Sunday snippet

Snippet from my WIP, which is back to progressing steadily thanks to the encouragement/ prodding of the 100k words in 100 days challenge!

An incense aroma filled the room, big enough for two not quite double beds and  basic but clean enough. After a quick glance around I flopped down on the bed, feeling exhausted and starting to privately object to being on someone else's itinerary. Would it be bad manners and unsociable if I said I was skipping whatever they had planned for the rest of the day and actually just stay here on my own? I was starting to crave time alone nearly as much as sleep.

Five fab things this week...

First Five Fab Things Friday of the year - I started this almost as a reminder to look back and think over the week and what's happened -and I'm sometimes surprised just how many fab things, however small, have happened.

This week:

1. Baby news - my lovely friend and next door neighbour found out she was pregnant, even more exciting I was there with her and was the one to break the news to her, as she couldn't bear to look at the result! I was very honoured indeed.
2. Being sober - I felt my age by being sober on New Year's Eve as teen son was going to a party for the first time on NYE and I wanted to make sure he was safe, sound and back home. I picked him up at half past midnight then had one glass of fizz to mark the occasion when we got in. I actually felt great the next day - and even went for a run (what a show off!) Much better than a hangover!
3. Putting plans in action - this week, after four days, my not resolutions but plans for the year are so far going well (yes I know it's early days but it all counts!) I have written every day and been running three out of four days (the excuse not to run one evening was the day I was with my neighbour while she did her pregnancy test - damn good reason!)
4. Going back to work - though it was a rude shock to the system the first day back after the lovely long festive break, it was also rather nice to have the camaraderie of being back in an office with others, discussing what we'd done and everyone having a bit of a go slow first day back (I know this may just be a novelty having had several years of home working by myself!)
5. Getting new writer buddies – taking part in the write 100K words in 100 days challenge isn’t just good for a kick up the proverbial but there’s also a great group going on both FaceBook and Twitter and I look forward to swapping more support and fun with these new virtual pals during the challenge and beyond.

What's been fab about your week?

Changes and challenges

Two weeks before Christmas after four and a half years of being self employed, working from my HQ in The Cupboard, I started a temporary job which involves going into an office every day.  It's an exciting job which I think is also going to be a lot of fun, working with a great team and I'm really looking forward to it. But going from homeworking to office bound has been a slight shock to the system.

Putting aside the fact that I can't work half the day in my PJs (it was never a regular occurrence but just knowing I could was kind of nice!) I’ve quite like the novelty of getting dressed up every day (jeans and jumper were the usual uniform in The Cupboard). The downside is the increasing pile of washing and ironing...
The commute is working out to be about a 45 minute drive (to The Cupboard it's a minute - downstairs and turn left) but I've decided to use this constructively to listen to Learn Spanish CDs - if nothing else I may learn to shout at other drivers in a different language.

I will be there All Day. A huge benefit for me of being self employed was being able to balance work and other things. Although regularly working more than 8 hours a day for myself I could split it up and be flexible so I could also get to shops/ hospital appointments/ hairdressers/ gym/ take car to the garage etc easily anytime. I could take the dog out when it was light or whenever it stopped raining/ snowing etc. I could meet people easily for coffee/ lunch/ meetings without clock watching. I could always catch up on my work later on in the evenings or weekends. I will now have to work things around work time (like walk the dog only in the dark).

Having so little time (or so it feels at the moment) outside work I will have to be Much More Organised. My first week was ok. Wanting to stay vegan I cooked meals in advance at the weekend as I don't want to stop eating healthy home cooked food, made my packed lunch and prepared breakfast the night before. My second week was the week before Christmas and more frantic with trying to fit in shopping for last minute presents, food shopping as I was Doing Christmas Day, wrapping, socialising, cleaning the house and those million and one things there is always to do this time of year.

I will get paid a regular salary, every month, on time! As I am regularly chasing up several well overdue invoices - this is a huge plus and a very welcome benefit.  I have paid holidays and time off - unheard of luxury when self employed!

I'm also aiming to keep some freelance work ticking along (the job is just an interim one for nine months) and of course want to concentrate on my writing. In theory this is all possible. My challenge for the New Year is to work out how to fit it all in. There are of course seven days in a week and 24 hours in a day. It is all do-able. So tomorrow on New Year's Day I will be making a plan - oh I do love a plan - that I can stick to. I will share with you Dear Reader and plot it all on here so I can feel accountable and like I'm making public commitments that someone somewhere someday may well ask me about.

