Writing Wednesday: End of 2014
This week, I’ve adjusted my routine and my goals slightly. It’s more of a trial period for the new year, or rather, the new year once the kids go back to school. I’ve done a time goal before, and usually I end up going back to more of a word count approach. We’ll see how long this lasts. But, I’ve found recently that I’ve been seriously underestimating what I can get done in a day. So, I decided to change that. I’ve been working on editing 4 hours a day(which this week has mostly been doing a 2nd read through of Stained by Ashes), and hour on plotting, and an hour for social media. In there, I get chores done. After that, I spend an hour on crafting then I have the rest of the day to read. Kids start back to school on Monday, and I’m planning to throw in some workout time in there as well. We’ll see how long I can stick with this.
This is the last Wednesday of 2014, so my last WiPPet for the year. Still, sharing from Scars and All. I’m likely to continue with that next month as well, since the WiP I’ll be working on then will probably contain quite a few spoilers. Today, I have 17 paragraphs(12+3+1-2-0-1+4) from Chapter 8. There are still a few minor characters I need to name. Until then, I have [xx] in their place.
Doren walked down Main Street, nodding to the few people who looked his way. [xx] had been busy working on a state inspection, so he’d offered to come down and pick up their lunch order. [xx] had been writing up an order for a customer, or he would have just asked her. The last few days he’d barely left the garage except to go home. The fight with his father had taken more from him than he’d wanted to admitted. It might be nothing new, but it couldn’t be okay, could it? Not when he saw the way his father looked at him.
He drew in a long breath then let it out slowly. He should be used to it by now. His father wouldn’t believe him no matter what he said. He’d tried to tell him once, and his father had just walked right out of the room. He hadn’t tried again. What was the point?
He pushed through the door to the diner and took a moment to adjust to the dimmer lighting. Few tables were occupied which seemed odd to him since they were still in the middle of what should be the lunch rush. He moved up to the front counter, and the waitress there looked up. Her mouth dropped open, but only for a short moment.
“Doren. I didn’t expect you to come in. You getting the lunch order for the garage?”
“Yeah, Anna. What’s going on? It looks pretty slow in here today.”
Her lips thinned into a grim line. “You didn’t hear?”
“Hear what?” He asked as he signed his name to the credit card receipt. “I’ve been under cars all morning. No time to listen to the latest gossip.”
“You never have,” she said, her gaze flicking to his neck. To her credit, she looked right back up at him. “This isn’t gossip though, it’s news.”
He sighed. people around here had a way of dragging things out. “Well, what is it? I should really get this back to the garage.”
“[xx] came into Pizza Village this morning and found it had been robbed last night.” Doren felt the blood drain out of his face. Anna kept talking though. “They haven’t caught anyone yet, but the state police are coming in.”
His hand jerked on the bag once. “That’s awful. I hope they find him. I better get back to the garage though.”
Doren kept his eyes on the ground in front of him as he hurried back to the garage. His leg started to ache though, and it was more of a limp by the time he stepped into the front office.
“You okay, Boss?” [xx] asked, looking up at him.
He forced air past the blockage in his throat. “Yeah. You hear about Pizza Village?”
“The robbery? Yeah. Everyone’s been talking about it. I’m surprised you didn’t hear before.”
“I tend to block out the gossip. The state police are coming in though.”
“Of course they are. We don’t have anyone else to deal with it.”
I may have mentioned before that this town is modeled after my hometown, quite closely, actually. And her last comment goes with that. My hometown(and Kurztown) doesn’t have it’s own police department. So, when something happens, the state police are called in. One stoplight, one back, a couple small restaurants(although there is a subway there now), and a grocery store. Not a lot happens.
Most of my goals for this week are finished.
Stained by Ashes – round 1 revisions– like I said, I’m already doing the 2nd read through. More than 60% through that. Should finish it today. Since I’m shifting back to drafting next month, I’ll let this sit until February.- Freeing His Heart – Outline – this is just about done. Just have to finish the scene summaries.
Read: Scotsmen Prefer Blondes(Sara Ramsey)– finished this. Also read Let Me Be the One(Bella Andre) & started Between Now and Forever(Barbara Freethy)- Read: The Wars of the Barbary Pirates – just the conclusion left to read for this. It’s sparked a few thoughts for a story idea I had.
- Knit: Vertical Stripe Tie(if I get the needle I need for it) – haven’t started this, but the needle I need is on its way, so I’ll be doing it this next month. I did do a pattern I found in with some needles & hooks my grandma gave me, so I did that this week. Turns out it was a dishcloth(there was no title to the pattern, so I wasn’t sure what I was making).
