Word Count

I'm working the parallel plot lines and things are happening. I have 25,000 words, which in NaNo Land would be halfway but since I'm aiming for a real length with the sequel it's not even close. But! It's words on the page. Words on the page is the hardest battle.
Yesterday I read a blog post by a writer who keeps track of every single word he writes in a spreadsheet. He's written a million words this year. How motivating! I love word counts but I hadn't thought of having a running word count that included every project. I need that. I'm starting that today.
 And with minimal effort I've already written 114 words today! Bam! 115!

Stuck

The plan is not working. I got stuck with Beatrice. Things were happening too quickly. I needed more tension, more material. And Aster, a character I thought would show up in book 3 was bright in my mind, like sunshine blinding me.

I thought,
Maybe it's not two more books. Maybe it's just one. Maybe Aster is in this one.

So I started writing parallel plots with Beatrice and Aster. But things still happened too fast. The path feels too straight. I need to make a list of the top ten worst things that can happen to these characters and then do that. Maybe.

I thought,
I know what I need! More parallel plot lines.

So I added Peter, who is a Jasper Industries drone. But he's boring and, once again, things happened too quickly. I need a little teeny bit of establishing stakes and story conflict setup. And yet, I try so hard to start at the beginning. It's a balancing act.

I thought,
I know! I need to fill out a Basic Beat Sheet. That will focus me.

So I tried to do that but I realized with three parallel plot lines I essentially needed to fill out the worksheet three times. Then I mentally cried for a while.

I'm still not entirely sure where this is going. And even my super rough pantser outline is falling apart. Characters that I thought would become a couple aren't very compatible. And my new NaNoWriMo idea keeps butting in.

I'm a little lost. Usually it's easier than this to find my way out. This time, I can't even seem to find my way in.

I May Have Lost My Mind

Okay, so I didn't really mean to start writing the Baker's sequel. It just happened.

I'm still working on Miraculous Conception. I did mean to take a little break from Miraculous. I need a little space from the manuscript so I can see it with new eyes before I get into rewrites. I also need a little space from it so that I haven't memorized and fallen in love with every word on the page so I can hear what my betas have to say without dying inside. 

I meant to take a break on this book but I didn't mean to write another one. But, like they do, the words just showed up. And I just wrote them down. I thought, "Okay, I have the opening scene. But that's all I'm going to write." And then more words showed up and I wrote those down, too. Now I just can't stop.

I thought I might save the sequel for NaNoWriMo but I've completely lost my mind and instead I'm thinking that I'll write a first draft of book 2 during these two months I gave the betas to work on Miraculous. And then for NaNoWriMo I can hammer out book 3.

Is this the worst idea I've ever had or 
THE BEST IDEA IN THE HISTORY OF IDEAS!?!?!

Part of my mania is fueled by the fact that for the 3 days The Baker's Memory was free on Kindle there were 834 downloads. Normally the scale of my royalty reports is one to five. It took me a moment to realize that the scale was in hundreds. Hundreds.

834 downloads in 3 days. 

That's a lot of new readers. A lot of new readers who need a sequel.

The Baker's Memory Sequel

Pretty much the moment the first person finished reading The Baker's Memory they asked me if there would be a sequel. I said, "Well, I think I shut the door on that one." Or I'd tell people that I always imagined it as a stand alone book. Or, if you were really lucky I went into a rant about how I hate series. If you read one book, you're really committing to reading 7 books. I really hate series that you read while they're being written because you have to wait. Sometimes the time between books is excruciating and sometimes you're not even interested in them anymore but you're committed because you read one so you keep reading them. And, if the series is long enough, you end up with those bridge books that just set up the next book and you feel cheated.

But then Husband finished the book and said, "You have to write a sequel."

I said, "No. I shut the door on that option. Plus, I hate series."

He said, "You have to write a sequel and here's how you can do it."

Interestingly, he had a different interpretation of some key events as well as a different timeline in his head. And you know what? In his interpretation and with his timeline a sequel is completely possible.

So I said, "Fine, but it's still not a series. It'll just be two books."

