Keeping up the word count

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I tweeted this morning that I’d written 12,000 words this month. That’s 500 a day, on average. Some days I did more, some days I did none, but over the average it’s 500 words.

spreadThe one thing that keeps me writing (almost) every day is my spread sheet.

Each day I add the words I’ve written, and what project I wrote on. Each day I add little pink highlights if that number is zero. I hate those zeros. I also keep blog and writing separate, but I do track both. And both show up on my graph at the end of the month (writing in blue, blog in red.)

The trouble with a “zero” day isn’t that I got a zero, it’s that the next day I don’t write as much. And if I have two “zero’s” in a row I have to struggle all that much more to get some words out.

I actually started this about February. That’s when I realized I was struggling, and I needed more accountability to myself. Something I had in spades during NaNoWriMo, but lacked afterward. I no longer had that nifty little graph showing my progress, or the bar creeping forward saying weather or not I “won”. So, I decided to make my own graph.

It took a few tries to figure out exactly what I should have on my graph. As you can see there is an “edited” column that rarely gets anything put into it. I’ve edited quite a bit this month because I am rewriting sections of “Rage War” in between writing “Forgotten Ones” and finishing up a short story. But I never really think about the edited pages, I just want to track what I’ve written.

I’ve also forgotten to add my word counts for a couple of days. Every time that happens I am extremely disappointed n myself. This has become an incredibly important part of my writing. It’s tracking my growth and accomplishments as I move forward.

Soon after figuring out my own graph I discovered “The Magic Spreadsheet” from Mur Lafferty. I really like her version, and how it gives you points for each day you reach your goal, but I’ll stick with mine for now. However, maybe some of you would like to try it out.

Whatever method you use, the best advice I can offer is just to try new things. Find out what works for you. I know authors who keep a writing journal in paper, and jot down a note every day. I know others who blast it out on twitter, o reddit. Still others keep writing journals on a blog. But I do know that it won’t hurt for you to try to keep track and figure out what you are really doing.

I would love to add time of day to this… but my scheduled doesn’t allow that right now. It’s too chaotic. Chalk that up to a dream for the future.

Enter to Win!

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Don’t you just love that phrase? Enter to win a trip to Greece, concert tickets, or a flat screen TV!

Well, I can’t give away anything like that, but I can give away copies of “Small Bites: The Complete Collection”.

All you have to do to win a print copy is go to Story Cartel, download a free mobi or PDF, and write a review. You’ll get an entry. I will probably throw in a couple extra goodies for the winners, too.

So, free ebook, and possibly a free print book with an extra surprise? Where’s the downside?

Go check it out on Story Cartel!

Better Access

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I am trying to find better ways to provide access to my books. So, how about Etsy?

I notice some people do not like to use Amazon, or Kobo, so I needed to provide other avenues for people to find my books. So the first book to be put up on Etsy as a PDF and a Mobi file is Small Bites: The Complete Collection.

The listing will provide the download for you automatically. It is also slightly cheaper then Amazon, and is DRM free.

I would really appreciate it if others would share this so that more people will learn about my books.

Right now, I am in the middle of finishing “Forgotten One”, an urban fantasy about the goddesses of Fate working to save the world from half dead gods trying to retain their power.

And also, you can get Small Bites: The Complete Collection on amazon, too.

Throw Them in Jail!

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mtrainerMt. Rainier stood in the distance, clearly visible in the blue skies. Something rare in Seattle.

My Gregg holding a 6.5 foot sword on display/sale at one of the stalls.

My Gregg holding a 6.5 foot sword on display/sale at one of the stalls.

It was a beautiful day for a ren-fair. People in corsets and long skirts, wielding swords, and axes as we wandered from stall to stall. Leather tankards, bottles, armor and deep friend turkey legs lining the stall. Jousting, and getting knighted by the queen.

Oh, and a jail cell. We couldn’t resist.

2013-08-18 14.12.41They let us put all the children in the cell, and shoot some pictures.

Nine kids, in a little bit cell. With a rat. (It was a plastic rat).

