Pottermore! ROW80 Update 6/23

So this will be the last update until next month! I've got a little break but I feel like I will still do a bit of planning and plotting during the break so I can be more fit for writing next month. I can't wait! I think I'll accomplish much more in the next round than I did this one.

So. . . What does everyone think of the mysterious Pottermore so far? I'm still not quite sure. From what J.K. Rowling said in the video it sounds like a sort of interactive thing to accompany the books, with added content and new information about the Harry Potter world. It's still a bit hazy I think, what it's really going to be.

But even so I can't help but be excited! It sounds like it could be really cool, but I can't help but worry that it may not be as wonderful as I'm hoping.

Nevertheless, I can't wait for October. And perhaps, just maybe, I could be one of the people to get early access to Pottermore on July 31st. I'm at least going to try ;)

What is everyone else thinking about Pottermore? Are you excited about it? What do you think it'll be like?

Other ROW80ers here! Until next month!

Breakthroughs! ROW80 Update 6/19

Hey look, I remembered this Sunday!

This week has been important for my book, I've gotten back to reading my how-to writing books that I had stopped reading for awhile and made two major breakthroughs on the plot! Breakthrough #1 has to do with the villain and I'm super excited about it because it gives him much more depth than he had before and because it's just the sort of emotionally confusing should-I-still-hate-him? thing that I love to read! Breakthrough #2 has to do with a part of MC's character arc which I'm so glad that I thought of it! I mean, that element was already in there but before I wasn't really giving it the attention it deserved. Now I know it's one of the huge things that will evolve my MC from who he is to who he will become. Exciting stuff!

At the moment, I'm focusing less on the writing and more on the planning, so I'm not reaching my daily wordcount goal, but I feel that the plotting is more necessary at this point than the writing is. I feel that I just need to work out a few more key things before I can start writing in earnest and actually know the plot lines and how the story will progress, not having to 'pants' a huge chunk of it.

Sometimes I like pantsing, but I've come to find out that when I'm truly serious I like to know where I'm going before I start.

So, all in all I think it's been a good week for me!

Oh. And it seems that the next check in on Wednesday will be the last for round two of A Round of Words in 80 Days. Round three will start on July 4th! That'll be my first real round, seeing as I joined in round two right in the middle of it. :p

Find other ROW80ers here!

ROW80 Update 6/8

Hi! So. . ! Honestly, I haven't written too much, I've been busy, might have to move, those pesky real life things that always seem to get in the way. I will get back on track there just doesn't seem to be any time!

And I've gotten some books! I love the used book stores around here especially when they have what I'm looking for! I got Catching Fire and Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins, the last three books of the Earthsea series by Usala K. Le Guin and Shadowmarch by Tad Williams. I'm 200 pages into Shadowmarch right now and I like it so far. I haven't started on the others yet, I'll wait until I finish Shadowmarch.

And really I don't know why I've bought these books when I still have so many I haven't finished, but that's just the way it is. Maybe I'll try and read those soon.

What books are you reading right now? And how many?

The linky for other ROW80ers!

ROW Update 6/1

Hi! For some reason I feel excited, even though I don't know why. I probably shouldn't feel this way, seeing as I totally failed May Madness last month and haven't been keeping up with my ROW80 goals like I should be. Not to mention that I'm totally behind on reading the blogs I'm following. I really don't have a reason to feel excited.

Yet I am.

And my total wordcount for May Madness was 15,791. I suppose it's more words than I would have written without the challenge.

Today, I think, I'll have to lower my daily writing goal. 2,000 words is simply too much for me. So. . . I'm moving it down to 1,000. I'm still going to work the plot, world build and stuff for thirty minutes a day but only write 1,000 words. I  think I'll make up some little progress charts for myself, that stuff usually helps me stay motivated when I can announce on the chart that 'I did it!' so, yeah.

I hope everyone is having a good day this fine June 1st, and find themselves lighthearted for no apparent reason!

:D

The linky for other ROW80ers!

ROW Update 5/29

Ugh, I totally missed Wednesday! And Friday! I'd nearly forgotten, but my cousin was getting married on Saturday and I had to find a dress and pack and everything, and then had to spend 10 hours in the car to get there (oh my gosh, it was nearly unbearable) but it was worth it. And now that I got back home (only a few hours ago) I'm so tired but relieved that I made it back without hurting someone. (Five people in a compact car is not fun. At. All.)

Anyway, I did manage to get some writing done while I was gone, only a little though, and by a little I mean less than 1k. But there wasn't much time to write, I'm a bit proud that I even found the time to do so.

I'm also switching back and forth between The Chronicles and The Journalist now. I've had some interesting ideas on how I could fix some plot holes in The Journalist and have been eager to work on it, and it gives me a break from The Chronicles when I get too frustrated with it, so it's a win-win I guess.

