The storms that came through here Thursday blew my dish out of allignment so now I'm not getting any signal. I'm at WhataBurger using their wifi now. I'll be back soon though, the repair guy will be out probably Tuesday.
I'm going to schedule a couple posts though. Each one will have a writing related affirmation so be sure to check in and then post your daily progress in the comment section.
So, get ready...write well and remember, have fun.
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Lasagna...
Sorry I missed a couple days...our internet has been iffy. We have a dish on top of the house and when it rains, we often have no internet.
This afternoon I fixed a big pan of lasagna for dinner. And boy was it really good. But, as I was eating I happened to glance at my plate in search of the next cheesy, meaty bite of goodness and was struck just how much writing a novel was like creating a great pan of lasagna.
Each ingredient in lasagna is needed and lends a special flavor.
Same thing with a novel. There are so many different ingredients that HAVE to be there in the right amounts. You must have characters, conflict, plot, twists, dialogue, description, exposition, and structure just to name a few.
Then, once you have all the ingredients, they still have to be layered in correctly.
So, during these last few days, gather up all your ingredients. Get you pan and be ready to start cooking on the first of Nov.
Remember...if you want to have your progress meter added to the side, just send me the html code and I'll be happy to add it.
This afternoon I fixed a big pan of lasagna for dinner. And boy was it really good. But, as I was eating I happened to glance at my plate in search of the next cheesy, meaty bite of goodness and was struck just how much writing a novel was like creating a great pan of lasagna.
Each ingredient in lasagna is needed and lends a special flavor.
Same thing with a novel. There are so many different ingredients that HAVE to be there in the right amounts. You must have characters, conflict, plot, twists, dialogue, description, exposition, and structure just to name a few.
Then, once you have all the ingredients, they still have to be layered in correctly.
So, during these last few days, gather up all your ingredients. Get you pan and be ready to start cooking on the first of Nov.
Remember...if you want to have your progress meter added to the side, just send me the html code and I'll be happy to add it.
Saturday, October 24, 2009
Progress Meters
One of the cool things about the NaNo website is it's progress meter. It's a boost to see the numbers add up and the progress bar change color.
But, you can't do much with that progress meter and you can't take it other places. So, check out the progress meter at StoryToolz.
This progress meter can be added to a blog, website or what have you and each time you update it at the StoryToolz site, it automatically updates the word count.
So, if' you'd like to share your progress meter with all of us here, set one up then email me (jeanlauzier @ gmail.com) the code for it. I'll add it to the side board.
But, you can't do much with that progress meter and you can't take it other places. So, check out the progress meter at StoryToolz.
This progress meter can be added to a blog, website or what have you and each time you update it at the StoryToolz site, it automatically updates the word count.
So, if' you'd like to share your progress meter with all of us here, set one up then email me (jeanlauzier @ gmail.com) the code for it. I'll add it to the side board.
Friday, October 23, 2009
Free Stuff for Writers
yWriter I've heard this program mentioned several times but never checked into it until today. I spent the afternoon playing with it and so far I really like it. It doesn't have the bells and whistles a lot of programs have plus it won't write or come up with ideas for you but it will help you keep things organized.
Here's some info from the website:
Features:
Organise your novel using a 'project'.
Add chapters to the project.
Add scenes, characters, items and locations.
Display the word count for every file in the project, along with a total.
Saves a log file every day, showing words per file and the total. (Tracks your progress)
Saves automatic backups at user-specified intervals.
Allows multiple scenes within chapters
Viewpoint character, goal, conflict and outcome fields for each scene.
Multiple characters per scene.
Storyboard view, a visual layout of your work.
Re-order scenes within chapters.
Drag and drop of chapters, scenes, characters, items and locations.
Automatic chapter renumbering.
Changes from version 4:
There are lots of usability tweaks such as drag/dropping.
Full screen editor.
Automatic daily zip of the entire project.
NEW: Text-to-speech built into the text editor.
One thing I really like is the very detailed and easy to understand user guide. I sat down with the program this afternoon and had no trouble figuring it out. Naturally, this may not work for you, and that's cool but you might want to check it out.
45 Free Things For Writers I got this link from Twitter today. There are some cool things here.
Cheryl, this ----->Free Report – “The Non Celebrity’s Guide to Getting a Children’s Book Published” made me think of you. I didn't check it out but it might be worth it for you.:-)
Also another link I found today is TweetGrid. Now, you have to have a Twitter account for some of it but you are able to follow any twitter threads in a streaming format. Right now, I'm following #NaNoWriMo and getting any tweets that mention NaNoWriMo. It's kinda cool to see all the different tweets and people. Definitely a time sink but you can follow other topics that interest you so it could be useful.
