What I’ve Been Up To

What have you all been up to?

I’ve been working on book two of the sci-fi space opera. I had wanted to get the romance revised/edited and out this year but that will be delayed until I figure out exactly where I want to go with it. I’m not naturally a romance writer so after going through the first revision, I just didn’t feel it would be ready within the year. I’m wanting to get the fantasy book out, so I’ve been editing it like crazy. However, suddenly, I had this urge to work on the cyberpunk characters. I have a character named Isamari. That’s not her real name. Rather, it’s her hologram name. She is a side character who works with the mc and whom the mc bumps into later. Normally, I don’t focus on side characters but Isamari is just itching to be written.

I know very little about Isamari, and I never intended to know her more than just a co-worker, but as I think more about her, I realize she plays an important part of the story. Her part is small, but she creates tension for the mc. So, because of that, she needs to be more developed than intended. I’m pretty excited because I kind of want to know who she is.

Do you ever get sidetracked by a minor character? Do you let them grow and become a bigger part of your story, or do you remind yourself that they’re not that important and keep them in the background? I’m curious.

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Tracking NaNoWriMo

During NaNoWriMo I will typically follow a word count calendar. It helps me stay on track. Word count is approximately 2K per day for 30 days. Normally, I would search the web or Pinterest for someone else’s calendar. This year, I decided to put one together. I used the NaNo calendar and added the word count per day to it.

This is what it looks like:

If you’d like to use it, you can download a larger size here: NaNoWriMo 2019 Word Count Calendar Tracker.

If you’d like to use the original calendar, you can download it off the NaNo site here: NaNo Prep 101 Course. It’s a PDF file and will be on page 50.

I’ve been slacking off prep so I need to really kick it up. Instead, I’m brainstorming ideas for a couple of short stories and novelettes I hope to publish before the end of the year and early 2020. One of them being Shaman 2.

By the way, if you haven’t read Shaman, it’s available on Amazon Kindle and Kindle Unlimited. It’s perfect for a good Halloween scare.

NaNoWriMo 2019

I’ve been working on a few projects. Aeva is still being edited at the moment. I’m also working on a winter romance novella and brainstorming a Valentine’s romance. My biggest project right now is a novel I’ll be writing next month for National Novel Writing Month. I’m currently prepping and outlining the details.

The story I’ll be writing for Nano is a paranormal romance. I’ve shared a short excerpt from this story a few months back. I never got the chance to finish it so I’ll be using Nano to finish it. I basically have a few paragraphs of the beginning and a dialogue between the two main characters but that’s about it. Here’s the blurb for the story:

Tolan came to the mortal world to do the job of one of his angels. It was supposed to be a quick and simple job—and it was—except for the accidental encounter with Hailey. The encounter left him speechless and he can’t stop thinking about her.

Hailey Quinn works at Caraway Bakery and makes enough money to get by. One morning, she helps Tolan from a freak accident and from there she must make the decision to protect him or endanger him. 

Included in my prep is a list of music that I’ll be listening to while I write. There’s not too many yet. I tend to have about 10 to 20 songs that I rotate through. Right now, I have about three that I really like. Here’s one that’s called, “Fallen Angel.”

If you are doing NaNoWriMo and want to follow me, my name is waltzoftheflowers.

I hope you join!

A Nano Win, But It’s Only the Beginning

screenshotnanowin11272018_500

I finished my NaNoWriMo story. Not only did I reach the goal of 50K words, I also ended the story. What I’ve learned from this experience is that I’m capable of cranking out a full novel within less than a month. It’s not perfect and it’s basically a super rough and dirty draft but the story is done.

Goals going forward:

  1. Take a break from Marlowe and work on finishing Aeva.
  2. Publish Aeva.
  3. Write new story I’ve been itching to start.
  4. Continue with first edit of TLS fantasy novel.
  5. Return to Marlowe and clean it up.
  6. First edit of Marlowe.

Here is a cut-and-paste from my Nano page with the updated “Marlowe” synopsis (still somewhat rough) and an excerpt. The excerpt is the scene just after Marlowe fights a cyborg that detonated.

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Ready, Set, Go!

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Did you prepare for NaNoWriMo? Some do and some don’t and that’s okay. Just write! As mentioned earlier, I’ve prepared but not thoroughly — just enough to know what I hope to write and enough to keep myself inspired and motiviated. Last night, just after midnight, I stayed up until 1am to write a little. I got over 400 words in. Half the time was spent making sure I had my story straight.

In the evening, I was getting nervous about not having my plot straight, worried about who really were my characters, and worried about the setting. Earlier in the day, I saw a post on one of the Facebook groups I frequent. The poster had provided some helpful worksheets for plotting, character development, and scene/world building. I went ahead and downloaded them. She had offered them for free, so I figured, I might as well give them a try. If they don’t work for me, that’s no problem. At least I gave them a try. If they do work, then I’ve found something meaningful in guiding me toward writing better and faster.

I’m glad to say, they worked in my favor. But, to be honest, I think everyone can get something out of these worksheets. I’ve been writing all my life and have my degree in writing. The majority of my classes were all about the story structure (exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution). Even when I studied nonfiction, the same structure applied. These worksheets are simple and easy to follow. I’m not trying to advertise for the designer. I’m just really thrilled that she is offering these for free and they are exceptionally well made. The designer is also a writer. Her blog and where you can download the worksheets is, The Wonderful World of Whimsy.

