"Wild Card," you say, "Why didn't you post at all last week? Why have we been waiting for content since your last book review?"
THIS BOOK IS WHY. Like the last two books in the trilogy, I've been surreptitiously (and not) been reading this book since I did my last review. The only things that have kept me from this book are work, church, and sleep (and the last one may have been compromised by it). Though it doesn't go quite as quickly as the other two in the trilogy, I was still reading 125 pages a day at least (that's a record for me.)
So, real thoughts on The Book of Life?
First, SPOILER WARNING. (this is the third book in a trilogy. If you want to read it unspoiled, proceed with caution and maybe don't proceed at all).
Plot summary: Basically, this is the part where the pieces of Ashmole 782 finally get put back together and the Congregation and the Covenant are faced.
There are questions posed for Act 3: Are any of Matthew's children a threat? (Yes. Matthew's vampire-son, Benjamin, is, lightly speaking, a psychotic asshole of the rape-and-murder variety.) What will the Congregation do about Diana and Matthew's relationship? Are Peter Knox and Gerbert the Vampire going to continue being assholes until the end? (Yes, but someone has to).
There are prior questions answered as well: what is blood rage? What determines which vampire manifests the traits and which vampire is a carrier? How are weavers made, and why is Diana a weaver and not a normal witch? (an interesting answer awaits these two). What does the Book of Life actually say?
There are a lot of answers to a lot of questions. The Book of Life is a fast-paced conclusion to the series, and I loved almost every page, especially because Diana does a lot of saving people by the end of it.
I say "almost" because there are a few issues. SPOILER WARNING REMINDER.
Firstly, Gallowglass. I love this vampire to death, and I wish his plot arc could have ended better. It appears that he fell in love with Diana in 1590, but it wasn't clear whether he was in love or he had actually hoped to mate with her later on. Part of me was wondering whether this would be a situation similar to Twilight, where an ancillary love interest (Jacob) spends a lot of time with the heroine while she's pregnant; it turns out that the heroine's daughter is Jacob's One True Life Partner. Though the process of vampires choosing thier One True Life Partner is not fully explored in the All Souls Trilogy (when the main couple are fully consenting adults, mating only needs to be explained as Somewhat More Than Marriage), I'm a little bit curious as to why Gallowglass's feelings are brought up at all. Is it possible for a vampire to mate when the other being is still a zygote? If so, has Gallowglass actually developed feelings for one of Diana and Matthew's twin children when they're still fetuses? Are his feelings just a reason for Gallowglass to agree to be Diana's bodyguard when Matthew is out?
Given that Gallowglass does have feelings for Diana, it makes sense that he isn't present in the epilogue. I do wish that he could have been there, though.
Secondly, the climax. I can handle a moderate amount of bodily harm in fiction, but there were moments when I felt gross. That, like nothing else, showed how much of a psychotic asshole Benjamin could be. The climax was good for a few reasons: two of Diana's struggles were overcome (lack of magic and hesitating before killing), the fact that she saves Matthew and not the other way around, that Benjamin got a truly fitting death, and that Diana was able to face and run the Congregation.
Thirdly, the ending. Some of it seemed too perfectly wrapped-together. The revocation of the Covenant, which really needed to be revoked, was very good and fitting, but there didn't seem to be enough of a price. Yes, Diana was exhausted and absorbed the Book of Life and all that, but what are the ill effects of that? All it really seems is that now Matthew can truly say to their children, "Pay attention to your mother, because she really does know everything." Though the scientific exploration of creatures is interesting, it just feels too well-wrapped.
The duration of the story into the third act, though, is great. The biggest drawback I can think of is that these books are really heavy and I can't always take them everywhere.
Definitely check them out if you have the chance.
Showing posts with label novel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label novel. Show all posts
Monday, July 13, 2015
Saturday, July 4, 2015
BOOK REVIEW: "A Discovery of Witches" by Deborah Harkness
Yesterday, I finished reading A Discovery of Witches, the first book in the All Souls Trilogy by Deborah Harkness.
To call this the first book in a vampire romance trilogy is not entirely accurate. Yes, a witch and a vampire fall in love. Yes, these two are the main couple in the series. Yes, there are consequences to their relationship that need to be sorted out. Unlike Twilight, however, that's not the major point of the series.
Diana Bishop is a witch by blood and a history professor by trade. She takes a sabbatical in Oxford to do some research. Her era of focus is the transition from alchemy to science. One day, she brings a book from the stacks that has been missing for centuries, known as Ashmole 782. This book is important to a whole lot of creatures for a whole lot of reasons. Diana doesn't know that and, once she's done trying to read the magically encrypted text, she sends it back to the stacks.
As she's working on her research the next week, Diana meets Matthew Clairmont. Matthew's a vampire geneticist who focuses on evolution. Matthew wants to see Ashmole 782 because it may show why vampires, daemons, and witches live and work among humans at all.
The first half of the book focuses more on setting up the world, Matthew's theories, Diana's power (and the fact that she doesn't use it), and the relationships that should and should not happen among vampires, witches, and daemons.
The second half has a lot to do with the development of Diana's relationship with Matthew, with a bit more exposition to each backstory. We meet Matthew's vampire mother, Ysabeau (who is probably my favorite character), Marthe the vampire maid, Sarah and Emily (Diana's aunts, who raised her after Diana's parents died), and Matthew's co-workers - his son Marcus and friend Miriam.
The book ends with SPOILERS, but I'm excited to read the next book, Shadow of Night. It seems to involve time travel, William Shakespeare, and Christopher Marlowe having the hots for Matthew.
This book is fairly good for a vampire romance category, but it doesn't fit neatly into that. I hope that the rest of the trilogy delves more into the significance of the Ashmole book, and why EVERYONE seems to want it.
A Discovery of Witches also includes really important details about psychological reactions to events, but without blatantly saying "THIS PERSON HAS A DISORDER." (except in the beginning, but that turns out to be a bit false). One of the highest-tension moments is a big spoiler, but it involves Diana getting a lot of nasty scars on her back. After that, she gets really uncomfortable whenever anyone is standing behind her and she doesn't know what they're doing. This is everything from when Matthew and Sarah treat her wounds to someone just entering the room when she's facing away from the door. There is a lot of attention to detail like that - sometimes too much. The climax seems to be a series of information dumps and plot twists that I hope will be resolved in the next book.
