Adventures in Crafting with Words

I know, you are probably waiting with baited breath, or at least pretending to, on information about that cryptic NaNoWriMo project.  Surprisingly, I haven't finished yet.  I don't have a title.  Or a cover - because of lack of title mostly.  So that reveal will have to wait. Some of you might even be waiting for an announcement about The Trouble With Chasing Aileen - The Hastings Sisters number 2.  - Soon.  I promise.  Final rewrites and Beta reads got caught in the middle of finals (for the Beta) and NaNoWriMo (me).  Now, to the point of the blog - Betas.  What are they good for.  (Absolutely nothing!) Joking.  Joking.  That's a dig at my current Beta who is only still around because she's my best friend and she's in college while dealing with a four year old.  Betas aren't perfect, after all.  They can't spend all their time reading over your manuscript.  Why?  It's my livelihood isn't it? ...

Every day that I pull out my notebook or laptop I don't plan what goes down on the paper.  I don't know quite where my characters want to lead me yet. Sometimes it's a matter of going back and seeing, 'Oh, I'm missing this...' or 'I need to add a scene to link these chapters together. Sometimes the plot bunnies invade and I have to write a scene for a part of the story not yet started. But every day I hit my NaNoWriMo daily goal, or personal goal, or even get words down on the page, is one more day I can feel good about working on this rough draft. Today I reached the halfway mark - 25,000 words.  I have more words to add.  I have more story to develop.  I have more ideas, plot bunnies, and writing prompts to work with. And then, once this rough draft is finished, I'll introduce this new story to my beloved readers (and the world). Then the real work begins.  Editing and polishing and titling and all that. Stay tuned. Alicia

It's quickly approaching and I had to pick just one project to work on.  Do I finish the second Enchanted Forest?  The third Hastings?  The College Edition of Bookworm Next Door that is taking me forever? Do I tackle one of the other five project ideas that have appeared to me? Or the non-young adult romance that has been floating around in my cluttered brain? One particular project is prodding at me, telling me to write this one.   Character names. Plot line issues.  Motivations.  Pretty much falling into place with some exceptions. This particular project has a friend prodding me as well, but that's beside the point. So... what will the NaNoWriMo2107 project be? You'll just have to wait and see. However, want to tackle a 50,000 word lightening manuscript in a month? A month with Thanksgiving in it! Know your story.  Prep. Plot. Know your characters.  The journey might change, but regardless... Be Prepared.  And most i...