Preparing for my Third NaNoWriMo

~*Note*~ If you do not know what NaNoWriMo is, check out this page on my site. http://beccalathorn.weebly.com/nanowrimo-projects.html

Hi Guys! So, tomorrow Camp NaNoWriMo August 2012 starts up, and as you know I am a bit of a NaNoWriMo freak. Too recap, I have done NaNo twice. First, the official one in November 2011. That...I failed. I love the plot though, and given the chance I will try to finish the book. Second one was just a month ago, Camp NaNoWriMo June 2012, and I WON YOU STINKING MONKEYS YOU SAID I COULDN'T BUT I DID SO GO EAT YOUR BUTT FLEAS IN SHAME!!!!!

Ahem.


So I'm feeling a bit proud of myself. I've finished three manuscripts, two of which are in a series, and by the end of November this year I hope to have three more. I'm fairly knowledgable in the publishing industry and taking my writing to the next level. So this NaNo I want to challenge myself. I do not, however, know how to go about this, so I'm reaching out to all of you to come up with dares for me to do.

I also feel I should mention...


Last time I did NaNo I did a small webcast series called NaNoWriMo in Review in the absence of these more traditional blogs. I do plan to do something similar to that in doing another small webcast series calls Becca's Little Pearls of Wisdom, a short intro I will put in a separate post.

And lastly, the story itself.

This time around, I am writing a story I've had in my head for a while. Granted, it's not nearly as old as No Matter What You Do, Stick with the Pack or Firefly. And yes, as usual it will be a Paranormal adventure type. Although, for my November one I'm leaning more towards humor then action. (Details to come in November.) AGHHHHHHHH I HAVE NO IDEA HOW TO END IT YET!!!!! But, you know, whatever. Here's the teaser.

Meet Stefani Rivers. She's independent, adventurous, and strong willed. Purely a Chicago girl all the way. She loves performing, for perfroming's sake. But when she meets a rich pretty boy running from a crazed cult, she gets hooked into the road trip of a life time.

Stefani Rivers sneaks out of her house one night in hopes of being the next American Idol. Literally! She calls up a agent and sets up an audition (even though she's only sixteen). But when she gets stood up and Jeremy Booker, a high-class pretty boy, asks her out on a date, well, things don't go as planned. They are kidnapped by a psychotic cult and then Jeremy gets turned into a freak of nature. So she gets roped into a cross country road trip to find a girl who can turn Jeremy back to normal. 

So, those are my blabberings. I'm taking NaNo right into a new school year, so yay for that. Keep it real ladies and gents, see you in a week.

Happy Scrapper

~*Yesterday didn't feel like a real blog, so I'm doing this...*~

Did this on paint program....

Before I get myself geared up for August's NaNoWriMo, I wanted to get in as much writing The Order of Vemberia series as I could. See, I left the second book with a very big cliff hanger and people are starting to get desperate. (Like bargaining their first born child serious.) Plus, while this book has to be some of the best writing I've done in my life, it has also taken me the longest. Scrapper: The Connection Reborn took me a year to write, Snatcher: The Bridge Restored took me six months. And I don't know, maybe its because this year has been the busiest of my life or maybe it's just that I'm really savoring this book, but it's taken me the time it took Scrapper and Snatcher combined, and I'm still just half way through. But I digress.

What I mean to say in this blog is that in this book, due to all the awesome character development that my main character Scrapper has gone through, I finally get to write a happy Scrapper. I cannot tell you how thoroughly I enjoy writing this character. At the best of times she's mean sarcastic and just a little bit silly. At the worst she's violent rash and just a little bit crazy. Do you know how much fun it is to write a crazy person? So. Much. Fun. You get to invent your own messed up logic and they get to do all the things that none of your other characters can. You can basically do whatever you want with them, nothing is off limits. So to be able to finally let this character have a good day? It's revealed a lot about her. Apparently, even when happy she's not that great of a person, not someone you'd necessarily invite to dinner. Yes, this had come out in little bits in the other books, but I never realized just how much of a class clown she is when she's not serious. She can actually keep up with her male counterpart Zane, which is saying something. Trust me.


So writing happy Scrapper=fun times friends. What about you? What kind of character do you crave to create (and/or watch on TV if your not crazy like me)?

It's Summer, Therefore, Please Leave Me Alone

Woke up this morning promising that I'd do some work. Picked up PSP. Eight hours later I realized I had not changed out of my pjs...

