Writers' Chasm

What's Up Wednesday is a weekly blog hop created by Jaime Morrow and Erin Funk to help writers stay in touch. What I'm Reading:  I finished Boy on the Bridge by Natalie Standiford last week. My review went up on Friday. I felt that it fell short of its potential. But now I'm reading Scarlet by Marissa Meyer. I have to admit that I was a little sad when I read the summary and found out it focuses on Scarlet rather than Cinder but I'm quickly falling in love. What I'm Writing:  Nothing at the moment. I haven't started querying either. I'm swamped with work. It's not likely to get any better until next week so I think I'm going to forego the writing goal. What Works for Me:  Musical motivation. I've listened to Fall Out Boy's new album an almost embarrassing number of times since it was released, but I regret nothing. Sometimes music gets me pumped up (like Fall Out Boy) and sometimes it helps me to settle down and focus (like my ...

What's Up Wednesday is a weekly blog hop created by Jaime Morrow and Erin Funk to help writers stay in touch. What I'm Reading:  Still Boy on the Bridge. I'm a little less than halfway. I ordered a bunch of new books from B&N and they shipped today, though, so I'm going to have to finish it before they get here.  What I'm Writing:  Nothing at the moment. Working on getting Weredragon's synopsis down to a more acceptable length. My writing goal for the week is to get ten queries out there again. What Works for Me:  Sometimes it's not giving myself rewards. I've talked before about how I like to give myself a little break after I complete a task on my to do list. Sometimes that break is an episode of a TV show. Recently, though, I've had to quit doing that because I find myself spending more time watching Stargate or How I Met Your Mother than actually working. For now I just work through my to do list and then I get to have f...

What's Up Wednesday is a weekly blog hop created by Jaime Morrow and Erin Funk to help writers stay in touch. What I'm Reading:  Currently Boy on the Bridge by Natalie Standiford. I must admit that it's not holding me as well as I hoped. What I'm Writing:  Going to start working on submission materials for Weredragon tomorrow. I already have a synopsis and query, I just need to make sure they're the best they can be.  What Works for Me:  Giving myself time off when I need it. For instance, Mondays I have class from 11 to 8:20 with only a few hours of break in between. My goal is to lower my target word count to a more manageable number or possibly eliminate it completely. The rest of the week is not nearly as hectic yet so there will be plenty of time for a proper writing session. What Else I'm Up To:  Classes. I'm actually really excited about mine this semester. It's going to be quite a bit of work but also a lot of fun. 

What's Up Wednesday is a weekly blog hop created by Jaime Morrow and Erin Funk to help writers stay in touch. First Wednesday of the new year! It's been over a month since I've participated and I can't believe I let the time slip by like that. What I'm Reading:  I finished Cinder by Marissa Meyer a few days ago. I'm very late to the party on that one, but it's a fantastic book and I'm looking forward to getting my hands on the next installment. Full review will be up on Friday. Next up is The Boy on the Bridge by Natalie Standiford. What I'm Writing:  Getting Weredragon ready to get back out there with queries. I gave it a skim and decided that I'm not quite ready to give up on it yet. My goal is to get my synopses and query agent-ready so that by this time next week I can start querying. What Works for Me:  Being busy. Quite honestly, I was hoping to get a lot done over my winter break. I figured that without school I'd have ...

What's Up Wednesday is a weekly blog hop created by Jaime Morrow and Erin Funk to help writers stay in touch. I can't believe it's December already. It seems like New Year's Eve was just last week. What I'm Reading:  Last night I skimmed through two books about octopus for a presentation. In other words, no pleasure reading. What I'm Writing:  I read through an old WIP over the weekend just to see where it stands. It definitely needs a massive overhaul, especially in the middle, but that's going to have to wait. What Works for Me:  Keeping notes of future revisions while working on the first draft and then while it's simmering. I find that when I get an idea for revisions when I'm not actually working on them it's best to just write it down and keep it aside until I get to that point. I don't revise while drafting because I'd probably never finish but it makes sure that I don't forget. What Else I'm Up to:  It...