On a more personal note...I think I've settled on my NaNo project finally. I'm 90% sure anyway. :-)
Here's some info from the website:
Features:
Organise your novel using a 'project'.
Add chapters to the project.
Add scenes, characters, items and locations.
Display the word count for every file in the project, along with a total.
Saves a log file every day, showing words per file and the total. (Tracks your progress)
Saves automatic backups at user-specified intervals.
Allows multiple scenes within chapters
Viewpoint character, goal, conflict and outcome fields for each scene.
Multiple characters per scene.
Storyboard view, a visual layout of your work.
Re-order scenes within chapters.
Drag and drop of chapters, scenes, characters, items and locations.
Automatic chapter renumbering.
Changes from version 4:
There are lots of usability tweaks such as drag/dropping.
Full screen editor.
Automatic daily zip of the entire project.
NEW: Text-to-speech built into the text editor.
One thing I really like is the very detailed and easy to understand user guide. I sat down with the program this afternoon and had no trouble figuring it out. Naturally, this may not work for you, and that's cool but you might want to check it out.
45 Free Things For Writers I got this link from Twitter today. There are some cool things here.
Cheryl, this ----->Free Report – “The Non Celebrity’s Guide to Getting a Children’s Book Published” made me think of you. I didn't check it out but it might be worth it for you.:-)
Also another link I found today is TweetGrid. Now, you have to have a Twitter account for some of it but you are able to follow any twitter threads in a streaming format. Right now, I'm following #NaNoWriMo and getting any tweets that mention NaNoWriMo. It's kinda cool to see all the different tweets and people. Definitely a time sink but you can follow other topics that interest you so it could be useful.
On a more personal note...I think I've settled on my NaNo project finally. I'm 90% sure anyway. :-)
Time to think about...Setting!!!
So, by now you should have your characters named and know a bit about them along with a general idea of what's going to happen in the story.
But, do you know your setting well? Have you spent time building your world?
If you are using a "real" place you can use maps and traffic light cameras and such.
However, if you are creating your world, where the heck do you start? Here!!! This is a "fantasy" world building questionaire but many of the questions apply to all world building.
This is another item I've copied and saved. I've not printed it out yet cause I think it's about 56 pages of just the questions and if you left space for answers it'd be lots longer. I do consider these questions as I build my world though.
So, get to world building!!!
But, do you know your setting well? Have you spent time building your world?
If you are using a "real" place you can use maps and traffic light cameras and such.
However, if you are creating your world, where the heck do you start? Here!!! This is a "fantasy" world building questionaire but many of the questions apply to all world building.
This is another item I've copied and saved. I've not printed it out yet cause I think it's about 56 pages of just the questions and if you left space for answers it'd be lots longer. I do consider these questions as I build my world though.
So, get to world building!!!
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Link Salad
Y'all get links tonight. I'm reading and can't think about much else. Wish I could sit up and read until book is finished but... Will tell y'all about it later.:-)
First...I LOVE Donald Maass. Well, not really since I've never met him but I love his books. Here's "4 Techniques to Fire Up Your Fiction" and includes exercises to apply to your WIP. I have his "Breakout Novel" and the workbook that goes along with it. I actually typed all the questions up and printed them out, added a cover page with the title of my novel and had it spiral bound for a couple bucks at an office supply store. Now, when it's time to go through all the exercises in the workbook, I won't have to mess up the book and can have it for later.
More on characters.
Tips for Finding More Writing Time
P&G is looking for "Bathroom Bloggers" and even pays. I think I'll pass though.:-)
First...I LOVE Donald Maass. Well, not really since I've never met him but I love his books. Here's "4 Techniques to Fire Up Your Fiction" and includes exercises to apply to your WIP. I have his "Breakout Novel" and the workbook that goes along with it. I actually typed all the questions up and printed them out, added a cover page with the title of my novel and had it spiral bound for a couple bucks at an office supply store. Now, when it's time to go through all the exercises in the workbook, I won't have to mess up the book and can have it for later.
More on characters.
Tips for Finding More Writing Time
P&G is looking for "Bathroom Bloggers" and even pays. I think I'll pass though.:-)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
