May is over and June has begun, which of course means that we’re looking at a straight run down into Camp NaNoWriMo’s July session. I have to admit, I always reach the beginning of a new month and wonder where all the time has gone. But this month, I can definitely tell where it’s disappeared to. So many exciting things are happening you guys. So many!
For one thing, I finally finished proofing and formatting my YA fantasy ‘The Crystal Tree’, and started setting everything up on Amazon in preparation for publication. It’s not far away now! I’ve also been finalising the Kindle version, and I have the print proof on the way. It’s currently lost in Nowhereville Australia, but hopefully it’ll arrive soon. This time next week I could be holding my very own book. That’s such cool though!
While I’m waiting for the proof to come, now I have some spare time, I’ve started working on one of my other books, which is currently in its sixth draft. It’s completely different from ‘The Crystal Tree’, which has been a refreshing change. It’s still YA, but it’s a thiller-y/sci-fi-y/spec fic sort of thing involving teenagers with mutant powers. The best way to describe it at the moment is it’s Agents of SHIELD crossed with X-Men. it feels good to be working on something a little more creative than just proofing and formatting. I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I actually missed editing!
The current plan with this new project is to take June to finish reading it through and planning the edits (which hopefully won’t need too munch plot rejigging this time around, fingers crossed), and then edit it up during July. I like using Camp NaNoWriMo to keep me accountable for big projects like this. I get so much more done. So that’s something exciting to look forward to in the near future.
But as well as getting plenty done on the writing front (and looking forward to plenty more exciting things), there have been a lot of cool things going on both in my corners of the internet, and in the wider community. So, I thought i would share the best things I’ve posted, or seen over the course of the month. And before we go on, if you haven’t followed my blog yet, why not? I post cool things like this three days a week. What’s not to love?
Blogging
I’ve barely missed a day of blogging this month, so there are loads of cool posts for you to catch up on if you haven’t seen them yet. Here I thought I would just share my three favourites, which you may have missed over the course of the month.
4 Sneaky Ways Writers Procrastinate Instead Of Actually Writing
“Writing time is precious. Made even more so by the fact that every time I sit down to write, there always seems to be something far more important, or more interesting I could waste time on *ahem* I mean see to. Sometimes it’s easy to tell when these tasks are actually procrastination in disguise, like the time I binged most of a God of War playthrough instead of editing. But sometimes procrastination is sneaky and hard to spot, hiding under the pretense that these tasks are way more important than they actually are.”
Writing Advice Isn’t One Size Fits All
“From people sharing quick tips on Twitter, or writing full-blown blog posts like this one, writers from everywhere share their experiences and their knowledge about writing and how to be more effective, more creative, and more efficient in our writing lives. Much of this advice is great, and super helpful. I have learned so much about being a writer from reading blogs and talking to people online. But, at the same time, I’ve also come across a lot of advice that just hasn’t resonated with me, techniques that don’t work when I try them, and productivity hacks that have given me less, not more time.”
Writing is Magic. But It’s Also Not
“Sometimes writing is chasing after your characters and struggling to keep up with the rate of their adventures and sometimes writing is putting one dogged word after the other. Sometimes it’s pounding out ten thousand words in a day, and sometimes it’s cranking out a hundred words in the evening when you’d rather be doing anything else. Sometimes writing is aesthetics and tweetable quotes, and sometimes it’s a seventh cup of coffee late at night to keep your eyes open long enough to finish the scene you’re stuck in.”
If you missed any of these, you should definitely check them out, and maybe even leave me a comment if you liked them!
This month, one of my goals has been to be more active on Instagram As an introvert, using social media is often very overwhelming to use for sustained periods of time. But I’ve found I’m actually having a lot of fun with Instagram. I’ve been posting regularly, chatting with other users, and even playing around with Instagram Stories. It’s so much fun figuring out a new platform and just messing around figuring out what I like doing, what I don’t, what works and what doesn’t. Also, I’m always looking for new people to follow, so if we’re not connected on Instagram yet, we should be. You can find my profile here. Leave me a comment or send me a message and let’s connect!
There are three of my favourite Instagram posts from the past month. I usually write little updates and snippets of writing news in the captions, so it’s a great place to keep up with what I’m creating and working on, and also what I’m thinking about at the moment.
Around The Internet
And of course, I can’t forget the awesome things I’ve seen around the internet this month. Inspiration and helpful tips are everywhere if you know where to look and who to follow. These are just three of my favourites that I saw during May. Hopefully you find them as inspiring, helpful, or fun as I did.
Abbie Emmons | Stop Trying To Be A Good Writer
Are we spending too much time trying to be good writers, and not enough time trying to tell good stories? Is our quest for beautiful writing getting in the way of our ability to write compelling novels?
Melissa@ Quill Pen Writer | What If Your Story Isn’t Original Enough?
What if your story has a similar premise to another book? What if your story isn’t actually as unique and original as you thought it was? How do you deal with this?
The Awkward Yeti | Persistence
#persistence pic.twitter.com/6EHsM20fsS
— the Awkward Yeti (@theawkwardyeti) May 28, 2018
So that was a sneak peek into all the cool things that have been happening this month. But now that you’ve listened to me and my updates, I want to hear from you. How did May go for you? What have you been working on? How’s it going? Are you planning on participating in July Camp NaNo? If so, do you know what you’re working on yet? Let’s chat down in the comments!
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