Writing Process Results

Hi Folks,

We've talked about my writing process for a number of weeks now. How about a few peeks into what that process has produced. First I finished the final episode of the Corelian Guard Series. Keep an eye out for Empire's Fall, the sequel to Empire's advance.

Next, I completed the sequel to Immortal Tigress.

And yesterday I finished the first draft of the sequel to Lady Blue.

Here's a peek inside.

Tasha awakened slowly, fear gnawing at her very soul. She was no longer alone in the cold damp basement. The small hairs on the back of her neck were standing up and a shiver crawled slowly up her spine. “Relax woman,” sighed a soft feminine voice. “I'm not going to hurt you.” The speaker was a small girl not much older than Tasha. She had blue spirals painted on her face and arms.

“Who are you? What do you want?”

“I'm called Lady Blue. My name is Kara. Your name is Tasha and you're in deep shit. I'm here to bring you an option you might not have thought of. Hungry?”

“What do you mean options? Wait, what? Yes, I'm starving. Have you got anything to eat?”

“Sure, try this.” She tossed Tasha a couple of military ration bars then fished a bottle of water out of her backpack. She passed it over.

Tasha forgot everything in her hunger. She devoured the bars then guzzled the water. A moment later she became aware of the small girl watching her. “These are military rations, where did you get them?”

“I took them off a soldier who tried to rape me. Feeling better now?”

And that's a wrap for this week. Now for the ROW80 check-in.

Again I seem to be well ahead of schedule. I have ROW80 to thank for keeping me on track. Even in the times when I set my goals lower, I still have that need to get something written for the check-in. Thank you one and all for keeping me honest.

So, this past week I managed to drive the word count on my WIP over 60,000 words and to bring the story to its proper ending. I am so thrilled.

Until next time, may your days be filled with sunny skies and smiling faces. 

Bright Blessings

Pru

Writing Time

Hi folks,

Well, we're back again at the writing practice. Last time I spoke about some of the rules. Today I will speak to another. "Write something every day! Just sit down and write, don't wait for the muse!" and so on.

You've all seen this advice on line and heard it in class. It's good advice...if you write for a living and have deadlines to meet. It might even work well for a plotter, not being one I wouldn't know. I'm told I'm a pantster.

What's a pantster? Somebody who has no plan, they just fly by the seat of their pants. Okay, guilty as charged. I can sit down and five minutes later have a broad outline of where I want the story to go. It rarely goes there anyway.

So, what does all that have to do with the write everyday rule? Well, I'm about to tell ya, see. I feel about that rule the way I feel about spending weeks plotting an outline. I'm a story teller. I sit to the keyboard and tell a story. 

If the voices in my head won't talk to me, I do something else, walk the dogs, weed the garden, bake bread, read, drink, whatever. Anything but write. I only write when I have a story to tell. Sometimes that's every day, other times I can go weeks without writing a dang thing.

Moral of the story? Ignore that dang rule. Do what works for you. Write when it brings you joy, fills you with excitement, takes you out of time. Write when you're driven to. That's when the good stuff happens.

ROW80 check in.

My beloved K has been away at a conference these past few days and the muse has been cracking the whip. Over the past week I have taken my WIP from 30,000 words plus to over 50,000. This sort of thing only happens when I am left on my own. Over the next week I will try to crack 60,000. Wish me luck.

That's it for me today. I hope this finds you all well, happy, successful, and excited about life.

Bless
Pru

The Rules of Writing and You

Hi Folks,
It's time now to discuss some of the rules of writing. I have no idea what they are. Sigh Well, okay, I do know, but I've caught a lot of flack for using them. I'm talking about English now. I have been told I write too formally. What? Say what???

It's English, people. We used to learn it in school. So, apparently, now you are supposed to ignore the rules of proper English and write in Jargon.

Please, aspiring writers, don't do it. Save the jargon for inclusion in dialogue, otherwise, use proper English. It may seem a bit formal or stiff to some, but at least they will be able to understand it. 

