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Today I mostly wrote ... the word count thread.
message 2401:
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M.T.
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Sep 16, 2018 11:39PM
Two days at 570 or thereabouts. Haven’t managed this mornings though, had to write a condolence letter instead.
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That's still words - and I'm sure they'll be appreciated.
Kath wrote: "That's still words - and I'm sure they'll be appreciated."very important words
A thousand words, when I haven't been able to write, even if it's a blog post, is a thousand words.Finally - not entirely fiction, but tomorrow we write:
https://liebjabberings.wordpress.com/...
Yay! Well done Alicia! Managed words yesterday. Current short is up to about 8k.Chuffed.
Cheers
MTM
As long as we write each day, does the actual number of words really matter? Of course, it is good and right to have a 'realistic' target that, hopefully, is achieved most of the time. However, we should not become depressed if we do not achieve our aim. Some days, for me, it may be 400-500 words. Other days could be 1,500 - 4,000 or even a bit more. What is important is to get the words down. Sometimes seems as if I have written a lot of nonsense but the next day quite a bit makes sense. We can often surprise ourselves.
As the thread originator, I’d say, no, word count doesn’t matter at all, it’s just a parameter. But sometimes having a parameter so we can say, I did x amount of progress today, can be helpful. So on a basic level, it’s the word count thread and therefore, it’s about word count. Except it doesn’t have to be. ;-)It’s nice to look back and see how far we’ve all come and words written seems as good a measure of that as any. I started this thread after a nano where I found that I really raised my output just by comparing notes with everyone else and offering/receiving encouragement. One of the lovely things about it is that nobody is apologetic about small word counts or cocky about doing stacks. We all know about editing, good days, slow days and so on! It’s not a competition or anything.
Today, I got an hour and a half to write in, so I wrote 1,1k or thereabouts. But I agree that output isn’t the issue, it’s doing stuff. But sometimes it’s nice to try and measure the ‘doing stuff’ hence the word count thread.
It’s not obligatory to post progress as a word count and not everyone does, but it’s what I started the thread to log, so I’ll probably carry on. Anyone else who wants to carry on posting progress that way is welcome to do so, and anyone who wants to gauge their progress any other way is welcome to do that too.
It’s really a, ‘did you get your bum in the chair today?’
‘Yes I did/no I didn’t,’ thread.
Cheers
MTM
Still managing to write a bit each day. How’s everyone getting on? It’s getting a bit echoey in here with just me.Cheers
MTM
I've got a book waiting for the editor's eagle eye and don't really feel like going back to the one I left to write that. I shall do, but not till I've finished some craft work I'm undertaking. I love playing with fabric!
Inching my way back toward writing fiction.Three blog posts (liebjabberings.wordpress, prideschildren, and Pateon) yesterday and random commenting, plus I got into my main book files and started trying to figure out what next.
I'm saving re-reading Book 2 from the beginning for right before starting, to get me in the mood. Sometimes it's a good thing to write in finished scenes.
I think I'm afraid to get pulled back in before this place is tidy enough so I can find thing, but it has to be done.
Just an article, but it will be money :-)
Money is good. It's external validation of what you already know: you're a good writer. Congratulations!
Another closer step: I re-read the 45K that constitutes the first five chapters of Pride's Children: NETHERWORLD and am ready to pick up the quill for the next chapter - didn't notice any particular problems, and, considering that it's been almost half a year, I'm happy about that.No actual words yet...
Alicia wrote: "Money is good. It's external validation of what you already know: you're a good writer. Congratulations!"and we eat!
Abandoned 4 1st drafts - 2 complete and 2 almost complete - when I decided I don't like writing non-funny stuff.On the other hand, I am now in the midst of two funny outlines.
I have three books, two long, one short, on the way to publication and since I've started some craft activities, including a bit of painting, I've come to the conclusion that they tickle the same bit of the brain that wants to tell stories. Once I've done what I'm doing, no doubt it will come back but I don't seem to be able to mix creative passions.
Jim wrote: "Just an article, but it will be money :-)"As someone who earns very little money for her writing at the moment, I salute you!
David wrote: "Abandoned 4 1st drafts - 2 complete and 2 almost complete - when I decided I don't like writing non-funny stuff.
On the other hand, I am now in the midst of two funny outlines."
So with you on this! I find that my funny does get a little serious sometimes but I definitely can't begin to write non-funny. It's boring.
Alicia wrote: "Inching my way back toward writing fiction.
Three blog posts (liebjabberings.wordpress, prideschildren, and Pateon) yesterday and random commenting, plus I got into my main book files and started ..."
