Thankfulness: 14 Reasons for Me to Give Thanks

In the spirit of Thanksgiving, here are some things that I am thankful for.  I have seen a lot of lists of things that other people have made.

There are something things that always appear on these lists.
Family, Friends, Health, Faith, and I am thankful of all of that and a whole lot more. I thought fourteen things for 2014 sounded good. So here I go.

1. An income, though small I still have some.
2. Free Time. I am blessed with free time to work on my writing, crafts, art, etc.
3. Connecting. Spending time with my family and friends. Real time talking to each other, in the same room.
4. No Big Worries. Not having to worry about a lot of things because I know they are in God's hands. He's awesome!
5. Learning. I am thankful that I am still learning. There is something new everyday.
6. Humor. It makes the everyday stuff better.
7. Sleep. Long, uninterrupted sleep. You don't know how important it is until you don't have it anymore.
8. Freedom. We live in the land of the brave and the free. Too often we take that for granted. We think "well if it's free, then it can't be worth much." Or ask "Is it really free?" I know a lot of things are not so Free, (too good to be true and all that), but there is a lot you can do with freedom. Creative ideas, inspiration. Free Thought. Free Speech.
9. Recycling. Reusing what we have in better ways. Not only does it save the environment and keep stuff out of landfills, it helps us break out our creative mojo and think outside the box.
10. Motivation. Sure, it comes from a lot of different sources, in every color, shape and size, but it's important and helps us move along. It is unique for everyone and I have a blast researching things to keep me motivated.
11. Perseverance. The second wind, the last push. I am thankful that I can keep going to get the job done. (Especially when it is something that I really don't want to be doing, but it still needs to get done.)
12. Love. I have never felt unloved. My family, my friends tell me I am loved, and loveable. Share the love.
13. Patience. I am thankful that I am learning patience. It really is something that can be learned, thought often it is a struggle (for me at least).
14. Self-control. I am coming to realize just what this can mean. I am in control of my choices, my thoughts and how I see the world. I am thankful for the fact that I have self-control, and that I can step up to the plate and be accountable for my actions and learn from them. I can learn to use self-control and improve some of the more problematic areas of my life.

So there are my fourteen things to be thankful for.

To all of you, a belated, Happy Thanksgiving.

NaNoWrMo Winner!

WINNER! 

As of today, writers are able to validate there novels and get the official WINNER badge (digital). As you can guess, I already did. The 50k word goal is mine. I'm still writing, but have also started to edit my novel. 

       Thanks to my sister's MAC I have my novel read to me as I edit. I have the habit of missing those sneaky words that are not supposed to be there, but are still spelled correctly.

I've created a term for this, though I'm sure others have probably done so before now. I call it being "Author Blind." It's when you read your work and you see what you wanted to write rather than what is actually on the page. I often do that. Missing diction issues, and word choices, like the difference between chose and choose or no noticing you have he instead of her or the. But there are ways to overcome being "Author Blind."

    I found an add on for Word Doc called Grammerly, it comes with a monthly fee, but it helps to do more than spell checking while you're editing. Of course you can ignore some of its suggestions as I did. Some things are just my style of writing, and I like them that way. Over all I found it extremely helpful, but only purchased one month, (even though it was more expensive per month than one of the longer subscriptions) I was sure I'd only use it for a month and didn't want to pay for something I wasn't actively using.  I might purchase another month when I pledge to revise my novel with the NaNoWriMo website.

Usually, I have family and friends that are kind enough to proofread for me. I really do enjoy their opinions and suggestions. All of them are avid readers and I trust their opinion on my work, though I pick and choose which suggestions I will employ. I often get impatient, and edit my novel while they have it, which can lead to redundancy in editing, but oh well. I just can't wait!

I like to edit at least twice before handing something over and these tools can help me have a slightly more polished novel. I'm not saying it's perfect at this point, only that I want them to look at content rather than spelling and grammar issues. The little stuff can be so distracting.

P.S. NaNoWriMo Winner T-Shirts are now available on their website for those of you who have met the word goal! They are so cool this year!! I plan to get one soon! TTFN!

Singing in the Rain

     This post is more about a miracle than anything else. I'm sure everyone has heard about the terrible drought in California, right? While we have had a few showers, none have been enough to replace the water we don't have. Many of those rainstorms were around where I live, but didn't give us more than a few minutes of sprinkles.
     Well, I got up tonight and what did I hear? Rain! A steady, down pour of rain. Thank You LORD! The sound of raindrops dinging off my aluminum patio cover sent a happy warmth through my entire body. I've always been a lover of rain, and cloudy days. I hope we have more soon.