I still haven't finished Vemberia: The Call of War.


I still haven't finished the outline for Human by Day, Monster by Night.


Turns out my dad's birthday is next week.

Dog peed on my favorite reading chair.

Commercials for back to school sales are not only way too early but also very depressing. I'm a senior next year. Childhood, where did you go?

Still need to plan the next writing meeting. For. The. Fourth. Time.

Marianas Trench is the sexiest thing I've ever listened too.

Forgot to put Chinese leftovers in the fridge. There's one dream destroyed.

I hate hate hate hate hate my inbox. Why you spam me inbox? Why?

Ordered two cinabons. Only got one.

Hung out with school friends maybe three times this summer. Could be the last summer we spend together.

Two weeks with the house all too myself. What to do, what to do...

Little brother's at camp, in a cabin with a lifeguard that's openly admitted he can't swim. Afraid camp might explode.

Sigh...life guys. Life.


Thank you, good night.





~* Quick Update on No Matter What You Do, Stick With the Pack*~

The full Beta for No Matter What You Do, Stick with the Pack is now available on Wattpad. Please please please if you like my posts and are interested in seeing a completed work of mine, click on the link and just read a few chapters, give me your honest feedback. I want to know what you want from me. And who knows? Maybe if you read you'll get a little something something. We'll see.

Thank you for all your support!

Becca

A Picture I Made on Paint.

So The Funniest Thing Happened the Other Day...

Okay, I've distanced myself from NaNo and gotten back into the normal writing habits I have developed over the years and SOMEHOW STILL FIND MYSELF INSANELY BUSY! MAYBE EVEN BUSIER THEN BEFORE!!!!

Wanna know what I have to deal with on a daily basis?

ABANDCALLWANTTOHANGOUTMYROOMISAMESSOHLOOKTHEDOGCHEWEDUPALLTHECARDSOHLOOKTHEDOGCHEWEDUPTHETVOHLOOKTHEDOGCHEWEDUPMYBROTHERWHYISTHERENOFOODINTHEHOUSENEVERMINDIFOUNDSOMETEAANDMILANOSBUTINEEDTOWRITETHISWEEKSBLOGANDPROOFREADANOTHERCHAPTEROFSTICKWITHTHEPACKBUTWHATSTHEPOINTIFONLYNEGATIVETHREEPEOPLEREADITSCRAPPERSTILLNEEDSTOBEDITEDFORTHESIXTYBAGILLIENTHTIMEGAINTPILEOFJANEAUSTONBOOKSSITTINGONMYDESKJUSTSTARINGATMEWHOGIVESACRAPABOUTSOCIALIZINGISTILLNEEDTOREADGRASSHOPPERSNOVELLAANDWHATSTHISMYMOMWANTSMETOCLEANTHEHOUSEANDINEEDTOMAKETHATVIDEOFORCHURCHORELSETHEYWILLCOMETOMEINTHENIGHTWITHASHARPRECONINGANDOHLOOKTHEDOGISTRYINGTOEATMEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Not going to lie, kinda tired right now.

So this week I ended up taking an unexpected vacation. It started on Sunday, in which I was supposed to spend the day filming a video for my church with a bunch of adults. They all [FRUSTRATINGLY] dropped out last minute so I found myself at a loss as to how to spend the day seeing as most of my friends were either up at camp or had work. I ended up at my friend Kyla's house swimming, with plans to later go to another friend's apartment to have a Baccano marathon. That night I ended up staying at Raven's house for a sleepover. Flash forward to the next day, my Mom's birthday, and before I could even wake up I'm in the car on a two hour drive up to Wisconsin to visit the other half of my family at camp. All day I was assaulted with WHY OH WHY DIDN'T YOU STAY FOR CAMP BECCA???!!!! And while I am flattered that so many people wanted me there with them, I had to cough cough ~*politely*~ decline. (See above for reasons) Without even meaning to we stayed overnight in the house they keep for the cooks, crawling into bed somewhere around one in the morning, after little brother Sean had successfully beaten some of the campers to a pulp with a sock of flour (given to him by my Dad). Though on the rigidity stiff bunks sleep alluded me, and seeing as we had to wake up at six to get home in time for my Mom's appointments. Being so exhausted from the day before I spent another day goofing off, watching stand up comedy on Netflix, playing Homestuck and overall sleeping the day away. Before I knew it, I was actually relaxed. Quiet frankly I didn't know what to do with myself. Then suddenly I remember that I should have been working and without even knowing it I had taken a vacation.

