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Weekly Writing Update: October Week 4

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Even though I got through 2/3 of the revision of my proof copy of “Pithea” in less than a week, it took me the rest of this week to finish it. This was mostly due to the fact that my husband wanted to spend time with me a lot in the evenings this week (evenings are my main time to spend on writing). How dare he…

I’m done with the main revision though, with only minor aesthetic things to proof, so I’m going to go ahead and order another proof copy to check my hopefully clearer cover that I had to redo again when the revision I did cut the pages down by just enough to require a different cover size.

While I wait on that proof to come, I need to spend the rest of this month prepping for NaNoWriMo. Thankfully, the outline has been done for months, but I need to get my mind back into that story, catch up with the remade plans for the story that comes before, and maybe flesh out the outline I already have. But no matter how much or little I get done during the rest of Preptober, come November 1st, I will start writing!

Weekly Writing Update: October Week 3

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My first proof copy of “Pithea” came last Monday. Not gonna lie, it brought tears to my eyes to see the story I’ve worked on for over 6 years as a tangible, full-length book for the first time. Then I couldn’t see well enough to examine the cover, so my husband looked at it, and sadly informed me that it didn’t look good.

Pithea proof 1

It’s really blurry, which was disappointing, but I’ve already identified a possible reason for this issue and remade the cover. Unfortunately, there’s no real way to know if it’s good enough until I get another proof copy. I’ll chalk this up to a learning experience, because if the next cover comes out good, I know how to make the cover from the get-go next time. If it’s still blurry…I’ll have to troubleshoot further.

I’ve been working furiously on the final full revision of “Pithea”, most of what I’m changing being awkward wording that I discover by reading the text out loud. I am 2/3 of the way through this revision, after which I’ll put changes into the computer, make sure the formatting is still good, and order another proof copy.

Pithea proof 3

Pithea proof 2

Blurry or not, it looks great on the shelf with other books!

I haven’t done much more prep for NaNoWriMo. I keep carrying around the notebook in which I wrote some character interviews in preparation of writing the outline for the book I plan to write, thinking reading back through those interviews will help get prepared for writing the story. But “Pithea” has taken all of my free time. If I keep the pace I’ve been on, I’ll be done with the final revision of “Pithea by Wednesday, and then I’ll be waiting for another proof copy. Hopefully that will give me the last week of Preptober to focus on my NaNoNovel (working title: “Ophaela”).

Weekly Writing Update: October Week 2

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I got the interior of “Pithea” formatted for paperback with minor difficulties, and after some real frustrations with the cover, ordered my first proof copy. It’s set to arrive tomorrow!! Once I have it in my hands, I’ll start reading through it with an eye for final details that need changed while also making sure the formatting is good. Visually speaking, I’m more concerned about the cover coming out good, so I’m really anxious to see it for the first time.

After I ordered the proof copy on Tuesday, I tried to turn my attention to prepping for NaNoWriMo. But that was when I realized that I only had a week until my next writers group meeting at my local library. Last month, I volunteered to lead a talk on writer’s block this month, and I hadn’t done any prep for that. So I spent a couple of evenings making notes and preparing a handout. I think I’m basically set for that now.

I have done a little of the prepping I had planned for NaNo, but I need to make sure to focus on that more in the coming weeks. There are just over 2 weeks left of Preptober, and I still need to go over the outline I made 4 months ago for the story I’m writing this year and flesh it out. Also re-read the first draft and new plans for the story that comes before. And read a couple of character interviews I wrote as part of the planning stage for this story. I’ll have to find a way to balance my writing time between “Pithea” and my NaNoNovel (working title: “Ophaela”).

Weekly Writing Update: October Week 1

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Last week, I finished making immediate changes to “Pithea” that I already knew needed made. My plan now is to format the updated draft for print, get a proof copy, and read through the book that way (probably reading it out loud), hopefully one last time, making notes for anything else that needs changed. I want to have the final draft as settled as possible before November.

This brings me to NaNoWriMo. October is what many of us call Preptober. I already have a preliminary outline for what I’m planning to write this year, which I wrote 4 months ago. But I need to re-familiarize myself not only with that outline, but also with the story that comes before it. I have a few areas of the outline to flesh out, too. I’ll have time to do this while waiting on my proof copy to arrive, I’m sure.

Weekly Writing Update: September pt. 5

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I had another somewhat unproductive week, though I did work on “Outcast” a little. I also spent some time getting ready for the local author booth at a local festival. That was today. It was terrifying at first, and I kicked myself for not saying the right thing after several interactions, but I did generate some interest in my future release, get some hits on possible future author appearances, and tell one teenager about NaNoWriMo’s Young Writers Program.

Tomorrow, I will start working on making a few changes to “Pithea” that I already know need done, then format it for the print version, and get a proof copy, which I will use to do a final revision, to be ready to publish soon. I will also start making sure I’m ready for NaNoWriMo this coming week, as Preptober starts on Tuesday!

