Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Wednesday's Writing Update: Writing Again...or How It's Working Out With the Plan

Happy Wednesday!

Yes, I have been writing again. After falling into editing world, I’ve climbed out with the new approach to limit my editing time. It’s working well. Some days I’ve gotten 50+ pages edited in two hours. Other days, it is more like 10, but that’s okay. The key really might be moderation.

Last week, I wrote a flash fiction piece and a Liam O’Hare mystery “Copper Blade.” You can read “Copper Blade” here, if you missed it. This week, I’ve gotten Friday’s flash written and set to go. Now I’m polishing up a new short story called “Compulsion to submit in the next couple days.

I’ve looked at my “Things to Do in June” list, and most of them are complete or almost complete. Besides short stories for Raven and the Writing Desk, I have four more I’d like this year and submit to anthologies. Then I must restrain myself not to look at any more anthologies. Seriously. I have a big weakness for the short story. I must focus on my novel Virtuoso. Then NaNoWriMo in November.

Speaking of Virtuoso, I haven’t really gotten back to it yet. I’m hoping to have a week edit free from other people’s work to focus on polishing chapters 1-5, editing chapters 6-10 to send to critique partners, and rewriting chapters 11-15. If I can get all that done by the first full week of July, it’d be awesome. We’ll see.

And, yes, I have been thinking about NaNoWriMo. So far, I’m not 100% positive which new work I’m going to write. Will it be Cursed, a urban fantasy/borderline paranormal romance, involving Gunther’s quest to save his love from the Immortals while not getting lost in his memories? Or Starred, a YA Contemporary, involving a scarred sixteen-year-old, former movie starlet as she struggles between remaining in the shadows or coming back into the spotlight (includes a mash-up of the musicals Wicked and The Wizard of Oz)? Or Spooked, a YA Paranormal Horror, involving sixteen-year-old Deliah—a girl who sees ghosts—and a group of paranormal junkies as they investigate the haunting of a former high school? So far, I’m leaning toward Starred, but the others sound a lot of fun too. I don’t think I could do two of them during NaNo either, which means they might have to be held off until next NaNo. Yeah, a long time away, I know.

Of course, it all seems to hinge on getting Virtuoso ready by October, especially since I’ll be pitching an agent at the James River Writers Conference again in October. I’m really looking forward to it.

So what’s new with you?

5 comments:

Aubrie said...

I was obsessed with short stories for a whole year! I wanted to get into every anthology I could. They are so much fun to write, and it did make my writing better. But then I realized, to make any income, I'd have to go for the biggies. Then I can always come back to my short stories.

Hard to let go, though.... :)

Christine Rains said...

You're thinking of NaNoWriMo before me this year! I like the idea of Starred the best. Paranormal Junkies would be a good title for something, too! I've been editing my Sphinx story. I'm over halfway done the first go-around.

Nicole Zoltack said...

Thinking about Nano already, go you! lol I start thinking about Nano seriously the week before hand.

I'm trying to stay on top of all of my editing projects and to not get overly swamped by it and still have time to work on my stories. It's not easy, but I'm trying.

alberta ross said...

I want to try NaNo this year - not done it - have an idea I will try and recreate a story I thought about, 20 years ago - needs to be relocated from Eastern seaboard of USA to east coast of Uk, the hero need to be a different person, instead of detective I might make him a reclusive writer of serious articles. Most of the rest of the story junked otherwise think it has possibilities!!!!!

Linda Glaz said...

Sometimes hard to balance all of it.