786048_n.png?_nc_cat=103&_nc_eui2=AeGEKMOh8jXSk5cwdp4SjI7otjXsprAevX4dn1dYbxbIXxHLid1xnH0QEal6Z4QiyY_c8mknz86aHaEFmFmx7PqnP896dSnTOAhPPOeQH4FIVg&_nc_oc=AQn9_BJGv0r6UqYevJ8Vwcr2uO19gMKxJ6Wk6vheUF6zVegUEPsPywK9HZx_CrtrJLE&_nc_ht=scontent-sea1-1.xx&oh=169ada2a166dfdc7cc066cfefe8370c5&oe=5DF44805)
White subway tile is so cold and commercial, but I could definitely go for soft blue glass subway tile.
Funny, I was just last night thinking about the kitchen in my new book. The house is a colonial.
Didn't get any writing done but I'm up to 115 pages edited. Boy am I finding a lot of mistakes especially in the kitchen description. It seems like I couldn't make up my mind but now I have.If you ever want to talk interior design, I'm here for you. I think part of my husband lives in fear of me hitting it big and what that will mean in the house department.
Thanks for the inspiration, Lori and Amanda.
4849 words today and I typed THE END! That's the first draft in the bag. 83,378 words total.
4849 words today and I typed THE END! That's the first draft in the bag. 83,378 words total.
4849 words today and I typed THE END! That's the first draft in the bag. 83,378 words total.
4849 words today and I typed THE END! That's the first draft in the bag. 83,378 words total.
Awesome!
And I had fun looking at the kitchen pictures as I caught up on reading this thread.
This week has been abysmal for my writing but I managed 100 words today (which makes me feel marginally better about spending $20 on a book promotion today that has netted 0 sales--lesson learned).
Does 50 works on an outline count?
This thread looks encouraging to slowpokes like me compared to ones with steeper counts that seem insurmountable at most times.
Does 50 works on an outline count?
This thread looks encouraging to slowpokes like me compared to ones with steeper counts that seem insurmountable at most times.
Does 50 works on an outline count?
This thread looks encouraging to slowpokes like me compared to ones with steeper counts that seem insurmountable at most times.
Definitely! :goodpost:
I made a new cover yesterday! Didn't get much writing done, but I did have 496 words from the night before. About 1/5 of the way through my book.
Although I like the big house and kitchen in this series, the next one will have a much smaller, vintage cottage on the San Juan Islands. Here are a few inspiration photos I like from home, my happy place on Facebook...except I'd have beadboard for the kitchen backsplash instead of subway tiles.
(https://scontent-sea1-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/67715513_2365585913731197_4998828851455852544_n.jpg?_nc_cat=104&_nc_eui2=AeE9VQM9_csySrIwBkDCTwlVRZ-69eLohPde9csjVyrtn2nYzLLBYRVFtQ64ObKaRLYUuRe0cY4Izt5gPhkbI3xPhxybtIgu-awkdRmku4sW0Q&_nc_oc=AQlqu4sR8TIlAOqWYqzkTIV0TMHpkevSR6nDcnBHOECsWXA0y6u-8xsku1IU9gtOo-8&_nc_ht=scontent-sea1-1.xx&oh=775ea535303cdedb51083c13f3f0d16a&oe=5DFADC1A)
(https://scontent-sea1-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/67743130_2365585860397869_8269776665920405504_n.jpg?_nc_cat=101&_nc_eui2=AeHrF6QBLw45bxHF511maCVEGd1SLH_2mfWlpSo-JcfRyrp49mcxOrbUDrdStYhOfeJwn-qAfN4VW40WgramassiUHXThegK0t_PKGewwAWbag&_nc_oc=AQkl0mwcPrgqUBcEgc_aJ4C2p_gaSQLxbAANWg6BpBXZhELNiLmm2d-AfZRaBRqvRmU&_nc_ht=scontent-sea1-1.xx&oh=15d30ee6fae3f0dc3bee748c82fc362a&oe=5E04C9E4)
Although I like the big house and kitchen in this series, the next one will have a much smaller, vintage cottage on the San Juan Islands. Here are a few inspiration photos I like from home, my happy place on Facebook...except I'd have beadboard for the kitchen backsplash instead of subway tiles.
