Happy Wednesday once more everyone! I hope you've all had a great May. May has been full of lots of life stuff and writerly stuff and reading. I am so excited to share it with you all (along with an awesome new thing I'm doing for next month on here)!
May Writing: May was full of lots of writing... Like lots. I finished draft four of The Lost Ones, came up with the name The Lost Ones and finished editing draft five. Now comes the hard work of plugging in all those changes and edits into my Word doc. Oh the joys of writing... ;) But for real, I am so excited that I finished the read through for TLO and I am even more excited to finish this draft so I can get it ready for betas. This month I also planned out the series... I've never planned out a series ever. I'm a pantser so what do I do? I make life hard for myself by winging not only my novels but entire series too. That whole not planning thing? It didn't work for me and since I'm wanting to take myself more seriously as a writer and do plan on publishing TLO in the Fall this year I decided I need to sit down and figure out where I want this series to go. I need to figure out the ending so I have an end goal in sight. So that's what I did. I'm pretty proud of pantser-self. Now... if my plan will stick and I will follow through with it is a whole different story. But at least I tried and I now have a vague map as to where I want to take Eliza and Cin's stories.
Also in May, I wrote episodes three and four of Dragon Hearted. June is going to be a busy month so I really need to get them edited and finished up as soon as possible so I'm not stressing out and hurrying to get these ready for all my subscribers. I have to say a huge thank you to everyone who's read Dragon Hearted and reached out to me to tell me how much they've enjoyed the first two episodes. It means the world to me. Besides from family and friends, I don't get a lot of validation for my writing so to have even just a few people saying they like my stories and are excited for the next episodes... it means the absolute world to me. Honestly, during a month where I've had to push through lots of doubt and thoughts of just wanting to give up because I don't think my books will amount to anything, those encouraging messages, no matter how big or small, about Dragon Hearted has really helped me fight that doubt and push past it.
Yet again, in May (because I love drowning in WIPs) I decided to do the GTW 100 for 100 challenge where you write one hundred words every day for one hundred days. And just cuz I'm me, I thought to myself, I need a new project to work on for this challenge. So now not only do I have TLO edits and Dragon Hearted episodes to write, but I also am writing a hundred (or more) words a day in a new WIP called Dream Girl. The story is magical and surreal and born all the books I've read this month: The Girl Who Could See, Finale, The Raven Boys, Romanov. I'm pouring all my love for the magical, fantastical and unexplainable into this WIP and so far, I'm loving every moment of it.
May Reading: May was the best month reading-wise of this year so far. I read so many awesome books. I started out the month right with The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater. I can't believe I haven't read this series until now! I guess I just wasn't ready to read it yet? Because now I can't get enough of it. Maggie is a master storyteller and I love Blue and her Raven Boys. 😍
I just finished book 3 and started book 4 yesterday so I am nearing the end, which is so sad cuz I don't want it to end but also exciting because I want to know what happens!! I also remembered that I have her entire Shiver trilogy that I got as a box set at a garage sale years ago and found it while my mom was going through our many boxes of books. So once I'm finished with The Raven Cycle I plan to jump into the Shiver series.
Right after I finished The Raven Boys, Finale and Romanov came out.
I took a small break from the Raven Cycle to read those two. I think you already know how much I loved Finale from my review last Friday. Here's the link to that. My review for Romanov will be up next Friday.
Oh Romanov... Nadine Brandes is a beautiful storyteller. Romanov was heart wrenching and beautiful in the best way possible. I loved getting to read the true story (with a little magic sprinkled in) of Anastasia and her family. I had no idea how heart breaking their story was and how kind and wonderful the Romanov family really was.
If you love Anastasia Romanov or history in general, read this book! Nadine did so, so much research to make it as realistic and true to what really happened as possible! The historical accuracy blew my mind just a little bit.
And now I am finishing out the month with The Raven King (book four in The Raven Cycle).
