ROW80 #3: Sunday Sunshine

So far, so good. I spotted the first forsythia today, its sparse yellow blossoms a welcome contrast to the bare-boned trees of winter that yet linger.

Efforts to declutter mind and office continue. This week, I cleared out TWO shelves of books, donated to our local library. We also visited two senior living complexes this week. We decided we won't move when our lease is up here, even if our apartment is dark (stress immediately lower). Instead, we'll spend that extra bit of money on traveling. Next, need to decide where we'll go to escape next winter's snow.

My story's in an odd place. After drafting that last chapter for Section 03, I realized I love the concept, but the dialogue between heroine and hero doesn't ring true. So, I've called the first draft complete, and, with lots of notes, I began the first revision of the first draft yesterday. More revision and research ahead, inspired by generous and helpful critiques from The Internet Writing Group. I'm telling myself that perseverance furthers!

PROGRESS ON ROW80 GOALS, ROUND 2:

• WRITING = Weekly: Add 1K words to Seventh Tapestry. Sunday check-in: Added 1,357 words!  Not yet: Add 500 words to family history (or work 4 hours). 
• BLOG = Weekly goal = post x3 and read blogs by others x7. Sunday check-in: Posted on ROW80 blog x2 and on Writing blog x1 (Insecure Writer's Support Group). Read blogs by others x10. My monthly post for IWSG: "About Blushes and Beginnings."
• CRIT Novels-L = Goal = Critique submissions by other writers 2x month. Sunday check-in: Critted x1 (Don McCandless). 
• MARKETING = Not yet: Clarify marketing goals. Sunday check-in: Still working on linking pages for Rivers of Stone on Amazon. Anticipate first audiobook 'pages' this coming week. Did post on Twitter and Instagram. Books I ordered from Amazon for the book reading next month were sent USPS and not delivered on Saturday (we were home), so following up on this. Redelivery not guaranteed. I can always pick the heavy package up at my local USPS, but again, not guaranteed. Good thing the library book club is next month.

Check out ROW80's website at A Round of Words in 80 Days for how to get started! Or you can swing by our Facebook page to catch up on how other ROW80 writers are setting goals and measuring progress. May you have a good week, and may spring soon come to your Zip code!

ROW80 #2: Short and sweet

It's Wednesday, a little later than I planned (blame filing taxes), but I'm feeling encouraged by being home and by the start of a new round. So, in keeping with one of my new goals to keep all simple, here's my progress report for the first 3 days of Round 2:

WRITING:

Goal 1K/week on The Seventh Tapestry. So far: 928 words. Scaffolding and chapter summaries help me think about where the chapter is going, how to ensure continuity, and to get the full story down on the page in this first draft (goal to finish first draft by April).

MARKETING/OUTREACH:

Sent handout to library book club for next month's reading. 

Sent quarterly newsletter out to subscribers! If you'd like to sign up to receive my occasional newsletter (and find out what Writer's Digest said about Rivers of Stone, go HERE!

Read only 2 ROW80 posts . . . so far.

Ordered author copies from Amazon to take to the reading and discovered I can only order author copies IF the paperback and e-book are 'paired'. So far, I'm five hours into trying to fix this 'pairing,' thank goodness for only one of three books. I can be forgiving, for Amazon took on a huge job in closing down CreateSpace and porting all those paperbacks over to KDP Print. But what this means just now is I have to wait up to 96 hours to see if customers can find the e-book and the paperback on Amazon's same sales page. As my mother would say, "Ooofta!"

Best Writing Moment: Realizing that that critical feedback from writers on NOVELS-L of The Internet Writing Workshop will make all the difference when I start revising my rough draft -- and is already influencing how I write now.

Here's just one quote from a critique of Chapter 5 to show you what I mean: "I think Sandra needs to drive this story more. Right now, most of your scenes and beats focus on people telling her what to do. The story needs to focus more on what she decides on her own to do." --Dave.

May you have a good week. Check out our website at A Round of Words in 80 Days for how to get started! Or you can swing by our Facebook page to catch up on how other ROW80 writers are setting goals and measuring progress. Looking forward to checking in on Sunday!

ROW80 #1: And Round 2 Begins . . .

Just this last week, Winter has finally morphed into Spring, the snow has melted off the sidewalks, and it's time to post goals for Round 2 of A Round of Words in 80 days.  I'm trying not to be too ambitious, especially as sometimes I find it challenging to post 2x a week on this ROW80 Blog.

