Whew, is it really almost July already? Camp NaNoWriMo is just around the corner again and I am very much looking forward to getting into that and working on something different for a while. June has been a wild month, with plenty of writing, blogging, and more. So, before we dive headfirst into the oncoming month, I thought it would be a bit of fun to look back at some of the good things that happened over the past few weeks. Let’s jump right in!
Writing
First up, I finally, finally finished all the proofing of my upcoming book, ‘The Crystal Tree’. I’m so paranoid about doing a good job with this book that I’ve been putting it through round after round of proofing, just in case. I read it through myself, and then I had two other people read it through as well, so I’m fairly confident that it’s as error free as I can make it, but I’m no less nervous! However, this does mean that I can finalise the documents ahead of publishing in August.
Another cool thing we did this month was reveal the cover for ‘The Crystal Tree’, I am so excited about finally being able to share it with you. I love my cover so much. One of my super talented sisters designed it for me, and personally I think it turned out beautifully. If you missed the reveal post, you can check it out here and see way more pictures of the book, plus a synopsis and more. Check it out!
The other big writing thing I’ve been doing this month is preparing for Camp NaNoWriMo. Now that ‘The Crystal Tree’ is practically finished, I been feeling like it’s time to move on and work on a different book for a while. So I’m jumping over to one of my pet projects to edit that during Camp. It’ll be lovely and refreshing to work on something else in a completely different style and genre for a little while. I’m looking forward to it.
Speaking of, I’m actually posting a bit more in-depth information about this project in my Monday post next week, so if you’d like to know a bit more about what I’ll be working on this July, keep an eye out for that!
Blogging
Of course, plenty of blogging happened during June as well. In case you missed them, here are three of my favourite posts from over the course of the month. Give them a read and let me know what you thought!
Using Social Media When You are An Introvert
“However, if you’re an introvert, like me, then spending a lot of time on social media interacting with hundreds of people might sound a bit daunting. We introverts only have a limited amount of social energy, and social media is very good at draining that incredibly quickly. Spend too much time on social media, and, no matter how lovely the people are, or how positive the interactions might be, I will invariably end up overwhelmed and in dire need of some solitude. Maybe you can relate.”
Self-Confidence And Why I Don’t Like The Label ‘Aspiring Writer’
“My definition of a writer is simple. Do you write? Yes? Then you are a writer. If you love writing, and if you write at all whether you write stories or poems or whatever writing form you prefer then you are a writer. Even if you only get to write in five minute bursts at the end of a day, you are still a writer. You are only an ‘aspiring writer’ if you are standing at the edge and are about to dip your toe into the world of writing, when you haven’t put pen to paper yet, when you haven’t started writing those worlds that life inside your head. That is when you’re aspiring to be a writer. If you’ve started writing though, you are a writer, no ‘aspiring’ about it.”
Learning To Like Editing By Discovering My Personal Process
“A huge part of learning to like editing has been about finding an editing process that worked for me. At the beginning, i tried everything. I read books about editing, searched blog post after blog post for tips. It’s such a process of trial and error. And the really surprising thing was that, when I did find my process, it was so much more orderly than I expected. I’m a pantser/discovery writer by nature. I don’t like plans and outlines. But when I edit, these things are essential.”
If you don’t follow me on Instagram yet, then you’re missing out! I post pretty picture, nice quotes, and reminders of when my new blog posts go live, plus more personal updates on how my writing is going, and my thoughts on different subjects. We should be friends over there!
Around The Web
And of course, we can’t finish a monthly round up post without talking about some of the cool things that I’ve discovered around the web. Here are a few of my favourites. Feel free to drop links to some of the cool things you’ve seen in the comments so we can all enjoy them!
“What’s Your Book About?” – THREE WAYS TO ANSWER
If you’ve ever been asked the dreaded question ‘So, what’s your book about?’ and struggled to come up with an answer, then this video is for you. Abbie has three awesome suggestions for how to answer this question if you’re stuck. Definitely something I need at the moment! Actually, you should just subscribe to Abbie’s channel in general, because all her videos are absolute gold.
5 Ways To Play With Story Structure
This is a really interesting post on some of the ways we could play around with story structure to enhance our books. Things like artwork, formatting, letters, and more. As a person who is finally, finally, getting around to reading ‘Illuminae’ by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff, seeing that as an example on the list made me excited. Also, I really, really want to play around with story structure myself now.
The Pros and Cons of Flash Fiction
This is another post that makes me want to challenge my writing skills and try something new. Flash fiction sounds so cool, and reading this post and all the pros will definitely make you want to try your hand at short fiction. Pretty much the only con is that you’re going to have to extend your writing skills, and since when has that ever been a bad thing?
Camp NaNoWriMo Photo Challenge
This Instagram photo challenge looks like a whole heap of fun. I’ve never taken part in a photo challenge, but I’m thinking of maybe joining in with this one. Could be fun to share a bit more about my Camp NaNoWriMo project that way. Anyone else thinking of joining in with this?
Over to you. How did your June go? What good things happened to you? What was your biggest achievement, writing or otherwise? What are you looking forward to in July? Are you taking part in Camp NaNoWriMo next month? Let me know!
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Congrats on your new book! The cover looks beautiful.
This month I read and wrote reviews on 15 books and increased my blog stats, as well as that on Twitter and Pinterest. I also broke the writer’s block that I’ve had on one of my works in progress for the last month or so, so I should be able to finish the first draft soon.
In July I have to go back to work (I took an LOA this month for family issues) so I probably won’t be able to get as much done, but as soon as we pay off some bills I will be able to go back to book blogging full time.
Wow, those are some awesome achievements! Especially writing so many reviews. I suppose it must get easier when you’ve been book blogging for a while, but I know any time I write any sort of review for a book, it takes me FOREVER. I am so glad to hear you managed to break through your writer’s block. That must be the best feeling. Good luck with finishing your first draft!