Update: Where have I been the entire month of January?

Lately I've been reading a lot of books that I haven't really liked so much. As the effects of that becomes constant over the last month or so, it has been hard for me to find time to want to blog. Though, I want to continue, but will not promise any five day posts like I did in the previous year.

So what am I doing at the moment?

1. Reading Beauty Queens by Libba Bray
2. Paper Towns by John Green review to come
3. Don't Quote Me meme will hopefully to come back this Wednesday
4. I've decided to leave my nanowrimo novel where it is at the moment
5. Busgirl Blues by Bethany R. Myers review to come when story is fully posted
6. Cinders and Sapphires by Leila Rasheed review to come
7. Update on webseires on Youtube that you should be watching

New Year Resolutions

I've never made new year resolutions, despite the fact that while in elementary school they make us. It was always something that I didn't have faith that I could do. There are so many people that don't accomplish their new year resolutions. There's nothing bad about that, but I feel like I would be setting myself up for failure.

Last year was one of the best years in my short life so far. I decided that instead of making new year resolutions of specific things I want to accomplish, I want to do more than I did last year. Last year I made seven big accomplishments. I'm not going to name all of them, because some are personal, but I think that it's better to try to out do yourself, instead of having specific goals you have to finish by next year. A counselor would probably yell at me that I'm going at things the wrong way, but this works for me. This year I want to accomplish ten amazing things. I don't know what all of them are yet, but I have some goals that I want to do this year. They aren't new year resolutions, like if I didn't do them I would be a failure, but like if I didn't do them I could accomplish something else.

I heard somewhere that when you tell people you are going to do something, the encouragement you get is enough for you to feel satisfied into you not doing it. That's such a strange thing, because that happens to me sometimes. Though, I want to share with you guys all of some of the things I want to accomplish this year.

• Finish editing my rough draft from nanowrimo
• Learning Italian and Spanish(the basics)
• Completing the European Book Challenge
• Progress some how with the blog
• Finish a novel I'm co-writing with my friend
• Get involved in new activities

Those are just some of the things I want to do this year, and I hope I do more, because that is deffo not ten things. I know I will find other things to do over the course of this year, and I know I'm going to update you guys on my nanowrimo novel, and the European Book Challenge. Happy New Year!!

Love and Hugs
Clara

Losing Your Writing

Thursday was a very scary night for me. I tried to open my novel on Scrivener and it came out as nothing what so ever. My nanowrimo novel was completely gone, and I was devastated. I checked by flash drive for any copies, but they only contained my short stories. I tried to search back in history on my laptop, but I had recently done a system restore on my pc. It was incredibly distraughting, and if you are a writer, you would be too.

I did get my novel back, don't worry, I can still do this series. You ask me how I got my novel back? I found an old email I sent to myself with an attachment of my nanowrimo novel. This .rtf file was readable, and I just opened it up with Scrivener. BTW you should definitely check out scrivener if you are currently writing a large project, or want to write a novel, or nanowrimo, etc.

What I'm trying to get by is, always make copies of your novel. Make irrational copies. For instance, make an epub or Mobi file for ereaders, even though you don't have an ereader. Make .rtf, word documents, pages for macs, what ever. Make as many copies as possible through out your writing, and put them on a flash drive and email them to your friends. Print out each chapter you finish. Find away of keeping your novel by putting it out there, without completely giving away your work.

I hope you guys have a wonderful weekend, holiday break, and may your writing be better than ever.

Love and Hugs
Clara

Writing: Character Development

During reading over what and how I wanted to edit the novel I wrote over nanowrimo, I found that I barely knew my main character. Do note that I don't plan when I'm writing a first draft. I find it terribly difficult to stick to it, and things just don't work out for me. Anyways, when I found out that I wasn't super sure of my main character, I decided to look up somethings about character development, and how to go about it.

