Category: Writing

  • Project River – Day 9 – Changes

    When writing any story, there are bound to be changes during the first draft. That’s especially true for me during this NaNoWriMo since I am planning the novel while I write it. Even 27,000 words in, there are things that change. Characterization Characters can change more than their name or eye color. Their outlook on…

  • Project River – Day 8 – Characters

    25,020 words so far. I realized today that I’m going to have to scrap a scene and a half from earlier in the novel to adjust for new characterization and plot. The characters are finally coming together in my head, so I’ve decided to outline them below. There are many more characters, but these are…

  • Project River – Day 6 – More Subplots

    I am 1/5 of the way there, with 18,011 words total. That’s on track for 90k! I spent most of this evening working on figuring out the rest of Acts 2 and 3, with many ideas but still a lot of scenes to sort and place. These six are smaller subplots that either are only…

  • Project River – Day 4 – Subplots

    Four days into November, and things are running pretty smoothly. I’ve written 12,419 words, or about 1/8 of the total. That’s close enough to par for me, especially at the beginning of writing. Subplots Besides the main plot, there are ten subplots that I’ve planned. With the expansion of the main plot, some of these…

  • Project River – Day 2 – Main Plot

    I sketched out the main plot by hitting upon 9 major scenes that form the scaffolding of the plot. Hopefully I’ll be able to plan scenes to lead into and out of these scenes to fill the rest of the space between them. For those interested, these major scenes are based on K. M. Weiland’s…

  • Project River – Day 1 – Beginnings

    NaNoWriMo got off to a good start today. I often don’t finish the goal of 1,666 words on the first day, because it is always difficult getting into the swing of a new story. This year should have been especially hard, since I’d only done the briefest amount of planning. But things went fairly smoothly…

  • Project River – NaNoWriMo 2023 Prep

    How’s the prep been going for this year’s NaNoWriMo? Well, for me, there hasn’t been much. Between work, family, and editing What Happened at Ingvar Bluffs, I’ve put off prepping for this year’s NaNo novel. So far, I only have a few themes, some sketches of the world, and a loose sense of the plot.…

  • The Memory Smith – Part 2

    Magnus ran his hand over the sling again. His fingers bounced against the pebbled outside of the cast. He cautiously flexed his muscles. Though his wrist did not move, a string of ache wound its way up from deep within and along the inside of his arm. He scowled at the injury. He should be…

  • The Memory Smith – Part 1

    This is the first part of a four part short story I wrote for my church’s advent calendar. Our writer’s group, Word Workers, has daily writings posted through-out Advent, including stories, memories, reflections, poems, and more. You can find the calendar at AllSaintsMTKA.org. Magnus Stonhart shuffled through the chill, dark night while the knapsack slung…

  • NaNoWriMo/NaNoPlaMo 2021 – What is all this?

    What is NaNoWriMo? NaNoWriMo stands for National Novel Writing Month. Every November, thousands of writers commit to writing a novel in a month. The goal is to write 50,000 between November 1 and November 30. NaNoWriMo is about breaking free of your restrictions and completing a draft, no matter how terrible. It is always easier…