What's Up Wednesday is a weekly blog hop created by Jaime Morrow and Erin Funk to help writers stay in touch. What I'm Reading: Now that it's break I should read more. I feel like it's not working like it should be. What I'm Writing: Nothing! I finished LP in one big writing spree on Sunday. Once I got to the big climactic scene I just couldn't stop. It's rounded out at 75k and is on the back burner for a while. I'm taking a break from writing until, at least, the semester is over. Next up is going to be revisions, but on what I'm not sure yet. I have a few projects that have been on the sidelines for a while. What Works for Me:  Letting the words flow. On Sunday I almost stopped once I hit my 1k goal for the day so that I could work on something else. Instead I kept my Scrivener doc open and I just kept going until I wrote the final sentence. It meant that I had to put a couple of tasks on my to do list off for another day, but it was wo...

What's Up Wednesday is a weekly blog hop created by Jaime Morrow and Erin Funk to help writers stay in touch. This picture is very appropriate for this week. I don't think it's ever going to stop snowing. What I'm Reading:  Still Dead to You. I haven't had time for pleasure reading in a while. What I'm Writing:  I'm so close to the end of LP I can feel it. I have most of the remainder planned out and I can't wait to write it. Unfortunately I'm going on vacation for a week starting Saturday so it might have to wait. What Works for Me:  Instrumental music. Sometimes I need background music to help me block out everything that's going on around me but songs with words are even more distracting. Instrumental music is the perfect combination. I really like movie soundtracks because some of them (Pacific Rim, Pirates of the Caribbean, Lord of the Rings) have that undertone of urgency that works as an extra motivator. What Else I'm U...

What's Up Wednesday is a weekly blog hop created by Jaime Morrow and Erin Funk to help writers stay in touch. NaNo started on Saturday so a big "Good luck!" to everyone participating. I thought about doing a personal one, just writing 50k in general rather than on one new WIP (since LP is so close to being done) but then I remembered that I don't have time. What I'm Reading:  Dead to You by Lisa McMann. It's good so far, though I haven't been able to read it as much as I would like. What I'm Writing:  LP hit 60k and climbing this week. I have most of the rest of it outlined now so it's just a matter of putting it on the page. I thought up some really exciting things over the weekend and I can't wait to write those scenes. Some characters will be playing parts that I didn't expect. What Works for Me:  Getting out of my usual space. I've had so much to do the past couple weeks that I've found myself in the library a lot...

What's Up Wednesday is a weekly blog hop created by Jaime Morrow and Erin Funk to help writers stay in touch. What I'm Reading:  Still nothing for fun. I'm probably going to pull Wolf-Speaker by Tamora Pierce off the shelf tonight. It's a stressful week and I need an old favorite. What I'm Writing:  LP. I had a total brain blast in the shower this morning where I finally managed to figure out some very important components of the ending. It's mostly a matter of bridging the gap between where I am now and there.  What Works for Me:  Brainstorming sessions. If I'm stuck on what to do with a chapter, where to go next, or what needs to happen in the ending, I brainstorm. All it takes is an empty word document. I use bullets for organization and just type whatever comes into my head. If there are questions that I need to answer, I write those down too. What Else I'm Up To:  I watched How to Get Away With Murder over the weekend on my girlfri...

What's Up Wednesday is a weekly blog hop created by Jaime Morrow and Erin Funk to help writers stay in touch. Saw the first frost of the season this morning and snow over the weekend, though thankfully it didn't stick. I know winter is going to hit us hard this year, but I'd rather it wait until after Halloween at the very least. What I'm Reading:  Uh. I'm determined to move on from Blood and pick a book off my shelf today. I just haven't decided if I want to go for an old favorite, the next book in Game of Thrones, or something new that I've had for a while but haven't read yet. What I'm Writing:  After a week's hiatus, I'm back to working on LP, though with a word count goal of only 250 a day again because my to do lists are getting lengthy and I need to focus on other things. It's up to 55k and I'm starting to get the feeling it's going to end up being closer to 80k now all told. What Works for Me:  Reward system...

