NaNoWriMo 2012: Stats

Well, it's been a month and a half.

Literally. It's been just over a month and a half since I began work on my third novel. It has been eleven days since I finished that novel. I have spent most of the time since that momentous occasion blowing my nose*, reconnecting with my family, and staring blearily at the wall trying to figure out what I'm supposed to do with myself now.

Also sleeping. There has been a ridiculous amount of sleeping going on here.

Anyway, I thought I'd resurface to give you some stats from this past NaNoWriMo. And so, without further ado ...

STATS FOR SARAH'S THIRD BOOK:

Date I had the original idea: Oct 08, 2012

Date I began the first draft: Nov 01, 2012

Date I ended the first draft: Dec 06, 2012

Goal word count: 65k-80k

Actual word count: 68,649

Most words written in a day: 7,046

Least words written in a (writing) day**: 108

Average words written per (writing) day: 2,214

Number of viewpoint characters: 2

Number of chapters: 22

Number of scenes: 81

Scenes I forgot to put in***: 1

Side characters who are demanding their own spin-off series: 1

Instances of the word 'coffee': 124

Cups of coffee I have consumed in my lifetime: 0****

Scenes in which my MC was sporting glasses: 1

Alpha readers who noticed that she had glasses: 0 (I think. Correct me if I'm wrong, alphas.)

Times I thought I despised the book and it despised me and we should all die: ∞

Times I loved the book and it loved me and we twirled in a shower of glitter and daisies: ∞

Nights I stayed up until 4 AM writing: 1

Jokes about champagne-soaked love zombies I wrote at 4 AM: Ummm ...

Squeals uttered over this book: Enough to compensate for the several barns of piglets I don't have.

Sighs breathed over this book: About enough to power a small wind farm.

Tears cried over this book: Rivers. Specifically, the Nile and the Amazon.

Times I have caught myself wanting to reread it: MANY MANY MANY

Times I have succumbed: Zero. I shan't reread until revision. I SHAN'T. *whacks self*

FEELINGS that this book makes me FEEL: ALL THE FEELINGS. ALL OF THEM.

Units of excitement I feel over the possible eventuality of you reading it: 600,000,000^10

And, finally, I COULD NOT DECIDE which researching Google search was the most amusing/disturbing/inane, so I will post FIVE of them and let you decide.

Google Search #1: weird taste in coffee

Google Search #2: percentage of murderers in America

Google Search #3: how many people fit in a taxi

Google Search #4: penalty for manslaughter in Oregon

Google Search #5: why not to get a cat flap

Looking at these, I am mildly surprised at how tame my searches turned out for this book. I guess it helps that I wasn't killing anyone by disembowelment this time.

Anyway, that about wraps up my NaNo stats for this year! Please leave a comment to tell me which strange Google Search YOU prefer, and have a very merry Christmas or other holiday of your choosing!

* I had the HEAD COLD OF DOOM, people. It was awful, and it stuck around for a full two weeks. I thought the skin rimming my nostrils would NEVER RECOVER.

** I don't write on Sundays. Partially for religious reasons, partially because I would probably starve to death if I didn't have one day a week to act like a rational person.

*** I didn't technically FORGET this scene. I just had no idea what to do with it or where to put it. And so I left it until the very end, at which point I figured out that it belonged at the very beginning. I'll put it there next draft.

**** Again, religion. Mormons don't drink coffee. This is probably the only reason I am not a hollow shell of caffeine-fueled words.

Why I Love YA

So, Beth Revis is doing this AMAZING giveaway RIGHT HERE. Take a look at the juicy goodness she's giving away.

Take a moment to drool.

Obviously, I want these. Badly.

And so, to get extra entries, (MY BOOKS. MINE.) I'm blogging about why I love YA*.

Which is insanely hard. Because seriously? Why DON'T I love YA?

To make this easier on myself, I am presenting a list in bullet-point form. So here they are. The first ten reasons I can think of for writing YA.

