I sat down to start on chapter 14 of my current novel-in-progress, but as I was changing the font to Times New Roman, I thought I haven't looked over some of this earlier stuff in a while.
So then I sat down and read chapters 1-12.
A lot of folks don't believe in going back during the rough drafting stage. I'm not one. If I leave off in the middle of a chapter, I always read over the chapter before starting the new stuff, mostly so I can get back in the rhythm of things.
I'm glad I read through tonight, because it's already been 2 months for the writing of these 13 chapters. Funny how easy you the author can forget stuff that you wrote.
For me, it was a good reminder of the current actual reading pace of the book, and not the writing pace. Now that I'm sitting at 36k words and eyeing the middle ground, it's imperative to know where I'm heading next in the journey towards the climax. This book, more than any other I've written, is go! from chapter 3 onward, so it was good to read through all that again and remind myself where my MC is at in her arc, where I can start pulling up some sub-plots, and where I can slow a little to let some development happen.
I usually have a very good idea of how long my book is going to be, almost within a thousand words. This one I'm not so sure about, but I'm pretty certain it's going to be shorter--probably in the 70's and maybe early 80's. Hence, even more important to refresh on the old stuff, since technically I could be getting close to the novel's middle already.
It would be nice to have a little recap available for myself, like they do on TV shows--someone to give me a highlight reel of what I'm going to concentrate on for the next chapter, along with some great music to pump me up. Someone should work on that...
Tuesday, February 26, 2013
Tuesday, February 12, 2013
Week in Review (week 11?)
Really only 11 weeks left? Surely that's not right... Nope, I just counted on my calendar and IT IS RIGHT!
Eleven weeks until I'm done with nursing school! (This round, anyway. There's advanced degreeing in my near future. Just waiting on my acceptance letter.)
The past week has been fairly uneventful. School is settling into the gentle slog phase, where it seems like you have class every time you turn around, despite it being only once a week. This is how nursing school warps time. And once the exams start (they have), it goes by even faster.
Still enjoying my OB rotation far more than I thought I would. I witnessed two C-Sections yesterday. Still haven't seen a natural birth, but my chance for that is coming soon. I'm also getting much better at assessing the heart rate and respirations of a newborn. The first one I did was in respiratory distress, so his rate was in the 80's. It threw me off so much I thought I'd miscounted, but the nurse confirmed it for me. Crazy times!
Cross your fingers for me on the job front. I've been selected to a meet & greet for a nurse residency program at a nearby hospital, which is step 1. I also emailed my nurse manager from my nurse extern program last summer, and her response was very positive. Hope beyond hope is that I'll have multiple job offers and will actually have to make a decision! Which will be really tough, especially since I feel a strong sense of loyalty to the people from my extern program.
Anyway, I don't want to get ahead of myself there, but I'm excited to see some things happening.
I hope you all are doing well! Next week's review may be more interesting. This Saturday I'm meeting up with a bunch of Atlanta-area writers at a pub... last time we had fun shenanigans, and I anticipate it only being better this time...
Eleven weeks until I'm done with nursing school! (This round, anyway. There's advanced degreeing in my near future. Just waiting on my acceptance letter.)
The past week has been fairly uneventful. School is settling into the gentle slog phase, where it seems like you have class every time you turn around, despite it being only once a week. This is how nursing school warps time. And once the exams start (they have), it goes by even faster.
Still enjoying my OB rotation far more than I thought I would. I witnessed two C-Sections yesterday. Still haven't seen a natural birth, but my chance for that is coming soon. I'm also getting much better at assessing the heart rate and respirations of a newborn. The first one I did was in respiratory distress, so his rate was in the 80's. It threw me off so much I thought I'd miscounted, but the nurse confirmed it for me. Crazy times!
Cross your fingers for me on the job front. I've been selected to a meet & greet for a nurse residency program at a nearby hospital, which is step 1. I also emailed my nurse manager from my nurse extern program last summer, and her response was very positive. Hope beyond hope is that I'll have multiple job offers and will actually have to make a decision! Which will be really tough, especially since I feel a strong sense of loyalty to the people from my extern program.
Anyway, I don't want to get ahead of myself there, but I'm excited to see some things happening.
I hope you all are doing well! Next week's review may be more interesting. This Saturday I'm meeting up with a bunch of Atlanta-area writers at a pub... last time we had fun shenanigans, and I anticipate it only being better this time...
