Almost 2 Days Left...

Oooooooohh. I am so not ready for NaNoWriMo. And you'll never guess. It starts on a Monday.

Yeah. Didn't we know that?

From 9:15 AM to 9:00 PM on Monday I am absolutely jammed. History, literature, speech, writing, logic, and archery/shooting. And I still need to do math, biology, and a couple other things.

How am I going to find the time?

I don't know.

Oh well. I have some posts scheduled for November, but you really won't be seeing much of me. I'll probably be icing my wrists in my spare time, but please feel free to comment! Actually, I would really appreciate comments. They cheer me up. =)

This is kind of a random post. Sorry I don't have any gems of ideas to share with you. My parents are celebrating their 20th anniversary (!) so my grandparents are over. We've been to Chuck E. Cheese 2 times...in 3 days. I'm getting really good at their games. =)

And that doesn't leave much time for studying. My 4th biology test...uh...I was supposed to take that today...yeah...not happening...

...zzzz...zzzz...zzz

I'm asleep. Goodnight!

Tag from Eldarwen!

(Answer ONLY with the first letter of your last name!)
one-- A state? Minnesota
two-- A country? Mozambique.
three-- A food? Marshmallows, matzo-balls
four-- A clothing store? Macy's
five-- A fruit? Mango
six-- A girls' name? Meredith
seven-- A boys' name? Matthias
eight-- An activity? Mortifying your mother? *giggle* =)
nine-- A dessert? Mousse
ten-- A town? Montgomery? Is that a town?

Now Skye (one of my book characters) will do it! =)


(Answer ONLY with the first letter of your last name!)
one-- A state? Connecticut
two-- A country? Canada
three-- A food? Corn
four-- A clothing store? Claire's Accessories?
five-- A fruit? Canned pineapple =)
six-- A girls' name? Candice
seven-- A boys' name? Clark
eight-- An activity? Catching fireflies
nine-- A dessert? Candy!!
ten-- A town? Centerville!

I tag...every single one of my followers.

Come on, guys

If you haven't been reading my posts lately, read this one:

Eldarwen's dad really needs your prayers. His MS has taken a turn for the worse, and I know that our dear sister in Christ, Eldarwen, would really appreciate if you stopped by her blog and left a comment and told her you were praying. You can get to her blog, The Faithful Elven Princess, HERE.

Once again, click...

---------> HERE <----------

How To Find Your Writing Style {And Other Things}

Seven more days 'til NaNoWriMo! Aaaah! I spent this morning skimming over my first book, just giving me a refresher of the characters.

Some of these tips are meant to help determine your writing style in a particular book, not as a whole. I find it really annoying when the author switches styles in the middle of the book. Styles set the mood and emphasize the emotions of a story, and they're very important. Styles can hook a reader, or they can lose one. It's important to figure out what style you like or are using with a book, and then to stick with it.

I use these questions to analyze my writing if I've taken a long break from a particular work. If my styles suddenly switched, the book would feel broken.

However, I love it when people experiment with different styles, so I'm not saying to keep your old style in every single book. The problem comes, I think, when you switch styles in a respective book.

Like I've said, I use these to get myself back on track. I'll use them when I go back and edit my first NaNo book. Unlike what I probably should do, I'll let the sequel set the style. My writing has changed a lot, and I want it to line up.

1. Pay attention to what person you feel most comfortable in. Generally, there are three persons: 1st person, 2nd person, and 3rd person (I'm just telling you this to clarify, even though most of you guys probably know what I'm talking about). 1st person is the main character completely narrating the story. 2nd is from an observer point, with the author adding his input sometimes (an example is C.S. Lewis, I think). 3rd person is completely observing.

2. Notice what kind of verbs you use. Vivid? Hardly noticeable? Ordinary? Rare?

3. Also notice what kind of adjectives and adverbs you use.

4. Does your writing tend to go toward a more gothic, dark, serious mood; or a light, 'sugar and spice' mood that's more of a 'for fun' read than a 'serious read' ? I like to call the two styles 'Chocolate' and 'Cotton Candy'. =) I think I'm definitely more towards the Chocolate side, but I also enjoy Cotton Candy works. I think of Gail Carson Levine's books as Cotton Candy.