Huh, how about that.

So, I guess the meaning of the story is that sometimes life just gives you what you need in the strangest ways. I mean, I had fully intended to work the week away, burning more of my energy. And if no one had dropped out of the video, I would have. But by taking that away life forced me to just take a breather. So, um, thanks God. I like your style.

HAVEAVERYRELAXINGWEEKILOVEYOUKBYE!!!!!! <3

You're the Author

*This is a little prompt writing that I thought I would share with all of you. Enjoy!

A book is so much more then what a writer puts on a page. Because, in reality, those words are merely a guide. A single book, if you can believe it, can be hundreds of stories just in one. It applies to the common concept of one event, many different interpretations. For example, read this phrase.

Happy Place.


What was your first impression? The first thing that popped into your head? I can tell you that I thought of a meadow. A good friend of mine (whom I read this back too) thought about warm cookies. And it'll be different for you. Maybe you thought about puppies, or Christmas, or maybe someone you love. Even in these words I continue to write, you are forming your own unique meaning behind them, one that I can't possibly understand.

And that is one of the things that amazes me about writing. Not just that it'll touch everyone, but how it touches everyone, that everyone will recreate it to have a purely unique meaning. If I could only look into your minds eye, to see how you've taken my words and used them to make your tale. Because I'm not the author of this story.

You are.




~*Notes on No Matter What You Do, Stick With the Pack*~
Stick with the Pack is under going it's first round of editing, and if you are interested in being a Beta reader it is available on Wattpad. Check the Widget in the side bar.

Afterwards

*First off, I would like to apologize for not making a last blog for NaNoWriMo in Review, I was planning to do a finale but I ended being to busy trying to wrap up the actual book and the people who agreed to help me with it fell through. But oh well, there's always August!



So, all finished with NaNoWriMo and onto life as I used to know it for a month until I do it all again. What this means is back to editing Scrapper, writing Vemberia, emptying my inbox, making videos for church, listening to podcasts and other such writing hokum. It seems grim, yes, and I feel the magic of finishing a novel in a month already fading. Yet I must remember that it is not yet over, and take away the lessons I learned from it this time around.

For one thing, I learned how to improve this blog, Monkeys. 
Vlogging was one of the funnest things I've done in terms of writing. I had, I think, an amature understanding of video-editing before it. I do have Sony Vegas Movie Studio, and as early mentioned, I edit and make videos for my church. It's really just telling a story in a more visual way, it still involved me to use whatever part of my noggin that dreams up all my crazy ideas. And the best part, my family will actually watch them!

I also grew into a very good habit, although it does have the chance to backfire on me. 
It's that one habit all writers know they have to pick up and yet forever put off, getting into the habit of writing everyday. Before NaNo, I would always write one sentence and done. But now, now I'm in the habit of writing 2000 freaking words a day. That's like ten pages people! And here's the thing, that's a minimum. I would usually go all the way to 4000 a day. Backfire, though, because I also created a bad habit to go with it. See, often in order to reach the days word count quota, I would right just class-A crap. So I hope that unhealthy obsession doesn't carry over to Scrapper or anything.

I came out with a tremendous feeling of accomplishment. 
For those of you who have finished a manuscript, you remember how it felt? Did you open your window and shout something along the lines of I'M BECCA FREAKING LATHORN AND I JUST WROTE A BOOK to the lady walking her newborn child down the street? Yeah, well, imagine the feeling that you get when you do that in a month. I demanded my mom buy me a pony afterwards because I deserved it. I wrote a book, in a month. What did any of my siblings do? They suffered through the morning news. Who wins? Me.

A couple of cute factoids from the last month. 
-I am now obsessed with the band He is We.
-I have been ignoring my inbox. I now have over 200 emails waiting for me to sort through. All of them are from blogs I subscribe too.
-I now know how to sleep in.
-I have not feed my dog in two days.
-I have not feed myself in two days.
-I do not remember what the sun looks like.

~*An Announcement*~

As I have said on my website I am going to polish up No Matter What You Do, Stick with the Pack and offer it as a free ebook on Smashwords. I can't tell you when it will be available, I'm thinking it might take a year with editing and beta readings and whatnot, but I'll keep you updated. For more details, go to my website and go to the NaNoWriMo page, it's the only way to reach the No Matter What You Do, Stick with the Pack page.