2019 WRITING GOALS (ROW80 ROUND 2)

WRITING: Finish drafting The Seventh Tapestry by July, 2019. Work on characters. Structure for series and draft some scaffolding for prequel, Books 2 and 3. Min 1K words/week. RESEARCH to support the story and study techniques for writing romantic suspense.

MEMOIR: Work on family history, converting papers and photos to story form (Min 500K/week).

AUDIOBOOKS: Learn ACX marketing techniques. Work with Mandy Fugate-Moss (ACX) as she records Years of Stone, Rivers of Stone (April-June 2019).

COMMUNITY:

• Meet with my F2F writing group weekly. 
• Participate in online writing communities: Active: NOVELS-L (4 crits/month). ROW80. 20 Books to 50K (FB).
• NOVELS-L: Minimum 1 crit/week.
• Participate in associations: Sisters in Crime = JAN. PNWA. Historical Novel Society.
• BLOG x4 monthly. Travel blog 2x month. Writing blog 2x month. ROW80 6x month. Explore reviews x1/month. Research guest blogs.

MARKETING: Set goals for marketing: Instagram (relate to my genre). Post weekly. Send newsletter quarterly, starting in March. Set up readings with book clubs and/or other outreach.

UNDECIDED: My 'to do' list gets too long very quickly. I want so much to finish that first draft for The Seventh Tapestry . . . so, I'm putting aside long-hoped-for revisiions on Mothers Don’t Die (dark thriller, currently 34 chapters, 62,500 words). IF I attempted to revise 2 chapters each week, that would take a year to finish . . . but at what cost to current projects? To make a final decision whether to work on Mothers Don't Die or not, I could do a simple read through. Maybe.

Thanks to A Round of Words in 80 Days, I feel more disciplined about writing and about holding myself accountable for what I am able to accomplish -- plus, I've met some truly wonderful and supportive writers along the way. Consider joining in!  Check out our blog HERE or on FACEBOOK. 

First check-in tomorrow, Wednesday, April 3. Happy writing!

ROW80 Sunday and the End of Round 1

That snow is melting so fast with sunny days, at least until today. A few clouds do not take away from my sheer joy at warmer temperatures! So here's my update for the last week's progress:

1. WRITING Weekly goal: √ Add 1K words to Seventh Tapestry = 1022. √ Add 500 words to family history = 501.
2. BLOGGING No progress at all on this Weekly goal: Post x3 (2x ROW80, 1x Travel blog, 1x Writing blog). Writing blog: review Annis Cassels new poetry book. READ BLOGS x7. 
3. CRIT Novels-L = Crit x2 for the month. √ Critted Bob White. Half way there.
4. MARKETING = √ Added Writer’s Digest review to Author Central. √ Sent 3 books to Mandy for ACX. PENDING: No progress yet. Send out newsletter update by end of March (content = Writer’s Digest, ACX preview + bounty link, PB giveaway?).

Best Writing Moment: This week, I haven't written every day, like this morning, far too easily distracted by research -- and a new project (the next book in my romantic suspense series that is too enticing). My writing partner reminded me again that in a first draft, it's really OK to just write. And so, this afternoon, I did just pick out an incomplete scene and wrote. Happiness is words on the page.

April 1 begins Round 2. Check out our website at A Round of Words in 80 Days for how to get started! Or you can swing by our Facebook page to catch up on how other ROW80 writers are setting goals and measuring progress. Many thanks to Eden Mabee, Shan Jeniah, and Denise Young for all their coordinating AND encouragement. Happy spring!

Made you smile, didn't it! (Meme)

ROW80: Happiness is Sunday night!

So it's Sunday night. The snow is finally melting. Time to make plans for the coming week AND measure my progress (somewhat mixed but real progress). I'm smiling!

WRITING: Weekly: Add 1K words to Seventh Tapestry. Add 500 words to family history. UPDATE: Almost added 1K words to Seventh Tapestry (how about +920). Met with my champ editing partner. Only edited for 1 hour this week on family history (deadline May 3).

BLOGGING:  Weekly goal = post x3 (2x ROW80, 1x Travel blog, 1x Writing blog). UPDATE:  Posted ROW80 x2. READ BLOGS x7. Commented on x5. NOT YET: Writing blog: Review Annis Cassels new book of poetry. 

CRIT Novels_L = Crit x2 for the month. Not yet.

MARKETING:  Set up ACX/voice actor for Years of Stone and Rivers of Stone. UPDATE: Really excited about this one. My first choice for ACX/voice actor said YES! Now need to get the formal paperwork online at ACX.  NOT YET: Send out newsletter update by end of March (content = Writer’s Digest, ACX preview + bounty link).

