Being A Mom…And Being A Writer

 

Life is always busy isn’t? Sometimes I think the craziness will slow down a bit, hit a plateau, were I can catch up on personal things like writing, taking a shower, or wearing a shirt that doesn’t have stains from my children’s poor eating habits on it.

But…it just seems like things keep speeding up–oh, and changing, let’s not forget the constant changing.

This year both of my kids are in pre-k! Yay! Mondays and Tuesdays are now my me-time days. Those mornings I have 2 hours to myself and I am very pleased to say that I’ve been able to write almost every time for the last few weeks.

There have, however, been a few set backs…1. my kids have been sick for WEEKS. We’re talking fevers, throw up, antibiotics, poor sleeping habits, endless rounds of medicine and naps and crying…yay, pre-k! 2. My dog needed stitches for a small cut followed by coning and antibiotics and bribing to eat so I could administer said antibiotics. 3. Hubby gets sick, needs antibiotics…luckily he could feed himself.

…Really, the only one who doesn’t cost me extra effort right now is my kitty (the little orange girl at the top of my blog). A darling little thing that spends most of the day hiding from my family, clawing my rugs, and biting me if I don’t pet her at exactly the right moment.

Thank goodness for cats…and their particular charm!

With all that complaining being said, I have added over 1,000 words to my WIP, so that’s great! I’ve done some plotting, so I’m fairly confident I know where I’m going and what will happen next. I’ve recently pushed through some unpleasant conversations within the MS that I’ve been putting off for a bit, because hey, who likes the sad stuff. Anywho, they’re done, and I’m gearing up for some more exciting scenes and hopefully a plot twist.

So, instead of waiting for life to slow down–because I certainly don’t see that happening soon–Halloween’s coming (making costumes!), birthdays, school parties, Thanksgiving…etc–I’ll try to surf the swells as best I can–and bribe my kids with candy long enough to snag that ever-lovin’ shower.

So writers and parents, how do you balance your creative time and family time?  What is the 1 trick you could share with the rest of us?

 

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Summer’s Officially Over…and What I’m Doing About It.

Having officially wrapped up my last week of vacation, today I’m taking my son and daughter to their first day of preschool. This will be my daughter’s last year and my son’s first. I’m looking forward to those brief hours in the mornings when I will finally be able to sit down and focus on my writing.

Here’s to knocking out a complete 1st draft of my werewolf novel Refining Sylver before the end of 2017!

As I prepare for fun Fall things like my daughter’s birthday and Halloween, let me reminisce for a moment over these last fleeting images of summer vacation.

 

 

 

 

Re-blogged from I Suck At Writing

Also, check out original post at Custom Writing!

Infographic Creator Byline: Jack Milgram is a freelance writer from Jersey City, NJ. He enjoys sharing his knowledge with others through blogging. Check out the infographic he created on 28 Boring Words Alternatives that will definitely come in handy to you. via [Infographic] 28 Boring Words and What to Use Instead by @Jack__Milgram #amwriting #writing — […]

via [Infographic] 28 Boring Words and What to Use Instead by @Jack__Milgram #amwriting #writing — POTL: All Things Books, Reading and Publishing — I Suck at Writing

Life Update and Summer Wrap Up

This summer has gone by in a blur. While some moms I knew were literally counting the days till school restarted from the first day of summer break, I relished the downtime–litte as it was. I didn’t sign the kids up for anything. No camps. No sports. Nada. Beween the busy school schedule and dance, all I wanted for the summer was a hefty dose of the lazies.

And while I thought we were being lazy, many things happened: we moved, my son turned 2, my hubby and I went on a cruise (no kids!), mountain vacation, 90th birthday party of my awesome grandma-in-law.

It’s been a wild summer. Lots of family time. Lots of good memories.

And now that summer is coming to a close, I’ve got two preschoolers geering up for another fun year of learning. My daughter will be attending prek 5 mornings a week, while my son will be there for 2 mornings. What does that mean? 4 hours to myself every week!!! And what is said 4 hours to be used for? Why, writing!