The way I went about the worksheets is I printed them and read them over. Then, in Excel (because I like having everything electroncially done) I took the information from the worksheets and wrote out my outline. The reason I also do it this way is because I have one main plot and many subplots. My main character and secondary characters all have a purpose. They all have a reason for what they do. There’s a domino effect of sort. I’m writing through one main character who is compassionate and who yearns for the family life and love. She is envious of those who have it but she likes to be around those who have it so that at least she can maybe live vicariously through them until, if ever, she finds that. In order to build that type of emotion, I need more than a few lines. I break the characters’ purposes into blocks so that when or if I lose sight of who these characters are and their purpose, I can toggle to it on my computer and keep moving.

With that said, I hope you are doing NaNoWriMo. And, whether you “win” or not, at least you’ve tried. To quote Tony Robbins,

No matter how many mistakes you make or how slow your progress, you are still way ahead of everyone who isn’t trying.

NaNoWriMo 2018

Last November, I didn’t do National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) because I was finishing up my master’s degree. I had wanted to but knew it couldn’t be possible. I’m excited to say, I am able to do it this year.

The first time I did NaNo (2016), I didn’t make a cover and didn’t include a synopsis. I rushed into it. I didn’t outline but did have a pretty good idea on what the story was about. I finished my 50K words, but it was tight. I felt like I just threw whatever I could into the story to hit my numbers per day. In the end, I felt I lost track of the plot and the main reason for the story. This time, I’m outlining to avoid all that. I’m sure there will be moments of the aforementioned, but my hope is to have less of it.

If you are not a member and want to give 50K words a try, go to: https://nanowrimo.org/.

If you are a member and want to be buddies, my member name is, waltzoftheflowers.

My story is a sci-fi dystopian speculative with some cyberpunk. It’s called, “Marlowe.”

The rough synopsis (will likely change):

After the great war, in what was once the United States, a new government emerged. They hired a clean-up company to remove debris and junk to clear out land for homes and farming. This company used machines and robots to assist in the cleaning. The robots are cyborgs: half human, half robotic parts. Cyborgs could only be created by using dead human parts but there are secrets the government doesn’t intend for anyone to learn. A girl named Marlowe will unearth the truth.

The temporary cover:

Marlowecover500

I have a playlist I’m putting together for my story. Here’s one that I’ve imagined to go along with a scene. The scene is when Marlowe learns that her friend was converted into a cyborg without his consent. He finds a way to talk to her and asks her to turn his switch off (to kill him). She refuses.

A WIP Paranormal Fantasy Piece

I’ve been working on my main fantasy story but there was a moment last week in which a scene from my paranormal story needed to be written.  Here’s that piece:


“Don’t touch me.”

“I promise I won’t.”

“Don’t promise me anything. You took the one thing that made me want to live and now you want to make promises. What do you want from me?”

Kellan frowned, not knowing what he could do to mend what he was asked to do by the higher powers. There was no way to bring her father back. There was no trade off. “I just –“

“What? Do you want to take my life too? Tell me, if you take my life, will I see my dad? Because if I can then take me now.”

“I’m not going to take your life and I can’t take you to your father.”

“Then what are you still doing here?”

“I am mesmerized by you, Haylie. I’m sorry about your father, but –“

“You’re not sorry!” Haylie exclaimed, tears lined her eyes. “You are not sorry.”

“You’re right. I’m not sorry that I took your father’s life or that you’ll never see him again. I can’t be sorry for any of that because I don’t understand the connection you have with your father.  I’m not human nor am I the kind of angel who understands how human’s work. That’s what I’m sorry for. If you’ll just let me explain myself, then at least you’ll know why I’m here.”

Haylie stared at Kellan with his dark wings like the silhouette of a giant creature over him. She folded her arms and waited for him to continue.

“The carrier angel couldn’t make it to your father, so I came in his place. I thought I could do the job quickly – release your father’s spirit and leave. But, you interrupted me. I could have ignored you but hearing your voice was like hearing an angel talk. I’ve heard humans talk, but I’ve never had one talk directly to me, especially one that sounded like one of us. What confuses me is that I felt something for you, a feeling beyond my control. If I were to use a human term for it, I think it would be called, love.”

“You don’t know what love is. You said it yourself, you’re not human.”

“Yes,” he simply agreed.

“Where is my dad or whatever became of him? His spirit?”

“I’m sor –“ Kellan caught himself. “I don’t know,” he answered.

“Where do you take the spirits?”

“We don’t take them anywhere. They know where they have to go.”

“And where’s that?”

“I don’t know.”

“You liar! If you’re really an angel, then you would know.”

“I’m not that kind of angel.”

“What kind are you?”

“The kind you’re not supposed to see or know about.”

“What’s the point of your kind?”

“To regulate all angels to make sure processes and procedures are followed through.”

“You must have a nice big office.”

“No office. In human terms, it’s like seeing into their hearts. We know if they are true to who they are and their duties.”

“And if not?”

“They leave the kingdom.”

“Fallen angels,” Haylie stated.

“Yes.”

“You mentioned a carrier angel. Can one of those take me to see him?”

“No one can take you to him.”

“So, it’s true. Death is final. The pain of missing my dad is just a human thing.”

“Yes.”

“I don’t believe you. You know why? Because you exist. Angels exists. For all I know my dad could be an angel.”

“He chose not to be one.”

“What?”

“I asked him when I came to take him.”

“Why didn’t he want to be one?” Before Kellan answered, Haylie said, “Let me guess, you don’t know. You asked if he wanted to be one, but you didn’t bother to ask why not when he said, no. You don’t care to know because you were only doing someone else’s duty.” Kellen didn’t reply. Haylie shook her head from side to side in disbelief. “Why is your kind so cold? Why do you seem so evil? I hate you.”

“He said he had nothing else to give. He knew you…loved him and that was enough.”

Haylie fell to her knees and sobbed, covering her face.

“It shall pass. Time heals all wounds,” Kellan said, thinking he was helping her.

“Go away, whatever you are. I don’t want to see you ever again.”