Year-long NaNo discussion

Word counts for projects that I'm just dabbling in at the moment, or short projects that don't require their own folder/topic.

5/21/18

Project: Twinepathy fanfic! (Current title: Courage to Sing)
Word count: 937
Snippet:
From the kitchen a room away, Finch's phone played a melancholy song over a set of speakers.
I'm a soldier: wounded so I must give up the fight
There's nothing more for me, lead me away...
Or leave me lying here
He mouthed the last line, closed his eyes, and pressed his head against the cold window pane. Despite the passing of time, the amnesia wasn’t getting any easier to live with.

5/22/18

Project: Reality of Devotion
Word count: six handwritten pages; two writing exercises (from Fiction Writer's Workshop), and outlining the main cultures

5/23/18

Project: Writing course certification (not sure if I'm allowed to specify until I'm done with the course? :P)
Word count: 144

That dratted little paragraph took me a couple hours, plus sitting on it for a few days, to finish... XP

5/24/18

Project: Reality of Devotion
Word count: three handwritten pages of culture outline (the only thing I'm missing is weaponry! But I like filling that out as I write the story...)

For this project, I just need to adjust my synopsis, then I should be ready to start detailing character arcs! ^.^

6/4/18
Project: Reality of Devotion
Word count: two handwritten pages of character arc questions (not very big pages, but I wrote so that's what counts :P)

This is interesting....

Has anyone commented much on your site?

Mmm, not really. I'm kinda glad, to be honest; I'm still getting the hang of blogging, debating on how much about my Pet Project that I'm willing to put up, and having a hard time keeping up on social media in general. So I'm just taking it slow. :P
I'll probably make a separate topic here for Reality of Devotion once I'm through with detailed outlining and can post snippets without fear of spoilers. :D

6/5/18

Project: Reality of Devotion
Word count: four-ish handwritten pages of character arc outline, specifically the first act

6/5/18

Project: Reality of Devotion
Word count: four-ish handwritten pages of character arc outline, specifically the first act

Okay! I know.... spoilers are everywhere.... XD

lol, yes.
6/17/18

Project: A role-play I'm doing on GR; not technically a project, but it's what I'm writing right now, so... :P
It's titled "Every Breath You Take"
Word count: around/above 1000 words (I'm averaging 24 words per line, and I've written a handful of paragraphs)

6/28/18

Project: IEW curriculum
Word count: three paragraphs, edited and fully decorated (I forgot to check the word count before I shut Scrivener :P)

XD

8/2/18

Project: Trope-Twist challenge entry 2 (see here: http://talesfromamodernbard.blogspot....)
Word count: 6 handwritten pages

Excerpt:
Anthony looked down at the hospital bed, down at his unconscious little brother. He frowned. "I'm at a loss, Delilah."
Delilah sighed. "Just guess how he ended up here."
"He got involved with that Loki kid and was thrown off a cruise ship?"
Delilah snorted. "Sure."
"Why won't you just tell me what happened?"
"Because I'm not entirely sure myself."

8/22/18

Project: How to Kill a Redhead (working title for the Trope-Twist challenge entry 2, featuring the same characters but in a slightly earlier time)
Word count: 1002

Excerpt:
Anthelm couldn’t believe his luck. What a perfect night for a date! The nervous college freshman adjusted his collar, stared at his silver wrist watch for the millionth time. “You ready to go, Peter?” he called up the stairs to his little brother—a young teen with a mind faster than the high schools could keep up with.
“Not if you’re driving!” Peter’s freckled face glared down at Anthelm from over the top bannister. “You almost killed us the other day, mooning over this gal. I really don’t want to imagine how bad it would be with her in the same vehicle as you.”

8/23/18

Project: How to Kill a Redhead
Word count: 1070
Status: Finished! (I just need a nerdy joke for Peter, comparing Anthelm's speed to some math thing...)

