Day 21 of NaNoWriMo (not making the full 50k, no chance).
But I wrote the final chapter, which is a bedscene, basically, just skipping the actual deed. The Epilogue will be Christmas Eve, with the presents and everything.
And I'm stuck on presents? Who gets what? I need presents for Mark, Fred, Alex, Maria (Alex' mom) and Luka (Alex' friend).
Ideas? Please help me out!
Day 20 of NaNoWriMo, and I feel like I'm done. Didn't write again.
I know what I need to do to finish the story: One more sweet chapter and the epilogue (which will be Christmas Eve). And then I need to go through the thing and sprinkle Christmas stuff all over it. Plus add more emotions and heartbreak just before the showdown.
It's all very doable, but today I went and hibernated again... well, not quite. I sent out an invoice for my proofreading and added a video to my new FediChannel.
So it's not a lost day at all.
Instead of a snippet, would you help me find a better name for the Villain? Can you pick a German name that you'd love to hate?
I need to find a word for those days that feel as if I'm locked in a dark cave or something. No writing. Lots of reading and playing Titan Quest.
In good news, I managed to order the cover for A Wolf's Christmas today, so that's a huge step forward. Should have it next weekend. I'm quite excited about that, because the cover designer has always managed to pick faces that work really well with my characters.
I also set up my video channel on PeerTube, which is the Fediversion of YouTube, just without ads, algorithms and spying on people. It's part of my move away from the TechBro internet, at least much as possible. You can actually subscribe to it! And there is an RSS feed, not that it's worth it for my rare video.
https://makertube.net/c/hannahs_words_and_more/videos
So some stuff happened, just no writing. I'm trying to be okay with that.
I'm building a larger foothold in the Fediverse - just uploaded my first ever video to MakerTube.
It's the first of five fairly short videos I made pretty much exactly three years ago, of me reading one of my reader magnet short stories. Prince Elsen's ride is a quick adventure for a much repressed prince, his dragonrider friend Gerrik and the dragon Fingin. I'll post the other videos soon.
Start here: https://makertube.net/w/wsEKduxwNX64WnBeBBFSBf
Day 18 of NaNoWriMo, and suddenly, the Wolf Novella is almost done. Wrote 1500 words today.
The showdown happened a lot faster than I expected, but Mark had no patience left, and the villain lost his nerves anyway.
Now I have one really sweet chapter left to write and decided that the Epilogue will be Christmas Eve. Looks like the story will clock in a little under 40k.
Day was weird. I did quite a few chores while waiting for our janitor. He never came, and I hate that. I would have liked to go on a long walk... I also had a lovely chat with my sister and then a Zoom with a friend. Good for the soul.
Have some Wolves:
It took ages for the police to sort through everything. Fred was an absolute star and handled all the officials with skill and calm. Alex and I got away with pretending to be dogs, and none of the police even questioned our presence. One of them even patted my head and praised me for defending Maria. I wagged my tail for her, but we spent most of the time lazing around in the kitchen.
Yesterday, I tried a new author with a new romance series. Yes, shifters, yes, MM.
It was okay. Modern setting, with a feudal system, (Dragon King is the king of all shifters), and a nice court intrigue story. Also hilarious Christmas sweaters and a few strong women as side characters.
If you want to check it out, here it is: "Notorious" (Shifter Scoundrels Book 1) by Charlie Cochet and Macy Blake.
Guten Morgen.
Here's the promised post with a snippet of what I wrote yesterday. (It is getting harder to find passages that do not contain spoilers... but I doubt that what I'm sharing is a huge spoiler, especially if you read my series.)
Writer Brain also ambushed me again at night, and I have another new series idea, this time Vampires with a twist. Not quite the never-ending series that the Shifters offer, but similar. A bit darker than my usual stuff, maybe, with a romance subplot and happy for now endings.
Yes, I have an ideas folder. I truly need to live a few hundred years to write all the books I want to write. (Does anyone know a friendly vampire or demigod who could grant me a nice extension of my lifetime?)
Have some Wolf:
It was a relief to have Mark sitting next to me. He still looked like hell and he carried himself as if in great pain, but he was alive and, well, going to be fine.
That kiss kept playing out in my memory.
I knew what it meant. Every Wolf girl did.
It was a surprise and yet it wasn’t.
Being with Mark had always been fun and easy. He treated me like an equal, he celebrated my successes and commiserated with me when I messed up. And I did the same for him.
Playing dog for him was just as much fun.
Day 16 of NaNoWriMo and I wrote 2412 words. Suddenly got on a roll.
