Digging Up Creativity (And Gearing Up for NaNoWriMo)

The last couple of years, my home life has taken some seriously major turns. So has my professional life. And since both are connected to my social life, this pretty much rounds things out into feeling a huge ball of oh-my-goodness-what-have-I-gotten-myself-into? Every. Single. Day.

Being that I’m the creative type, this feeling can get a bit overwhelming at times. Overwhelm tends to send me in one of two directions. Either I dive into my creative side and hide there for an endless amount of time (basically shutting out the rest of the world as I write like mad) OR I focus on the more practical side (like my family, home, etc.) and do NOTHING creative for, well, what feels like an endless amount of time. For me, there is really no happy medium.

This is a problem, given my chosen profession, because if I want to keep my readers happy and interested, I still have to produce books. And if I want to keep my family alive and happy, I have to do things like laundry, and making dinner, and homework and doctor/dentist visits, and driving to school and…you know, I should probably shower and stuff sometimes, too.

It’s a dilemma. And yet…through some of the craziest months of life, I managed to get through editing and releasing DESCENDANT, and then re-releasing it, and then somehow a miracle must have occurred, because I also got BIRTHRIGHT done and released as well. I’m not going to lie. They both took everything I had in me at that time, and then some. To this day, I’m still not sure how BIRTHRIGHT actually happened.

I won’t say I forced it, because that’s not true. But I must have managed to dig deep down and find that hidden box of creativity that was cowering inside me. I wish I could tell you how that happened, but it’s still a mystery.  

If you write, at some point, you will hear (probably a million-billion times) people tell you that you should write every day. I’m not going to agree or disagree with that. I think it works for some people, and for others, not as much. I don’t write every day, even though I do try. But for me, there is serious value in having a deadline. A goal. Something to push me forward. Otherwise, I might hang around waiting for life to calm down, which might mean I never write anything new again.

It’s been a few years since I managed to participate in National Novel Writing Month, but this year, I have not one or two, but THREE huge projects (and a couple of smaller ones) to finish, and my creativity has hit a low again. I think November is just the thing I need to kick me in gear. 50,000 words, 30 days, and half a million other writers urging me to keep going. It’s good incentive.

And maybe somehow, I will find my shovel and dig deep again. Because my books are not going to write themselves.

What about you? What motivates you when you’re just not feeling the creative vibe?

**Stay tuned for a possible very exciting announcement, coming soon. If you haven’t already subscribed to my newsletter, that’s where you should go to be among the first to find out! Also, I may, or may not, be giving away free stuff this holiday season. You can sign up on the sidebar.à

Half-way Failed

So remember how at the beginning of the month I was all excited and had big plans for NaNoWriMo? And remember how I was all gung-ho about drafting book 3 in the DESCENDANT series this month?

Well. In case you’re wondering how it’s going, it’s not.

Let me explain: Kids with the flu, husband out of town, other stressful drama, late nights, early mornings, and a complete lack of inspiration=no words.

Well, I mean, I have like 3100 and change, but…it’s the 12^th. I should realistically have 24,000+.

I’ve never started NaNoWriMo and not finished. Never not written the expected 50,000 words. And guess what? I don’t plan to give up now.

What? You don’t think I can do it? I’m really very behind, and this week, I will be leaving town for five days—five more days of no writing. I’ve half-way failed, and yet…I still have hope. I know I can do it. Don’t ask me why or how, but after having written an number of books already, and having won NaNoWriMo each time I’ve participated before, I’m fairly certain I can actually still do it.

This year it may come down to me writing furiously at 11:00 pm on November 30^th to finish at the very last second, but—I believe I have it in me.

I believe I’m up to the challenge.

What about you? What’s your most difficult challenge these days?

Let the Countdown Commence in Three, Two, One…

That’s right people. There are three days left in October. Halloween is only two days away, which means I will stock up on delicious, horribly non-nutritious snacks which I will desperately need for the month to follow.

No, I will not be trick-or-treating, and I don’t believe my children will either. Sadly, I fear we may be past that phase of life.

*sobs*

In lieu of the trick-or-treat stash, I shall be making the trek to Sam’s Club (because there is no Costco closer than three hours) to buy a giant bag of sugar-filled junk, and then I will dress up and sit on my porch to hand out half of it. The other half will be greedily and desperately stashed. I’m seriously going to need it. (Just like I needed all those adverbs!)

