The Writing Life

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Ta-DAH! And just like that, I’ve finished Spilled Milk. Final word count: 78,531 words. So far, I’ve maintained my pace of 10k words a week. This week (so far), I’ve got slightly less than 5k done, though, which means I’ve got to immediately pick up Eye of Darkness and pour almost 6k words into it to meet my quota. If I succeed, then I will likely be writing “The End” a second time this week, given how little there is left to go on the novel.

Of course, neither work is anywhere near ready for release. I have to line edit and concept edit both of these before I can publish them, and that’s going to take some time. The good news, for Jefferson’s Road fans, at least, is that I’ll be able to have  The Tree of Liberty done before too long. I expect to start it in January, and I should have it finished no later than mid-February — all assuming I can keep up the pace. Topheth, the next Janelle Becker book, will follow close on its heels, which means that I’ll have four novels finished before Spring. At that point, I’ll have to assess where I’m at. Especially in terms of editing. I still have line edits to finish for The Elixir of Life that my friend Linda sent me. But, all things being equal, this should shape up to be a very productive year.

Right now, I’m going to do the happy dance.

shuffle, shuffle, step!  shuffle, shuffle kick!

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Well, I’m still working on the Spilled Milk story that I started for NaNo. Yesterday I wrapped up the first seven days of December, and I’ve cranked out about 10.4K words so far this week. I think this is going to be my goal from now on: 10K words a week. True, it’s nowhere’s near an Amanda Hocking type pace, but it’s a whole heck of a lot faster than I’ve gone before.

I did some math last night before cranking out the final grand to put me over the 10K mark. This is a list of the various works I have in process and their respective word counts since starting to write seriously about six years ago:

TITLE Word Count
Eye of Darkness 71866
Spilled Milk 63203
Tree of Liberty 15971
Topheth 26838
The Novem 24381
Waterless Places 12311
Descent 11664
Rock of Ages 11289
Saint Jude 8856
Jezebel 5469

I’ve listed the projects in order of priority. So even though Topheth is further along than Tree of Liberty, I know I have more people waiting for one than the other, which is why I put it first.

As you can see, I’ve got ten different projects that I’ve started and haven’t finished as of yet. Fantasy, sci-fi, action/adventure, thriller and drama. I’ll need to write approximately 500K words to finish them all. And that’s my goal for this next year: to finish and release ten separate novels.

I don’t have any illusions that this will be easy, and frankly, if I succeed at finishing all ten, I think it means I won’t have reached high enough. I will definitely have to churn out 10K words a week to pull this off.  Still, it’s a goal, and one worth pursuing.

That being said, I do believe I’ll have both Eye of Darkness and Spilled Milk done by the end of the month–and I’ll be back to work on the next mile in Jefferson’s Road before the new year begins.

Wish me luck!

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They say third time is the charm, and it certainly has been for me. As of four o’clock yesterday afternoon, I surpassed fifty thousand words in only twenty-nine days. The story isn’t done just yet – I’m still writing – which is why I haven’t “validated” my win just yet. I want to get more of the story told before hitting the button. But as far as word count is concerned: I’ve now broken all my previous land-speed records.

As of right now, I have 50,824 words written on “Spilled Milk,” a thriller about a man taking on his city with bombs and guns in a frantic bid to get his children released from Child Protective Services. They seized his kids because he insisted on giving them raw milk (his son has an unnamed food allergy), and when FDA agents seized his supply, he fought back with a gun. As a result, the kids were taken out of his home and now he’s trying to get them back. His journey leads him down dark paths where he grows to recognize that just as a man makes choices, so too do his choices make the man.

I don’t know how long the book will be, but I promise it’ll be released once it’s finished and edited. I expect I’ll step aside from it to wrap up Eye of Darkness in December. And, of course, I still have to finish The Tree of Liberty and Topheth (my latest Janelle Becker book). I hope to have all four books for sale before the end of summer, 2012.

Got to get back to work, now!

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Well, that was productive. I managed to kick out a little better than 3K words on my overnight this morning. Would’ve been more, but I had to catch up on Terra Nova, and, of course, there’s this whole work thing I had to do (anybody who works for Heritage: please, don’t take this seriously!). Still, I was wa-ay behind as of this morning when I climbed into the van with the family, sans sleep, and headed off to Massachusetts.

After letting the kids watch the first DVD of The Lord of the Rings (again) and taking a little snoozage myself, I took advantage of the ride (I don’t usually get to be a passenger on these trips!) and cranked open the laptop. Downside is that my power cord likes to quit on me at random, and my laptop battery is totally fried – so I have to endure the darn thing crashing from time to time. But the upside is that I killed my word count, and now I’m only scant words away from being totally caught up. 36,114 out of 36,666 needed for the day. Of course, tomorrow is another story, but we’ll see how it goes.

Right now, though, it’s dinner time, and I gotta run.

