Report 27

I interviewed a published author for my journalism class, and it was boatloads of cool. Of course it was via email, so it wasn't as exciting as it could have been, but his answers were great. Carter Wilson shout out~!

I'm finally almost at the 10,000 word check point, which means I should be about one fifth of the way through. The plot outline begs to differ. I'm gonna have to redesign it again and make it simpler - every time I let myself get carried away I add too much unnecessary crap, then realize I don't even know what the point of the whole novel is anymore and have to slash slash slash rewrite. At least an outline lets me slash before I've already written the whole thing (*cough* NaNoWriMo *cough*). And why am I so sloowwwww!? I spent over an hour yesterday and barely managed one Word page. I can't imagine how I ever managed to do it back in November.

I wish it were leap year. Then I'd have one extra day.
Ah, well. Better get busy.

Words written yesterday: 678. Total words: 9,897. Words left: 40,103. Days left: 32.

Words per day to finish on time: 1,254.

Progress clip: “It’s so beautiful,” she said, as if in apology. She asked to be able to hold it.

            “You would only burn yourself. Girl, remember this: fire is not a thing to be toyed with.”

            She had to content herself with watching from a distance.

((read Sun Road here))

Report 26

Tired.
Don't remember the last time I was properly awake for more than an hour.
Crap. Too tired to form complete sentences.
But not done.
Must.
Write.

Words written yesterday: 851. Total words: 9,425. Words left: 40,575. Days left: 33.

Words per day to finish on time: 1,230.

Progress clip: "Who are you?" he asked. His voice was even thicker with gravel than it had been before.

((read Sun Road here))

Report 25

SAT's make life so...complicated at times. But between studying for it, getting straight A's in my five AP classes, preparing for college, and practicing for a piano recital this Friday, I've finally managed a wedge of time to just...indulge myself.

Mainly because I've quit splurging on manga and fanfiction. Gawd. I could write a whole book about my fiction-related addiction problems, I really could.

Instead I discovered the most amazing video I have ever listened to. I finally found a favorite author - listening to that brilliance, I hadn't been so happy in a long time. It's so much more exciting than fanfiction. Really.

Anyways, all I wrote was another 800+ words of plot outlining, so now I'm finally planning out the climax. Or, I've planned the climax ages ago, I just need to connect it with everything else so it's not just fragmented vaguely cool-looking black and white images. Actual writing...I didn't do so hot.

Total words: 8,655. Words left: 41,345. Days left: 34.

Words per day to finish on time: 1,217.

Progress Report: "Humans. So damned breakable."

((read Sun Road here))

Report 22

Shoot me now. Somebody.

Words written yesterday: 0.

Words per day to finish on time: 1,118.

((read Sun Road here))

breathing and Report 21

I just got up from a nap and augh sweet repose. I have this strange condition, though, that if I sleep sitting up I forget to breathe and wake up by myself because of tingling in my fingers and a weird dizziness. Apparently it's related to my TMJ. But let's not get into complicated medical terms and just let you know that I have to practice breathing before I sleep every night to make sure I get it right. I breathe only from my diaphragm--meaning letting my stomach rise and fall without moving my rib cage--for a couple minutes, counting a breath in for three seconds, letting it out for five. I assume yoga breathing and meditation breathing follow the same principles.
Breathing is such a normalcy that nobody pays much attention to it, yet statistics say that a third of people don't do it right. How strange is it, to be told one day by a doctor that you've been living all wrong for so many years? The condition is apparently becoming more common because of modern stress factors skyrocketing. Things happen so fast that people don't have time to pause in the middle and catch their breath.
But people shouldn't forget to breathe. Just take a moment to lie quietly, people--close your eyes and listen to your lungs and your heartbeat. These are the sounds of your life.
I wonder, when was the last time you truly heard them?

Words written yesterday: 758. Total words: 8,635. Words left: 41,365. Days left: 38.

Words per day to finish on time: 1,089.

Progress clip: "I’ve seen soldiers before. I know what you are. You hunt in packs." 

((read Sun Road here))

Report 20

There are some things that cannot be repaired. And there are other things that cannot be relinquished.

Words written yesterday: 860. Total words: 8,018. Words left: 41,982. Days left: 39.

Words per day to finish on time: 1,077.

Progress clip: "A dull blade can kill just as well as a rock to the skull. I’ve used both weapons enough to know.”

((read Sun Road here))

Report 19

After much heckling and hassling and pulling of hair, I was introduced to the world of efficient time-management. I must admit, life makes a little more sense now. Writing was neglected the day before though, my apologies.
In the meantime, I've discovered the agony of providing information to the readers without becoming an info dump. "Show, not tell." Harder than it sounds; especially when the only three characters available to my use thus far are stuck in a pitch black chasm. In this case, it's more like "Stick your hand out and hope your fingers don't get burned off, not tell."