To kick off and help with my writing aims I'm taking part in 100k words in 100 days challenge, thanks once again to Sally and looking forward to charting the ups and downs with my fellow 100k challengers on the FaceBook page.

Changes and challenges – 2013 here we come!

My 60k in 100 days!

I know it's well after the finish of 100k in 100 days which kicked off my year of writing (33 days after the finish to be precise!) but I've only got round to reflecting on it - though to be fair my I think my hiking and hospital exploits are pretty good excuses for being a little late in the day with this…!

I was really keen to give it a go and, on breaking it down, my aim was to write 1,000 words a day, a seemingly manageable amount. I'm happy to try on anything that can help me get into the habit of writing on a regular basis. I also liked the fact that rather than just concentrate on one thing my total word count could include different pieces of writing. So... how was it for me? 

First thing is that no, I didn't reach my ambition of 100,000 words in 100 days. But I am pleased with my total word count which was (drum roll here………) 59, 427. The bulk of these - over 51,000 - were part of the draft book I wanted to progress. The rest were made up of articles, reviews, and, very occasionally (when I was feeling daring!), a stab at a creative fiction piece.

I'd say that yes it worked for me and it was a worthwhile exercise. I have 59, 427 words that I may not have otherwise have written, thought about or counted! There's more to it though - this year, after many years of writing for others (and which I still do as the 'day job'), I'm getting back into writing for me. And the 100k challenge has definitely helped put me onto that track.

I've learned a lot as I've gone along - some of which I've known about and perhaps just not acknowledged or done anything about... yet! In going forward I know that I have to be more disciplined, that I should prioritise the writing that I want to do not just the writing that I have to do and that I need to set plans and deadlines and regularly review these, especially when I'm working on several different things. I also now have a great little tool to record how much I am writing to keep track and give myself a pat when it's going well and a rocket when it's not!

What else? Well, there have been a lot of positives I've got from the last few months, including being more confident about saying that I am writing, and what I'm writing about, sharing ideas and progress. My main WIP is nearing a first full draft and I've also spent time working on how I might submit it, done some market research and have an idea for the next one, so making it into a series (but one step at a time!). I am now regularly writing and submitting non-fiction articles, ideas and reviews. And of course I'm now blogging and tweeting more which is helping connect with people and pick up some really good advice and help.

Finally, just a special mention and thank you to Sally Quilford who not only helped kick start my writing year but continues to offer great writing tips and tricks and all sorts of information as well as entertainment on her website, blog and twitter.

There’s only one last thing to say - #amwriting!

Best laid plans

At the beginning of February I was rather pleased with myself! I wrote about being on track with 100K words in 100 days, learning lots as I was going along, and looking forward to carrying this good work on in February. Well that'll teach me to make rash declarations! February has now been and gone and I am a mere 8,402 words further on.

But I've decided to look at it as 38,528 words that I may well have not written if I hadn't been taking part in the challenge - so at least I am making some progress.
And February's been a stark reminder of no matter how well organised you try to be sometimes life just throws a curve ball.  I had a week planned in February when I was going to be away and knew I'd be unlikely to get any writing done then. I also then had unplanned health issues which led to unexpected hospital visits and a mind which was on other matters (although I did actually write about it I've also learned that some things I like to reflect on and give more thought to before sharing with anyone).

I've decided I'm not going to feel that I have failed in any way not keeping up with my planned word count because, quite frankly, life happens and sometimes you just have to put some plans on hold. They can always be picked up again. And there's still 40 days to go...

I have though made progress on my other aim of getting my scribbles out there! I've had articles published on other people's websites, blogs and magazines. I've made progress (that's a good thing), more lessons have been learned (that's a positive thing) and it's now the start of springtime (that's an excellent thing).

So here we go marching on!

Write on track

Farewell then January you grey, grumpy, lumpy kind of month - and hello February, bringer of longer days, first flowers and the slightest hint of spring.

Always my least favourite month, I would quite happily forget about January completely, hide away, hibernate and start my new year on the 1st February. This year though there was something exciting about it - starting (and sticking with) Sally's Quilford's challenge to write 100K words in 100 days.   The result so far is that in 31 days I have written a total of 30,126 words. Not bad for one who could win awards in procrastination and suffers from chronic distractionitis. 

