NaNoWriMo: Mid-story blues

I know what you're thinking, it's only the 7th November, who can I possibly have the mid-story blues already? Well, that's what I get for powering ahead (32k so far)... and now I've reached a point that I have totally slowed down as I try to figure out what to put. The worst part about this slump is I'm writing from an outline so I know where I need to go.

This seems to be the same slump I get in for all my stories. Every time I reach the middle of the story I always seem to reach a block and try to figure out what's good about the story. Then I get that evil voice at the back of my head saying 'will anyone read this?', 'Is this original?', 'Am I waisting my time?'

This is the point that I need to take a break, and to me a break was getting out with my camera and taking pictures of my dogs running (okay, so that was for an assignment for my photography course, but it was still a break).

Now hopefully I can return to my novel and finish it so I can start working on the other's I've still got sitting around.

What do you do if you come to a slump in your writing? What parts of your stories do you usually find the slump occurring? 

Review: Pretty Dark Nothing

Pretty Dark Nothing by Heather L. Reid

Synopsis (From Goodreads): It’s been twenty three days since Quinn has slept for more than minutes at a time. Demons have invaded her dreams, stalking her, and whispering of her death. The lack of sleep and crippling fear are ruining her life. Energy drinks and caffeine pills don’t make a dent. When Quinn dozes off in the school hallway, Aaron, an amnesiac with a psychic ability, accidentally enters her nightmare. The demons are determined to keep them apart, and Aaron from discovering the secret locked away in his memory. Together, they could banish the darkness back to the underworld for good. That is, unless the demons kill them first.

I have to admit that the first thing that drew me to this story was the cover. I didn't even know anything about the story, but the cover looks creepy and beautiful all at the same time so it definitely had my attention, and then I read the premise, which made me want to read this story.

Pretty Dark Nothing is about Quinn, a girl who used to be top of her class, a cheerleader and popular, but that was before demons began invading her dreams. Now she's an insomniac, barely surviving on more than a few minutes of sleep at a time and living off energy drinks and caffeine pills. She keeps all of her weird dreams and demonic shadows a secret, afraid that if she told anyone they would think she's crazy - which she could be. When Quinn dozes off at school she could swear she's rescued Aaron. Aaron also has a secret. He's an amnesiac with a psychic ability and has the ability to enter her dreams. Maybe together they will be able to banish the darkness, but will the demons kill them first?

Heather L. Reid has created an interesting story and it could have been a very strong and creepy story, what with her ability to describe such vivid dark and deadly scenes, as well as portray Quinn's 'episodes' in a way that could make the reader question whether Quinn is actually being attacked or if she is crazy, but it's not easy to overlook some of the behaviours that Quinn has throughout the novel. Quinn plays the character of damsel in distress quite well, and it's easy to understand how that can work and be more realistic than if she were to be more capable, but the fact that she was too reliant on a particular boy, and not Aaron. Quinn's obsession with her ex-boyfriend was quite distracting and it became overwhelming, having me thinking why she's constantly pining over him when he's treating her like dirt.

Aaron's side of the story provided a good twist, but he was too nice. I couldn't stand how he kept coming back to Quinn's rescue when she barely even acknowledged him, let alone thanked him for helping her in dire situations.

Getting back to the plot, the story was full of twists and turns and the demons were perfectly describe, leaving the reader with a creepy crawling feeling. The demons attacking through dreams were very reminiscent of Nightmare on Elm Street (and I absolutely love Freddy Kruger), and I can't wait to see where the story continues in the next novel. I would recommend this to anyone who loves the darker YA paranormals, especially for fans of Nightmare on Elm Street.

Source: NetGalley

2013 Debut Author Challenge: #10 of 12

NaNoWriMo: Just dropping by!

So it's already the end of day 4 here of NaNoWriMo and I've been furiously writing (actually wondering why I can't write like this on any other day other than during NanoWriMo).

I'm actually quite thrilled at my progress. At the end of day one I already had a whopping 10k (hey I decided to stay up and start right at midnight and got 3k before bed). Then to see if I could keep that up, I decided to top that, well actually match it, and on the 2nd day I achieved 20k.

Knowing I'm going at a good rate, I did slow down over the next two days, but I have actually been achieving good targets - so I have no idea why I decided to put a writer's block image up. There was only one scene that got me absolutely stumped and I'll have to do a total rewrite of it during my edits. The scene takes place at a superhero convention and my character (who is supposed to be working as security) gets into a hero/villain battle and loses control of her power and totally trashes the convention hall.

That's my update from the Nano Zone.
Total words written: 25k
Total cups of coffee drunk: too many to keep count

If you're doing Nano (& are crazy enough to be reading this) how are you going? If you're not, what are you doing this month?

What are you doing this Nano Eve?

