NaNo novel 2016 - Haute Rice

Earlier this year, I joined a writing group comprise of a few of my neighbors. There's been a few projects that's reared itself in multiple iterations, but for various reasons, have been sidelined. All of these projects shared common themes and are inspired by some of the same people/events/memories.

This year, I'll be attempting one of these projects for NaNoWriMo. If you're interested in learning more, check out their website at www.nanowrimo.org. If you're interested in being my writing buddy, look me up! I'm julia0101.

I'm going to do all I can to give myself the best chances to accomplish NaNo this year. I'm taking a few days off of work as vacation days. Longer weekends means more time to stay up and write. I seem to get the most writing done in the super late evening and early morning hours. I'm giving myself rewards for hitting word count milestones. And I've signed up for yoga classes to give myself a scheduled mental break. One of the days when I'll be taking the classes is the morning of my vacation day - making sure I don't end up wasting the time.

The down side is always me not being able to spend a whole lot of time with friends while I do this. This year, it seems like my calendar cleared itself. Two of my closest friends are leaving for a trip to SE Asia. The hubby will be gone the first weekend of NaNo. If I don't have a decent word count after this weekend, I'll only have myself to blame. As usual, I fully expect to have plenty of time to work on the novel over Thanksgiving.

If you want to follow my progress, I'll be posting word counts on FB and Instagram (@jwmyles) and longer updates here. Cheer me on if you want to help. :)

Nano 2014

We're nearly done with week one of Nano, and man, what a week.

I initially hadn't planned on participating this year because of the pending home move (and all the details that goes with that), but one of my closest friends decided that he's going to do it... and I couldn't let him go at it with only online support. The community nature coupled with the "official-ness" of the Nov NaNoWriMo seems to foster a lot of the motivation to keep writing the same way having a workout partner helps motivate a person training for a marathon or trying to get into a fitness routine.

So, on Oct 31, I decided to jump on the NaNo wagon... and convinced 2 other writer friends of mine to do it as well. This is the first NaNo where I can turn a small part of my regular social group and make writing the activity that we do. I'm really excited at the support, and I'm looking forward to keeping up with my writing buddies. Since I've won one of the two Nanos I've attempted, I've been able to reflect and see what worked for me... and what didn't work. I'm glad for the opportunity to pass on my experiences and encouragement. I'm a firm believer of taking one's own advice, so I'm doubling my efforts and commitment to Nano this year because so many of my friends are doing it.

Maybe in Dec, we'll help each other edit.

On Creativity and projects

I'm having a hard time focusing on my current fiction project - the 2nd part to my first NaNo novel. Part of it is my need for consistency between books 1 and 2. I have a lot of plot holes in #1 that probably should be filled before I move on with book 2. I also think I need to map my book out because I feel like I'm wandering aimlessly.  In looking at some of the work I've already done for book 2, I've caught myself needing to flesh out background details for some parts and repeating myself as I write about a character as if it's the first time my protagonist (and the reader) encounters her. So yes, there's are some issues I think I need to work out before I plunge forward. 

I'm also spending more time focusing on health and diet. I like cooking, but with the food logging and calorie counting, it's important for me to write down/develop the recipes I use and figure out appropriate portion sizes. 

Then, I had this crazy idea... write a cookbook. Most of the recipes, I'm going to post on my blog. First, I'll develop the recipes and have my friends try them. Then, I'll organize them into a book with some kind of story or intro into each recipe - whether it's a family recipe, an experiment, or a happy accident. Some of the dishes might inspire me in other projects. 

On sacrifice and dedication

Today, at work, we celebrated the contributions of an associate who is leaving the company.  I'm sad to have not been able to get to know him much since I've only been with the company for 10 weeks. And for 6 of those weeks, I didn't really get to work with him. While I was going through my on-boarding process, he was taking his multi-week vacation. And it's not a remarkable thing that he's leaving the team and the company. In his 10-year tenure at the company, he's switched positions at least once as part of his professional growth. Life happens and there comes a point when everyone has to make a decision.

What is truly remarkable is his reason for leaving. He is a writer at heart and he's leaving his well paying, excellent benefits package, full time position to dedicate to his writing.  He and his wife are packing things up and moving to the Oregon coast so that he can attend workshops and work on his first full-length novel, aiming for 500K words written and published in the next 3 years (while living off of savings and his wife's supplemental etsy income). I admire him for his courage and drive to pursue this dream. He also plans to self publish and write as much as possible.

