Camp NaNo April 2022: Week 1

It always starts off with my fingers flashing across the keyboard. Ideas are firing at the speed of light. At least, it would have been like that if I was working on a shiny new idea.

This time, however, I was reworking old ideas. I sat in front of my computer weaving threads of ideas together like a spider weaves her web. My prey are my readers and the workmanship that goes into my web will determine how many readers I can capture. (Lol, then I WILL EAT THEM ALL! Just kidding.)

I wish I could say that I succeeded in writing every day but I was also working on other things. Family is always a priority and then my art followed by my writing. This past weekend, my womanhood slapped me in the stomach and it was hard to focus on too many things. Writing took the back burner as I focused on family and art.

I've been working on publishing my art to websites like Society6 and Ko-Fi. I created a coloring page, and you can now purchase art prints. I am slowly transitioning from a free artist to a paid one. The crawl to being paid is agonizing and I'm looking forward to earning my first dollar. That being said, I'm also just trying to enjoy the process.

Art aside, I've been steadily drafting my novel. I'm about 4 short chapters into my draft and I've reached a part where I need push through the awkward writing. Trying to figure out how to write dialogue is tricky since I'm still learning what the characters will say. That's the problem with writing at the seat of your pants. Everything feels awkward. Still, compared to all of my previous attempts at drafting, I'm fairly happy with the plot. I might need to rework a scene...or two...or three, but once I get passed the beginning, I'm hoping my writing paralysis will cease. Then again, I've never finished a draft fully. So.... I guess the journey continues.

First Chapter Struggles...

The dreaded first chapter. There are quite a few people I hear about that seem to have trouble with starting fresh. I happened to have the opposite problem this time. Once I gave up on outlining, I managed to write the first chapter. I came up with a decent first line too. Then, it all went down hill once I realized that my characters actually had to talk to each other.

Pfft. Characters talk? When it comes to dialogue, I don't know what it is, but I instantly become awkward. In real life, I'm exactly like this. Overly excited or very bored sounding. My words are always being jumbled up. In my mind, I have a calm and collected voice but that voice never reaches my mouth.

So, when it comes to writing, my characters all seem to take on my speech paralysis. Gulp! I'm not looking forward to editing but maybe as more time passes I'll think up better dialogue. After all, creating a story is like putting a puzzle together. Sometimes the pieces fit and other times you have to keep searching.

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Yo! Thanks for reading my blog! It's been a hectic start. I'm still learning how to do things around here, but as I continue to work on this blog, everything feels like it's falling into place. If you enjoy my work so far, consider checking out my Ko-Fi where you can support me by donating and nabbing yourself a cute Bubble Fish colouring page.

You can also check out my Society 6 store where you can buy art prints of my work! I hope you have a great weekend and I'll see you again next week! Woo! What a life!

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