(https://scontent-sea1-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/67715513_2365585913731197_4998828851455852544_n.jpg?_nc_cat=104&_nc_eui2=AeE9VQM9_csySrIwBkDCTwlVRZ-69eLohPde9csjVyrtn2nYzLLBYRVFtQ64ObKaRLYUuRe0cY4Izt5gPhkbI3xPhxybtIgu-awkdRmku4sW0Q&_nc_oc=AQlqu4sR8TIlAOqWYqzkTIV0TMHpkevSR6nDcnBHOECsWXA0y6u-8xsku1IU9gtOo-8&_nc_ht=scontent-sea1-1.xx&oh=775ea535303cdedb51083c13f3f0d16a&oe=5DFADC1A)
If you have white cabinets, then white appliances will just blend in and the focus can be on knobs, the wall color and vintage table and chairs. This is one of my favorites...without the red range. Love the table and chairs with the knobs and other accessories!
My characters have wonderful luck at estate or yard sales and second hand shops. My grandmother could always find treasures at these places, so it can happen. Especially in a book! :angel:
(https://cdn.trendir.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/mix-and-match-color.jpg)
I love the kitchen in Practical Magic. And it opens up onto a greenhouse! Happy happy joy joy.
Space Opera: I wrote 50 words on Saturday but only 35 words on Sunday putting me in danger of being kicked out of this thread!
Semi-Gritty Urban Superhero Thing: I wrote 350 words on Saturday and 120 words on Sunday. Working on a courtroom scene so I get to play a lawyer. But, it's not modern day so I don't have to be a stickler for courtroom rules, laws and procedures and all that stuff. Research, meh. Who needs it? ;)
I have a giant dieffenbachia you can put in it.I love the kitchen in Practical Magic. And it opens up onto a greenhouse! Happy happy joy joy.
Yes! A Victorian house would have a conservatory/greenhouse off one room. I'll have to add that.
You should watch the old Perry Mason series. Being a former paralegal, I sometimes cringe at the ethics violations he just blithely commits.
You should watch the old Perry Mason series. Being a former paralegal, I sometimes cringe at the ethics violations he just blithely commits.
Been many moons since I've seen a Perry Mason episode. I vaguely remember Matlock.
My faves were L.A. Law and Boston Legal. And, of course, Night Court.
I have a giant dieffenbachia you can put in it.I love the kitchen in Practical Magic. And it opens up onto a greenhouse! Happy happy joy joy.
Yes! A Victorian house would have a conservatory/greenhouse off one room. I'll have to add that.
L.A. Law and Night Court, definitely. Never did see Boston Legal.
As a side note, Dan Larroquette played an attorney on both Night Court and Boston Legal.
I'm between drafts and currently doing a re-read of books 1-3 of Wheel of Fire. I'm taking notes as I go, notes of things that I think I'll need to know when I write the second draft of book 4.
A side bonus of this re-read is that it gives me an opportunity to spot errors. I've found one; I use the wrong name at one point. :HB I've fixed it and, as soon as my re-read of that book is complete, I'll be uploading corrected versions.
A side bonus of this re-read is that it gives me an opportunity to spot errors. I've found one; I use the wrong name at one point. :HB I've fixed it and, as soon as my re-read of that book is complete, I'll be uploading corrected versions.
Arrr, mateys! I be editin' five chapters o' me tale today.
(Happy Talk Like a Pirate Day!)
Yesterday, um, I wrote 10 words for the semi-gritty urban superhero thing and, er, 0 words for the space opera. I must have edited or did something with the space opera yesterday because I did update the file, but no new words were added. :icon_think:
12,036 written today
12,036 written today
Yesterday, um, I wrote 10 words for the semi-gritty urban superhero thing and, er, 615 words for the space opera.
I was going to bang out a lot of words for the space opera last night, hoping to make up for Thursday. I was going to come here and tell you how I wrote 5,000 words for the space opera. LOL. The best I got was 615. And even if I had hit 5,000, it would have paled in comparison to 12,036. :eek:
So, I would have lost either way. This way, at least, it took less effort to lose. :banana-riding-llama-smiley-em
That's still better than my big, fat 0 for yesterday.
That's still better than my big, fat 0 for yesterday.
But you were working on revisions from your editor, so that counts as writing work even if you didn't otherwise create more wordage.
12,036 written today
Awesome work!
12,036 written today
Wow, my hands hurt just thinking about that amount of work. That's awesome!
I edited the last five chapters today and sent the manuscript off to my editor! I might take a few days off before I start on the next book. We'll see how my health does. I may have another issue cropping up now that I need to see a doctor about.
Yesterday, um, I wrote 10 words (hat trick!!!) for the semi-gritty urban superhero thing and 125 words for the space opera.I have the same issue with boredom of a scene already written in my head, and I have a solution that works for me. I don't let myself think about my books when I'm not actively writing.
