The Journey continues...

How's everybody??

Me? My month's been pretty rough. Started out with some issues with a friend, culminated with a ton of papers, projects, and homework, and punctuated by what use college kids like to call "He!! week". In addition, I attempted NaNoWriMo this November, which also may be why I was absent for so long on here. Unfortunately, I will not be winning NaNo this November. I'm currently at 33.6k. By basic logic, unless I get a miracle between now and midnight tomorrow, I won't win. xD

That brings me to today's blog topic: Perseverance. There are probably millions of people out there in the wide, wide world that dream of becoming published authors. When you take into account that publishers and agents are very selective in what stories they take on, it paints a very sad picture, doesn't it?

However, if we push on through, whether it take months, years, or decades, we may just make it.

For me, I realized early on this month (around 11/16) that I wouldn't be able to win. But, at that time, I also realized that my ranking on the author totem pole was low enough where self-imposed deadlines aren't set in stone. THEY CAN BE CHANGED.

The whole point was to write a book. I'm still going to do that. My NaNo deadline of writing 50k may be impossible now, but my ultimate deadline of having a completed novel by New Year's Eve may still come to fruition over the course of the next month.

This page is called "A Writer's Journey" for a reason. It comes from a very popular quote from Ralph Waldo Emerson:

"Life is a journey, not a destination."

As long as you pay attention to the journey, where you end up will be much more satisfying than if you're focused on the end.

Now, I have two girls that are in need of some good ol' author's attention. (My characters, in case you were wondering)

-Chrissy <3

I'M FEARLESS

So, Webbites, how have YOU succeeded recently? Me, I finished my second book in my Trials of Terrara Vikos novel series. Which I started, if you recall, back at the beginning of August. 

Yeah, no big deal.

But, now I have to learn some new skills. The main one being --> Patience. This time, it is not anyone else telling me not to touch the manuscript but me. I'm waiting a week, so by this weekend I'll be able to reread the entire book and see how much it royally sucked. Not saying it will suck, but it's entirely possible (though my beta reader would probably say otherwise).

Patience is a hard skill to acquire. If you've never learned how to be patient, now's the time to learn. Now, I speak from experience when I say that learning new things or changing old ones is scary. Trust me, I know. 

But, fear doesn't always have to hold us back. It's a natural response to stimuli that trigger a fight-or-flight response... but you don't want the scientific-y side to this, do you? Basically, what I'm saying is it's normal to be scared of new things, whether it's a change of old ways or incorporating new ones. Learning patience scares me a little, but there are plenty of other things I'm scared of.

The main one: my future.

Sure, my goal is to become a physically published author someday, with a real copy of my book in my hands and on book store shelves. What's scary is the uncertainty of that. It could take months, years, or even decades before I even get an agent, much less a publishing contract and bookstore shelf status. And Rejections! I'm aware that there will be plenty of R's, some of which might hurt. Not to mention that it's my dream to get through all that sooner rather than later.

What's a girl to do?

To tell you the truth, I may be an adult now, but I still enjoy childish things. Things such as young adult novels, Harry Potter fandom, and (I know some of you may groan) children's TV networks. Yes, I'm talking Nickelodeon and Disney Channel. While I know both those channels have considerably changed over the years, one thing that has mostly stayed the same is the messages in their movies.

I still watch Disney Channel, usually on a weekly basis at the least, b/c I enjoy the shows. But, every so once in a while, at night I'll turn Disney Channel on to see if there's any good movies on. Being October right now, they were of course showing a Halloween themed movie.

It's their newest DCOM movie, called Girl Vs. Monster. It's about a fearless girl named Skylar, who finds out her parents are monster hunters and has to learn how to overcome her newly-aquired fear-- fifteen years worth-- while trying to recapture her personal monster, Deimata. Throughout the movie, Skylar has struggles with dealing with fear for the first time. The reason she'd been fearless for most of her life was because the one who would bring on that fear, Deimata, was sealed up. Skylar has to learn to overcome all those fears that suddenly hit her, fears very similar to everyone growing up: appearance, confidence, and stage fright.

Think of your personal writing journey fears.

Or any of your fears for that matter.

Just imagine them as a personal monster, like the eternally evil Deimata. If you stay scared of something, your monster will get stronger by feeding on that fear, and that will make it that much more difficult to defeat. So, you have to show that monster who's boss. You need to learn to be FEARLESS. Not necessarily with everything, but if you face off with your fear, you will be stronger in the end.

For me, I need to accept that I can't know exactly what will happen in my future, but I have to have no fear and tell myself that whatever happens, I'm still me.

Quite a lesson from a children's movie, huh?

-Chrissy

PS- This song might help encourage the FEARLESS nature hiding inside you: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rKQTAr8jp24&feature=related

REVOLUTION realization

So, my writing's been taking an enormous leap since I last posted. I was able to publish a new story up to both Smashwords and Amazon. Hopefully, they will be up on other sites soon.

So, I've been watching a new show on CBS called Revolution. The show's set in a dystopian future, where nothing electric works. A girl named Charlie's father gets killed in a scuffle in her little village, and has to go rescue her brother, Danny, from the clutches of the militia, run by the leader of their newly formed dictatorship, Monroe. It's interesting to watch this show, because there's not many like it.

Drama.
Complex plotlines.
Plus, action every 2 minutes, whether it be chased by vicious dogs or kicking Militia butt with just a sword. (The Militia has guns, by the way. Guns vs single swordsman. Yeah, Miles is just that awesome)

I think I'm attracted to the series because it's such a rare find in television today. Not to many action/adventure sagas to satisfy the people that love and fangirl over. I can't help but wonder how the creators came up with such a good blend of all my favorite parts of a story.

