June Challenge - Write Every Day

Hi folks,

Kay: Plantser - wow I like that term! I also left the pure pantsting approach a long time ago, experimented with outlining, and arrived at a middle ground (I usually have a vague idea of the major points in the story, and I write them down as best as I can, then fill in the details).

You still did some editing and writing on day 19 - that's something, even for a fun day. Hope today is more productive

Ptero: That's nearly 500 words - congrats! And the troublesome scene is over, so I do hope things pick up from here.

Daniel: WOW! Huge CONGRATS on quitting smoking for good!!! I'm impressed with your resolve and power of decision. You're making some really awesome choices in your life Really proud of you! With your exercise and green tea addition, you're definitely on the right path. And well done on the 2310 words! Keep it up

Layla: Great job sticking with the writing - some days are hard, I agree, but you're doing awesome. Also, I'm really impressed with your ingenuity with the business cards

Keithy: Well done on the 672 words! I find your story fascinating - I love Shauna's adventures. "Sniffing around" - the tentative title alone is making me excited about what's coming up

thereeness: 5k is a great word count! I think the deviation from the hand written draft is a good thing for the pace I hope your roast turned out nicely?

Taylor: Ah, sleeping in - makes one all panicky. Still, you got a full page done in an hour, now that was an awesome swim!

Day 20: I did some hefty work on the MG project - I really like the shape it's taking. The missing pieces are falling into place, and I basically know all the major threads and where they're going. Also did some non-hefty work on the YA project, so a very successful day I'd say.

Swim on, people. We're two thirds of the way through June!

Day 20 (this morning) - 1200 words

Don't be impressed. A large chunk of that was typing a scene I wrote longhand about two months ago. I've been writing this story sporadically and jumped ahead here and there to get to the "good parts." The same thing's going to happen when I switch to the other WIP to add in the new plot development. It'll look like a huge (for me) word count but it's actually rewriting. The smaller word counts are me inching along through plots I haven't fully figured out yet. (The downside of pantsing.)

Thumbs up to Taylor, KayMitch and SKara.
Pterofan - stitching together the "good parts" is nice. It makes the quilt whole.

I managed 824 words today. Shana unlocked a door in a way only she can (message me if you want to know how) and rescued one of her fellow servants from her supervisor, who was about to "mishandle" her.

Swimming faster than a Sailfish with a jet pack after leaving work on Friday evening.

Day 20

Revised half a chapter, wrote a transition scene, fixed a problem. Hard scene tomorrow, so I'm done for the night. The monster is back up to 91,897 words. Sigh.

Daniel - Keep it up, friend! Great word count. Hope you're still feeling good.

Layla - Glad to hear you struggled through it. Your progress is so steady.

Keithy - Your piece is kicking along! Love hearing about your heroine.

thereeness - 5K words is amazing. Your method sounds way productive. Making those decisions early on, I'd wager you don't have to revise as much or as often.

Taylor - Good sleep and a page wins the day.

KayMitch - Fun day and 10 words. At least you thought about your WIP.

SKara - Your enthusiasm about the MG project is inspiring.

Pterofan - I'm impressed despite your protests! Rewriting is writing.

Day 20
Words Written Today: 4,846
WIP Total Count: 65,113
Other WIP Count: 34,059

Finished two scenes to make up for my lost time yesterday. Also finished all my paying work by 3PM which was record time for me. Feeling good. I have about 14 scenes left to write. I wonder if I can finish those all by the end of the month.... that would be great.

SKara: Plantsing is my favourite term. I can't get into full detailed outlines because they just make writing the story boring for me, but little jots about upcoming scenes help keep me on track. Great job on your hefty and non-hefty work. I'd definitely call that a successful day!

Ptero: 1200 words is awesome even if some of it was just typing handwritten stuff! I don't even want to think about trying to type out some of my old handwritten work. I do miss handwriting sometimes though.