Excerpt:
“So,” Delilah began. “You’ve been practically stalking me since you ran into me with those books.” She didn’t look concerned, or offended. Being nearly seven feet tall and more toned than an average man probably had something to do with that. “What questions have you been dying to ask me?”
Anthelm clasped his hands together. “Well, I wanted a few suggestions for economy textbooks…and…I’m also curious…”
The waiter brought them their drinks.
Delilah stirred the ice in her glass. “Spit it out, and please don’t try to get poetic. We technically just met.”
Anthelm waited for the waiter to leave before asking his question. “Why do you always smell like coconut?”

9-7-18

I've been doing the "Death of a Thousand Cuts: Couch to 80K" writing boot-camp. I'm on Day 5, and have been handwriting everything. I'm averaging 3-4 double-spaced pages per exercise.
These exercises are surprisingly fun. Check them out at the link below!
The podcast guy does cuss a bit in some of the episodes, so if you want to skip that, just fast-forward to a minute or two before the 10-min timer.

http://www.timclarepoet.co.uk/couchto...

9/8/18 - 9/12/18

Project: "Death of a Thousand Cuts: Couch to 80K"
Word/page count: Averaging about 3 handwritten pages per freewrite

I've written two things set in my pet project's world, Convoluted Chronicles; and I wrote a random short story about a huge spider and a tricksy fairy. As these are freewrites, the quality is meh, but I'm happy to have written them. :D

A semi cleaned up excerpt from the spider story:
Even to the spider's weak eyes, she appeared fair (by the standards of fairy); a slim figure, porcelain skin, long pale hair, a light blue gown with baubles that were dazzling despite the dank of the cave. Fighting the mesmerizing effect of the fairy's beauty, the spider spoke: 'It seems you are the type to grant wishes. Shall we make a deal?'

9/18/18

Project: The Deli Ghosts (another Tales from a Modern Bard challenge!)
Word count: almost 2K, from what I recall (I'll edit when I work on it some more)

10/8/18

Project: Couch to 80K Writing Boot Camp
Word/page count: still averaging 3-4 pages (handwritten! :D) per exercise. I've been doing one a day since last month (except when I miss one, then I double-up the next day). I'm on Week 6, Day 1. I've gone through two pens and half a notebook. :D

10-9-18

Project: The Deli Ghosts
Word count: between 500-600 words

Looks like you have a lot of projects! That’s cool! :) I always have more that I want to do than I can write on at a time.

@Jason: Yup. :) Sometimes having so many projects makes me happy ("I'll never run out of things to write!"), but other times it's overwhelming ("I want to write this one, the words are coming to me, but this other one has a deadline!") :P

10-16-18

Project: IEW certification
Word/page count: No word count at the moment because I'm still tweaking the last assignment, but agh I'm almost done with the last unit! I can't wait to go over this with a local instructor and send it in for certification. :D

Yup, I know the feeling!

I've mostly forced myself to focus (mainly) on one project at a time, just because I accomplish more that way. (It's that overwhelming thing you mention. lol) Some days, though, when the words just come for a different one, I have to take a break from my main project! lol

11/4/18

Project: Dream journal
Word/page count: 659 (handwritten, applied towards Nano Rebellion word count)

11/7/18

Project: Ghost story writing challenge
Word/page count: 582 (handwritten, Rebellion words)

I am considering naming this zombie Simon (his coworker was named Sydney), but idk...

Excerpt:
The zombie sank to the floor with a sigh.
Brenna grimaced, but put her hand on his shoulder. "I'll figure this out. Don't worry."
He gave her what she assumed was a smile. She had to do her best not to shudder or tear up.
"Sooorrry girleee," he drawled. "Nooo waaaay ooouuuut."

3/20/19-3/24/19

Project: Original Fairytale writing challenge (http://talesfromamodernbard.blogspot....)
Word/page count: 616 (The Spider and the Fairy), 864 (The House and Its Occupant), 698 (The Corruption)

Excerpt (The House and Its Occupant):
There once was a girl who was afraid. She feared many things. The things she heard, the things she saw. She feared that, even were she to grow deaf and blind, she would still see. That she would still hear.
She believed that the dead should stay dead. That they should sleep, and not wake til the end of days. But they were there. In her house.
Some days were harder than others; the days she couldn’t tell the voices of the Others from her own. She refused all modern conveniences that produced “an over abundance” of noise: television, phone, computer. She loved music—classical, instrumental—and so had a radio and a few CDs.
Books—she liked books. Books were quiet. Books were steady. Their words didn’t echo in her halls, her bedroom, her kitchen.