What's Up Wednesday is a weekly blog hop created by Jaime Morrow and Erin Funk to help writers stay in touch. I can't stop listening to Fall Out Boy's new song, "Immortals." It's actually getting a little worrying. What I'm Reading:  Blood of Olympus by Rick Riordan (last book in Heroes of Olympus which is the sequel to Percy Jackson and the Olympians) arrived Friday. I started it around two and read it in one unstoppable spree of nine hours. I considered slowing down, actually savoring it since it's the last book, but it just wasn't possible. I wasn't going to sleep that night without finishing.  This could not have been a more perfect ending to the series. I don't think I have ever loved a conclusion this much, and that's including Deathly Hallows. I haven't actually started reading anything else since. What I'm Writing:  Still LP, though I've been taking this week off writing. What Works for Me:  To do ...

What's Up Wednesday is a weekly blog hop created by Jaime Morrow and Erin Funk to help writers stay in touch. What I'm Reading:  I finished Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher in a few days and I'm still reeling. I haven't been so absorbed in a book in a long time. It's not one I'll read often but it is one that I'll carry with me. Now I'm biding my time waiting for Blood of Olympus by Rick Riordan to arrive. Really hoping it's going to be here Friday because I need it. What I'm Writing:  LP hit 50k a couple days ago. I'm aiming for 70k (my first drafts tend to be on the short side and I was hoping this one might be a bit more substantial, since it's high fantasy) but I think it might actually end up being longer. There's quite a bit left to go.   What Works for Me:  Brainstorming sessions. I got stuck on where to go with LP so I sat myself down with my little notebook (in class...shhh don't tell my professor) and jot...

What's Up Wednesday is a weekly blog hop created by Jaime Morrow and Erin Funk to help writers stay in touch.   What I'm Reading:  I finished Micro by Michael Crichton and Richard Preston over the weekend. It was good but underwhelming. I could definitely tell where Preston took over the writing. I loved the characters and the concept but the execution was a little disappointing. Now I'm on Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher to tide me over until Blood of Olympus by Rick Riordan arrives next week.  What I'm Writing:  LP What Works for Me:  Keeping bulleted lists of future scenes. I've always been a pantser when it comes to writing fiction, but sometimes I get ideas for scenes or think of questions that need to be answered or bring up things early in the story that I can't forget to tie in later. Instead of writing out an outline, I just keep a bulleted list of these scenes in a rough order. That way I don't forget anything but I don...

What's Up Wednesday is a weekly blog hop created by Jaime Morrow and Erin Funk to help writers stay in touch. What I'm Reading:  I'm going to finish Micro this week. It's going to be a thing that happens. What I'm Writing:  LP is still progressing. I've also had a very strong urge the past few days to pull out an old WIP and just give it a read to see exactly how extensive revisions are going to have to be. Haven't given in to the urge yet because LP has my attention at the moment and classes have kept me pretty busy this week. What Works for Me:  Word count goals. Every day I write a goal on my to do list and then I use Scrivener's session target feature to keep track of how much I've written. I like to keep my goals small and manageable, between 250 and 1,000 words. When I'm really busy or having trouble finding the words, I shoot for 250. So far this semester I've been building up my goal, raising it every week. I'm up to...

What's Up Wednesday is a weekly blog hop created by Jaime Morrow and Erin Funk to help writers stay in touch. Leaves are changing, I had my first pumpkin spice latte on Friday (though I actually get more excited about the salted caramel mocha), and my denim jacket is hanging on the back of my chair. It must be fall. I swear summer was here yesterday but it seems to have run off again. What I'm Reading:  Still Micro. I really need to finish that. What I'm Writing:  LP hit 40k yesterday! I might have to do some more plotting soon. I know where it's going but I only have a vague idea of how . I have a few new characters thrown into the mix, one that I like and one that I'm really starting to hate. What Works for Me:  I completely missed this last week, but I really love the idea. Something that works for me is carrying around a little notebook for jotting down writing ideas and scenes on the go. I wrote 1k of a scene in class yesterday. I like keeping m...

