Goals Summary 2022 – Wk #44
This one’s gonna be quick, Blogland. I’m not at home, I don’t have access to my whiteboard, and as of this writing it is WAY past my bedtime. Let’s get to it! Last Week Nanowrimo Prep Weekly Nano Word Count Goal (8,335 words) Record Podcast Workout/Read 30 minutes a day How’d I Do? Nanowrimo Prep Yes? Yes! I’m prepped and things are progressing. Weekly Nano Word Count Goal (8,335 words) Lol. No. Record Podcast Yes! Workout/Read 30 minutes a day No, but not like, totally horrible either. Weekly Word Count: 5,258 So, here’s the deal. The first week of November is a shitshow, okay? I’m currently writing this from a hotel room I’m sharing with a coworker while it dumps freezing rain beyond the window. And it’s 11 o’clock at night, after a long day of driving, socializing, and wrangling 22 teenagers. Phew. Add to that the PDX Book Fest…
Goals Summary 2022 – Wk #43
Remember last week, when I said I was feeling good? Prepared? *sobs* Last Week Prep Newsletter Nanowrimo Prep Record Podcast Workout/Read 30 minutes a day How’d I Do? Prep Newsletter Nope. Nanowrimo Prep No. Record Podcast No. Workout/Read 30 minutes a day Nope. Weekly Word Count: 0 If you’re looking at this and thinking, “damn B., what the hell happened?” That’s fair. i’ll tell you what happened… one of the worst migraines I’ve had in a long time. It struck Wednesday night after I got my hair done for the first time in months. I don’t know exactly what caused it, but I’m guessing a perfect storm of triggers: strong scents from the hair salon Long period of time without my glasses while getting hair colored and cut change in barometric pressure as Fall weather looms in the valley probably not enough water that day I hadn’t had a migraine…
Nanowrimo Prep 101
National Novel Writing Month (aka Nanowrimo) is right around the corner! If you’re thinking, “B., you write novels (and novellas and short stories and microfiction and and and) year-round! What’s so special about November?” You’re not wrong. But Nanowrimo almost feels like a celebration of novelling. It’s a hectic time of year when it’s so easy to put personal projects aside, and instead writers come together to take on the massive challenge of writing a novel in just one (short) month. In November there’s write-ins and sprints and parties, both locally and online. It’s a chance to work in tandem with like-minded folks that rarely seems to come up any other time of year. This might come as a shock to you, but writing can be a pretty lonesome activity. Any excuse to get together with some sort of writing activity is as good as gold to us. So, YAY…
Goals Summary 2022 – Wk #38
Someone needs to get ahold of whoever is in charge of time and tell them to take a chill pill. I cannot keep up with this calendar, folks. It’s going TOO FAST! Is Ricky Bobby at the helm of this year or what? Last Week Victoria Revision Pass Write 1500 words Read 20 minutes a day Prep Newsletter How’d I Do? Victoria Revision Pass Hahahahaha *sobs* No. Write 1500 words Nope. Read 20 minutes a day Yep! I’m still working my way through The Story of the Hundred Promises, but the Ghost Files series premier came out on Friday and then Trev and I spent Saturday playing silly video games together and split a pizza. I have no regrets. Prep Newsletter Yes! The newsletter is written and scheduled and will be out before this post is published! Weekly Word Count: 870 Look. This isn’t the greatest word count ever. But it…
The Recap – August 2022
Oh, Blogland… How is it September already? Surely that’s illegal? It ought to be illegal for summer to go by without my enjoying a single hike! I want to talk to time’s manager! August Goals Read + Revise Victoria Read 4 Books Survive this month How’d I Do? Read + Revise Victoria Yep! I have read it through (twice!) and finished the first round of revision! Read 4 Books Hahahahahahahaha. No. Survive this month I suppose that, since I am typing this, I am technically alive, which would suggest survival. Sanity is a separate matter… Total Word Count: 2,497 If July was lovely, then August was…. bustling. Between twitter pitch events, day-job responsibilities ramping up, a writing conference, a family reunion, and a pretty ambitious set of goals, it’s a miracle I’m upright! It’s also been hot as balls this month and when I tell you I am sick of sweating… Anyway.…
Goals Summary 2022 – Wk #31