Monday, February 4, 2013
Week in Review (week 12)
85 days until I'm finished with school! Not that anyone is counting.
Nothing too majorly exciting happened since my last post. The puppy is phenomenal, very smart and sweet. She already has an arsenal of tricks and walks on the leash like a champ.
Hit 30k on my WIP this morning. Starting to enter that murky middle-ground territory where I have to keep reminding myself it's a first draft and it's okay if events aren't perfect this time around.
I've been reading Stacia Kane's Downside Ghosts series recently. It's urban fantasy, but completely unique and wonderful. I'm seriously addicted. The first three books are really cheap for Kindle right now. If you want to read some masterful world-building and voice, do yourself a favor and buy.
Hubby and I started watching American Horror Story. I'm a huge weenie with scary things, but now we're more intrigued by the story and our wild speculations as to what's happening/happened that the scary stuff is just something to get through for the plot.
I'm going to a birthing class tonight. Hold me.
And tomorrow I'm doing half my hours for service learning (community service). I'm teaching for half an hour on "general health." What a topic! I spent about 8 hours writing material and putting together a tri-fold board. I have so much to print for handouts that I'm going to have to go to the college, because my printer won't handle it. I'm nervous, but excited. I won't say what type of facility I'm going to, for privacy's sake, but it's something close to my heart.
Happy February!
Nothing too majorly exciting happened since my last post. The puppy is phenomenal, very smart and sweet. She already has an arsenal of tricks and walks on the leash like a champ.
Hit 30k on my WIP this morning. Starting to enter that murky middle-ground territory where I have to keep reminding myself it's a first draft and it's okay if events aren't perfect this time around.
I've been reading Stacia Kane's Downside Ghosts series recently. It's urban fantasy, but completely unique and wonderful. I'm seriously addicted. The first three books are really cheap for Kindle right now. If you want to read some masterful world-building and voice, do yourself a favor and buy.
Hubby and I started watching American Horror Story. I'm a huge weenie with scary things, but now we're more intrigued by the story and our wild speculations as to what's happening/happened that the scary stuff is just something to get through for the plot.
I'm going to a birthing class tonight. Hold me.
And tomorrow I'm doing half my hours for service learning (community service). I'm teaching for half an hour on "general health." What a topic! I spent about 8 hours writing material and putting together a tri-fold board. I have so much to print for handouts that I'm going to have to go to the college, because my printer won't handle it. I'm nervous, but excited. I won't say what type of facility I'm going to, for privacy's sake, but it's something close to my heart.
Happy February!
 |
| Ripley hanging out with her Scottish Terrier friend. |
Tuesday, January 29, 2013
Week in Review (Week 13)
Things that have happened:
1. Passed the 25k mark on my WIP.
2. Really enjoyed the newborn transition rotation & I saw a cesarean section. I gave a one-hour-old baby vaccines and I bathed him. Awesome! I guess I have a hard heart (not) because I didn't mind giving a baby a shot. Not one bit.
3. Making some strides on the future job hunt.
4. Hubby and I got a puppy!
1. Passed the 25k mark on my WIP.
2. Really enjoyed the newborn transition rotation & I saw a cesarean section. I gave a one-hour-old baby vaccines and I bathed him. Awesome! I guess I have a hard heart (not) because I didn't mind giving a baby a shot. Not one bit.
3. Making some strides on the future job hunt.
4. Hubby and I got a puppy!
 |
| Ripley |
Tuesday, January 15, 2013
Week in Review (Week 15)
15 weeks until I'm a registered nurse!
What's been happening this week?
Well, I've started back to class fully. I had a long, adventurous day in Atlanta for my pediatric clinical orientation. I think it's going to be interesting, and my clinical instructor seems awesome.
Yesterday, I was traumatized all day by my obstetrics orientation. Including a still-frame slideshow of a live birth. It was amusing, watching the groups of students go in and out of the different stations. Amidst the smiles were a few faces of horror and despair (including my own). Fortunately, my OB clinical is 12 hours, so I only have to go 6 times this semester!
