Marie Alice Writes & Reads

This week word count goal: 32 500 words
Word count so far: 19 016 words

I am keeping last week’s word count goal. And I am also chopping in my weekly word count goal.
I’m bringing it down to 5 000 words. I’ll finish the zero draft later, but it’s ok.

My most recent rejection letter reminded me that, yes, you should consider the market before starting a new writing project. But you should also write a good story for the readers to enjoy.

I am going to focus more on writing a good story than on my word count.

First chapter debates

I am still re-writing the ten chapters I’ve written so far, working on the characters, on their voice.
I am also, again, debating the beginning of the story. Am I starting the novel at the right moment? Yes, but no, but at the same time, yes, it is a fun way to introduce some characters.
The problem is the point of view again.

The first chapter needs to have an omniscient point of view after all. Dah, dah, daaaaahhhhh!

And on that very dramatic note, I will quit rambling and get some reading action going.
I should be reading murder mysteries to help me figure out some things in the new writing project, so, of course I picked up a fantasy novel Dianna Wynne Jones!
I read it a dozen times too, but who cares. It such a comfort, a great story.

Thank you for reading! Until next time…

Word count goal for this week: 32 500 words
Word count so far: 18 886 words

I was able to snag a little writing time while kiddo and her visiting grandma were napping today. Hooray!

This impromptu writing session felt like a cookie stolen from the jar right under the adults’ noses. Oh so good, oh so perfect!
I tried to make the most of it.

The word count is not improving, but the characters are. Therefore, I do feel like the story is getting stronger, already more layered, complex… in a simple, fun to read way of course ;) !!

I know, according to many « how to write faster » writing tips I’ve read, I should be writing the story forward. Putting more words in. Getting to write 2 000 words every half-hour. Draw faster than your shadow, go faster than a fridgin’ speed car.
Sure. I agree. I need to learn to write faster and also learn to shush the editor in me.
But I think my approach might save me a lot of re-writing, plus it makes the story much stronger already.
I think so anyway. We’ll see what the beta-readers will say!

An exhausted wanna-be traditionally published author is saying goodbye for now, and to all a good night.

Until next time, thanks so much for reading.

Word count goal for this week: 32 500 words
Word count goal so far: 18 517 words

Writing.
I write because I love it, because I can’t help it. When I write books, I feel alive.
I’m doing what I am supposed to be doing: coming up with stories to share with people, to make them laugh and dream, to help ease their sorrow, to give hope when all hope has been taken away.

So it doesn’t feel great, getting a rejection letter.
Especially a standard rejection letter, the one they send when just one person in the publishing house read, oh, between one and ten pages of the book before deciding going « No », or « Yes » (reminder, I live in a small francophone bubble in Canada, with a very small market and no literary agent).
But it is such a small thing. After all, I received many rejection letters. I’m almost used to it.
Plus, for a whole year, part of my job at a publisher’s house was to send those exact same rejections letters; trust me, I know the drill!

But every now and then, the received rejection letter will hit me a little harder.
Because I have good reasons to believe it might work with one or two publishers.
In this case, I sent a good contemporary YA novel to publishers who were looking very specifically for contemporary YA novels.
I did my research, I read some of the novels the publishers have published before, to make sure my novel would stand out while respecting the publishers editorial line.
I really thought it would work. *deep sight*

When it was time to get some creative writing work done, I did some screen staring/shopping for kiddo clothes/pinning things about rejection on Pinterest for a while.
A sentence heard on NovelTea Show was doing loops in my head the whole time: you fail only if you stop writing.

So, I went and did some writing. Plus a mega-ton of editing.

I was merciless with my writing. Erase stuff, straighten some other stuff. Doesn’t matter if I end up erasing it during revision. I felt better just by working harder on the storytelling, on the phrasing, on the characters.

Game plan for next week is : keep the same word count goal. Writing rush week was a total disaster.
I don’t need to feel miserable because the word count isn’t going up fast enough.
I need to feel good because the writing is decent, at the very least.

Thank you for reading. I hope my rambling was in some weird way helpful.
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Until next time!