NaNoWriMo

For those of you who have been living in a cave (raises shield in defense), November is "National Novel Writing Month". A.K.A. NaNoWriMo. Last year I was a cave dweller like yourself and was finally introduced to this wonderful month long contest.

A contest, you say? 
(Peeks out over shield)

Yes, dear reader, a contest. During the 30 days of November, it is your duty, nay your challenge should you wish to accept: 

To write 50,000 word novel

Holy wowzers, I know. The first time I read that, part of me cringed inside while the other half jumped up and down. It's a lot, to say the least. Sometimes I can't get any words onto paper - let alone 1,667 (50,000 divided by 30). 

Last year, I charged into battle blindly and without abandon. It was my first time, and I was unprepared to say the least. This year, I am preparing an entire month early to give myself a fighting chance at writing those 50,000 words of glory. 

Now, last year for NaNoWriMo I decided to write an entirely new novel that I had created in my head the day before November 1st. Bad idea. Maybe some people can win this way, but I cannot. This year I am going to be working on my current WIP. However, I am going to only count the words I write during the month of November towards my NaNoWriMo goal. 

In preparation for that I am: 

Determining My Writing Schedule

I am lucky enough to work from home for a company back in Portland, OR. I work from 9:00am - 6:00pm (CST), 7:00 - 4:00pm (PST). My plan is to get up early to set aside two hours every morning for my writing. I am going to test out this theory next week to see if it will actually work. If not, I'll have to come up with another plan. 

Outlining My Story

If I outline the story now, I have a road map to where its going. That way, if i get stuck on one of the outline points, I can just skip to the next. No excuses! 

Forewarning Family Members

You can't do this mission without support. I'm letting my loved ones know ahead of time about the quest I've undertaken. This way, I can have someone to cheer me on as I stare at the computer screen, slumped shoulders, drooling out of the side of my mouth and glossed over eyeballs. ;) 

Upcoming Artwork & Blog Redesign

I am excited to announce that I've got some exciting things on the way! 

Character Artwork
I've got someone working on character artwork for my WIP. I cannot explain how excited I am to have the characters brought to life with pen and pencil. I will probably be jumping up and down as soon as I see the first draft! 

Map Building
I'm working on sketching out the map for my world. I've been reading some tutorials online and watching how others go about bringing their worlds to life. I never really understood how hard map making is until you go to sketch it out. What seemed clear in my head, is missing a bunch of pieces on paper. I'm also learning that it takes a lot of measuring to keep items to scale! 

Blog Redesign
The current design for this blog is simple and not exactly Fantasy and/or Writing orientated. It's really a band-aid for making it look decent until I can get the items above completed and share my work with you all :).

Stay tuned! I hope to have new stuff very soon. 

151 Words of Glory

I WROTE TODAY! I just want to scream it from the top of my lungs. It's been a rough few weeks, and I finally got something out. Here are the 151 words that came out of my fingertips today...

Emma wedged herself in the slot of the parapet wall, her feet dangling over the edge. The little crow cawed next to her, taking her in with one beady black eye. She broke off a piece of bread, holding it out with a flat palm as the hard beak struck against her hand. While he was preoccupied with his meal, Emma stroked his soft feathers with the back of her fingers.

“Hungry little thing, aren't you?” She cooed softly, breaking off another piece. She heard the soft crunch of footsteps behind her, the bird flinching in response and letting out an irritated caw. She turned around, smiling as her eyes took in her brother. The crow strutted away, hopping intermittently, as Lance approached.

“Do you have to feed those things? I should of known you were feeding the crows.”

Emma scowled at him, dusting her hands of crumbs. “They’re my favorite.”



What about you? What did you write today?

Hunkering Down for the Storm

So, last weekend I didn't get any writing done with the weather being as beautiful as it was. For the first time in weeks it was not over 100 degrees with 50% humidity. Good ol' Florida for you. 

Here's what my weekend looked like:

Blue skies, white sand, and a wonderful 80 degree weather with a breeze. The water was warm and the dotted clouds along the skyline kept you from frying like a lobster. Rough life, I am telling you. 

Well, it looks like my dreams have gone down the drain now that this weekend is approaching. We're currently on Hurricane Watch and I can hear the rain pelting against the side of the apartment. 