I started working on a story about Beatrice, the woman from the epilogue. But the more I thought about Bea, the more it became clear to me that there had to be at least three books. There was too much for just two books. I was already seeing things beyond Bea. In fact, I was already thinking about Elle in book three who is covered in botanical tattoos and then I spent way too long on Pinterest looking at black and white botanical tattoos, which totally counts as writing.

What I'm trying to say is this:

There will be at least two more books in the Baker's series. 

Yellow Legal Pad Encouragement

 My across the street neighbor moved away a few days ago. We spent tons of time together and her whole family will be greatly missed. Little Guy has already announced that he's going to move into their new purple house with them. (The house isn't really purple.)

Before she left, my friend left me this. Yes, that's a 6-pack of yellow legal pads. My favorite. Seriously. I love yellow legal pads in a way that you probably shouldn't love office supplies. She knew about my passion.

Even bigger than the yellow legal pads themselves was the note she wrote.

 Emily, 
Please don't ever stop writing! I hope these legal pads will come in handy. (So you can forgo the napkins!) We will miss you a great deal. 
Love, Steph & family 

"

Wanted: Beta Readers

Seeking beta readers for a science fiction novel with religious themes. There might be magical monks and theology libraries.

What is a beta reader?
A beta reader is someone brave enough and kind enough to read a still crappy first draft and willing to give constructive, un-soul-crushing feedback.

Examples:

• What's working? What isn't? 
• Does the plot make any sense at all? 
• Where do I need more description? 
• Does the male protagonist sound like a man? 
• Do the two voices sound different enough? 
• Where are the plot holes? 
• Are their problems with continuity? 
• How bad is the theology?
• Call me out if it's the exact same story arc as The Baker's Memory

Requirements:

• Applicants must like me as a person and not seek to crush my soul 
• Must be proficient with Word and be able to write specific comments
• Must be able to complete assignment within 2 months
• Especially seeking beta readers who identify as male for help with the male character who still "sounds like a girl" according to one male beta reader

Compensation:

• Baked goods. Lots of baked goods
• My undying love
• Credit in the acknowledgements
• Reciprocation for any writing, editing work etc.

Sitting on Writing

 

I haven't updated in a while. Because our internet has been ruining my life wasn't working. And we went out of town for a while. And it's summer so I'm feeling lazy. And sometimes thinking about all the writer platform stuff I'm not doing is so overwhelming that it becomes paralyzing and I just throw my hands up.

I carry three writing notebooks with me at all times. The purple one is for quotes. I've been keeping a quote book since freshman year of high school. The striped one is for writing. The pink one is for things like "BAKE MUFFINS TOMORROW." Most of the time I end up scrawling song lyrics, hoping to find the song later. That's what most of that sheet is covered with. However, it also says,

Oblivion closet hula hoops.

I recently went through my notebooks mining for gold and I found 

Oblivion closet hula hoops

And I thought, "What in the world does that mean?" 

I don't even understand my own weird shorthand.  For a few days I laughed at myself, completely perplexed by those four words. But then I remembered. They were from a scene in the spiritual memoir. 

At some point in our lives we all live in closets and they may feel safe or at least safer than what lies on the other side of the door but I’m here to tell you that no matter what your walls are made of, a closet is no place for a person to live…We know it’s hard but we need you out here.
-Ash Beckham, “Coming out of your closet”, TEDX Boulder

I was hiding from myself in Tom’s bedroom.
And maybe from God.

After a few months we mutually agreed that it wasn’t working out. It was the simplest, least painful break up I’d ever experienced. After we broke up we became better friends. I stepped out of the closet that I’d built for myself out of Tom’s arms. I opened the door, squinting in the sunshine, feeling exposed in the bright light. I couldn’t stand being in the light. It was too hard. I quickly replaced that closet with walls made of hula hoops and badminton nets, roller skates and pints of beer. I went to hide at the Fun Vortex with Ben. 

The memoir has just become this thing I'm sitting on. It's like one of those wood bead seat covers. I can't decide if it's a good thing to sit on. Is it the best thing ever or is it awful? How long can I sit on this? If I decide to stop sitting on it, what do I do with it? Was this made for sitting on or does it have some hidden purpose? 

Oblivion closet hula hoops