Yeah, I could make excuses. And they'd be really good ones, too. Upon hearing them you'd feel a surge of sympathy for me and shake your head and ask yourself in a quiet and sad voice, "Really, how could a person be expected to do all that writing in the midst of X, Y and Z? Frankly I'm amazed that he made it to 27,000 -- it's nothing short of heroic."
Gosh guys, that's nice of you say, but 'heroic'? That's just too much.
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In real writing news: I'm still looking forward. Still got my eyes on the prize and all that. With Nano 2010 now a part of history, I'm setting Oneironaut aside once again, and going back to editing Talonshale. And I shall not stop until it is squeaky clean and glittering like a pubescent vampire in the sunshine.
Also, I've made the decision to self-publish one of my older projects. Not because I've embraced the notion that self-publishing is the road to fame and riches, but purely for the artistry of it. The book is pretty much my favorite out of all my old stories, and it is one that my agent has "released the rights" to, so I've partnered with a very talented lady who's going to illustrate it for me. She's done some amazing work so far, and I'd love to share it with you blog types, but first I should ask her permission.
In other news, don't actually call me 'Loser McLosey'. It hurts.
13 comments:
Now:Ray; you should show some happiness in the fact that you have achieved 27,000 words. I do not think that my vocabulary includes 27,000 words. And I would never call you "Loser McLosey" because from what I have read and understand is that your goal is to be a famous author and that you could use all the encouragement that friends and family give you; so,be encouraged to keep writing and I am sure that your writing style will capture the readers imagination.
This is Violet Squire-Veen talking: Isn't your word count pretty much self-imposed? There is no writing Nazi standing over you with brass knucks, in other words...so do you think perhaps just maybe your self-imposed word count thingy is a little too ambitious? And if not too ambitious, would you at least agree that you should put some slop room in the word count goal? Like for exploding mufflers, neighbor's windmills, and a son turning 15? Just saying.
Hi Ray! Thanks for visiting my blog. I see you're way ahead of me with having an agent and all. :)
27k is a pretty good accomplishment too. Nothing to beat yourself up about. Hey, it's 27k you didn't have before November, right?
We actually have quite a few active NaNo groups in the area so look us up again next year. Not only is there a group in GH, there's a group right in Muskegon. They seem to hang out in the MI:Elsewhere region, but I'm hoping to draw them into ours next year to make them easier to find for our widespread locals.
Thanks for the encouragement, guys. Actually my biggest problem this year had more to do with lethargy and indifference - wholly legitimate reasons for feeling bad.
Jean -- I'm actually a part of the 'Muskegon Elsewhere' branch. We have a number of casual participants, and five in a more motivated core group (which I'd define as 'people with the skills and the drive to get their novels published). Our write-ins only drew an average of three bodies, though. I think it would definitely be fun to try to combine the groups next year.
And here's another fun fact for you: I was the only loser in Muskegon.
I in fact did call you a loser, did all the hard work of winning, and then slept through the afterparty because I myself carry the loser gene (and strains of bipolarity, but I'm not sure that's relevent). So, um, can I buy me one of them shiney self published books?
27,000 words is NOT losing! Seriously!! That is a whole heckuva lotta words.
You are Winner McWinney or (should I call you Winner McWHINEY for whining about it :)
And good for you for selfpublishing a book you care about. I'm thinking of doing that with some of my poetry and my dad's photos just for our family to have (and some others to try to market a bit). Good luck!
Wait...I'm still laughing about: glittering like a pubescent vampire in the sunshine. Funny stuff.
1. 27,000 words is nothing to sneeze at - unless you're like sick or something then maybe you could sneeze. Just don't sneeze on your 27,00 words. Bad. And messy.
2. Excellent news on self-publishing one of your books. Just plain excellent. I look forward to seeing the illustrations!!!!!!
I agree with Kelly. I agree with everyone 27k is none too shabby. And I may have wrote a whole bunch of words for nano but they all sucked. It's all good.
BJ -- It's entirely possible that my loser-ey-ness has rubbed off on you by proxy. And so you know, as a full member of our fledling writer's group, I'll probably gift you a copy. When that day comes, anyway. Still a good six months out, I think.
Kelly -- I've said it before and I'll say it again: you are one of the danged-nicest folks on the internet. As far as self-publishing, it sounds like you and I are in agreement -- no interest in promoting it ourselves.
Kate -- You have an older middle grade project and a sister who's an artist, don't you? You might consider giving it a try. I'm having a ball over here.
Tina -- Thanks, and you're all right, of course. The funny thing is that usually when I'm working on a first draft, I can easily write 50k in a month. And btw -- congratulations on your 'win'.
I'm excited to see the final self-publishing efforts! And you are not a loser!
You're a friend of mine and I don't have loser friends. As always, you rock big time. You're a major inspiration. Thank you. ;-)
What's all this loser talk? 27,000 words is awesome, Ethan Ellenburg is awesomeer, and you clearly adore your family. It smells like a winner is writing this blog!
I'd like to echo Deb and say I don't follow losers!
I won't call you McLoserson, because we're all entitled to have our moments. Also, yes, we should make a blog pact to post more...what shall it be? Leave it in my blog comments if you like...
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