Wow. Very powerful + moving. Words like this will capture an audience.

Elizabeth wrote: "Wow. Very powerful + moving. Words like this will capture an audience."

Thanks. :D

I'm probably going to be working on it further for Camp Nano. Definitely looking forward to it.

Awesome!! I hope you complete your goals. ^.^

5/1/19

Project: A quick attempt to show my sister what a writer's version of Truth or Dare looks like (my dare: make a character have an allergic reaction)
Word/page count: 263 words

Snippet:
Choking, he bolted upright, hands around his throat in the universal sign for “halp I’m dying.” Since no one else was in the room at the moment, that didn’t help much. So he started banging a fist against the counter. Unfortunately, it was a thick slab of marble, so it wasn’t very loud.
Fine.
He threw himself backwards. He fell over the wooden chair, toppled to the ground with a bang (his skull made a very concussive-sounding noise against the tile), and whacked a rack of plates with his foot.

5/21/19

Project: An attempt at a writing contest, flash/short fiction. https://thewritepractice.com/members/...

Word/page count: 651

Snippet:
Hard, pounded dirt pressed against Moira’s face. She sat up. Her shoulders brushed against some weave of grass, and poles of smooth wood. A blanket clung to her, plastered with sweat.
A small fire spat harsh red light from across the room. Nearby lurked a dark table made from a single slab of wood, about the length of a body. Beneath it sat a bright bundle.
Only half-aware of what she did, Moira scrambled towards it. Her grey cloak. All the scents she’d come to associate with her father clung to it. She hugged it close. The sharp smoke of the forge and of dark magic, desert sands, sweats, and nights in the open air enveloped her.
And pine.
Though the ensuing memories caused her pain, she buried her face in the cloak.

Edit: Had an idea for another story, and it fit a contest, so I decided to hammer out some words for that. :P

Project: Untitled, but it’s theme is community; attempted contest entry, https://storyembers.org/enter-our-sec...

Word/page count: 1011

Snippet:
Dae scowled at the man. “What’s your name?”
The man brought his heels together, spread his arms out to the side, and gave a wobbly bow. “Milon Etcheberry, at your service, malady.” He tottered, flipped head-over-heels, and landed in a lump. Looking horrified, he shot back up to his feet. “I mean, m’lady.”
Incredulously, and with more than a fair amount of disgust, Dae stared at him. “I do hope you aren’t planning on doing that during dinner.”
“Sorry, but I can’t promise anything.” He waggled his eyebrows and tapped the side of his nose. “Fools do as Fools do. Even when they don’t know what they’re doing.”

5/25/19

Project: Fiddling with my potential entry to the StoryEmbers contest (I wanted the theme to be similar to RoS, in that it features community, but not quite sure how I want this to go...)
Word/page count: 147

5/27/19

Project: Behind the Wagon (StoryEmbers entry)

Word/page count: 1217

I’m liking the way this is going, but I’m not too happy about the presentation of differing views; it just seems too stilted. I’ll keep it for now, because the flow’s good and it seems to be working. But it may change...

Snippet:
A cheer surged through the crowd. Dae had to shout with her mouth cupped against Milon’s ear to be heard.
“Just because I’m alone doesn’t mean I need cheering up.”
Looking thoroughly confused, he shouted back, “I love cheese, too, but what’s that got to do with anything?”
Wanting more than ever to get away from people, Dae shouted in exasperation and shoved away from the Fool. To her surprise, she broke through the crowd. Her nose was very nearly chopped off by a pair of swooshing double swords.

5/28/19

Project: Behind the Wagon (StoryEmbers entry)

Word/page count: 900

Milon is my favorite character to write, in case you couldn’t tell. XD
Also, I'm almost done with this, so if anyone is available for beta reading, let me know. :D

Snippet:
The one called Domino—a bestubbled man wearing a dingy brown and grey hood that shadowed the upper part of his face—waved his hands in the air and wiggled his fingers. Milon nodded, smiled, rubbed his hands together. “Ooh, I know this one. A willow bird has brought him tidings of doom, but also of hope. You will find what you seek in…” Looking rather like a heron, he drew his head back. He stuck his hands on his hips. “What’s my clothes’ chest got to do with anything? Some priest you are.”