(He also gave me this reference, as it inspired him to go through the self publishing route and just go for quantity of work.  http://www.deanwesleysmith.com. I've yet to check it out, nor have I read and of Smith's work, so I've not garnered an opinion yet).

Besides the steady paycheck that funds a comfortable Los Angeles lifestyle, he's giving up (or delaying) home ownership. He and his wife have been saving up for a down payment on a house. Now, instead of getting the house, they'll be investing that money on his writing career. The cost of living in Oregon is apparently really low compared to L.A and will allow them to stretch their dollars.

As much as I admire him, I don't think leaving LA is my cup of tea. I do understand how awesome it would be to immerse oneself into writing. My experience doing Nano taught me that. In addition to being a writer, I've always wanted a level of security and independence that comes from earning a steady paycheck. My husband and I are in the midst of purchasing our own home, (thus achieving one of our life goals) and we have a very large, ever growing circle of friends. It doesn't seem like there's ever enough time on the weekends to connect with everyone we want to connect with.

I know a lot of writers juggled a job that earned money and writing. And I can't say I don't have the time. Truth is, I spend quite a few hours a night, every night, watching TV or consuming fluff on the internet. So starting tomorrow, I'm going to buckle down. One TV episode allowed per night, and only after I'd managed to get in a few pages of writing. Blog posts will count for the first 2 weeks.  Starting tomorrow, for the next 30 days, I'll attempt a NaNo paced marathon to writing whatever. It may turn out to be a coherent piece of work. It may turn out to be nothing. But I'll be writing.

Content and Form

A long time ago... when I first began to write creatively, I learned that the rules of grammar could be broken. I was reminded of this as I listened to three literary authors talk about their work in the Library Foundation of Los Angeles' ALOUD series. My Big Brother sent me info regarding the library event and I'm glad I decided to go. This talk was Sentence After Sentence After Sentence: Three Writers on the Not-Exactly-Random Extraordinary Ordinary Key of Life. 

After a brief reading from each author, each author then sat in a fire-side chat setting and spoke about their work, the use of fragments, and a little bit about their writing processes, taking questions from the audience.

A few take-aways - breaking the grammar rules or conventional forms take thought. One of the authors, Anne Germanacos, talked about how deliberate she was in the editing process, cutting out about 80% of the original draft in order to insert the necessary fragmentation and abruptness that was needed in order to get the right "feel." Using fragments - because of how normal thought gets interrupted - gives the sense of presence in the present. The use of fragments and pauses hints to what is possible and gives the readers a chance to contemplate what is between the lines. What's left unsaid.

The writing was a form of self discovery and reflection. They brought the stories forth from their own experiences.

One of the most profound statements of the night -- when you're writing, what question are you answering? (Sometimes, you won't know that question until you've discovered the answer.)

The second most profound piece of writing advise - it isn't so much as a beginning, middle and end. Rather, it's more of finding a good starting point and a good stopping point.

As writers, we are imposing sense to an experience.

Coming out of the ALOUD event, I was... thoughtful. It was definitely a change of form from the work I'd been reading lately and reminded me of the difference between the fine art of literary work and the popular art of mass market fiction.

With this, I'm going to change the direction of my work in progress. I'm keeping the basic premise, but I'll be shifting the approach. I think I've been fighting my natural inclination of writing a short story and trying to push for a novel. Let's see what this new direction takes me, and how many short stories I can piece together into a cohesive story.


For info about the talk and links to the podcast, click here. If any of you are in the LA area, I highly recommend going to one of these talks and supporting the library.

On What's Original (and what's derivative)

I was having a conversation with my husband the other day and an interesting point came up... a point that most artists struggle with - the idea of original work vs derivative work.

Specifically, it was about that moment when what you're working on seems like such an awesomely original idea that you furiously write it all down. And as you're working on it, as you're working to revise it, or you're getting it reviewed/critiqued, you realized.... it's been done before. The horror.
But what's wrong with derivative? Can one truly have an idea/theme/story that's never been done? In today's time? I don't think so.

I think writers/artist take their inspiration from the world around them and from other forms of art. That's how ideas generate - when people are exposed to new/foreign ideas or view something from a new perspective. Derivative art is original art.

