Saturday - 10/24/15
7:30am . . . *Completion 50%
Writing 60% - Editing 55% - Formatting 20%
I kept meaning to update yesterday and then forgetting about it. The last 25% of each volume always goes the fastest for me. I'm really excited about the scene I'm about to start writing, so I expect that by 7pm, I'll have another 20% progress to report.
I fully plan to have Fate Lock Volume 10 done by noon tomorrow. I'll be working through the night, and I'll update here every few hours. Wish me luck!
*As a guide to my completion percentages... The writing phase takes about 1/2 the total time I spend working on any given volume with editing and formatting taking up the other 1/2.
Showing posts with label Volume 10. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Volume 10. Show all posts
Saturday, October 24, 2015
Tuesday, October 20, 2015
Volume 10 Progress Report #2
Tuesday - 10/20/15
7:30am . . . *Completion 20%
I've hit a slowing point, and for me, that means it's time to start moving onto the next phase... Let me enumerate... :)
I write longhand with pen and paper so that I can't go back and fiddle around/nit-pick with the story. There are only so many times you can change a word or reorganize a sentence when you're writing longhand. Eventually, the paper becomes completely illegible.
I used to be very picky about paper quality, but over the past year, I've swung the other direction. High-quality, glossy paper doesn't absorb ink as efficiently as low-quality, porous paper. The higher quality the paper, the messier my hands look by the end of the day. For this same reason, I REFUSE to write with gel ink pens.
While I'm not picky about paper quality, I am EXTREMELY picky about pen quality. I actually only use one type of pen, the Zebra BP F-301, and I have a lot of them.
These pads are great. You can tear out half the pages without ruining the pad, and the pages you tear out will all still be glued together. It's fantastic.
Another great thing about these 100 sheet writing pads, is that they are cheap, so I don't feel wasteful about only writing on the front side of the paper. I use the back-side to make notes about changes I want to make in Stage 2.
Stage 2 is the typing phase.
When Stage 1, the handwritten portion of my story, starts to slow down, I move on to Stage 2. Then back to 1, then back to 2, until I'm finished. Stage 3 doesn't generally begin until Stages 1 and 2 are complete, but that's not a hard and fast rule.
I'll update again some time this afternoon. I have a couple things to do today other than writing, but I should still be able to get some good time in on the story. If I have time, I'll try to post the first paragraph or two of Volume 10 on the blog.
At my current rate, I should have Volume 10 up for sale by Friday, but I don't feel like it should take that long. That's my #1 problem though. I never think things will take as long as they actually do. I'm always looking at my BEST rate and thinking that I can work at that speed constantly. Obviously, that's not feasible.
I cut six inches off my hair this morning when I got out of the shower. The scissors were there... My hair was there... and I was getting sick of all the tangles. So now it only comes to my waist. I might cut off even more so that it comes to my shoulder blades. I pretty much just wear it up all the time anyway. Any thoughts, internet?
I REALLY need to dye it. I have 6" of brown showing above the blonde, but I sorta don't want to have to keep up with the blonde anymore either. I bought some dark blonde hair dye, and I'm going to try to fade the top part into the bottom part, so it can grow out ombre style.
So sleepy...
I didn't get as much writing done today
as I wanted because I spent about half the day trying to find a replacement for my cover art program. It keeps making my computer crash, and every time that happens, I lose the progress on the image. It also takes several minutes to save the file, so I've been trying to find a balance between losing work and saving every few minutes... PAIN...
I did get some new cover art completed while I was testing out every graphic design program on the internet. Some of the programs I found have some really interesting effects... This is the new frame image for Volume 6. What'd'ya think?
*As a guide to my completion percentages... The writing phase takes about 1/2 the total time I spend working on any given volume with editing and formatting taking up the other 1/2.
