First Draft Completed!!!! That's right COMPLETE!!!!

Just finished the entire first draft for the first book of my story. Yep, all 42 chapters have been completely typed up and read over at least once. They've all been backed up multiple times and I'm feeling pretty good about them. I think most of these chapters are actually in really good shape for this stage. I recall feeling very apprehensive about a lot of these chapters when I wrote/typed them up (specifically this last third) and after reading them over and correcting them I see them in a new light. They weren't so bad when I was just reading them, if fact most of it was enjoyable (I kind of got into it a little at time, half forgetting I wrote it) and the parts that needed tweaking were tweaked and by doing so made the chapters much stronger (I think so anyways).

What's the next step for the book? It's a little foggy right now, but here's my plan (let's hope it just holds up). I plan to send out copies of the entire first draft to two people that I've asked to read it over and give me feedback, no mater how harsh it is (in fact, the harsher the better). Then, when I get the copies back and talk to these people, I plan to go over the whole book again taking into consideration their constructive criticism and improve what needs improving. Then I plan to print out this new spiffy version and completely tear into it with highlighters, pens and whatever writing equipment I can get my hands on (I wonder if I could find a use for a protractor, hmmm.....). Then when this new draft is all fixed up and dandy I think I'll have it looked at (by who I'm not sure yet) and then take their feed back and do one last correction (unless it seems to need a lot more work, but lets hope by this point it's looking pretty final).

So, yeah, that's my plan...we'll see if it turns out like that.

And some extra news, I think I may have finally decided on a name for the book series. I'm not going to reveal it just yet, (sorry) but I think I'll make the logo for the books and then post it in all it's (hopefully) awesomeness.

In a completely unrelated topic, I've seem to have come down with GLEE FEVER today. (Which is why I got so much work done today. The music will do that to you). Anyways I was a fan of it last year, it really surprised me how good it was and I was looking forward to this new season, but I didn't realize I'd get so excited for it to start. Yeah, just thought I'd mention this.

So here's the new updated progress report

Progress:

Title: ?%
 
Planning: 100%

First Draft Handwritten: 100%

First Draft Typed: 100%
 
Second Draft Typed: 0%

Well There you have it. I'll post back later.

Editing Abounds

So, I'm house sitting again and I've been using the time to do a little bit more work on the book. I've edited seven chapters over the last two days and have seven left to go. Granted there's still plenty of of editing for me to do after this, but I figure that will start once I get some feed back on them.

Surprisingly the chapters I read over seemed a lot less flawed than I thought there were after writing them. They were fairly clear and had a nice flow to them; granted there were still plenty of typos, run-on sentences and a few moments that needed clarifying, but all this seemed pretty minor, which I'm taking as a good thing.

I don't really know what my plan will be once I'm finished correcting these chapters. There are two people that are helping me to edit it so I'll be sending it off to them. I'm not sure if I'll sit around and do nothing while they read them or if I should start the basic planning of the second book. It's starting to get a little crazy how close I'm getting to finishing.

Well, I think I'm going to sign of now. I'll be sure to post back in a little while. I expect post to be scarce since there doesn't seem to be too much left to do.

Very Belated Update Time

I've been meaning to post a progress update for a while now, but I kept putting it off. Anyways, I have finished typing up the first draft. It's all on my computer and backed up so that nothing horrible can happen to it. I still have to read over the chapters and correct them, but I've been taking a bit of a break from my story lately. I do plan to go back to it soon though.

So, yeah I'll post back when something worth posting about happens. Until then, type to ya later.

Two More Done and Still Plugging Away

I managed to finish two chapters so far today. The first one is an average size chapter and it still needs a bit of work. I just feel that it's still a bit bare bones and could be expanded in spots. The second chapter was very short, only three pages. It's a bit better off than the other chapter, but it wasn't really in that bad of shape to begin with. Anyways, I've got two more done and I'll get to work on the next one now.

Progress:

First Draft Typed: 85%

One More Typed Chapter to Add to the Finished Pile

Tonight I finished another chapter. I have been working on it for the past three days so it's been untaxing. This chapter was in pretty good shape with very few low points, so after fixing up those points I think I got a very nice product. I think cutting it up into smaller, more manageable parts helped a bit with that as well because I was able to come at it each time with a fresh mind and attitude.