I think the problem is that the story moves faster than I can write. On the superhero thing, I've been writing the same scene for several days now. In my head, I've moved on to other parts. The second part of the chapter played out in my head several days ago. So the scene I'm writing has become boring because I've already played it out who knows how many times now and by the time I get to the second part, it will have run several times already too. Plus, I've got another character I mentioned the other day that will need to be introduced and just this morning I came up with another. So the story moves faster than I can write so by the time I find a few minutes to write, it goes slower because it's like "been there, done that." I believe it's the same phenomenon that, when I later revisit a backburner project, I discover I don't have nearly as many words written down as I thought I did. But because I've watched the scene(s) play out in my head so many times, it feels like I've already written it all out. But I haven't.
And then the current chapter in the space opera has gone a completely different direction than originally intended. My fault for trying to add in some detail to make an otherwise ho-hum scene get some life into it. So, then rather than simply walking to their destination, well, stuff happens and their destination isn't there anymore. Which means the whole reason for the scene, for plot and character development, needs to be written in somewhere else now.
My mind is boggled at the prospect of writing 12k words in a single day. That beats Amanda Lee's usual quota of 9k (though she also edits 9k per day, so maybe not the best comparison). The most I've ever done was a little over 4k in one day.
Congratulations, Matt, on a notable accomplishment. :cheers
But, aside from all of that, I'm here to cheer everyone on no matter how many words they happen to crank out. It's really remaining productive in general that's the most important thing. If it's 5 words a day or 5000, as long as you keep plugging away. I'm just happy to have the time available to push and produce as many new words as I can, or as many I feel satisfied with.
K-nines
K-nines
Did you dictate that and that's how your software interpreted it? Because canines would be the same number of characters so there's no savings there for your fingers. Abbreviating would be K9s or maybe K-9s. :icon_think:
Forgot to include the latest drawing:(http://www.dcrblogs.com/clients/dcrwrites/space-dancing-20190924-0107.png)
Still doing one a day. Practice obviously doesn't make perfect. LOL.
I figure this one is the member of some intergalactic boy band. Or maybe just Earth but they perform in space. It's a highly advanced bubble helmet that contains a special interior coating that converts carbon dioxide into oxygen and carbon. The oxygen allows the dancer to continue breathing and the carbon adds strength to the helmet and is structured in such as way as to maintain its transparency. Advanced science stuff, probably stolen from aliens who will one day come and wipe us out for using advanced technology for stupid stuff like letting boy bands perform in space.
32,814 edited today
it was a slog
is there a 'sleepy' emoji?
I'm afraid I won't be writing for a few days. I bent over to change the sheets on my bed and my back went in to spasm. Couldn't walk at all yesterday but today, I can hobble around with a cane.
Back to bed.
I'm afraid I won't be writing for a few days. I bent over to change the sheets on my bed and my back went in to spasm. Couldn't walk at all yesterday but today, I can hobble around with a cane.
Back to bed.
I hope you feel better soon! :dog1:
I'm afraid I won't be writing for a few days. I bent over to change the sheets on my bed and my back went in to spasm. Couldn't walk at all yesterday but today, I can hobble around with a cane.
Back to bed.
I'm afraid I won't be writing for a few days. I bent over to change the sheets on my bed and my back went in to spasm. Couldn't walk at all yesterday but today, I can hobble around with a cane.My sympathies. I hope it gets better quickly!
Back to bed.
I'm afraid I won't be writing for a few days. I bent over to change the sheets on my bed and my back went in to spasm. Couldn't walk at all yesterday but today, I can hobble around with a cane.
Back to bed.
Feel better. I'll swear you were doing something heroic when it happened if needed. Hate the injuries from everyday stuff.
I was going to say kittens, but okay.
If you have a link you can share on the magic socks, I would really like to know about those. Debilitating back spasms and me are old frenemies. I didn't know they changed the advice on bedrest either, so thanks for sharing that Matt.
:confused: BTW, why did this thread get into Bar & Grill area? :confused:
Yesterday, I wrote 185 words for the semi-gritty urban superhero thing and 50 words for the space opera.
Also, yesterday and today, I have been recreating the cover for my upcoming book so I think that should count for something too. grint
Yesterday, I wrote 185 words for the semi-gritty urban superhero thing and 50 words for the space opera.
Also, yesterday and today, I have been recreating the cover for my upcoming book so I think that should count for something too. grint
Agreed, cover design time should count towards word counts.
Okay, starting now it officially does.