One of the things I read about was, interviewing your character in the place of them. It literally has gotten me to figure out so many things by just asking my character. That might seem weird, because some characters are in my head and I should just write them down, but like I said before, I don't plan, so I make up my characters on the spot. Georgia-my main character-was a girl I thought up on the spot. She has a difficult past, and while writing Nanowrimo a lot of wholes were left out that could have effected her one way or the other.

I plan on doing that with some of my secondary characters, but my main group of characters seem to be the ones with the least back story, or fully developed. It's frustrating, but it's so much fun interview the characters. It should be easy, and come out naturally. If the answers to the interview don't come out as so, you should rethink the importance of the character in the story.

That's all I want to say this week, and I have some websites that I think will also help with character development:

http://www.pgtelco.com/~slmiller/characterdevelopment.htm

http://lillieammann.com/2009/07/27/creating-fictional-characters%E2%80%94part-8-developing-characters-throughout-your-story/

http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474976908598

http://www.wikihow.com/Develop-a-Character-for-a-Story

Of course there are so many more website and books out there, and the best way to learn is to find things on your own. I hope you have a wonderful time writing. :D

Love and Hugs
Clara

Post First Draft Depression

I want to start off with a little editing series going on on this blog. Since, I did do nanowrimo and won-yeah, I'm awesome-I want to blog about the process of how things are going. At the moment I can't give you a synopsis of the novel, because there is a lot of plot being moved around, and maybe the main problem the main character faces is only a side problem. You know?

Anyways, the first thing that happened when I finished nanowrimo about two weeks ago was that I just wanted to chuck the story out the window and feed it to the coyotes. I suppose many authors feel this way, because we have been so close to this piece of work, that it's too much. I was about to scrap the entire document at one point. Terrible of me for not believing in my own writing, but sometimes you want to kill someone, but instead of someone, many people in your mind.

The other day I got out of this 'depression' stage. Something just clicked in my mind, and I guess with me going back into the community of writers I've found, it motivates me to do something with the story. I have not started actually editing the novel, but I am in the process of reestablishing my characters, and where I want the story to go, and where it should be going. There's a difference. I'm happy with half of the characters I had made up on the spot while writing nanowrimo, but in there are the ugly ducklings. The ones that don't have a personality easy to spot out, or a background that's bland and contains no meat.

So if you are in the post first draft depression state, I beg you to not chuck out your story. You are going to hate yourself if you do, because you will look back at it and think I should not have done that. Especially, if you did nanowrimo and got far ahead. Do not change your mind and free up space on your computer. There is a reason why you started to write the story. Whether you knew what you wanted to come across in your writing or not, it will come across, and you need to edit and think about it to do so.

Great chat with yall today, have an amazing time writing this week. If you have trouble thinking of things to write-which you should be doing everyday-I'm going to start making daily writing prompts on twitter. @Clarareads

Love and hugs
Clara

In My Mailbox (#13)

I bought this box set because I needed something to congratulate myself with. I have been doing many things lately, and needed to treat myself. I am a huge John Green fan, and even though this is not the special signed box set, I have his latest book The Fault in our Stars signed by him. Hopefully, I wills start Looking For Alaska at the beginning of December, because nanowrimo has stopped me from reading. 

Nanowrimo Update (#4)

Saturday: Had too much fun today, but got home and wrote!! Not very happy with what I wrote, but I did write more than the word count! Woohoo!!

Sunday: Wrote almost 1,000 after lunch, but stopped to blog. I also needed to clear my head  a bit, because my inner editor wanted to rip my own head off.

i wrote after dinner, a ton. I wrote +3,000 today. Omg, I still want to write, but I want to save it for tomorrow. So much I want to write, so much...

Monday: I think it's good to start writing from a sentence you didn't end from before. It gets you in the mood for writing, and you jump right in. I wrote quite a lot after dinner, and I feel very light and just whimsical at the moment. :D

Tuesday: I had a very long, but fun day today. Terribly tired for all i have, and nearly fell asleep doing homework. Though, I wrote, and I wrote more than 2,000 words. Wohoo! ;) I feel proud of myself...