As for  how it's going with my goals for both of my challenge thingies I think I'm going to utterly fail the May Madness, and still have to try and keep up with the Round of Words. I admit I'm not pushing myself too hard on either challenge but I don't want to turn my writing into something that isn't. . . fun, at all. I mean I know that there will be bad times but I think it'll be more detrimental than anything else if I work myself to the point that I don't enjoy it anymore.

How do you guys feel about giving yourself a goal? Helpful or harmful? I lean towards helpful myself, but sometimes I wonder. . .

Here's the linky for other ROW80 participants.

ROW Update 5/22

Still wondering about my story, piecing things together and throwing things out. I'm also reading, gosh it's been awhile, I'm so glad I started reading again. The reason why I don't usually read while I write is cause the stuff that I read. . . rubs off on my writing. Like, if I read, say, The Name of the Wind while I write, there's a good chance that my character will suddenly become a musician, orphan guy until I realize what I'm doing - 15,000 words later. I suppose I'll just have to keep a better eye on what I'm doing while I read. It's just when I like something that I read I unintentionally write it into my story in a very plagiaristic way and sometimes, the whole story changes. Until I come to my senses anyway.

So. . . I hope that doesn't happen this time around. Does this happen to anyone else?

And here's the linky for other ROW80-ers!

ROW80 Update 5/18

Hi everyone!

Still behind but still trying to catch up. I have to say that I'm in a good mood today, I'm going to try and get my word count in, we'll see what happens (as always ^^;). And, yeah, the guitar and violin is distracting me cause I really want to do that all the time instead of writing. Maybe it'll wear off, cause right now it's still new. I hope it doesn't wear off completely though, cause I don't want to stop doing it.

I think I'm gonna catch up on my reading too. I haven't read anything in. . . weeks? Months? It's been awhile and I miss it, I haven't let myself read anything because I'm writing and don't want to be distracted but. . . I just can't not read anymore. It's probably hindering me more than helping.

Do you guys read, or not, while you write? And if not, why?


The linky for ROW80 participants.

ROW80 Update 5/15

Things aren't going so well on the word goal front or the worldbuilding/etc one. I'm slacking a lot. Though yesterday I was struck with an idea for my old Angels story and wrote that, it didn't come out to too many words. I'm thinking that maybe I should have chosen a smaller daily wordcount, like 1,000 or something. But oh well, I'll still try to keep up with this one. Honestly, I think I'm slacking because I keep messing around with the guitar and violin, impatient for lessons. I've got to get back on track.

So, I'll try and get the words in today. Don't know what'll happen but I've got to try.

Here's the linky for ROW80 participants.

What do you do when you can't seem to write? Anything that inspires you?

Row80 Update 5/11

Well, there's not much progress to speak of  these last three days. I didn't write anything on mothers day, nor Monday, and not yesterday either. I slacked one day and then everything falls apart. I'm gonna get back on track today.

During these three days though, I realized some things that were very wrong with the story so far. So I'm going to try to fix them, get things a bit more organized in my mind.

Starting next week I'm going to be taking guitar and violin lessons. (That's what I was doing yesterday, getting my violin looked at and fixed.) I know it'll be a distraction from writing but it's something I really want to learn, just as much as I love to write. And I really do need to learn how to work with distractions cause right now I just can't. So we'll see how that goes.

Does anyone here play an instrument? I have to say I'm curious :)

ROw80 Update 5/8

I was doing pretty good keeping up with my goals until yesterday. I got started finishing the journal I'd been making and well, just didn't have time to write cause it was already morning.

And today I'm going to my aunts and uncles for mothers day, my grandparents will be there too,  and probably won't be back until evening but I'm going to try to write while I'm over there and I'll write when I get back and do the outlining/plot refining stuff.

You know, I didn't realize that mothers day was such a big thing. The banks closed and stuff around here for the event. Don't take this the wrong way (I really do appreciate my mom), but it almost seemed a bit superfluous. I mean, mothers day isn't exactly Christmas or Easter. Maybe I just feel that way because I didn't realize that it was this 'big'.

Anyway, gotta go celebrate 'Mothers day' now. And try to get some writing in there on the side. And Happy Mothers day to everyone who's a mother!

A Round of Words in 80 Days

So! I didn't find out about A Round of Words in 80 Days until yesterday. I saw people doing it, but I didn't actually go check it out. Stupid of me, really, cause I love these contest type things.

So, I decided that I'd join in, late as I am to the party. I think they're already a month into round two. I'm sooo late, but that's okay. There's still plenty of time left this round and then there's round 3 and 4. . .

Mkay, so my goals are:

• Write at least 2,000 words a day. (I know this is more words a day than my May Madness challenge, but that's proving to be somewhat easy.)

• Spend at least 30 minutes a day refining my plot, world building, figuring out my characters and other important things.

And that's it. It'll be a challenge though to do that every day but I hope it will become a habit. So I can write everyday and all that, and finish my book faster and stuff.

Here's the linky for other bloggers who are participating!