In the spirit of that, I've created this handy chart:
5 mins. spent designing cover = 5,000 words written
10 mins. = 18,500 words
15 mins. = 36,775 words
I see nothing wrong with my math here. :hehe
Yesterday, I wrote 185 words for the semi-gritty urban superhero thing and 50 words for the space opera.
Also, yesterday and today, I have been recreating the cover for my upcoming book so I think that should count for something too. grint
Agreed, cover design time should count towards word counts.
Okay, starting now it officially does.
In the spirit of that, I've created this handy chart:
5 mins. spent designing cover = 5,000 words written
10 mins. = 18,500 words
15 mins. = 36,775 words
I see nothing wrong with my math here. :hehe
I canmess aroundspend four hours getting a cover just right so that would be 588,400 words. Yup, sounds right to me.
Yesterday, I wrote 185 words for the semi-gritty urban superhero thing and 50 words for the space opera.
Also, yesterday and today, I have been recreating the cover for my upcoming book so I think that should count for something too. grint
Agreed, cover design time should count towards word counts.
Okay, starting now it officially does.
In the spirit of that, I've created this handy chart:
5 mins. spent designing cover = 5,000 words written
10 mins. = 18,500 words
15 mins. = 36,775 words
I see nothing wrong with my math here. :hehe
I didn't know they'd changed the requirements for a paperback from 300dpi to 600dpi. Or is that something you do for maximum resolution?
For the month, I wrote 9,928 total words which gave me a daily average of 330.93 words.
For the month, I wrote 9,928 total words which gave me a daily average of 330.93 words.
Better than George R.R. Martin. Grin
Now I'm afraid it's going to cost me more than I paid for it to get it fixed.
I looked online for a replacement keyboard but nobody has one for my model. Might as well junk the darned thing.
Unfortunately, the space key sticks and sometimes it takes twenty or thirty seconds for words to show up on the screen.
Now I'm afraid it's going to cost me more than I paid for it to get it fixed.
I looked online for a replacement keyboard but nobody has one for my model. Might as well junk the darned thing.
Can't it use a USB keyboard?
Or maybe there's gunk beneath the keyboard keys that need cleaning out?
Unfortunately, the space key sticks and sometimes it takes twenty or thirty seconds for words to show up on the screen.
My space bar was sticking and I figured out it was the little metal hinge under the key. It needed to be bent just a little to fix it. Maybe the pounding your grandson did on the keyboard while gaming could have done something similar to yours?
I don't have a clue what's taking it so long to get words to show up on the screen though, if it's related to the sticking space bar. :)
In my chat with the HP computer, she had me try a couple of things. Since I couldn't get to the set-up menu, it nicely told me it was a hardware problem and I needed to replace it. Since I can't even buy the keyboard anywhere, I might try to pop up the space bar and see what happens. Can't be any worse. It just seemed like it didn't want to pop.
4,348 written in my outline today
not a lot of words considering I'd spent 9 hours on the thing today, but it was tough sledding creatively, and I still have a ways to go
why am I a writer again?
:Hqn66ku:
Lynn, no one gets kicked off for having a bad day.
I've had a bad few weeks, when it comes to writing...but I've had my hands full with these three little cuties!
(https://lavenderlassbooks.files.wordpress.com/2019/10/kittens.jpg?w=507&h=380)
Lynn, no one gets kicked off for having a bad day.
I've had a bad few weeks, when it comes to writing...but I've had my hands full with these three little cuties!
(https://lavenderlassbooks.files.wordpress.com/2019/10/kittens.jpg?w=507&h=380)
3,774 words! I finished my fairytale. :smilie_zauber:
No writing today...but made two videos for my books. :smilie_zauber:
No writing today...but made two videos for my books. :smilie_zauber:
Excellent! Will you post them here?
Just finished 1,181 words bringing me to 28.5K words and 120 pages.
So much trouble getting started today. Bet it'll show tomorrow when I post my word count for today. :writethink:
I saw him in another thread. I think he's glowing eyes right now. :catrun
*Shivers* I'm just getting used to a frost in the morning.
Wrote 67 words yesterday, thanks to this thread and my (now) 85 day streak of writing every day.
No words yesterday because...blizzard. It looks like Christmas instead of Halloween!