Wednesday: I burst a blood vessel in my left hand's thumb. I am so happy that the blood did not go under my nail, because that would be truly unbearable and I'd probably be unable to type the space button with that hand. I'm am hoping to write a lot over the Thanksgiving period.

Started writing later than I should have, and did not get enough words written. I did write more than 1,000 words, so I'm proud of that. :)

Thursday: It was really tough to start writing today because I was stuffed with turkey and was beyond tired. I wrote 1,000 words anyways in the afternoon. Then I got a surge of inspiration and adrenaline that I wrote one of the best things I've written all month. Combined that, I wrote 3,000 words. I am now 7,000 words away from the 50k.

Friday: Wrote an amazing scene which I am so excited to edit, but  I can't. I have 5,000 words to go and the next time I will update you I will have won.

Nothing really to say, but if you are doing nanowrimo go hug that 50k because you are so close, and you better not give up. Also, if you have not done nanowrimo, please consider it next year, or during the nanowrimo camps over the summer. I swear, it will be amazing in the end. :D

NaNoWriMo Update (#3)

Saturday: Ate too much candy, and didn't even write as much as I should. :) Though, it was a progressive day.

Sunday: Writing after dinner and got things up and running. Writing enough words in an hour, but going to keep on going. Nanowrimo update status says I'll finish the novel a week and one day early. What!?!

Monday: Really did not want to write tonight, but did anyways. I think that it proves that you just have to do it, so write. I started out rewriting the last few paragraphs from before, just restating it in a different way, and then it went slow for a while. I'm sad to say that I did not make my 1667 words today, but I am still three days ahead, and I'm proud of that. So suck it!

Tuesday:

Wednesday: I didn't write yesterday. :( I feel so ashamed of myself, but so relaxed in a nervous kind of way. I wrote almost 2,000 words today. Btw, since I took the day off yesterday, I'm still not behind. I was planning on myself tiring out, so I was a few days ahead, and I still am. I definitely see the finish line coming up a mountain away, as I am so close to 30,000 words. :)

Thursday:
Someone please tell me that writing a five hundred word essay counts in nanowrimo. No? Ugh!

Omg! I just wrote 30,000 words in two weeks and one day. WTF?! Okay, okay. That was awesome. I got this. You got this. Keep writing, and don't stop. You're too far in to stop. So don't you dare. *shamelessly points finger at you*

Friday:

I didn't write anything on Tuesday or Friday!! :O I don't know what happened, but I think it was just life. Also school has really put me down lately. I'm so grateful that I write more than needed, and am still ahead. If you are falling behind, you can still do it!!! Please don't give up, because I want you to win. EVERYONE WANTS YOU TO WIN!! So don't give up.

Writing Quotes for NaNoWriMo

I couldn't find a lot of quotes that have been made in artistic works, but I found two posts about writing quotes which you can read here and here. 

NaNoWriMo Tag!

The Questions:
1. Is this your first year doing NaNoWriMo or have you participated before?
This is my first year doing NaNoWriMo and I've learned so much about myself that even if I don't win this year, I'm still going to do it next year. Notice the if, it's crucial.

2. How did you find out about NaNoWriMo?
I can't remember how I found it... actually I found out about it by a youtuber, Kaisa, from MaxieMagyx. Her videos are freaking amazing, and I watched her start it when she did daily vlogging in November last year.

3. Are you in it to win it, or are you just participating to have a bit of fun?
Just for fun. hahaha, yeah right! You're funny sarcastic me. So, yeah, I'm doing it to win.

4. Are you on track with your daily word count?
I am, I'm actually above the daily word count at the minute, and I've been ahead of the game since day 1.