I have a bit more time tonight to continue on with the next chapter so I think that's what I'll do. I expect to work on this one as I did the previous, bit by bit and hopefully get a similar result.

Progress:

First Draft Typed: 80% (oopse...looks like I miscalculated last time, now I'm at 80%)

Well, I'll go write now and then maybe improve my math skills...

A Little Break and Another Chapter Typed

So after house sitting I seemed to have lost the urge to continue typing up the chapters, but I forced myself to sit down and do another one today. I think it turned out fine. I didn't make that many major adjustments and it's a fairly short chapter overall so not a big accomplishment, but a step in the right direction.

I don't know if I will be doing more tomorrow or not, I hope that I'll be in the mood to, but we'll see what happens.

Progress:

First Draft Typed: 80%

Till Next time.

Two More Chapters Typed Up

Two more chapters are now typed up. The first was very small, only about four pages. It stayed very close to my handwritten draft with some minor improvement. The second chapter was ridiculously long being just over eleven pages in length, about one page more than what I had written by hand. This chapter was very rough and took a lot of editing, but I think I came out with a fairly nice product, but we'll see how I feel about in when I have to read it over later.

Progress:


First Draft Typed: 76%

I hope to finish at least one more chapter before I finish house sitting tomorrow, but we'll see how things go. I'll post back when I've made more progress.

And Another Chapter Bites the Dust

I finished the second chapter of the of the final batch and it was a long one. Handwritten it took up ten pages front and back and typed it turned out to be eleven. It took me all day to finish, but I think it turned out well. The chapter was really rough and pretty poorly written, but I spruced it up a lot and managed to have the confusing bits make sense. I don't know why but chapters with large, important fight scenes seem to give me trouble. There's still some minor tweaks to be made to allow the chapter to flow nicer, but I'll tackle that when I correct all the chapters later.

Progress:

First Draft Typed: 71%

So I'll go type up the next chapter, which shouldn't take long because it's a lot less than the last one. I'll post more later.

One Chapter Typed Up and Looking Good

So I just finished the first chapter of the batch and I must say that it turned our well. Granted the chapter wasn't in bad shape to start with, but I did make some minor changes to it here and there and I think it helped it to flow better. I still have a lot more to write and the next one looks like it's going to be a lot of work. It's in bad shape and it's very long, much longer then the one I just did and that one was seven pages.

Anyways, here's the progress:

First Draft Typed: 68%

Now I'm off to go back it up. I'll make another post when I've accomplished more.

And I Return For Some Typing

Well, I've decided to get back to work on the book since I'm house sitting for the next five days. I don't really see the use in letting this quiet time go to waist so, to work I go.

I'm a little nervous to start on the typed draft for this final bit of the book. I feel like there's a lot of things that I'll have to fix up as I go through them and I worry that I won't be able to fix them to a level that I will be happy with; however, I do think that it'll be easier to do this since it is all written out and I can just go through and add and cut out bits and pieces that just feel like they fit oddly.

This time around I am going to be extremely cautious with my files. The moment I'm done with one I will be backing it up. I don't think I could handle another loss of my work again. The last time nearly drove me insane.

Jadge

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Jadge is a small village on one of the main islands in the first book. It's in the middle of a large forest and is very simple. All the buildings are huts made from branches and have roofs made from leaves that are caught in-between nets. The people of Jadge have a tightly knit community that functions as though it's just one large family. Most people who live in Jadge are skilled hunters and trackers and know their way around weapons.

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Well, I guess I should go get to work now. I will post back later with the progress I have made. Until that time, goodbye.

0!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I'm Finished!

Huzzah! I'm not officially finished with writing the first book. All 41 chapters are completely written out. I'm feeling incredibly great, like I just accomplished something that a part of me has been telling myself that I couldn't do. It's crazy and awesome! Now I know that this isn't the end of it, I've still got to type up everything I just wrote and then spend a long, long, long time going over and over everything until I can publish it, but the step I completed today, I feel, was the bulk of the work. I'd like to think of the rest as the spit and shine process. It's just cleaning things up from here on out.