• The rich imaginative world of MG and YA novels kept me sane during my parents' divorce.

• Through YA novels, I learned to see through the eyes of people both similar to and different from me, and to apply what I learned to my interactions with others.

• YA taught me what to look for in a man. From Peeta I learned to want selfless love, from Percy Jackson unswerving loyalty. When I begin to panic and think that no one will ever fall for me, I read a Stephanie Perkins novel and everything gets better.

• YA provided me with role models. By reading along and cheering with the characters I loved, I learned how to battle my own dark wizards and false gods.

• In YA books, I learned the value of an equal, lasting relationship and determined not to settle for anything less.

• It was YA novels that made me aware of YA authors, who are seriously some of the best people ever. I have a very close friendship with many of these people, even if I'm the only one who knows about it. (Yeesh, that's a stalkery thing to say. Guess I'd better go find some bushes to hide in.)

• YA made me think. These books are where I learned to ask the hard questions. (Save my father or save the world?) They made me evaluate, decide what was really important to me.

• YA convinced me I am not alone. Even when I feel like the scum on the toilet seat, there is always, ALWAYS a YA character who has messed up worse than I ever will. And they pick themselves up and keep going. So I can too.

• YA novels have ensured that I will never, ever be bored again by filling my head with more imaginary friends than I can count.

• And last, but definitely not least, YA novels filled me with WORDS. Words so beautiful and crazy and LOUD that they spill over and splash onto everyone I meet. I love my words. I love YA.

So those are my reasons. What are yours? And what have you been reading lately? I just read The Mark of Athena by Rick Riordan and OHMYHECKSOGOOD. If you haven't read his books yet, please do. The latest ones are phenomenal.

Now I'm off to write three thousand words and reach 50k by the end of the day! Ta-ta for now! Leave your comments after the beep**.

* Young Adult. In my mind, this genre covers EVERYTHING AWESOME. In real life ... that's still basically true.

** BEEEEEEEEEEP

In Which I Write ON PAPER Like a Cavewriter

So, I'm doing NaNoWriMo*, which is an awesome event of awesomeness that happens every November that I don't have time to explain so you should click THIS LINK and check it out. Anyway, everything was going great for the first couple of weeks. I was hitting 2-3k a day, which isn't great for me, but is definitely decent.

And then last week happened. And it sucked.

Not that last week was all that bad. But I have depression, and that combined with several other factors to make last week the BANE OF MY EXISTENCE.

And my writing showed it. For the last several days, I haven't written more than 100 words in a day. This is not a good thing. This is so very much not a good thing. But instead of fixing it, what did I do?

If you guessed that I fretted myself to flinders in between pursuing pointless distractions, you guessed right. I worried and I tweeted and I cried and I played games on my iPod and I pined and I watched YouTube videos. And then sometimes, I tried to write. And I didn't get anywhere.

And then, about an hour ago, I did something very important. I said, "ENOUGH."

Then I grabbed a notebook and a pen, planted myself on the kitchen counter**, and wrote a hundred words.

It was awesome.

The words weren't the best I'd ever written. They weren't actually very good. But they were WORDS. And I WROTE THEM. And I did it in a way unfamiliar to me***, a way that scared me a bit.

So that's my challenge to you. You know that THING that you're supposed to be doing, the THING that is driving you nuts but you keep avoiding? Go do it. And do it in a way that's a bit frightening, a bit out of your comfort zone, a bit NEW.

Then come back and tell me about it, because I want to hear.

* Yes, I realize that I haven't posted on this blog since dinosaurs walked the earth. I'm sorry. Please place your angry notes/Howlers/letter bombs in this box RIGHT HERE.

** No, I didn't actually sit ON the kitchen counter, you smart aleck. I sat BESIDE it, and put my notebook on it. There was a squished raisin on the counter too, but that is completely irrelevant.