The job hunt is gearing up. I try not to think about it too often (what a joke), because it stresses me out worse than anything school-related. They advise graduating nurses to start applying in early February. It's a weird thought to be applying for something that requires licensure, knowing you won't have the opportunity to obtain that licensure for 3-5 more months. But I'm tinkering with my resume and making a bookmark list of all the hospitals in the area I'm interested in and trying to think of my answers to potential interview questions.
Getting up early to write is going well! My progress on the current book is surprising. The story seems to be just falling into place, with me only having to think about the details.
Current wordcount: 18,915
Current weather: rainy
Current music: Yoshida Brothers Pandora station
How has your week been? Tell me!
What's been happening this week?
Well, I've started back to class fully. I had a long, adventurous day in Atlanta for my pediatric clinical orientation. I think it's going to be interesting, and my clinical instructor seems awesome.
Yesterday, I was traumatized all day by my obstetrics orientation. Including a still-frame slideshow of a live birth. It was amusing, watching the groups of students go in and out of the different stations. Amidst the smiles were a few faces of horror and despair (including my own). Fortunately, my OB clinical is 12 hours, so I only have to go 6 times this semester!
The job hunt is gearing up. I try not to think about it too often (what a joke), because it stresses me out worse than anything school-related. They advise graduating nurses to start applying in early February. It's a weird thought to be applying for something that requires licensure, knowing you won't have the opportunity to obtain that licensure for 3-5 more months. But I'm tinkering with my resume and making a bookmark list of all the hospitals in the area I'm interested in and trying to think of my answers to potential interview questions.
Getting up early to write is going well! My progress on the current book is surprising. The story seems to be just falling into place, with me only having to think about the details.
Current wordcount: 18,915
Current weather: rainy
Current music: Yoshida Brothers Pandora station
How has your week been? Tell me!
Wednesday, January 9, 2013
For Love of the Game
Isn't that a movie? I'm sure Hubby would know it instantly--not just the title, but all the actors and the entire plot. He's good like that.
So today is my first day back to class. And even though it's my last semester of nursing school and I'll be free soon enough, I made a personal goal to try to work on my writing more during school. Since reading/studying takes up pretty much all my time during the day, and I try to at least look at Hubby during the evenings, I concluded that I have but one option for finding writing time: get up early.
Oh, it pains me! I've decided that on non-clinical days (T, W, Th), I will get up at 5:00am and write for either an hour or until it's time for the day. I already have to get up at 4:00am for clinical days, so this really is just keeping me in the habit, I suppose. I do love my sleep, but sacrifice is necessary for all things.
This morning I got up at 5:30 and managed to write almost 600 words in 45 minutes. I'm happy with that. And now I won't feel the lingering guilt and desire to write in the evenings instead of doing stuff with Hubby.
Win-win. Right?
Let's hope so.
As for this semester, my classes are officially titled "Care of the Maternal/Child Client" and "Care of the Pediatric Client." So, you know, pregnancy, babies, and kids.
*sigh*
We'll see, folks.
So today is my first day back to class. And even though it's my last semester of nursing school and I'll be free soon enough, I made a personal goal to try to work on my writing more during school. Since reading/studying takes up pretty much all my time during the day, and I try to at least look at Hubby during the evenings, I concluded that I have but one option for finding writing time: get up early.
Oh, it pains me! I've decided that on non-clinical days (T, W, Th), I will get up at 5:00am and write for either an hour or until it's time for the day. I already have to get up at 4:00am for clinical days, so this really is just keeping me in the habit, I suppose. I do love my sleep, but sacrifice is necessary for all things.
This morning I got up at 5:30 and managed to write almost 600 words in 45 minutes. I'm happy with that. And now I won't feel the lingering guilt and desire to write in the evenings instead of doing stuff with Hubby.
Win-win. Right?
Let's hope so.
As for this semester, my classes are officially titled "Care of the Maternal/Child Client" and "Care of the Pediatric Client." So, you know, pregnancy, babies, and kids.
*sigh*
We'll see, folks.
Friday, January 4, 2013
Getting off on the wrong foot.
Literally.
So far, the year 2013 isn't being so nice to hubby and me. Hopefully this is some negativity hitting us early, so the rest of the year will open up to great things like raises and jobs and all that jazz.
1. On New Year's Eve, while displaying my Kinect Adventures jumping prowess to assembled friends, I landed wrong on my foot and sprained my ankle/bruised the 5th metatarsal. So I haven't gone running once this new year.