5. What writing style are you more attracted to in books? The garnished, frivolously strong descriptions of The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald? The simpler, yet richer, Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis? Inkheart, by Cornelia Funke, that's pretty much an awesome combination of the two? Can you tell that the first is my least favorite? ;)

6. Do you rely more on narrative descriptive prose or a character talking to set the mood or plot for your story?

7. Do your characters tend to talk casually or seriously? If your book is in a medieval setting among high-end class characters, I would suggest a less colloquial talking style. In a more modern setting, I would definitely use more casual speech.

_____________

Now for the other things.

1. I'm so thankful for Saturdays! A chance to clean my room, write, fool around in the woods, and take pictures! My room has been an absolute wreck all week, but it's finally getting cleaned and decorated for...

2. Autumn. I'm sorry I don't have any pretty pictures to show because my camera is almost out of batteries and we need to buy more and it runs out of batteries every time I download pictures 'cause it takes so long! Whew. That was the queen of run-on sentence. But let me try to describe it to you...

The trees are turning blazing orangey-red in our neighborhood, and crisp morning walks always leave with fistfuls of the adorable-est acorns. Our roses are taking a final stance, but they're turning brown with the chilly nights. Soon our little world will be sprinkled in silver faerie dust--oops, I mean frost--and we can finally say goodbye to summer.

Pray for Emily

Please guys and gals, head over to Emily's Cancer Blog and pray for this sweet young Christian girl. She's fighting leukemia.



Just a brief reminder.

To realize
The value of a sister/brother
Ask someone
Who doesn't have one.

To realize
The value of ten years:
Ask a newly
Divorced couple.

To realize
The value of four years:
Ask a graduate.

To realize
The value of one year:
Ask a student who
Has failed a final exam.

To realize
The value of nine months:
Ask a mother who gave birth to a stillborn.

To realize
The value of one month:
Ask a mother
Who has given birth to a premature baby.

To realize
The value of one week:
Ask an editor of a weekly newspaper.

To realize
The value of one minute:
Ask a person
Who has missed the train, bus or plane.

To realize
The value of one-second:
Ask a person
Who has survived an accident.

Time waits for no one.
Treasure every moment you have.
You will treasure it even more when
You can share it with someone special.

To realize the value of a friend or family member:
LOSE ONE.

The origin of this letter is unknown,
But it brings good luck to everyone who passes it on.

Remember....

Hold on tight to the ones you love!

Do not keep this letter.

Send it to friends & family to whom you wish good fortune
And don't forget the one who sent it to you!

I got this from an e-mail a long while ago. Thought I would pass it on!

Gettin' Ready!

Yay! NaNoWriMo is just around the corner! I can't wait, but I still have some stuff to do before it begins. Here's my little list:

1. Catch up, and possibly get ahead in, my schoolwork.
2. Get in the habit of wearing my carpal tunnel syndrome braces every night.
3. Get a head start on Christmas present making because I can't do it in November.
4. Check out a whole bunch of inspiring books from the library (including procrastination books, like Garfield or Tintin comics =)
5. Read over the NaNo pep talks from last year (you get get to them by clicking on the 'Fun Stuff' tab on the website)
6. Completely get my activities under control.
7. Outline my characters and get back in touch with them.
8. Decide which computer I'll be writing on (probably my laptop)
9. Think up a title for my last NaNo book. Yeah, takes me a month to write a book and a year to think up a name for it.
10. Finish my Latin. Pesky Latin. I've been working on the same book for three years now. =(

Incentives For Writing

There comes a point in November, usually around the middle of the month, where you start to question your sanity at the time you signed up for NaNoWriMo.

You may have reached a point where you're so far behind, 50,000 words isn't just past the horizon, it's off the edge of the world.

Maybe you have to get up at 5:30 AM to do your writing, like I do, and you're beginning to feel really worn out.

Maybe you can't just see yourself continuing this.

Maybe your characters are completely rebelling.

Who knows?

Either way, it feels like this is pointless. All you get afterward is carpal tunnel syndrome, right? Oh yeah, and a sloppy, rushed, sorry excuse of a novel. (Just kidding about that last part. ;)

Or maybe you're not like me, and all throughout NaNo you're filled with ecstatic joy and love for your book, your plot, your computer, and your characters. But I'm assuming that you're like me.

