Loni Townsend's Blog, page 5

Book 2’s Back On! #IWSG

You might notice a new look to my site. I decided it needed a refresher since my old parent theme wasn’t getting updates anymore and the dropdowns no longer functioned. I switched to this new one, and though I’m not sure I’m in love, it’ll do. While I was in maintenance mode, I also changed from trying to use follow.it to mail chimp for the posts-via-email feature, so some of you might get an email from me later today. Sorry if that’s not what you wanted.

March took me by storm with spring break and birthday celebrations (I’m the big 40 now!), so I’m behind on my obligatory visits to other blogs. As I scramble to catch up, I leave you here with another installment of Insecure Writer’s Support Group!

I’m happy to report that I’m not insecure at this time. Some time ago, on the cusp of finishing my book 2 rewrites, I felt it was necessary to split the book in 2. At the time, it was the only way I thought I could relate my hero’s subplot to the main plot. Once I made that decision, however, I promptly put aside all progress and avoided doing the work.

Well, I recently hit a spot in my companion novel that isn’t working for me. Jim Butcher has some excellent writing advice, and in his discussion about scenes, he says there can be four answers to the conflict question of “will they succeed?” He says don’t answer with “yes”, because yes is boring. That’s exactly where my scene is, and I’m not sure how to change the answer to a “yes, but…” and still make it work like I need to.

Therefore, I do what I do best: put it aside and avoid it.

But the writing advice triggered my natural tendency to take what I learned and apply it to whatever situation I can, and that included book 2. As my brain organized mental notecards to lay out the events, it became glaringly obvious that splitting the book was going to undermine some of the dramatic moments I had planned. Then it came to me—a way to rework the existing subplot to and make it work. That burst of adrenaline had me running like a squirrel who discovered an extra cache of winter nuts.

After almost a year of not working on book 2, the ideas are back and the passion is strong. And the best part? I can go back to calling book 3 book 3, because it never really felt like a book 4 to me. The companion novel is getting shoved into the drawer for now, but since it takes place between books 3 and 4, it doesn’t hurt anything if I get to it later.

I will show off the companion novel’s cover, however.

I have to admit I am rather proud with how it turned out, and if you’re wondering, yes, I digitally painted it myself. I had to start over on the character four times to get her right, and that doesn’t count the background that my husband had said wasn’t good enough once I finished. It took me a month of fiddling to get it to this point, and I still see little things that make my eye twitch. Oh well. Maybe I’ll fix them when I return to writing the book.

IWSG Question of the Month – Have any of your books been made into audio books? If so, what is the main challenge in producing an audiobook?

Alas, the answer is no. I can’t afford it (my books are loooong). I do have a microphone and Audacity though, so maybe a podiobook or two exists in my future. I just have to finish writing all the books first.

Have you ever had a problem in one book inspire the solution in another? What writing advice have you found most impactful? What do you think of the companion novel’s cover?

About Insecure Writer’s Support Group

You can find the sign up for the IWSG here. We owe Alex J Cavanaugh a huge thank you for thinking this blog hop up.

Progress #IWSG

It’s the first Wednesday of the month, and I only managed to make this post because a friend texted to remind me. Whoops.

I’ve made significant progress on my companion novel. That is to say, I’ve made it past chapter 2. After all my worries about chapter 1 lacking tension, I ended up rewriting it again, added a bit more fun (in my opinion), leaned more on my character’s limited resources, and made implications toward her personal feelings early on. And then I went and added a brand new chapter 2, pushing out the multi-day jump I lamented about last month. This was fun for me, because I got to throw in all the ways her immediate antagonist makes her angry, including things I’d removed from chapter 2 five versions ago. Even though it doesn’t move the plot forward much, I think it helps the story, giving the reader a grounding on why my character is so reluctant to take this antagonistic character on as her mentor later in the story. I’m currently on chapter 11, nearly 30K into this story. Based on the structure-in-a-nutshell text file I have saved after a gchat conversation with my buddy Jim, I’m in first plot point territory. That probably means my story is going to be about 120K, if I manage a well-structured story, that is.

I’ve also delved back into the realm of art, finding inspiration after messing with Dream by Wombo and plugging in “blacksmith smelted molten metal” as the prompt and choosing blacklight as my style. Here is one of abstract generations, that I plan to use as a color scheme.

I’ve had lots of fun playing with Wombo to create visual candy for my different environments. I’ve generated several iterations for my five main provinces, figuring out what to put in the prompts to get something along the lines of what I want. There’s Halqua to the east, Aerwether to the north, Geotellus to the south, Embrathael to the west, and Lumenor smack dab in the middle.

