Phew! What a busy week. I like it though . . . I like it a lot.

Actions Last Week

~Order proof for ‘Slippers & Chains: Second Base’
Done. It arrived on Tuesday following my choice of super fast delivery. Oooooooooh my goodness it’s so beautiful. SO beautiful. ^_^ I could get used to seeing my words bound up in paperback form. 😉 Anyway, I haven’t finished (started) going through it yet, but that will be one of the goals. It would be nice to know that’s done.

~Write 5,000 words of ‘Slippers & Chains: Picking Out Curtains’ ^_^
Just over 3,000 and that was a deliberate decision. I’d made it into the third chapter and I could feel myself slowing down. I wasn’t sure why and for two mornings on the trot I glared at the screen and tried to figure out what was damming the flow. Answer? I didn’t know what the hell was coming next. Seems pretty easy really, but I know now that I’m not a panster at all. Not even a planster. I’m a plotter. I have to be. I need the structure and the security of knowing where I want to go and knowing that the story I have outlined is clear and consise with a strong character arc and no holes. So I stopped writing and began plotting.

Given that I have no idea of how to plot, this was quite tricky, but on a recommendation from somebody on Joanna Penn’s podcast (check it out if you haven’t the woman is a legend and my new idol!) DSB picked up ‘Take Of Your Pants‘ by Libbie Hawker.

Certainly an interesting read and encouraging as I can see how such thing can be helpful for a writer who wants to produce as much as I’d like. DSB also picked up ‘5,000 Words An Hour‘ by Chris Fox, which was equally interesting and eye opening. My average rate per hour is about 2,700 words per hour (wph)—at least when I’m in full flow—according to my spreadsheet log, and that’s before I realised I didn’t know where I was going. Imagine what I could produce with a bit more practise the way Chris describes. And if I was doing that every day? Well . . . let’s just say a combination of those books led DSB to take me to one side and spend five days outlining this new book from start to finish. I finished it yesterday and now I’m ready to go.

Wanna make a bet with me? I reckon I can finish the first draft of ‘Picking Out Curtains’ before NaNoWriMo starts. If I don’t make it, I’ll give anyone who comments on this post a free copy of it when it comes out. How’s that for a deal? 😉

~Write a fresh Smexxy Snippet
Done! First draft is at 3,649 and I’m thrilled with how it came out. I’ll edit it later.

 Activities For This Week

1. Check proof copy of ‘Slippers & Chains: Second Base’
2. Write 10,000 words of ‘Slippers & Chains: Picking Out Curtains’ ^_^ I know, I know, but at my current wph that should be eeeeeeeeeeasy, even at half an hour a day.
3. Edit my Smexxy Snippet.

Thoughts . . .

It’s funny what a bit of positive thinking and visible progress can do for your mood. I’m really keen to see how ‘Picking Out Curtains’ progresses what with the new outline and all the beats that go with it, as well as using my spreadsheet to log words written. I’ll be starting from the beginning again, but I’m not worried. The result should be a cleaner draft that needs less editing at the end.

As ever, I’ll check in next week and let you know how it goes. ^_^