Such a wonderful day… I’m exhausted. I think I’ll go read tonight, and write tomorrow.

Just Throw Me To The Wolves, Why Don’t You!

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I had a rather uncomfortable discussion with my boyfriend this morning. And I’m going to share it, because it isn’t about our personal relationship (sorry if that disappoints you, but really, go watch a soap opera) it was a conversation about my writing career, and what I want out of it. And more importantly, what I’m willing to do to get what I want.

He asked me “why are you afraid to promote yourself?”

And he’s right. I’m terrified. I called a library and asked for information on getting my book into the library system, and they never called back. So I never called them back either. And why? Cause I was terrified.

“What’s the worst they can do?” he asked me. “Say no?”

And really, it isn’t “no” that scares me. I could care less if people tell me no. People have told me no all of my life and I did it anyway. No, it wasn’t the “no” that scared me.

It was the asking.

How do you explain to other people that you are afraid to ask for anything from anyone. Even if I were starving and broke, unable to buy a loaf of bread, I would rather go pick up soda bottles and turn them in for a few measly coins so I could buy a banana, then ever ask another person for anything.

I have a very clear memory of going to my great-grandmothers house with my parents when I was about 6 years old, and asking my mom if I could ask great-gran for some pie. She made said it was rude. You never asked for anything in someone else’s home, except water. If they wanted to give you something that was fine, but you never, EVER, under any circumstances, asked for something.

The other day we were at our friends house, and one of them was heading out the door to get food. I’d mentioned that I was hungry to my boyfriend, but neither of us had cash on us. It was like pulling teeth to get me to just ask our friend, who was offering, to buy me a sandwich. It’s was just $3 for a sandwich, and he was offering, but I was so embarrassed. What the heck is wrong with me?

So today, when Gregg asked me what I was afraid of… He’s right, I need to figure this out.

I don’t have any problem posting on my blog, twitter, or Facebook about a new book. The fact is that I am an author, and anyone who chooses to follow me on social media knows that I’m an author, and should expect me to say something. But I’ve been thinking of handing my book over to the teller at the bank who asked about my book a couple months ago. I’ve gone to the bank several times, book in hand. And I leave it in the car every time, too shy to actually hand it over.

Why?

I have this intrinsic belief that I should be seen, and not heard. A belief stemming from years of reinforcement with my parents, and later with a husband who treated me the same way.

And it wasn’t even that they thought “a woman’s place was in the kitchen” or some ridiculous thing like that. It was me. They thought I should be quiet. And that thought was constantly reinforced with criticism and chiding. Sometimes angry yelling to shut up, go away, leave me alone…. Even while other women were encouraged to speak their mind around me. Just not me.

So here I am with this fear of speaking up. Of being heard. And I’m an author. An author who by definition must speak up and be heard. And if I ever want to get my books noticed, to get myself noticed, I have to speak up. I have to be heard.

To be fair… I have improved so much over the last few years. I never would have considered publishing a book of short stories just last year. I never would have considered doing a podcast, but today I am doing yet another one, and I am HAPPY to do it. I speak up. I talk over people to make myself heard sometimes. I tell the guys to shut up and let me talk… and I am happy for it. I enjoy it. It’s worth it.

So why is it still so hard to say “I wrote a book, here it is. Read it if you like.” ?

Around the Web

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The last few week’s I’ve been rather obsessed with trying to finished “Forgotten One”, not just the writing and editing, but the cover (which I hate so far) and everything else that goes with it. The only thing I have “finished” at the moment is the blurb that goes in the description field. Even that needs a slight tweak.

So, to take a break from wracking my brains over this, here is another installment of “Around the Web”.
In no particular order.

Infograph, Self Pub vs. Vanity Pub vs. Traditional Pub

Why one author turned down a publishing deal from Amazon (and from her blog, more)

25 Steps to Being a Traditionally Published Author (which is quite funny, and has the same steps as a self pub from 1-9, then there are a lot fewer steps [editing, formatting, publishing, marketing] but equally as hard.)

10 places to get reviews on your book.

