How did camp creep up again?

sweet kitty pic apropos of nothing

I love/hate doing NaNoWriMo. Camp NaNo is less stressful as participants set their own word limits. Cranking out 50K during November tends to be too much pressure. Undeniably, I enjoy being part of the online community undertaking such huge projects. The camaraderie is fun. Watching NaNo Sprints via Twitter is intriguing - witnessing all the productivity when I could be sprinting myself has a somewhat self-defeating purpose. But I just can't seem to hang.

So I'm riding the fence about starting again tomorrow. My last Camp NaNo project sits listless on the back burner. It isn't even simmering, not even tepid, just cold and congealed. The project before that one is what I need to finish. It is simply stuck in the purgatory of revision. I've fallen out of love with my characters and can't seem to re-ignite the passion.

Meanwhile I try to use Studio 30+ writing prompt to actively create over at my other blog. Check it other over there. Whether I "go to camp" or not remains to be seen.

Elsewhere ...

Two works-in-progress now adorn my stack of books. They're mine, and they collect dust atop the other hard-copy ... or real ... books that rest on my dresser at home. The writing projects that are still what I call "in the revision phase." 

Now I've come back and realized my apparent abandonment of this blog. Truth is, I use another space as my actual writing blog and try to practice doing so at least on a weekly basis. Procrastinator that I might be, I'm doing a little something there. 

Katy Did Not, on the other hand, is what I've previously referred to as my ranty blog (like, "Oh, no you didn't ...) where I consider myself more anonymous in doing so. Well, as anonymous as a person can be online, especially since my Twitter account links to it. 

But I'll link over to the other one here in hopes that maybe I'll get a little traffic from it. Until then, cheers, and get back to work!

Getting stuck

Should I be reading, or should I be writing? The conflict is constant. Observing, and hoping to absorb talent and style by osmosis, is a worthwhile endeavor. My conscience, however, keeps telling me to get at it. Put the Kindle (or book) down, and start typing. Even if it's blogging. That pesky conscience says, "There's a story to develop. Details, more description! You need to add dimensions to those characters already existing in your head. Bring them to life." It's quite a naggy frontal cortex.

The tirade continues with, "Quit looking on Amazon. Open up Word instead!"

My inner-dialogue is relentless, and I use it to make myself feel overly guilty. My conscious mind knows there are revisions to be made to last year's -- yet unfinished -- NaNoWriMo project. Obviously, I need to complete the story. The finale stands at outline status, and that doesn't suffice if it's ever to be finished.

Self-criticism gets me, much like troll-ish reviews on Amazon , nowhere! Worry is like that. Feeling anxious about something is not helpful and only sucks away the energy needed to complete the project. Whereas my writing can always improve, my expertise at worry is unsurpassed. I'm a pro! I'm the best -- just ask me!

The key to feeling un-stuck is simply not staying stuck. Just today, I joined a conversation about whether to be enlightened or discouraged by criticism. I've often said my skin needs to thicken to criticism. An online friend once suggested to read the review only one time and take from it what can help you learn. She urged to never go back to it after that initial reading. Let it serve its purpose if it is to do you any good.

Naysayers can suck, but their words can make you stronger. Everyone has their own taste, but the goal is to write something that you know came from your best effort. And using the feedback constructively can drive a writer to do even better the next time.

Prove them wrong! Know you are going to continue to grow as a writer and a person by never letting yourself stay in a rut. Right - write - on!

Saw this today and love it!

"A critic can only review the book he has read, not the one which the writer wrote."
MIGNON MCLAUGHLIN

writerunboxed.com

Everyone who writes should read that statement.  Thanks, Goodreads!

Let's try this!

That's "let's" in the proverbial sense of everybody on the internet being the us in the contraction of "let us."  Let's try this experiment ... making my novella "Contained" available FREE on Amazon for the next five days.  

Another author recently wrote on Blogspot of his experience doing so with great success (see David Kazzie).  He had upwards of 100 comments on his entry, including my own, which is more people than have probably ever visited my blog here and on Wordpress combined.  Unfortunately, my combined count probably includes how many times I've viewed them myself.

Regardless, I'm hoping to see some sort of impact.  My inner debate is whether I would rather see people download it simply for the exposure (but, of course, critical reviews to possibly follow) or leave it up for the measly price of $0.99 for the selling factor.  There has been a handful of interest, or I should say willingness to read it for free, through my Goodreads friends.  They are mainly avid readers I "know" through a different online community.  It is good to see my title listed there, though.

It narrows down to a purpose for my writing in the first place, and I have to ask myself if it is writing for writing's sake.  I like to think of it as a personal outlet more than being a desire for others to take notice.   

The freebie is offered through February 6, and perhaps sales will have a jump if people then see it "Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought..." section.  There's also the matter of not getting ahead of myself.  Ego gets a person nowhere in my opinion.  It took me 44 years to get to this point with my writing, so what's the hurry, right?

  

As I dip my toe into these experimental waters, I hope to enjoy the swim.