Author: Marina Skynnar

I love writing even with writers' block, lack of time, lack of focus, lack of motivation. After reading that previous sentence, why would I even try to scribe. Seriously, I love the craft, the way the characters come to life in my brain. They give me direction and let me know when I'm mucking up the story.

Giving of Thanks- The End is in Sight

Almost done with the first draft

I have to hand it to the NaNoWriMo challenge. Other than when I reinjured my ankle and wallowed for five days in my pain and stupidity, I’ve actually written every single day.

Some days it’s only a couple hundred words, but it’s given me a good building block to get something written every single day. Even if I’m not sharing it here, I am getting it done!

Will definitely need the help from my partner in crime cleaning up the “battle” scene. It’s not really a battle, but there’s a bunch of chaos and @jaybederwehl is very good at chaos!

Today was an incredible day. Almost 4k words!

Can you give me a “Hell yeah”!

Thanks!!

Anyway…. I’m a little fried now. So I’m going to stop here for the day. I’ll bring my notebook into the house though and maybe get some notes down.

I will finish the first draft by the end of the weekend!

HELL YEAH!

Have a fantastic weekend!

m

It’s Actually Happening

Now that my ankle is revealing. I am doing my best to write a bit each day for NaNoWriMo. Granted most days are barely 500 words.

Its something at least.

Today was a good day. Just a tad over fifteen hundred words.

BUT… as I was sitting here on the couch, numbing my mind with a bit of reisling and a mobile game….

I CAME UP WITH THE ENDING!!!

Thankfully I brought my trusty dusty note pad in with me and proceeded to write 2.5 pages of a rough outline.

I could very well have this wrapped up by the end of the month.

O

M

G

I am totally gonna get this done! I am beyond elated and also quite amazed the I can see the finish line.

Anyway… time for more reisling.

Cheers!

m

Well I Did it.

I committed myself on NaNoWriMo… 50k words during the month of November.

Not off to a heart pounding start. 700 some odd words the first day, not even 300 yesterday. I’m stumbling up on geography. Don’t ask me why I feel the need to make things geographically accurate in a fictitious, well mostly fictitious location.

I blame it on Harry Dresden, he is always very descriptive about where he’s at in Chicago, and where he’s going. So now I must at least give a semblance of accuracy. So today I break out topographical maps… because altitudes matter.

Also, another one of my former writing buddies is on NaNoWriMo and he’s written an impressive 4k words in the last couple of days. I’m extremely jealous. Check him out at TheMindofScott @ https://themindofscott.wordpress.com/

I will be back home within the next day or so, and hopefully this weekend will bring some inspiration.

cheers!

m

NaNoWriMo is Here!

I am going to do it!!! Well, once I get my registration completed. My page won’t load so I can’t actually create a password.. but still!

Yes. I shall persevere!

The workday is done!

I am nomming on a salad.

I have already elbowed Mr Bederwehl @ https://feloniusinsult.com. Maybe we can entice him to participate as well.

If you’re not sure about what I’m referring to, check it out here… https://nanowrimo.org/

Now to figure out why the page won’t load, every other freaking page does.

Ugh.

m

Well That Didn’t go Quite Like I Wanted

Well… I thought about writing, I did. Truly. I even found a trajectory of sorts for the remainder of the plot…

However…. I wrote about 2.5 sentences. Total. That’s not including the 1.5 sentences I wrote today.

Ugh.

BUT… there’s always a but isn’t there- I did get to spend some awesome time with a couple of the kids. I haven’t been able to do that since I decided to break bones.

Good news is I got my kid fix and my kids got the mom fix.

That to me is a win.

And by the by… the photo in yesterday’s blog and today’s blog (I try not to reuse) is a natural rock cropping in Baja. If you look closely or not so closely it looks like a profile to me.

Meet Dave. Dave will be introduced in book 2. Dave is real.

Gonna try and tap the keys and get a page or two done.

cheers!

m

Imposter Theory v Avoidance

The first time I ever heard about this was a couple of years ago. My coworker did a presentation on it for our group.

Imposter theory, what a concept. Fake it ’til you make it…

It sent floods of shivers up and down my spine. I don’t think there was a single word in that presentation that I didn’t either agree with or identify with.

I’ve seen some memes with that premise as well.

It’s a real thing, yessiree.

So…. If I don’t actually ever finish my book (glances at the taskbar with the document pinned) then I won’t actually fail, because I’ll never know.

Avoidance is easier.

Not the right choice, but yes, so so so much easier.

That said it’s time for me to get on the downslide of finishing this dang book!

I’ll come back tomorrow with a report on progress.

Epic Fail

So up until now, sitting at the beach has been a great inspiration for writing. The creative juices flow and I get page after page after page jotted down either hand written or typed in format.

Key words there being until now.

This time we had internets and I had work to do. Granted working next to the waves and sand is something I’d do on any given day, however trying to feel creative after 40 plus hours of the grind?

Um, yeah not so much.

I didn’t even touch any jewelry either.

I need to figure something out, because I need to accomplish all three at my dream destination.

But it’s put the book on even more of a delay.

*insert forlorn sigh here*

cheers!

m

Plot? Um, Yeah…. Suuure

Like a lot of folks out there, I LOVE scrolling through the book of Face. These days I particularly love the author memes that come across my feed.

A good many of them are quite affirming. Like how when I sit down determined to write and by the time I close the lid, I have at most a paragraph because I was too busy scrolling, perusing, searching for various things that may (but probably not) be related to what I’m writing.

It seems that is more common than I thought.

Some of them are downright funny. Of course my mind went blank as soon as I typed that… I’ll ponder or look for one and report back with funniness (promise).

Some are inspirational such as how many times xx author’s manuscript was rejected before some publishing house finally took a chance. A good many of them were before self publishing, but that matters not! It’s meant as inspiration and inspirational it shall be!

However, there are others that talk and mock about the absence of a plot prior to writing. The fly by the seat of your pants option- the one that I typically prefer- is not the best option.

Hmmph.

Well crap.

Well how about if I know kinda how I want it to go? Heck I can’t even remember how this story line popped into my head let alone chart its course ahead of time.

(insert sigh here)

Oh well. I have characters that are ringing the doorbell for an audience and I didn’t even know they existed!! Plan? Plot?

pffft.

I’m gonna stick to winging it.

Cheers!

m

Holy Moly

What the heck did I do to myself. I’ve been an absentee partner. Dang. Sorry ’bout that.

I guess I let my head get wrapped around other things and not writing.

However, I’ve had a blast scrolling through facebook and tiktok.

I accomplished many smiles looking at pittie videos, but nothing as far as progress.

I shall try to do better. In fact, I have the laptop all fired up and I’m ready to dig into the book.

I have a confrontation coming between siblings in this chapter. I’m not sure if there will be casualties, or if Dani will simply bring her brother to his knees with her demands that they help their mother. (Long story why, you’ll have to read the book to find out more).

Anyway, time to get productive.

Cheers!

m