OTHER: Actually resumed water aerobics this week x1 and walked 4/7 days. Worked on taxes and have a quilting project ready to go. Made a great dinner for family tonight -- Bacon-wrapped pork loin with apples! Served with fresh green beans and fruit salad.

BEST WRITING MOMENT: Thinking about how to add depth to my characters in the current wip, I checked out Psychology Today from our local library. Bingo! Lots of discussion about personality and motivation. One nugget from Editor Kaja Perina (page 3, July/August 2018): Pay attention to actions, not words (funny advice for a writer). Look for the small moments of DOING, not grand gestures to reveal the essential character of a person. 

(Source: Emily Coates)

So, it's great to be home. Almost back to a 'real' schedule. If you would like to know more about A Round of Words in 80 Days, CLICK HERE on our blog or over on Facebook to catch up on how other ROW80 writers are setting goals and measuring progress. WHY NOT JOIN IN? May your week go well.

ROW80: Snow and slow . . . progress!

Last night, we got somewhere between 5-6" of new snow. I'm grateful the heating system still works and that even in March, those snow plows are out, clearing the roads. And I'm warm and inside, clearing my desk. Here's my progress report for this week so far:

WRITING: Weekly goal to add 1K words to Seventh Tapestry by next Sunday. Add 500 words to family history. Update: +250 on family history, but only +280 on Seventh Tapestry. Slow progress!

BLOGGING: Weekly goal = post x3 (2x ROW80, 1x Travel blog, 1x Writing blog). Update: Posted Weds ROW80 today (on time).

READ BLOGS x7, or one every day. Update: Read 4 so far, and it's only Weds.

CRIT Novels_L. x2 for the month. Update: No crits . . . yet. Just got my account reactivated.

MARKETING.  Set up ACX/voice actor for Years of Stone and Rivers of Stone. In progress. Send out newsletter update by end of March. Nothing yet.

Best writing moment: Realizing that writing progress is not always measured by counting words. 

I'm not happy with the depth of my character description or the settings. So, I'm wrestling with what to add, where, and why. What descriptions are unique, bring supporting characters and settings to life, without overpowering or slowing the story. 

And, at the same time, I'm thinking about (and writing and rewriting) what happens next. Yes, I have an outline, a very rough, working outline, and yes, I'm first-drafting, about 70% done. Maybe I'm getting ready for the first edit through, and maybe I'm still just drafting. 

from Dan Delatorre, "Little Things to Keep You Going"

Thank you, Eden and Shan Jeniah, for facilitating ROW80. If you would like to know more, click to visit A Round of Words in 80 Days HERE on our blog or over on Facebook to catch up on what other ROW80 writers are doing. 

WHY NOT JOIN IN in setting goals and measuring progress weekly!

ROW80: Happy to be home, but it's still snowing!

The short summary of last month? We arrived home to find two feet of snow after four incredible weeks in Seville, Spain (think 70F sunny days every day, incredible monuments, museums, and food). I discovered sangria, and, another surprise, added 10K to my current wip.

But jet lag aside (seriously), here are my goals for the coming week:

WRITING = Weekly goal to add 1K words to Seventh Tapestry by next Sunday. Add 500 words to family history.
BLOG = Weekly goal = post x3 (2x ROW80, 1x Travel blog, 1x Writing blog).

READ BLOGS x7, or one every day.
CRIT Novels_L. x2 for the month. 

MARKETING = Set up ACX/voice actor for Years of Stone and Rivers of Stone. Send out newsletter update by end of March.

Best Writing Moments: No Game for a Dame, by W. Ruth Myers, my current read, is giving me writing lessons. This fascinating crime drama, with a wisecracking female protag, puts me right back in the Depression Era (1930's).

Myers is showing me how to write more descriptive (and unforgettable) settings and introduce characters with telling detail. Just one example, her opening line: "The guy with a bad toupee strolled into my office . . . " And, because she's writing from first person, she's expanding my sense of how to make my female protag more connected to other characters without resorting to 'back story dump'.

It's a first draft, Author Kitty!

Thank YOU for reading my post -- and for being a steady member of ROW80. I am grateful for the discipline, encouragement, and that sense of connecting to other writers that reporting in and reading others' posts brings to my writing.

If you would like to know more, click to visit A Round of Words in 80 Days HERE on our blog or over on Facebook to catch up on what other ROW80 writers are doing. WHY NOT JOIN IN in setting goals and measuring progress weekly!