I’ve also been drawing, working on my main character for the companion novel, aiming for a style somewhere between semi-realistic and cartoon. It’s not done yet, but I’m hoping I’ll stick with it and be able to show it off next month.

IWSG Question of the Month – Have you ever been conflicted about writing a story or adding a scene to a story? How did you decide to write it or not?

Ha, yeah, that pretty much describes all of my books. I’ve got bad stereotypes, frowned upon tropes, and poor representations of mental illness and disabilities. The thing is, that’s how the story is in my brain, and if I changed the core of who these characters are, then I might as well throw the whole story out because they wouldn’t be my characters anymore.

I’ve simply resolved to write the stories. I’m not going to pursue publishing, because though there’s a strong sentiment of “there will always be people who don’t like it, don’t let them ruin it for you” and “people need to stop being so sensitive” (those are responses I’ve gotten when I’ve explained my stance to people), I personally don’t want to contribute to the problem. I’m not going to stop writing, but I’m also not going to unkill that one character or change the way this other character talks or make that other character not a cannibal. So I’m going to write my stories, as messed up as they are, still run them through my critique group and critique partners because I do want them to be well written, and then print and display them with pride in my office.

Now if only I can finish them within my lifetime…

Have you seen progress with your stories lately? Have you ever played with Wombo art? How do you feel about controversial subjects?

About Insecure Writer’s Support Group

You can find the sign up for the IWSG here. We owe Alex J Cavanaugh a huge thank you for thinking this blog hop up.

Doing It All Over Again #IWSG

It’s February 2nd, known to people as Groundhog Day. And how can one forget the Bill Murry movie by the same name, where he’s forced to relive the same day over and over again?

That seems a bit like my book, or rather books. I’ve been working on the companion novel, and after last month’s post where I was hopeful… It quickly turned into me rewriting from the beginning again. *sigh* I’d taken my character from petty to ping-pong and while there were some improvements, the general consensus was that I’d failed to achieve my goal.

I started over, this time removing the bright idea I’d added to supposedly increase and define the character’s motivation, and tossed in implications of a nefarious plot that the character herself has no involvement in. That leads to my insecurity this month: What if I’ve lost tension by doing so? What if the beginning is boring now? There’s not a whole lot of urgency from the character’s perspective. Not only that, what if the flow doesn’t work? I’ve had to add a time jump of a few days between chapters 1 and 2 so the other character doesn’t appear to be abandoning his responsibilities the same day he gets them. That’s added to the word count, and I’m worried it’s going to throw off the story structure, making the beginning drag and the rest of it seem unbalanced.

I don’t know. Maybe this story is doomed.

On a happy note, some of my friends have published this last month! We’ve got tragic adventure, inventive mishap, murder mystery, and troublesome romance. Be sure to check out the books and pick up your own copies:

IWSG Question of the Month – Is there someone who supported or influenced you that perhaps isn’t around anymore? Anyone you miss?

In my writing, most of my support group exists in my critique group (including Dani and the Lamberts, unrelated) or my critique partners (Aldrea being my longest standing one). And as you can see, they’re still around. My group lost a member a few years back, and it was a shock for all of us. Her name was Anne Buzzini, and I’m sad that I’ll never get to read her completed story Blood Music. I remember the way she used to call out cliches in writing, spotting them like a hawk. There were other members who have come and gone, but they’re still alive and available at the other end of an email. Anne is one who left us too soon.

Have you checked out the new releases yet? Do you have anyone you miss? Have you ever struggled with a project you felt was doomed?

About Insecure Writer’s Support Group

You can find the sign up for the IWSG here. We owe Alex J Cavanaugh a huge thank you for thinking this blog hop up.

New Year, Same Ol’ Squirrel

It’s 2022. Not only that, it’s the first Wednesday of 2022, making it Insecure Writer’s Support Group day. Happy New Year!

IWSG Question of the Month – What’s the one thing about your writing career you regret the most? Were you able to overcome it?

I’m skipping the question because to answer, I feel I would have to consider writing a career for me. It’s not. I’m strictly a hobbyist. Always have been, always will, despite my foray into selling books some years back. I write for the enjoyment of it and nothing rides on me succeeding or failing. Regrets? Pfft! It’s all learning and improvement.

Let’s talk goals for a sec. This year, my only writing goal is this: finish something. Anything. Maybe it’ll be my companion novel. Maybe it’ll be flash of my characters reacting to an assassin. Maybe it’ll be a fresh draft of a massive rewrite (unlikely). All I know, is that I just want to call something done this year. Is that too much to ask?