7:30am . . . *Completion 20%
Writing 39% - Editing 0% - Formatting 0%
I've hit a slowing point, and for me, that means it's time to start moving onto the next phase... Let me enumerate... :)
I write longhand with pen and paper so that I can't go back and fiddle around/nit-pick with the story. There are only so many times you can change a word or reorganize a sentence when you're writing longhand. Eventually, the paper becomes completely illegible.
I used to be very picky about paper quality, but over the past year, I've swung the other direction. High-quality, glossy paper doesn't absorb ink as efficiently as low-quality, porous paper. The higher quality the paper, the messier my hands look by the end of the day. For this same reason, I REFUSE to write with gel ink pens.
While I'm not picky about paper quality, I am EXTREMELY picky about pen quality. I actually only use one type of pen, the Zebra BP F-301, and I have a lot of them.
These pads are great. You can tear out half the pages without ruining the pad, and the pages you tear out will all still be glued together. It's fantastic.
Another great thing about these 100 sheet writing pads, is that they are cheap, so I don't feel wasteful about only writing on the front side of the paper. I use the back-side to make notes about changes I want to make in Stage 2.
Stage 2 is the typing phase.
When Stage 1, the handwritten portion of my story, starts to slow down, I move on to Stage 2. Then back to 1, then back to 2, until I'm finished. Stage 3 doesn't generally begin until Stages 1 and 2 are complete, but that's not a hard and fast rule.
I'll update again some time this afternoon. I have a couple things to do today other than writing, but I should still be able to get some good time in on the story. If I have time, I'll try to post the first paragraph or two of Volume 10 on the blog.
* * *
Tuesday - 10/20/15
12:00pm . . . *Completion 26%
Writing 39% - Editing 24% - Formatting 0%
At my current rate, I should have Volume 10 up for sale by Friday, but I don't feel like it should take that long. That's my #1 problem though. I never think things will take as long as they actually do. I'm always looking at my BEST rate and thinking that I can work at that speed constantly. Obviously, that's not feasible.
I cut six inches off my hair this morning when I got out of the shower. The scissors were there... My hair was there... and I was getting sick of all the tangles. So now it only comes to my waist. I might cut off even more so that it comes to my shoulder blades. I pretty much just wear it up all the time anyway. Any thoughts, internet?
I REALLY need to dye it. I have 6" of brown showing above the blonde, but I sorta don't want to have to keep up with the blonde anymore either. I bought some dark blonde hair dye, and I'm going to try to fade the top part into the bottom part, so it can grow out ombre style.
* * *
Wednesday - 10/21/15
9:00pm . . . *Completion 31%
Writing 45% - Editing 31% - Formatting 0%
I didn't get as much writing done today
as I wanted because I spent about half the day trying to find a replacement for my cover art program. It keeps making my computer crash, and every time that happens, I lose the progress on the image. It also takes several minutes to save the file, so I've been trying to find a balance between losing work and saving every few minutes... PAIN...
I did get some new cover art completed while I was testing out every graphic design program on the internet. Some of the programs I found have some really interesting effects... This is the new frame image for Volume 6. What'd'ya think?
*As a guide to my completion percentages... The writing phase takes about 1/2 the total time I spend working on any given volume with editing and formatting taking up the other 1/2.
Monday, October 19, 2015
Volume 10 Progress Report
I thought I might try something a bit new for Volume #10. . . We'll see how it goes.
Sunday - 10/18/15
12:15 pm . . . *Completion: 0%
Writing 0% - Editing 0% - Formatting 0%
So, I spent the past four days formatting the paperback version of Book #1. That will be Volumes 1-6 compiled into a single book. The file's so big that it's making my computer slow and taking forever. (I have to get a new computer soon. Part of the reason the last two volumes went over schedule was due to my computer crashing repeatedly. ) It's probably going to take me another two weeks to finish it, so I'm going to put that on hold for now and start working on Volume 10.