In all, though, A Discovery of Witches is a really fun read for anyone who wants an interesting introduction to a fantasy/ romance series.
As she's working on her research the next week, Diana meets Matthew Clairmont. Matthew's a vampire geneticist who focuses on evolution. Matthew wants to see Ashmole 782 because it may show why vampires, daemons, and witches live and work among humans at all.
The first half of the book focuses more on setting up the world, Matthew's theories, Diana's power (and the fact that she doesn't use it), and the relationships that should and should not happen among vampires, witches, and daemons.
The second half has a lot to do with the development of Diana's relationship with Matthew, with a bit more exposition to each backstory. We meet Matthew's vampire mother, Ysabeau (who is probably my favorite character), Marthe the vampire maid, Sarah and Emily (Diana's aunts, who raised her after Diana's parents died), and Matthew's co-workers - his son Marcus and friend Miriam.
The book ends with SPOILERS, but I'm excited to read the next book, Shadow of Night. It seems to involve time travel, William Shakespeare, and Christopher Marlowe having the hots for Matthew.
This book is fairly good for a vampire romance category, but it doesn't fit neatly into that. I hope that the rest of the trilogy delves more into the significance of the Ashmole book, and why EVERYONE seems to want it.
A Discovery of Witches also includes really important details about psychological reactions to events, but without blatantly saying "THIS PERSON HAS A DISORDER." (except in the beginning, but that turns out to be a bit false). One of the highest-tension moments is a big spoiler, but it involves Diana getting a lot of nasty scars on her back. After that, she gets really uncomfortable whenever anyone is standing behind her and she doesn't know what they're doing. This is everything from when Matthew and Sarah treat her wounds to someone just entering the room when she's facing away from the door. There is a lot of attention to detail like that - sometimes too much. The climax seems to be a series of information dumps and plot twists that I hope will be resolved in the next book.
In all, though, A Discovery of Witches is a really fun read for anyone who wants an interesting introduction to a fantasy/ romance series.
Monday, March 9, 2015
On Editing
Editing novels is difficult. It's necessary, but it's difficult. In the last week of working on editing my 2011 NaNoWriMo novel, I have learned that there are a few major ways of self-editing.
PART ONE
The first kind is basic copyediting - did I accidentally put a space between a word and its quote? Did I accidentally write "too" instead of "to"? This happens sometimes in any academic paper; it's just harder to catch when the document is over 200 pages long.
I'm not sure if this counts as copyediting, but I also rejoin contractions in this stage. When I was writing the novel initially, I was thinking more about word count than quality, so I didn't contract words - I said "do not" instead of "don't" and "did not" instead of "didn't," for example. This is no longer necessary and often sounds very forced, so I'm embracing the apostrophe once more.
PART TWO
The next major kind of editing is phrasing. Does this phrase sound awkward? Would this character actually say this thing? Has this person already said this thing on this page? If so, is the repetition necessary, or can I say "I averted my eyes and bit my lip" instead of "I was unsure about this plan?" Would that person do that if they were unsure? It's also a bit concerned with "would this character really say that, or would their scene partner be more likely to say that?"
PART THREE
The last major editing technique is the most important and the most difficult. This is characterization editing. I haven't gotten here much yet; right now, I'm trying to just get the novel to not sound terrible. Once that happens, I can focus more on the character traits. That's not to say that I HAVEN'T been focusing on the character traits; as I mentioned in the last heading, characterization is always in some part of my mind. Characterization editing is less involved with "would this character say this thing?" It's more involved with "What sort of voice does this character have that would cause them to use this phrase? Would they really be unsure about this action? So-and-so says that this character does thus-and-so a thing; does so-and-so have a cause to say that? Should I make sure they have a cause to say that, or should I cut that line for them?"
PART ONE
The first kind is basic copyediting - did I accidentally put a space between a word and its quote? Did I accidentally write "too" instead of "to"? This happens sometimes in any academic paper; it's just harder to catch when the document is over 200 pages long.
I'm not sure if this counts as copyediting, but I also rejoin contractions in this stage. When I was writing the novel initially, I was thinking more about word count than quality, so I didn't contract words - I said "do not" instead of "don't" and "did not" instead of "didn't," for example. This is no longer necessary and often sounds very forced, so I'm embracing the apostrophe once more.
PART TWO
The next major kind of editing is phrasing. Does this phrase sound awkward? Would this character actually say this thing? Has this person already said this thing on this page? If so, is the repetition necessary, or can I say "I averted my eyes and bit my lip" instead of "I was unsure about this plan?" Would that person do that if they were unsure? It's also a bit concerned with "would this character really say that, or would their scene partner be more likely to say that?"
PART THREE
The last major editing technique is the most important and the most difficult. This is characterization editing. I haven't gotten here much yet; right now, I'm trying to just get the novel to not sound terrible. Once that happens, I can focus more on the character traits. That's not to say that I HAVEN'T been focusing on the character traits; as I mentioned in the last heading, characterization is always in some part of my mind. Characterization editing is less involved with "would this character say this thing?" It's more involved with "What sort of voice does this character have that would cause them to use this phrase? Would they really be unsure about this action? So-and-so says that this character does thus-and-so a thing; does so-and-so have a cause to say that? Should I make sure they have a cause to say that, or should I cut that line for them?"
Sunday, November 30, 2014
NaNoWriMo Day 30: On Winning And Thanks
Current Day: 30
Current Page: 166
Winning Page: 166
Final Line: "Eva and Galen lived reasonably ever after."
I feel like that's a bit of a cliche ending. It could very well be too cliche of an ending. I don't really know. Right now, I'm just happy I won. I've validated, and I've written a story that concluded within a 30-day time frame. (By that, I mean that I finished it in 30 days. The last novel I finished took over a year, and that's partly because half of it was in my friend's trunk for six months). I'm excited, but I'm also terrified.
Why?
Now I have to type the whole thing up.
And then I have to edit.
Current Page: 166
Winning Page: 166
Final Line: "Eva and Galen lived reasonably ever after."
I feel like that's a bit of a cliche ending. It could very well be too cliche of an ending. I don't really know. Right now, I'm just happy I won. I've validated, and I've written a story that concluded within a 30-day time frame. (By that, I mean that I finished it in 30 days. The last novel I finished took over a year, and that's partly because half of it was in my friend's trunk for six months). I'm excited, but I'm also terrified.
Why?