I guess this means I should hunker down and get some actual work done. :)

Writing Boot Camp: Day 3

Mystery Cookie

For the past three months I've come into work and low and behold there is a cookie sitting on a napkin, on top of my keyboard. Not just any cookie, mind you. Oh no, one bite of this delicious morsel and your mouth is watering as it savors every last soft, buttery bite. I'm exaggerating, you say? Oh no - every last word is true, let me tell you. 

So imagine my disappointment when I come to work and there, where there has been for the last 90 some days, there is NO cookie. At first, I think "well, maybe it's been placed somewhere else." But no, the only thing on my keyboard is a slip of folded paper and a ticket stub of some kind. "Alright, who stole my cookie?" I glare over at the nearest coworker, staring her down in her freshly pressed suit that's a size 0. I inspect her jacket for cookie crumbs, but don't see any from this distance.  She looks away from my intense gaze, pushing a lock of hair behind her ear, her eyes downcast. 

She looks guilty.

I reach down and unfold the piece of paper. 

Meet me at Hollington Station. 6:05pm. Tonight.

The ticket stub is for the MAX train, just up the street. I look back over at my coworker, who is now clickity-clacking on her keyboard. She still looks guilty. Very suspicious. 

Writing Boot Camp: Day 2

Screen shot of Writing Boot Camp from Writer's Digets

         The door of the cafe swung open, the little gold bell at the top of the doorway chiming with over exuberance. Audrey stirred her coffee, engrossed in the book she was holding. The new pair of feet scrubbed themselves against the mat in an attempt to dislodge some of the rain. They pattered towards the cash register, squeaking as they went, then faltered. They turned, the heel complaining, the footsteps growing louder. A figure entered her view, the brown trench coat pressing against the edge of the table. She pointedly ignored them, hoping the person would see her disinterest and disappear. 

         "Audrey? Is that you?" 

          Shit. 

          Audrey lay the book down, tilting her head down and her gaze upwards to look over the pair of red reading glasses. 

          Double shit. 

          Her body tensed as she removed her glasses and looked up the man standing before her. His dark curls were just as she remembered them, his lips in a playful smirk that made the memories of where those lips had been raise the hair on her arms and send warm shivers down her spin.

         "Gary?" The smile took over her lips before she could think otherwise, and the giddy feeling washed through her like a warm and pungent shot of whiskey. 

         

Boot Camp Writing

Today, I am going to start the two week Writing Boot Camp from Writer's Digest. If you want to join my quest, you can get a copy here. 

Day 1 is "Breaking Up With Writers Block". I am supposed to write a letter to Writer's Block (they have given me the first sentence) and go from there... 

So without further adieu, here it is! 

Dear Writer's Block,

It's not you, it's me. You see, I've decided that I deserve more. More than a life staring at blank pages. More than a life stressing about the fact that the words won't fill my veins and travel to the tips of my waiting fingers. My fingers that ache to type away at the keyboard, but find they are paralyzed with fear. Fear that what comes out of these hands of mine will not be good enough. That the words, when they do come, will be inadequate and lifeless. 

You have sat there, obstructing my path to glorious unhindered creativity, like a dark, ugly boulder. The longer I stare at you, the smaller I feel. But I will wait no more! I am going to write, and I am going to share my story with the world. I am going to take every reader by the hand and pull them deep into my world to show them the wonders that I have seen. The scenes that play out in my head, so vivid and real I know my characters better than I know myself.

I hope you understand. There are so many other writers in the world you could be with - but I am not one of them. It's time to break up, Writer's Block. For good this time.

-Brittany 

100 Words for 100 Days - Week 2

So! It's officially Day 14 of the 100 Words for 100 Days challenge. How am I doing, you ask? Do I have the good news that I have 1400 words so far?

Well, you see... *insert lame excuse here*. I have been writing, and more so that in the last few months put together, but it's not at the 1400 word mark yet. 

I found that writing in my notebook is a lot easier than writing in a Microsoft Word or Google drive document. I used to be against writing with pen and paper, because I felt like my mind was running so much faster than I could write and I was losing information as my pen scurried across the page in an effort to keep up. But something has changed. I write in my notebook and I don't feel pressured to get it right the first time. Because I know that I am going to just transfer all of this onto the computer eventually. I don't feel pressured to just write down garbled thoughts or doodles, either, because they might be useful down the road.

