October Challenge - Write Every Day! (NaNoWriMo prep)

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Keithy

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Managed about 20 words yesterday.

:-(
 

Layla Nahar

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Disorderly, that's awesome!
DL, give Cinder a kiss from me, & I hope you got to your paragraph, & if it's a skip day, that's ok too
Nice work Esmae
Kiethy
Managed about 20 words yesterday.
:-(
:)

fixed it for ya ;-)

I'm checking in early for today. Had a lot to do. Day 16: ~1/2 page in 1 WIP. But feeling good that I got to it.
 

Magnus

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Day 16
Another rough day, probably the roughest yet. I did nothing of value and had pretty much accepted that this would be my first fail on the challenge. But the habit is getting strong; after two weeks it just felt wrong not to write something. So I did. Again, not the most inspired material, but it certainly brightened an otherwise shitty day. 308 words for a 6951 monthly total. It's still more than I wrote on some good days last month. It's working. Now I just have to remember not to relax, as that is what tends to happen. It does get easier to stick with the habit, but it's a mistake to think it's completely automatic.

Sending positive energy to everyone! Keep at it, and you will see the change.
 

D.L. Shepherd

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Disorderly...great work! Have fun working on the scene list tomorrow.

Esmae...wow...sounds like you threw them a really fun party! Hope you get back on track this week too.

Keithy...that's 20 more words than you had the day before!

Layla...glad you got another 1/2 page in before calling it quits. (Oh, and Cinder says thanks for the extra kisses!)

Magnus...so happy that building the writing habit has been working so well for you. Really nice total for the month, so every bit is helping.

Me...surprisingly, I managed just over 600 words today. I wasn't feeling it *at all* when I sat in front of the screen, but I finally found my groove. Plus I left off at a place where I know in which direction things are heading for my next session.
 

peartree

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Didn't get much done this weekend, but I did get inspired and "found" the "bit" that I'd been missing about my heroine in a fantasy novel I'm writing. I think I wrote maybe 100 words all weekend? It was a rough weekend. I only just got home from work, think I might pass out before doing any writing.
 

edutton

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After several extremely mentally tiring days (I think I'm going to have to go on a news diet until December if I have a hope of getting this challenge done), I managed to catch back up to where I need to be to stay on track. *whew*
 

Esmae Tyler

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Day 16 - Another 216 words. Not awesome but at least I seem to be back on the train. Maybe I can lure the writing fairy in again.

Keithy, 20 words is 20 more than the page winning!

Layla, half a page is still awesome. Slow and steady. How many pages do you have piled up now?

Magnus, you're absolutely right (write?) It's so easy to relax and think you've got the habit down, and the next thing you know you're like me and missed a whole week in a row... but good on you for keeping to it every day!

D.L., 600 words! That's fantastic. A big chip out of whatever total you might need for your draft. Even better for your own personal cliffhanger; it really is easier to pick back up again if you know where you're headed rather than having to fumble around looking for a new place to start again.

Peartree, sometimes it's the inspiration that counts. That missing bit that sets things in the right direction can be more important than a lot of words on any given day, and 100 words is still 100 more than you had yesterday.

Edutton, congratulations on catching up! That can be a monumental task if you get tooooo too far behind. (Like me. Trying not to think about it. Oops.)

Cheers all!
 

Keithy

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At last I have finished the first scene (hunting) of chapter 7. It's very lumpy though.

I had to go to a funeral today, and because of Tropical Storm Ophelia the burial was postponed till tomorrow.
 

heykatydid

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Hi wonderful thread-

Keithy - I'm sorry for your loss re: funeral, but I am happy that you finished that scene in chapter 7!
Esmae - even a small amount of words is still an amount of words greater than zero! Kudos!
Edutton - congrats on catching up! That's no small task when you factor in outside forces that derail you.
Peartree - sometimes you just need some rest time, and at least you got some planning done with your heroine!
D.L. - congrats! 600 words, particularly when you aren't feeling it, is great!

I had a very slow day with only 284 words today, but have done a lot of planning on my NaNo project. In addition to pitching it to my editor, who gave the thumbs up, I've done the five-sentence paragraph summary and two character profiles (all from the snowflake method, which others in this thread have also used) and that's all in the past two days, so I'm feeling pretty good about that.
 

Disorderly Order

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Day 16:

I worked on my scene list and am proud to say I have four times as many scenes as I started with. I still need to add more to the second and third act though.
 

Magnus

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Day 17
After a few rough days, I feel better again. I sat down and first drafted some extensive revisions to a flash fiction piece I did that I wasn't happy with, then wrote some stuff on another project a while later. Didn't have to force a thing, either, so that's the payoff for sticking with it. 1042 words today. Wow. So that's a 7993 word total for the month, so far. Pretty sweet!

D.L. - Great! When you get into the habit of forcing it a bit, it will unlock the flow of words more and more often, I find.
peartree - Keep at it and don't get dishearted if you had a few slow days!
edutton - Yeah, I've massively reduced my media intake. I know it's bad out there, but at the same time, I try to remember that media gives a skewed image of the world. How often do they report that things are going fine? Who would watch that? So yeah, take a step back from that stuff. Do what you can to affect positive change locally, but don't feel like it's your job to worry about the whole world.
Esmae - Staying on the train is the most important part!
heykaty - At least planning keeps your mind on the writing!
 