And six degrees this morning. (Fahrenheit, not Celsius.) I am NOT ready for winter yet. :lalala
(https://tse1.mm.bing.net/th?id=OIP.dpQqKTKOKaUY42YP3z-67QHaHa&pid=Api&P=0&w=300&h=300)
(Photo courtesy of Facebook)
Hiding from us, no doubt. :dog1: :catrun
Dan's word count for the day is 1,478. :tup3b
Hiding from us, no doubt. :dog1: :catrun
Not really. I was off WS for two or three weeks to, among other reasons, wrap up my latest book. I wanted it out by the Halloween and I had missed my original release dates of October 1st and October 11th, so I was determined to release it on the 21st. So I spent a whole lotta time on it to proofread and edit it. Mind you, I had done that prior to sending it to my beta reader, but found stuff I'd missed. I ran it through spellcheck and made those corrections. Sometimes, there are words that are not spelled wrong but spellcheck thinks they are, so I spent some time uncorrecting words in some cases only to go back and correct them again. Also, there are words that are both hyphenated and not and spellcheck likes one but not the other, and checking online came up with different results so, in the end, on some words, I picked a source I trusted and made sure all usages of the compound words were consistent (hyphen or not) throughout the book.
Finally got it all ready to go and had it formatted and then, the evening of the 20th, while doing a final check, discovered I had used a name that's in use elsewhere. Maybe it wouldn't have been a problem, but I wasn't going to take any chances. So, come morning, I changed the name to be on the safe side. Finished formatting it, again, and uploaded to Amazon . . . wherein it got stuck. Rather than pending, or whatever, it was stuck in not finalized or something mode wherein it said I hadn't completed all the steps but also wouldn't let me do anything with it. After a couple hours, it hadn't changed so I thought, heck, I'm sending a support request. I had already tried clearing my browser cache and even using a different browser to no avail.
The next day, I get a message (canned) saying how sorry they are that I am having problems accessing their website and that I should clear my browser's cache and all that. Oy.
Meanwhile, however, the book had gone live so I guess it was stuck in manual review.
Once live, I started running AMS ads for it, hoping to get some sales on this one.
So far, zippo, which is a bit of a bummer but, on the other hand, at this point I am used to my books not selling.
Anyways, last week or so, I came upon an eBay listing for a Newton keyboard. I should mention first that I have an Apple Newton MessagePad that I am quite fond of. I'd long wanted a keyboard, not that I cannot use the onscreen keyboard but just that it'd be nice to type sometimes. Mind you, I have an eMate 300 that does have a keyboard, but I haven't done the hinge repair on it so I try not to use it until I get brave enough to try to do the fix. Anyway, so on Monday, the keyboard arrives and, excited to try it out, I get my Newton out and give it a whirl.
Keyboard doesn't work. Seller said it was tested and it worked. Is that true? I dunno. Meanwhile, I discover that all the data from my Newton is gone which is a major bummer. At that point, I wasn't concerned with the keyboard anymore. It gave me a warning that I needed to replace the battery or all data would be lost but I am pretty sure all data had been lost prior to that point.
You see, unbeknownst to me, or if it had been beknownst to me I had long since forgotten, the memory relies on power from the batteries. There are the main batteries it runs on (four AAAs) and a backup battery (a 2032). I had removed the AAA batteries a year or so ago after leakages had caused some minor damage to the inside.
I should explain that the Newton has a power issue that needs to be repaired. Also requires a bit of bravery because the instructions come with warnings your Newton may not survive the attempt. So, I haven't used it much because the batteries die out quickly or I forget about them and they leak. So, I took them out to prevent further damage from leaking.
That was a stupid move. Good for preventing physical damage--bad for maintaining the data.
The backup battery, being the sole battery in there, died, resulting in data loss.
Now, had I known or remembered it required power to maintain the memory, I would have kept batteries in it.
Anyway, so all the data is gone. And it hasn't been backed up in 24 years. I have a partial excuse in that the computer that it connects to with its special connector died five years ago. But, I could have taken photographs or whatever but nope. I didn't. Stupid me.
One note on there had some sentimental value. I was initially optimistic that this note had been preserved in the last backup, but, nope, the last backup was performed two days before that note was written. On the plus side, four years ago, I did have the presence of mind to copy the contents of that note to a file on my iPad and I have a copy of that on my computer. So I still have the content of the note and I can probably later recreate a reasonable facsimile of it on my Newton if I want to maintain a copy on there. Won't be quite the same but better than nothing.
And I cannot seem to find a number of the applications that are on the Newton. Most are still there but at least one is gone. Hopefully, I installed it prior to the last backup because I cannot find the original install files anywhere. The only thing I can think of is that they might have been on a Zip disk that went bad before I could copy its contents to other media because I have two dead Zip disks from that time period that are bad. There used to be a site online that archived Newton programs, but it crashed a year and a half ago and is still offline. So, hopefully, those programs are on the backup I do have.