Keithy: 824 words is awesome! Your story also sounds super interesting, even from your vague details given here.

WGough: I always think about my WIP always always XD I can't turn my writer brain off. It actually becomes a problem when I'm trying to write articles for work that have nothing to do with pirates or demons or factory children trying to save the world XD Great job on your half chapter revision! It takes me all day to revise like half a page and then I come back and hate it the next day. Revisions are a nightmare for me.

Keithy - Congrats on the 672 words and the advancement of your story.

ree - wuuuwiiiii - 5K words! & that sounds like great progress with your revision. Also - uh - the roast sounds delishus

Taylor - weird but - I slept in by an hour this morning, too. Congrats on getting that page in!

Kay - Actually, I think that's great work for the day. i mean, it would have been easier to do nothing, right?

Skara - congrats on the hefty - and the non-hefty - work today!


Ptero - I inch along, too. Congrats on getting those words typed up - every step counts

Whoa Kiethy - you've really got the fires burning - keep that swimming up!!

WWgough - sounds like some hard work. Congrats on powering through that

Kay - congrrats on those accomplishments - fingers crossed for you to get to The End by the end of the month!

Day 20
WIP: 1/2 page
R/SC - tidying and sewing. A very puttery day
$$ - some good work on my indy project - tried some typing but the internet gave out - It's why I'm posting my update this morning instead of last night - so

...so -
HAPPY SOLSTICE, EVERYBODY!!!

Power went out around 10:30 last night and didn’t get fixed till 1:30am. As one who sleeps with a fan, it was very very hard to rest in such dead quiet. Slept in by accident again, showered/shaved in a frenzy and somehow managed to write some before work. Word count? Who knows.

Take that, Resistence!

Hi everyone,

Ptero: Tell me about the downsides of pantsing. I do the same thing - jump to the good parts, leaving the fillers for the last. Still, congrats on the 1200 words. Even if a lot of it was typing, it definitely counts as progress.

Keithy: Well done on the big word count! And I'm loving Shana all the more - lock picking, friend saving, adventure-seeking. This sounds like a very interesting swim to me!

WGough: That's a lot of work! Revising, writing and fixing problems. I'm curious, how long does it take you to get this much done?

Kay: Outlining doesn't work for me either (it feels boring and sucks the joy out of writing a fresh story). Well done on the two scenes and the nearly 5k words. At this speed, I'm sure the 14 scenes will be over by the end of the month

Layla: Internet troubles? Yeah, they're the worst. You still had a pretty successful day with the writing and the chores, so well done! And Happy Solstice to you as well

Taylor: Power outages - SOOOO annoying (especially in summer). You still managed to get some writing done, and that's what counts Hope you have a better sleep tonight.

As for me, some nice work on the MG project in my messy, non-chronological way, but I also tried to give a smooth progression to the first chapter and filled in most of the blanks, just to make myself feel that the draft is not entirely a mess. Also did a little work on the YA side (not a lot). Successful day, plus a much needed nap. What more could one ask?

Swim, swim, folks

Day 21 - nothing yet today. My AC gave up the ghost the other day, just in time for summer. (I'm in a mobile home, and this is one of those giant outdoor central-air units.) The repairman was over this afternoon and says it can't be fixed. The compressor blew, and since it's an old unit there aren't parts any more. The whole thing will have to be replaced. To be fair, I was warned about this last summer during the annual service call to clean the AC and the furnace. I'm surprised it lasted as long as it did.

So now it's a) buy a new central air unit, b) buy a window unit which would be way cheaper but I can't lift it, let alone install it, or c) use my two portable fans (one for the TV room, one for the bedroom) and hope I don't melt. I can work/hang out in the library's lobby where it's cool and they have WiFi, but I still have to go home to sleep. I can pay for a central air unit in installments if I find one that's affordable.

This is why I haven't written yet today. I may have to type more longhand pages just to say I wrote something.

