***********************************
Alooooha!
What? It's 2013 already?
I haven't blogged for aeons, but I'm not going to apologize for it. Sometimes, it's just not possible and that's just the way it is. The clock keeps on ticking and life keeps demanding for attention. Priorities matter, and unless I'm finally able to clone myself, I can't do everything.
So. 2013. A new year, a new beginning, eh? And countless possibilities. My family and I kicked off the new year with a trip to the lovely, and ever sunny, Aloha state of Hawai'i. We left behind the snow and cold for tropical smoothies and sun-kissed beaches. It was fun to take my kids to the places that were meaningful to me and my husband. (Backstory: I lived there while going to school. Hubs and I were both students at the same university. We fell in love and got married, before moving to another state. Some people thought we were crazy for leaving paradise. On cold winter days, I believe them. ;D)
View from our hotel deck |
Anyway, I didn't write while I was away. I didn't read. Or think. I just let myself be in the moment. It was wonderful, and a much needed break. Last November, I was struggling with my NaNoWriMo WIP. It wasn't that I had writer's block--in fact, I wrote almost everyday until baby boy got sick with a nasty ear infection, and then writing was impossible after that. It was that the WIP was a truly a work-in-progress--a very rough, cringeworthy first draft. It didn't feel right--the tone, the voice, the plot. I loved my characters, but the writing was just...just meh.
I'm not a fast drafter. I take my time because I want to get it right--or close to right--the first time. Some would think this is counterproductive. We're taught to learn how to word vomit then do tons of revisions after. I'm not this way. I don't word vomit--I carefully measure my words the first time around because I know that voice and tone are a lot harder to revise later on. So anyway, I eventually finished NaNo with 30K words. Not bad at all, even though I didn't win.
December came. I restarted my NaNo WIP from scratch, using what I've written during November as reference. The holidays are always hectic so I had to make room for that, which meant, not a lot of writing got done. Then after Christmas came, it was time to start packing. I hammered out almost 2K of new words before we were out the door. I didn't bring my laptop with me so I wouldn't be tempted to work during our vacation.
Now we're home and I'm back to writing. The words come easily because I've had time to recharge mentally. I'm in love with the WIP all over again. Which is always a good thing.
So, if you don't see me around the web, I'm probably having a date with my Word doc, in the world of Sleepy Eye town and its inhabitants. I'm 3 chapters in so I have a loooong way to go, but I'm the tortoise, not the hare. I will get to the end and I will win. There are no other options.
I'm closing this post with a big ALOHA to all of you! I hope you all had a great start to your New Year, too.
- Precy Larkins
- I'm a YA writer who loves to read. Also a mom of 3. My life is crazy but always fun. :) I'm a member of The YA Club, a group blog about YA books. You can also find me blogging at: http://precylarkins.wordpress.com Represented by the lovely Julia A. Weber of J. A. Weber Literaturagentur GmbH. Thanks for stopping by! Email me: writercherie@gmail.com
Followers
READING CHALLENGE
Blog Archive
My Blog List
-
IWSG & Blogging News8 months ago
-
-
-
-
Social Media Links6 years ago
-
EBP Launches New Anthology6 years ago
-
This Blog Is Moving!6 years ago
-
Review Copies Available!!6 years ago
-
-
-
-
-
-
The blog is moving to tumblr!8 years ago
-
Sunlight and Sea Magic8 years ago
-
-
What's Up 20168 years ago
-
CANNON COVER REVEAL!9 years ago
-
The Final Chapter9 years ago
-
Settling Your Palate9 years ago
-
-
-
-
The best writing advice10 years ago
-
Pink Camellias in January10 years ago
-
-
-
-
-
12 comments:
Happy New Year to you!!
I'm a slow drafter, too (well, compared to some people). Even so, I still consider my first drafts a hot mess, lol. Ah well. As long as I can push out one completed novel a year, I'm happy :)
Glad to hear you had a nice and relaxing vacation. Sometimes it's nice to put aside the writing and reading and just enjoy the moment :)
Happy New Year! That sounds like an amazing place to start it. But I couldn't see the pic... :(
It's an interesting point about getting it almost right first time. I know for me revisions can be tortuous. But then I might end up changing things a lot, and having to write a lot of new material even after the first draft's done.
Glad you're back in the groove with the WIP! I also did NaNo, finishing up with 34k. I didn't write at all over the holidays, and this week was my first one back writing. It was hard to start but I'm getting there now!
Happy 2013! :)
Good luck with your WIP and hooray for loving the project again!
Hawaii for New Year's? WOW!! That sounds like a dream come true to me.
Best wishes for 2013! :-)
Hi, missed you. Hope you and the baby are doing well.
Wondered where you were. Now I'm envious!
Sounds like you had a wonderful time. I've always wanted to visit Hawaii.
Best wishes for 2013
Mental Recharge--that's my new band. ♪♫♪♫♪
Glad you're home and writing again. The world needs more of your beautiful words.
Love you!
Aloha!!! Glad you got a mental recharge! Happy writing!
Aloha! Have a great 2013.
Aloha and cheers to a great 2013! I just got back from a 5 day cruise, and it was sooo nice to not do a darn thing for once!
"I'm the tortoise, not the hare. I will get to the end and I will win. There are no other options."- Wow, best words for this new week!
I've been mad at myself for writing my third draft at a pretty slow pace. Nice to see those words up there!
Post a Comment
Thanks for stopping by!