I'm also getting closer to the end of the story. Still need to figure out the big showdown - I have a feeling the villain will not survive the end of the story, although murder is a tricky thing in Germany. Maybe they'll disappear him in a clever way...
I'm feeling better, at least about writing. Still haven't ordered the cover, the snag is getting the description written. But today was an office day, and they always steal quite a bit of energy. Plus my night was rudely interrupted and lack of sleep makes me stupid.
Have some Wolf fun (Alex is in Wolf shape):
Luka scrambled onto the bench in the back, and Alex jumped in with him. Moments later, we were off, the goon driving fast, but not erratically. Maybe he had bought into our plan.
Nobody was inclined to talk much. Alex gave a growl or two, and I assumed that Luka had tried to touch him once again.
“Your dog doesn’t like me,” he eventually said.
“No”, I answered simply, and Alex huffed.
“I like dogs,” Luka went on, sounding a little miffed.
“This is not your average dog,” I said, doing my best to hide my smile. Luka had no idea, and I wouldn’t enlighten him just yet.
Day 15 of NaNoWriMo, and I wrote 2k words. That actually feels good, and they flowed well.
I'm at a very tense moment in the story - Fred believes that Mark is most likely dead. (I will relieve that tension soon enough, and then they'll move into rescue and finally showdown mode.)
I'm also almost ready to commission the cover. Looked up the designer, and she's still there and taking orders. Unfortunately, I need to write a description for the book to go on the back cover. At least I know what I want on the front.
And don't laugh, but I also need to decide how Fred and Mark actually look. I have a sense of them, but no visual. Fred has German ancestors, so brunette and "normal", but I might give Mark some PoC ancestors for a change. I don't think he's Black, I never got that vibe, but at least something. I'll tell the designer, and she'll do something great with it.
Have some Fred. (Alex is in Wolf shape.)
These goons had killed Mark. I had to face that brutal fact, because Luka had admitted that those were their orders.
The rage I felt at that thought was frightening. Right now, I was ready to tear out their throats with my bare hands. If they had killed Mark, they did not deserve to live. And I would find Frank next and do the same to him.
I heard a car pull into the yard and hissed. I also heard Alex’s nails click on the floor as he jumped to his feet.
“Sit,” Luka whispered, and I hid a laugh.
Alex would definitely not listen to his former friend.
Car doors slammed, shoes crunched on wet gravel.
Someone laughed, and the fury inside me burned even stronger.
Day 14 of NaNoWriMo, and I got nothing.
Yesterday was probably too big of a push. Getting up very early today might have added to it all. I'm also realizing I'm not putting enough of the German Christmas traditions into the story, which means heavier editing than I like.
And I even have my first buyer for the story if I get it out fast. bangs head against desk
Brain is this mix of stress, anxiety, anger and frustration. Because this month is the absolute worst in book sales in over a year. I haven't sold a single book on Amazon (but I have almost 200 free downloads, yay). Sold a couple on Google Play Store. All of this despite a paid promo early this month.
I do have the plot sorted out. I know what I'll do for the minor antagonist, while the major antagonist will not escape unscathed. I just have to write it, and that's where I fail.
Tomorrow is a new day. deep breath
Reading comfort books (i.e. books that I know, that don't stress me out with their tension, books that soothe me on some level).
Right now, that's a series of MM romances called Ward Security. They take place in a world of - well, not quite Mafia Romance, but close to it. Nothing fantasy or supernatural in there, just adventure, some violence and sweet romance. And well, it's also a bit of an inside joke if you read the whole world.
Have a link, just be aware that you probably should start with "The Unbreakables" if you're interested in that kind of thing.
Ward Security: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07SH9GMC5
Day... never mind. NaNo is basically done.
Didn't write today, but I survived the office day, an unexpected change of plans, had a loooong and very good phone call with an old friend and former colleague and found an awesome new review for West Flows on Amazon DE.
In addition, I got a preview of the cover for A Wolf's Christmas and it's already looking amazing. It needs a tweak or two, and then it'll be brilliant. I'll probably show it off in a couple of days.
I have most of the Christmas presents sorted. Yes, there will be two ugly Christmas Sweaters. I just had to... chocolate, maple syrup, and possibly a book (still have to figure out which one).
Even so, let me hear your brilliant ideas about more presents!
(Oh, and I just got my nephew to send me pics of Frankfurt Airport so I can get the Christmas deco right. That will make the editing so much more fun!)
Have today's sunrise in lieu of a snippet.