What's Up Wednesday is a weekly blog hop created by Jaime Morrow and Erin Funk to help writers stay in touch. What I'm Reading:  Still Micro by Michael Crichton and Richard Preston. I'm a little over halfway through and while I'm not sure about the writing style at times, I am enjoying it. What I'm Writing:  LP is coming along gradually. I've hit a major point in the story, although I only have a vague idea where things go from here. I'm also probably going to have to partially rewrite one of the scenes I just did because I didn't cry hard enough but I'll worry about that in revisions.  What Inspires Me:  Drawing a blank this week. Definitely not the weather. It's cold and pouring rain and I'm not looking forward to walking across campus in it. What Else I've Been Up To:  Playing a rather obsessive amount of Kingdom Hearts 2. I'm up to a major boss battle (Demyx, if anyone is familiar with the game) and despite havi...

What's Up Wednesday is a weekly blog hop created by Jaime Morrow and Erin Funk to help writers stay in touch. What I'm Reading:  I'm so happy to be able to say that I actually am reading again. I finished Wild Magic by Tamora Pierce last night, the first book I've finished since June 19. It may have been my billionth reread but that book never gets old. I have the whole quartet on my shelf and I will be doing a complete reread at some point. I've already started Micro by Michael Crichton and Richard Preston. It's a tad-bit science heavy but also creepy and I'm enjoying it so far. What I'm Writing:  Slowly getting back in the groove of working on LP again. I have the whole next part planned out in my head, so it's just a matter of getting the words on the page. It's hit 35k, the halfway point of my goal of 70k.  What Inspires Me:  Today it's the weather. After several days of clouds and rain, it's sunny and warm today. Makes...

What's Up Wednesday is a weekly blog hop created by Jaime Morrow and Erin Funk to help writers stay in touch. This is the first WUW of the new school year and let me tell you it feels fantastic to be back. Random question: If you use Blogger, do you have trouble inserting images from links? I feel like I have to put in the link and click the button about ten times before it'll actually work. What I'm Reading:  I pulled out an old favorite, Wild Magic by Tamora Pierce. It's been one of my favorite books for about ten years now so I'm hoping that it'll help me get back in the groove of actually reading. Seems to be working well so far. I only fall more in love with Numair the older I get. What I'm Writing:  On hold while I get settled in. I was going to start working on LP again today but then I took a look at my "to do" list and decided to make that tomorrow.   What Inspires Me:  Being back on campus. Settling into a set routine. K...

What's Up Wednesday is a weekly blog hop created by Jaime Morrow and Erin Funk to help writers stay in touch. What I'm Reading:  Beta reading for a friend at the moment and that's it. Most of the books I want to read are currently packed away in preparation to take them with me back to school. Hopefully something will catch my attention once I'm there. What I'm Writing:  This is the worst writing month I've had all year, but I'm still making some progress on LP. I'm at a major turning point in the story so once I get through this rough patch, it should be easier from there. I tend to write quickly when I reach climactic points and I'm really excited about this one. What Inspires Me:  I'm feeling pretty uninspired at the moment. What Else I've Been Up To:  I took the GRE last week and just got my official scores today. I didn't do as well as I hoped and that's got me worried, but there isn't much I can do about tha...

What's Up Wednesday is a weekly blog hop created by Jaime Morrow and Erin Funk to help writers stay in touch. What I'm Reading:  Nothing at the moment. The Horse Boy is a DNF. I did really want to see how it ended but it was dragging on a bit and my library books had to be returned whether I was done with them or not. Now I'm just doing a lot of reading of my GRE study book and grad school application information. What I'm Writing:  LP is progressing slowly. I'm up to a major turning point in the story and I'm still not quite sure how I'm going to pull it off. I'm also rough drafting my personal statement for applications. I can write 100k about a world completely of my own creation but when it comes to writing 1k about myself all of that just flies out the window. What Inspires Me:  Less than three weeks until classes start! I'm actually really excited. I love my friends and my professors and the routine of having a set schedule. Wha...