Here are some tips on how to keep yourself writing:

1. Don't start speculating what will happen if you don't finish. Start thinking about what you'll do when you do finish.

2. Read a book that is just completely awful and realize that if this book could be published, yours could.

3. Fall in love with your characters. Interview them. Have tea parties with them. Etc.

4. Write something totally exciting and easy. I love dream sequences, because they can be so weird and unconnected. (Although they do get cliche sometimes)

5. Have a brainstorm session, and ask yourself how to spice your writing up some.

6. Set up a reward system--like, every time you reach your daily word count goal, you get a piece of candy. I like this system. ;)

Coffee-Beef Soup

Yep. That was our dinner. Coffee and beef soup. Much compliments to the chef, my two year old brother Galdor. Mom was making the soup in our crock pot when he flung in her cup of coffee.

Well, I'm a big fan of coffee. We'll just see the effects of the caffeine on the younger kids later...at right around bedtime.

The main reason I posted was to draw your attention to a lovely blog called idream. It's by one of my BFFs in real live, igirl, and she's looking for some more followers for her blog's birthday! Go and follow her! I command it. Just kiddin'. I'd appreciate it though. =)

Curing (and Preventing) Writer's Block (and Prayer Request)

I think that somewhere there is a parasite called Writerpholia blockaea. It feeds on deadlines and ideas in a writer's brain, turning them to mush. It specifically makes its presence felt in November.

But is there no hope? *gasp*

MY FAVORITE WRITER'S BLOCK CURES:

1. Outlining your book ahead of time so that if you get stumped on a particular section you can just quickly end it and get on to another, perhaps more exciting or cool or easy to write, part.

2. Listen to music. I prefer classical, because it sets an emotion that I'm probably missing in my writing. Plus, classical is calming. As much as I like contemporary, it gives me headaches (and I already have a major headache problem)

3. Get off the computer. Seriously, the #1 cause of death of inspiration is staring at a glowing screen for hours without a break. Write a section in your notebook, play an instrument, have a tea party with your sister (or a hot-chocolate party with your brother), just don't turn on the TV. No more glowing screens!

4. Get outside for some fresh air. Aerobic exercising, like a short sprint or dancing, really works for me.

(the following I got from my friend)

5. Write down 12 ideas that might come next in your book. Don't stop, even if the third one sounds really awesome. 12 seemed an awful lot for me, so I shortened it to seven. It still worked. And don't not write down an idea, even if it sounds crazy. I wasn't going to write down one of the ideas, because it sounded very cliche, but it ended up that idea was the one I used (combined with another one).

6. Ask yourself 'What would happen if...'. Again, let your mind wander, and don't discard the crazy ideas.

7. At least look at the part that you left off writing. A lot of times, I think I have writer's block because I haven't had any new brainstorms. Actually, if I can just look over the chapter that I got stuck on, I get inspired a lot of times.

8. Pray. It works better then anything! And also read your Bible. If you're working on a book that has a revolution against an evil king, read about Gideon or maybe David. If you're writing about a good king that's fighting down an evil revolution, read about David and his rebellious son. If you're writing an allegory, obviously read all over the Bible!

These next two are on prevention.

9. Don't skip writing; get yourself to at least read over the chapter you're working on once a day. I suppose sometimes it can't be helped, but when you skip when you could have written (even just a paragraph) you start finding more excuses. Stuff like, 'Well, I didn't write yesterday, so it wouldn't hurt to skip today, too," or "This hasn't been the longest period of time I didn't write, and it won't be until a week! I'm doing fine," can be easier to listen to if you haven't gotten yourself on a writing roll.

10. Keep it sloppy, especially if you're on your first draft. First drafts are supposed to be messy. If they aren't there's something wrong! If you're stuck on a short few sentences that are so boring you don't know what to write, just go ahead and mess them up. You can go back later and fix them.

Finally, a post that I wrote about this kind of thing a while ago.

It's so often that you hear someone tell you to keep on going if you find yourself in a writing rut. If a sentence, paragraph, whole chapter, etc. seems awkward, just don't worry about it and move on. This has been repeated so often that you (or I, at least) assume that this advice goes for all times.

But does it?

I have found more than once that deleting whole pages of awkward writing has taken care of the 'bothered perfectionist writer's block'. But does that mean that once I write a single awkward word, I can feel free to go heavy on the backspace button?