Maybe this will motivate me to write faster, so I can get more subs out there to earn money to cover the payments. There's a silver lining to everything.

Layla - fires underwater??
SKara - I'm not clever enough to handle non-chronological writing. I'd doff my hat at you, but I'm not wearing one.
Pterofan - we are promised a heatwave next week - I never dreamed I would see such a thing here in Ireland.

And what did I do today? 1239 words. Shana was seconded into the castle's chimney sweeping crew. She went for a crawl around, got lost, the tunnel collapsed behind her and she slid down a shute and found herself in a temple deep underground. After that, a wise man (I'll call him that) found her and recognized her as one of a group of ancient warriors reborn. When she grows up she'll have some interesting powers, but right now she's a teenager who barely knows to hold the blunt end of a sword.

Alas, the chores are piling up. Can I use the force to clean windows and peel potatoes?

Carry on swimming! (see, I changed my avatar)

Sounds like everyone is doing pretty well! I went through each posts and besides a slow day for KayMitch the other night, the word counts and the productivity has been great! This is awesome! Keep it up. We are nearly the final lap of the concourse.

I went out with a friend yesterday and we hung out at his place-- though we stayed up extremely late and sang karaoke and the like. Good times. Slipped up and had a couple cigarettes, but that is all. Did NOT, even know I have money, buy anymore. And, frankly, they were disgusting. Didn't make me make to reengage in the habit at all. Also had a few drinks, but I did not overdue it: did not get drunk.

I know this might seem like a step back, but it's actually a MAJOR improvement from my previous lifestyle. If the worst that happens, when I go out (once every two weeks,) is I drink a wee bit of alcohol-- it's not the end of the world methinks.

So I'm still on track. Because we stayed up late and slept until the mid-evening, I'm calling it quits for the night.

Fortunately, it looks like I'll be having A LOT of time off. Plenty of time to pursue those creative exploits!

Unfortunately, I'll have to reset my sleep schedule again, but I have all next week off work as well. So, that should be a simple feat.

However, for Days 20-21: 0 words.

Keep going everyone!

Day 21
Words Written Today: 3,511
WIP Total Count: 65,113
Other WIP Count: 37,570

Drive by for me once more. I finished 2 shorter scenes today. I've got a long one coming up next so I figured I'd stop here because I hate stopping in the middle of a scene. That means That I have 12 scenes left to go. If I write 2 scenes a day for 3 days and 1 scene a day for the rest of the month I'll finish by the end of the month! Hopefully I meet that goal, because that would mean I finished 2 first drafts this month. Anyways I'm off to bed. Keep on keeping on!

Taylor, wierd but - I slept in by accident again today too… Word count? Who knows? Take that Resistance? WINNING!

Skara - sounds like some nice work on all those projects!

Ptero - 'so I can get more subs out there to cover the payments' -- talk about winning. I just got inspired by that!

KIerhy - whoa - talk about swimming that's some nice work you did there (wait - fires underwater? I'm missing something…)

Daniel - glad to hear - 1) you passed the test 1.a) that you found the cigs disgusting - I've heard a lot of quitters say that and 2) - I think (and there are many approaches here) that it's better to be able to be open to have a little booze only than it is to be 100% absitnent - again, it varies by person) - but - you're doing great -

Kay - congrats on getting all that work done - I'm hoping you meet that goal for the month.

Well, I'm posting a day late because internet. Well, not really internet but WAP - I'm far from the broadcaster & when the housemate goes online I go off… (I'll have to reprogram the WAP - I'll have to call tech sup about it etc & I just have so many other things to deal with first…)

Day 21
WIP - 1/2 page
R/SC - some mending/sewing, trip to the countryside, walk in the woods, dip in the lake, on to the farmstand to get a few more plants for my gahden
$$ - sorted my research material & got it all nice in a binder and finished a writing exercise for my indy project.

Much better sleep last night, but today the bad things happened.

Two and a half pages.