5. Tell the readers a little bit about your novel (genre, title and short summary for example).
I changed what I'm writing about, so if you see my link for nanowrimo, that was a very rough idea what I was doing, and I've completely changed it. I won't tell you what the story is about at the moment, becuase I'm not sure where it is going. I'm one of those people that don't plan what to write, I plan when to write. That's all.

6. Has anything crazy happened yet? Have you been attacked by any plot bunnies?
Eh... not really. I've found that doing NaNoWriMo has been a little strange because my writing seems to work itself out like my dreams do. I mean, in the way that they always have connections that I have over looked, but my subconscious mind saw.

7. Do you have any real life friends who are participating?
My best friend's sister is doing it, and I don't really know her, but besides her, I don't have any "real life" friends who are participating.

8. What is your best tip for getting yourself to write and stop procrastinating?
I don't have a best tip, but I like to bribe myself with candy, or watch youtube videos. Also I usually find that writing right after I eat, is the best time to write. I've gotten so much writing done from the time I finish eating, to that hour and  a half later. So, maybe you should try that if you haven't already.

9. What is your favourite novelling snack?
I can't eat while I write. It's distracting, but on the weekends when I write in the mornings, I usually have tea.

10. Who do you tag?
I tag anyone that wants to do this, and since I think I stole this tag from the booktube community, I'm just letting the tag roam on its own.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vf1_heEL0_g&feature=g-u-u
The link above is where I found this tag. Go watch her NaNoWriMo vlogs;they are amazing. :D

Nanowrimo Update (#2)

So I kept a log of how I wrote throughout this week, and where I was in NaNoWriMo each day. I think that this week did give me a little trouble, but I got back on track, and am so happy that I'm ahead of the game


Saturday: Wrote right after lunch and it went smoothly.

Sunday: Wrote about 500 words around nine o'clock in the morning. Got into a writing block after dinner. Got it going again, but took a while. Wrote 1,763 words. On to tommorrow!

Monday: Knew that I could only write really well after dinner, so I did. Got off a good, start. Then hit a point where I just wrote anything that came to mind, and it  happened to be a very key part of the novel now. I think I love you nanowrimo. *mauh*

Tuesday: Wrote up a storm after dinner. Kind of dreaded writing in the beginning, but really enjoyed what I wrote.

Wednestday: Woke up at four in the morning, because it was the day after the election, and then wrote like a mad woman until I had to go to school. Got about 1,000 words down. Then after dinner wrote about a 1,000 more words. Really liking the way things are going, but see major plot and character wholes. Need to fill them in, pronto!

Thursday:Flushed with homework and no time. I've got to write after dinner to get today's words in, I hope I type something good in a few hours. Wrote six hundred words after dinner. I don't think I can write anymore. I'm trying to write, and have everything opened for me to just type, but I have nothing I feel passionate about, and ready to write for. Ugh! Turned off the internet and got 400 more words down. I don't think I can write anymore today.

Friday:Got home from school and got a little distracted. Then got down to writing, and got more than enough words down, but not as much as usual. Hoping to get to 20,000 words then go to bed. Wrote another chapter after dinner, and somehow wrote exactly 20,000 words. Woohoo! I like you again, NaNoWriMo.

As you see, Thursday was my bad day. I'm really glad that I started Nanowrimo. Tips that may help you that I've learned so far, is to set time for it. Don't multitask. It's very easy to get distracted when you're on the computer, so I turn off the internet, sometimes. It's a great way to just disconnect from everything, and just write. Do you know when you write best? For me it's right after I eat. I think my brain cells get all excited, and so I'm excited about my story, and then I type like a mad woman. I hope that you are having an amazing NaNoWriMo, too, and leave a comment below telling me how far you are. Good luck to everyone!!

Scrivener Review

Since I planned on doing Nanowrimo, I've been looking for word processor alternatives than Word. Sadly, on this laptop I'm using I don't have Word, and I don't really need it, when I have downloaded Scrivener.

Scrivener is a word processor that is used by many published authors, and writers of all kinds. I have a video I want to show you, that will be more informative than I'll be on it.

