The Stunglorious February 500 words/day Thread--all genres welcome

Good Word · Feb 4, 2008

I'm a bit late in starting this month's thread--sorry. Spotty online access for a day or two. It seems like people are moving along here.

Suns all round. My compliments to MurphytheMuse.

:Sun:

I've been sporadically editing and rewriting, but I'm still having trouble with an important part--the beginning, which sorta kinda affects everything! I have a few beginnings and still can't decide. It might be a coin toss. Or I might just write yet another beginning. Also, I get this gnawing feeling every time I sit down to work on it, but maybe that's just from having a were-creature in my story. (That was a joke, in case you were wondering.)

The cool thing is that my daughter is in complete awe of seeing 300+ pages printed out. "Mommy, you wrote all that?" It does feel good to see it--I'd printed out sections, but never the whole thing.

I get the impression that there's a lurker or two about, just waiting to jump in on this thread (you know who you are). Come on in!

TheIT · Feb 4, 2008

:: cough, sniffle :: Hi, I'm back. Sort of. This cold just doesn't want to go away.

In any case, once my brain cells start firing again I plan to get back to transcribing my first draft. I started writing this draft by hand last March, so my unofficial goal is to get it all transcribed by this March.

Calla Lily · Feb 4, 2008

A week of nothing-but-research nearly completed. This time I needed to know about:

--LPNs/Nurses Aides: what they can and can't do
--The area in and around Newburyport, MA, including Boston (been there) and the 2 islands directly off coast: housing, businesses, cost of living, weather, downtown, everything (need to invent a nursing home/hospice complex and plunk it onto a fictional street)
--Vampires. Also medieval and Renaissance music (okay, I knew all about those already)
--Making music boxes
--Pentecostals (used to be one, so that's covered)
--Childhood cancers
--How to poison old folks in a nursing home so it goes undetected (good thing my boss, a nurse, knows I'm only weird and not homicidal)

Onto the first scene now. Thought it'd be a Hallowe'en fundraiser/craft show/dance, but Now I'm thinking about reversing scenes and moving the fundraiser into chapter 2.

And then there's the first line.

I think there's some beer left over from the Superbowl.

heyjude · Feb 4, 2008

Okay, this is my first time on this type of thread--hope it's okay. I'm gonna go ahead and assume (crazy I know) that this is the place to set a goal of writing 500 words a day in Feb.

My powers of deduction are unbelievable, I know.

Anyone want to share how you do this? Do you strive for an average, or do you write 500 minimum per day? I've been going for 500 min/day, but it's hard b/c I edit as I go (and thus end up cutting as much as I write sometimes).

My WIP (thriller) is at 35,500 right now and is less than "stunglorious." Which is such an awesome word.

IHeartWriting · Feb 4, 2008

WORD -- 300 pages is awesome!

IT -- sounds like a great goal!

Lily -- Was all of that research for the same project?!?

Jude -- Everyone has their own set of goals -- personally I write on weekdays and edit on wknds, so by the end of the week my word count is lower than it was on Friday -- is that confusing

3402 for me today. My goal was 3400 so those extra two words must be very special, lol

Calla Lily · Feb 4, 2008

IHeartWriting said:
Lily -- Was all of that research for the same project?!?

Yep. I forgot to add "Traditional names/attributes of angels and demons" possibly because I'm finishing the last 2 books. one being the Malleus Maleficarum--in English of course! It's a slog to get through.

I'm anal on research. One of the hazards of being a copyeditor, I guess.

slcboston · Feb 4, 2008

Okay, well, failed miserably at the January goals. Mainly because paying work got in the way ... which is no excuse. SO - new month, same goals.

Now I just have to figure out whether this chapter 1 is really a chapter 2...

AnnieColleen · Feb 4, 2008

It's really a blog entry, in disguise. It just wants you to think it's a chapter...

I completely forgot it was a new month. Cool.

January was feeling a bit doldrummy, regardless of actual progress. (Typical Murphy.)

Jude: I shoot for at least 500/day and usually wind up with a bit more, when I'm drafting. But then I do very little editing while drafting -- that's the part I'm now trying to figure out, so I'm counting whatever I can (at the moment, re-outlining pages).

Still working on that, so I'll post a count later tonight.

ETA: up to page 55. Some fun character emotional stuff in the last scene.

heyjude · Feb 5, 2008

Doldrummy.