May Life stuff: Man... where to begin? When this year started out, I had three things that I for sure needed to accomplish. Get my drivers permit, get a job and get into college for the Fall. Having major anxiety and being a horrible tester made getting my permit a real struggle. Not to mention the state that I live has an absolutely crazy and confusing permit test. For a while there I was worried I would never get my permit and never get my license and just... never drive. So when I passed that test a huge weight lifted off my shoulders. I was so happy. I wasn't thrilled and jumping for joy because I can't wait to start driving. I'm not a fan of driving... I find it super boring. I was thrilled and so happy because I accomplished one of my big goals for this year and now can finally actually learn how to drive. That permit test was the obstacle standing in my way and now with that gone, I can learn how to drive by the end of this year and have my license.
Second goal accomplished: Getting into college for the Fall. I applied and got accepted earlier this year. But again, also with the horrible anxiety I find making phone calls excruciating. I get ridiculously anxious when I'm talking on the phone so when I had to call several different people about setting up meetings and orientation and all that... it was more stressful for me than it should have been. But I did it and I went to my adviser meeting last Friday and have orientation in August and then I can finally sign up for classes.
I know this may sound silly, but this month has been a month of God showing me and telling me that I don't need to worry. That He's got things under control and it'll all come together in His timing. I didn't think I would get my permit. I went in that day thinking well I'll try but I'm almost positive I won't pass. And then I did. I didn't think I could bring myself to call up the college office and "adult" and set this all up... And I did. With the whole get a job situation... that's still a work in progress. I was starting to stress about never getting a job and never get through an interview because the thought of an interview makes me so anxious. But you know what? I got a text from the lady in charge of the children's ministry at church and I got a job for a week in June at the church. I still plan to look for jobs and I will face my interview-fear, but for now God's got me. He provides and May showed me that in a big way. Some people may say it was all just coincidental and some people may ask how do I know God was involved in all that and my answer to that is there are no coincidences. Not to me. I see my God in every door that opens (and closes), in every accomplishment and every joyous occasion and I lean on Him in the hard times of doubt and confusion.
So here's your reminder that God is good. He's got everything figured out already and you don't have to worry about anything because He has a plan and it will all happen in His timing. The whole worrying part is easier said than done, I know. But I've started to remind myself, when I start worrying and getting anxious about the future and the things I have to do, that God's got this. He's got a plan for me and it's not up to me to have everything figured out. I just have to put my entire life in His hands and let Him take the lead.
Looking Forward to June: *deep breath* June is going to be busy! Next week I have a phone meeting thing with a different adviser from my college who specializes in General Studies. The next week after that I'm doing childcare for the kids camp at my church for five days. My class starts at the end of June and then like at the very end of June me, my friend and some of his family are going to go see Twenty One Pilots in concert!! :D That I am for sure excited about!
Also concerning this blog, I will be doing a series of posts for pantsers! Everything from the process to staying organized to how to plot without becoming a plotter. I may also have a guest post or two on here during the series so look out for that! :)
May Writing: May was full of lots of writing... Like lots. I finished draft four of The Lost Ones, came up with the name The Lost Ones and finished editing draft five. Now comes the hard work of plugging in all those changes and edits into my Word doc. Oh the joys of writing... ;) But for real, I am so excited that I finished the read through for TLO and I am even more excited to finish this draft so I can get it ready for betas. This month I also planned out the series... I've never planned out a series ever. I'm a pantser so what do I do? I make life hard for myself by winging not only my novels but entire series too. That whole not planning thing? It didn't work for me and since I'm wanting to take myself more seriously as a writer and do plan on publishing TLO in the Fall this year I decided I need to sit down and figure out where I want this series to go. I need to figure out the ending so I have an end goal in sight. So that's what I did. I'm pretty proud of pantser-self. Now... if my plan will stick and I will follow through with it is a whole different story. But at least I tried and I now have a vague map as to where I want to take Eliza and Cin's stories.