When will I start typing everything up? Um, I'm not sure, I want to take a little time away from writing to work on some other things I have to get done, but I don't think I'll feel good about letting it sit for more than a couple weeks, so I'm guessing I'll get back to work on this some time in mid-July.

I'm very happy to have finished the writing and am looking forward to getting to perfect it. So until then, I'll type to you later.

Progress:

Title: ?%
 
Planning: 100%

First Draft Handwritten: 100%

First Draft Typed: 66%
 
Second Draft Typed: ?%

1!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I just finished the chapter I've been working on, which leaves me with only 1 more chapter left to write. I'm in disbelief about it to be honest. After over two years of steady writing I'm nearly finished writing the first book. I mean, I know that a lot more work has to be put into it, but the bare bones is almost done. There will be no figuring out how to write out large plot lines or how to put my planning into coherent paragraphs for a while. It's a very nice feeling.

As for the next and final chapter I have to write for this book, I plan to start it tomorrow if I have the time. If I don't finish it tomorrow, which is highly likely, I will have more time to work on it Friday.

Man, my brain is feeling fizzled, I really knocked that last chapter out quick and I'm starting to feel the side effects. Well I'll take some time to rest and post back later.

2!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

That's right, another chapter down. I've only got two more left. It's weird to actually be at this point, to be able to say that I only have two more chapters left to write feels so great. Anyways, this chapter turned out better than I had expected in certain parts and not as well in others. Overall I think I got the points I needed to make made, but I will have to do some heavy editing when I eventually type this one up.

Well, I don't see why I should waste this writing crave I have going on, so I will go on and start the next chapter. The second to last chapter. The chapter that is before the final one. The chapter that's after the many that came before, but is so close to the end of the fist book. The chapter that....right....well perhaps I should just get to writing then.

Type to ya' later!!!!

3!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yep, I finished the chapter earlier today. I feel like I zipped right through it. It's about a medium sized chapter and I think it went well. I've got no gripes about it as it stands. I don't know when I'll get the chance to work on the next chapter through. My schedule is a bit booked for the next couple of days, but I'm hoping that I will be able to get a significant amount of work done on it Thursday. I'm so close to finishing I can taste it or maybe not "taste" it. I don't really know how the end of a book tastes.

That's all I have to update at this moment so until next time then.

Four More Chapters Left

Well, it's taken a while, but last night I finished writing another chapter. This leaves me with only four more left to write. This chapter was the second part of a two chapter storyline that I felt needed to go over well since the characters introduced in it are going to be reappearing in the later books. Did the chapters turn out well? I'd say so, I feel like I was able to bring more to them than I had originally planned and the only thing that I think hurts the chapters significantly right now is the fact that certain parts are rather quick due to me just wanting to get out what I had to write. I'm not too worried about this since I still have to type them up later and it'll be tremendously easy to expand upon them then.

You may have noticed the new look to the site. I guess blogger came out with new templates and stuff since the last time I posted so I figured I'd mess around with them a bit. I think it looks okay, maybe a little busy, but kind of nice, a little bit more original and flashy than before. I'll try it out this way for a while and see if I get sick of it or not.

Today I don't have any work so I do plan to do a substantial amount of writing. I don't know if I'll get the next chapter finished today, but I do hope that I'll be able to knock out at least half of it.

Last Day House-Sitting

Today's the last day I'll be house-sitting and I'm happy with the progress I've made on my story. I've finished another chapter today, which had me stressing out a little since I really wanted to do a good job with it. There were a lot of character introductions I had to do and I wanted to make sure they all came off well. I think they did. Now that it's done I feel pretty happy with the end result and I'm ready to do more.

I still plan to keep writing throughout today and hopefully get a good start on the next chapter, but I have a feeling I wont be finishing it by the end of today. I'm feeling a bit exhausted, but I just keep reminding myself that I only have a few more chapters left.

I'll post again soonish.