That’s right. The month following Halloween? November. Otherwise known as National Novel Writing Month. (At least, in America. I don’t know about my foreign friends, but hey—I think this could be a global thing. Anyone can participate!)

I have a few ideas, and two or three or six books that need to be written. So yeah. I plan to draft one of them in November. Please bear with me if I neglect this blog (though it’s not currently in the plans) and definitely stop by on November 6^th to enter in a massive, super fun contest to celebrate the release of the second edition of DESCENDANT, which also includes BONUS material.

This means that a whole LOT Of writers and authors will be signing out of social networking and neglecting blogs, housework, family, and holiday decorating in order to write entire novels in thirty days or less. Me included.

If you’re participating, friend me on the NaNoWriMo site. If not, enjoy your relaxing, craze-free November. It’s good to know the rest of the world still functions while we create worlds and then blow them asunder.

Let the countdown commence…

It Begins

Ladies and gentlemen, November is officially here, and with it, the beginning of NaNoWriMo. Yes, I am writing, and yes, I intend to complete a 50,000 word manuscript this month.

Because of that (and other things, like going out of town and stuff), I’m not going to write a long missive of encouragement this year. But I will say this:

You. Can. Do. It.

It’s not about winning, but about proving to yourself that you have what it takes to work hard toward a specific goal and accomplish that goal to your own satisfaction. The end product or result will not be the same for everyone, but everyone will get results that matter to them. And that’s really the whole point.

Never underestimate your ability to accomplish something important.

*waves pompoms and cheers*

Now get off the internet and get to work!

8 Cool Facts about Hallowe’en.

1. Aside from dressing up and getting free candy, Halloween is a festival of the dying year, and the evening before All Saints Day. Legend has it that as ancient Celtic farmers believed there was one day a year when the season of life meets the season of death. As vegetation dies off, spirits that have been kept down all year rise and make their presence known amongst the living. This day was known as Samhain, the Celtic word for the end of summer.

2. The costume tradition dates back to Celtic Ireland, when people lit bonfires and dressed in disguises to confuse and scare away evil spirits believed to walk the earth. They did this on a day known as Samhain.


3. In the eight century, Pope Gregory III established All Hallows Day to celebrate all saints, known, and unknown. This day was held on November first, the day immediately following Celtic Samhain.

4. Over time, the two religious festivals/traditions became mixed among accepting Europeans, and soon Samhain became All Hallows Eve (the evening before All Saints Day).


5. Hallowe’en (the evolved name) was not celebrated in America until the mid 19th century, when a potato famine drove shiploads of starving Irish to America looking for a better life. They brought their beliefs and traditions with them, where those traditions were thrown into the mixed bag of other cultures also brought into the country.

6. As traditions were melded and changed, roaring bonfires became lanterns carved from pumpkins and gourds, and the Celts demonic disguises became modern day costumes.


7. Trick or Treating is believed to have begun in as poor people traveling from home to home, offering to pray for dead family members in exchange for small cakes.

8. In modern times, Halloween is one of the most profitable holidays on the calendar, though curiously, it is not technically considered a holiday (as in close government offices and schools), but a tradition.

Happy Hallowe'en everyone! And good luck to all the NaNoWriMo participants. Midnight comes fast, so be ready!

**Information gleaned from the History channel. You can find several clips about this topic here.

Sprinting to the Finish

In case you’re wondering about my NaNo project, I’m just about to hit 40,000 words, and the month is only halfway over. This is both a good and bad thing. Good, because it appears that I will definitely make it to that 50,000 word mark. Bad because even then, in order to get to the end, I’m afraid I’ll have to keep going at this pace until at least the end of the month.

That’s a lot of work. If you’re wondering how this has happened (the word count thing), two words:

Sprint writing.

Yeah. Sometimes in the form of a race, during which a whole bunch of authors take a designated time slot and write until our fingers practically catch fire. Other times it’s in the Twittersphere (see sidebar link to become a follower and join in) using the #1k1hr hashtag and involving anyone who wants to join in an attempt to write, well, 1,000 words in an hour.

However I do it, sprint writing works for me because it forces me to dive into the story, whether I want to or not. This creates situations in which my characters make discoveries and lead me on a journey I might otherwise have missed. And so far, I’m pretty happy with my story.

How are you doing with the project you’re working on? What works best for you and what keeps you going?

**PS. It’s not too late to join in the fun and get more entries to my I Heart Follower contest. Don’t forget to enter!

Who Doesn't?