Even when I can't write actual story, I am working on the outline. Building the skeleton, jotting down ideas... and even if that isn't 1400 words, it still is progress. And I'm okay with that. 

What about you? Are you taking the 100 Words for 100 Days challenge? Are you keeping up? 

100 Words for 100 Days: Day 1

So I joined the 100 Words for 100 Days Challenge, and today is day 1! At first I was a little leery at being able to keep up with the pace. I thought, "if I haven't written anything in a week, how am I supposed to magically write 100 words today?". But then I sat down and opened up a new document and forced myself to focus and look at the book as a whole. 

I am currently tearing apart my novel for the 4th major revision. I am at a point in the beginning of the book where I am stuck because I've backed myself into a corner and am struggling to get myself out of it. So, I decided to set that scene to the side for now and skip forward. 

It's about to look l like I'm getting side tracked, but I promise this is relevant: 

Wednesday night we watched The Great Gatsby (with Leonard DiCaprio) for the first time. I had forgotten how sad that story is and how amazing F. Scott Fitzgerald is at weaving a tragic story. I hope that one day I can convey that much emotion into my characters, and have a story that haunts people for days after they have finished it. 

That being said, the soundtrack was hauntingly beautiful. My two favorite songs were:

Young & Beautiful by Lana Del Ray 
Over the Love by Florence +The Machine 

I think these artists convey so much emotion in their voice when singing, it's hard not to feel the emotion flowing through you. I like using pieces like this when writing emotional scenes, because I am in a similar state of mind as the characters in my book. I feel more "connected" to the scene I am writing. 

That being said, here's my first 100 words (actually, 138 to be exact! Take that, challenge!): 

             She stared at the bedroom’s stone wall, her eyes unfocused. The sun was creeping through the high slit of a window behind her, the color slowly sliding down the wall. The dawn had come, just like any other morning. But her parents would not see this sunrise; would not feel the warmth of the sunlight against their back. The world had kept on turning, without so much as a second thought as to the lives it had lost.
            Her father’s lifeless gaze flashed in her mind’s eye and she flinched against the white hot pain. She pulled her bent knees into her chest, her arms wrapping around them as if she could hold herself together if only she squeezed hard enough. The tracks of tears against her cheeks had long since dried, leaving her body hollow and aching.

(Copyright: Brittany Westerdahl, 2013).

Taking Time to Slow Down

I've been struggling with writing recently. I feel like my mind is going 1,000 miles an hour and actually focusing on anything is a struggle. I've had many obstacles come up in my personal life that are leading to anxiety, which is keeping my mind busy calculating all the ways everything could go terribly wrong. 

When I can't write, I feel guilty. 

I dislike the feeling of guilt, the feeling of anxiety. It's crippling, and the two mixed together will at times bring me to my knees. I think that's about the time my brain starts running through all possible situations and solutions at mach 10 and refuses to use it's powers for anything other than that task. 

When this happens, I read articles on writing. I tell myself that if I am researching or learning new techniques, I am still progressing as a writer. Within a few clicks I tripped over this article by Rachel Scheller: Making Time For Your Writing. In this article I stopped when I read a sentence that really hit home for me:


"Muller credits Brother David Steindl-Rast for reminding us that the Chinese pictograph for busy is composed of two characters: heart and killing."

Busy. My brain is busy going mach 10 - and what is that doing to me? It's killing me. I can't write, I can't focus, I can't enjoy life because I'm too busy worrying about it.

Which reminds me that I need to stop, and slow down. Take one thing at a time, and focus on what I can control. I can't harness the creative flow if my mind is too busy running around to focus on it. 

So my goal this week is to focus on slowing things down. 

What about you? Do you run into these problems? What do you do to calm your mind? 

Connecting with Other Writers

Recently I've been struggling with writing anything. I talk to friends, family, and the signification other about it but they all look at me with sympathetic eyes without really understanding how I'm feeling. I was aching to talk to someone who knew how I was feeling. 