Now I have to type the whole thing up.
And then I have to edit.
Saturday, November 29, 2014
NaNoWriMo Day 29: Apologies and Nearing The End
Current Day: 29
Current Page: 154
Target Page: 160-1
Pages Until 50,000: 10-13 (Depending on how much I fudge my averages)
Place in Story: Goal has been achieved. After persuading, cajoling, bribing, pleading, stealing, and getting really mad at princesses; after Eva kicking Jasper in the ribs on purpose in an act that may or may not wind up being the real climax of the novel; after three days and three nights of Eva not sleeping and Ekito the Fairy staying up with Eva to make sure she finished the unicursal hexagram, the work is finally done.
My work isn't done, however. I still have around 3,000 words left to write. The trouble is, I don't know if I have 3,000 words left of story. I'll be able to wiggle a little with the word count averages (um... of COURSE I've been writing at an average of 305 words per page, not 300... that was just a miscalculation... obviously...), but that still gets me to the 3,000 remaining words instead of 4,200.
I've achieved several of the goals I set for the month, however (or I will by tomorrow, anyway). Firstly, I will probably write "THE END" before midnight tomorrow. I have surpassed last year's word count, and possibly the year before's as well. I'm pretty sure the story is concise, and it just needs to be edited for themes and consistency. (That's a whole different matter, though.)
I apologize for not posting at all this week - it was partly because I have been busy with school, but I've also been busy writing a lot. I had a twelve-page Tuesday this week (10k is not very achievable when writing by hand), and another 3,000 word day this week as well. My word count, in other words, has been climbing a lot thanks to Thanksgiving break. I'm very thankful I have such a good home to come back to and for the ability to create so much.
I'll post again tomorrow, hopefully, for the FINAL COUNTDOWN.
Current Page: 154
Target Page: 160-1
Pages Until 50,000: 10-13 (Depending on how much I fudge my averages)
Place in Story: Goal has been achieved. After persuading, cajoling, bribing, pleading, stealing, and getting really mad at princesses; after Eva kicking Jasper in the ribs on purpose in an act that may or may not wind up being the real climax of the novel; after three days and three nights of Eva not sleeping and Ekito the Fairy staying up with Eva to make sure she finished the unicursal hexagram, the work is finally done.
My work isn't done, however. I still have around 3,000 words left to write. The trouble is, I don't know if I have 3,000 words left of story. I'll be able to wiggle a little with the word count averages (um... of COURSE I've been writing at an average of 305 words per page, not 300... that was just a miscalculation... obviously...), but that still gets me to the 3,000 remaining words instead of 4,200.
I've achieved several of the goals I set for the month, however (or I will by tomorrow, anyway). Firstly, I will probably write "THE END" before midnight tomorrow. I have surpassed last year's word count, and possibly the year before's as well. I'm pretty sure the story is concise, and it just needs to be edited for themes and consistency. (That's a whole different matter, though.)
I apologize for not posting at all this week - it was partly because I have been busy with school, but I've also been busy writing a lot. I had a twelve-page Tuesday this week (10k is not very achievable when writing by hand), and another 3,000 word day this week as well. My word count, in other words, has been climbing a lot thanks to Thanksgiving break. I'm very thankful I have such a good home to come back to and for the ability to create so much.
I'll post again tomorrow, hopefully, for the FINAL COUNTDOWN.
Saturday, November 22, 2014
NaNoWriMo Day 22: Relying A Lot on Thanksgiving Break
Current Day: 21
Current Page: 111
Target Page: 116
Page I Should Be On: 120
Place in Story: Still Looking for gemstones. Nothing new here.
I'm moving way more slowly than I should be, but that's college. I have to wake up early to work on homework tomorrow, which sucks, but I need to do work.
That's all for tonight.
Current Page: 111
Target Page: 116
Page I Should Be On: 120
Place in Story: Still Looking for gemstones. Nothing new here.
I'm moving way more slowly than I should be, but that's college. I have to wake up early to work on homework tomorrow, which sucks, but I need to do work.
That's all for tonight.
Friday, November 21, 2014
NaNoWriMo Day 21: Winds of the End
Current Day: 21
Current Page: 109
Target Page: 114
Likelihood of Hitting That Page: 1/3
Place in Storyline: Three weeks since Eva entered the palace. Three weeks until Winter Solstice/ New Year/ That Time When Eva And Jasper Must Be In The Same House And Not Try To Kill Each Other. Four of the gems have been obtained, out of six that are needed. I know Jasper's got one of them, and I just need to figure out how to get the other one without underdoing my word count.
HUZZAH!
Current Page: 109
Target Page: 114
Likelihood of Hitting That Page: 1/3
Place in Storyline: Three weeks since Eva entered the palace. Three weeks until Winter Solstice/ New Year/ That Time When Eva And Jasper Must Be In The Same House And Not Try To Kill Each Other. Four of the gems have been obtained, out of six that are needed. I know Jasper's got one of them, and I just need to figure out how to get the other one without underdoing my word count.
HUZZAH!
Thursday, November 20, 2014
NaNoWriMo Day 20: Pushing On, Because Why Not?
Current Day: 20
Current Page: about to start 104
Target Page: at least 107, but hopefully 108-9
Likelihood of hitting that: 37:82.
Place in Story: 3 gems achieved, 4th in the process, 2 left to go.
This is starting to feel like a higher fantasy novel than I intended, but I like it.
My word count isn't what it needs to be - it's about 2,000 words behind - but I'm going to target 6-10 pages a day. I'm near the end of the Week of Terribleness, and I've got a strategy to work out my last two things. (Today: major things on Bible essay. Tomorrow: major things on Shakespeare proposal. Saturday: edit proposal. Sunday: edit Bible. DONE.)
Next week, I'm going to mostly focus on Really Big Targets. I have an entire list worked out:
Surviving The Weekend Sunday (write at least 1000 words)
More Words than Yesterday Monday (write 2000 words)
10k Tuesday (target 10,000 words or get carpal tunnel in the attempt)
Write A Lot Wednesday (target 2000-3000 words)
3k Thursday (target 3000 words, even though that might not happen)
5k Friday (because this is really the only day I'm going to write over break, so I'd better make it a good one)
6k Saturday (to compensate for the lack of writing over break)
Schooltime Sunday (in which I write a lot and validate)
I HOPE THIS WORKS.