Words written yesterday: 400. Total words: 7,148. Words left: 42,852. Days left: 40.

Words left to finish on time: 1,072.

Progress clip: “The dragon lurks here, black as the night, with claws of malice and breath of flame. It is the Devourer, the Grim Wreathe; a terrible creature."

((read Sun Road here))

Report 17

I had an epiphany. My school's art magazine club is supposed to be about art - and all I talk about in there is money.
I felt like kicking myself.
That's about to change, alright? I'm going to make everyone come and turn to the person on their right and do something off of the prompt "The Wishing Tree" and it'll be awesome. Yup.

Words written yesterday: like ten. Curse those summer apps and bad SAT scores. Total words: 6,897. Words left: 43,103. Days left: 42.

Words per day to finish on time: 1,027.

((read Sun Road here))

Report 16

Sleep? What is that?
(Also, to all those sleep-deprived folks and insomnia sufferers, apparently unruly sleeping patterns damages memory. It usually leads to short-term memory loss, something I no doubt experience minor effects from, but chronic sleep deprivation can seriously kill your brain. Please guys. Try to be healthy.)

Words written yesterday: 300 and literally a thousand words of plot outlining, damn this is hard. Total words: 6,770. Words left: 43,230. Days left: 43.

Words per day to finish on time: like a thousand plus, my calculator's in the other room, too lazy to get it ugh.

Progress clip: "No child should have to wander these fields, especially not with a boy she doesn't even know. He shouldn't have brought you here. It’s dangerous.” His eyes narrowed. “And not just because of the chasms.”

((read Sun Road here))

Report 15

Love it when things just kind of click. Character tension really helps get the words out. As does fanfiction. But I didn't say that.

Words written yesterday: 506 + editing. Total words: 6,593. Words left: 43,407. Days left: 44.

Words per day to finish on time: 987.

Progress clip: “Sermon,” he replied. His voice was still a little gravelly, but it was gentler now, and didn’t make the rocks vibrate. “Standish Sermon. Girl, where is this?”

((read Sun Road here))

Report 14

Words written yesterday: 600. Total words: 6,234. Words left: 43,766. Days left: 45.

Words per day to finish on time: 973.

Progress clip: The stranger recoiled instantly and was soon out of arm’s reach away; glowering at her, she guessed. She frowned in the vague direction of his presence, then turned back to the man and set the not-egg on the ground carefully.

((read Sun Road here))

Happy Valentine's Day!

Valentine's Day. The time for couples - datings, marrieds, oops-I-had-a-babys, stalkersyndromes, hopefulromantics - to make their moves and ogle at their significant others like there's nothing else in the world. But this message is not for those couples. This message is for the ones left out of the party, painfully aware of their lower status in society. That's right, you. The singles.

I am here to tell you that there's nothing to be ashamed of as a single. Wear your hearts on your sleeve with pride. Because believe it or not, you've got an advantage over those lovey-doveys; while they're twirling around spewing affections toward each other, blissfully ignorant of the rest of the universe (themselves constituting an entire Big Bang and everything that follows), you singles don't have to devote yourself to one single entity quite so completely. You don't have to spend six months' allowance planning dinner with Her. You don't have to worry and fret in front of the mirror in order to appeal to Him. You're not inextricably tied to someone else.

Instead, you are free to look beyond, to explore the world and keep your eyes open to whatever madness is sent your way. Valentine's Day isn't just for romantic relationships, after all. It's for all forms of love, big and small. Your family. Your friends. The teacher who spent all night grading papers and then baking cookies for the class. The shopkeeper who passed out a red rose for every passerby on the street. Your pet dog. They deserve a small token of appreciation, every now and then, don't they? A card, a box of chocolates; or simply an honest smile, a "Thank you" and "Happy Valentine's Day!"

The person who hates Valentine's Day, single or not, is a sad and lonely person indeed. He/she doesn't realize that there's more meaning behind it than just paper hearts and uprooted flowers. Love is everywhere. You just have to offer some of it, too.

And you know what? If that's the true spirit of February 14th, I'd like Valentine's Day to be every day.