House-sitting Again

I started house-sitting yesterday, which means I've got plenty of time to myself to work on my story. Already I've finished two chapters and I have the rest of today and most of tomorrow to continue working on it. I'm coming very close to finishing this book and I'm hoping that by the time I leave here I will be almost done with the actual writing of it. I'm feeling pretty stress-free right now so that's been helping me want to write more.

Well, I don't want to waste my want for writing right now so I'm going to go back to it and post a little later on.

Out of Ink...Hurray!

Just finished another chapter today and I'm feeling great about it. Whatever I happened to have been missing with the last few chapters, I seem to have recaptured. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying this is the best work I've done so far or that it's amazing even. It can still use a bit of polishing, but I think once I get to the point where I type it up I wont have to fuss over it too much. Also as reference to the tittle of the blog post, the pen I've been writing with ran out of ink yesterday. It went completely dry, which I think it pretty cool since I've been using it only for this book. I've never had a whole pen dedicated to one project before, hm...I think I'm a bit insane for thinking so much about a pen.

I know I seem to be making a big deal about one chapter turning out good, but I think I'm more happy about having the urge to write more because of this chapter. It's nice to feel that energy that comes from creating something. I've been missing it for a while.

So I will try and start the next chapter tonight, but I think the bulk of it will have to be done in a few days with the way my schedule being as it is. I'm not even entirely sure what's in the next chapter to be honest, so I don't know how heavy the work load is going to be for me. I'll have to go read my planning and find out.

Instead of story stuff this post I figured I'd give an updated progress report. If the numbers seem a little lower than previous updates it's probably because I'm now taking into account the chapter I missed the first time around.

Progress:

Title: ?% - Haven't made up my mind yet.

Planning: 100% - No need to worry about this step at all (at least not for this book)

First Draft Handwritten: 80% - Not too shabby.

First Draft Typed: 66% - And they're all backed up too. No more lost chapters for me.

Second Draft Typed: ?% - I've changed this because although I've done some I know I'll just start from chapter 1 again when I'm done with the first draft so I don't want to get hopes up, namely my own.

Alright, so that's the new updated progress report. It's sort of comforting to see such high numbers. Well I'll finish of this post and go back to writing. I'll post again later.

Another Chapter Finished and Feeling Satisfied

Just finished another chapter tonight and I must have been in a writing mood because I'm really happy with what I've written. If only I had more time to write.

Color:

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Color plays quite an important role in this series that I'm writing. In fact it is was sort of the basis for the concept of the story. I guess I've always been intrigued by colors and it's something that I feel give the world a bit a life, which is basically where the concept for this story comes in. Anyways I try and focus a lot of my writing with colors by adding them in as much to the description as possible, whether is is by naming a color or describing something to an extent that the reader will hopefully be able to draw from it many colors in many shades.

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I don't know when I'll have time to write over the next couple days, I feel like my schedule is pretty full, but when I find I have time to myself I'll make sure to get back to it. Until next post, bye.

It's Been A While Hasn't It?

Wow! Seems Like March got by me...and most of April...Oh well. It was a fairly constructive month to say the least. I've been plugging away at the hand written draft and finished about four or five chapters since my last post, which was a bit of a struggle to do. Aside from the time restrictions of my job and other stuff the chapters seem to be giving me trouble. I have them well planned out, but what I've been writing feels a bit flat. I don't think it's so much that the material isn't up to standard, but that the way I'm presenting it is not the most effective way of doing so. I know at this stage it doesn't matter much though. I'm putting all my energy into finishing the chapters and telling myself that I can always improve upon them when I type them up. The most important part for now is to get down a rough, rough draft so I have something to work off of.

I've also been thinking up some names for the series and I thought up one that I like a lot, but am not sure if I should use it. I'd post it, but I'm just not sure of how much I like it. If I make a more definite decision I'll be sure to make a special post for it.

I feel as though I'm running out of things to reveal about my story without giving too many surprises away so I figured I'd start adding in sections from time to time about basic ideas and muses I've had while working my way though the writing process. Just to liven things up a bit.