So I did two things:

1. Joined a Facebook group of Writers

It's called YA Writers, and it's for anyone who is a writer and has graduated High School. (There is a Go Teen Writers group for those who are still in High School). It's nice because I am horrible and am glued to Facebook for most of the day. But this lovely group of people are constantly posting writer related stuff, so I'll read it and think "you should be writing right now. What are you doing?" and get back on track. 

It's also amazing to see other writers struggle. I know this sounds mean, but really, it makes me feel not so alone when I see someone else is having the same problem that I am having. I relate to them - and that's wonderful.

Most of the members have their own blogs, so I've spent the last week stalking all of them and finding out more and more about the projects they are working on (some really good stuff)! 

Also, they are all in a different stage of getting published. Some are just starting their books, some have self published, others have just been accepted by an agency, and others are biting their nails in anticipation of their next acceptance/rejection letter. It's wonderful to see the progress along the way, and to know that this actually is possible! 

What about you, do you have a favorite group you belong to online? Or maybe a close circle or friends that are writers, too? Leave a comment below!

2. Started talking to another writer I already know

Erik is my unofficially adopted little brother. He's a writer too, and currently living in Germany with his lovely fiance. For the past week we've been talking in the mornings, when our time zones overlap at a decent hour, about writing. It's been awesome to talk to someone who can relate to you, someone who actually knows the pain and suffering that goes into getting words onto paper.

It's also been nice to learn how someone else creates stories. For instance, I told him that when I write, it's like a movie reel in my head. I do my best to convey what I just watched into words, but sometimes even if I've watched it over and over again I can't get the words right. When I run into writer's block, it's typically because the movie in my head has cut off and I can't find the rest of the reel. 

Erik, on the other hand, does not see a movie reel. Instead, the words just come out of his fingertips as he writes and go their own way. (Not to say he doesn't have writers block at times, but I have noticed it is far less than I do). 

This being said, it made me curious. What do you (the reader) see when you write (if anything)? How does the story come to your mind and what does it take to convey that to the reader? Please let me a comment below. 

Using Pinterest as Writing Inspiration

http://sd.keepcalm-o-matic.co.uk/i/keep-calm-and-write-your-story-3.png

I have two Pinterest boards dedicated to my writing projects. The first is a compilation of pins giving advice on writing. The second is a collection of photos that could be, or remind me of, characters in my book. Here's what I use the two boards for (and how I keep from going overboard). 

1. Writing Tips (Fiction). 

This board has links to a bunch of awesome articles on writing. For instance, "Tolkien’s 10 Tips for Creating Epic Heroes" here. Or "How to Create a Vile Villain" here. Both articles I enjoyed.

I also have a bunch of witty writing quotes pinned here, which makes me feel a little more at home when I see there are other people in this world that can relate to my writing problems. (Or people who share said writing problems). 

At first I wanted to pin everything writing related, but you can see how that would quickly become overwhelming. So now I take the time to at least skim the articles that the pins link to, and if I like them I'll repin them. If they aren't useful, or it's something I've already read 100 times before, I'll skip over them. 

2. Story Inspiration

Is my second board, and this is more a collection of pictures. Some people say that your brain cannot create a face it has never seen before. Therefore, when we dream, the faces we see are actually not figments of our imagination but people we have actually seen before sometime in our life. It may be that we walked by that person in the store, or maybe she was once your Starbucks barista, but you have seen that face before. I don't know if this is true or not, but if it is that means we can't write about a face we have never seen and truly imagine it unless we are basing it off of someone we've met or seen before. 

Either way, this visualization board really helps me when my imagination is running low on gas. 

The other thing I like to do is find other pinners who have similar boards. If you search "Story Inspiration" and "Writing (Fiction)" on Pinterest, you'll come across a slew of people who are doing the same thing you are. I think I am following more people for writing and story inspiration than I am for any other reason on Pinterest (even food!). 

What are your thoughts? Do you think we can only dream/write about people we have seen before? Do you have a Pinterest board like mine? Do you think it would be useful? Leave a comment below :). 

Today's Writers Block Avoidance Tactic

Hello there.

Yes, I'm talking to you. I noticed you were reading this. You're either here because A) You want to write or B) you're a relative of mine and taking pity that I don't have any followers yet.

