• I asserted that writing is a real job.
• I exposed some of my writing weaknesses, and put forth some writerly things I'd like to try.
• I apparently am a dragon.
• I talked about celebrating diversity and what counts as racism.

At My Writing Desk

• I continued rewriting "Splitting Atoms".
• I brainstormed (because "plan" and "plot" are far too organized words for what I do) my upcoming NaNo novel.
• I also posted about my NaNo novel.
• And I talked about all the writerly things I do.

On the Web

• Kristen @ She'sNovel gave some pointers on exactly which darlings to kill.
• Imogen @ Young Writers' Treehouse discussed how writing poetry can improve your prose.
• Ava @ Writability offered some tips on maintaining suspension of disbelief.
• Hannah Heath explained why you should write short stories.
• Aimee @ To the Barricade! encouraged us to love our first drafts.

With Me and My Life

• My parents went on a business trip for a week and so my siblings and I got to do whatever we wanted while they were gone.
• That was also the week my internet died. And stayed dead. Until Dad got home and fixed it.
• Today was my last day at work for the year. Which is kinda sad, but it also means a whole lot less stress.
• I also shared some anecdotes from my boring life.

Coming Soon to the Blog

I mentioned I'm doing NaNo this coming month. What I did not mention, is that it's going to be a really tough month to do NaNo in.

What with work these last few months, I've fallen a little behind with school, and my Mom is really adamant that I am going to catch back up in November, or else. Which means most of my day everyday will be spent doing extra school work, and not writing, as I would wish. (And yeah, I know I'll be thanking her someday, but I guess it just is not this day.)

So my guess is (and I could be wrong) that what with school and NaNo and everyday life, there won't be all that much time left for blogging. I may be able to post once in a while, but it's entirely possible that you won't see much more of me until December. 

*shrugs* Anyway, we'll see what happens, and you all have a great month.

So what's your opinion? Should we perpetuate the idea of race? Should we celebrate diversity? How are you unique?

Anything and everything. Especially chocolate (including hot chocolate). A few other favourites are: ice cream, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches (don't judge), cookies, and milk tea (since first being introduced to the concoction via this lovely tag). And now I'm hungry. 

... Who am I kidding? I'm always hungry. I'm a dragon.

The rhythmic clicking of my keyboard, the far off lowing off cows, strains from the piano downstairs, and the distracting buzz of a trapped stinkbug.

That aside, I am a steadfast supporter of listening to music while I write. It might not work for everyone, but it sure works for me. And again, I pretty much listen to anything. I've got specialised playlists for both my major WIP and my upcoming NaNo novel, plus a collection of really gorgeous instrumentals when I really can't spare any extra braincells for lyrics (though singing usually helps me think better). And often enough I'll just turn my music on and let it play what it will.

If we're talking specifics, I adore instrumentalists like Audiomachine, Two Steps from Hell, and Martin Garrix.

I won't deny it-- I am easily distracted.

The internet is my bane. I constantly get side tracked scrolling through Pinterest, reading all the blog posts, checking my email, and chatting with my online friends. And I can't actually turn the internet off like some suggest because I write on Google Drive.

For the record, I actually adore Google Drive.

Write Horror: What is the worst thing that's ever happened to you while writing?

Write Joy: What's the best thing that's ever happened to you while writing? How do you celebrate small victories?

Write Crew: Who do you communicate with or not communicate with while writing?

My "Write Crew" consists of my sisters and my best friend, who are all writers as well. They are all wonderful humans and wonderful writers, and they're super supportive of my writing habit.

That being said, it doesn't bother me to talk to people while I'm writing, unless the person is the sort of annoying person that I wouldn't want to talk to even if I wasn't writing. Actually, it's another way of procrastination for me, and I really love procrastinating.

Now talking about writing is different. I will talk about writing online, or to my family, and definitely to my best friend, and if someone asks what I like to do, I'll say "I like to write", but around most of my friends and acquaintances, I keep my writing pretty hush.

There are actually lots of these.

Secrets

• Write whatever you want. Don't get caught up on "this idea is stupid", "these words suck", "my readers will be mad at me" or whatever else. Just write it. If it helps, write like no one is ever going to read it.
• Remember not everyone is the same. There's lots of really great writing advice out there, from really great writers, but if it doesn't work for you, it doesn't work for you. That is not a problem. Find something that does work. It doesn't mean there's anything wrong with you-- it just means you're your own person, and that's a good thing.
• Sometimes you just need to scream, "WUT R WRDS" and turn on Chris Medina.
• You can't write if you're not experiencing real life to write about. Don't hole yourself up in your room and write all the time. Get out there and do stuff. Have fun. Be normal. Talk to annoying people. Then go write about it.