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Well, that was a productive night! I’m still wa-ay behind on my NaNo project, but I made serious progress during last night’s overnight. Cranked out 4006 words in a single sitting  and passed the 30k mark. Actually, there were several sittings, with frequent coffee breaks and addressing resident concerns throughout the night, but at least I avoided the temptation of TV and minesweeper!  Okay, so I might’ve played a game of minesweeper, and another of Mahjong Tiles. Sue me. Point is, I’ve gotten closer to being caught up. And since the day’s not over yet, I still have a little more time to crank out some more verbiage. I might even get out another 1,000 words before I have to put it up for the day.

Naturally, we’re going on vacation for Thanksgiving, so we won’t have any time to pack, deliver boy scout popcorn or girl scout cookies, or put the tractor away after today, since we’re leaving pretty much as soon as I get home tomorrow. And finding time to write while with family will be touchy, at best. I’m thinking I might just keep a notepad handy for those few moments I can grab here or there where it won’t look like I’m totally ditching the fam to selfishly indulge my “hobby.”

That’s the one thing about NaNo I don’t quite get. Why do this in November? Why not January, when nothing is happening? Is it because NaJa just doesn’t sound as cool as NaNo? Or is it that the organizers just happened to pick November, and decided to keep it that way because holidays are a fact of life that we all have to work around? That’s probably the case, and I’m being whiny. Thousands of people take the NaNo challenge each year and succeed. This will be the first time I succeed, and just because it’s hard doesn’t mean it’s impossible. And yes, I will succeed, because even though I’ve only got another day till we leave for the holiday, it’s still an overnight where I can crank out 4-5K words, and after this I’ve got two more at the end of the month before we reach the 30th. If I can get to 40K by the end of the week, I’ll clear the hurdle with room to spare.

At any rate, I’ve retitled the novel, Spilled Milk. It fits within the same meme as Jefferson’s Road, but the story line really is all its own. It’s less a political dystopian thriller than it is a subversive thriller. Although my anti-hero, Gerrold Smith, does hate the government for its intrusion into his life, he doesn’t have the philosophical education or background that helps motivate someone like Peter Baird. Gerry is just motivated out of a misguided passion for his children. It’s really his grief over his wife’s death that drives him over the edge, though he hasn’t realized it just yet.

I thought up an ending for it this morning. Can’t say that it ends on a high note, but it does feel like a necessary consequence–maybe the only kind that can be genuinely satisfying. I don’t know how long this book will wind up being, but I’m interested enough in seeing it through to the end. I think once it’s done (and edited), I’ll go ahead and release it on Smashwords and Amazon for $.99, but I don’t expect to format it for print. Unless there’s a serious demand for it, that is. I’m not planning on pushing it overmuch though.

All right. ‘Nuff chit-chat. I gotta get back to work!

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Gaargh! NaNo is killing me this year! I’m sweatin’ to get to 25K words, and already I’m better than 2 days behind. This is honestly quite frustrating. The only hope I have of catching up are my two overnights next week. I’ll have plenty of time Monday and Tuesday to write, given that I don’t have any classes to prep for this week. On the other hand, I’m staring down the barrel of Thanksgiving Day with its requisite travel time, and wondering how on earth I’m going to get far enough ahead to enjoy the holiday without drifting back to the computer (for which crime I’m likely to be shot, stuffed, and served on a platter myself!).

On a positive note, I’ve come up with solutions to two different novels that have been a little hamstrung–though I haven’t had a moment to really do anything with the information because I’m so frickin’ busy trying to get caught up on this NaNo novel.

Then again, this is why I’ve taken up the challenge. I know I need to write more faster, and this is the best way I can think of to get myself to that point. All right. ‘Nuff said. I gotta get back to work. Maybe I can get myself within a day of my target if I crank at it.

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Sliding into November, and I’ve elected once again this year to try my hand at NaNoWriMo. For those who don’t know, this is “National November Writing Month.” It is a marathon attempt to write a 50k word novel in 30 days.

I’m doing all right, I guess. I’ve got better than 20K in so far. A little behind, but I expected that. It’s difficult to write with my schedule on Sundays or even Mondays (though that’ll change now that our homeschool co-op wraps up today). I can make up a lot of time on my Tuesday overnight and into the next day which should get me back on track.

The value of NaNo-ing is the discipline it offers in sitting down and pushing myself through a novel when I’d rather be watching TV, blogging, or wasting time playing Minesweeper. The downside is that it takes time away from works that are already in progress and in desperate need of completion. I toyed around with not doing it for awhile, but then on the first (happened to be a Tuesday), I chose to bite the bullet and come up with something. At any rate, we’ll see how it turns out. I don’t know whether or not I’ll release what I’m working on. It’s being written more for my benefit than for sale – as an exercise in writing more faster. I have no illusions about its quality.

On a side note, for some reason my sales numbers at Amazon have tanked this month. I don’t think I’ve gone this long without a sale since back when I first started. I know this comes in fits and starts, but it’s still unnerving when I don’t see anything coming in for awhile. Sales at Smashwords have remained modest, but steady, so I don’t know what this means. It may just mean that I have to get some more product out there for sale. Hopefully, this NaNo thing will give me the shot in the arm I need.

Oh well. Time to go back to the keyboard and crank out some more content.