My goals in other areas are a bit more verbose. In the health and fitness realm, I want to stick to 11-7 fasting on workdays, limit my Red Bull consumption to just days off, and abstain from alcohol the whole year. I also want to complete a GMB Fitness program, which is focused on flexibility and mobility. I’ve given up my aspirations to weigh 120lbs with only 18% body fat and six-pack abs. Now, I aim for something more reasonable: being able to move without hurting myself. I’m going to be 40 this year, and I’ve already got arthritis in my wrist and a tweak in my back. That doesn’t bode well for the 40 years to follow after.

For art, I’ve got two specific goals: learn Blender (3D modeling software) and complete a course on drawing human anatomy. The first one has no practical applications for me right now. I just want the skills so I can someday 3D print figurines of my characters. But the latter will strengthen my character drawings in the long run, and probably help when it comes to sculpting my characters in Blender. I don’t know when I’ll have time to focus on these goals, but there they are.

I think out of the above, writing is most achievable. I’ve kept consistent with getting words down in the morning, even if some days it’s less than 50. I’m not quite done with my companion novel changes that the shift in chapter 2 caused. But I have made progress and I’ve developed some ideas on how to tie in the main character’s seamstress skills into the still-nebulous final confrontation. She probably won’t be busting out the needle and thread to fight off the foe, but maybe her fashion sense can recognize trouble before it’s too late? Hmm.

What are your goals for this year? Have you ever wanted to do frivolous learning? Do you have regrets in writing?

About Insecure Writer’s Support Group

You can find the sign up for the IWSG here. We owe Alex J Cavanaugh a huge thank you for thinking this blog hop up.

One More Month #IWSG

It’s the first day of December and Insecure Writer’s Support Group day!

What makes me an insecure writer this month? Well, I’ve had to redo that companion novel WIP I’ve been working on, and now I’m losing steam. I submitted my second chapter a while back and my group didn’t have the response I’d hoped. The unlikability of my main character out-weighed the interesting aspects of the story, leaving them meh on the whole thing. I’d worried about this, and now that they confirmed my concerns, I went ahead and redid the whole chapter, which has led to a ripple effect through all the chapters that follow.

*sigh*

I suppose that leads to this month’s question:

IWSG Question of the Month – In your writing, what stresses you the most? What delights you?

Redoing stuff stresses me out the most. That’s probably why I’ve avoided book 2 all year, because that’s got a massive rewrite waiting for it. What I love the most, however, are those moments when the scene just bursts from brain to fingertips and I pour out character interactions that leave me grinning. Other people might not appreciate them as much (take chapter 2 for example), but the pure joy of these characters coming to life, no matter how petty they may be, is the reason I write.

As 2021 comes to a close, I find myself in a positive place. I’ve done some self-examination and realized I’m not quite who I try to be, but I’m accepting of that. For years, I considered myself an ISTJ because of how I try to manage my home life and what I actively work to portray to my family. But my procrastination, disorganized/messy personal space, and the fact I switch projects on a whim all point to me being a P more than a J. I retook the test with a more truthful answers of how I am versus how I try to be, and sure enough: ISTP.

Strangely, that knowledge is freeing. I used to feel guilty that I could never stick with one thing for too long, whether it be in writing, art, exercise, or whatever. Now, I’m just “yeah, that’s me.” It gives me a new perspective as I head into 2022, and I’ve got the rest of this month to figure out how I’m going to use that information.

What do you find stressful or delightful in writing? Have you ever looked at personality types? Are things looking up for 2022 for you?

About Insecure Writer’s Support Group

You can find the sign up for the IWSG here. We owe Alex J Cavanaugh a huge thank you for thinking this blog hop up.

No NaNo This November #IWSG

It’s November! Sheesh. Only two months left to this year and we’ll be on to the next one. I haven’t accomplished much in 2021. I did one thing I agreed to do (before the deadline even–go me!), but I’ve got two others waiting in the rafters for my attention (sigh).

I’ve added more to my companion novel, bringing the word count to 30K. That’s the reason I’m not doing NaNoWriMo. After taking 3 months to get this far, I don’t want to stress myself out trying to do more.

This story has always been a self-indulgent one, because it doesn’t add to the main series. It follows a girl, Rhea, who unwittingly gets tangled up with the ruling family. It feels a bit like I’m writing fan fiction of my own world because big-impact POVs from the main books are mere cameos in this one. But it’s fun.