The worst part is not knowing what was lost. I don't think there was anything critical on there and I'd like to hope that anything important had been copied elsewhere, but I can't remember for certain. On the one hand, I didn't use it that often. I'd pull it out now and then and put fresh batteries in a use it for a week before the batteries ran down and then I remembered why I didn't use it that often. And, also, a lot of times I just played a couple games that are on it, so hopefully, I haven't lost anything important.
Its greatest value was the time machine aspect in that I could start it up and see what things I had done way back when. I have made a file and written down things I think might have been on there but I don't remember how long it's been since I last used it so I can't remember what all might have been on there. And it's the not knowing that's the difficult part. If I could see what was there, I might be like, oh, okay, I got all the important stuff. But, not being able to see what's there and not remembering what's there, it's like, am I missing anything important?
I mean, my phone and iPad are far more capable than the Newton and I use the iPad almost daily but the Newton's been there for years and not knowing what things I might have recorded on there is a bummer. I keep thinking of trying to build some kind of external power pack so it can run longer but who knows if I'll ever get to that. I guess it's that the Newton is old and past its prime so maybe that's why I like it so. I guess it's just like me in that now neither one of us can remember our adventures together.
Anyway, so that's been a bummer. I'm awaiting a new 2032 and some rechargeable AAA batteries from Amazon. After that, I'll see if I can figure out if I have a computer I can use to restore it from the 24 year old backup.
I've still been writing daily, trying to finish the space opera. I'm not going to go back and post all the past totals, but I'll post the end of the month total after tomorrow and maybe start up with daily reports in November.
Sorry that happened, Dan. :icon_sad:
Here's a friendly household tip for Mr. Evil Entity. When you batteries leak corrosive acid, all you need is a q-tip and alcohol to clean it up. Of course, it goes without saying so I'll say it, put in fresh batteries.
The space opera is at around 85k words now. Original plan was 80-90k, I think, so it's gonna end up longer. Maybe 120k. I don't want to go 250k like the last one (which isn't selling).
The space opera is at around 85k words now. Original plan was 80-90k, I think, so it's gonna end up longer. Maybe 120k. I don't want to go 250k like the last one (which isn't selling).
Any natural breaks in the 250K that you could divide it up and do a permafree on part 1?
The space opera is at around 85k words now. Original plan was 80-90k, I think, so it's gonna end up longer. Maybe 120k. I don't want to go 250k like the last one (which isn't selling).
Any natural breaks in the 250K that you could divide it up and do a permafree on part 1?
Not really. But since Amazon's "Look Inside" shows the first 10% of the story, which amounts to about thirteen chapters, that's pretty much a permafree right there. :hehe
I read half that and it was awesome. :D My God. The ..... friend stuff and the repetition of the .... spell absolutely made me laugh out loud, for real. I didn't want to pollute your also boughts so I didn't buy, but maybe you don't care about that so much?
I read half that and it was awesome. :D My God. The ..... friend stuff and the repetition of the .... spell absolutely made me laugh out loud, for real. I didn't want to pollute your also boughts so I didn't buy, but maybe you don't care about that so much?
Thanks. I was concerned about it because it gets a little darker deeper into the book and I was worried I didn't keep up the humor enough to match the expectations set by the early chapters but my beta reader enjoyed it, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that she won't be alone in that.
I don't worry about also-boughts; I get so few sales on any of my books that I doubt the also-boughts have any statistical validity for my books anyway.
We published the first part of the book on Halloween! :catrun
Hopefully, we'll get the rest done by Thanksgiving...or early December. It's a long serialized story, so it's not the first time we've published a partial book. I doubt I'll ever do it again (serialized story and with a co-author) but it has been fun. LOL
Today I'm starting out 2,171 words to the negative because I just deleted a chunk of text from one of my novels in progress. :writethink: This is when I really wish I tracked my words differently. It's going to be a bear today getting my count up to 1,714 so I can stay on track with my attempt to participate in nano this year.
We published the first part of the book on Halloween! :catrun
Today I'm starting out 2,171 words to the negative because I just deleted a chunk of text from one of my novels in progress. :writethink: This is when I really wish I tracked my words differently. It's going to be a bear today getting my count up to 1,714 so I can stay on track with my attempt to participate in nano this year.
Well, you could move the deleted words to the end of the document to be deleted later. That way, you can still count how many words were written for the day without having to figure out how to deal with deletions.
In my case, I'm usually only deleting a small number of words at a time. So a random word here and there is easy to "make up" for in a day's writing session. Technically, you might have written 105 words, but it only shows up as 90 because of deletions or whatever.