Imagine if some of our favorite writers didn't write because something's "been done." What if Laurel K Hamilton decided to give up on her Anita Blake books because the whole Vampire-Hunter love-hate thing's "been done" ala Buffy? Or Stephanie Meyer decided to not write her Twilight series because Vampire-Human-Werewolf stories "have been done." Or the creators/writers of Vampire Diaries decided to not do pursue the series since there's so much Vampire-Werewolf-Witch- Supernatural stuff already out there? Or how about where the stories of Vampires, Werewolves, Witches and other supernatural beings originate? Are we not supposed to write about them because Bram Stoker and Mary Shelley got there first? These supernatural beings can be traced back to folktale origins... so when or what constitutes as the line for something that's "been done before?"

A personal experience of when I was confronted with the "It's been done" monster - when I was in college, I was in a creative writing class. For one of my assignments, I'd written an crime story from the POV of the person committing the crime. It was a girl who was bent on revenge, aiming to kill a man that was the leader of a crime group. Twist at the end... he's her father!

One of the guys who critiqued it said I ripped off Star Wars.  Imagine my surprise and distress... since I've not ever seen Star Wars. By this time, all 6 episodes were already out and many many many people had seen it. I was one of the few whose parents were not big movie people, and i didn't have friends who were into the sci-fi/fantasy scene. But that's not the point. The point is... the ONLY commonality between Star Wars and my short story was the "I'm your father" twist.

Umm... the Greeks got there first. Oedipus. Kills his father, marries his mother - all because (surprise!) he didn't know his real parents! It was prophesied. And in Daytime soap operas... the real parent of the baby/child reveal or hidden/lost love child reveal was almost an annual thing. It's a drama trope! I'm pretty sure they did it before Lucas wrote it into Star Wars.

So... if you have an idea, run with it. Someone else did something similar? So what? You may have similar ideas, but your execution of the story will be different. Every writer has his/ her own distinct style and voice and how (s)he treats the theme/idea is just as important as what is told. Don't keep from writing what you want to write because of the idea that someone else wrote about it first.

Did you have an enthusiasm dampening experience where you stopped working on a project because, "It's been done?" What did you do to overcome it and move on?

Back to Basics and whatever it takes

So last night, I went back to basics. I pulled out a journal I'd been kinda using (it's over 10 years old judging by the first entry in it) and used it to pen some ideas and notes on my most current project. I ended up writing for a few hours and 7 pages worth of notes, giving the project a little but more clarity and structure. Now, I've torn those pages out and tucked them into the pocket of my Moleskine journal.

I thought it was appropriate for the story that I'm writing - one that's steeped in Chinese superstition and death rituals - that I succumb to a but of writer superstition as well. For those of you who don't know, Moleskine notebooks have a bit of legend to it, being the notebook of choice for artists and writers like Van Gogh and Hemmingway. They're also my favorite since they're so portable, yet well made (sewn pages, some perforated for easy tear-out when needed, durable cover, good paper).

So now, I carry my Moleskine with me where ever I go.  I just need to find the nifty pen holster for it so I don't need to dig around for a pen. I'm also staying up later and consuming inordinate amounts of coffee (even by my standards).  But all of this will be worth it.

Writing as a social exercise

For the most part, writing is a fairly solitary exercise. But maybe, sometimes, I doesn't need to be. Or, sometimes, it shouldn't be.

This past Nano, it feels like I failed miserably because I couldn't devote the same time or energy as I did for NaNo 2013. I did it once, I can do it again. One of the hardest things about NaNo were the social bits - parties, standing RPG gatherings, and of course, the holidays. I found it harder to seclude myself away from friends and family for the month. I manage to eek out a measly 13K. 

This April, I'm going to give Camp NaNo another try. My goal - 25, 000 words. It's half the goal of classic NaNo, but considering my work situation, commute, the holidays and out of town friends coming to town, I think the 25K will be plenty. I'm also going to try to write a little differently. Being in a crowded public space to write does no appeal to me, but I do find value in the social aspect of the write-ins that NaNo's Municipal Liaisons host. So, I've decided to make the writing process for April a little more social by convincing a few of my writer friends to participate in Camp NaNo and host a weekly write-in for our little group. Let's see if getting social with the writing will help me stay on track. 

Making Money with Writing.