As a personal plus, I’ve managed a bit of art lately too: Alberich and Rhea. Rhea’s a seamstress (the POV of the companion novel) and Alberich is her father’s hired help.

IWSG Question of the Month – What’s harder to do, coming up with your book title or writing the blurb?

For me, definitely the blurb. The titles come fairly easily for my stories, as I prefer short titles that are mostly all encompassing yet descriptive. For example, the companion novel I’m currently working on is about the daughter of a blacksmith who undergoes a change process that draws out her inner value. The title? Smelted. Given Alberich’s role in Rhea’s change, I thought it was fitting.

About Insecure Writer’s Support Group

You can find the sign up for the IWSG here. We owe Alex J Cavanaugh a huge thank you for thinking this blog hop up.

October?? #IWSG

This Wednesday snuck up on me. I was typing away during my morning writing time when I came to the sudden realization of what today was–Insecure Writer’s Support Group day! Wha? Already?

I failed at my September goals. I didn’t once touch my Book 2 WIP, and my eating habits have been on a rollercoaster of ups, downs, and spinning whirls. But mentally, I’m in a good state right now. I’ve been plugging away at my companion novel, though there’s not a whole lot of word count to show for there. I’m at 17K (was at 9K last month), but I’ve been doing a lot of discarding and rewriting as I go along. You see, I established a light-hearted whimsy tone in the first chapter, which my critique group loved. But after I’d written the inciting incident, it turned dark fast. That brings me to the question of the month:

IWSG Question of the Month – In your writing, where do you draw the line, with either topics or language?

Typically, I don’t shy away from much. I refuse to harm children in my stories because that parental part of me is all consuming. But other topics or language I might touch upon at some point.

The inciting incident of my companion novel involved assault and it forced me to face a dilemma. I couldn’t, in good conscience, keep that incident and return to the whimsy tone that I knew would be part of the rest of the story. It felt like I was diminishing it and the last thing I want to do is diminish the pain of someone who might face a similar incident. I thought long and hard on it, because it’s been the incident in my mind for years now, but that was where I drew the line. I wouldn’t make light of the assault.

So I tossed out 4K and switched it to her nearly getting eaten by a dragon-sized bird. Still a catalyst for her learning self-defense, but something I felt safe poking fun at.

I’ve since rewritten another 2K any time I lost that whimsy tone, so technically I’ve put over 25K toward this novel. The progress has been good (though not toward the project I really should be working on). But heck, I’ll take it.

How about you? Have you ever rewritten something because you don’t feel comfortable about how you represented it? Do you get distracted by side projects and end up abandoning your goals?

About Insecure Writer’s Support Group

You can find the sign up for the IWSG here. We owe Alex J Cavanaugh a huge thank you for thinking this blog hop up.

All the Distractions #IWSG

I’ve got a lot on my TODO list today, so it might be a bit before I make return visits.

It’s the first Wednesday of the month, announcing September is here. Why am I an insecure writer this month? I didn’t so much as crack open book 2 during August, and I’m supposed to be trying to finish before the end of the year. I dabbled in book 3/4 and added 9K toward a companion novel, but I haven’t made a push toward doing what I’m actually supposed to be doing with regards to writing.

I haven’t made much progress toward any of my goals. Not much writing. Absolutely no art. I stopped working out, stopped vacuuming, stopped mowing the lawn. I let someone else take care of the dishes, the shopping, and providing the meals. I switched from producing to consuming. I let life become routine, and I paid the price for it.

It was pointed out to me that I wasn’t doing enough.

So here it is September. I’ve already started my anti-lazy-Loni efforts. I’m back to eating only between 11-7, aiming for healthier foods. I’m doing kettle bell swings to try to get some strength training back into my routine. I bought an art course to improve my landscape skills. I intend to spend at least one day a week on my book 2 rewrites. And, of course, I’m trying to be a better human being.

Hopefully, it’ll be enough for myself and everyone else.

IWSG Question of the Month – How do you define success as a writer? Is it holding your book in your hand? Having a short story published? Making a certain amount of income from your writing?

For me, success would be finishing this darn series. That’s all I want to do. I don’t even want to sell the books anymore.

What does success look like for you? What do you do to remain productive? Have you ever felt like you were deficient?

Books and Characters #IWSG

It’s August already. Can you believe that? I can’t. July passed by way too quickly, and now I’ve gotta figure out school stuff for my kids because that’s happening this month. There’s transitions I’m not ready for and scheduling I don’t know how to juggle yet. We’ll manage, I’m sure. But the impending event looms ahead and it doesn’t help my anxiety any.