Not necessarily. In fact, not at all!

My theory is that the backspace method works if your plot is getting awkward. If your prose is getting awkward, then I would agree with popular advice (if you're on the 1st draft)--work past it, and then sweat about it.

Awkward prose, at the most, will just keep on nagging your mind that you have to go back and fix it. But that's okay. You can fix it later, and in the meantime make sure it doesn't get in the way of your writing. However, awkward plot not only nags you, but it will most likely begin to lead the rest of your book into the mire of awkwardness.

What are your thoughts?

And lastly, my prayer request. Remember those headaches I had in the spring? Well, they're back. I really thought they had gone away for good. But now I've been taking ibuprofen for about two weeks now...and they're not going away. I really hope nothing is wrong. I'm wondering if it's stress.

On top of that, my wrists are...*sigh*...really reminding me that it's a fallen world we live in. My left hand especially is really hurting on top close to my thumb. My carpal tunnel syndrome is getting worse and worse as I continue to do schoolwork, and I can't be taking little orange ibuprofen pills forever! I haven't been able to practice piano much because my left hand hurts if I stretch the thumb out. I can still type though. =) What I'm really worried about is my CTS and NaNoWriMo.

Please pray for those two things for me. I would SO appreciate it.

Thanks, and God bless!

Outlining a Book

Let's take it from the top! NaNo doesn't start until November 1, which means that we have a couple weeks to prepare. Shall we take advantage of that?

In NaNoWriMo, you must start your book on the 1st day. That means that you can't continue a book that you've been writing before November 1. However, you are greatly encouraged to use outlines!

I highly, highly, highly suggest outlines! Of course, there are some writers who don't need them, but I think that only people who have tried the outline thing and it didn't work should claim they don't need one. I thought I didn't need one. But last NaNo, I knew that I wouldn't be able to remember all of my awesome plot, so I wrote it down in an outline.

Before, I had problems with continuing books. After the first chapter (or page, or paragraph) I would lose track of the path. It seemed like I could never get through. But when I had an outline, that changed.

With an outline, I actually have a sense of direction. It lets me know that I can't spend forever on this one scene because something else needs to get done after it. If your greatest problem (or one of them) in writing is stalling, like me, then you might want to try an outline.

But where do you start?

I suggest starting with the simple, bare bones. I'll just make up a simple, kind of silly story that I can show you as an example.

Okay: point A. The introduction. This will contain stuff like the character's name, the current situation, just basic stuff you and your reader will need to know.

Point B: The rising situation. This is the point where the problem is realized and things begin to look like trouble.

Point C: The climax. Everything comes to a boiling point.

Point D: The wind-down. The problem is solved (unless your story is a tragedy, that is), we see whether or not the character makes it through, and we see what happens afterward.

Now here's the example:

A: Introduction
1. Maximilian James III lives in France.
2. A collector who rescues animals.
3. Has dogs, cats, parrots, monkeys, and the occasional elephant.
4. Max is very rich.

B: Rising Situation
1. Maximilian finds a kitten in Paris.
2. Kitten has a small message around its collar.
3. Max finds out he's intercepted a secret code.
4. The code is a communication between two infamous spies.
5. Josephina and Katharina D'Eli, twin spies, are angry at him.
6. They need to get the code back.

C: Climax
1. Josephina and Katharina begin spying on Max.
2. They find out where he lives.
3. When Max is away, they break into his house.
4. They find the kitten, which still has the code on its collar.
5. One of the monkey quietly sets loose a parrot to tell Max.
5. Josephina and Katharina begin to sneak away.

D: Wind-Down
1. The parrot finds Max, who is walking back to the house.
2. It tells him about the spies.
3. Just as Josephina and Katharina leave, the police and Max show up.
4. Max arrests them and reclaims the kitten.
5. The police use the code to intercept many secret messages from the spy ring Josephina and Katharina were involved in.
6. The police break up the spy ring, Max has the kitten, and they all live happily ever after.

(this story is mine. I claim the right of property laid out in law and in the Bible. Do not copy)

As you can see, it's pretty general, but it works for me.

Also, this is just the outline I use. There are many other kinds, but I like this one. It's enough to keep me writing. =)

After I've outlined the skeleton of the story, I like to go back and flesh out some in the outline. However, don't get in to too much detail, unless you have a brilliant idea for detail that you think you won't be able to remember until November. Outlines can get from just a quarter of a page to nearly a novel in itself.

