NaNoWriMo 2019: Mission Accomplished

I’m baaaaaack!

It feels like an eternity since I’ve gotten to mingle with all my awesome blogging buddies here on WP, and this moth is excited to be back and see what all I’ve missed! ❤

As mentioned in my last post back in October, I’ve been on a hiatus from blogging for the past month so I could devote all my free time on completing NaNoWriMo. (The popular writing challenge of writing 50,000 words in 30 days during the month of November.) Well, my dears, I am very pleased to announce that many heavily caffeinated beverages later, I have indeed vanquished the NaNoWriMo beast and completed the challenge!

I’ll admit, there were a couple times near the end that I worried with my schedule that it just wasn’t going to happen. I wrote almost every day, and sometimes I could squeeze a lot of writing time in, but other days it was next to none, but I did it, and with a whole day to spare, even! 50,161 words in 29 days!

I think doing two creative challenges over the span of the last two months (Inktober and NaNoWriMo) was exactly what I needed for both my creativity AND my confidence. I learned that if I force myself to make time for what I love doing and focus on actually just doing things rather than just thinking about them that I can accomplish quite a lot. I’ve also learned that when experiencing writer’s block or not knowing what to draw, that sometimes just pushing through the creative block and actually doing it gets your creativity flowing again. 2019 may be coming to an end fast, but I plan to take what I’ve learned the last two months and top off the year with that determination. I’m very excited to work on continuing this practice in 2020 as well. 🙂

I’m looking forward to catching up on what everyone has been up to. How was your November? Did you participate in NaNoWriMo? If so, how’d ya do?? 🙂 I hope everyone has a very happy December. Let’s make the most out of the last stretch of the year! ❤

 

 

Bring It On, NaNoWriMo!

So, life kicked me in the butt today, but rather than letting it discourage me, I’m saying to hell with it, and letting it encourage me instead. You know what goes great with soul-crushing disappointment? C-R-E-A-T-I-V-I-T-Y!!! (Seriously, there’s a reason for the “tortured artist” stereotype.) I’ve been getting back in my art groove this month with the infamous Inktober art challenge, but behind the scenes of that I’ve also been prepping for next month’s writing challenge NaNoWriMo. Two creative and grueling challenges in two months? Oh, hell yes. So, bring it on National Novel Writing Month. I’m ready for ya this year.

I even did a thing and signed up for the official NaNoWriMo website. If any of you guys are on there too, let’s be writing partners in crime and root each other on! 😀 You can see my official NaNoWriMo profile here! 🙂 It’s pretty sparse right now since I just signed up and haven’t had much time to check out the site yet, but there will be updates/content to come–especially once November hits!

So, who else is getting in on the NaNoWriMo fun this year? The more the merrier! 😉

Two Hearts (Peter S. Beagle Short Story Review)

Peter S. Beagle’s whimsical fantasy tale The Last Unicorn is a classic. It’s one of my favorite books of all time, so when The Shameful Narcissist recently read and provided a link to a short follow-up to the story, of course I was eager to return to Mr. Beagle’s rich and enchanting world of magicians, unicorns and other mythical beasts.

The original tale is a clever and spellbinding journey all its own, so I was very hopeful that this newer adventure would be able to capture some of the magic woven in the first book. I was obviously hopeful, but I had to wonder, could Two Hearts manage to match the charm and whimsy of its legendary predecessor? Well, as Captain Cully would say: sit down, have a taco, and let’s talk about Two Hearts.

Although this short story features multiple characters we came to love in The Last Unicorn, you may be surprised to learn that the main character is someone new entirely. Sooz, a young girl from a small village plagued by a child-eating griffin, is done waiting for the king to send more knights who all seem to fall prey to the very beast they’ve been sent to slay. She’s decided to take matters into her own hands and runs away from home to seek the king out for herself, to get his help specifically. Young Sooz, you see, has heard all about brave King Lir and the dragons and giants he’s slain, the impossible riddles he’s solved, and the maidens he’s saved.

Unfortunately, no matter how noble the hero, the one thing they may never vanquish is time, and the king is now in the later years of his life, his mind often failing him. On her way to seek the king, Sooz befriends the infamous Molly Grue and Schmendrick the magician from the first tale. Although King Lir is frequent to forget and lose himself as he admits to Sooz, the mention of a familiar character always manages to bring him back, if even for only a matter of time.

Lir’s bravery and kindness propel him to agree to help Sooz and her village, but will the best intentions of an aging hero be enough to finally bring an end to the griffin? You’ll have to find that one out for yourself. 😉

I will tell you, however, that Peter S. Beagle definitely captured the enchantment of his original tale once more, much to my delight. Especially in the last third or so of the story. We finally get to see what has become of the characters he introduced us to so many years ago, and he introduces us to a brave young girl who would do anything to protect those she cares for against a hungry monstrous creature. For fans of The Last Unicorn, I would definitely say this one is easily worth the read. I enjoyed it and it made me want to re-read the original book again.

The Rough Part of Rough Drafts

Very good words to keep in mind. I feel like this should be my mantra. I have this frustrating habit of agonizing over the same paragraph for far too long (yes, even in the rough draft stages) because I have this manic obsession with trying to make it all worded just so. Needless to say, this sort of habit can be quite hindering. I’m definitely gonna try to keep these words in mind from here on out.

Whistle While You Work

Sitting in one spot for hours at a time, staring at your computer screen or pad of paper, and trying to put thoughts into actual words can be a maddening process. Though what’s life without a little madness from time to time? 😉

Sometimes it can be pretty hard to remain focused. One thing that seems to help me, is having some sort of music in the background while I’m working. Usually (though not always) something of a more instrumental variety. Oftentimes, this might mean the soundtrack to a particular video game. I think going with instrumental music usually works best for me because I get less distracted by a singer’s lyrics and can focus more on the overall mood of the music as I write.

Today I’m all about the OST (Original Sound Track) for a game called The Binding of Isaac. It’s a fun and challenging game with great music and a creepy and oftentimes flat-out disturbing mood to it. The OST for the game definitely reflects this. Created by electronic music producer, Danny Baranowsky, the game’s music somehow manages to be both calming and motivating to me when I write. It’s helped me chisel away at writer’s block on multiple occasions and it’s definitely in my arsenal of go-to playlists for when I need something to keep me on track and working.

I find it interesting all the different methods and tools people use to stay focused and keep working when they are creating things, be it stories, art, or whatever it is they might be constructing. Whatever helps a person pry their seedling of a concept from the depths of their mind and put it onto paper or some other medium of the creator’s choosing. Caffeine and music seem to be two very ideal components of the equation for me. What works for you?