Stunglorious.

I am learning SO much in this thread. I love it.

TheIT · Feb 5, 2008

About 2K typed in yesterday, but I make no guarantee that the words are coherent.

Shara · Feb 5, 2008

Well I did no writing in the second half of January. But I had a good excuse. I had a fall and bashed my head rather hard, and had concussion for the best part of 2 weeks.

I learned that it's impossible to write with a concussed brain. It just won't focus.

Anyway, thankfully all better now and I've had a productive February so far so I'd like to sign up and report my words herewith:

Saturday 2 Feb - 1519 words
Sunday 3 Feb - 2171 words
Monday 4 Feb - 2012 words.

No writing today, but I figure I deserve a night off.

Still trying to stick to my goal of 3500 words a week, which I find easier to deal with than 500 a day, even though mathematically it's all the same!

Shara

TheIT · Feb 5, 2008

Ouch! Hope you're feeling better, Shara.

:e2bike2:

Shara · Feb 5, 2008

I am, thanks.

And the way my brain suddenly woke up and decided it was ready to create again, after two weeks in hibernation, was quite startling!

However, I am now very careful on steps going to and from work, because that's where I fell over!

Shara

IHeartWriting · Feb 5, 2008

The day started off well enough with 1024 but then ground to a halt :Shrug:

TheIT · Feb 5, 2008

IHeartWriting, that's double the thread commitment, so well done. May you pick up again tomorrow.

Got a little more typed in, plus I'm working on an idea for the Feb. SF/F Challenge. This is the first new writing I've done in over a week, so it feels good.

Shara · Feb 6, 2008

805 today!

TheIT · Feb 7, 2008

Got a little more typed in and a little more done on my challenge piece. Step by step...

AnnieColleen · Feb 7, 2008

I've been excessively sleepy & haven't even turned on my computer the past two evenings...maybe more tonight or over the weekend. Sleep is progress too!

Calla Lily · Feb 7, 2008

Sick, tired, popping ibuprofen and sucking down Traditional Medicinals tea.

Probably going to start writing again this weekend. Did get a tick more research done: Boston colloquialisms.

TheIT · Feb 7, 2008

I finally feel like I'm on the mend from my cold. My voice is starting to get back to normal. Yes, my voice is low for a woman's, but when I sound like a cross between Lauren Bacall and Humphrey Bogart, something's definitely wrong.

Hot tea all around, and I hope everyone's feeling better!

heyjude · Feb 7, 2008

Just over 600 hard-fought words. Plus found the perfect name for a character (who has been going by a ridiculous name till now).

Having a goal is really helpful to me!

My dislocated shoulder and I sympathize with all the illnesses and injuries. Advil/Tylenol/whiskey for all. TheIT, glad you're starting to feel better.

TheIT · Feb 8, 2008

Dislocated shoulder? Ouch! Everyone, stop getting hurt or sick! Apples for everyone to keep the doctor away.

:e2apple:

Got some more written on the challenge piece. It's odd, I seem to be figuring out the story piecemeal, but I think it'll come together into something good. I hope.

IHeartWriting · Feb 8, 2008

Onward and upward everyone!

I had to take a few days off because I was burnt out on my WIP. The time away helped tremendously, I now know how to fix everything and move forward.

Only 614 words (plus a couple of pages of notes, but it's progress.

Wishing everyone a productive wknd!

AnnieColleen · Feb 8, 2008

Words is words is words. No 'only' about it! And piecemeal stories are fun.

Up to page 62; might/might not do more tonight.

heyjude · Feb 11, 2008

Yay! Cracked the 40K mark this week-end. How'd everyone else do?

The Stunglorious February 500 words/day Thread--all genres welcome

still crazy after all these years

Infuriatingly Theoretical

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Making my own sunshine

Lurking in the shadows

On hiatus

Pasture-ized

Invisible Writer

Making my own sunshine

Infuriatingly Theoretical

Fix it in the Rewrite

Infuriatingly Theoretical

Fix it in the Rewrite

Lurking in the shadows

Infuriatingly Theoretical

Fix it in the Rewrite

Infuriatingly Theoretical

Invisible Writer

On hiatus

Infuriatingly Theoretical

Making my own sunshine

Infuriatingly Theoretical

Lurking in the shadows

Invisible Writer

Making my own sunshine