On another topic, very much related to cloudy days, is my love of books. I'm more of a book hoarder or a bibliophile. Books make me happy. And while I do enjoy the convenience of my Kindle, I love printed books. So I thought I'd share some of my favorites.

Romance:
The Dark Series by Christine Feehan (She has many other wonderful series, but I was introduced to her with this one.
The Tairen Soul (quartette) by C.W. Wilson

Young Adult:
Harry Potter 1-7 By J.K. Rowling
Wild Magic (Immortals) by Tamora Peice (She has several books all set in the same world. I love if when familiar characters pop up in the other books!)


Fantasy:
The Blue Sword by Robin McKinley
The Paper Magician by Charlie N. Holmberg
The Glass Magician by Charlie N. Holmberg
Sabriel by Garth Nix


Classics:
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell
Persuacion by Jane Austen


Collection of Short Stories (any genre):
The Bloody Chamber by Angela Carter
The Short Stories of Ernest Hemingway

Week Three Of NaNoWriMo

     Week Three is the start of the up hill trek to the finish. For many they have blown their word count out of the water. For others its time to get to work. The goal is to keep going. Sure we might edit out half of what we wrote during the editing period, but it's a jumping off point.
    For me it holds a look at the finish line, and a whole lot of work yet to be done. I have a list of things that I want to add in from items the characters carry around with them to several scenes to help build some side character that will foreshadow some events and reappear with force.
      So here's a high-five for those of you who are writing your hearts out. I hope that more than meeting word goals, or deadlines, that NaNoWriMo's enjoy the process, the community, and the creative cloud.

Write On!

From Cover to Cover

Update: NaNoWriMo is in full swing and on day 9 my sister surprised me with some cover ideas for The Chronicles of Odde: The Lost Prince. I thought I'd share them with you! I am always surprised at what she can do! Thanks Sister!

They really are lovely! Thanks again, Melli!

Building a Fantasy World

     The Chronicles of Odde takes place on a fictional world, on a continent called Odde. Building a fantasy world sounds easy, right? That's not really the case, at least not for me. It takes a lot of work, research, and rearranging to get the detail just right.

     As a writer, my characters are already inhabiting their fantasy world and often I can literally see it in my minds eye, in rich and vivid detail. Problem is, my mental images, while colorful, aren't exactly architectural blueprints. That is to say, when I look at them logically, the don't always make sense.  

     Have you ever been in a dream, and walked through a house where the rooms switched on you, or entered some random room that didn't belong there. My ideas work something like that. When building a place, such as a castle, I have a general idea of its layout, the style in which it was built, the lives of its occupants, but the specifics are harder to iron out. That's why I draw a blueprint or a map. 

    Even a rough sketch can be helpful in figuring out the details of a setting. For example, I often find that I have a room that couldn't exist. While I know that one room is connected to another, when I get it on paper I sometimes find that floors don't match up, or there's an extra door down the hall that shouldn't be there. Most people might think, "why would that matter? The reader will never know." And perhaps they would be right, but as a proclaimed 'perfectionist' it comes down to a simple fact: I would know. And it drives me crazy!

     I have spent hours researching castle designs, looking up map making tips, random images and names of places, both real and fictional. All in the hopes that something will trigger some creative spark to bend the piece of information to my purpose. I put my personal stamp on what I find and add it to my collection to be used at just the right spot in my story. 

     Unfortunately, I amass ideas quicker than I use them. Being a 'perfectionist' also means that I won't settle for something that is 'okay,' I need just the right one. Like there is such a thing... and yet I sometimes find it. Truly, the 'Aha! Perfect!' moments make the endless hours worth it.

While many readers overlook the maps and appendices authors often insert into their works, you should know that a lot of time and effort go into their creation. You don't know just how much. So next time, take a moment to appreciate that map and enjoy the world they've built for you. I know I will!

Christmas Movies and Midnight Snacks

     Update: NaNoWriMo in full swing.

     Tonight has been a long night. I found myself watching Christmas Movies on Hallmark and eating snacks. I felt like eating everything in sight, and sugar was high on my list. I'm not recommending this as a way to write, but it was rather pleasant (for the most part).  I must say that I didn't write as much as I usually do, and it was touch and go around the distraction of my television, but I got it done. 

     Sometimes you just need to push through. Speaking of which, I think several people in my household are coming down with something. There are coughs coming from several different directions, mine included.

     On another hand, it's Time to Celebrate!!! Half-way to the 50,000 word goal. WOOT!!!

Word Count: 25,328!!!

Happy Dance!!

Happy NaNoWriMo, Write On!