A few years ago, I took on a freelance job writing for Demand Media Studios, a supplier of original articles for knowledge bank type websites like eHow.com and Ask.com,  (and thus contributing to the rest of the travel, etiquette and advice drivel that's on the internet.) I'm even embarrassed to say that I wrote those pieces because it's far from quality writing and haven't done a thing to share my work, but here's a picture of an article title and my by-line:

Want to know why most of these types of link-bait, how-to articles sound the same? Because all of the writers use the internet for research. And the pay kinda sucked at $7.50 - $15 per article accepted by the editors (and published). If you were really good, really fast at typing, and never had any revisions that were needed, then you may eek out $15/hr to earn $30K for the year. But a more realistic average is somewhere around $10/hr.  The 3-5 hours a day that I was spending stressing about my articles wasn't worth the check at the end of the week. Instead, I pushed for a promotion at work - and got it. Now, I make enough that it's hard to justify taking on the small writing gigs, writing stuff I just didn't enjoy writing.

And here's a big reality - sometimes, a writer will spend years writing (and revising, and re-writing) for no pay. And when one does get published and paid, it's going to be very very little at first. That's why most writers when they were starting out, had day jobs to pay the bills.

NaNoWriMo 2013

So this year's NaNo attempt is not looking great for me. I've not hit any of my daily goals and have fallen more and more behind each day. The weekends were an opportunity to catch up on word count, but there are are myriad of responsibilities I didn't have the luxury of putting off for the month.

As it stands, knowing some of the commitments I have around the holidays and my work schedule... there's no way I'll hit 50K by the end of Nov 30.

What does this mean?

It means I'll finish this marathon at a pace that won't break me, even if I don't get a finisher medal (or rather NaNo Winner icon).  The most important thing I'm going to get out of this is that I didn't give up and finished the writing.

Using Scrivener, I'm setting a new due date - Dec 15. This allows me to have a daily goal of 1,666 with a couple of  0-word days built in.  I'll be fine if I continue with my current pace/daily average.

I can give a myriad of excuses for why I'm not going to finish in time.

• I have an intense job with a longer commute. It also is a new job which means I can't take a few days off of work to focus on the writing. This is also a job that has required me to stay late or go in early a couple of times, so it's not as flexibly accommodating as my situation last year. 
• Craig and I are finally hosting a party at our place after 2 (nearly 3) years of nothing more than a few friends over for a board game night. This meant a top-to-bottom apartment cleaning that has been long overdue. We even found ourselves getting something new at IKEA to store wedding/xmas/bday gifts that we've received in the last 2 years so that they'd have a proper home. 
• Reiterate bullet #2 in regards to the bedroom and overflowing closets. It's time to purge what I don't need/use and find a space for what I want to keep. 
• It's mid-November and I have no more weekends that I can completely devote to writing. 
• I need to sleep. 

When all is said and done, life happens and sometimes, we just can't get away for 30 days and write with abandon. 

However, I can't find a good excuse to stop writing before I hit the 50K mark of this book. There's no excuse of why I can't prioritize the writing over shopping, TV watching, Facebooking, or Candy Crushing. There's no excuse for not sitting down and writing for at least 2-4 hours every day in the attempt to hit that 50K word goal sooner than later. I know if I don't have a deadline, I'm going to put off the writing one day at a time until it's September again and I'm thinking of preparing for the next NaNo run. 

So I'm going to carve out as much time as possible to write out 50K.  Then, I will evaluate my progress in the book itself, and will set a new series of goals that will push me to finish this book, then go back and revise/flesh out book 1 with a smidgeon of more clarity than I had last year. 

Having a second novel written is a damn good consolation prize for finishing late. 

On the Strong Female Character

I just read an article where an author explained why she hated the Strong Female Character. In her article, she talks specifically about the SFC as portrayed in movies, but the arguments translate into story writing in general -

The Strong Female Character falls into one or more of these pit traps:

• many times one dimensional
• is also the token female
• easily becomes a caricature of "strength"
• is still marginalized in the big picture
• is an exception rather than the norm, subtly reinforcing sexism. 
• is still delegated to the role of male main's love interest
• still needs to be rescued

The main characters that we know and love are not merely Strong. They are complex and dimensional.

While the author, Sophia McDougal, writes about the many examples of where the SFC just doesn't work, I'd like to take the time to show examples of how some authors/writers/producers/directors did it right.

Joss Whedon's Firefly series:
The SFC isn't extraordinary, but the norm in the society. The ratio of female to male characters - 4:5
All of the female characters are multi-dimensional and strong in their own way.