I still wonder why it is so hard to do something I really enjoy when I am actually getting on with it but learning lots about what works for me along the way, such as:

• The best thing I can do is have an hour very first thing to write undisturbed. I can usually write around 1,000 words and not panic if I don't get any more written that day. So I'm now setting my alarm a bit earlier on a regular basis (apart from odd days when the desire for a bit more sleep wins!)
• I aimed to set aside more than just an hour to two here and there - planning to have half days and even the odd full day doing nothing but writing. This hasn't quite worked out and I now know that I need to get out of the house and loiter in the library or sit in a cafe if I'm going to achieve this.
• Most of my writing so far has been non-fiction but some of Sally's prompts have inspired me to scribble some short scraps of fiction. This has led me to now actually taking notice of the seed of an idea that's been blowing around me for a while and I'm starting to give it some attention and develop it properly.
• I am happy to some degree going with the flow but do need to have a plan, some targets set and goals of how many words I want to get done each week and when I want to finish drafts.
• I am working with several different things on the go. I thought was just me being my usual 'flibbertigibbet' self (as my mother would say) But actually it's quite helpful. If I'm a bit stuck or not ‘in the zone' for one particular piece of writing, instead of struggling and getting nowhere I can choose another one which at that moment in time just flows a bit easier.
• Most importantly - I feel that I can do it! I know that it is quantity over quality at the moment (I’m getting over my desire to edit as I go along) but just getting a lot of words written and, more importantly, making the time to write regularly has done wonders for my confidence.

Here’s to the next 30,000 words!

Going with the flow

I started this year off by taking part in Sally's Quilford's challenge to write 100K words in 100 days. It felt a bit daunting but it’s on average 1,000 words a day which makes it sounds more do-able. It's also a challenge not a competition and there's great support both from Sally and others who've also signed up so we can share ups and downs, stops and starts.

One week in and, despite being a bit behind my 1,000 words a day target (thanks to the tax man’s deadlines and me being rather disorganised in the accounts department), I'm enjoying it and determined to stick with it. I am much more productive when I think someone else has set targets and deadlines, so it's a great incentive. And I am also already surprising myself (in a good way!).

My big project – my main Work In Progress if you like (gosh that sounds like ‘proper’ writing) – that I want to finish is about the trip I took with my son last year. It was the first time I’d been backpacking at the grand old age of 41, the first time we’d done three countries in one holiday, the first time we’d been quite so adventurous. Not as adventurous as many other people's expeditions I know and it is in no way a travel guide. Not unless you want to know where to find the Jeremy Clarkson lookalikey handing out leaflets in Prague. Or get as excited as I did at getting a blanket with your meal at restaurants in Budapest. Or where to find the computer shop in Vienna that puts unwanted parts outside at the end of the day for anyone passing to take for free (much to son’s delight).  It is more Duff Guide than Rough Guide. 

But I am really enjoying writing it, recalling where we went, what we did, who we met. We crammed a lot into a short time, had plenty of fun, lots of laughs and one or two hairy moments – like taking the wrong train and ending up at ‘the border’ totally clueless of what border we were actually at.

I find writing it I’m also reflecting on the relationship with my son, after 14 years of single parenthood we have a close, wonderfully warm relationship. But inevitably as he grows up and I get older, it changes – it's not becoming any less good, just different. It won’t be very long until he takes off on holidays with his mates rather than his mum, so it was a pretty special trip for many reasons.

The other point that persuaded me I could do the 100k 100 days challenge is that you don’t have to stick to just one project or piece or even type of writing. So as I’m also working on non-fiction articles and reviews I’m really pleased I can add these to my word count too.

A lot of writing I'm focused on is non-fiction which is what I am most comfortable with and used to. I enjoy writing fiction but have less confidence and experience of it, though do have books full of ideas, stories started, outlines of plots and characters, odd paragraphs pulled together.

Then yesterday, looking at Sally’s always interesting daily prompts I surprised myself when, inspired by one of them, I put pen to paper (literally - and another surprise as I always use a computer or my beloved iPad!) and started writing a short story. It flowed quite spontaneously and I was as pleased with myself as I was surprised. Is it any good? I don’t know and as I’m going for just getting words onto paper at the moment, quantity over quality, I’m not even worrying about that. Yet.

Like so many things, once you start on something like this challenge I think it’s fascinating just to go with it and see where it takes you. For me, I’m already going places I hadn’t planned at all!

So, thank you Sally – and here’s to the next 92,000!