Write-spiration: What always makes you productive?

Write Words: Share one sentence from a project past or present.

"Damian!" cried Senator Robertson, throwing out his hands. "What a pleasant un-surprise!" 

"The corn is very cheesy, thanks."

Senator Robertson face palmed. "Seriously?" he said. "Communication problems in the middle of an epic villain speech? Humanity is so annoying."

I really love my villain. Just sayin'. He's seriously the best.

"Shoot if you like," said Damian. "Now's as good a time as ever. I'd do it myself if I had the nerve." 

He  stared across the empty space at Damian's dark shirt, barely seeing it. His hand curled around the grip of the gun, his index finger finding the trigger. Damian deserved it. The metal was cool against his hot skin. His anger surged and sank and surged again, with each surge attaining new heights. He could see Damian's chest heaving unevenly as he stood waiting. Damian deserved it.

Because we had to end on a serious note. (We're so serious, son.)

And because I'm a dragon worth my salt, I'm going to ignore all rules and conventions and not tag anyone. *cackles*

But if you like this tag, by all means, help yourself...

It happened back in May. I'd just read the Raven Boys and had Urban Fantasy on the brain. I was taking a walk in the hot May sunshine and happened to glance down at my shadow and wonder "What if it was alive? What would it say? Would it be my friend?"

I continued working on a WIP I was rewriting and tried to forget about the idea, but it wouldn't. go. away. I wrote down some notes and started a Pinterest board, just to hold the ideas until I was done with my other projects, and for months I lived with "Shadowwhisper" on the brain, longing to write it.

It's so different from anything I've ever tried! It's Urban Fantasy, has no body count (yet), and is really, really creepy. It's also got a big cast of very quirky characters and it's set in the country. And dude, it's about an evil talking shadow and that just makes me super excited.

For now, it's entitled "Shadowwhisper", and it's about a girl with a sentient (and evil) shadow. 

One word? THIS IS TORTURE.

(Images all courtesy of Pinterest.)

The Shadow! Duh! It's evil, it whispers creepy things all the time, and it's on a mission to destroy the universe. *hyperventilates*

I also quite like Rae-- she's kinda grumpy and snarky, and for the most part closed off emotionally, but she cries when she watches movies/TV. Even Teletubbies or the Olympics. She's so contradictory that I can't help but love her.

6. What is your protagonist's goal, and what stands in her way?

When Rae discovers that her Shadow is slowly killing her, it becomes obvious it's his life or hers. The only problem is, there isn't a really good technique for killing shadows.

It's set in modern day Virginia, USA, in a borderline red-neck small town nested beside the Appalachians.

*panics* There are soooo many relationships going on in this book, but I guess the most important would be the Rae/Shadow relationship. I mean, they do have a rather-- close bond. And then there's the fact that The Shadow is sucking all the life out of her and feeding on it, so that drums up some suitable tension. Plus, of course, for half the book they're trying to kill each other and the other half they're whispering snarky things to each other so they really do have the best relationship.

I'm a pantser. I have some vague ideas as to what's going to happen in my story, especially early on, but ask me questions about the end of the novel and I will say, "I HAVEN'T WRITTEN IT YET." Rae will change-- she'll change a lot. But I have no idea how or in what direction until I get there I find that she's-- different. Be patient, my lovelies. These things take time.

Friendship, family, betrayal, if we want to be cheesy, the "triumph of light over darkness". Again, I haven't written it yet, so I'm not sure of everything that will be going on, but those will definitely be in there a lot.

I want my readers closing the book with a deep sigh of relief because the let off from the suspense and tension is so huge that they feel totally drained, emotionally. In an ideal universe, they'd also be sobbing profusely as they hugged the book to their hearts, swearing to love it forever. But I'll settle for less, if I must.

Because I always give such good advice, don't I?

1. Find someone to support you. It can be a family member, friend, online friend, another writer-- ideally, several people from each of those categories. Find someone who will hold you accountable to your goal and tie you to your writing desk when you just don't want to write.
2. Love your idea. Writing fifty thousand words in a single month can easily make you feel like you hate writing, and especially like you hate your novel. Don't go into NaNo without an idea you are super excited about-- an idea even fifty thousand words can't make you hate.
3. Don't stress. Well, of course you're going to stress-- that's part of the NaNo experience. But just remember, ultimately, it doesn't matter whether you churn out 50K in the 30 days-- what really matters is that you have fun, improve your skills, and come out with something more than what you went in with.
4. And of course eat lots of chocolate.