Oh, and for the love of Mercy, use the Oxford comma. If you don't there will inevitably be places where your intent is lost, confused, or downright hysterical. Use the Oxford comma. It bears repeating.

So, that's all I have to say about that topic for now. Next time I will tell you about some of the rules you can break...well, perhaps just bend a little.

Now, on another note, the Dark Traveler has been revised and given a new cover. Check it out here:

e-book

paperback

ROW Check-in:

We're starting the last round of ROW80 for the year. I can say I am quite thrilled with this year's progress. Last round all I wanted to do was finish a first draft. I did that, plus thirty thousand words on the next novel. Way beyond expectations.

So, this time I will shoot to finish the new story. How about that? This coming week I will aim for a total of three thousand words on the new story.

So, how about you? Was the last round successful for you? I truly hope so.

May your days be filled with sunshine and smiling faces.

Bless
Pru

On With the Story

Hi Folks,

It's a cold windy day here, perfect for story telling. So far we've talked about creating the characters and getting into the bad guy's head. Today let's talk about getting the story moving. There are any number of ways to do that. I suggest you try a few to see what works best for you.

Bad Guys

Hi Folks,

All right, I'll admit it, I'm way late with this post. Sigh. Sometimes chaos just explodes all over your world and you need a few days to settle things back down again. So, on with the show. Today's writing discussion is about bad guys.

Sunny Days

Hi Folks,

Well from a farm perspective the summer left a lot to be desired. However, it wasn't a total loss. We are now starting to enjoy the fruits of our labors.

Secondary Characters

Hi folks,

Well, here we are again, working on the writing process. So, in previous posts we developed our main character and started her story rolling. Now we're going to let her interact with some folks. Of these, let's introduce somebody who can be a help to her.

Creating Characters. Where the story begins.

Hey there, fellow writers, today is my first post on my writing process. If you’re looking for tips on publishing and/or marketing, sorry to disappoint you, this ain’t it. These posts will be about storytelling. I'm not going to tell you how to do it, I'm going to tell you how I do it.

Week in Review

Hi Folks,

Well, another week has passed as summer slips away. K's knee is making great progress. She no longer uses the walker and the cane is not always in use either.

Is it sad that it has taken a full knee replacement for us to get some relaxing time together? We all tend to lead busy lives these days and her job is a high stress treadmill. We'd actually forgotten how much we enjoy just hanging out together.

Warming Up

Hi Folks,

Well, another week has passed in the summer that wasn't. I don't ever remember a summer where we had to keep turning on the heat. Crazy stuff. The end result is the garden is growing much slower than desired. 

However it is growing and August is looking up. I didn't need a jacket on when I took the dogs out this morning. Looks like things might be warming up a bit.

On the home front, K's knee is slowly but steadily improving. Last night she walked .75 of a kilometer. We were at the Air Strip, and the horses in the pasture nearby all came to the fence to listen to her sing. Girl has an awesome voice.

Whirlwind Week

Hi Folks,

I know I'm a bit late here, but I've been a bit busy gal. Last Tuesday my beloved K had a knee replacement. Not so much fun. I brought her home on Thursday, but things got complicated and I had to take her back to the hospital Sunday night. Everything is under control now, she is home and feeling much better. Life is good.

I've been taking care of her needs as well as doing her chores and my own. That's where you learn just how much your partner gets done in a day. The woman is amazing,; how does she manage to get so much done in a day? Anyway, as you have probably guessed a few things have been neglected.

Cold Day in July

Hey Folks,
Today I'll start with the ROW80 report.

I woke up yesterday about 5:30, the current book I'm writing demanding my attention. I tried to get back to sleep, but to no avail, the story wouldn't leave me alone. The need to write was almost unbearable, the story demanding to be told. I got up, booted up the computer and set to work. 
Yeah, when my muse strikes, she uses a Thor's Hammer. On the bright side, I got lots done. Close to 6500 words for the week. Go me!