What also doesn’t help is my lack of progress toward my massive rewrites. I completed one chapter in July. One is better than nothing, right? So what if I still have 60 more to go? At this rate it’ll only take me another 5 years to complete. *sigh*

But let’s get past all the doomy-gloomy stuff that makes me an insecure writer and talk about the question of the month.

IWSG Question of the Month – What is your favorite writing craft book? Think of a book that every time you read it you learn something or you are inspired to write or try the new technique. And why?

When I read the first question, I immediately thought of 45 Master Characters by Victoria Schmidt.

Honestly, it’s not going to teach an experienced writer much. It’s my favorite because it’s the first book I bought when I began honing my craft. I loved looking at the different archetypes and figuring out how my characters fit–MaTisha being Zeus, the King; Cameron as Apollo, the Business Man; and Kaio as Athena, the Father’s Daughter. (I don’t adhere to the gender roles in the book.)

I struggled with Derek, though. I really wanted to slot him into Dionysus, the Woman’s Man archetype and even pushed him that way in book 1, despite it never really fitting him. I started to wonder if he wasn’t Persephone, the Maiden, with how often he got in trouble and how he always needed help to dig himself out. But even that didn’t quite match him and his motivations. What really defines him? His bad decisions? That’s a big part of it. But the driving force behind those decisions is almost always his family. His entire identity is wrapped up in them–his wife, his children–and there’s no length he wouldn’t go for them.

Looking at the archetypes again, I can see he’s Demeter, the Nurturer, which I find even more interesting given Demeter’s role in Greek mythology (the Olympian goddess of the harvest and agriculture, presiding over grains and the fertility of the earth). Derek becomes a key component in my world’s ecosystem, and he also one of the few remaining servants to a fertility deity.

It’s fun for me to see how my imaginary people fit into different roles. It’s the same level of joy one gets from taking a BuzzFeed quiz (probably the same level of usefulness too, if you already know your characters). And yet it remains one of the most impactful craft books for me. Would I recommend it to others? Eh, not really. But characters archetypes are fun if you want to check them out.

Are you surprised it’s August already? Are you more productive than me lately? What craft books have influenced you?

About Insecure Writer’s Support Group

You can find the sign up for the IWSG here. We owe Alex J Cavanaugh a huge thank you for thinking this blog hop up.

Well, That Was Fun #IWSG

As I went to write my post this morning for Insecure Writer’s Support Group, I was presented with a wonderful 403 Forbidden error. Yay. It seems every few years I lose my site and I have to dig to get it back. As I stepped through the troubleshooting and nothing worked, I relented and reached out to my webhost support. Minutes later, I received an update on my ticket saying “it’s resolved”. Sure enough, I could access my site again. Hmmm. I appreciate the speedy service, though it does make me wonder what caused the issue. If it wasn’t my plugins, a corrupt htaccess file, or permissions… then maybe it wasn’t me who broke it this time.

But onto the post! June was a packed month for me. I took a week off to work on my book and settle my kids into a summer routine. They weren’t keen on the “no screens before noon” rule I laid down but begrudgingly adhere to it, along with the first 40 minutes of screens being Epic! and Prodigy. I celebrated 15 years with my husband in June and went to the movie theater for the first time since the pandemic hit. My friend released her new covers to the world with artwork I made for her. (Please go look!) It’s not the type of art I typically do, since I lean heavily toward my own characters and world, but it was interesting to exercise my artistic muscles as I tried to nail down what she wanted.

Writing-wise, I made some progress. Last month, I decided to split my WIP in two. I transferred 130K to my current working document, pulling bits and pieces from the multiple versions I have of this book. I’ll likely add 50K before I finish the “first draft”.

But the burst effort seems to have burnt me out. After rewriting one chapter three times during my week off and writing a new chapter that I still don’t like the ending of, I have found my enthusiasm waning. That leads to the question of the month.

IWSG Question of the Month – What would make you quit writing?

I think the only thing that’d make me quit permanently would be finishing my series. I’m not a person who writes for a living. My writing goals are specific to a particular universe and characters.

But there are times when writing stops for a while, like it has now. I’ll plug away at a chapter over a span of a few weeks, but my main focus exists elsewhere. I never really quit writing. I need to make sure I have something to submit when my turn comes up for critique group.

Does summer get busy for you? What do you think of Sarah’s new covers? What inspires you to write?

About Insecure Writer’s Support Group

You can find the sign up for the IWSG here. We owe Alex J Cavanaugh a huge thank you for thinking this blog hop up.