Balancing Work and Writing

25 Editing Tips.

The Blurb for “Forgotten Ones”

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This will be the description of “Forgotten Ones” when it goes live. (Or close to it.) What do you think?

*****

The ancient gods lost the battle, and monotheism spread across the globe, forcing some into hiding, and others into a deep sleep.

Lost and forgotten in time, and unable to die, the immortal gods had to choose new paths. Some slept, letting time forge on without them. Some learned to prosper on the meager worship of a few adherents. Still others became dark brooding shadows of what they once were, obsessed with regaining their former glory.

The goddesses of fate, Clotho, Lachesis, and Atropos, chose a different path. They gave up some of their divinity, choosing to reincarnate rather then waste away in their godly bodies. By working with the Vatican to capture the dangerous god-lings, they shift the balance of power, letting man make the world his own, unhindered.

But one of the ancient gods has awoken from his slumbers, and he knows just enough about the Fates to remain hidden from their sight. And just enough about the world of man to create chaos in his wake.

To trap the god-ling before he regains his strength, the Fates have to do something they haven’t done in centuries. They must tap into the divine power that once made them a force even gods feared. But at what cost? And what will their keepers do when the Fates remember their true strength?

What makes you think you’re so special?

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I’ve been in writer forums, workshops, blogs and more, and invariably there is someone who says something like this:

“I want to write, but I’m afraid to write a bad story.”

One… no you don’t, or you’d be writing.
Two… why the hell do you think you’re so special?

Stephen King writes for years in the corner of his living room before he finally produces something worth selling. But you’re going to produce awesome prose on the first try?

Do you know how many times an author re-writes, re-vamps, throws out, and tries again… on the same project?

But you’re special. Right? Whatever comes out of your head must be perfect and wonderful the first time or you’re not going to write.

Let’s look at it from the view of an author who writes, puts out, and publishes a book, or several books. I’ve labored for hours, months, and possibly years to produce this book. I’ve tortured myself about what to write on that page, or who to kill on that page. I’ve lost sleep because of deadlines, skipped dinners, and missed out on fireworks… all to finish a novel.

And it sucked. The first draft was horrible. The second draft less so, and the third draft finally started to look like something worth publishing.

But you…. you think you should be special and everything out of your hands should be pure bliss to read?

I think it’s time for you to re-evaluate what it is that you really want. Do you want to write? If so, WRITE! That is all you can do. It will probably suck. People might laugh. So. If you are writing because that is what is inside you to do then none of that matters.

Unless you are Motzart, Pascal, Akrit Jaswal, or John von Neumann, you’re going to have to fumble and screw up just like the rest of us poor mortals.

I wasn’t a prodigy. I write. I suck sometimes. But I still pick up that keyboard and write.

What’s your excuse?

“Forgotten Ones” and a Free Book?

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A few months ago ZC Bolger (@zcbolger), an author and friend of mine, read “Necropolis”. That is a short story in “Twilight Tales“.

It sparked a short discussion, which sparked a bigger idea in my head, and I’m now writing a sequel, of sorts.

“Forgotten Ones” is getting away with me a little bit. It is already 12,000 words long, and only half finished. This is good, I said I needed some longer titles. I guess I’m getting them.

It also worries me a little bit. I can’t afford editing right now, more now then before. My car needs repairs, rent is due, children to feed, blah, blah, Blah, BLAH!. Whatever, you don’t care what my troubles are.

What you might care about is “Forgotten Ones”. Set in the modern era, it is a fantasy story involving dying gods and goddesses, three fates with the ability to see the past, the present, and the future (respectively), and political intrigue as gods and man position themselves to save/destroy the world as we know it. But who wants to save it, and who wants to destroy it?

I really love this story. I’m going into how the Fates became what they are, and how the world works. It’s set in this world, and has some things from current events in it, like the Pope, (though only as a distant figure that has no actual influence on the current story) and the rise of technology.

I think this is the longest thing I’ve written in a while. “Flight of the Griffins” was 12000 words, and “Osiren’s Tears” was 30,000, but they were both written back in February. I love the change of pace, and I honestly can’t wait to write some longer books.