Windy Old Weather

Hi Folks,

The wind has been blowing long and strong for over a week now. It makes everything you do outdoors more challenging. In spite of that we have made further progress on the farm. More seeds have been started and another long bed has been prepared.

Special Day

Hi folks, 
You're in luck, no rant today. Today has been and still is a special day for me. Why? Because K is home today, and she booted me out of the kitchen. She's been cooking up a storm, planting seeds in pot to put in the window, and more. It will soon be gardening time.

The rhubarb is already budding. Can't wait for it to get up to size again.

All this domesticity on K's part has made me sit back and enjoy the blessing that having her in my life truly is. My home is warm, dry, and comfortable. The sun is beaming through the window, the old dogs are sleeping, and frankly, all is well in my world. 
In keeping with all this, we have decided to eliminate as much food as we can from our diet that comes from factory farms. We will grow what we can and buy local for as much of the rest as we can get. Considering where we live it may be impossible to reach 100%, but we intend to get as close as possible. Wish us luck.

ROW80 check-in.

So far this week I have managed 4K words and can see the light at the end of the tunnel. I'm well pleased with the progress.
On another note, I'm going to start something new. I'll be adding two new blogs. One will be a story in progress. I will write it page by page on the blog, always taking into consideration the feedback from the readers. Should be a lot of fun. Look for about one post per week.
The second thing will be still another blog. I've had so many inquiries about one of the characters in Nova Witch, and what motivates her, I thought it might be fun to write her personal log. So, I may give that a whirl as well.
Okay, back to work. Later.

Bless
Pru

Exciting News

Hi folks,

For the past couple of weeks I have had my head buried in rewrites and proofs, but I am thrilled with the results. My books are getting a new cover, edit, and are appearing in paperback as well as e-book formats. Here are three more and where to find them:

These Books and More

Keep a look out for more next week.  I'm also working on some new material which will appear in a few weeks if all goes well.

ROW80

This past couple of weeks haven't seen a lot of new material written, perhaps a thousand words or so, but I do hope to up that game a bit in the coming weeks. I'll keep you posted on how that is going.

Meanwhile, my ribs are starting to mend nicely. Life is good.

May a rain of blessings fall upon each and every one of you in the coming week.

Bless

Pru

Amazing Abs.

Hi folks,

Yes, it's me (Pru) back from the land of TV. It seems that's all I've managed to do over the last two weeks is watch TV. (Gag sounds) I've been learning exactly how many body movements make use of the abdominals and where those abs pull when activated. Quite amazing really.

On the bright side, I did manage to accompany K on her walk with the dogs today. It was my first venture through the door since I fell. Dang, how good is fresh air? 

I'll keep you posted as I make my way back from the easy chair where I currently spend my days and sleep at night) to the desk (where I'd rather be, writing).

Find it here.

On a brighter note, Hell Comes Home is selling well and that makes up for all the bad TV I've been watching.

ROW80

I wasn't able to do any writing this past week and I doubt I will do any this week coming. As you may well guess, this is driving me nuts.

Maybe I'll actually have something interesting to share by next time. Until then, may you all be blessed.

Pru.

Working Together

Hi Folks,

It's been an interesting few weeks for me since I signed on with a publisher. I've done a lot of re-reading, a bit of re-writing, fixes, and proofreading. Everybody has different ideas of what is important and what will make a better story. Frankie is a good example of the new and improved.

Scrivener?

Hi folks,

First let me tell you where I've been lately. As you know, I live on a small island and if I want to do anything (like take a cat to the vet) I need to catch a boat.

This is the boat on a calmer day.

Hi folks, 

Well, it has been a busy and stressful week here on the island of stone. To begin with we finally got the weather we waited for all summer, so there was a flurry of work on the outside of the house, preparing for winter. We scraped, painted, and installed a new back door as well as two storm doors. That should cut down the heating bills a bit.

installing

Playing with My Sleep Patterns

Hi folks,

Well, I'm back again. I am happy to report the sudden illness in the family seems to be improving. M went home from hospital yesterday. Now I am trying to refocus on my writing. However, I didn't last week.