I hurt.

Hi everyone,

Ptero: Condolences on your AC ... Summer sucks. I really hope you find some affordable replacement soon. Hang in there - if you're looking for it, you'll find it Sending you lots of good vibes.

Keithy: Well done on the 1239 words! I love reading about Shauna's adventures Her history's intriguing - do we get to see her powers later in the story? Also, love your new avatar - is that Dory?

Daniel: Glad you had an awesome time hanging out with your friend I'd say you handled the whole thing very responsibly - you're still on track and committed to your goals. Hope you get lots written today. And do take care of your sleep

Kay: 3511 words, 2 short scenes - that's a very successful day. The prospect of 2 drafts in a month ... Well, I can't even do one draft. I envy you

Layla: WOW. Not on your internet problem, which sucks, but countryside trip and the walk in the woods and the dip in the lake? Your life sounds awesome! (minus the internet troubles, of course). Well done on the productive, peaceful day

Taylor: The bad things - ouch. I don't like writing about them either, but one has to. I'm impressed with your two and a half pages - that's some serious speed you've picked up

Day 22: I fleshed out the plot further, and started mapping it using the six stage plot structure. Thought I'd abandon all the intuitive writing for a while and stick to something more traditional. I think it's going to work out very well. Also got some work done on the old project. Except for another nightmarish nap, everything went nicely. (Note to self: Ditch napping during the day)

Keep swimming, good people.

Day 21 - 1,123 words

Again, technically cheating. I ran short on time yesterday so I started typing/reworking the first (longhand) chapter of the other WIP. Chapter 1 introduces the two men. Chapter 2, which introduces the woman, will have more "new" writing as I work in the new conflict that changes up my plot.

The AC story has a happy ending, but not for me. My neighbor across the street (next door to the cat owners) got laid off recently from his job with a fuel oil company. The outfit I called about the AC is also a fuel oil company (they handle sales and service on heating and cooling units). My neighbor spotted the truck at my house and hustled over and showed his resume to the repair guy. That company's hiring. I don't know about a job, but his initiative got him an interview. It'd be nice if he said thanks by helping me pay for a new AC, but I don't expect that to happen.

Okay, I'm back!

Sorry, I've been MIA for so long. My brother's wedding came in early last week and kept me busy from dawn to dusk since. It was a great time, and I met up with a lot of long-time friends who are out of state and country, but it took forever to get back on track with my own stuff.

However, it's done, and I'm happy to say that the worst of June is finally over for me! Today I knocked out a ton of chores and organizing as well as two critiques I needed for the retreat I'm going to. I was pushing the cutoff a bit, but I'm happy with the result, and I'm ready to just relax for the weekend before I am rooted off my writing chair once again, and hopefully for the last time this summer.

A lot of goals I had in mind was left to the wolves, unfortunately. My writing for this month is an abysmal 1.1k. That's literally it. Hopefully, I can salvage something and bump it up to 5k with the remaining days, but that's as ambitious as I can go for the time being. Bleh.

It's okay, though. I knew this month was going to pull me around in too many directions at once. And even with what is ultimately an entire month off, I'm still ahead of schedule in the grand scheme of things.

Non-writing things have also kinda been falling apart, but now that all the excitement is out of the way, I can start shoveling through the backlog and sort things out. Right now, I just wanted to touch base again on this thread because it is amazing, and read a lot. I'm ready for the last stop on this crazy train of June.

Hope everyone is doing okay!

SKara: I had been thinking about the scene for a long time and how it might play out. I had to push myself, but the words came rather easily. Also I wanted to get the pain over with ASAP. That’s twice I’ve made myself cry in writing this book. The deceased character was one of my favorites.

SKara - six stage plot? I have setup, mystery/world building, setback, crisis, resolution, ending. Hang on, that's six(ish). Oh, and yes it's Dory. I'm not a huge huge fan of those movies but I like the mantra.
Xenylic - welcome back.