• Kaylee - the best mechanic one can find. She's essentially a savant when it comes to ships and engines, but she's a girly girl at heart and painfully shy. She's portrayed as emotionally vulnerable and has a crush on a man that is emotionally unavailable. 
• Zoe: Tough-as-nails second in command. Super loyal and is a soldier who managed to survive a war where she's seen many of her friends killed. She follows orders, even if it's against her better judgement. Very calm, clear headed and methodical. There's a softness in her character that is hinted at since she's married to Wash. He serves as reminder that there is a certain amount of depth to Zoe that we don't normally see since the rest of the crew (and the audience) sees her hardened exterior 90% of the time. 
• Inara: A professional Companion (think Geisha), she's the epitome of willowy strength. She leases one of the Serenty's shuttles and take occasionally takes on clients (done off screen) as part of her trade. She's part of the Serenity, but is independent of her crew, giving them a veneer of credibility. Her strength is in her business reputation, her savvy, and her diplomatic skills. In the few episodes that she holds the spotlight, she was the one who saved the rest of the party from getting conned - proof that you don't need to wield a weapon or throw a punch to be strong (although she does have some combat training, going by one episode). 
• River: She's mentally unstable and is a victim. She's the most overt character that needs to be "saved" in the series, but she does her own share of saving, displaying combat prowess and some psychic ability.  

TL;DR Version: The writers developed the female characters as much as they did for the male characters. Every person has strengths, weaknesses, and flaws. That coupled with a checkered past makes good, interesting characters.

Novels with a well developed (not just "strong") female protagonist:

 The In Death Series by J.D. Robb
Not only does if feature a multi-dimensional female protagonist, there's a kick-ass female side-kick and female supporting characters.

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Again, female characters with depth and dimension

What series - be it book, movie, or TV show - can you recall that has a great female characters that are just a great characters in their own right?

The hardest words to write

I think the hardest words I write every day are the first ones.

After a break from writing, it feels like one of the most arduous tasks in the word - to get back to work. The whole ordeal feels like an amusement park ride. The time you spend preparing - getting the coffee, queuing the music, setting up the productivity software so you can ignore social media... that's like being in a 120 min line, each part of the process necessary. Sometimes, you get to fast-track it, but most of the time, not.

Then... you finally get there. You sit down to write... and the words can't seem to make it on to the page. This is that climb. During some part of a great roller coaster ride, you have that slow climb where you anticipate the best part of the ride. A person doesn't always remember this part of the ride, but it's there. To me, the first few words, few sentences really, of writing each day is this slow climb. I pray that the ride doesn't break down during this climb since the rest of the ride is going to be awesome.

Literary vs Clarity -- Is one really at the expense of another?

Classic Literary and Contemporary Literary can arguably be two different genres. I think the problem with clarity lies with writers who live in our times, used to our language, yet strive to emulate the language of 17th, 18th, and even 19th century American and British authors. 

On top of that, they take the "show, don't tell" mantra of literary writing to an extreme and get lost trying to sound sophisticated or poetic in their prose. When the words get in the way of the story, then you have a problem. 

Amy Tan, Tim O'Brien, Toni Morrison - These are contemporary authors whose works use clear language. Morrison uses speech patterns and diction of the old south. Tan utilizes her bi-lingualism to craft pieces that are at times meta. O'Brien is clear, concise, direct - like a soldier. But you don't need to read a passage 4-6 times before seeing the big picture. 

The "too simplistic writing" may not be a critique of the language or syntax used, but rather a critique of how the story is treated. Let's take a story about a girl who runs a marathon. The simple story begins at the start of the race, follows her through the course, and then as she crosses the finish line. She did it, we're happy. 

The "literary" version may have you be with her at the start - feel the cold air, excited hum, etc, etc, and then flashes back to the point in her life where she started training... how did she get there.  The race starts... and as we follow the race, we have a series of flashbacks that reveal her process. Turns out she's a survivor of a devastating illness; she suffered an injury or setback that prevented her from running before; etc. When she crosses the finish line, it's the ultimate climax for her story and journey - defeating the odds, overcoming a bad situation, perseverance. It highlighted the character's growth and showed that the race represents so much more than start to finish. 

If you immerse your readers in with enough sensory details, but with the clarity of language that doesn't detract from the story, you'll have readers who are emotionally invested in the growth of your protagonist. To me, that's great writing. 