I'm at a place in the story that I MASSIVELY changed since I wrote the original version of the series, so for the first time since I started the serialization, I'm going in without a single scene written. Funnily enough, that should make the process a bit quicker. I write much faster than I rewrite.
*As a guide to my completion percentages... The writing phase takes about 1/2 the total time I spend working on any given volume with editing and formatting taking up the other 1/2.
Monday - 10/19/15
12:24 pm . . . Completion: 10%
Writing 20% - Editing 0% - Formatting 0%
I thought I'd be a bit further in by now, but the first chapter of Fate Lock Volume #10, which I might call "Lost Without You", took longer than anticipated. It's hard for me to start writing a scene if I'm not sure how the characters are going to react to a particular situation. I tend to sit, staring at a blank page, trying to work out what I'm going to write before I write it. I keep forgetting to remember that I write better when I'm completely clueless and winging it.
What I thought would be the first three (separate) scenes of Volume 10 actually merged into one giant and LOOONNNGGGG scene that will take up at least the first 2 chapters.
Technically, it's my damn book, so I can say where the scenes begin and end and cut them up however I feel like. But to me, it never feels like the scene is over until there's a time skip, usually accompanied by exposition... i.e. Four hours and four florist shops later, my mother finally decided that we had found enough flowers.
I just love the alliteration in that sentence. If you hadn't noticed, I really like alliteration.
I'll try to update again during my next break ~3:00pm or so.
* * *
* * *
Sunday - 10/18/15
12:15 pm . . . *Completion: 0%
Writing 0% - Editing 0% - Formatting 0%
So, I spent the past four days formatting the paperback version of Book #1. That will be Volumes 1-6 compiled into a single book. The file's so big that it's making my computer slow and taking forever. (I have to get a new computer soon. Part of the reason the last two volumes went over schedule was due to my computer crashing repeatedly. ) It's probably going to take me another two weeks to finish it, so I'm going to put that on hold for now and start working on Volume 10.
I'm at a place in the story that I MASSIVELY changed since I wrote the original version of the series, so for the first time since I started the serialization, I'm going in without a single scene written. Funnily enough, that should make the process a bit quicker. I write much faster than I rewrite.
*As a guide to my completion percentages... The writing phase takes about 1/2 the total time I spend working on any given volume with editing and formatting taking up the other 1/2.
* * *
Monday - 10/19/15
12:24 pm . . . Completion: 10%
Writing 20% - Editing 0% - Formatting 0%
I thought I'd be a bit further in by now, but the first chapter of Fate Lock Volume #10, which I might call "Lost Without You", took longer than anticipated. It's hard for me to start writing a scene if I'm not sure how the characters are going to react to a particular situation. I tend to sit, staring at a blank page, trying to work out what I'm going to write before I write it. I keep forgetting to remember that I write better when I'm completely clueless and winging it.
What I thought would be the first three (separate) scenes of Volume 10 actually merged into one giant and LOOONNNGGGG scene that will take up at least the first 2 chapters.
Technically, it's my damn book, so I can say where the scenes begin and end and cut them up however I feel like. But to me, it never feels like the scene is over until there's a time skip, usually accompanied by exposition... i.e. Four hours and four florist shops later, my mother finally decided that we had found enough flowers.
I just love the alliteration in that sentence. If you hadn't noticed, I really like alliteration.
I'll try to update again during my next break ~3:00pm or so.
* * *
10/19/15
4:00pm . . . Completion 14%
Writing 27% - Editing 0% - Formatting 0%
Just a quick progress update, and back to work I go. Let me know if you like these mini-updates, and I'll start doing them for each volume. The next scene should really fly, so I'm hoping to hit 50% on my writing completion before I run out of steam today.
* * *
10/19/15
7:30pm . . . Completion 19%
Writing 37% - Editing 0% - Formatting 0%
I didn't quite hit my goal of 50%, but I managed to tack on another 10%, and now it's bedtime. I'll update again tomorrow.
* * *
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)