Current Page: about to start 104
Target Page: at least 107, but hopefully 108-9
Likelihood of hitting that: 37:82.
Place in Story: 3 gems achieved, 4th in the process, 2 left to go.
This is starting to feel like a higher fantasy novel than I intended, but I like it.
My word count isn't what it needs to be - it's about 2,000 words behind - but I'm going to target 6-10 pages a day. I'm near the end of the Week of Terribleness, and I've got a strategy to work out my last two things. (Today: major things on Bible essay. Tomorrow: major things on Shakespeare proposal. Saturday: edit proposal. Sunday: edit Bible. DONE.)
Next week, I'm going to mostly focus on Really Big Targets. I have an entire list worked out:
Surviving The Weekend Sunday (write at least 1000 words)
More Words than Yesterday Monday (write 2000 words)
10k Tuesday (target 10,000 words or get carpal tunnel in the attempt)
Write A Lot Wednesday (target 2000-3000 words)
3k Thursday (target 3000 words, even though that might not happen)
5k Friday (because this is really the only day I'm going to write over break, so I'd better make it a good one)
6k Saturday (to compensate for the lack of writing over break)
Schooltime Sunday (in which I write a lot and validate)
I HOPE THIS WORKS.
Wednesday, November 19, 2014
NaNoWriMo Day 19: On Revising Goals
Current Day: 19
Current Page: 100
Target Page: 104
Likelihood of Hitting That Number: 22/85
Place In Story: MORE RETRIEVAL OF GEMSTONES! Also, fancy-dress shopping. I'm not quite sure why Eva has consented to buying herself a fancy dress to impress a man. She stopped growing a few years prior and has barely bought new clothing since then. She's the sort of person who doesn't see the point in dresses, and walked out of three stores because she doesn't want to pay that much for a dress.
In reality, the situation is mostly that Eva's not really comfortable in dresses. It's not a bodily discomfort problem. Eva doesn't have a problem with discomfort; the only discomfort she feels is when other people are obviously uncomfortable with her body. Eva's main problem is that she doesn't see the point in dresses. As someone who lives in trousers on a daily basis and never goes to fancy parties (and she wears trousers when she does because it's normally cold out), Eva just doesn't need to buy fancy dresses. Also, she travels a lot. Though a fancy dress could come in handy in the off-chance you need to be acceptably dressed in front of a king, a fancy outfit is not necessarily part of the Average Adventurer's Checklist. Since "Make A Good Impression on a King" isn't on Eva's regular to-do list, she doesn't exactly carry around fancy clothing all the time.
This shopping trip should be interesting.
Right now, the title of "REVISING GOALS" comes at the time in the month when I'm getting really discouraged. I've barely written today, and I've got a long way to go if I want to catch up to the word count. I don't know if I'm going to make it to 50,000 words, but that doesn't mean I'm going to give up. I might revise my standards of success.
I'm currently at 30,000 or so words, and I've decided that if I get past 33,550 words - the word count I stopped at last year - then I will consider this year a Not Failure. (A "Not Failure" can also be "Not Necessarily Success," which it very well might be, but we'll cross that bridge when we get there.)
Right now, I could run into the Not Failure becoming the Success.
Before I work myself into a loop, I'm going to go change and write and go to bed.
Current Page: 100
Target Page: 104
Likelihood of Hitting That Number: 22/85
Place In Story: MORE RETRIEVAL OF GEMSTONES! Also, fancy-dress shopping. I'm not quite sure why Eva has consented to buying herself a fancy dress to impress a man. She stopped growing a few years prior and has barely bought new clothing since then. She's the sort of person who doesn't see the point in dresses, and walked out of three stores because she doesn't want to pay that much for a dress.
In reality, the situation is mostly that Eva's not really comfortable in dresses. It's not a bodily discomfort problem. Eva doesn't have a problem with discomfort; the only discomfort she feels is when other people are obviously uncomfortable with her body. Eva's main problem is that she doesn't see the point in dresses. As someone who lives in trousers on a daily basis and never goes to fancy parties (and she wears trousers when she does because it's normally cold out), Eva just doesn't need to buy fancy dresses. Also, she travels a lot. Though a fancy dress could come in handy in the off-chance you need to be acceptably dressed in front of a king, a fancy outfit is not necessarily part of the Average Adventurer's Checklist. Since "Make A Good Impression on a King" isn't on Eva's regular to-do list, she doesn't exactly carry around fancy clothing all the time.
This shopping trip should be interesting.
Right now, the title of "REVISING GOALS" comes at the time in the month when I'm getting really discouraged. I've barely written today, and I've got a long way to go if I want to catch up to the word count. I don't know if I'm going to make it to 50,000 words, but that doesn't mean I'm going to give up. I might revise my standards of success.
I'm currently at 30,000 or so words, and I've decided that if I get past 33,550 words - the word count I stopped at last year - then I will consider this year a Not Failure. (A "Not Failure" can also be "Not Necessarily Success," which it very well might be, but we'll cross that bridge when we get there.)
Right now, I could run into the Not Failure becoming the Success.
Before I work myself into a loop, I'm going to go change and write and go to bed.
Tuesday, November 18, 2014
NaNoWriMo Day 18: Lagging, exhaustion, and discipline
Current Page: end of 95/ top of 96
Target Page: 100-101
Pages left: 4-5
Pages written: 3
Place in Story: retrieved the emerald from a princess who thought she deserved to have it because she spent six weeks NOT LIVING IN ABSOLUTE LUXURY (OMG THE HORROR!). Now, Galen and Eva have split up (because Galen deserves more words). I think he's going to another vain princess and she's going to one who died the year prior from venereal disease.
This morning, I woke up early to write. I didn't write. I am now very tired, sleep deprived, and running behind on writing and homework, and possibly coming down with something.
I know I need to push myself in order to get everything done on time; it's going to be a long road to Thanksgiving. I'm looking forward to the break, but I'm also looking forward to the chance to write a lot and not get distracted by silly things like homework. (That's not true. Do your homework, kids!). EVERYONE wants to assign things this week, though - I have a paper proposal due over the weekend, a paper due next Monday, and a test and a presentation in two different classes this past Monday. Right now, I need sleep. I can't get it until Friday night, though. Probably not even then.
I know it's important to eat and sleep and go to the gym, but it's a difficult cycle to break, when you're exhausted and don't want to work, though you HAVE to work late into the night because you took so long to start the work in the first place. I'm not trying to make excuses for the lousy work I've put forth so far with my writing.