I do have notes within the document that kind of pad the overall word count (though, when starting new documents, I make a note of how many words of notes I have and keep those close to the notes so I can quickly figure out the length of the actual manuscript by checking that count and deducting from the total word count). There are times I could simply delete the notes, but then the overall word count drops and if I do that in the middle of the month, it makes tracking words per month more difficult. So, if I delete notes, I wait until the first day of the month. Usually, though, since they are at the end of the document (sometimes the beginning), I will use a strike-thru on the notes I'm done with rather than delete them.Like this.Keeps the word count the same but I can easily see what can be deleted later. Again, those are at the end (or beginning) of the document, so it's not like they are mixed in with the active text, which would be a nightmare to hunt down later.
Like, right now, I said the space opera is about 85k words long. It's actually maybe closer to 84k since there are about a thousand words of notes.
On the lame space opera, I did at one point delete about 5k words in the middle of the month, so I made a note on the sheet of paper where I track my daily word counts and separated the halves of the month so I could keep track of the word count still. Or maybe I didn't because now I can't find the note where I thought I did that.
:shrug
Anyway, just some ideas.
I only use a spreadsheet for the "big picture" and not my daily word counts.
For the daily word counts, I have a sheet of note paper. Pocket-sized, though I almost never carry a pad in my pocket, but I make them that size for consistency and in case I do, and there are cases for when I do, just not for word counts. Anyway, the top of the sheet has the starting word count, which is typically the word count from the end of the previous month. Then, each day, I write the new total word count and next to it is where I write the words written for that day. Occasionally, I resort to using a calculator, but I try to do the math in my head. I figure it's a good idea to give the brain exercise and not rely on machines all the time.
For the "big picture" I have a spreadsheet listing all my books and planned books. I update periodically with how many words are completed per book. I don't have a set period for when I update. I updated once in 2016, once in 2017, three times last year and five times so far this year. Usually, I just update when I finish something or think of another WIP to add.
For example, when looking through the notes I had from my Newton from the last backup (two days before the note I wanted to be sure to keep - oy), I found a note for my writing. Evidently, I had planned to write a screenplay for a short story I had written five years earlier. Never did write said screenplay and not sure there'd be a point in doing so now, but that was the plan back then. Also, I had planned to finish writing two novels that, twenty-five years later, remain unfinished. LOL. The other one was to write a novel with a title I don't recognize, so obviously it's something I've forgotten. Do I add that to my WIPs? Well, if I could remember what it was supposed to be about, I would.
But, that's typically when I update, when something is finished, when I have a new idea for a book or when I find a note for an idea I had a long time ago. Then each work has an estimated word count for completion. More like a target amount.
And then I'll update my current average word count. I think the last time I took the average of several months, maybe the year so far, not sure, but I then use that to calculate how many years it will take me to finish everything on the list. I really, really need to get back up to a minimum of 1,000 words a day average. Otherwise, it will take me 72 years to finish everything. At 1,000 words a day (minimum), I can wrap them up in about 13 years.
I'm still feeling bummed about losing the data on my Newton. What makes it even worse is that there is an option to backup the data to the card which is installed in the device. I think I thought it was full, but it had enough room to back up all the data on the device. If only I had tapped the "backup" button, all the data would have been saved. But, no, stupid me, I never tried that. So, 24 years of data gone.
REMEMBER - Do not delete journals again!
You very much regret doing it before. Don't make that mistake again.
Bump to put this at the top.
Wrote 5,862 yesterday.
*These kind of days are kind of special to me. :D My best word count for one day is still in the 6k range. So yay!!!
Wrote 5,862 yesterday.
*These kind of days are kind of special to me. :D My best word count for one day is still in the 6k range. So yay!!!
I wrote 2,608 words yesterday.
And finally finished one of the many wips I have going. :D
Oh no! What happened?
Oh no! What happened?
Instead of starting a new file on my AlphaSmart, which I do every night, I forgot and started tonight's work at the end of yesterday's file. When I realized what I'd done, I selected the new wordage, intending to copy it into a new file. I wanted to make sure it copied over before I deleted it. I don't use the commands very often on the AS so I turned it over to double check. My fingers hit something and all of the selected text was gone. Just gone forever. :dizzy
I can recreate it, I'm sure. I'm just feeling too discouraged to try right now. I don't think this has ever happened to me before. I've always been able to recover anything I accidentally deleted and even accidental deletions have very rarely happened.
Where's Hermione when I need her?
Thanks for all the support, guys. I'm determined to write even better words tonight.
1,882 much better words. I couldn't stop writing and had to force myself to stop. YAY. I think I just turned lemons into lemonade. Up to 204 pages and 48K total words.