Countdown to Camp NaNo

I'm excited. In about 3 weeks, I'll be diving into Camp NaNoWriMo - the less ridged off-season version of NaNoWriMo. While I really want to begin work on writing Book 2, I still have to finish and revise Book 1. Since Camp NaNo is flexible, here are my options:

1) Make April's focus to be revising Book 1. The first part of Book 1 is already in the hands of my beta readers and I need to get the remaining part of the book - the ending- to them so they can finish reading and give me a critique. A part of me feels that I need to finish B1 before April so I can move on. If I move on and finish Book 2 before revising Book 1, I'll look at it with fresh eyes.

2) Include the word count in finishing Book 1 in April's word count. (I don't like this option).

3) Leave BK1 unfinished and come back to it after the April goal (focusing on new material) is met.

4) Work on BK1 to finish the story, but then move to a completely unrelated project for the remainder of the month.

Option 1 is what I'm leaning towards. I really don't want a pile of unfinished work that I can't find the motivation to revise. I also have that publication contest that I want Book 1 to be ready for by December.

This year, April's format from NaNo is flexible. They merged it with their Script Frenzy event so participants can either work on a novel or a script. The word count goal is participant's choice - to make it either more manageable or more challenging. I may bump my goal to add to the challenge. Since I plan on participating in July as well, I may leave the new material for that month -- where I won't have to report in to work (yay for summer breaks)!

I'm interested in hearing people's thoughts on my options... or if I may not be considering an option.

Getting over the hang ups (over thinking)

One thing about writing that seems to hang me up is the idea of being "fresh" or "new" without being too removed from one's audience. I have my beta readers in line and a very short novel that I expect will need heavy revision

I'm currently fleshing out the last few chapters of the novel and have come upon a few major stumbling blocks. One is the niggling feeling that the literary device I'm using is contrived. Then, there's the idea that I'm doing something that feels like every fantasy writer before me has done it before. Or worse, the little voice in my head that says, "Didn't the ________ storyline do something similar?" 

Is this valid? Or am I just using this as another excuse to let the work sit? 

Preparations

I'm participating in Camp NaNo in April.
It's going to be like November - where nothing is more important that putting words to paper. I will write my ass off. I will get book 1 ready for the beta readers. I will write Book 2 in April.

Slow Start

This Day 1 and Day 2 really has a different feel to it than Nov 1. I was 500 words under at the end of Day 1 and barely met my Day 2 goal today. Although, if I wasn't under for today, I would have written enough to meet my stretch goal.

And it's not that I'm not creating new material. I am. I think it's because I'm covering ground that I initially skipped last time in the bid for words. It's the last open spaces in that 1000 piece puzzle and you have to create the pieces to fill in those gaps. The revision process is turning out to be harder than the original draft. I'm trying to not be discouraged. I keep telling myself that the important thing is that I'm putting the time in and I'm getting words to paper. The story is emerging and it's taking shape. The days when I write 3000+ words will make up for the days I'm writing less than 500. I've done it once, I can do it again.

And it's OK to take a break from one creative project to work on another. Sometimes, that side project can prove to be inspirational and meaningful to your current project.

My Progress in visual form:

Word Count - 25K (but hoping for 30K) in 15 Days

This is a live graph. When I update the word count on my data sheet, it updates.



 

Stepping back and moving forward

Now that Book 1 is officially done, it's time to revise it.
But I also have all of these ideas for book 2!

I've always been of the belief that there needs to be time for an author to forget what he/she wrote in draft 1 to have an objectiveness that is needed for the revision and editing process. So that's what I'm going to do... step back to gain perspective and clarity.

I also have these ideas for book 2 that  I MUST WRITE DOWN before I forget them. Once I get the notes down and into an arc, I'll have given book 1 enough time to rest. The added bonus of knowing what's in store for book 2 will guide my development of the plot holes I know that I will find in book 1.

I'm all of my years of training in writing, in creative writing, I've heard the mantra "show, don't tell" so many times that I sometimes would mumble it in my sleep as stacks of handwritten journals  and sheaves of printed text come tumbling down around me. (I exaggerate, but not by much). It was never discussed in any of my classes that is was OK to tell the story first, then show it by the time you had a draft that you were ready for people to read and critique. It feels refreshing and free to quickly tell the story, then go back and "show" it instead.

So I'm going to see if I can write Book 2 (at least 50K words of it) between Dec 22 and Jan 6. That gives me about 2 weeks to do full time in what took me 4 weeks while working. Between now and then, I will brainstorm, outline, and research. And when I'm tired of doing that, I'll revise portions of book 1.

Now, for some coffee.