a writer, planner & cat blogger
It’s almost that time of the year again: National Novel Writing Month, known to non-writers asĀ November, where we silly writers attempt to write 50,000 words in 30 days.
I’m not sure yet if I’ll be participating this November, but there can never be too many goodies for those who do. I put together a little Survival Kit checklist to help you get through the month!
Continue reading “NANOWRIMO Survival Kit”
There are post-its all over your house, you’ve got roughly fifty notebooks with half of this scene in here and this profile in there, a dozen apps open on your computer, and various binders or stacks of loose papers with sketches and print-outs and hand-drawn maps on this shelf and that shelf.
Yet, whenever you want to find that one piece of information or fact-check the sentence you just wrote, you have no idea which of your many sources of notes to look in or if this version of that character is more up-to-date than that version.
If this is you, then it’s probably time to set yourself up with a story bible.
I’m feeling a bit spotty for September! Or would you prefer the plaid? ;D
By the way, I’m altering my posting schedule to focus on resources and advice for writers. That means I’ll only be posting twice a month, with an article or tutorial on the first Monday of the month and a freebie on the third.
This will be the last set of calendar wallpapers I release. Enjoy!
When I can write, my daily average is around 2,500 words (though I can easily hit 8-10,000 if I’m on a roll). I can keep up that pace for a month or two, just long enough to get a full draft out of NANOWRIMO, but then I might not write again for a year.
This is a motivational wallpaper for yourĀ iPad. Write like your life depends on it!
Continue reading “Your Life Depends On It Wallpaper for iPad”
Do you love flamingos? How about watermelons?
I don’t actually like watermelons to eat, but they’re such a summer icon that I find them irresistible in graphics. And since I joined the decorative planner community, flamingos have become my favourite bird.
So, here: enjoy these brilliant summer wallpaper calendars while the heat is on!
If you’re a true beginning writer, you’ll have very little notion of where to start or how you can get from an idea to a full concept you can write about.
Even if you’ve been at this game for a long time, it can still feel overwhelming to sit down at your computer with intent to write or build a world only to realise that you have no idea where to even begin.
I remember spending hours searching for tutorials and examples from other writers for various things, from “how to get started” to “how to organise notes”. It’s frustrating to realise you’re pretty much on your own.
You have to figure out what works for you and that will involve aĀ lot of trial and error as you test approaches and discard the ones that just don’t inspire you or don’t lead you anywhere except into dead ends.
So if the research process is so subjective, why are we here? Why did I bother writing a post just to say “I can’t help you”?
Because I might not be able to talk you through it step by step, but I can show you what works for me. Continue reading “My Research Process”
When I was twelve, my dad was diagnosed with severe depression and anxiety. The first I ever knew of his inner struggle was when he came home from work one day in the midst of what appeared to be a heart attack.
It seems like music playlists are big among writers. I’ve seen people spend inordinate amounts of time coming up with the perfect soundtrack for their characters, especially in the roleplaying world. It’s as inspiring to them as art and maps are to me.
Is the summer heating up, or is that just me?
Honestly, I don’t even like summer. I hate being hot or even remotely warm. I overheat easily. It makes me feel sick, gives me a headache, and makes me feel generally icky.
But since I started following the planner community, I’ve discovered a new love for all thingsĀ summer fun. Flamingoes. Summer blooms. The colour red. And, you guessed it:Ā cacti.