Cover Reveal: Pithea

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Pithea cover, Kindle.png

This will be the cover for my first full-length novel, which is set to release on January 10, 2020. It will be available for pre-order in December, and I’ll post about that when it gets closer.  Below is the synopsis for the book:

In the near future, a devastating global war has led to a worldwide ban on the use of all technology. A few hundred years after the catastrophic war, a sort of magic—called “the Power”—manifested in every living person. Thousands of years later, the world has settled into a lifestyle that is part pioneer times, part medieval times, but with a more modern mindset. The Power has become a part of everyday life in the country of Pithea.

Missy Seeger is struggling to find her place in the world. She reluctantly decides to follow in the footsteps of her well-known and well-respected father. As other options begin to call out to her, she can’t let go of the need to please her father.

Naolin Dark is a solitary young man who knows exactly what he wants to do with his life. He finds the adventure and excitement of life in his local militia, with a sword strapped to his side, to be the only worthy path. The primary goal of Pithean militias is to protect the country’s citizens from animals afflicted by the Madness, and Naolin is eager for his chance to prove himself.

Missy’s and Naolin’s abilities, ideals, and even bodies are put to the test in many ways as they are forced to deal with villains and monsters that are made possible—and all the more dangerous—by the Power and the Madness.

Ebook Giveaway

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Triangle Cover

My first published book, The Triangle, is free on Amazon, now through Sunday! Be sure to go and grab your digital copy before it’s too late! Please consider leaving an honest review on Amazon, Goodreads, your own blog, or preferably, all of the above!

Synopsis:
Tyler Bradley has a good life. He’s been married for seventeen years, has two daughters, makes a comfortable living, goes to church on Sunday, and really has no complaints. But one small, innocuous change reveals a tiny crack in his happy life. The crack widens until one day Tyler looks around and can’t understand how he got where he is. And worse yet, that crack threatens to devour his entire family.

Hoping to repair the damage, Tyler begins to study the Bible he’s heard so much about, but never bothered delving into. During his searching, he meets someone who captures his attention, and then his heart. She manages to brighten his life, while also muddling his mind. While this new relationship deepens, his home life only gets worse. How will Tyler recapture the good life he once thought he had?

Public Appearance

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I’m very excited to announce that I will be one of several Huntington County authors appearing at the Pioneer Festival in Huntington, IN at the end of September. I will have paperback copies of my book (The Triangle) to sell (and sign, if so desired), as well as information on future books. It will be my first public author appearance, so hopefully it will go well!

Most of the people who read this blog live nowhere near me, of course, but I still wanted to announce it here! Now, in traditional me-fashion, it’s story time:

My local library has a monthly writing group called The Wordsmiths. It started about 3 years ago during NaNoWriMo, as a write-in location. Those of us who attended throughout the month decided to turn it into a regular thing. Not long after that, I got a job, which quickly blossomed into a crazy, life-sucking entity. I didn’t go back to the writing group until, I think, 2 years later, again during NaNoWriMo. Then, all this year, every month, there was one reason or another that I didn’t go—being sick, working, taking my daughter to the doctor, and the last couple of months…I’d just forget by the time it was time to leave the house.

Even this week, I had fully planned to go, and didn’t forget it for once…but started talking myself out of it, because it had been so long since I’d been there,  I felt weird suddenly showing up again. And because I could tell more people had started to come in my absence, and I don’t like meeting new people. And because…blah blah blah.

But I didn’t want to wait until November to go again, and let it be seen that I only care about this group during NaNoWriMo, plus other reasons compelled me to strap on my big-girl pants and just go. And it turned out to be a very good thing, because the woman who organizes The Wordsmiths and keeps it going is also one of the organizers of this event at the Pioneer Festival, which is being jointly presented by the festival and the library. She said she’d thought about asking me sooner, but for various, completely legitimate reasons, wasn’t sure if I’d want to. But she was glad I’d come this month, so she could ask me about it. A day before the deadline to turn in participants’ bios and pics.

Now…of course I would prefer to go to this thing with more than one thin novelette to my name. I’d love to be able to give a publishing date for “Pithea” while sitting at that table. At this point, I don’t think that will happen (it is possible though). However, I still truly think that the way this all worked out shows God’s hand in action. I can talk to people in person about my book (both present and future), can (try to) answer any possible questions they may have about writing and publishing, and maybe even spread the NaNoWriMo love. And what might be the biggest benefit of all, it will be experience talking to people in real-life about my writing, possibly signing some books, and just push me out of my comfort zone in general, while still being in my own hometown, plus a lot of my family will be nearby in the re-enactment section of the Festival (as participants).

Whatever exposure I may or may not get from this, it will be an invaluable experience; I’m quite certain of that.