Like the eternal optimist that I am, I signed up for NaNoWriMo again this month. We’re now pretty much halfway through November, which means I should be somewhere along the 25k word mark. I’m nowhere close to it, lagging behind at around 10k instead.
And I’m okay with that.
I’ve come to the realization that I really do enjoy not being pressured into writing every day, but even less so to be forced to adhere to a certain number of words. I know, I know, those are the hallmarks of a professional writer, but we can all agree that I’m not a professional writer. Writing a first draft is agony for me and I’d much rather do it at my own pace.
Now, if we were talking about National Novel Editing Month, then I probably wouldn’t have any issues keeping up or exceeding the required word amount, but alas.
(And yes, I’m a NaNo rebel, so this blog post is totally counting towards my word count!)
In any event, I am moving through writing the final installment of the Mythical Menageries Series 1 at a much quicker pace than I normally would have, so I’m quite content with that. The first draft will definitely be finished before the end of November. I plan to start the editing process (which I much prefer!) in December, have it ready for betas in January (because let’s face it, no one is going to beta read while on Christmas holiday) and then have the final draft of this installment done by middle February, if all goes well.
And then, dear readers, the novel will FINALLY be finished.
I’ll have to read through all the installments and make sure everything makes sense and that I haven’t accidentally renamed characters or forgotten key moments or left unresolved storylines (apart from those purposely left open for Series 2). I might try to enhance some descriptions, because I tend to underwrite (hence writing novelettes instead of novels). When that’s all done, the novel should be ready for release early 2019!
Other than that, I have a few bits and bobs that I’m busy with:
- I still have to write this month’s flash fiction for my subscribers
- I need to make some promotional images for Instagram
- I want to do a series of short promo videos about mythological creatures
- I want to do short AMA videos to post on Facebook, so if you have any questions, please let me know in the comments below
- I want to finish my Neil Gaiman storytelling Master Class
- I’m working through a Udemy course on social media marketing – so interesting
- I need to write a blurb for the novel
On a more personal front, I’ve recently started on a new health regime and have joined the gym again as part of that. I’m not into weight training and mostly go for cardio or yoga. I really enjoy yoga and have made it my personal mission to get much better at it. I want to be able to do a handstand again!
I also realized that the year is nearly over and I haven’t even written anything interesting about our June trip to Slovenia and Croatia on my travel blog yet. This will need to be rectified, before those memories fade too much.
If you’re a rugby supporter, you’ll know that the Springboks won the World Cup this month. The hubby and I were a little at odds at first, but he came around in the end, hehe.
The whole country has been celebrating ever since and it’s been wonderful to see all of South Africa’s disparate cultures come together as a nation again, something we’ve sorely needed lately.
Can you believe 2019 is almost over?! I swear the years go faster the older I get. So many things still to do on my checklist! Better get cracking…
Is there anything you want to ask me that I can answer in video format? How are your goals for 2019 coming along?