--Happy Valentine's Day! ♥
from the hopeless romantic (and very single) container of cheesy sap, VW

inspiration and Report 13

I would like to say, "The muses choose when to come, and to whom, and they have chosen me."
I have to say, "The muses don't care jack shit about me and don't do anything but sing airily in the heavens, anyway."
The muses are personages created by the ancient Greeks, nothing more, because miraculous as it seems, creating artwork is not overseen by some supernatural force that comes and goes on a whim. Beauty is more accessible than that.
The thing about inspiration, see, is that it isn't divine at all - the best is the truest and the most human, and that is all there is to it. Know what you want to say, find a how and a why and a for whom, and say it. As clearly and honestly as possible. After all, what is closest to your heart will touch others' hearts that much stronger.

Words written yesterday: 576. Total words: 5,662. Words left: 44,338. Days left: 46.

Words per day to finish on time: 964.

Progress clip: "Unhand me!" the giant boomed. In Rhea’s eyes, his voice made specks of ash vibrate across the ground.

((read Sun Road here))

Back to Life and Report 12

I've had enough. I told myself I was just focusing on my real life for a short while. You know, summer program applications, colleges, my school club, several piano competitions, and the easiest of them all, homework...in the meantime, I'd be working on plot, developing characters. I'd be productive. It would be nice.

But that didn't happen. In the end I was just floundering around, writing a long essay about death that I never finished, stressing out about everything in general, and procrastinating.

I've had enough.

So, back to this daily rhythm of squeezing words out of me like old toothpaste somebody forgot to put the lid on and is now dry and mulish. Hopefully the toothpaste will turn out to not be toothpaste at all, but more like that awesome special kind of eraser I had for art class, the kind that only gets softer the more you kneed it. Writing every day is vaguely addicting, I've found. Like a habit of checking your mail every day, except there's always ten packages of emo children and one package of candy with each transaction. And hopefully I'll stop with these extensive allegories before you get bored.
Not...that there's anyone reading this to feel bored in the first place.

Anyways. In these last few days the word count has actually dropped, since I've cut stuff out. That is, besides the 1200+ words of character profiling. And one page-length cartoon-doodle of Jude's death that I actually really like. (Apparently I'm good at drawing corpses' faces. What.) And 11,000+ words of plot outlining that I've compiled since last year. And 50,000+ words from NaNoWriMo that suck ass so I can't reasonably look at them again.
So much...work for one crappy novel. Ashfire, you're bleeding me dry, I swear. Your Sun Road had better be good.

Changing it back to the 50,000 words goal because I'm writing a short story for each main character and am hoping to add them in the print somewhere. Or maybe I'm just being lazy. Bahhh.

Total words: 5,086. Words left: 44,914. Days left: 47.
Words per day to finish on time: 956.

Report 9

Words written yesterday: 630. Total words: 5,826 (did that number just...drop...? Must've miscounted a while back...). Words left: 54,174. Days left: 50.

Words per day to finish on time: 1,084.

Progress Clip: “Damn, I think I killed him,” the stranger muttered. The man’s hand twitched. “Oh, good, he’s still alive.

((read Sun Road here))

Report 8

Losing track of things...

Words written yesterday: 403. Total words: 6,303. Words left: 53,697. Days left: 51.

Words per day to finish on time: 1,053.

Progress excerpt: A skeleton crept into his company last night. [...] The skeleton parted its teeth and then clicked them together questioningly, a voice of frost biting his cheek.

((read Sun Road here))

the rain and Report 7

the rain is falling
on a sunny day
like mist to the eyes of the trees,
the branches sigh
through the film of tears
as each droplet shimmers in the light.

above, the clouds roll
in a blurred line of grey
but part around white sun and blue sky;
the rain is falling
like snow, or like roses,
it leaves us with the pace of a snowshoe crab.

Words written yesterday: mainly just edited. Total words: 5,900. Words left: 54,100. Days left: 52.

Words per day to finish on time: 1,041.

((read Sun Road here))

Report 6

Verbal restraint has become unhinged because of lack of sleep. This is bad. When I think I'm saying something funny it usually...isn't.

Too much fanfiction in my head - I need to get down some of the ideas.

1. The Incredibles, sequel of sorts, from the point of view of Anthony Rydinger. "I was trying so hard to protect the girl, but it turned out that she was the real superhero. Like, legit Super."
2. MushishixMononoke, not just because their names are weirdly similar, but also because they make an interesting contrast when it comes to outlooks on life and all the things in between.
3. And my One Piece pet project. People like gender swapping, apparently. I'm not complaining.

Words written yesterday: 225 (and 735 of character notes and plot outline, but they don't count...). Total words: 5,579. Words left: 54,421. Days left: 53.

Words per day to finish on time: 1,027.

Progress clip: Lord Rahu's figure was gaunt, and all angles and lines; yet there was a grace in his stride that commanded both fear and a deep, reverent love at one and the same time.