Esmae Tyler

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Day 17 - 58 words. Seems like a tiny drop in a huge bucket. I have a vague idea for how to add something to the scene to play up an element that so far has been slow to manifest, but today is one of those day where everything but the bloody kitchen sink threw itself at me while I was trying to write. I actually cannot decide what is worse: having time and quiet space to write in and having no words come out, or having the words that want to creep out onto the page but not actually being able to get there to record them. Arg.
 

peartree

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Esmae Tyler - I'm really pleased with this bit of inspiration, because it also makes a reasonably inclusive book even more inclusive, and as this one is basically high fantasy, I want to make it as accessible as possible to lots of people because I've been told so often that those worlds are lacking in people who aren't white/cisgendered/tall/thin/beautiful.

heykatydid - I'm pretty exhausted from real life, so yeah, the downtime was good from that respect too!

Magnus - it's more that I'm stressed from my real life and it's affecting my writing, but I have a bit of time to myself tomorrow and I'm hoping I get to dedicate a nice chunk to fiction.
 
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Keithy

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Sorry - nothing today. Too busy.
 

Layla Nahar

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DL, that's some great words!
peartree - Congrats on getting words this weekend, and some insight :)
nice work, edutton
Ah, Keithy, hope things are ok
nice work katy, on the words and the planning,
& congrats on the scene list, Disorderly
way to blow it out of the water, Magnus!
Esmae - honestly, the 58 word days, they feel like the worst, but I believe they are the best because we *could* have given in…

Day 17: about 2 pages in 2 WIPs; responded to a recruiter, edited my resume and worked on my 'story' and my 'what can I do for (your company) the moment I walk in the door' pitch. Also drank lots of tea and ate lots of cold-eze because I'm getting sick. :-(
 

heykatydid

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Layla - congrats on 2 pages!
Keithy - tomorrow is a new day, don't despair!
peartree - I'm glad the downtime was good for you :)
Esmae - but 58 words every day will eventually make for a full bucket!
Magnus - wow! Congrats on your great progress!!

I wrote 624 words on my commute today, and I know where the story is going from here, which gets me over one of the last hurdles. Probably two chapters left and the epilogue - the end is in sight!
 

edutton

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Keithy, hang in there!
Good job to all those making progress. :)

The themes and underlying motivations are really starting to come together now... the background is less fuzzy than before, even if the players aren't all in sharp relief yet.
 

peartree

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767 words today. I do like pretty numbers. Funny, how it's easier to write the painful parts when you're unhappy yourself. (Not that I should be unhappy - I worked my butt off today AND accomplished everything I'd set out for myself on my to-do list!! Stupid depression clouding everything.)
 

Disorderly Order

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Esmae Tyler- Having lived through both situations I would say not having the words is the worse. I hope you get the chance to put them to paper!
Heykatydid- congratulations on the word count!
peartree- that's a nice wordcount

Day 16:

Took a break from the scene list and did another character synopsis. Slowly getting there.
 

D.L. Shepherd

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peartree...Glad you are picking up the pace again, but sorry to hear you've been down. Hang in there.

edutton...Nice that you were able to catch back up. I always seem to feel perpetually behind.

Esmae...We wrote almost the same amount yesterday. Hopefully today will be better for both of us.

Keithy...Sorry for your loss, as well as the storm being so severe as to postpone putting your loved one to rest.

heykatydid...Nice that your editor likes the idea for NaNoWriMo. I bet having that pre-approval will help make the words flow all the more when you start your challenge.

Disorderly...Seems like you are plugging along. Keep it up!

Magnus...Woo Hoo! Glad you are feeling better and getting so much done!

Layla...Nice work with the 2 pages. I do hope you find a new job soon, so at least you'll have that off your plate, but at least you've been making good use of your time off.

Me...I managed a measly 60 words yesterday. Was a busy day, but I could have done better. Hoping today I will.
 

Magnus

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Day 18
Yesterday felt like I was doing better and had dodged the depressive bullet, but today I felt lower again. I still managed to eke out 313 words, but I properly had to force it today. Now I'm going to try to relax and aim for a better tomorrow. The monthly total is 8306 words. I'm doing well. I just have to keep reminding myself of that.

Fight on, everyone.
 

Keithy

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OK at last I've finished sorting out chapter 7 - it took almost a week. So onto chapter 14, wherein a bank demands its money back from the empire (in this story there's an empire, but it's crumbling and bankrupt) Upon reading this chapter I note that I need some more conflict and intrigue, so it's time for some thinking. With a bit of luck I can add that with one or two short conversations.

D.L. - thanks - it was part of the nightmare.

With a bit of luck I will be ready for NaNoWriMo, aiming to write at least one new chapter during that period. In theory I can write a first draft of an individual chapter in 2-3 days, but I'll believe that when I see it.

Keep on trucking/swimming/writing/editing...
 
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Layla Nahar

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Nice work, Katy, peartree, Disorderly, Magnus
Keithy, edutton, keep at it!
DL - congrats on getting those words down :)

Day 18: About 3 pages in 2 WIPs;
edited my resume, applied for 1 job - updated my LinkedIn (long overdue)
Also assembled & sorted material for a small freelance job
made flyers for a service I want to make money doing
did 30 mins of training for a product demonstration temp gig coming up
 

heykatydid

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Good job, everyone! Looks like there was a lot of hard-earned success yesterday/today across the board. I got 831 words written between my commute and my pre-work time at my desk, so I'm feeling good. Fight on!
 
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