I promise to not make a habit of chronicling everything I do when I’m not blogging, but dudes, I had the most awesome weekend (with the exception of a sick little boy and a trip to the ER—that was not awesome.)

Thursday was the beginning of the first ever Authors Incognito writers retreat. (In case you don’t already know, Authors Incognito is the totally fab writers group of which I am a member.) Along with my good friend Danyelle Ferguson, I was kind-of-sort-of in charge. We planned this retreat in conjunction with NaNoWriMo, and held it at a cabin in the mountains of Park city, UT, hoping that we’d all get tons of writing done. Which we did. (Collectively 130,000 + words in two and a half days! My portion of that was 9,000.)

Plus, it was good inspiration to spend a couple days in the company of so many other writers. Lots and lots of fun. And FYI, my NaNo project is off to a really good start.

After leaving the retreat, I joined my Fab Five friends (for lack of a better group name) at a benefit auction, where we listened to (and rocked out with) Nathan Osmond.

Unfortunately, just as the live auction was about to start, I was needed at home and had to leave in a hurry. (Sadly, the need at home involved a trip to the Instacare, and then on to the ER, where we were stuck until after 1:00 am for an appendicitis scare. Don’t worry, though, all is well now.)

Anyway, leaving the auction meant I missed the funnest part, wherein that same Fab Five (or, actually, four of the five) got caught up in the excitement of bidding and ended up buying a vacation package (for five) to Mazatlan, Mexico.

I received the good news via text and Facebook. Made the hospital experience not nearly so frustrating. (And yes, I was surprised. But not shocked. Cuz. Yeah. Nothing shocks me when it comes to them.)

Why am I telling you all this? Because I realized something this weekend. There will always be things to do, people who need your attention, and responsibilities to handle. But sometimes, in order to deal with those things, you have to take some time to really live and just be happy. When we are happy, we are our best selves.

And who doesn’t love being happy?
 

NaNo, NaNo, NaNo

It’s that time of year again. November is nearly upon us, and you know what that means, right?

*wiggles fingers and shakes out wrists*

No, I’m not talking about Halloween and dressing up and candy. Nor am I talking about the big turkey day complete with stuffing and pie. Or even all the excitement that is December. (Although, all those things are definitely worth anticipating.)

*rolls head from side-to-side*

Thousands of authors around the world are gearing up for this epic event. Are you ready? Yes?

*Does some full body stretching and ties on running shoes*

November is National Novel Writing Month, aka NaNoWriMo, in which we all take a shiny new idea and sprint-write a book of at least 50,000 words in thirty days. Yes, you read that right. Thirty days. 3-0. I will be participating. Yes, I have an idea and characters and a non-outline, but a general direction.

And I am hereby announcing my intention to complete this challenge by midnight, November 30th. Wanna join? Check out the website, read the rules, and sign up. It’s free. It’s fun. It’s a great way to get that fiction novel written—or at the very least stretch your creative side longer, wider, and harder.

And when you do sign up, look for me! I’ll come be your NaNo friend. On your mark, get set, GO!

**Also, since November is all about giving thanks, I will be hosting some awesome follower appreciation giveaways—so be sure to keep your eyes open for those announcements.

In Case You're Wondering...

My tree is up and decorated to not clash with the scarecrows and turkeys on the piano.

My house is mostly clean--except the bathrooms which I will tackle head-on first thing Wednesday.

My fridge (both in the kitchen and in the garage) is full of good food ready to be prepared.

Dinner is planned, people invited, time set, and the turkey is out to thaw before brining. 

The launch party plans are coming along nicely, and the promotional items ordered.

I have officially passed the 50,000 word mark on my National Novel Writing Month project, though I'm still hard at work aiming for the two magic words, the end.

During the month of November, I've had very little sleep, my house has been a wreck (until this week) and I didn't actually go to the grocery store until we had absolutely no food for the kids to eat. But I started a new book, which is now close to finished, I edited my other book and sent it to press. The launch is scheduled, along with some signings, and Thanksgiving, the day of eating, being thankful, and strategy planning, is in one day.  Friday?  We shop. Heaven help us! And yes, I'll be bringing my notebook to pass the time waiting in line.

In case you see me, notebook balanced on a cart overloaded with stuff, trying to write sideways with a pen that keeps running out of ink, don't try to talk to me--I'll be writing!

Happy Halloween and Pre-NaNo Jitters

Happy Halloween, everyone! Are you dressing up? I think I am. In fact, this year, I'm dressing up as a bestselling author. No, I'm not joking. I'm serious. That's my costume.