On that note, TO WORK!
Target Page: 100-101
Pages left: 4-5
Pages written: 3
Place in Story: retrieved the emerald from a princess who thought she deserved to have it because she spent six weeks NOT LIVING IN ABSOLUTE LUXURY (OMG THE HORROR!). Now, Galen and Eva have split up (because Galen deserves more words). I think he's going to another vain princess and she's going to one who died the year prior from venereal disease.
This morning, I woke up early to write. I didn't write. I am now very tired, sleep deprived, and running behind on writing and homework, and possibly coming down with something.
I know I need to push myself in order to get everything done on time; it's going to be a long road to Thanksgiving. I'm looking forward to the break, but I'm also looking forward to the chance to write a lot and not get distracted by silly things like homework. (That's not true. Do your homework, kids!). EVERYONE wants to assign things this week, though - I have a paper proposal due over the weekend, a paper due next Monday, and a test and a presentation in two different classes this past Monday. Right now, I need sleep. I can't get it until Friday night, though. Probably not even then.
I know it's important to eat and sleep and go to the gym, but it's a difficult cycle to break, when you're exhausted and don't want to work, though you HAVE to work late into the night because you took so long to start the work in the first place. I'm not trying to make excuses for the lousy work I've put forth so far with my writing.
On that note, TO WORK!
Monday, November 17, 2014
NaNoWriMo Day 17: On Vain Princesses and Sex
Day: 17
Current Page: 91
Target Page: 95
Place in Story: Eva is going to break into the palace/ mansion/ super nice house of one of the people who stole a gemstone from Galen, with the help of the princess's younger brother.
Favorite Quote from the Last 24 Hours: "She promised Judas a drink and hot sex the night after the break-in, with the intent to leave gold with the bartender for Judas to buy two rounds and hire a high-class hooker for one night."
I NEVER SAID EVA WAS THE ONE WHO WOULD HAVE SEX WITH HIM. She wouldn't do that sort of thing. She's not into drunk fifteen-year-olds. (In other news, Judas probably has a problematic background that we don't now about yet. I might have to write one up for him once NaNoWriMo is over. Why else would a fifteen-year-old drink so much?)
Current Page: 91
Target Page: 95
Place in Story: Eva is going to break into the palace/ mansion/ super nice house of one of the people who stole a gemstone from Galen, with the help of the princess's younger brother.
Favorite Quote from the Last 24 Hours: "She promised Judas a drink and hot sex the night after the break-in, with the intent to leave gold with the bartender for Judas to buy two rounds and hire a high-class hooker for one night."
I NEVER SAID EVA WAS THE ONE WHO WOULD HAVE SEX WITH HIM. She wouldn't do that sort of thing. She's not into drunk fifteen-year-olds. (In other news, Judas probably has a problematic background that we don't now about yet. I might have to write one up for him once NaNoWriMo is over. Why else would a fifteen-year-old drink so much?)
Sunday, November 16, 2014
NaNoWriMo Day 16: On Apathy, Sleep Deprivation, and too much homework
Current Day: 16
Current Page: 86
Target Page: 92
Pages Written Today: 0
Place in story: getting people drunk to steal things. Yep.
I've finally figured out why my word count has started tanking halfway through NaNoWriMo. This is a trend that started when I was in college, and it's because every professor wants us to do homework, take tests, turn in papers, write essays, and do projects before Thanksgiving. (Why not after Thanksgiving? You want us to take a break and then study a LOT MORE? What's the point of seeing family if we're panicked about finals?).
Anyway, I know that I'm not getting much writing done today - I have a book report and a test tomorrow, and I procrastinated a lot this morning. I really need to get my life in order, but this is Hell Week Part One, so it's not going to be easy. Like, I should have started finishing my book 45 minutes ago, so I'm probably going to get a sandwich and eat in my room as I desperately try and read 100 pages.
Current Page: 86
Target Page: 92
Pages Written Today: 0
Place in story: getting people drunk to steal things. Yep.
I've finally figured out why my word count has started tanking halfway through NaNoWriMo. This is a trend that started when I was in college, and it's because every professor wants us to do homework, take tests, turn in papers, write essays, and do projects before Thanksgiving. (Why not after Thanksgiving? You want us to take a break and then study a LOT MORE? What's the point of seeing family if we're panicked about finals?).
Anyway, I know that I'm not getting much writing done today - I have a book report and a test tomorrow, and I procrastinated a lot this morning. I really need to get my life in order, but this is Hell Week Part One, so it's not going to be easy. Like, I should have started finishing my book 45 minutes ago, so I'm probably going to get a sandwich and eat in my room as I desperately try and read 100 pages.
Saturday, November 15, 2014
NaNoWriMo Day 15: Livin' on a Prayer (cuz we're halfway there and we'll make it I swear)
Current Day: 15
Current Page: 85
Target Page: 85-7
Location in Story: first gem retrieved. Second gem in the works. How? By persuading the drunken younger brother of a super vain princess to steal an emerald from his sister. I'm a little disappointed that Eva's established pickpocketing skills aren't going to come into play here, because Judas is the one who will actually do the stealing (yes, his name is Judas... don't judge me), but I might have her tag along and actually do the stealing. Drunk Judas is talking Judas, and talking Judas might wake sleeping sister who likes beauty sleep.
CAUTION: SLIGHT SWEARING AT THE END OF THIS POST. (I don't know if there are any actual readers who want a caution on that sort of thing, but it's worth it)
Now that we're halfway through November, the end is in sight. There are a finite number of days between now and the end of the month, which is both a good thing and a bad thing. It's a good thing because I'm over halfway to making a habit of writing more (what is it, three weeks to create a new habit?), but it's also less of a buffer zone - if my word count suddenly tanks, I have less time to make it up. That being said, I took the opportunity to look back over some of my old stats. Though my word count is nowhere near as good as it could be, and it's nowhere near where it was in 2011, it's definitely better than it was in 2013. Currently, my word count is approximately 25,200 words (or it will be by the end of page 85, since I'm not done with page 85 yet). The Wild Card Overachiever target would be 30k-31.5k words, but the NaNo Official Word Count is 25k; as long as I stay above that number, all will be okay. I hope.