SHINE wrote: "Me!"

Awesome! PM me your email, and I’ll send it as soon as I’m done. :D

5/29/18

Project: Behind the Wagon

Words/page count: 2593 (editing, so counting final word count and not necessarily actual words written that day)

Snippet:
“Why do you have raw fish in your pocket?”
“Why does your boy eat raw fish?” He settled back in his place. “Sometimes I have to manipulate conversations in a more…overt fashion.”

Peculiar excerpt... but very interesting! It has me asking so many questions!!!

Joey wrote: "Peculiar excerpt... but very interesting! It has me asking so many questions!!!"

Yup, that it is. Domino is a peculiar character, so it fits. :P
That’s a good thing, yeah? XD

SHINE wrote: "This is so funny!"

I was laughing while I was writing it. XD

So when I’m done with it, do you want me to email it to you at the email you have on your profile?

6/2/19

Project: Behind the Wagon

Word/page count: 3211

Okay, think I’m done...
Just working on writing up a beta info sheet. I'll likely go over the story one or two more times, and then send it off.

6/3/19

Project: Behind the Wagon

Word/page count: 3206

Alright, 'tis done and sent off with beta info!

6/20/19

Project: Untitled, a short superhero thing (may or may not send it in for the Story Embers contest, as the general consensus in regards to Behind the Wagon is that it reads better as an intro to a story, and not as a short story.)

Word/page count: 705

Snippet:
Risk glowered at the nickname for masked men in this city. “Crazy kid.”
Obviously, he’d hit a sore spot, because the man scowled and growled, “I’m thirty-five.”
Each movement sending a grating ache through his body, Risk got to his feet. “Then maybe you should start acting like it and not wallop senior citizens because you think their jaws look like they belong to a comic book villain.”

6/21/19

Project: “”

Word/page count: 205

Snippet:
Elliot pushed around his Mediterranean salad. “You know, for once, I’d like to get a villain who does things like steal, and kick puppies, just because he can.”
“You could start looking at your higher-ups. Only, none of them would dare kick a puppy; just the homeless.”

8/17/19

Project: Day in the Life Of ___ Challenge (Tales from a Modern Bard)
Word/page count: 290

Snippet:
The soft, amber sunlight stirred the dust up in lazy spirals.
With the dust came the recollections of days past. Do you know what it’s like, to start a day with the throbbing echoes of yesterday?

8/24/19

Project: See above
Word/page count: 271

Nothing written that is fit for public viewing. I’m beat. My words are messy.

10/7/19

Project: Lost Civilization Challenge, Tales from a Modern Bard
Word/page count: 292

Currently titled “One Mistake of Many”, but idk if it’ll stick.
A story featuring several sisters, their lovers, and glitter. Cuz this story is set in a world where glitter is magic (or visa-versa, not sure yet). As told by a long-suffering, oddball medical practioner (sort of) named Aberdeen.

Snippet:
Arthur spun out a chair. “I want a story.”
Aberdeen’s sharp brows shot up quizzically.
“The condition is this: I want you to tell it. Really tell it. Don’t just say that these people existed, were stupid, and died.”
“Seeing as you’ve summarized all of your human history, that doesn’t leave me many stories to tell.”

10/14/19

Project: Lost Civilization Challenge, TfaMB
Word/page count: 735

Hoping to polish this into an alternate version of a yet-to-be-written scene from Reality of Devotion.
Slight spoiler for that (I think; can’t recall how much I’ve talked about the mains):
(view spoiler)[Because I’m sad that a certain character decided to take the downward path, and gosh darn it I wish he’d chosen differently. And yes, an entire civilization—among other things—being lost is better than the path he ends up choosing. (hide spoiler)]

Snippet:
How much evil must be done, until mistakes are realized? For some, merely uttering a cross word brings a rush of revulsion. For others, a more overt act of theft or harm of a family member brings it. For the child of Lilith, it was the fall of a kingdom.