Motivation

And Now I Wait.

| Casey Wyatt

Happy Friday everyone. Please visit the 7 Scribes and read my Friday post – To Sequel or not to Sequel.

As reported last week, the book is gone. Off in the hands of my critique partners and beta readers.

Gone. . .

So now what?

Do I sit around twiddling my thumbs? No way. In the down time between feedback and the next round of revisions, I’m plotting my next book- Devil’s Advocate.  Another attempt at writing an actual Urban Fantasy. Lately, with the last two books,  both plots twisted into paranormal romance. We’ll see how the next book plots out.

How about having some fun? I recently crocheted a candy dot scarf for a friend. And I read Julia Rachel Barrett’s Incorporeal (excellent ghost story!).

But, I’m not even close to being done with The Undead Space Initiative. I still have to revise the first draft synopsis into something market ready.  So in the meantime, a tease.

The opening paragraphs of The Undead Space Initiative.

***********

Life sucks then you die. It’s a universal truth. But here’s what’s scarier. Even in death, life can still suck.

Case in point … wait for it…

 “Cherry! Get your skinny ass up on stage!” Jonathan barked through my dressing room door.  How do I describe him? Pain in my rump. Benefactor. Reason for my current situation. None of them seem adequate enough. His main occupation? Yelling at me to perform and to make him money. And he’s always interrupting. Never lets a girl even have a moment to think.

“I’m on my way. Geez Louise.” I flung open the door, narrowly missing Jonathan’s long Roman nose. The tops of his fangs peeked out from his full lips as he smiled at me. This was a game we liked to play. I would try to smack him with the door whenever possible.

Okay, it was a game I liked to play. I’ve never managed to nail him in the face. My vampire Sire is too damn fast.

Jonathan tsked and crooked his finger. A slow smile curled his lips. “Cherry, I don’t know why I put up with you.”

“Of course you do. I’m you’re number one performer.” I flashed fang. My pearly whites are nowhere near as long as his, but they can still do the job. Due to feed soon, I tried not to stare at Jonathan’s jugular. I hated needing my Sire’s blood to stay strong and avoid overpowering hunger. The kind, if left untended long enough, made vamps go feral. I buried my nose in a bouquet of fragrant red roses, a gift from one of my many fans.

Jonathan smirked. Damn. I hated when he caught me eyeing him like a roast. Another game we liked to play – I pretended I didn’t need him. And he pretended not to notice. We both knew otherwise.

I needed him.

Crap on toast.

I Did It My Way

| Casey Wyatt

Happy Friday everyone. Please remember to check out my Friday post over at the 7 Scribes. Today’s topic – Casting Call – If my book was turned into a movie.

Last week I was in a bit of a tizzy about the beginning of my WIP – The Undead Space Initiative. I’m happy to report that I have moved past it. I’m more that halfway through the editing process right now. And I’m so excited to share this book with my trusted first readers for their reaction.

I have set an aggressive goal: complete revisions by the end of this weekend!! Can I do it? Time will tell.

Tune in next week to find out!

Halfway There!

| Casey Wyatt

Happy Friday! Please remember to visit me at Writing Secrets of 7 Scribes for my post about Change.

This week, I’m pleased to report that I’ve surpassed the halfway point. Total word count to date is 59, 806.

Due to family obligations, I had a few days where I was only able to hit 1,000 plus words. With vacation coming soon, I hope to be back on the 2,000 words a day track and possibly even surpass it.

The story has reached the mid-point climax and is rolling towards the black moment/reversal (hopefully next week).  After that, the final wrap up. Next, I’ll re-read the draft, plug the plot holes, fix the word boo-boos and ferret out any other transgressions.

This kind of aggressive first draft approach is new for me. I usually stop after the first act and re-read what I’ve done and make corrections. Not this time. I’m blasting through to the end and then reviewing the plot as a whole. I’m not sure if I’ll do this for my next book. We’ll see. Depends on how the process goes.

I’ve resorted to this method because, often times, I start second guessing the plot and playing the “what if” game and then I believe the whole story is crap, resulting in the urge to toss it out.

When I finish the first draft, I will share the blurb for the book. I can tell you, it’s something new for me and not like my other books.

See you next week!

2,000 Word Streak Continues…

| Casey Wyatt

This week’s progress –  @48,000 words. I’m still averaging 2,000 words a day, sometimes more. I credit this productivity to knowing the plot and to squelching my nemesis, the Doubt Monster.

Is every word and sentence golden prose?

Oh heck no. I will have to do a clean up draft before passing the book onto my trusted Beta Readers.

Overall, I’m happy with my progress. So to keep up the momentum, I’m heading back to work. See you next week!

Also – please check out my latest Scribe post – Love in an Elevator. I’d love to hear your take on love scenes.

2,000 Words a Day!

| Casey Wyatt

My goal all week has been to write at least 2,000 words a day. I’m unofficially joining my fellow Scribes in the Double Dog Dare to complete our novels by August 12.