Mythos:

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For this series I've decided to draw from many myths around the world to enhance certain aspects of my story. These aspects range from using a mythological beast for the basis of a creature in my story to using a specific story to help set the atmosphere for a certain chapter. I like to look at this as a way to draw from material that history's story tellers has left for us and expand of it while still creating something new and unique. I hope those that notice the similarities and references will get a little more out of the book this way.

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Well, I guess that is all I have to post today. I will try and be much more frequent about posting in the future. Until next time, see ya.

Woot! Progress and Glee Too.

I made some great progress on the next chapter today. I was able to expand nicely upon it from what was in the planning so it's a bit more fleshed out at this point then I originally intended. When I go back to it I'll be writing the battle scene I have planned so I'll have to get myself psyched up for that. I plan to do that tomorrow. I'm actually hoping to finish writing this chapter tomorrow, but this my not happen, I never know what will come up.

I've been watching Glee over the past few days and I feel compelled to promote it. I haven't seen a show of this caliber in a very long time. For anyone who enjoys singing intertwined with comedic drama will not be disappointed with Glee. I think what hooked me was the moment the main girl sings. Her voice is absolutely amazing (and the character is funny and likable as well). The other cast members are amazing too (especially the two actresses that play Mercedes and Sue. Plus Heather Morris is very funny as Brittany). I have to give props to the casting director for finding new faces that can not only sing amazingly, but act wonderfully as well. So Yeah, Watch Glee! Don't let fox cancel it like they do everything else.

Well, that's all I have to post for now, there doesn't seem to be a whole lot to talk about during the handwriting process. Oh well, night.

Handwritten Chapter Down and Off to Work I Go

I just finished writing the chapter I've been working on for the past few days. Since It's just a handwritten draft I'm not thinking too much about the quality of it right now. I think that it'll change a bit when it gets typed up, at least that's usually the way it seems to happen.

I was hoping to start the next chapter tonight, but work called a little while ago asking me to come in at 8:00pm so I figured It'd be nice to get a couple more hours in on my next pay check. I'll postpone the chapter until tomorrow because I think I should have some time to work on it at some point in the day. I think.

Bodega Bay Inn Pen - An Annoyance Reliever

I've finally found a pen that writes on the paper without any problems! It was some pen I had lying around with an advertisement for an Inn at Bodega Bay, which confuses me a little since I've never been to the inn before. So with my pen in hand I've been able to make some good progress with my handwritten draft. I'm still working on the same chapter I've been since my last post, but I'm almost finished with it. It's hard to fit in time to write lately.

Aside from my job I seem to be doing a lot of stuff recently. Over the past week and a half I've gone to San Francisco for an entire day which was great since I don't usually go there often, even though it's not that far away. I also went to Davis to visit a friend who I haven't seen in about a year, which is also sad since Davis isn't very far away either...I guess time goes by so quickly you forget to do things like this...

Anyways I've been making sure to set aside some time for writing and I think what I've written has turned out well so far. I think I'll go now and continue to watch more of the opening ceremonies of the Winter Olympics. I'll post again when I've made some more progress.

Crummy Notebook Paper

I've been working on the handwritten draft these past couple of days and have made some progress, but I've been getting very agitated by the fact that my pens don't seem to want to write on the notebook paper I'm using. It must be too waxy or something. I'm wondering if getting a pen that's not ballpoint or gel will help with this problem. I suppose that means that I'm off to the stationary store. Will post back later.

And the Writing Commences

Wow! February already huh? The last month seemed to fly by. I can't say I've done much writing in the past month because I really haven't, but about two days ago I did sit down to actually continue with my handwritten draft. Sadly I realized that I have very little written down in my notebooks about the next three chapters. I know...the planning was supposed to be finished, but I had to expand on what was there. So I did that over the past couple of days and finished them about ten minutes ago so hurray! I can now head straight to actually writing.

My editor was back for a few weeks around Christmas and she read a bit of what I just finished. Aside from needing a bit of a touch up she seemed to think that it was good. So optimism abounds!

I got a new job a couple weeks ago, which I was afraid was going to cut into my writing time, but I find that having less free time actually makes me want to fill it with useful things like writing.

I suppose that's about all the catching up I have for right now. I plan to go back to writing after this post so I'll end it now and get on with the process. See Ya!