Finishing the Rough Draft

I expect to finish my rough draft today. And it's very rough. The final word count should be just over 70K. For this draft. I tend to expand a lot when I revise. Does anyone else do that?

I've been fighting this 'pressure' to make my sequel longer than the first book. The first book, at last revision, was 97K. I know some things will get cut (still), but I know other things will get added. (Like setting. I'm horrible at it and I'm sure my editor is going to make me go back through and describe things.) So I really think it'll stay around 97K. Yet it seems like every series I pick up, the second book is longer than the first. Or at least just as long. Is it ever shorter? Is that even allowed?

I don't like to write for the sake of writing. Obviously, we write our story until the story is done. No fluff, no senseless rambling. My story might, quite simply, be done at 80K. As a reader, would you think it very odd that the second book was that much shorter than the first? Or would you even notice?

But anyway. So today I will finish up the villain's POV, add one more scene from the MC's POV, and then wha-la. It's done. Then come the revisions. Totally exciting! I love revising. It's like when you pick up a book and think, "If I were writing this book, I'd phrase it like this. Or I'd make this happen. Or change it to this." And I can do those things, because I did write the book!

And then I read those things I wrote and get giddy inside, and wiggle my toes and think, "This is good! Everyone will love this!" Except we all think that about what we wrote. It remains to be seen if everyone will love it.

Sequel Stats:
today's goal: 68,953
actual: 68,982
tomorrow's goal: 70,982

What's My Platform?

It seems to be a hot topic. All the agents and authors are talking about how important it is to have a platform. How it's critical for getting published, and after that, for getting an audience.

I've been wracking my brain to figure out what my platform is. It's not a non-fiction book, so I'm not a highly qualified expert with years of experience to extol. It's not a novel about Girl Scout adventures, so I can't pull out all of my GS paraphernalia and relive the glory Brownie days. It's not about religion. It's not about high school. It's not about teenage pregnancy or abuse.

But it does have bits and pieces of many of these things. It's a book about overcoming adversity. That's not really a platform, though. It's a suspense novel, a thriller. I suppose I could learn to dance like Michael Jackson...no, bad idea. Should my platform be about writing the book? Believing in yourself? Should it be about who I am? A young mom who carves time to write while sitting on the couch and the kids are sleeping? Should it touch upon the religious aspect of the book? About believing Christ even when it seems like God's abandoned you? Should I focus on the teenage aspects? The fears, the fights, the crushes, the self-doubt?

It worries me not to have a solid platform. Like the question I saw on many publisher sites, "What makes you qualified to write this book?" Um...I'm the one who has the story in my head? What was Stephanie Meyers' platform? "How to Survive a Vampire Bite"? When I walk into a high school and ask if I can speak to the student body about my book, what am I going to say? "I was a kid once. So I want to talk to them about this book I wrote." Yeah. Great platform.

Those of you who are writers out there, what is your platform? Are you still working on one? How did you come up with it?

Sequel Stats:
today's goal: 66,893
actual: 66,953
tomorrow's goal: 68,953

Back to the Grinder

I had a wonderful vacation/weekend where we picked up my husband and brought him home. What a surreal experience. After all these months, back together again. In some ways it just feels so right, so normal, it's like no time passed at all. But at the same time, I keep remembering, it's been months since he's been here!

I do have to brag on him, as my right as an Army wife. He got four awards at the graduation ceremony, including the top award that they award each cycle, that of the Honor Grad. Yep, pretty cool. And I'm his wife. Which makes me pretty cool.

And now back to real life. I haven't written in days. All weekend. And I feel it! Time to get going again. I'm crossing my fingers that I get this rough draft finished by this Friday. And I've got scenes playing through my head for book #3. Which makes me doubly anxious to get book #2 done.

I bought two books today. And in the process spoke to the owner of our local indie. I mentioned that I have a book coming out in a year and she suggested we 'do something.' Yes! Like a book signing!

That's it. I don't really have anything else to say today.

Sequel Stats:
today's goal: 62,371
actual: 64,893
tomorrow's goal: 66,893

New Blogwards for Me

I am very excited to announce that I have received two more Blogwards. Both are from JennyMac and her fantastic blog, Let's Have a Cocktail. And no, I don't drink alcohol (and yes, it's a religious and personal preference...I understand someone recently got attacked by an anonymous commenter for stating such a thing on their blog?), but Jenny's hilarious. Check out her blog sometime.

She's also nice. I think she thought I needed a pick-me-up, and since it can't be alcohol, she decided on the Blogwards.

Here they are! The first one is the Super Comments Award.
I'm assuming this one means that I left really awesome, thought-provoking, world-changing comments on her blog. Cool.

I am choosing three people to pass on the Super Comments Award: M. Gray, who always has thoughtful comments, LMJ, who is my new soul-mate, and Stephanie Faris, who with all the blogs she follows, somehow still manages to find time to give her 2 cents on mine. (BTW, there are no rules to this award. Keep it for yourself or give it away to who you want.)

The next one is the I Give Good Blog Award. Yeah. Because my blog is simply awesome.
This award comes with rules!!! Pick out some of your favorite bloggers. Send this award to 4 of them. Tell them why you think they give good blog.

Here are my four:

Christina Berry, because her blog is happy and uplifting.