I’m also learning a bit more about how to complete longer works faster. I wrote a bit over 5 pages today, and I am working to write more pages each day. It doesn’t seem as daunting as it did six months ago. It makes me think I could do this full time some day, and produce a novel every month (if I could just work out the pesky money issues).

As for the free book….

I am going to be entering “Small Bites: The Complete Collection” into the Story Cartel contest. 5 copies of the paper back will be up for grabs. What do you have to do? Read the book, write a review, and get entered into a drawing to get the free paperback. Story Cartel lets you download the ebook for free in order to do the review.

I will have more info about that later, and I will also be putting up separate paperback for those who already bought the book and would like to get in on a drawing for a free paperback. I just have to figure out the logistics of this.

Come back next week for more info.

The Camera is OUT!

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camera2“The Camera” is finally out.

Ever have a day when you know what you need to do, you know the process, and how you’re going to get there, but you just can’t seem to do it?
That was this book.

I knew the plot. The characters. What was said, when it was said, and who got hurt because of it. All of it. But when I sat down to put it together my mind froze. I’m not even sure that I know why.

The idea for “The Camera” actually pre-dates “The Ring”, which is the first book in this series. When I first started writing it I didn’t really know where I was going with it though, just that a boy bought a camera that actually stored things within the film, and it was going to cause him some trouble.

I had “Needful Things” in mind when I started it. Or “Friday the 13th”, or “The Room”, or “Warehouse 13″… you take your pick. They all have one thing in common. Cursed items that seem to give you what you want, but come at a price. The camera didn’t give Anthony anything he needed or wanted, it just happened to do something unexpected.

So I had this story idea, and I thought it was a good idea, but it was born during my “stress induced writers block” years, so it never went anywhere.

I wrote “The Ring” years later. It was one of those stories that just flowed out onto the page, and I think that is why it is one of my better stories. It took about five hours to get the entire story written, but I wasn’t publishing when I wrote it. I didn’t even think about it when I first started publishing, and I’m glad I didn’t. If I had, I would have put it up as a stand alone story and “Illicit Gains” would not exist.

After “Flight of the Griffins” and “Twilight Tales” were out I did an audit of all the stories in my files, and found “The Ring”, and several other stories. I started grouping them together to form books, and noticed the five stories revolving around cursed items. It was too perfect. I went back and added some foreshadowing in “The Ring”, edited it, and published it.

I thought “The Camera” would be easy to finish. I had three-quarters of it already written, and already knew what happened in the middle. Easy. Right? WRONG!

Every time I sat down to write it something would just scream “wrong” at me. The plot wasn’t right, lets tweak it. This character isn’t right. Lets tweak him. This could be worded a LOT better, tweak. Tweak. Tweak some more.

The entire plot (beyond boy finds camera, boy discover camera does something weird, boy has a horrible thing happen because of camera) changed at least four times. At first there was a thief, then there was a bully, then there was… Well lets just say that I didn’t have the true plot until I started fleshing out the 5th book in the series, “Marco”.

Those of you keeping score, I’ll actually give you the titles of all five of the stories in this series:
“The Ring”
“The Camera”
“The Scarab Necklace”
“The Pocket Watch”
“Marco”

If you read “The Ring” you’ll know who Marco is. He ties the whole series together.

Pressing publish on “The Camera” was a huge weight off my shoulders. After three weeks of saying “it’s going to be out this weekend” I finally got to say “It’s OUT”. I was starting to wonder if it ever would be.

But, this is a good thing. It means I don’t want to put out just any old crap. I want to tell a good story. Maybe there’s a missing comma, or I screwed up a homonym, but the story itself, the characters, the plot and setting, I’m proud of that. I can go back and fix the typos and polish the grammar a bit. But I can’t retract a bad story. I don’t even want to put out a story I’m not proud to call mine.

Now, ten years down the road I fully expect to hate everything I wrote and want to rewrite it. But I’m going to resist the urge. I’ll definitely be hiring a pro-editor, when I can afford it, to re-edit everything, but I won’t be changing the core story. I will let it stand as a testament to my progress because I fully expect each story to be better than the last.