But, then I realize, they're doing the same as me. They started out with an idea, and fleshed it out to make it unique. Putting in bits and pieces of things that would spark the imagination, and pick out the opportune moments to leave observers on the edge of their seats when they have to take a break (i.e.- cliffhangers).

While I'm just starting out, and they are (probably) more experienced writers and directors, we're not so different when it comes down to our roots. We're just dreamers, and if their dream can come to fruition...
Why can't mine?
:)
-Chrissy

Back in the ring!

So, here I am again! Miss me??
Ha, so yeah, I'm back, with an exciting development. My NaNo novel that I was workin' on... MADE IT TO 50k!! Yeah, that's exciting. Not finished yet (understandable since the first one in the series ended at 60k...), but I'm steadily getting to the end.
It's exciting when you know you're so close to finishing! Like, I know what I want to happen, so every word I type is like an adrenaline rush! If you're a writer, you know what I mean, right? To know you're so close, that every word you type is one word closer to being done, which is one step closer to being published, and one step close to my dream!
Well... I mean your dream. :p Of course that's what I meant!
Anyway, if you've gotten this close, then you understand where I'm at right now. I've got three short stories I've published in this same fantasy world of my recent books, which I've gotten like, 3 compliments. :p Which is a BIG accomplishment.
lol, no it's not. But I'm getting there!
Well, it's late here, and I NEED to get back to writing before I get to bed. Toodles, everyone!
-Chrissy

Procrastinating Blogging, AGAIN!!!

So, yet again, I fail to update this blog on a regular basis. I apologize in advance for this, but my schedule has been packed the past couple weeks. Yeah, I know, I used that excuse again, but don't try to tell me you don't do the same thing! ;)
Anyway, at the start of August, I learned about something called Camp NaNoWriMo. Now, if you're an avid enough writer, you know what NaNoWriMo is. At least the regular one that takes place in November every year and you try to write 50k in a month. Camp NaNoWriMo is basically just that, except you can participate in the summer, i.e. August. This comes in handy when you're a full-time student, because November is usually crunch time for papers and preparing for exams. I started out this month trying to work on the second book in my ToTV novel series, with every intention to get to at least 50k by the end of August, therefore winning my first NaNo!
...
That was before I had to get ready to go back to school. Yeah, I can hear you groaning. You've probably been in that situation before. Usually, high levels of emotion spur me to write more, but the higher levels of stress and panic that are associated with the start of a new school year completely did me in. I haven't worked toward my word count goal in a full week! I'm at a good 33,000, and that's probably close to where it will stay. I will try to work on more, but the key word is TRY.
Of course, I'll probably get more time this semester to write, due to my classes lack of Homework. You'd probably think that's a good thing. You know, more time for writing? Well, to completely counter that logic, I hate not having much homework. Homework helps fill the down time, and comes in handy to take your mind off your writer's-blocked WIP. Part of the reason I haven't worked on GoF in a week is b/c I've got a terrible case of writer's block. This is why I'm frustrated when I don't have a ton of homework to fill the void and distract the rising stress levels in my head.
On the plus side, working on a short story for a contest on Figment. If you're a writer of any kind, you should join the Figment community. It's a real blast!
Time for me to sit down to brainstorm. To quote an old cartoon genius:
"Think... Think... Think!"
-C

Ugh...

Well, this sucks.

I said in my last post that today was the day I got to look at my manuscript again. I was really excited and pumped for it!!

... Until I woke up this morning with an upset stomach. So, now I'm just sitting here, listening to some good ol' Christian rock (7eventh Time Down- Really cool band) while waiting for my stomach to settle. Ordinarily, I would just work on my story anyway and have my stomach churn. However, I'm scheduled to pick up my grandmother from the airport this afternoon and need to be able to drive for an hour to get there and about an hour back! So, upset stomach's not allowed.

Okay, so, not much else to say, other than I hope you guys out there on the Interwebs aren't feeling this terrible and are making progress today on your own projects!

Ugh, don't need this today...
-C

Restrictions and Parties

I've been soooo busy lately!! So, apparently, my want to write on here diminished since my first post, so I'm determined to keep it up this time!!

I've learned two things since my last post I'd like to share:
About two weeks ago, I finished the first book in a series I started last year. If you've ever finished a book like I did (9k in the last day), the excitement can last a while until you shut down. Not to mention if you're as serious as I am about publishing it, you could have little to no patience!

Luckily for me, I have an awesome mentor who has helped me get through not looking at it for two weeks. Can you imagine that? The constant agony of not being able to send out queries to agents or edit it for two whole weeks?! I'm the kind of person who rereads everything everyday even if I am not writing anything for it!! Well, I got through it, and tomorrow I can look at my manuscript with fresh eyes. It does come in handy to get away from it for a while. I didn't think it would be as easy as it was (though it wasn't easy, just easier than I thought), but going up to Canada for a weekend in the middle was great without having to worry about my stories or writing! It's also kinda funny to see my uncle and family drinking and going crazy on the grassy dance floor of my cousin's graduation party! xD

My advice to all writers at this stage: TAKE. A. BREAK. It really helps to clear your mind so you can do a better job polishing your own manuscript. That doesn't mean don't write at all either. Work on another project, a school paper, or poetry.

... Oh, and the second thing? When you go to a party with a eight year old kid, DON'T mention the word alcohol. Because then they will not leave you alone until you explain why their mommy or daddy can't drive them back to the hotel after having a bunch of Canadian beers.

Happy writing!
-C