The danger, of course, is that I reach the end but not the word count of 50k. If that happens, I'm going to count that as a win. I don't know if my word count is actually 300 words per page; though many of my pages have over 300 words on them, about 1/4 of them have less than a full page written (my chapters are about 4 pages each). My handwriting has gotten smaller than when I did the test page, but I'm also writing a lot of dialogue that might get edited out later, but there might be more than 300 words per page.
In the end, it's not about how much I write, but whether I write. I think that's true for a lot of people. There are a lot of quotes on Pinterest about WRITE BETTER, NOT MORE, and also DON'T STOP WRITING, but I would like to say to those people: GET IN THE HABIT OF WRITING AND MAKE IT SOUND PRETTY LATER.
I'm going to use a makeup metaphor. (I never thought I would say those words, but here we go).
Makeup is an attempt to make people look prettier. Sometimes it enhances a pretty feature. Sometimes it just makes that one zit less prominent. There is one thing that every makeup wearer has in common, though: THEY ALL HAVE A FACE (unless you are a faceless makeup wearer, in which case I apologize). Some have blue eyes and some have brown eyes and some people are Southeast Asian and some people are from Iceland and some people are some interesting mix of their Cherokee mother's cheekbones and their Turkish father's eyes. Not every face is the same, but everyone has a face on which to put makeup (again, my apologies to the faceless makeup gurus).
Similarly, there is one thing that every first draft has in common: words. Like makeup on a face, you can't pretty up the pretty stuff if there's no pretty stuff to begin with; you can't take out the shitty stuff if there's no shit in the first place. Blank pages are the things that go in the back of books whose page numbers aren't in a multiple of 8 or 12. Blank pages only go within the the novel if there is an artistic choice or a printing error.
I don't know where I'm going with this, so I'm just going to write about a drunk prince and then go to bed.
Current Page: 85
Target Page: 85-7
Location in Story: first gem retrieved. Second gem in the works. How? By persuading the drunken younger brother of a super vain princess to steal an emerald from his sister. I'm a little disappointed that Eva's established pickpocketing skills aren't going to come into play here, because Judas is the one who will actually do the stealing (yes, his name is Judas... don't judge me), but I might have her tag along and actually do the stealing. Drunk Judas is talking Judas, and talking Judas might wake sleeping sister who likes beauty sleep.
CAUTION: SLIGHT SWEARING AT THE END OF THIS POST. (I don't know if there are any actual readers who want a caution on that sort of thing, but it's worth it)
Now that we're halfway through November, the end is in sight. There are a finite number of days between now and the end of the month, which is both a good thing and a bad thing. It's a good thing because I'm over halfway to making a habit of writing more (what is it, three weeks to create a new habit?), but it's also less of a buffer zone - if my word count suddenly tanks, I have less time to make it up. That being said, I took the opportunity to look back over some of my old stats. Though my word count is nowhere near as good as it could be, and it's nowhere near where it was in 2011, it's definitely better than it was in 2013. Currently, my word count is approximately 25,200 words (or it will be by the end of page 85, since I'm not done with page 85 yet). The Wild Card Overachiever target would be 30k-31.5k words, but the NaNo Official Word Count is 25k; as long as I stay above that number, all will be okay. I hope.
The danger, of course, is that I reach the end but not the word count of 50k. If that happens, I'm going to count that as a win. I don't know if my word count is actually 300 words per page; though many of my pages have over 300 words on them, about 1/4 of them have less than a full page written (my chapters are about 4 pages each). My handwriting has gotten smaller than when I did the test page, but I'm also writing a lot of dialogue that might get edited out later, but there might be more than 300 words per page.
In the end, it's not about how much I write, but whether I write. I think that's true for a lot of people. There are a lot of quotes on Pinterest about WRITE BETTER, NOT MORE, and also DON'T STOP WRITING, but I would like to say to those people: GET IN THE HABIT OF WRITING AND MAKE IT SOUND PRETTY LATER.
I'm going to use a makeup metaphor. (I never thought I would say those words, but here we go).
Makeup is an attempt to make people look prettier. Sometimes it enhances a pretty feature. Sometimes it just makes that one zit less prominent. There is one thing that every makeup wearer has in common, though: THEY ALL HAVE A FACE (unless you are a faceless makeup wearer, in which case I apologize). Some have blue eyes and some have brown eyes and some people are Southeast Asian and some people are from Iceland and some people are some interesting mix of their Cherokee mother's cheekbones and their Turkish father's eyes. Not every face is the same, but everyone has a face on which to put makeup (again, my apologies to the faceless makeup gurus).
Similarly, there is one thing that every first draft has in common: words. Like makeup on a face, you can't pretty up the pretty stuff if there's no pretty stuff to begin with; you can't take out the shitty stuff if there's no shit in the first place. Blank pages are the things that go in the back of books whose page numbers aren't in a multiple of 8 or 12. Blank pages only go within the the novel if there is an artistic choice or a printing error.
I don't know where I'm going with this, so I'm just going to write about a drunk prince and then go to bed.
Friday, November 14, 2014
NaNoWriMo Day 14: where writing gets interrupted by boyfriends
Current Day: 14
Current Page: 75
Target Page: 80
Pages Written Today: 1
Pages Left to Go: at least 5
Place in Story: the first gem has been obtained. Now for all the rest.
I haven't had time to write much today because my boyfriend came to visit me and the rest of our friends, so that was... distracting. Here's to trying to write more on Saturday!
Current Page: 75
Target Page: 80
Pages Written Today: 1
Pages Left to Go: at least 5
Place in Story: the first gem has been obtained. Now for all the rest.
I haven't had time to write much today because my boyfriend came to visit me and the rest of our friends, so that was... distracting. Here's to trying to write more on Saturday!
Thursday, November 13, 2014
NaNoWriMo Day 13: When Early Mornings Turn Out To Be Beneficial (also, princesses)
Current Day: 13
Current Page: 72
Target Page: 73-5
Place in Story: so there are these gemstones, right? Ekito the Priestess gave them to Galen when she gave him the materials to built the unicursal hexagram; she was sort of saying, "everything is here, now good luck finding someone to put it all together without magic!" Galen captured princesses in an attempt to make them build the thing; when they left, they each took one of the gems with them. Now Eva and Galen are on their way to track down the princesses and persuade/ cajole/ threaten/ steal from the princesses in order to get the gems back.