Even if you think you're a non-outline writer (also known as seat-of-the-pants writer), I suggest just giving it a try if you never have. If it doesn't work, then you can just ditch the outline. If it does, then you might have never known if you hadn't tried it.

Operation: Combat! {URGENT}

Talk about brilliant ideas! Squeaks at HIDDEN DOORWAYS is starting something called Operation: Combat.

I am sure a lot of you follow Emily's blog. She's a beautiful Christian teen with leukemia.



She will be going through a bone marrow transplant. This includes chemo and radiation to destroy her bone marrow so she can get a transplant from her new baby sister.

Sounds painful?

Yeah.

Emily desperately needs your prayers, everyone.

I remember when my dad had cancer. Seriously, guys, it was hard and I wasn't even the person with the cancer. I remember watching my dad choke down every meal, even though food absolutely revolted him. I remember when we had to give up our dream of living on a farm because dad didn't want to leave mom with a bigger mortgage to pay if he died. He still has a scar on his neck from the operations, which also severed some nerves in his face. I would have meltdowns in my room every day, and muscles in my face and arms would just randomly twitch because of the stress. Cancer is life-shattering for a daughter of someone with cancer, believe me. How much more is it if you actually have cancer?

So this is Squeak's idea. During the time when Emily will be in the hospital, we can pray and fast for her. Click HERE to get to Squeak's post on Operation: Combat. I just talked to my mom, and I will be skipping dessert and occasionally some lunches.



Please, please, please, if you want to make a difference in Emily's life, join Operation: Combat. As Philippians 4 says, "The Lord is near". I know that this will encourage her.

I know that at least some of you will do this.

NaNoWriMo Plans

So...what am I doing for NaNoWriMo?

At first, I thought that I would write October's Knight, but then I got that out of the way in one week.

My other idea was the sequel to the NaNoWriMo book (which for further reference will be called NaNo Book I), but as I was thinking about NaNo Book I, I realized that I need to rewrite. Maybe change some things around. I'm still not sure if I'll follow through on this, but I do know that some things in there are definitely poorly written. What I'm thinking of doing on that is slowly rewriting it in October and December. I'll definitely have my editor continue to edit because I know that she will give me valuable tips on what exactly I should cut. =)

However, I don't want to waste an annual competition on a revision. So I decided to go ahead with the sequel idea. That book shall be called, until further notice, NaNo Book II.

What's it about? Well, without giving away much, it contains the sea-faring journeys of Elizabeth, Angela, and Skye (along with their best buds from Caeleryn). At the same time, invaders from the west are threatening Durain, Mom, and Mariah back on the mainland.

You probably don't know who many of those characters are yet. Don't worry; if you read the books when they're published you'll hear all about 'em! =) During November I may post some character outlines of them.

Anyway, the NaNo books are fantasy/allegory. Lately, I've been wondering if my books really show what I believe, so that will be a main focus. I'm also focusing on my writing style (more in a future post) and character development, as well as trying to make the overall story line less cliche. As I was reading over NaNoWriMo book I, I noticed that it almost alluded to Lord of the Rings. I'll definitely fix that when I rewrite Book I, as well as steer the books away from that direction in Book II.

So, what are my fellow NaNoWriMo-ers' plans? What genre are y'all writing? I'm curious! =)

The Time Has Come!

It's October, which means...sign up for NaNoWriMo has begun! Click HERE to get to their site! Signing up is incredibly easy, and I also suggest looking at the FAQs and the About NaNoWriMo if you're a first time participant.

And I've decided that I am doing NaNoWriMo. I may have to get up at 5:30 AM, but I will do it, and I will finish. I hope.

So, as you can imagine, this is going to effect my posts. Here are some of the things you'll see through October:

1. How to outline your novel idea
2. How to cure writer's block
3. Incentives for writing
4. How to find your writing style (and stick with it)
5. How to inspire yourself
6. When (and when not) you should stress
7. My NaNoWriMo plans for this year

And those are just seven of them!

One more thing: Guinevere, you asked if you could use an idea for your blog. Go right ahead! =)

Also, if you want to read some more reasons for pseudonyms, then just look under the comments in my posts of pseudonyms. Illunse had some great things to say!