Since I’ve started writing 20 minutes per day I’ve added almost 20,000 words to my total ms. I’m so happy with my book’s progress, that I’m cautiously optimistic that the 1st draft may even be finished before the end of 2017. What a miracle that would be!

my new writing space!

Not to mention that once the minions are busy at school, I’ll actually be able to write in my spiffy new office which has been all ready for me since mid July.

So, while I’m sad that summer is almost over, I’m also very excited. I haven’t had significant me-time for almost 5 years, and I’m looking forward to this transitional year. September also kicks off fun-times for my family as we have one last beach vacation followed by and endless string of birthdays and holidays.

So bring on the cooler weather, pumpkin-spiced life, and apple scented candles.

 

 

#Writing Update

So, I’ve been pantsing Refining Sylver for some time, now. While I had a very basic outline typed out, it was by no means detailed, leaving a lot of room for improvising. But for the past month or so, I’ve felt a wee bit insecure during my writing sessions because I never really know where they’re going. I just sit down and write for 20 minutes and see what happens. Well, this doesn’t really work for me.

While I know that the first draft is never good and will always require revision, the last thing I want to do is rewrite half my book because I just flew by the seat of my pants and didn’t bother delving into anyone’s intensions or fleshing out good subplot information. I don’t want to delete my useless darlings because I didn’t bother organizing myself beforehand.

So, Thursday–after an hour’s long writing session and the assurance that I didn’t feel confident in what my story was doing–I sat down after-hours and fleshed out some of the new characters filling up the last 2/3 of my book. I also finally figured out the names of some key characters. While I’m not a stickler for names during the initial writing process, at some point having a name is just key. It makes the character more real, more tangible. And you can really stick some characteristics to them after that.

I’m now feeling great about plotting potential. With some new characters figured out, I can finally see a dull grey timeline forming in my head. Hopefully another day or two spent on behind-the-scenes will bring that outline into focus. But for now, I can realize why my characters are misbehaving, or doing exactly what they’re supposed to.

I think I’ll go ahead and jot down notes on all my old characters, too, just to make sure I’m on the same page about everyone’s feelings and goals. Afterall, the oldies are just a fun and the newbies.

So how’s your writing process? Please leave a comment or word of advice. We’re all in this writing thing together.

I’m Back From Vaca!

Last week my hubby and I went on a 5 day cruise from Charleston, SC to the Bahamas. It was a wonderful week full of great food, new friends, midday naps, and late night drinks.

My favorite part was having the free time to actually read. I know that sounds very anticlimactic, but it usually takes me an appalling 4-6 months to get through 1 book. To have read through 200 pages in the span of a few days was so relaxing and enjoyable. For those of you who are wondering, I’m now almost through God Save The Queen, by Kate Locke; a great take on werewolves and vamps with an endearing English vibe.

That being said, I also loved the Carnival Melting Chocolate Cake I ate every night, and I really enjoyed the 2 standup comedians and their raunchy sets.

My hubby and I were able to have real conversations uninterrupted by little ones that didn’t pertain to poop, cuts and bruises, or meltdowns. I missed my kiddos, but this mama ain’t gonna lie, it was nice being able to sleep in and stay up late–2 behaviors that swiflty swapped with their unwelcomed counterparts the minute I turned into a mom.

But I’m glad to be back on the web. Out on the sea we had no internet connection and I felt a little anxious at not only not being able to keep in contact with my kids, but not being able to do all the fun social things that I usually participate in online. 1 of the many bonuses of being home. 😉

So, now that I’m back in the saddle, here’s a few fun pics from my vacation:

#Writer Meme for Monday

Lots of good progress so far on my werewolf novel. Still pluggin’ away almost every day for 20 minutes and very much enjoying that brief writing time.

Also, because there are so many fun writing tags on Twitter, I thought I’d share some of the games I’ve been joining in over the past few months. If I miss a good one, please leave the hashtag in the comments so I can check it out!

#authorconfession

#sharewords

#WIPrevelation (although I don’t think this one is going on for July.)

Thanks for stopping by folks and have a great week!