ROW80...Late Check-In for 10/30/11

The realization has hit me.  I know I've been talking about this for weeks, but on the eve (of destruction?) of the day, it has reached out and grabbed me by the throat.  What am I talking about?  Why, NaNoWriMo, of course! Am I ready, I don't know...my preparations last week didn't go quite as planned.  I'm trying to work it through today, but it's looking like I will be prepping and writing for the first few days, at least.  But, I am absolutely determined to see this through.  I am not going to let fear get in my way this time.  I'm counting on my NaNo buddies for support.  On that note, if you are doing NaNo and would like to buddy with me, my NaNo name is thetruebookaddict.

So, what are my goals?  Well, we know what the expectation is...50,000 words (or +) in 30 days so approximately 1,667 words per day.  Let's just see where this road takes me!

Are you doing NaNoWriMo?  Share your fears or anticipations with me. =O)

ROW80 Check-In 10/19/11...NaNoWriMo Bound!

I am terrible at these twice a week check-ins! In fact, it seems I have trouble checking in at all.  I guess I feel like if I have nothing to report, then who cares....but, I have to learn that checking in is an accountability step so I vow to at least check-in once a week.  Maybe I can handle that!

I haven't been doing much that I planned for my original goals.  I've been reading a lot of review books and that has been taking up my time.  Here was what my original plan:


--2 hours daily for research and planning
--1-2 hours daily for reading on the craft
--1/2 hour daily for journaling (preferably in the morning)

Okay, so I have not done any of what I planned.  However, I'm going to do a temporary goal list until NaNoWriMo starts.  Then we know what that daily goal is...yikes!

--I'm participating in two read-a-thons this weekend, starting Friday so I plan to make reading books on the craft a big part of that.  This will be Friday through Sunday.
--Next week, starting Monday and going through Thursday, I will be going to the library every day while the kids are at school to read and research.  I figure this will give me about 4-5 hours, if I go at 10 every day when the library opens.
--Monday, October 31...not sure if I'll get library time in due to kids' school Halloween parties, but we'll see.  Might be able to squeeze in a couple of hours of last minute planning.


On a side note, I had another inspiration today for a story idea so I will be deciding which one will be more feasible to run with for NaNoWriMo.  I have some books here in my home library that can get me started so I can hopefully decide before I hit the library.

Also, I did do some writing recently.  I wrote a guest post for my friend's blog, Midnyte Reader.  It's a real-life account of a horrific experience I had.  You can read it HERE.

On a final note, for those of you who are doing NaNoWriMo this year, I have created a group on the NaNo forums in NaNo Groups in the Writing Groups and Clubs section.  The ROW80 Writers can be found HERE.  AND Lena Corazon has created a NaNo support group, Fun Not Fear! Thanks, Lena! Check it out HERE.

ROW80: Goals for round 4

This post is serving as my wrap-up, my round 4 sign-up, and my round 4 goals post.  Yes, I'm into streamlining these days. *L*  I looked back and my last round 3 check-in was on August 28 so I really dropped the ball last round.  I had a lot going on in August.  I was on vacation for two weeks and then I launched a new blog.  The launch of said blog ended up taking up a lot of time.  I know that it shouldn't be an excuse for not writing because if I really want to write, I'll just do it, but time just gets away from me.  I've got to figure out a way to structure writing into my schedule and keep it there.  I have also slacked off on my daily journaling, which was really helping me with the creativity so I need to get back into that again.  I had mentioned that I have finally settled on an idea that I'm going to run with and I find myself having less doubts then before.

So, I have a plan for October that is going to set the stage for November and I bet you know what I'm talking about in November.  Yes, NaNoWriMo.  This will be my third time signing up and I think the third time will be the charm! I'm going to spend October preparing:  doing research, reading books on the craft, and working out some kind of basic outline (even if it's just detailed notes).  I'm also going to devote a daily block of time for my daily journaling.

Here's the breakdown:
--2 hours daily for research and planning
--1-2 hours daily for reading on the craft
--1/2 hour daily for journaling (preferably in the morning)

We will see how it goes!

Good luck to all the other participants.  If anyone else is doing NaNoWriMo, let me know.  Maybe we can give mutual moral support. =O)

I leave you with this wonderful quote from Truman Capote:

'Failure is the condiment that gives success its flavor.'