Today didn't go as well as yesterday. I still came in slightly over 2000 words, and hope for more tomorrow. I wrote the scene with The Hanged Man, and it came out pretty well. I don't know that his lesson is finished, but the Hanged Man has been buried. Yak guy needs to reflect upon it while he's crossing the steppes. Maybe he can find some connection to the Hermit and decide he misjudged the fellow to a degree. Maybe the yak can throw that in his face, which is what usually happens.
When he gets home, he will find the shit's really hit the fan. This will move the story into act three, and he's going to have to make some big, life changing, decisions. I need to get him home, but I don't want to lose the idea that it takes a long time to ride a yak across the steppes. Maybe beta readers will decide I can make some cuts along these lines.
His next lesson will be the Wheel of Fortune, and I may still work in Justice. They are out of order now, but I prefer the way the story flows.
I spent a huge amount of time playing pumpkin ball with Otto today. He's hard to resist, and he's been such a good boy while we are at work lately. I can't blame him for being excited when someone is home. If the opportunity comes up tomorrow, I'll probably play even more pumpkin ball.
Where I screwed up is in the short fiction department. I had the chance to work on some this afternoon and just blew it off. That's no way to become a productive writer.
I would like to get both Yak Guy, and The Enhanced League out the door in the first quarter of 2017. I have two or three stories that are screaming at me to get written, and they're likely to come in as novellas. (Something new for me.) I think I'll write them while polishing my outline for the next novel. I've never spent as long on a novel as I have with Yak Guy, and that isn't good. My outline wasn't as tight, and that's the reason. With a tight outline, I wrote The Cock of the South in three months, and it turned out great.
I counted on the tarot card order to act as part of my outline, and they did to a degree. Yak Guy still has to move through his world and deal with problems, and a real outline would have helped. Lesson learned: More time outlining = less time drafting.
PS: I'm glad I'm not a celebrity yet. 2016 doesn't seem to be the best year for them. Maybe 2017 is a better year to become a million seller.
Entertaining Stories 
Remember learning that lesson long ago. I tend to overcompensate though. Nothing with a general plan. Definitely helps make the first draft writing less stressful.
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I learned it too, but here I am anyway. You’d think I would know better by now.
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Some stories don’t give you time for planning.
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You know, I actually understand that. They scream to get out. It’s my job to make sure they spend some time working on their outline.
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Not to mention that some appear in the middle of other projects and events. There are times where I need to sacrifice something else to get a new project moving to a safe point.
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Me too. My short fiction helps, but I even threw a vignette out to get her out of my head.
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This is why I’m taking January for planning stuff. Finishing Legends created a void that too many ideas are jockeying for. This includes one I could never publish, which is frustrating.
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I’ll get my drafts finished. Give it a month and read them. After I think I’ve found all the typos, I’ll ask for betas. During the gap, I’ll probably dedicate myself to the outline and a short project.
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Cool. Always forget the edits taking time. They seem to sneak up on me.
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Reblogged this on apboustead.
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Thanks for the assist.
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Reblogged this on Anita Dawes & Jaye Marie.
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I know what you mean about 2016, turning out to be a bit grim, isn’t it?
We can but live in the hope that 2017 will be better in so many respects…
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It’s crazy. Insurance rates will go up for creative people. Thanks for sharing the post.
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So, does anyone who takes up with a yak really have any room to judge a hermit? I mean, all the yaks I’ve ever seen up close are kind of dirty and smelly with flies buzzing around them. Poor Otto is going to be so sad when daddy has to go back to work.
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This yak is the saving grace for the main character. He’s also more charming, and smarter. Otto and I are starting the day with some “poodle” time. That means he’s in my lap, and I can’t write for another 30 minutes.
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He’s kinda big for a lap dog, but so is my extra large pug. Then again, I have an extra large lap…lol
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Don’t tell him that, and my lap is a bit larger than it used to be too. I think it’s the badge of a writer.
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I struggled with productivity yesterday, too. (As you probably know, given I procrastinated on my work by creating a color-coded calendar for Story Empire.) Today, I feel less-than-interested in working. But that’s no way to run a business. Off to put my nose to the grindstone (or my fingers to the keyboard). Wishing you both fun with Otto and productivity at work.
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Otto and I are having “poodle time” right now. When he tires of this I’ll start writing.
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See, Craig, it’s hard for me to empathise with mapping out outlines too fully so that you ‘waste’ less time with drafting, especially when it’s a ‘journey’ story. The path of the major arcana is certainly highly symbolic and, as such, does not really suit tight definitions and therefore is supposed to be interpreted freely, not meant as a literal map for the Fool’s wanderings.
I’m not a complete pantser, but I frequently find that ‘getting stuck’ or finding it hard to keep to the billed outline often means that a better idea/solution comes out of the enforced and frustrating delay and thrashing around for a ‘way out’. Instinct is everything for a writer, and just as you know when things are going well, sometimes a good ponder on other options and alternative directions are more fruitful than beating yourself up because you’re not keeping to a schedule that’s causing you unnecessary problems. Like cooking, writing is an art more than a science – things are ready when they’re ready and not when you say they should be… The good cook adjusts the flavours and seasonings as they go – I think a good writer needs to go with the flow and do this occasionally as well! 😉
As for goofing off – embrace it I says! If you’re miserable then it’ll show in your writing – go refresh your soul with Otto and the pumpkin ball whenever! 😀
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I agree with you, but I still wishI’d fleshed out the waypoints a bit more ahead of time. Today, I’ve reached another roadblock. Will Yak Guy take on the next act alone, gather a sidekick, or possibly a few compatriots? I’m leaning toward the sidekick, because it’s a distraction and someone to worry about protecting. I’m going to have to ponder for a bit today.
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When you become a celebrity, I hope you take better care of yourself than some. Of course, if you keep beating yourself up for goofing off you may be a statistic anyway.
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You may be onto something there.
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Ha ha ha. I think you are too hard on down time. You need it. So welcome it.
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I goofed off too. Mainly because I’m now at a full week with this nasty, crappy cold and can’t find the motivation to do much. I’m jealous of your 2K. Maybe I can eke something out by the weekend.
And pumpkin ball with Otto would be hard to resist.
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Today is even worse, because I’m at a place where I need to think things through. Somewhere north of 1900, and that’s it for today. I’ll work on some alternate projects instead. Otto’s been pretty laid back today, but he’s starting to get feisty.
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😀
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Here’s hoping 2017 will be a great year for all us writers! What the heck is pumpkin ball (says the author of Death by Pumpkin)?
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It’s a squeaky ball that’s shaped like a pumpkin. This causes it to bounce in crazy directions because it isn’t a perfect sphere.
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I wish I could write as fast, or maybe not. I guess we all have our own processes. Mine seems to be particularly long, but I hope it’ll do the job in the end. Yay, pumpkin ball!!
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I can write faster, but I counted on the cards to do more than they have. It’s okay, because I’ll still get it finished, and finishing is the most important thing.
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Yes, finishing is the most important.
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Hahaha. Right? Celebrity deaths were at an all-time high in 2016. So strange. I hear ya about Yak Guy. I’ve never spent this much time on a book before (Blessed Mayhem), but I changed my original idea and basically, had to tear the entire thing apart. Ah, well. It’ll be a better book because of it, but it sure isn’t easy to trash months of work. Maybe I can use some of the stuff in book 3. Anyway… Good luck with Yak Guy!!!
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I allowed myself to enjoy camping and goofing around all summer, then dedicated most of the fall to promotions. Yak Guy is on the downhill side now. His arc reached a great place, I just need to get the words down.
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