2. On January 1, we discovered that a car problem we thought was resolved is, in fact, not.
3. On January 2, I had to argue with my university for the rest of my loan money to cover my last semester of school. (Granted, that worked out fine, but it pissed me off really supremely, thus making it a bad day.)
4. On January 3, I finally made a dentist appointment to see what is up with this jaw pain I've been having. Turns out, I somehow have an abscessed molar and will need both a root canal and a crown in the next few weeks. Even better, my dental insurance covers less than half the cost of the procedure, meaning hubby and I will be paying some big bucks out of pocket.
Now, believe me, I do see some silver linings. For instance, I've been turning my ankle a little every time I trail run, so I'm not surprised it gave so easily. I'm grateful it didn't break while I was running.
As far as my loan money goes, it did go through, as I said. And I feel bad for being a little sharp with the student worker I was talking with, but he was very wrong in his information. Later that evening, hubby and I went to Bonefish Grill for dinner on a gift card from his boss, had an excellent meal, and left a huge tip for our nice server after talking with her about the horrible serving jobs we've had in the past. That felt good.
For my tooth...well, I have been in a lot of pain. Obviously, an abscess isn't something you want to let stay. So it's good that they found it, and it's good that it'll be removed. I'm grateful that I have insurance that's paying at least a chunk of the bill, so we don't have to pay the whole thing. I'm grateful that they have crowns and such, and they don't just have to pull out my tooth. Yikes. And the dentist said other than the mysterious abscess, I have really health teeth (I swear, that tooth isn't all bajanked and rotten. There seems to be nothing wrong with it at all, but the dentist thinks it may have been too late for the root when I got my filling 2 years ago).
But in good news, I'm making fantastic progress on my new WIP. I'm on such a downhill slide toward graduation that I'm kinda scared. And I have my best friend and life partner holding my hand through all these tribulations.
Happy new year, folks! I hope yours is getting off to a good start. :)
Look at this picture of my fat cat:
So far, the year 2013 isn't being so nice to hubby and me. Hopefully this is some negativity hitting us early, so the rest of the year will open up to great things like raises and jobs and all that jazz.
1. On New Year's Eve, while displaying my Kinect Adventures jumping prowess to assembled friends, I landed wrong on my foot and sprained my ankle/bruised the 5th metatarsal. So I haven't gone running once this new year.
2. On January 1, we discovered that a car problem we thought was resolved is, in fact, not.
3. On January 2, I had to argue with my university for the rest of my loan money to cover my last semester of school. (Granted, that worked out fine, but it pissed me off really supremely, thus making it a bad day.)
4. On January 3, I finally made a dentist appointment to see what is up with this jaw pain I've been having. Turns out, I somehow have an abscessed molar and will need both a root canal and a crown in the next few weeks. Even better, my dental insurance covers less than half the cost of the procedure, meaning hubby and I will be paying some big bucks out of pocket.
Now, believe me, I do see some silver linings. For instance, I've been turning my ankle a little every time I trail run, so I'm not surprised it gave so easily. I'm grateful it didn't break while I was running.
As far as my loan money goes, it did go through, as I said. And I feel bad for being a little sharp with the student worker I was talking with, but he was very wrong in his information. Later that evening, hubby and I went to Bonefish Grill for dinner on a gift card from his boss, had an excellent meal, and left a huge tip for our nice server after talking with her about the horrible serving jobs we've had in the past. That felt good.
For my tooth...well, I have been in a lot of pain. Obviously, an abscess isn't something you want to let stay. So it's good that they found it, and it's good that it'll be removed. I'm grateful that I have insurance that's paying at least a chunk of the bill, so we don't have to pay the whole thing. I'm grateful that they have crowns and such, and they don't just have to pull out my tooth. Yikes. And the dentist said other than the mysterious abscess, I have really health teeth (I swear, that tooth isn't all bajanked and rotten. There seems to be nothing wrong with it at all, but the dentist thinks it may have been too late for the root when I got my filling 2 years ago).
But in good news, I'm making fantastic progress on my new WIP. I'm on such a downhill slide toward graduation that I'm kinda scared. And I have my best friend and life partner holding my hand through all these tribulations.
Happy new year, folks! I hope yours is getting off to a good start. :)
Look at this picture of my fat cat:
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