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Daily Writing Check-in: February 3, 2019

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Words/Time: 2 hours, 35 minutes working on various things in preparation of creating a new list of short term goals. I worked on a post that will go up tomorrow, details my 7 works in progress that all connect, and editing or creating mood boards for them. I also spent a decent amount of that time trying to decide the order in which 3 of those books should be released.

Several months ago I created a grid in Excel where I listed each story across the top, and along the side, and in the box where 2 stories met, I wrote out any ways that one story could spoil the other. Though I know not everyone reads books in order, I can at least make sure that, for those who do, the order avoids spoiling the things that are most important to each book.

However, 3 of these books are a bit too interconnected, and I’m not sure there’s going to be any way for them to completely avoid spoiling some things. So I have to decide what order would cause the least amount of spoilers for the biggest events or reveals. I’m settled on an order for now, though I’ll admit that the one of these 3 that comes first is a little strange, but I’m leaving it for now.

Daily Writing Check-in: February 2, 2019

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Words/Time: 49 minutes working on a new list of short-term writing goals. I also spent this time writing up short synopses for 7 different books that are in various stages of development, because I’d like to share a bit about them as I also share my goals related to them. My new list of goals will probably be posted tomorrow. If anyone is interested in the meantime, my story blog has some information that will likely make parts the synopses clearer.

Here is the official list of previous short-term goals, which are now all completed!

1. Remove NaNo fodder from 2018 NaNoNovel; put scenes into Scrivener while I still remember my ideas

2. Make Aeldrim not be dead in “Pithea”

3. Revise “Pursuit of Power” enough to be readable by a friend.

4. Read through “Pithea” for further necessary changes

Daily Writing Check-in: January 30, 2019

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Words/Time: 17 minutes finishing reading through “Pithea” for any changes that later-written stories may force in the book that started it all.

The final final draft of “Pithea” is now done, and I didn’t need to make very many large changes at all. I really did go into this thinking that other stories I’ve written since this first one would force some even small changes here and there. But there wasn’t much more than deleting a couple of scenes that fit better in “Pursuit of Power,” which was the 2nd book I wrote, so not even one of the more recent ones I thought might have caused a problem.

However, I don’t want to make too big of a deal out of calling this THE final draft, because I have pretty much decided that I need to have at least first drafts written of a couple more planned books before I call “Pithea” done enough to look into publishing again. I don’t want to cause trouble down the road or force a ret-con.

I cut my time short today, because I’ve been working heavy hours and need to go to bed early tonight. It’s possible I won’t do any work for the next few days, because it’s harder to get to it when I’m busy, and I don’t have a clear course of action. Because I’ve finished this draft and am not entirely sure what to work on next, it’s very possible I’ll put it off until I’m less busy (or if nothing else, Sunday, when I’m off work for sure).

Daily Writing Check-in: January 29, 2019

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Words/Time: 1 hour reading through “Pithea” for any changes that later-written stories may force in the book that started it all.

I got through about 54 pages, getting me to page 465 out of 482. The biggest change I made today was to move the narrator, Drear, from the city he lived in with his parents, to sharing an apartment with his brother. This makes much more sense, since his parents moved out of the country, and he’s been reconnecting with his brother since then.

There is very little left to read in this story. In the end, I won’t have made many changes due to later-written stories forcing change in this one, but it was important to be sure. Besides that, I wanted this more fresh in my mind as I go on to make revisions to later books.

I still don’t know what new goals I will set after I finish this draft. I don’t think I can attempt publishing again until I have a more solid idea of the books that will follow.

Daily Writing Check-in: January 28, 2019

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Words/Time: 1 hour, 17 minutes reading through “Pithea” for any changes that later-written stories may force in the book that started it all.

I got through about 68 pages, getting me to page 411 out of 482. If anyone is paying attention, they may notice that the book dropped 28 total pages from yesterday to today. This was a decision I made while doing some early revision of “Pursuit of Power” recently. I decided to look at the scenes that intersected these two books and decide which one of them the scene really needed to be in, rather than show the scene in both books, but from different perspectives. It was easier to do that with some of the other scenes, especially since some of them slowed “Pursuit of Power” down quite a bit.

However, I knew that also meant that a more exciting scene that really belonged in “Pursuit of Power” more than in “Pithea” needed to be removed from the latter book, even though it’s been a part of that book since before it was written. However, it will be stronger without that scene, because what happens in it is so far removed from the rest of the theme and focus of the book.

I am now into part 4 of 4, and should be done with this final final draft in a couple days. I just don’t know where I go from there.

 

Daily Writing Check-in: January 27, 2019

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Words/Time: 57 minutes reading through “Pithea” for any changes that later-written stories may force in the book that started it all.

I got through about 55 pages, getting me to page 343 out of 510.  I just started into the 2nd to last chapter of part 3 of 4, and then I’ll be in the home stretch. This read-through has gone a lot faster than reading through “Pursuit of Power” recently, but then, I had more ongoing changes to make to “Pursuit of Power.”

When this is done, I don’t know what I will do. It will be time to evaluate anew where I should be going next with my writing.

Daily Writing Check-in: January 26, 2019

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Words/Time: 2 hours, 24 minutes reading through “Pithea” for any changes that later-written stories may force in the book that started it all.

I got through about 128 pages, getting me to page 288 out of 510. The pace was slower than it’s been in the past, but I did get distracted by some rabbit trails while reading. Still, I am solidly into part 3 of 4, heading into the exciting parts of an otherwise more drama-filled part of the book.

I am loving the fact that I don’t have to force myself to write most days, and in fact have been spending most of my free time working on this, rather than playing video games or something (I still do that some, but keep finding myself wanting to come back to this). I just don’t know what’s going to happen exactly when I get to the end of my current list of short-term goals, and when this book is once again finished being edited…and ready to attempt publishing again.

Daily Writing Check-in: January 24, 2019

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Words/Time: 40 minutes reading through “Pithea” for any changes that later-written stories may force in the book that started it all.

I got through 27 pages, getting me to page 64 out of 510.

I should mention that I have taken to changing the draft to Comic Sans during revision, because of a post on the NaNoWriMo Facebook page last month. They shared this tweet, and I thought I’d try it for myself. I do find that the words are a lot easier to read, so I’m going to stick with it. But this makes the document a lot longer. “Pithea” is 380 pages in 12 pt Times New Roman.

Daily Writing Check-in: January 23, 2019

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Words/Time: 53 minutes finishing draft 3 of “Pursuit of Power,” followed by 20 minutes starting through what will hopefully be a final final draft of “Pithea.”

I got through the last 39 pages of “Pursuit of Power,” making broad changes in advance of heftier structural changes I will start on in the future. This finished goal #3 in my list of short-term writing goals that I have been working on since the end of NaNoWriMo in December, and I have already sent the draft to my friend to read. (*fingers crossed that he likes it*)

Now I am moving on to goal #4:

1. Remove NaNo fodder from 2018 NaNoNovel, put scenes into Scrivener while I still remember my ideas

2. Make Aeldrim not be dead in “Pithea”

3. Revise “Pursuit of Power” enough to be readable by a friend.

4. Even though I did declare “Pithea” finished a few years ago and sent it off to a couple of publishers, writing that I have done since then has led me to make some changes to it already. Changes like aging most of the characters up 3 years and un-killing a character (see #2 above). I think that before I can move on to more fully revising “Pursuit of Power,” I need to make sure I don’t need to make more changes to the first one. Plus, I think it’s necessary to refresh myself on the book that started it all.