So, I did 624 words today. Shana has been quizzed by an old man about her powers. He is disappointed to learn that she cannot do the things he is talking about, but she points out that she needs to be given time to grow up. He then shows her round a temple that has pictures and descriptions of some demons. The fact that she has arrived means that they're probably coming too, and she will have to grow up fast. Next up: she is taken to see the king.

I've adopted the 3500 words per week pseudo-target for the moment: it seems to help me push on. But the house needs a clean, ugh. Right now I'm about to cut up a chicken.

Sooo... keep on swimming.

Taylor - congrats on the good sleep & the 2.5 pages (I slept bad - woke up w/ allergies )

Skara - congrats on keeping at it & getting that story in shape. & urk! nightmarish nap sounds baaad…

Ha! Ptero, I understand why you feel like it's cheating,

Hey Xen - good to see you!

Hey Keithy - nice work

Day 22. Welp. Wrote 1/2 page. And then I realized that I went down the wrong road & I've yanked all my work back to June 7.

R/SC - finished a stuck sewing project & then decided to take a step back from the Unhoarding/Tidying project for a bit - I'm hitting diminishing returns

$$ - finished a practice write-up & did some research for my indy project, then typing (21wpm, 0 errors)

Day 22
Words Written Today: 9,851 (Well edited not written but same thing)
WIP Total Count: 65,113
Other WIP Count: 37,570

Drive by again. Didn't get any writing done, or any work, but I edited almost 10,000 words of my demon ms. So that's fun. Only.... 65,000 more words to edit in that before I send out another batch of queries.

Drive by. Didn't get any writing done, but it looks like I'l have most of the summer off to do that anyway.

Even though I slipped up, I'm not smoking.

All is well-- I'm up at it early today and will get stuff done. = D

Day 22 - 253 words. Typing again. I could have gotten a lot more done but I started late in the evening again.

My area's due for off and on thunderstorms all afternoon, so this is my chance to stay home and catch up on things.

Pterofan - Catching up on things is good Almost as good as getting more words in, haha.

Daniel - Sounds like a promising summer if you get most of it to write! And a little slip is normal when quitting something, just keep swimming and you'll do great ^^

KayMitch - DAYUM that's a lotta words edited. Holy crap, you're awesome.

Layla - Always sucks when you realize something's not working >.< But hopefully that means you can create something even better after you fix it.

Keithy - I love that you changed your icon to reflect our new motto here in the writing challenge thread XD And good luck with the chicken!

Taylor - Nuuuuu, killing characters always sucks ;_; I'm glad you made it over the hurdle though (and boy do I know about crying over your own writing, haha.)

xenylic - Weddings and real life are crazy, so grats on getting any writing done Here's hoping July looks a bit less nuts.

Skara - Yay plot structure! I love structure. I never used to, until I figured out how it works, haha.

Whelp, I didn't ruin my roast, thank all the gods, but I DID somehow manage to ruin the veggies. I think I chopped them too small, because even the sweet potatoes came out inedible mush by the end. The roast is delicious though, especially when I smother it in melted cheddar jack. Either way, no more crockpot dishes for Ree. If I make another roast, it's going to be in the oven, where I can control things better, haha. Also: I can't make gravy to save my life. Stupid gravy.

On the writing side of things, since my last update, I've written about 15 pages in my notebook. Incidents have occurred, characters are depressed, and they're about to break the shell from their tiny little world. (Yay Utena reference.) Sadly, I don't really have the energy to transcribe after I come home from work, so all of my typing gets done on the weekend. I really need to find some energy/motivation to squeeze in that extra typing. Cause while my word count on a weekly basis is awesome (I think I did like 14000 words), it's out of only 2 days. Which does not a novel write XD

Anyone got any tips or tricks for writing after a long shift? And that goes double for working overnight, oi. I love my job, but man, do I miss daylight hours sometimes.

Keep swimming everybody!