Also in May, I wrote episodes three and four of Dragon Hearted. June is going to be a busy month so I really need to get them edited and finished up as soon as possible so I'm not stressing out and hurrying to get these ready for all my subscribers. I have to say a huge thank you to everyone who's read Dragon Hearted and reached out to me to tell me how much they've enjoyed the first two episodes. It means the world to me. Besides from family and friends, I don't get a lot of validation for my writing so to have even just a few people saying they like my stories and are excited for the next episodes... it means the absolute world to me. Honestly, during a month where I've had to push through lots of doubt and thoughts of just wanting to give up because I don't think my books will amount to anything, those encouraging messages, no matter how big or small, about Dragon Hearted has really helped me fight that doubt and push past it.
Yet again, in May (because I love drowning in WIPs) I decided to do the GTW 100 for 100 challenge where you write one hundred words every day for one hundred days. And just cuz I'm me, I thought to myself, I need a new project to work on for this challenge. So now not only do I have TLO edits and Dragon Hearted episodes to write, but I also am writing a hundred (or more) words a day in a new WIP called Dream Girl. The story is magical and surreal and born all the books I've read this month: The Girl Who Could See, Finale, The Raven Boys, Romanov. I'm pouring all my love for the magical, fantastical and unexplainable into this WIP and so far, I'm loving every moment of it.
May Reading: May was the best month reading-wise of this year so far. I read so many awesome books. I started out the month right with The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater. I can't believe I haven't read this series until now! I guess I just wasn't ready to read it yet? Because now I can't get enough of it. Maggie is a master storyteller and I love Blue and her Raven Boys. 😍
I just finished book 3 and started book 4 yesterday so I am nearing the end, which is so sad cuz I don't want it to end but also exciting because I want to know what happens!! I also remembered that I have her entire Shiver trilogy that I got as a box set at a garage sale years ago and found it while my mom was going through our many boxes of books. So once I'm finished with The Raven Cycle I plan to jump into the Shiver series.
Right after I finished The Raven Boys, Finale and Romanov came out.
I took a small break from the Raven Cycle to read those two. I think you already know how much I loved Finale from my review last Friday. Here's the link to that. My review for Romanov will be up next Friday.
Oh Romanov... Nadine Brandes is a beautiful storyteller. Romanov was heart wrenching and beautiful in the best way possible. I loved getting to read the true story (with a little magic sprinkled in) of Anastasia and her family. I had no idea how heart breaking their story was and how kind and wonderful the Romanov family really was. If you love Anastasia Romanov or history in general, read this book! Nadine did so, so much research to make it as realistic and true to what really happened as possible! The historical accuracy blew my mind just a little bit.
And now I am finishing out the month with The Raven King (book four in The Raven Cycle).
May Life stuff: Man... where to begin? When this year started out, I had three things that I for sure needed to accomplish. Get my drivers permit, get a job and get into college for the Fall. Having major anxiety and being a horrible tester made getting my permit a real struggle. Not to mention the state that I live has an absolutely crazy and confusing permit test. For a while there I was worried I would never get my permit and never get my license and just... never drive. So when I passed that test a huge weight lifted off my shoulders. I was so happy. I wasn't thrilled and jumping for joy because I can't wait to start driving. I'm not a fan of driving... I find it super boring. I was thrilled and so happy because I accomplished one of my big goals for this year and now can finally actually learn how to drive. That permit test was the obstacle standing in my way and now with that gone, I can learn how to drive by the end of this year and have my license.
Second goal accomplished: Getting into college for the Fall. I applied and got accepted earlier this year. But again, also with the horrible anxiety I find making phone calls excruciating. I get ridiculously anxious when I'm talking on the phone so when I had to call several different people about setting up meetings and orientation and all that... it was more stressful for me than it should have been. But I did it and I went to my adviser meeting last Friday and have orientation in August and then I can finally sign up for classes.