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It is mid-October already! I can’t believe how quickly this season is flying by. Of course, it might have something to do with the fact that I’m teaching four courses, working full time, part time, preaching, and just trying to survive. Yeah, that might have something to do with it.

At any rate, the reason I haven’t posted in a while is because I’ve been writing – in addition to the aforementioned thieves of time. But since I had a comment to respond to and a book cover to upload here anyway, thought I’d bring you up to speed.

UPDATES:
Eye of Darkness is nearly complete. I found that I had to go back and add a chapter somewhere in the middle of the book, which is now complete, and I’m plugging away toward the end – which, if I haven’t mentioned just yet, had eluded me for some time. I think I’ve got it figured out now, though.

The Lost Scrolls now has a cover approved, and it is slated to come out in September of 2012. It isn’t the March publication date I’d hoped for, but I’d rather take the time and get it right than rush into market before it’s time. My publisher tells me that the book will be available in March for endorsements, which will then be added probably in the front matter and in marketing efforts.

I haven’t heard anything yet from my friend Linda about The Elixir of Life. She did send a couple of thoughts early on, but nothing since. I can only assume she’s busy, what with her own books coming out and all. It isn’t a high priority at the moment anyway, since it’s another book to offer to Ellechor rather than one I’m releasing on my own.

And for fans of the Jefferson’s Road series, you’ll be happy to know that I’ve restarted work on The Tree of Liberty. I know, I know: I’m only supposed to work on one book at a time. Maybe it’s the Occupy Wall Street protests or the ramping up of the election cycle – or all of the above – but I found that, yet again, I have to write this series. I’ve always enjoyed writing books, and have done so largely for amusement. I’ve never actually felt compelled to write a book until I started this series. At any rate, I guess I can thank the poor little commies in NYC for the protests. I’m sure I can use one of the images in the cover of God and Country or one of the next books. I’d been relying on an image from the Vancouver riots, but now I can pick something a little closer to home, I think.

At any rate, the story is moving forward nicely, and I’ve got enough sense of what happens immediately next to write several chapters ahead of me.

The Coppersmith continues to be my bestseller. I’m not making as much money from it (only $.99 compared to $2.99 for the Jefferson’s Road books), but I’m selling a lot more copies. Roughly half of my sales totals so far.  I’d like to work on Topheth toward that end, but I don’t think I can justify going back to working on three projects at a time again, much as I’m tempted to do so. Of course, I confess I have tinkered with it a little bit. I think, once Eye of Darkness is finished, I’ll be able to give a little more time to it. Priority will be The Tree of Liberty, of course.

And that’s about it. Gotta get back to work now. Peter is about to cause some trouble.

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Well, here it is October already, and I haven’t gotten nearly as far on Eye of Darkness as I’ve wanted to. I neglected to calculate in the time I’d be spending writing lessons for our home school co-op classes, but the real reason is that I haven’t come up with an ending.

Until now.

Sometime early this morning, in that marvelously creative “dream state,” I stumbled upon the sufficient twist which will solve the mystery and reveal everything–as well as how to bring it all to a successful conclusion and tie it up with a bow. As it stands, I’m probably at least 10 and 12K words away from that moment. Maybe more. Regardless, I know now that I can finish the book. Usually, when I start a novel, I have a much clearer sense of how it ends than this, and that may be why I got stuck. Oh well. At least now I’ll be able to concentrate on writing toward the finish line.

Speaking of finishing, I received the first draft of the cover for The Lost Scrolls from my publisher today. They’re pretty close to what I was thinking when I pictured it, with a few changes here and there. I expect I’ll be able to show you the cover soon (but not until it’s ready and I get the “okay” to do so.).

We haven’t started editing the text yet, but I think that will be happening shortly. I’m so looking forward to seeing this book out there!

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Yikes! Is it September already? I’ve been busy making Facebook pages to promote my books, as well as releasing Patriots and Tyrants in paperback, and I’ve found the time to do some editing for my nephew and some cover assistance for my friend Linda… I just haven’t found the time yet to write!

I don’t think I’ve been avoiding it, but maybe that’s not true. Time will tell.

Regardless, I’ve made a little more progress on Eye of Darkness, getting a whole lot closer to being done, and I’m eager to wrap it up and get started on the next project on my plate.

The Coppersmith continues to be my newest “runaway” best seller (for me, at least). I’ve sold almost as many copies of my psychothriller as I have of my political thrillers, and in far less time. Maybe it’s the price point, maybe it’s that the subject matter is less controversial, and therefore less frightening.

Apple I-tunes is where I’m selling it most. I sold 35 copies in June and 23 in July. I don’t have figures for August yet, but it’s crazy that it’s doing so well over there. Weird. I’m sure the fact that I share the same first and last name as another major author isn’t hurting me any at all. I know for a fact his name is just a pen name (Michael Scot was the name of a Scottish “wizard”), whereas my name is the real deal. Besides, I had it first. I’m sure people will figure it out eventually. Hopefully, by that time I’ll have established my own credentials as a writer.

Oops. It’s time to go to work now. Gotta run!

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