*** I haven't written fiction on paper since the DARK AGES. Like, the last time I tried it was about four years ago. I don't like not being able to go back and change words easily, but in this case, that's exactly what I needed.

(If you've read to the end of this, you're awesome. Have some chocolate and comment, please, so that I can comment back and tell you HOW AWESOME you are.)

Musically Monday

I planned to write a review today, but then other things happened. And right now I have a character walking past a dark alley where someone waits to kidnap her, so, yeah. I can't keep them waiting.

Instead, I thought I'd pop in and share a little of the music I've been listening to lately. Before I begin, a disclaimer: Being a writer comes with costs. Specifically, my characters have their own music likes and dislikes, which occasionally conflict with my natural taste. I listen to it anyway.

So, the music.


Pressing Flowers - The Civil Wars

I discovered The Civil Wars through Safe and Sound, the song they did with Taylor Swift for The Hunger Games. I love what I've seen of their music so far. It's haunting and strange -- perfect for one of the characters I'm going to be working with soon.


In Deep - Shere

Yeah, discovered this song through Disney's Prom. And I love it, especially the chorus. The laid-back feel of the entire song just makes me happy. And, of course, it suits a character perfectly. In this case, a character I've abandoned in the middle of emotional trauma, but he'll forgive me someday, right?

Already Gone - Kelly Clarkson

A friend showed this to me today (hi, Lisa!) and all I can say is ... I wish I'd had this song a year ago. It would have been very good friends with my NaNo novel. Well, I've found it now, and I shall use it for editing.

Call Me Maybe - Carly Rae Jepson

Um, don't ask. No, seriously. Don't.

So, that's it for my Monday, but what about yours? What makes it musical? Share in the comments whilst I rescue the poor girl stranded in that alleyway.

A Few Reviews

Hi, blog. I'm sorry I've been neglecting you, blog. Want some books to keep you company, blog?

Oh, blog. I know you so well. Here are a few books I've been reading lately. (With mild spoilers, so don't say I didn't warn you!)

* * *

1. CINDER, by Marissa Meyer

How Amazon describes it:

Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She’s a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai’s, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world’s future.

How I describe it: 

Oh-my-gracious-toes, this book is amazing. I read the first five chapters (available FREE on Amazon here!) and immediately bought the whole Kindle book. It was so worth it. So, so worth it.

I love Cinder. I love her sarcasm and her refusal to lie down and take abuse. She made me laugh out loud and she also made me cry, particularly when ... well, if you read the book you'll know. I loved the author's sly references to the original fairy tale ('rotting pumpkin' color, anyone?) and I loved the way she made it her own.

I've heard people complaining that the story was a bit predictable, but it's a FAIRY-TALE RETELLING. I don't expect to be surprised when Cinder goes to the ball after all. I was surprised by what happened there. Personally, I'd rather a story be predictable than impossible to follow, and CINDER struck the perfect balance.

My favorite scene? Oh, it's impossible to pick. How about her first scene in the hospital? I loved that scene. She is going to die, and she is at her snarkiest. Plus the cyborg stuff. Yeah, I loved the cyborg stuff.

I rate this book a rich, chocolate cheesecake that fills you up after one bite but leaves you wanting more. Plus Asian food. Because, did I mention, it's SET IN FUTURISTIC ASIA. (!!!)

CONTENT WARNINGS: Really nothing to worry about. A couple mild swear words, mention of ovaries (Cinder's were left intact during her operation), joking mention of a sex change. I'd give this book to a twelve-year-old, easy.

P.S. The cover for the sequel, SCARLET, was revealed just yesterday. All I can say is, I WANT THIS BOOK! I want it desperately. I have entered every ARC contest I can find. You should too. If you win, send me the book and I will love you forever.

2. THE SELECTION, by Kiera Cass

How Amazon describes it:

For thirty-five girls, the Selection is the chance of a lifetime. The opportunity to escape the life laid out for them since birth. To be swept up in a world of glittering gowns and priceless jewels. To live in a palace and compete for the heart of gorgeous Prince Maxon.

