Wednesday, November 13, 2013

What's Up Wednesday

Hey everybody! I'm checking in for What's Up Wednesday, a writerly check-in started by Jaime Morrow.

What I'm Reading

Not much reading because I'm Nano-ing: that is, National Novel Writing Month aka NaNoWriMo. BUT, of course I am reading SOMETHING:
Jennifer Echol's Endless Summer, which is keeping me in the right mindset for my summer-set YA contemporary.


What I'm Writing

I'm at the halfway point! 25k words! My Nano project is tentatively titled SUNSET SUMMER set in a coastal Oregon town. I just tried and failed to come up with a cute pitch, so let's just say the story is in the vein of Second Chance Summer or My Life Next Door (two YA contemporaries set in summer with strong themes of family).

What Else I've Been Up To

My RWA chapter brought in a forensic anthropologist (like Bones!) for a workshop on CSI for writers. There was a fake crime scene and everything. We analyzed blood spatter (spatter, not splatter) and discussed some basics to cover and some No-nos to avoid (like cops touching evidence without gloves--derp).
Forensic Anthropologist & author Mari Freeman
While most TV and movies are pretty inconsistent with realistic crime scene investigations, she said Castle is one of the worst offenders. Though the premise itself is ridiculous; famous crime writer tags along with the NYPD on their investigations? At least they realize their own ridiculousness by putting Nathan Fillion in this:


What Inspires Me

I want to publish a book. I need to write book for book to be published. So I am writing book. Sometimes it's just the facts, folks.

Also, today is my anniversary! Nothing fun going on today, though we celebrated last weekend with a few nights at a funky little inn in Wisconsin. We even at cheese and drank beer for dinner one night.

Stop over to Jaime's blog to see the other What's Up Weds posts!

12 comments:

  1. Congrats on making it to 25k! Good luck with the rest of NaNo. Also that blood splatter class sounds really cool. My husband loves crime shows, so I end up watching a lot of them with him. Even if it's totally stupid, I love Castle.

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    1. One thing we were corrected on is its blood spatter rather than splatter. She said make sure to get it right in your books! I can't imagine myself writing crime fiction but you never know when some of these elements might sneak into a story.

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  2. Happy Anniversary! And congrats on getting to the halfway point in NaNo. In both of my NaNo attempts, 25K is about the maximum I wrote all month. All of you folks kicking NaNo's butt are totally inspiring me. I have revisions that I really need to get to already. Soon, I hope. That forensic anthropologist session sounds awesome! I always knew that all of these crime shows usually get it way wrong, but it would be great to hear the details right from an expert's mouth. Very cool. Have a great week, Stephanie!

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  3. Happy anniversary! And congrats on reaching the halfway point of NaNo! I loved SECOND CHANCE SUMMER (and really want to read MY LIFE NEXT DOOR) so your MS sounds like it'd be right up my alley. :) Best of luck finishing it this month.

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  4. Congratulations on hitting 25k! That's awesome :D

    Okay, your chapter wins ALL the awards. That looks like such a fun experience!

    Have an amazing week!

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  5. Congrats on the 25k! I'm there too and it feels great to make it halfway through! :)

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  6. LOL! But Castle is so fun. (But only because OF Nathan Fillion--that guy rocks!)

    Happy anniversary! I'm sending virtual cheese to help celebrate. Hope you have an amazing one.

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  7. How cool does your RWA chapter sound? (Super cool, is the answer, and I wish we had those in the UK.)

    I love your inspiration. So true! Congrats on hitting 25k, and may it continue.

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  8. Um, you have the most AWESOME RWA chapter! Also, you don't need to write a pitch. Just saying it's similar to SECOND CHANCE SUMMER and MY LIFE NEXT DOOR is enough for me! I adored those two books!

    Good luck with the NaNoing! You're doing awesome!

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  9. Happy Anniversary.
    I feel the same about writing. I want and need to write a publishable novel. It's my inspiration as well. Congrats on hitting the 25,000 mark. If you'd like a writing buddy over at NaNo, my username is cmonson01.

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  10. Castle isn't accurate?! Say isn't so! No matter, I'll still be watching next Monday :) Very cool that your chapter brought in an expert.

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  11. Happy anniversary! And hope your Nanowrimo project is still going well :) I too have a desperate desire to be published. Writing for myself is fun, but the thought of sharing my words with other people is what keeps me writing on the days when I'd much rather do anything else :)

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