Brilliant news Alicia! Sounds like you're in the home straight with the move/unpacking malarky!
Kath wrote: "I have three books, two long, one short, on the way to publication and since I've started some craft activities, including a bit of painting, I've come to the conclusion that they tickle the same b..."
That really intrigued me, Kath because I'm the exact opposite. So when McMini was small, painting or doing crafts felt like pulling teeth because it was the same creativity I used to get him to school on time without constantly nagging (or doing him an injury)! As a result, I wrote because it used a different part of my brain; the pointy bit, mainly.
These days, McMini is slightly more compliant so I've started using the painting mojo to make models with him and as winter draws in, I've started knitting again, too!
M.T. wrote: "As the thread originator, I’d say, no, word count doesn’t matter at all, it’s just a parameter. But sometimes having a parameter so we can say, I did x amount of progress today, can be helpful. So ..."Good to hear about the encouragement people give by the sharing of such information. Thank you for sharing M.T.
M.T. wrote: "So with you on this! I find that my funny does get a little serious sometimes but I definitely can't begin to write non-funny. It's boring."Very true. It does need a bit of serious as counterpoint, but not too much.
On the other, other hand I could always go back to those 'serious' stories later and throw some funny stuff in. I remember Victoria Wood saying once that she wrote her scripts out as stories first and then went back and put the jokes in later.
David wrote: "M.T. wrote: "So with you on this! I find that my funny does get a little serious sometimes but I definitely can't begin to write non-funny. It's boring."Very true. It does need a bit of serious a..."
Yeh, you just get one character who’s a bit of a nut bar and suddenly it all comes alive, and you’re set.
Cheers
MTM
Sorry, getting straight after the move has taken most of my hours and I missed the CS/KDP info requests.Basically, you can do the transfer yourself now of paperbacks on CS to KDP: but when Ammy decide the finally close the doors on CS, they will do your books for you.KDP seems a lot less friendly than CS in terms of ease of upload and proofing, but maybe in time they will fnish importing the CreateSpace systems. Or maybe not. Distribution is not as good and the target is clearly maintaining and enhancing Amazon's exclusivity targets. Personally, I intend to save up and buy some ISBNs and then go to Lulu.
It was suggested that I write a gothic horror short for a coming anthology (no guarantee of course) and my problem is that having prepared an outline, I think there is enough for a novel rather than a 6K short. What should I do?
Try to think of a new outline and keep the current one to become a novel? If you can't think of a new storyline then you have to original to revert back to
Will wrote: "It was suggested that I write a gothic horror short for a coming anthology (no guarantee of course) and my problem is that having prepared an outline, I think there is enough for a novel rather tha..."I agree with Jud's suggestion. OR, you could take one element of the current outline and turn that into a short story. I have used this method for some back stories to my memoirs (i.e. created several biographical fiction short stories that I published separately).
Jud wrote: "Try to think of a new outline and keep the current one to become a novel? If you can't think of a new storyline then you have to original to revert back to"I think Jud is right in this
Come up with another Horror short
If you're short of ideas, take a Tallis Steelyard story at random and try and imagine it done with a horror angle, then change the names and background slightly :-)
Will wrote: "It was suggested that I write a gothic horror short for a coming anthology (no guarantee of course) and my problem is that having prepared an outline, I think there is enough for a novel rather tha..."Yeh, I’d go with Jud’s idea Will, or do an expanded version. I put a 10k short into an anthology, it really wanted to be 15k and I’m thinking I must put that 5 back so that the one I use is an extended version.
I've got about 2 weeks, so maybe a Lovecraftian short I've been dreaming about will come out in time.
93 today - I'm back on the bike! I've returned to the book I left in order to write the last one. Just on the read-through of the 22k I've already done and I'm now half way through. From next week I hope the count will start to go up again.
Been a beggar of a week for sitting down and writing!
I’ve done ok this week, a couple of days over 1k and the others all at 500 and something. Just sitting down to do today’s 20 minutes!Can imagine it’s been a bit windy up your way Jim, the weather too (badoom tish). Sorry.
Kath, nice going, I keep finding books you’ve written that have slipped through the net, bought a couple the other day.
Cheers
MTM
Thanks! Yeo, I keep slipping them in. Never the same genre. Not the way to break into the book charts!
Got another blog written, barely 600 words so I padded it out with pictures!
Inching my way there: I have recovered all my writing files and environment - with help.Not fiction yet, but 1k+ blog post about getting ready to write fiction is the product of today so far - still have hope of getting more done, including actual fiction - but we are being interviewed as new residents this afternoon, and having dinner with a new-to-us couple, and no promises.
https://liebjabberings.wordpress.com/...