((read Sun Road here))

Angry Birds & Report 5

They're kamikaze warriors, if you really sit down to think about it. They launch themselves and blow up and drop eggs and everything, just to kill a couple pigs who wanted a nice breakfast. They die to protect their eggs. Pretty morbid, if you ask me. We do a lot for the survival of our species.

Words written yesterday: 843. Total words: 5,354. Words left (extended version): 54,646. Days left (extended deadline): 54.

Words per day to finish on time: 1,032.

Progress Clip: Redemption did not breathe for a handful of eternities. He did not make any sign of having heard the speaker.

Wonder if character analysis sheets count as words...nah.

((read Sun Road here))

Report 4

Words written yesterday: 1,754. Total words written: 4,467. Words left: 45,533. Days left: 24.

Words per day to finish on time: 1,898.

Progress Clip: “I’m on fire!” she screeched in mortal terror. She scrambled to her feet in a flurry of ash.
 

Yes, I found it amusing. Her hair caught on fire. Because of a giant beetle. But I won't bore you with the details, of course not.

I'll probably end up "extending the deadline" later; college prep has suddenly pressed into the foreground, and if I want to publish something, I'd have a much better chance with a collection of short stories instead. So I get to write even more stuff now. Like

maybe a sweet romance centered around the internet and geeky pickup phrases--

or a teen whose friends crack seemingly harmless jokes in school, but when he comes home to take care of his older brother, it's suddenly clear why he didn't laugh with them--

or possibly a relationship study between a bucking teen and her tiger mother--

but I would still very, very much like to finish this damned book first. So at the most I'm giving myself one extra month. I'm not going to get much sleep, am I...(but I think it'll be fun).

((read Sun Road here))

Report 3

Words written yesterday: 0. Total word count: 3,292. Words left: 46,708. Days left: 25.

Daily words to finish on time: 1,869.

This wasn't so hard back in November...(flounders in despair).

((read Sun Road here))

Report 2

Words written yesterday: 380. Total words: 3,292. Words left: 46,708. Days left: 26.

Words per day to finish on time: 1,797.

Yeah, this...isn't going so well. But hey, I made it halfway through the book in terms of miniature cartoon sketches - they work so much better than a plot outline. I read too many comics.

Progress clip: This stranger’s mother never taught him any manners, it would seem. He didn’t even know to share.

((read Sun Road here))

With the Dedication of a Barnacle

It's February now, school finals and the SAT are all over. I don't have an excuse for being lazy anymore.

Time for NaNoWriMo part two.

The first one worked wonders - and now that I need to rewrite my entire story, I might as well use the strategy again. 50,000 words in a month. Only for my personal benefit, this time. I should call it something different. Like SINoWriMo (Self-Inflicted Novel Writing Month). Or just STADATA (Sit That Ass Down And Type Already). Somehow I wish it were Leap Year.
I tried to do something yesterday, but as always, I got distracted by fanfiction, that cursed wondrous thing, and I wrote a grand total of 200 words in one hour. Well. Daily reports should curb that habit effectively.

Words written yesterday: 238. Total word count: 2,969. Words left: 47,031. Daily words to finish on time: 1,742.

Progress clip: “There is nothing fair about being held at knife-point to lead a murderer to your kin. Don’t expect any fairness from me. Ask me again and I’ll make you wish you had never been born.”

((read Sun Road here))


On another note, I just came back from Colburn. I take piano lessons there every weekend, and always walk in grumbling groggily and walk out humming happily (before falling asleep in the car, of course). Music is, oddly enough, the one thing I don't remember not having. I learned it back when I could still touch my toes and didn't look like an oversized twig insect as I performed Kung Fu. Heck, it was back when I still performed Kung Fu. I had the benefit of muscle memory and accustomed posture at the piano chair since I was four. I suppose I have my first piano teacher to thank for that - I don't remember much about her, but I'm pretty sure she was Russian and very particular about posture, and she had a mouth on her that could whip a deaf elephant.
But muscle memory and solid basics only go so far. I had to practice. Every single day, until high school happened and before that middle school and okay, I slacked off kind of a lot out of pure laziness. Still, I tried to hit about an hour a day, though when I was younger it was usually closer to half, and if there's a competition coming up nowadays it's usually closer to two. I've never bothered to count it all up; but by a rough estimate, I'd say that's enough time to have read 300 volumes of Japanese cartoons. Which means a lot of time.
I don't regret a moment of it.
I guess the point of this giant tangent is that music has it ups and downs, has its pleasures and its tribulations, and if I can play it for so long and still love it, I can do the same with anything (or perhaps it's vice versa, but I'll save that for a later date).