It’s the end of December, so I’m going to evaluate how I did for the month(and the year, after that).
Writing:
- Flames of Redemption: finished beta edits & proofread – this is done & up on Amazon, B&N, and Kobo for pre-order
- The Choice: apply CP edits – My CP has been having a rough time and hasn’t gotten this back to me. So, I’ll be shifting it to next year.
- At Her Hands – Outline – done and put on the drafting schedule for late next year.
- Patrick’s Story(Gilbert #5) – Outline – like I said, I’m almost finished with this.
Reading:
- Listen to The Retribution of Mara Dyer – done & also listened to Slave to Sensation(Nalini Singh), Wild Heat(Bella Andre), & Unbreakable(Kami Garcia) as well as re-listening to the Chronos Files books(Rysa Walker)
- Read 15 books – 16/15
- Read 1 craft/research book – I skimmed a couple other Pirate books but they weren’t what I was looking for. The Wars of the Barbary Pirates had some interesting information though.
Crafting:
- Knit: 3 projects – finished Polarspun Baby Hat
, Sock Monkey Hat
, and Grandma’s Dishcloth
- Crochet: 4 projects – finished Flower Hot Pad
, Slouchy Textured Beanie,
, Starfish Washcloth
, and Baby Bear Hat
As for how I’ve done for this year:
1. Publish. I want to get Slow Revenge published for sure. And hoping to get even more out. I have a plan for getting all my various WiPs revised and polished and out there. Now, I just have to stick to that plan.
Well, I got Slow Revenge published(although the title changed to Duty to Protect). And Flames of Redemption will be out in less than a week.
2. Read. I read about 168 books during 2013. Some of those were short, of course. For 2014, I’m aiming for 175. I tend to read fast and in the little moments throughout the day.
Well, if I count the audio books and craft/research books, I’ve read over 260. Even without those, it’s around 230. Definitely met this goal.
3. Crafting. Last year, I finished 20 knitting and 21 crochet projects. This year, my goal is 25 of both. Plus I’d like to learn something new. I’m leaning toward loom knitting.
I just got to both of these. Although I didn’t do the loom knitting. I may look to that for next year though.
I hadn’t realized I kept these so general for the year. Because I’m weird like this and love numbers(although I hate math):
Projects: 16(3 of these remain unfinished)
Words Written: 559,603(8591 of those were plotting)
Monthly Average: 46,634
Highest Month: November – 82020
Lowest Month: December – 10634
Days Worked: 294
Daily Average: 1903
Not a bad year over all. Hoping next year will be even better.
2015 goals:
Writing:
- Outline – I have 19 stories on this year’s list to outline. I may not get to all of them, or something else might strike me so I move them around. So, I’m not listing them all here.
- Write – 9 on this list. The first 3 are the unfinished ones. Again, I may not finish them all, but I have some to choose from. 🙂
- Edit – 5 on this list to at least get sent to my CP. After that, it depends on when I get them back from her.
- Publish: At least Flames of Redemption. Also hoping to get Stained Snow, The Choice, and maybe one more out this year.
Reading:
- Read: 250 books, which means 21/month. I’ve done at least that 3 times this year. It will probably average out.
- Listen: 12 audiobooks(will probably end up being more, but that’s at least one a month)
- Research: At least 1 craft/research book a month.
Crafting:
- Knit: 25 projects
- Crochet: 25 projects
- Learn New Craft
And for the month of January:
Writing:
- Outline: Flames of Restoration(Flames #5 – Nolan’s story) & at least start Gilbert, CO #5
- Write: Finish 1st drafts – Chasing the Ghost(Gilbert, CO #4) & Flames of Justice(Flames #2.5)
Reading:
- Read 21 books
- Listen: Written in My Own Heart’s Blood(Diana Gabaldon)
- Forensics for Writers
Crafting:
- Knit: Vertical Striped Tie & Baby Doll Dress
- Crochet: Sleigh Bell Scarf & Flower Pop Hat
My revised goals for the week:
- Finish Stained by Ashes Read Through & Compile Notes
- Finish Freeing His Heart Outline
- Write 5000 words on Chasing the Ghost
- Read: Finish Between Now and Forever, Unbridled Magic(Angela Wallace), Against the Wind(Kat Martin), Shadow Spell(Nora Roberts), & One, Two, Three(Elodie Nowodazkij)
- Crochet: Sleigh Bell Scarf(pattern came with yarn my mom got me for Christmas)
Hope everyone has had a great year and looking forward to the new one!