But for America Singer, being Selected is a nightmare. It means turning her back on her secret love with Aspen, who is a caste below her. Leaving her home to enter a fierce competition for a crown she doesn't want. Living in a palace that is constantly threatened by violent rebel attacks.

Then America meets Prince Maxon. Gradually, she starts to question all the plans she's made for herself—and realizes that the life she's always dreamed of may not compare to a future she never imagined.

How I describe it:

For-the-love-of-blue, THAT COVER!!! It's so ... blue. And shiny. And PRETTY.

Ahem. On to the book.

I enjoyed this book tremenjusly. There was an abundance of pretty dresses and delicious food, and there was a surprising amount of real weight to the book. America is feisty and not afraid to show it. Maxon is ineffably endearing. I will definitely be buying this book, and it won't just be so that I can stare at the cover and drool EVERY SINGLE DAY.

I do, however, have a few problems with it. Or, rather, one problem. His name is Aspen.

Oh, Aspen. What can I say about Aspen? Aspen is America's boyfriend. Aspen is passionate and aggressive and proud. I could forgive him all these things if his relationship with America was different, but as it is ... argh. I kept wishing someone would deport him to New Asia.

Also, their kissing scenes were ... not the sort that I read. Some people are fine with that kind of making out in a book. I am not. Fortunately, they were rather isolated incidents, so I just skipped a few pages whenever they started kissing and got on with the story. (Once I buy the book I'll just black out those parts and read forever in comfort. Hey, maybe I could black out the rest of the Aspen scenes too! Oh, pleasant fantasy ...)

On the other hand, the scene where America and Maxon kiss? That was my favorite of the book. He. Is. So. Adorable.

CONTENT WARNINGS: America/Aspen kissing scenes, obviously. Mild swearing. That's all I can think of at the moment. My twelve year old sister will be reading the snogless version.

I rate this book a bag of swirly cotton candy. (Blue, of course.)

3. THE FALSE PRINCE, by Jennifer A. Nielsen

How Amazon describes it:

In a discontent kingdom, civil war is brewing. To unify the divided people, Conner, a nobleman of the court, devises a cunning plan to find an impersonator of the king's long-lost son and install him as a puppet prince. Four orphans are recruited to compete for the role, including a defiant boy named Sage. Sage knows that Conner's motives are more than questionable, yet his life balances on a sword's point -- he must be chosen to play the prince or he will certainly be killed. But Sage's rivals have their own agendas as well.

As Sage moves from a rundown orphanage to Conner's sumptuous palace, layer upon layer of treachery and deceit unfold, until finally, a truth is revealed that, in the end, may very well prove more dangerous than all of the lies taken together.

How I describe it:

My little sister found this book at Chapters and liked the first page so much she got it from the library. Being me, I got my hands on it and read it before she could get past chapter one. My verdict?

Sage. Sage, Sage, Sage. He is INCORRIGIBLE. He steals everything in sight. He sasses the man his life depends on. And he attacks a man for throwing a book at a girl.

While I was reading this book, I just kept thinking, I love this boy. This boy is insane. And I do. And he is.

It isn't a perfect book. There were a few burrs that caught me along the way. But they were all minor enough that I did a happy dance when I finished and found out there was a sequel. I did not do a happy dance when NOBODY boiled the antagonist in acid. I did not like him. But I will survive.

Favorite scene? Sage in the dungeon. I cried. And I loved him, even though I wanted to shake him.

CONTENT WARNINGS: Was there anything in this book? I can't remember. Possible mild swearing?

I rate this book a bag of peanut M&M's. Because I like M&M's. And Sage is a nut.

***

So, that's it for today! I'll be back pretty soon with another book review or three. Until then, what have you been reading, and what would you rate it? Tell me in the comments?