Wait, what does a bestselling author look like? In my imagination, I guess a BSA looks like me. Maybe with glasses. Hey, I think it's totally creative. Anyway, I've decided to pretend I'm a kid and go trick-or-treating in my neighborhood. I figure I really need to stock up on chocolate for my upcoming writing sprint.

Are you ready for thirty days of literary abandon?  Get ready, NaNoWriMo starts in a few hours...

Most every participant I know is nervous, anxious, and wondering how we're ever going to force ourselves to finish this challenge. It's definitely intimidating. I'm feeling it myself.  But it's been done before, and will be done again this month by more than a hundred thousand other authors. So, people, we're not alone. This is not to mention my ever growing buddy list. In my one writer's group we've gathered twenty-three participants and counting.

I realize that the chances of all of us actually completing the 50,000 words are pretty slim, but the point is that we're starting, we're writing, and we're giving ourselves permission to write something really bad in order to later come back and turn it into something good. What a trip this is going to be.  No matter what the outcome, nothing bad has ever come from trying right?  So turn on your computers, get out your notebooks and pens, and hide your chocolate stash from the kids, because it's almost go time.

Okay, so pep talk done. Get ready, get set...wait for midnight on Halloween....don't cheat, I'm watching you...GO!

Write like your fingers are on fire!

Nichole

**If you're participating, I want to hear about your progress. Drop me a line and let me know how you're doing.

I Must Be Crazy

I've done it before. And it was worth it. totally and completely. I've never had any reason to regret the time dedicated, the agony of emotion, the physical exertion and lack of sleep, the actual insanity it takes to write a 50,000 word novel in a month.  And yet, as the end of October looms ever closer, I find I have a stomach full of fireflies--hot and fluttery all at once--and my brain screams for all the many other projects to which I could, and maybe should, be dedicating myself.

Thanksgiving is in November. It's at my house again.  There's scrubbing, and cleaning, and organizing, and shopping to do. Not to mention cooking, preparing, inviting, and planning. And don't get me started on Christmas preparations, or the serious shopping involved in that.

And I've gone and committed myself to participate in NaNoWriMo. What am I thinking?

Clearly, I'm thinking it's about time I got another novel drafted, and forget about everything else in life for a while. Oh, I'll handle the holidays and the family dramas. In fact, now that I think about it, maybe all my other stresses will become fuel for my new story. After all, life does lend the best material.

Now, lets just hope I actually find time to sleep next month.

That's right, kids. November is National Novel Writing Month, in which thousands of authors dedicate themselves to writing an entire rough draft of at least 50,000 words before December first. Some think it sounds easy, others think it's hard. Truthfully, it's a little bit of both. More hard than easy, though. And there are no guarantees that we'll actually produce good work, and most definitely, none of it will be publishable right away. But creatively, it's empowering, and inspiring, and then we get to say we did it.

I think maybe that's the best part. Being able to say you did it.

So if you're a writer, and you want to jump on an author-wagon with other writers, join us! Sign up for NaNoWriMo and come be my writing buddy. Username: NicholeGiles. Now, let's get writing!

On a different subject, I was remiss in mentioning a few other author events/signings.  Tuesday, October 27th at 7:00, James Dashner will be signing The Mazerunner at Deseret Book in Orem. (The big distribution center one, not the one in the mall.) And because he is also the author of The 13th Reality series, I'm pretty sure he'll sign those too.

Also, on November 3rd, Valor Publishing will join Mark L. Shurtleff, the Utah State Attorney General, in launching his book Am I Not A Man? The Dred Scott Story.  This is a big deal.  Not only will Mark be there selling and signing his books, but Dred Scott's great-great granddaughter will take a few minutes to speak. Also Connie Hall, winner of the Cry for Freedom contest held by Valor last month, will be reading her winning entry. Musical entertainment and refreshments are provided. This is a MUST ATTEND! It's going to be way, way fun, and a truly memorable occasion. And if you don't want to see Mark or any of the other amazing authors I hear are attending, you can always come just to see me. 

6:00-8:00 P.M.
November 3rd
Barnes & Noble Booksellers
The Gateway
6 North Rio Grande Street
Salt Lake City, UT 84101
(801) 456-0100

Okay, what else? Oh, Halloween is on Saturday. Have a safe, memorable, fun day, and if you're dressing up as something cool, I want to know about it. Me? Well, considering what November is looking like, sounds like I'm dressing up as an author. Imagine that.

Until next time, write on!

Nichole