See you all pretty soon!

Pseudonyms

{also known as aliases and pen-names}

Reasons to publish a book under a pseudonym:

1. If your books become really famous, you can say your real name without having to fear screaming fans requesting autographs. =)

2. You don't have to deal with people befriending you just because they know you're famous.

3. If someone is mad at you for publishing a book (say it has something controversial in it) they can't track you down as easily. Okay...creepy.

4. It gives you more privacy in general.

5. You can use the name you've always wanted to be called. =)

Two famous books that were published by people under pseudonyms are Alice in Wonderland (author's pen-name was Lewis Carrol) and Animal Farm (the author went by George Orwell)

I think I will publish under a pseudonym. I was toying with the idea for a bit, but now I decided I will. But I'm absolutely stumped as to what my pseudonym will be.

What do you guys think should be my real name?

(igirl, I know that you know my real name, so just think what you would have named me) =)

Actually, what would be really interesting to know is what do you picture me to look like. =)

Just throw out ideas that you guys think would suit my personality. I would really appreciate it!

Oh, and tell me if it's okay with you if I use the name you suggested. I know that if I made up a cool name I wouldn't want someone to take it without my permission.

5 Blogging Tips

I'm sorry if some of these sound really serious, like the 5th one. I'm not really that scary! =) I think, however, that all bloggers should know these ones. All you bloggers who just started out, listen up! I learned a lot of these from my own experiences! It would be nice if not everyone learned it the hard way, don't you agree?

1. For all around legibility: use proper grammar and spelling. I know that often its so hard, but it's worth it. I'm not saying to exhaustively research every single punctuation mark in your post, but try and correctly use commas and spelling (to at least a point where others can understand what you're saying). It's easier to understand this:

"So, today was pretty rainy. We just stayed inside and talked like only girls can. Yeah, our plans for the beach went down the drains (along with massive amounts of rain), but we still had a blast!"

verses this:

"so today was pretty reiny we just staid inside an dtalked like only girls can. yeah our plans for the beech went down the drains along with the massive amounts of rain but we still had a blast!"

This includes maybe just paying more attention to what appears on your screen--if you accidentally type 'it' instead of 'is' the sentence doesn't make sense but spell check doesn't correct it.

2. Never post in anger. Or comment, for that matter. If someone blogs something that makes you want to scream at them, take a deep breath, get off the computer, and wait for half an hour (at least) before you reply. I know that natural reaction is to fire off something that's just dripping with anger, but doing that is a prime way to earn yourself a bad reputation and say things that any other time would have you horrified.

3. Always have another perspective. Remember, things like sarcasm and weird senses of humor are hard to pick up on in writing. You might mean something in jest, but someone could take serious offense. Before you post something, think "Would I take this differently if I was the reader?" What seems funny to you could be an insult to another person.

4. Listen to your readers! Ask them questions, and take into account their answers.

5. This one is a safety tip: be very careful giving out personal information! First, check with your parents if you're unsure where you should draw the line on how much you say about yourself. They might be okay with you saying your first name, and others would rather not have you putting your age on the internet. Either way, it's a good idea not to put contact information for all to see, like your address, phone number, etc. Also, don't post anything you want to be kept private. Nothing's secret on the internet!

My Wrists Are Fried, Sauteed, and Boiled

Title: October's Knight
Word Count:5,534
Page Count:20
Author's status after writing: zonked.

Every time I click I can feel it all the way up my arm.

I know I've written hard when I'm in agony.

I'm actually not in agony.

It just kind of hurts.

Ouch.

But it was worth it!

Yes, if I was in NaNoWriMo the limit for a week would be over this word count, but hey. Then I didn't have carpal tunnel syndrome. =)

I'm so glad I finished it! And just in time! We're seeing my friend tomorrow.

Better get off now before my wrists are really in agony.

I have done the impossible.

On September 25, 2010 I started October's Knight. On October 1, 2010, I finished it. I wrote a book in one week.

What's more, it wasn't at the expense of my schooling! I got 100% on my biology test (yes, I use Apologia. My dad teaches me).

Now I'm typing it up, so I can hand it to my friend tomorrow!

NaNoWriMo sounds super easy to me now. Write a book in 30 days? How 'bout 7? =)