Hitting the Books

Before I disappear for the weekend again (Mom talked me into going on a ladies’ retreat), I thought I should at least post a little something.

I’m making some headway with getting the outline for Widow Walk (working title) together before NaNoWriMo begins. I decided to try the Snowflake Method of novel writing (thanks to Bonnie for the suggestion and link). Yesterday whilst I worked the Friends of the Library booksale (a wonderful little biannual event), I got the first two steps finished. It really is an easy little method to use. We’ll see how well I can follow it from step 3 onward.

I’m planning on bringing the book to work on during free time–at least I’ll be getting caught up on something this weekend. So much for my intention of crossing things off my project list while Memere is here to play with the grandbaby. Sigh. Mom’s been here a week and I’ve gotten all of 2 things done (other than the usual weekly chores). I still have 1 duvet cover, 1 baby quilt, and 1 pair of pants to stitch up. Plus going over An Uncivilized Yankee for the umpteenth time. A friend edited the hard copy and I’ve got to transfer her comments to the soft copy. And write up the synopsis. Plus sorting through Punkin’s clothes and figuring out what she needs for winter. Plus finishing my wedding scrapbook and starting Jillian’s baby book. Ack! Ack! And double Ack!

Sigh. Is there somewhere I can buy a few extra hours so I can get some of this stuff done?

Ack! I must be crazy. Oh, that’s already been established. Okay, I must be crazier than usual. I did it. I went out and entered An Uncivilized Yankee (my historical romance) in the Romance Writers of America’s Golden Heart contest (for unpublished books–the RITA is for published authors). Not that I think it’s the best book ever written, or even that it’s really got a snowball’s chance. No, this was more of the I’ve-got-to-get-over-my-issues-and-go-for-it type entry. So now I get to write a short synopsis (under 15 pages), print out the first 3 chapters and a full manuscript, and get the whole shebang out to Texas before December 2.

On the NaNoWriMo front, I finally decided to work on one of my historical romances after all. This one is set during the War of 1812, so I’m spending much of my free time doing background research now and getting an outline in place before October 31st. Bright side–Internet research is going much faster now that we finally got broadband (Hallelujah!!! And there was much rejoicing.). Dark side–I know next to nothing about Boston at the turn of the 19th century. At least with An Uncivilized Yankee, much of it was set in the Fredericksburg/Richmond area, which is where I live. I know the area very well, the public library had a ton of resources, and I was already a Civil War enthusiast. I’ve been to Boston twice now, for a total of about 12 hours, I don’t think the Virginiania section of the library will have much on the heart of Yankee-dom, and let’s face it, the War of 1812 just ain’t one of the more exciting wars. But the story is pretty good (I think), so I shall endeavor to persevere.

Thankfully, my mother just came into town for a visit = the Punkin has another playmate for a few days. Hopefully I’ll get my tail in gear and tackle my backlog of projects while she’s here. That’ll give me some breathing room come November. Sigh, and somewhere in there I’ve got to start in on Christmas shopping. Ack, ack, and double ack.

Sorry for the long interlude between posts. We were away for the long weekend–went up to see my in-laws in Corning, NY (which is not “upstate,” no matter what my husband says) and show off the Punkin. Of course, it takes time to recuperate from the trip up and back, but here I am at long last clicky-clacking away at my keyboard.

Right before I left for non-upstate New York, I bit the bullet and signed up for National Novel Writing Month, or NaNoWriMo. Two main ideas drive this event. The first is that the biggest obstacle to writing is procrastination (so, so true). The second, that misery loves company (yup, that’s what it says on the website). NaNoWriMo provides the deadline necessary to spur all us procrastinators to words and good deeds, and the company of thousands of like-minded, suffering writers. The goal? Write a 50,000 word novel in one month, starting at midnight on November 1st and ending at midnight on November 30th.

Obviously, the quality is not going to be top-notch, but at least words are going down on paper, which is better than sitting there and staring at a blank page for hours on end. Participants are allowed to make outlines and plot notes ahead of time, but no actual writing. There is no competition, except that of yourself against the clock, and no prizes, other than the satisfaction of completing a novel.

Now that I’m a participant, there’s the problem of which novel to work on. I have a fantasy trilogy in the works, but the third is the only one I’ve not started on yet, and I’m not sure I want to complete book 3 before books 1 and 2. I’ve got the plotlines and main characters for a dozen different historical romances, but those require a lot of background research. Otherwise I’ll end up rewriting the whole story to make it mostly historically accurate–I’m a bit of a stickler for that kind of accuracy (or if the facts must be stretched to fit the story, I at least know what the real facts were). Right now I’m leaning towards the fantasy, but then again…ack! Indecision strikes again.

After I finally decide which story to work on (hopefully before October 31st), I’ve got to find the time to write. 50,000 words in 30 days works out to roughly 1700 words/4.5 pages a day. That’s a lot of writing. And I really can’t write unless the Punkin is sleeping (pay attention to the Punkin!). I get the feeling sleep is going to go bye-bye during the month of November. But that’s okay. Sleep deprivation does wonders for the imagination.

If you’re interested in joining this time of mass insanity, go to nanowrimo.org or click on the icon in my sidebar.

I read Miss Snark religiously. If you’ve not yet entered the hallowed halls of Snarkdom and basked in the radiance of Her Most Splendiferous Snarkiness, you should make the pilgrimage without delay. Not only is her blog extremely entertaining (Miss Snark does not suffer fools gladly. In fact, she doesn’t suffer fools at all.), it is extremely enlightening. I take what she says very seriously, as well I should, since Miss Snark knows that of which she speaks. So when two of her recent posts were on the importance of attending writing conferences, I shuddered. Hard.

You see, I’m a just a wee bit shy. Ok, so I’m painfully shy (in some cases almost phobic). Unless I know most of the people already, I don’t do well in groups of more than a dozen. I tend to shut down, hide in a corner (usually with a book), or find someone I already know and keep myself in their sphere of conversation. Heaven forbid I actually have to stand up and say something. Heck, I get paralyzed making phone calls to people I don’t know (making appointments and ordering pizza don’t count).

I know I need to get over this obstacle to my writing career. I’m much better than I used to be, that’s for certain. While the thought of joining a writing group makes me tremble, I am working up the courage to go (if I can find one nearby that doesn’t mind a 9 month old tagging along). I really want the peer review and support. But the thought of going to a writing conference is more than I can handle right now. Even worse, I would have to go by myself, since I don’t know any fellow writers nearby (and probably won’t until I go to the aforementioned writing group). I don’t think I can force myself to do it. And if I somehow, by sheer force of will and desire to get published, managed to haul my trembling self to a conference, then I’m supposed to introduce myself to total strangers, to start networking? Angels and ministers of grace, defend me.

So my dilemma is this–what’s a shy little daisy like myself to do? I write, I revise, I blog, I read other blogs, I leave comments. I’m fairly comfortable with this nice, safe method of communication (I firmly believe tongues too should come with a backspace key). But is that good enough?

Your comments are greatly appreciated, yea, desired.

Especially those of the estimable Miss Snark, should she miraculously happen upon this humble blog.