Okay, for the first time since I've started attempting NanoWriMo novels, I don't actually have to work or do anything (other than write) on the 1st November, so I'm attempting possibly the most crazy feat I have ever attempted - that's pulling an all nighter and starting right on the chime of midnight and seeing how much of my novel I can get written before I crash.

Working on another WiP as well as watching movies galore just to keep busy as the clock counts down. Even as I write this there's still 5 minutes until Nano starts, and now this is the time when all the doubts start to creep into my mind:

• Is my idea good enough?
• Can I get a novel out of the plot I have created?
• Will I be able to start the story or just stare at the blank page for the first few hours?

It's not just with Nano, every novel ideas comes the same thoughts. I'm just hoping I've thought through this novel, but I am looking forward to jumping into it (and getting the excuse of being a nerd and reading/watching any form of media with nothing but superheroes for the month). The one problem I do have with my novel is that it is technically two separate stories and I think I need to write it as two stories before I can combine the two characters POVs into one big story... oh well, more the fun.

What have you been doing on the Nano eve/Halloween?

Review: Mortality

Mortality by Kellie Sheridan

Synopsis (From Goodreads): After surviving a deadly plague outbreak, sixteen-year-old Savannah thought she had lived through the very worst of human history. There was no way to know that the miracle vaccine would put everyone at risk for a fate worse than un-death. 

Now, two very different kinds of infected walk the Earth, intent on nothing but feeding and destroying what little remains of civilization. When the inoculated are bitten, infection means watching on in silent horror as self-control disappears and the idea of feasting on loved ones becomes increasingly hard to ignore. 

Starving and forced to live inside of the abandoned high school, all Savannah wants is the chance to fight back. When a strange boy arrives with a plan to set everything right, she gets her chance. Meeting Cole changes everything. Mere survival will never be enough.

Kellie Sheridan has written an interesting piece of zombie fiction that combines two very different story lines. When I first picked up Mortality I didn't know much about the story besides it was a zombie novel, and lately I have read several very different takes on the zombie novel, this one definitely took the old theme and threw in a new twist which was pleasant to see.

The story follows two very different girls, Savannah and Zarah. Savannah is a very take charge character who lives in her old high school, helping to defend her new family, while out gathering medical supplies something goes wrong and Savannah finds herself alone with her friends as they try to make their way to the new location where the rest of the compound is heading.

Zarah is the complete opposite, a quiet character who is trying to survive at the start of the zombie apocalypse. I did enjoy the two story lines, but it did get a bit frustrating moving from past to present following the two girls when all I wanted was for Zarah to catch up to Savannah's timeline.

For a zombie novel, this novel is action-packed and thrilling as Savannah and Zarah try to stay alive and make it to their final destinations. I would definitely recommend this book for anyone who loves a good zombie book or movie.

Source: NetGalley

Getting out of my comfort zone (& off my butt)

Sometimes I find that just sitting in front of a screen (staring at a blank screen) can be a cause of some serious writer's block and cause frustration that ends up with me (wanting to throw the computer) shelving a novel or ending up with a lot of unfinished WiPs that I keep telling myself that I'll get back to.

There are some simple tips for breaking writer's block:

• taking a little walk out in fresh air (my dogs love that little suggestion).
• go see a movie... as long as the ideas that come afterwards do not include a scene by scene recount of the movie's plot.
• do something wild and outlandish

Okay, I love going for a little walk around the block... when this happens I can't get away without taking my two dogs, who love me when I need to go for a walk, but sometimes just the little walk doesn't help.

I love going to places and doing things a bit out of the ordinary, and this usually helps to churn ideas within my little head. Even if it's just a drive up the mountain, or taking a 3 kilometre hike down the mountain in search of waterfalls in the rain... yes, I've done that (didn't find the waterfalls, found the camping ground, the waterfalls were an extra 3km walk).

Today my sister and I decided to go and explore some caves. Yep, a totally unprepared, out of the blue trip to the caves. With the trust light from our mobile phones we ventured into unknown territory, climbing up rocks and hoping that I didn't head butt the low hanging ceiling and give myself a concussion (glad to say I'm still in one piece). 

Being fully prepared, I had my trusty camera and decided to play with the only light sources we had in the cave (no flash from the camera here :D). What I can say about my little excursion is that by getting out of the house it does allow me to get a clearer head to help me think of my stories without the stress of deadlines, word counts or blank pages.

p.s. When I eventually got home I was able to finish the first draft of my WiP, Dark Sight... YAY!!!

So, what do you do to clear your head when you come up against writer's block?

For a limited time: Shadow Embraced $0.99

As a celebration of the new life I've been exploring lately, as well as NanoWriMo coming up in just a few weeks (scary), I have decided to reduce the price of Shadow Embraced to $0.99. So, up until the start of Nano - which I see as a fitting time - Shadow Embraced will remain at this special price.