Carrie Harris, for making me laugh.

Melanie J, because I can always relate to something in her blog.

Jody Hedlund, because she's a new author like me and it's fun to read her journey.

Anyway! That's the end of the Blogwards. If you're looking for new blogs to follow, I hope you'll check out some of these links. These are awesome people and they all have awesome stories to tell!

Sequel Stats:
today's goal: 60,211
actual: 60,371
tomorrow's goal: 62,371

Engaging Twitter

I joined Twitter about a month ago. And honestly, I was so lost. For awhile I hung out, followed people I already knew, waited for someone to follow me. Nothing was happening. I started tweeting. Nobody was reading them except me. So I abandoned Twitter.

I'd check in every once in awhile and see if anyone had left me a message, or was following me. Nope. Nothing. I couldn't even figure out how to find people. If a friend joined and started following me, I could reciprocate. But I couldn't initiate. Me=technologically stupid.

And then I noticed that one person I followed would put this weird little thing at the end of their tweet: #amwriting. I thought, "Huh. That's kind of cool. I'm writing too." So I put it at the end of my tweet. The next thing I know, people are contacting me! Sending me messages and even following me!!!! I went from seven followers to twenty-five in five days, but who's counting?

What happened, I wondered??? I looked carefully at that tweet I'd made that attracted so much attention. The '#amwriting' was in blue font. I clicked it. With a gasp and a flash of light, I was transported to a world of beings who were writing. Writing and chatting and congratulating and encouraging.

For those of you who are Twitter savvy, you know I stumbled upon a hashtag. And that hashtag led me to a chat group. I joined a chat. By doing so, I made friends.

Totally awesome!

I had no idea how I did that. And then I noticed the hashtag #wordgoal. And the hashtag #litchat. And #wordathon.

Peoples! Twitter can be fun!!!

I'm feeling more Twitter confidant now. I'm exploring new avenues of expression. In honor of this, I'm going to search out that little bluebird icon and put it on my blog. I'm not sure how that works, but I'll figure it out.

Sequel Stats:
today's goal: 58,163
actual: 58,211
tomorrow's goal: 60,211

I heard from Mark!

I have to send out a sincere thanks for all of you who worried about me over the weekend, and all of your efforts to cheer me up. I'll admit to succumbing to the horrible dark cloud of gloom. And then Sunday night around 7pm, guess who called!!! Mark! They were given one hour to call.

Wow, it was like someone turned on a light switch to my spirit. I can do this now. I can make it. Four more days. Mark will be home in four more days.

Besides that, I just went out to lunch with my parents and the boys. We ate Thai food, which is my absolute favorite. And I am full. Way way full. Like, I could go to sleep kind of full. But no sleeping. Now is writing time.

I do want to give a quick review to the fantastic book I read last week, called The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins. Many of you have probably already read this book. Apparently it came out a few years ago. Well, I've been in hiding, I guess, because it just came to my attention a few months ago. And then I heard all about the sequel, Catching Fire, and figured I'd better read the first one first. When I realized she'd also written the Gregor series, well, I was convinced.

Let me tell ya, folks, there's a reason for the hype. If you haven't read this book, do it. You won't be disappointed. (Well, okay, out of 500 something reviews on Amazon.com, 7 people didn't like it. So there is the chance.)

The book follows a similar plot line as the Japanese novel printed a decade ago, Battle Royale. Two youth are selected each year in a government-sanctioned human sacrifice game. That's a total of 24 youth. Only one can win, and the government televises the battles for entertainment. The point is to watch them brutally murder each other until only one remains.

That's the basic idea. Of course, the book takes you into the battle in a much more personal way. Told in first person POV, we are deep in Katniss's psyche as we watch her explore this cruel demonstration of control. From the moment you start page one, you have to get to the end as quickly as possible, just to find out what happens. I prepped myself, imaging every possible scenario and deciding I'd be okay with whatever happened, otherwise, I wouldn't have been able to read the book. I can't handle disappointment.

I was not disappointed. Intense, fantastic, exciting, real. Very human. I loved this book. Get it. Now. Enjoy it.

Sequel Stats:
today's goal: 55,722
actual: 56,163
tomorrow's goal: 58,163

Fighting the Black Cloud of Gloom

I didn't get a letter all week from Mark. This had a very sad affect on my mood this week. But he's been able to call me every weekend for the past two months, so I set my sights on today. Yesterday I was positively jubilant, an emotion not easily come by lately.

The drill sergeants haven't given them their phones.

I am not a depressed person, but I'm reaching the end of my rope. I miss my husband too much. I put too much stock in today's phone call, and now I'm sinking because it doesn't look like I'll get one. I'm trying very hard to pull myself out of this, because I need to start cleaning the house and feed lunch to my children. (So far, I've sliced up a couple pieces of cheese and given them a bowl of frosted flakes. Sans milk.)

I feel like a weak person for feeling this way, because I know many women who are without their husbands for more than a year, in a dangerous combat situation. That's not me. He'll be home in a week. But I can't shake the dread of trying to get through this week with no contact from him.

Writing is my escape. I can't wait to sit down and write.

Sequel Stats:
today's goal: 53,544
actual: 53,722
Monday's goal: 55,722