Can't wait to finish this scene tomorrow night. I feel like I'm galloping to the end.
1,667 which brings the story to 217 pages with a total of 51.1K words.
4600 so far today, and that makes 28,000 in the past 5 days.
I'm only 3000 from finishing the novel, it's 7.30 in the evening and I'm feeling pretty good. So, I guess I'll keep going ;-)
966 words today. Hopefully, I'll get another scene done tonight! Imagine this as a jazz trio. LOL :band:
966 words today. Hopefully, I'll get another scene done tonight! Imagine this as a jazz trio. LOL :band:
1201 words tonight totaling 226 pages with 52.3K words and THE END!!! Lorri, may I borrow your jazz trio? :band:
Still a bit shaky. Thought I'd lost the file again. Somehow, another file had overwritten it but this time I was able to retrieve the original file, only losing a couple of lines. I finished up the scene and added an Epilogue leading to Book 3. Not a cliffhanger.
Another 564 words and the party is really swinging. LOL I'm more in the mood for holiday music now.
REWRITE ~ But I think it will be even better. I'm redoing a few things in the last two chapters. (They've found another body.) :catrun
I love checking in and seeing all your posts. I only wish I was as consistently productive! :D
I keep trying to keep up but the way I count words means I've had a few negative days so I feel weird posting in a 50+ words a day no matter what thread. :D
However, in the last 9 days I've accumulated 371 words even including the negatives. So not a total fail? :D
I'm trying to keep my daily writing streak alive, and succeeding, but I'm thinking I might have to set a lower bar, because right now I have so many low-word days that I feel like I'm cheating!
No idea how many words I added/subtracted/changed, or even how many pages I edited tonight, but I finished. Just one more pass through. I think I'm safe to set up the pre-order.
1,168 words. This party has been crazy. What was I thinking having 50+ characters in costume??? :angel:
ETA: I hope to have this part finished tonight!
Finished editing Book One. YAY.
After adding and subtracting, I ended up with four more pages (255) and about 1k more words (60.7K)
Now I'm going to have to divide my time between editing book two and writing book three. Tonight will definitely be writing time. I don't want to lose the flow.
934 words last night and 1,703 this morning. It always picks up towards the end of the story. :smilie_zauber:
Still working on the second draft. Word count is around 94k, though like I said before, that's not my concern at the moment so much as fixing inconsistencies and whatnot.
The good news is that I've sorted out what I want to do with the soldiers' bio-hoods. That was bugging me. I still need to come up with some place names to replace the placeholder names I'm currently using, but there's only a few of them, so that shouldn't be too hard.
There are a couple of places in the book that make me a little teary-eyed every time I go over them, and that's a good sign. It means I'm hitting the emotional mark. Hopefully the readers will feel the same.
Still working on the second draft. Word count is around 94k, though like I said before, that's not my concern at the moment so much as fixing inconsistencies and whatnot.
The good news is that I've sorted out what I want to do with the soldiers' bio-hoods. That was bugging me. I still need to come up with some place names to replace the placeholder names I'm currently using, but there's only a few of them, so that shouldn't be too hard.
There are a couple of places in the book that make me a little teary-eyed every time I go over them, and that's a good sign. It means I'm hitting the emotional mark. Hopefully the readers will feel the same.
"Read it and weep. I always do." Joan Wilder, Romancing the Stone.
I know I've done a good job if I get a little teary eyed here and there.
Still working on the second draft. Word count is around 94k, though like I said before, that's not my concern at the moment so much as fixing inconsistencies and whatnot.
The good news is that I've sorted out what I want to do with the soldiers' bio-hoods. That was bugging me. I still need to come up with some place names to replace the placeholder names I'm currently using, but there's only a few of them, so that shouldn't be too hard.
There are a couple of places in the book that make me a little teary-eyed every time I go over them, and that's a good sign. It means I'm hitting the emotional mark. Hopefully the readers will feel the same.
"Read it and weep. I always do." Joan Wilder, Romancing the Stone.
I know I've done a good job if I get a little teary eyed here and there.
Love the end of this. And I watched the movie long before I wrote books. LOL
I finished!!! 4,277 words this morning. End of the book and the series. :smilie_zauber:
I finished!!! 4,277 words this morning. End of the book and the series. :smilie_zauber:
Destination, determination, deliberation, paid off. And now you can apparate, too!!
:banana: :dance: :banana:
A few more words written on the blurb. Not 50, but it feels more like 50K.
Second draft is done. :banana:
Word count is 100k and change.
Third draft is up next. This is the mobi/line-editing draft.