I've found that Scrivener has made me so much more organized in writing. I've also got a lot farther in my novel, and I the overall layout is very easy, and like I said organized. I used to be one of those people that would have several word documents for character development, outline, and chapters. It was all too much, and Scrivener really makes it easy for a writer to just open a document and don't have to switch between documents. 

A feature I love about Scrivener is its note cards on a cork board. It's very easy to plan my story out, and see what I have to write about, and where I am through the entire project. I usually don't plan out my stories too far ahead, but sometimes while I'm writing I get ideas for a chapter or scene, and then I add it to the cork board. It's easy to rearrange them and make them fit my best.

The compile piece of the application is truly helpful for authors when they want to send different versions of their novel. There's so many to choose from; PDF, Word Doc, ePub, Mobi, and a lot more I can't remember, I haven't finished my novel yet, so I haven't tried it, but I can just imagine now how accomplishing I'd feel when I can read it on my nook, or send PDF files to people.

Lastly, if you are doing Nanowrimo, you get a free trial through December 7th. I know it's amazing, but it get's better. If you finish your novel, you get a 50% off discount of the $40 you need to pay after December 7th. I personally am going to buy it afterwards, because I know I want to edit my story using Scrivener, and I have great ideas I want to write about, using Scrivener. 

Nanowrimo Update (#1)

Hi guys,

This month I am doing Nanowrimo(National Novel Writing Month) and it began on Thursday. I have to write a 50,000 word story by November 30, and so far I'm ahead of the game. I started writing on Thursday, and wrote one word over the daily amount to reach 50,000 words=1,667. Then, yesterday as I got home from school there was a bit of a writing block, and the plot just didn't feel right. But then, after I had dinner, my story really wrote itself. I wrote almost 2,000 words yesterday, so I'm supercilious of that. I think I write the best, right after I had dinner. I'm not sure if lunch or breakfast is the same, because I do go to school. Though, now I know my perfect time to write, I think that hour after dinner will now be my writing time. If I change habits or anything I'll let you guys know next week.

If you want to check out my daily progress the link to my nanowrimo page is here, and if you want to root me on, @Clarareads.

Love and Hugs
Clara

Over editing?

I've been writing a lot lately. Not on the blog as you've noticed, but personally, and I have edited a lot. I want to say too much, but I know that everyone is going to say that you can never edit too much. You can always find a way to improve your work.For me, when I edit something  a lot, it gets boring and I hate rereading something sooooo many times. It makes me go kind of insane. That's probably why they say you should always look at things with new eyes, everyone in a while.

I can't remember a time that that worked. After a while of editing, I get numb with all those corrections and my mind is saying,"Too much. Too much.... need.... coffee...... or a book..... please?" Does that happen to you?

Since I am doing Nanowrimo this year, I hope that will make me look at writing and editing differently, because I will not be editing while writing nanowrimo. I write quite slow, and that will never work if I did edit like I would. That hopefully, will give me a new way of writing something without getting bored about it.

If you're doing nanowrimo this year, please tweet me @Clarareads, it would dearly help me if I have some encouragement, and of course I will reciprocate.

P.S. I'm not editing this post, so excuse my grammar. 

Nanowrimo 2012

Nanowrimo is National November Writing Month. Next month I will try to accomplish writing a 50,000 novel. So that comes out about 1600 something words a day. That is a lot for little ol' me who is obsessive over editing while writing. Usually the most I'd write in a day is 700. Nanowrimo is for me, a way to put the thoughts and plot ideas I have somewhat on paper(Word).

I have never done Nanowrimo. That said, I don't like to be a Debby Downer but there is a HUGE chance that I will not succeed. I haven't found an idea that I'm going to stick with, so everything is up in the air at this point. Also please support me next month and leave any ideas below.

If you've done nanowrimo please comment below, I'd love to hear your experience and if you finished or failed. ;( .