I was up really early this morning to work at a candlelight vigil for my fraternity; since nobody is doing much at 7:30 AM on a college campus, I was able to get a lot of writing done; aside from getting down a few pages, I was able to name and motivate each of the princesses. I'm not putting those here, because now isn't the time for that, but I'm glad with the level of diversity there is. Some are vain, some just did it for shits and giggles. Anyway, I need to read a book for Greek so I can do a fiction report on Monday. That's been taking up most of my time today.
Current Page: 72
Target Page: 73-5
Place in Story: so there are these gemstones, right? Ekito the Priestess gave them to Galen when she gave him the materials to built the unicursal hexagram; she was sort of saying, "everything is here, now good luck finding someone to put it all together without magic!" Galen captured princesses in an attempt to make them build the thing; when they left, they each took one of the gems with them. Now Eva and Galen are on their way to track down the princesses and persuade/ cajole/ threaten/ steal from the princesses in order to get the gems back.
I was up really early this morning to work at a candlelight vigil for my fraternity; since nobody is doing much at 7:30 AM on a college campus, I was able to get a lot of writing done; aside from getting down a few pages, I was able to name and motivate each of the princesses. I'm not putting those here, because now isn't the time for that, but I'm glad with the level of diversity there is. Some are vain, some just did it for shits and giggles. Anyway, I need to read a book for Greek so I can do a fiction report on Monday. That's been taking up most of my time today.
Wednesday, November 12, 2014
NaNoWriMo Day 12: Suddenly, a PLOT DEVIATION OCCURS!
Current Day: 12
Current Page: 64
Target Page: 70
Place in Story: Eva and Galen have gotten the center stone in place. That's the most important stone to have in place. The other stones that are supposed to make up the six corners of the icon are missing, probably stolen by Abducted Princesses of Days Gone By. In the meantime, Eva found a weird box in a scene I might cut later. (I NEED WORDS, OKAY).
So the plot deviation comes in the fact that the princesses stole the gems: I wasn't planning on that. I want to keep it, because it gives Eva and Galen something to do that doesn't involve sitting and talking as Eva does some sort of mechanical labor. I was running out of Character Building Conversations for them to have. Also, I should have thought this through better when I decided to WRITE AN ENTIRE NOVEL WHERE THE MAIN ACTION WAS JUST TO BUILD A THING. Seriously, that was kind of dumb. There are only so many interrupting actions that can happen in the middle of building things, and I went with the one that I would think is most interesting (it's also the most convenient and the one that popped into my head first): that the valuable objects that are essential to the project got stolen by someone who isn't involved in any other way. Of course, that means I have to figure out what their names are and when they stole the thing and which one they stole and why and how and where they are in the first place and who they ended up marrying.
You know, this might not be the most convenient answer to the NEED MORE WORDS problem. Well, too late. This is NaNoWriMo, and that means WORK WITH WHAT YOU WROTE.
Now, TO LAUNDRY AND WRITING!
Current Page: 64
Target Page: 70
Place in Story: Eva and Galen have gotten the center stone in place. That's the most important stone to have in place. The other stones that are supposed to make up the six corners of the icon are missing, probably stolen by Abducted Princesses of Days Gone By. In the meantime, Eva found a weird box in a scene I might cut later. (I NEED WORDS, OKAY).
So the plot deviation comes in the fact that the princesses stole the gems: I wasn't planning on that. I want to keep it, because it gives Eva and Galen something to do that doesn't involve sitting and talking as Eva does some sort of mechanical labor. I was running out of Character Building Conversations for them to have. Also, I should have thought this through better when I decided to WRITE AN ENTIRE NOVEL WHERE THE MAIN ACTION WAS JUST TO BUILD A THING. Seriously, that was kind of dumb. There are only so many interrupting actions that can happen in the middle of building things, and I went with the one that I would think is most interesting (it's also the most convenient and the one that popped into my head first): that the valuable objects that are essential to the project got stolen by someone who isn't involved in any other way. Of course, that means I have to figure out what their names are and when they stole the thing and which one they stole and why and how and where they are in the first place and who they ended up marrying.
You know, this might not be the most convenient answer to the NEED MORE WORDS problem. Well, too late. This is NaNoWriMo, and that means WORK WITH WHAT YOU WROTE.
Now, TO LAUNDRY AND WRITING!
Tuesday, November 11, 2014
NaNoWriMo Day 11: Sisters, Secrets, and Plot Slumps
Current Day: 11
Current Page: 59
Target Page: 63-5 (I don't actually know how far I'll get on that)
Current Place in Story: Eva's sister, Clara, turned out to be a pretty nice individual. Eva also may or may not have some jealousy issues because of that. If she does, it would stem from how people treat Clara in comparison to how they treat Eva. They're very different - Eva is short, picked on, "less able than other people," and eternally angry because she's different. There's a vicious cycle with Eva of people not treating her well because of her attitude, and she has a bit of an attitude because people don't treat her well. (It has gotten better, since she's gotten to leave and earn a reputation instead of being given one based on how much of a left arm and magical ability she has). Clara, on the other hand, is tall, conventionally pretty, fairly compassionate, kind, well-liked, and treated well in the community. Eva might wonder why CLARA got treated so well and she herself didn't, despite all efforts to act like Clara. (Eva probably would have wound up not doing anything like Clara, which is probably why Eva is on the road and Clara isn't.)
I think Clara might have envied the independence that Eva garnered when she left. Eva had a really good reason to leave, and it wasn't as if the town really wanted to have her around in the first place, Eva could go wherever she chose. Clara finished her training as a healer in her hometown, and stayed in her hometown because she was the only one trained in setting bones and doing surgeries. Clara really likes what she does, but she probably regrets not going out and about before deciding to stay - if only because then she could have learned more about healing with and without magic, and maybe gotten certified in a few other things.
Also, as a subtle sub-plot, Jasper may be a manipulative butthead and hexed all of Clara's apprentices. Clara had promised herself that, once another person completed the training to set bones and do surgeries, Clara herself would take a years' leave to go out and find out cool things with her sister. When Clara and Eva interact for the first time in a long time, Clara mentions that the person she had been training dropped out suddenly. This might truly be due to a family crisis, but I might make it due to the fact that Jasper is manipulative and mean and possibly a sociopath. Or a psychopath. I still need to look those things up.
Now, TO WRITING!