Let me guess. You're here because you're supposed to be writing. But you're stuck.

You know what? So was I. 

So, buck-o, let's  get working on this together.


Grab a piece of paper and a writing utensil. I don't care if it's a pen, a pencil, or a friggin' ink bottle and quill. Do it. Don't complain, don't tell me you only write with a keyboard. I was a keyboard snob once too - and look where it got me. Nowhere.

Okay, where are you stuck? You know that one chapter that you just can't get around? Let's start there. I want you to write down the problems of the scene. What's standing in your way? Scribble them down and then come back. 

Ready? Okay, now let's brain storm. What could happen next? Now I don't want you to think too hard about this, because I know you're going to be picky and you're not going to like all of your ideas. Write them down anyway. I want you to get used to that pen (or quill) in your hand and the feeling that ideas are flowing from your brain to the paper. Write down at least 10 things that could happen in that scene. Some will be ridiculous, others will not. Write them down anyways.

Got them? Okay, good. 

 Now, stop for a second and look at your scribbly mess. LOOK! You're writing! So what if it's a brainstorming mess? You just wrote down more on one piece of paper than you probably have all day. 

This is good. 

Let's go back to that scene you're stuck on. Look over your ideas. Do you like any of them? Circle the ones that might fit. Mush them together if that works for you. Now take one of those ideas, and start writing a quick outline. This does not need to be fancy numbers and formatting and bullshit. Write down short sentences of what would happen.  Sketch it out on another piece of paper. I want you to visual this new idea and poke holes in it. Does it work? What would happen next?

If it doesn't work...start with a new idea. If it does.. start filling in that outline with more detail. It doesn't have to be great, hell, the writing doesn't even have to be great. Just write down what you are seeing in your head right now so you don't lose it. You can always come back when words are easily coming to you and write it out for real. Right now, I want you to write down everything coming to mind on this piece of paper. 

Got it? Good. Now get to work! 


© Writing with Vengeance 2013. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Writing with Vengeance with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Writing Lessons You Can Learn From a Drama Queen

Photo Credit: www.wetpaint.com

We all know at least one person who makes a big deal out of everything. They root for conflict like a pig looking for truffles. They thrive on gossip. Their name automatically came to your mind as you're reading this. 

For the next 5 minutes, they're your new best friend. 

Okay, not really. But you can use them from a writing standpoint. This person teaches you the importance of conflict. Listen carefully:

Most people hate conflict in their life. People love conflict in books, or watching other people's conflict. 

Think about it. What makes up a story? If we break it down into simple terms:

There is a person, their name is ______. They have a problem because _______. To solve this problem, they need to _______. While trying to solve the problem, they run into ______. Finally, they solve the problem and the story ends.

I've highlighted the conflict areas in red and blue. Now, most authors get the first conflict area correct (why else is there a story if there's not an issue, right?). But the second conflict area is often overlooked or underestimated. Here's a list of problem's I see over and over again:

1. It's Too Easy. The story line was great, but the main character was never in any danger. They knew what to do and they went for it. There were no road blocks, no obstacles to over come, nothing to set them back. 
• Jack needs food.
• Jack knows there is food in town.
• Jack takes his horse to town to get food.
• Jack pays for food and returns home.
2. The Character Always Gets Aid When He/She Needs It. STOP DOING THIS. In real life, sometimes you are all alone and there is no one that can help you. Your mom doesn't appear out of nowhere to help you get out of a rut. Your best friend isn't always by your side. When you constantly aid your protagonist every time they run into trouble, the story get's boring and predictable.
• Jack needs food.
• Jack knows there is food in town.
• Jack goes to take his horse to town, but his brother is mending her hoof.
• Jack asks his mom if he can take her horse, she says yes.
• Jack goes to town, but realizes he has no money.
• Jack's dad is around the corner and gives him money.
• Jack pays for food and returns home.
3. The Character Starts Out at Level 100. Okay, so imagine you're playing a video game. When you start out, you start out at level 1, right? You have to earn experience points to progress in the game. You have to follow quests to get that special armor, or that magic sword. Now imagine if you started out at level 100. You already have all the best armor, the best magic spells, and a whole bunch of experience points. You're slicing through bad guys like they're butter. Not as challenging anymore, is it? Don't do this to your characters! Make them humble to start out with. Sure, they can be excellent in certain areas but make sure to even it out by giving them flaws. What are their weaknesses? What can't they do? What do they have to do to overcome that? 