I’m off to a slow start this morning. I’m back home after an amazing weekend at the Willamette Writers Conference, and though I’m happy, my brain is, well, mush. So let’s take a bleary look at last week’s goals and see if I can come up with something to shoot for this week. Last Week Prep elevator pitches for Something Sulfurous and Victoria Prep additional Something Sulfurous pitches for #DVpit Draft packing list/pack for #WilWrite22 Enjoy #WilWrite22 How’d I Do? Prep elevator pitches for Something Sulfurous and Victoria Prep additional Something Sulfurous pitches for #DVpit Yes and No. I didn’t really prep formal pitches/elevator pitches for Something Sulfurous or Victoria. I talked about them more organically with fellow writers than I expected, which I’ll talk more about in my Conference Wrap Up post later this week. However, I did participate in #DVpit and did get an agent like on one of them, which I’ll talk more about later in this…
What is a Literary Agent & Why I Want One
Good morning, Bloggarts. It occurred to me that some of my readers might not know what a literary agent is, why a writer would want/need one, and what the querying process looks like. Since I’ve jumped feet first into this stage of my writing career, let’s talk about it! What is a Literary Agent? A literary agent is someone who represents authors and their work to the editors at publishing houses. Publishing is a giant business with only four major players (Simon & Schuster, Penguin, Hachette, and HarperCollins). Each of these big companies have smaller “imprints” which typically focus on particular genres of work. And at all of these imprints are Acquiring Editors. People who read manuscripts to find books they want the imprint to buy and publish. But, very rarely will an acquiring editor look at an “unsolicited” manuscript. Meaning, a manuscript that isn’t sent to them by a…
Goals Summary 2022 – Wk #26
It’s the 4th of July, which means exactly one thing: I must listen to “4th of July” by Soundgarden today. That’s it. That is the one thing that MUST happen today. In fact, it’s happening right now! Any other “celebrations” will not be had. I may even be a real curmudgeon and complain loudly about amateur fireworks and the inherent danger of letting drunk people blow things up, you know, as a treat. It’s the least I deserve as a newly minted second class citizen in this “great country.” ANYWAY! Let’s talk goals! Last Week Finish Something Sulfurous Read two books by July 1st Post a chapter of fanfic Look at old short stories How’d I Do? Finish Something Sulfurous Yep. Yep yep yep! It is done and the first round of queries have been sent! Read two books by July 1st Yes! Thanks(?) to a migraine, I listened to an audiobook…
State of the Author – 2022
I wrote a post like this last year, over on the old site. There hadn’t been much productivity in 2021. Posts were inconsistent, but the summer saw a sort of rejuvenation for me. I was thinking about writing for the first time in a long time and I was so damn excited about it, that I couldn’t help but take some time to look at the big picture of my work and feel good about it. Since it is officially the last half of the year, I thought it was high time to take a look at how I’m doing. Not just how I’m doing re: 2022 Goals, but what my story stats look like, what news has come out this year, and what projects I’ve finished, and what are still on the table. So let’s. First thing’s first, what is this year’s mantra? REACH This year’s intention is meant…
The Recap – June 2022
Well, being on Day 9 of quarantine wasn’t how I planned to spend the last weeks of June, but here we are. What impact did that have on the month? Let’s find out! June Goals Finish Something Sulfurous revision Polish and submit The Finest Creation of an Artful God Write two chapters of Victoria How’d I Do? Finish Something Sulfurous revision YES! YESYESYESYESYES! It is finished! Polish and submit The Finest Creation of an Artful God Yep. Yeppity-yep. This story is done and on submission. Write two chapters of Victoria Yes. Ahem, most definitely yes. Maybe more like… six chapters? Or you know., all of them? Total Word Count: 20,389 Oh, how not having to go to work every day suddenly makes way for writing endeavors. Being quarantined has also been helpful, in its own way. I haven’t been too ill, but being unable to leave the house means I’ve been in writing mode for basically two weeks…