Current Page: 59
Target Page: 63-5 (I don't actually know how far I'll get on that)
Current Place in Story: Eva's sister, Clara, turned out to be a pretty nice individual. Eva also may or may not have some jealousy issues because of that. If she does, it would stem from how people treat Clara in comparison to how they treat Eva. They're very different - Eva is short, picked on, "less able than other people," and eternally angry because she's different. There's a vicious cycle with Eva of people not treating her well because of her attitude, and she has a bit of an attitude because people don't treat her well. (It has gotten better, since she's gotten to leave and earn a reputation instead of being given one based on how much of a left arm and magical ability she has). Clara, on the other hand, is tall, conventionally pretty, fairly compassionate, kind, well-liked, and treated well in the community. Eva might wonder why CLARA got treated so well and she herself didn't, despite all efforts to act like Clara. (Eva probably would have wound up not doing anything like Clara, which is probably why Eva is on the road and Clara isn't.)
I think Clara might have envied the independence that Eva garnered when she left. Eva had a really good reason to leave, and it wasn't as if the town really wanted to have her around in the first place, Eva could go wherever she chose. Clara finished her training as a healer in her hometown, and stayed in her hometown because she was the only one trained in setting bones and doing surgeries. Clara really likes what she does, but she probably regrets not going out and about before deciding to stay - if only because then she could have learned more about healing with and without magic, and maybe gotten certified in a few other things.
Also, as a subtle sub-plot, Jasper may be a manipulative butthead and hexed all of Clara's apprentices. Clara had promised herself that, once another person completed the training to set bones and do surgeries, Clara herself would take a years' leave to go out and find out cool things with her sister. When Clara and Eva interact for the first time in a long time, Clara mentions that the person she had been training dropped out suddenly. This might truly be due to a family crisis, but I might make it due to the fact that Jasper is manipulative and mean and possibly a sociopath. Or a psychopath. I still need to look those things up.
Now, TO WRITING!
Monday, November 10, 2014
NaNoWriMo Day 10: Periods and Catchup
Day: 10
Current Page: 52
Target Page: 58
Place in Story: For some reason that may turn out to be important later, I'm including periods in my novel. Like, menstrual cycles. Like, the thing that people with vaginas get every month from their crotch. (that was probably TMI. Sorry about that.)
I think I'm including that just to get Eva out of the palace for a little while and possibly to have her run into her sister and establish the way they interact. The way Clara and Eva talk to each other is very different from the way Jasper and Eva interact, simply because Clara was actually nice to Eva when they were kids and didn't try and transfigure her into anything, like Jasper did. (Jasper claims that it's because he was curious about how beetles and newts and other small creatures act and also to practice human transfiguration, but in reality it's because he's mean and a bully and wanted to pick on someone smaller and weaker than him. There's probably some degree of sociopathy/ psychopathy going on, but I'm not knowledgeable enough in the MAJOR FACTORS OF BEING A SOCIOPATH OR PSYCHOPATH to write Jasper explicitly as one of those.)
Since I've only written a page or two today, it's time to WRITE A LOT MORE!
Current Page: 52
Target Page: 58
Place in Story: For some reason that may turn out to be important later, I'm including periods in my novel. Like, menstrual cycles. Like, the thing that people with vaginas get every month from their crotch. (that was probably TMI. Sorry about that.)
I think I'm including that just to get Eva out of the palace for a little while and possibly to have her run into her sister and establish the way they interact. The way Clara and Eva talk to each other is very different from the way Jasper and Eva interact, simply because Clara was actually nice to Eva when they were kids and didn't try and transfigure her into anything, like Jasper did. (Jasper claims that it's because he was curious about how beetles and newts and other small creatures act and also to practice human transfiguration, but in reality it's because he's mean and a bully and wanted to pick on someone smaller and weaker than him. There's probably some degree of sociopathy/ psychopathy going on, but I'm not knowledgeable enough in the MAJOR FACTORS OF BEING A SOCIOPATH OR PSYCHOPATH to write Jasper explicitly as one of those.)
Since I've only written a page or two today, it's time to WRITE A LOT MORE!
Sunday, November 9, 2014
NaNoWriMo Day 9: Where I write about Judas and not Eva
Current Day: 9
Current Page: 48
Target Page: past 50
Current Location in Story: attempting to figure out construction details. Noelle completely ships Galen and Eva. Sam doesn't buy it. I need more plot.
Today, I gave up writing (mostly) for a day-long fraternity event (it was mandatory) and the draft of an essay about Judas. I'm glad the draft is happening, but I need to step up my non-procrastination game, because I need to stop procrastinating. I have nearly fallen behind on my word count, and I have some reading for Shakespeare to do as well.
This is going to be a long night.
Current Page: 48
Target Page: past 50
Current Location in Story: attempting to figure out construction details. Noelle completely ships Galen and Eva. Sam doesn't buy it. I need more plot.
Today, I gave up writing (mostly) for a day-long fraternity event (it was mandatory) and the draft of an essay about Judas. I'm glad the draft is happening, but I need to step up my non-procrastination game, because I need to stop procrastinating. I have nearly fallen behind on my word count, and I have some reading for Shakespeare to do as well.
This is going to be a long night.
Saturday, November 8, 2014
NaNoWriMo Day 8: Where I attempt to use my lead to do homework
Current Day: 8
Current Page: very top of 48
Target Page: 49
Place in Story: Noelle thinks Galen and Eva have romantic chemistry. Samuel doesn't. Dragonfly hasn't made an appearance in a while. Neither have Jasper or Clara. WHAT IS REAL AND WHAT IS FAKE? To be discovered after I do a required draft of an essay on Judas...
Right now, I'm mostly trying to keep up. It's been busy - I was on a bit of tight schedule today, I'll be on a tighter schedule tomorrow. My word count is safe, but it's not very much so. Right now, I'm just trying not to fall behind. I'm going to go write an essay now in order to get my word count up later.
Current Page: very top of 48
Target Page: 49
Place in Story: Noelle thinks Galen and Eva have romantic chemistry. Samuel doesn't. Dragonfly hasn't made an appearance in a while. Neither have Jasper or Clara. WHAT IS REAL AND WHAT IS FAKE? To be discovered after I do a required draft of an essay on Judas...
Right now, I'm mostly trying to keep up. It's been busy - I was on a bit of tight schedule today, I'll be on a tighter schedule tomorrow. My word count is safe, but it's not very much so. Right now, I'm just trying not to fall behind. I'm going to go write an essay now in order to get my word count up later.
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