When you write your book, pretend you're that drama queen back in high school. If there's something that can be taken away from your character, do it! If there's a road block you can throw at them, go for it! Give the audience a reason to fear that your character will fail. 

Read through what you have. Pick out the conflict points. If there's not enough, here's some ideas:

• What are your character's strengths? Take them away.
• Embarrass your character.
• Hurt your character mentally or physically. How do they cope? 
• Have a fight between your main character and their best friend.
• Give your character what they want, then take it away.
• Take an ally and turn them into an enemy.
• Your character planned on taking ____ route to reach their goal. Block it off. Force them in a different direction. 
• Your character was going after their goal but realizes they have to  ____ first. 

© Writing with Vengeance 2013. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Writing with Vengeance with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

What Makes A Best Seller

What makes a great novel? What makes a best seller? How do I make my book a best seller?

 I've asked myself this question probably a million times, as I'm sure any aspiring novelist has done. That's why, after finding the answers, I'm going to share them with you.

First, take a look at 4 or 5 of the best selling series in your genre. The word series is important here because I feel that you get more out of the series than you do one book. Call me crazy, write me hate mail, that's fine - but for this exercise, series are best.

My genre is Fantasy. So here's my top 4:


 














I honestly tried to get them all to line up in a row, but they didn't want to behave.

1. Game of Thrones
2. Harry Potter
3. Inheritance Cycle
4. Lord of the Rings

 Now, lets begin. What does these four series have in common?

1. Other Races

Each of these series have more than one race. Game of Thrones has the White Walkers, Giants, and Children of the Forest. Harry Potter has Goblins, Giants, Death Eaters, Merpeople...  Inheritance has Dwarves, Elves, Giants, Ra'Zac, Urgals... Lord of the Rings has Elves, Hobbits, Goblins, Orcs... you getting the picture here?

They all have another race other than human. Now, you can use races we're already familiar with in your book (think how many times Elves or Goblins or Giants have been used). Or, you can create your own new unique race. 

If you create your own race, please:

• Describe their features. So many times I read books where they have their a new race that I've never heard of. Great! I love it! Except the only thing they use to describe them is their race name. Readers cannot read your mind, let's just get this out there. This does not mean they want to read a page worth of descriptions, trust me, you'll start to bore them. Give them the important facts and let their imaginations take it the rest of the way.
• Tell us about their culture. Obviously it's not going to be the same as ours, and they're going to have their own way of doing things. What are those things and why are they interesting? 

2. Languages 
 Okay, so you've got your other races. Those other races are probably going to have their own language, even if it is only body language (this is why culture is so important). 
Either way, another language deepens that cultural chasm and brings a little bit of mystery into the book. 

Hell, even humans have different languages depending on where they are from. Language create conflict. Conflict is a good thing in books. Think about it:

What are they saying?
Does your antagonist understand them?
If not, how do they communicate? 

3. Heavily defined side characters. 

You and I both know that the main character is why we're really telling the story. But what about everyone else? The relationships these characters build off each other bring the story to life, and make it more realistic. 

What would Harry have done without Ron and Hermione?

Game of Thrones starts out with the Starks, but some readers end up rooting for someone entirely different as the books progress. 

The Lord of the Rings starts with Frodo, but then we see these side stories with Aragorn and Arwyn... and then Aragorn is the lost king? I mean, who saw that coming? Not even the author (read more here.) (I read this previously in another article but couldn't find it).
  
Treat your side characters like they're their own hero of the story. Breathe life into them by giving them a story. Dreams. Hopes. Goals. Conflict. 

4. Original Names

Three of the series above have original names that the author created. No one had ever heard of the name Frodo, or Eragon, or Danaerys. Now, I don't believe that your main character has to be the one with a unique name.  However, I think it gives a nice touch of originality to have at least one thrown in there somewhere.

Stumped on how to create one? Try adding two names together.  



© Writing with Vengeance 2013. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Writing with Vengeance with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.