I’m pleased to say, that so far, I have exceeded the goal. Despite all kinds of distractions – like winning first place in Passionate Ink’s Stroke of Midnight Contest last night, I’ve still managed to stick to my goal.

In the spirit of completing my next book, all I have to say is:

Word count to date – 28,850

Not bad for starting last week. I’m not sure what the ultimate book length will be quite yet. I’d like to reach 100,000 words, but I’m not sure if the story will play out that long.

I think a little friendly “competition” is a fun way to reach a goal. If you have trouble staying motivated or completing a task, enlist some friends to keep you honest!

I’ll be posting about reading over at the Scribes’ Blog. Please stop by and visit. We love your comments!

Knit One, Write One

| Casey Wyatt

When I’m not writing or reading, my other favorite hobbies are knitting and crocheting. I like them so much that I have to be careful not to use them as an excuse to avoid writing. Earlier this year, I created a series of food themed scarves from Twinkie Chan’s Crochet Goodies for Fashion Foodies.

I’m now the proud owner of the following scarves: buttered toast, rocket pop, bacon & eggs, and a much admired candy dot scarf (which a few folks have offered to buy from me!).  I also have bags full of knitted socks, gloves, mittens, hats, scarves, crocheted amigurumi (little animals), and even crocheted food (my favorite is my hamburger).

With each cluster of projects, there’s  often a corresponding novel, query or synopsis that was being created at the same time. Not thinking about writing all the time, frees my mind so new ideas can float in.

One thing that I’ve noticed is that knitting/crocheting and writing are more alike than they seem. They both weave a thread into a cohesive whole. From out of nothing recognizable, you create something that didn’t exist previously.

With knitting or crocheting, if you don’t have a good, solid cast on (or chain) as a foundation, the end result won’t meet your expectations. Writing is similar. If the beginning of your story isn’t solid, then ending won’t be that satisfying either.

The other thing I like about yarn craft is that with patience and perseverance, you will be rewarded with an item that you created. One that you can wear, give away or display. And if you’re brave, you can branch out and experiment with new patterns and techniques to create something all your own. If your project goes awry, you can “frog it” (rip it, rip it – get it?) and start again.

Computers are a wonderful thing. They let you easily delete, copy or save your work. If there are bits I need to remove, I create a scene graveyard. I often go back to the graveyard and harvest ideas, wording or scenes as needed. And like my favorite needle crafts, I can either share my work or keep it in a bag hidden from sight.

What other hobbies do you enjoy? Leave me a note. I’d love to hear from you.

Also, please visit me at Writing Secrets of 7 Scibes. I post there every Friday! This week’s topic – Contest Feedback!

Beware: The Doubt Monster Will Get You!

| Casey Wyatt

All week I have been working on my latest novel. And in the beginning, I was cruising along. You know, blank page euphoria is a wonderful thing. Unfortunately, I’m in the early stages of what I call – the doubt phase. Even though I know where the story is going and I know I have a solid plot, I find myself listening to doubts.

Like:

  • This story is dumb. Who will want to read it?
  • There are so many other things I should have/could have done. 
  • I must be missing something like (fill in the blank).
  • This story is so weird no one will buy it.

On and on it goes. The greedy Doubt Monster messing with my head and my confidence.

I know why this is happening. Because I’m not staying in the creative mind. I’m letting that inner critic sneak in. The Editor is not allowed to make an appearance until after the whole darn thing is done. At this stage in writing, I should not be thinking about the reader, the marketplace or much of anything else real world related.

It’s right about now, I need a smack to the head. Or a reminder that there are people waiting to read this story (thank you, my precious First Reader – you know who you are).

The Doubt Monster rears his ugly head (yes, I believe it’s a him – no clue why, honest) at various times in the writing process. Sometimes, he dogs me the whole way. Other times, he appears sporadically. Rarely, if I’m lucky, he won’t show up until I’m almost done.

Of course, I totally blame myself for the Doubt Monster. He exists because I allow him to. So really, I’m just fighting with myself. Silly, I know. The best way to battle the annoying pest is to ignore him and keep writing.

I wish there was a more magical answer. But like all things, if you want something bad enough, you have to push through the tough times and keep going!

Blank Page Euphoria

| Casey Wyatt

I have finally started writing my next book. After about a month of planning and plotting (see here for my post on plotting), I finally hit the blank page.

I love a blank page.

A blank page is a fresh start. A world of possiblities where anything can happen.

But, the blank page can also be a little scary. Intimidating. Like walking into a room full of people naked.

The beautiful thing about using a PC is that anything you write now, can always be changed, deleted or saved in a scene graveyard for later re-purposing. Edits will come later, after the first draft is completed. So no doubts allowed!

For now, I’m savoring the early days of my book, just breathing in blank page euphoria!