I know this may sound silly, but this month has been a month of God showing me and telling me that I don't need to worry. That He's got things under control and it'll all come together in His timing. I didn't think I would get my permit. I went in that day thinking well I'll try but I'm almost positive I won't pass. And then I did. I didn't think I could bring myself to call up the college office and "adult" and set this all up... And I did. With the whole get a job situation... that's still a work in progress. I was starting to stress about never getting a job and never get through an interview because the thought of an interview makes me so anxious. But you know what? I got a text from the lady in charge of the children's ministry at church and I got a job for a week in June at the church. I still plan to look for jobs and I will face my interview-fear, but for now God's got me. He provides and May showed me that in a big way. Some people may say it was all just coincidental and some people may ask how do I know God was involved in all that and my answer to that is there are no coincidences. Not to me. I see my God in every door that opens (and closes), in every accomplishment and every joyous occasion and I lean on Him in the hard times of doubt and confusion.
So here's your reminder that God is good. He's got everything figured out already and you don't have to worry about anything because He has a plan and it will all happen in His timing. The whole worrying part is easier said than done, I know. But I've started to remind myself, when I start worrying and getting anxious about the future and the things I have to do, that God's got this. He's got a plan for me and it's not up to me to have everything figured out. I just have to put my entire life in His hands and let Him take the lead.
Looking Forward to June: *deep breath* June is going to be busy! Next week I have a phone meeting thing with a different adviser from my college who specializes in General Studies. The next week after that I'm doing childcare for the kids camp at my church for five days. My class starts at the end of June and then like at the very end of June me, my friend and some of his family are going to go see Twenty One Pilots in concert!! :D That I am for sure excited about!
Also concerning this blog, I will be doing a series of posts for pantsers! Everything from the process to staying organized to how to plot without becoming a plotter. I may also have a guest post or two on here during the series so look out for that! :)
Anything exciting happen in May for you guys? What are you looking forward to in June??
Oh, I'm a pantser and love it!
ReplyDeleteI just put a hold on for the audiobook for Raven Boys. So excited to read that book ;)
Also, I'm doing the 100 for 100 too! Loving it ;)
keturahskorner.blogspot.com
Me too! I love being a pantser but I'm also so glad I learned some ways to make life a little easier when it comes to finishing a first draft and everything haha Yess! They are so good!! Awesome! I hope your 100 for 100 WIP goes well. :)
Delete-Melody
Oh, man, I just started reading the Raven Cycle for the first time, and IT IS GOOD. Can’t wait to read the next!
ReplyDeleteAnd ooo, a series for pantsers? SIGN ME UP. I think I might be more of a plotter at this point, but I really love pantsing novels . . . *shrugs*
I know! I'm taking my time with the last one mostly because I don't want it to end haha
DeleteHaha! I feel like I'm a little of both. :)
-Melody
Wow. Crazy awesome month for you!!! ^^
ReplyDeleteAMEN to your little talk about worry!!
My life has been crazy, too. Like, CRAZY. That's why I disappeared for a week or so. My bro graduated, and family was here, and we went to a rodeo, and we are getting ready for VBS in a few days, and I may have signed up for a lot of stuff in the blogger community, and I may be struggling with stomach health problems. So yeah. Life. xD God's got this, though!
~ Lily Cat (Boots) | lilycatscountrygirlconfessions.blogspot.com
Oh wow, yeah sounds like life has gotten a bit crazy! I signed up to help with our VBS next week I think it is... I'm excited but I'm like man... this is going to be a lot of work! haha Praying for you though, I hope June can settle down a bit. :)
Delete-Melody
So many great things! Congrats to everything! I too hate driving and think it’s boring. I hated my drivers tests. It’s a necessary evil. Trusting God can be so hard sometimes but I’m so happy that you’ve come to this good place in your faith. *hugs* Happy June!
ReplyDeleteThank you! Haha I'm glad I'm not the only one ;)
Delete