Kath wrote: "Thanks! Yeo, I keep slipping them in. Never the same genre. Not the way to break into the book charts!"When you read so widely, it's difficult to stay in one box as a writer, right?
M.T. wrote: "I’ve done ok this week, a couple of days over 1k and the others all at 500 and something. Just sitting down to do today’s 20 minutes!Can imagine it’s been a bit windy up your way Jim, the weather..."
Not as bad as it has been. Last week was far worse. I've had some very pleasant weather when walking about this week :-)
460 on a replacement short. Going for a Lovecraftian feel if I can.
Will wrote: "460 on a replacement short. Going for a Lovecraftian feel if I can."there's a knack :-)
A lot of people look down on him as a pulp writer but not many can match his quality
Alicia wrote: "Kath wrote: "Thanks! Yeo, I keep slipping them in. Never the same genre. Not the way to break into the book charts!"When you read so widely, it's difficult to stay in one box as a writer, right?"
True. I write things I'd like to read, I suppose.
Kath wrote: "True. I write things I'd like to read, I suppose. ..."I'm not sure I could write something I didn't enjoy reading
I know I can’t write something I wouldn’t enjoy. One of the reasons I write is because the books I want to read aren’t always out there. Or sometimes, the plots are too simplistic and the characters lacking the prequisite complexity. I still re-read my own books occasionally, and enjoy them, which is rather creepily egocentric of me. Kath, I like that you genre hop. Also I am convinced, myself, that if I write enough books and can manage to engage my mailing list I will only need to sell a handful of copies of each one per month to earn a living. I’m aiming for £500 a month as that would cover expenses and the production costs of the next book. Anything else on top is gravy.
Alicia, I’m delighted you are getting sorted again and I hope the dinner went well!
I did a blog post yesterday and wrote about 280 words of the short - it’s slowing down because I’m topping and tailing and finishing it off. Not sure what to write next. I might revert to the behemoth short but I think it may still be simmering quietly, so I’ll probably put another couple of thousand words into tripwires next week while I have a think. Slightly worried about the shorts as I fear they may end up being a bit samey since they’re all about the same character. I might have to write some adventures for other K’Barthan characters as well, not sure though as I may not be able to produce as many about the others so the balance will be wrong. Thinking I might do a set about the main male character in the series and then do a set of two apiece about some of the other characters. That might work.
The blog post is a bit of a mish mash, like my books. Mwahahahargh! I’ll post a link later, when it’s done.
Cheers all
MTM
Jim wrote: "Kath wrote: "True. I write things I'd like to read, I suppose. ..."I'm not sure I could write something I didn't enjoy reading"
That's why there are still genres I've not touched. Not interested. Even if they sell.
Kath wrote: "That's why there are still genres I've not touched. Not interested. Even if they sell. ..."Alas that in my case these genres appear to be popular ones with high sales :-(
But I'm sorry, my sense of ridiculous would never let me write erotica, I don't really enjoy horror as such, and I find thrillers take themselves more seriously than I do :-)
M.T. wrote: "I still re-read my own books occasionally, and enjoy them, which is rather creepily egocentric of me...."I don't think so. If you wrote the book you want to read, you should be able to read it whenever you want exactly that.
I re-read occasionally; and I've done that with the five finished chapters of Book 2 to get back in the mood. I like finding bits I've forgotten I wrote.
Kath mwahahahargh! Absolutely, there are some things I’m never going to be writing.Jim, like you I find the high earning stuff is not for me, but I do get pissed off that I can’t compete with the naked manchest books flooding fantasy - my books sell much better when they’re pitched as fantasy, but at the same time, they get more take up in sci-fi these days because people actually see them!
Alicia, I love that, finding something and actually enjoying it to the point where I am not sure I could have possibly written it.
Did a blog today but not much else, not yet anyway. There’s half an hour so I might squish a bit in. Blog is here for anyone interested.
https://mtmcguire.co.uk/2018/09/29/fu...
I should probably have given it a profanity warning!
Cheers
MTM
Finished the read-through ready to start writing again tomorrow. Spookily, I added 93 words again, like Friday!
Failed to write anything today, was doing interaction with McMini ;-)
M.T. wrote: "Failed to write anything today, was doing interaction with McMini ;-)"don't worry, it's produce many many words later on ;-)
Jim wrote: "M.T. wrote: "Failed to write anything today, was doing interaction with McMini ;-)"don't worry, it's produce many many words later on ;-)"
How many will be swear words?
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