Yeah, sorry. I don’t have time for a clever title, or to dig deep into all of these cool new scenes to find something fantastic for WIPpet Wednesday.
But since you stopped by… 2 lines of dialogue for the 2 in the date. No context. Just two characters in a life or death situation. No big deal.
“Pathetic as it sounds, you’re the only family I have, and those two are my only friends. I can’t let you all wander off to your deaths without at least joining in, can I?”
“At least you won’t be lonely.”
If you want to see what the WIPpeteers are up to, here’s the link. I hope I’ll get around to everyone this week… I think I managed it last time. I couldn’t comment on everyone’s, though. THANKS, BLOGGER. I did read, though!
-_-
ROW80 UPDATE: TORN
Things are progressing well with this round of edits on Torn. I have one chapter left to completely re-write, one in which I only have to re-write the second half, and one that only needs partial re-writes.
Those climaxes, man. They get me every time.
I was hoping to get that done this week…
But this weather is killing me. I’ve got a migraine today, but am working through it (God help my characters!). The kids were home for another snow day yesterday, and their dad is away for training this week. The boys are old enough that they can play by themselves or go outside when the storms calm down, but I still can’t close myself off, stick my headphones on, and work while they’re around. I have to be listening, and available. They want me to do crazy things like play with them.
I try to remind myself that this is how I wrote the first draft of Bound, but it doesn’t help. That draft sucked. These scenes aren’t allowed to.
And then there’s Bruno, who I have decided is not, in fact, a Chihuahua, but a Mexican Bed Hound. I’m not getting much sleep with him curled up between my knees–between not being able to move and being worried that he’s going to suffocate under the blankets, I’m waking up exhausted.
But if I shut him out, he cries. And my husband gives me sad eyes.*
I need more coffee. And a plan.
In case anyone’s wondering what the months before my book release look like, here’s the goal, with dates removed–because things go awry. Snow days happen. Editors get sick, or have other clients put them off schedule, or hey, they have personal lives. Beta readers take longer than anticipated, though no fault of their own. I get sick, or get headaches, and until I’m making more money than my husband**, I’m responsible for this household: laundry, getting the kids to school, cooking, cleaning.
I need a housewife, is what I need.
But here’s the plan:
- finish rewrites
- compile notes
- final clean-up pass (will take about a week, I hope, and will involve reading aloud, making the prose read
more gooderbetter, adding in a few ideas I’ve had along the way, and really taking it from a solid story to a beautiful reading experience. In theory). - Send to second-round beta readers, hope they can get it back in a week.
- write cover copy.
- Set up pre-orders.
- Figure out whether I can format the paperback through Scrivener (wasn’t an option in the PC version… we’ll see)
- cover reveal. Pre-orders. Other fun stuff!
- newsletters
- fix whatever my lovely betas say I screwed up
- send for proofreading/copy edits (2 weeks)
- Prologue reveal (not to be disregarded, thanks)
- formatting
- final version to Amazon (10 days pre-release)
- teaser photos
- relax and/or freak out and/or get back to work on book 3
- upload to other vendors
- RELEASE DAY. Party on Facebook.
And then REALLY get back to work on book three, because I’ve had some ideas for big, scary revisions.
So… yep. That’s the plan. Please cross your fingers, toes, and anything else you can spare that I can get this all done soon!
For more about ROW80, click here. For more updates from other participants… um… I’ll add the link when I find it.
Thanks for stopping by! Hope you’re all having a fantastic week (and staying warm, if applicable).
—-
*Not this week, but there’s still the crying.
**Okay, even then, it would still be my job, because I work from home.
disregard the prologue 
February 4th, 2015 at 1:58 pm
I wouldn’t worry about Bruno suffocating. My sister’s Chihuahua sleeps under the covers and/or under your butt and he is always fine. 🙂
And he doesn’t move much when he gets comfortable. He makes you work around him!
February 4th, 2015 at 1:59 pm
But seriously… what if someone farts? WHAT THEN, JESSICA?!
February 4th, 2015 at 2:09 pm
Ahahahahahahaha. They’re tough little buggers! I’m sure he’ll survive. 🙂
February 4th, 2015 at 2:00 pm
(PS–saw that Ravven posted your book cover on Facebook. GLEEP!)
February 4th, 2015 at 2:10 pm
EEK. Only 8 days left! I’m slowly losing my sanity…
February 4th, 2015 at 2:11 pm
I laugh because I’ve been there, and I weep for the same reason (I’m not a total jerk).
You can do this! Drop me a line if you need someone to hold your hand while you breathe into a paper bag.
February 4th, 2015 at 2:14 pm
I know! And you’re doing it again! You must really be a crazy person…
😉
February 4th, 2015 at 2:15 pm
I think I am. Or at the very least, masochistic. Too late to back out now, though.
February 4th, 2015 at 2:55 pm
Mwahahahaha. That’s because we all know about it now! And we’re waiting so patiently!
February 4th, 2015 at 2:59 pm
Everyone’s being pretty good so far! Now, if I have to announce a delay…
February 4th, 2015 at 3:03 pm
You might have a riot on your hands! But, I’m sure we’ll all understand. Good things don’t come quick or easy!
February 4th, 2015 at 3:13 pm
No, they don’t. I’m working hard to try to make sure it’s not an issue, though. 🙂
February 4th, 2015 at 3:52 pm
What a to-do list – hope the migraine goes away! Those Mexican bed hounds sure are cute.
February 4th, 2015 at 4:20 pm
That’s a looooong list. Heck, it requires more coffee just to read it. Doing all that probably requires buying in bulk. I can relate to the snow day thing, too. Not much work gets done here when there’s a day off. I have not only the kids but my husband as well, since he’s a teacher. That makes it interesting, since I don’t have my own office…yet.
Like the snippet. I mean, who wants to go off to their (probable) death alone?
February 4th, 2015 at 5:27 pm
Exactly! Might as well make it a party…
And yeah. Much coffee. But it will be so worth it. I think. Yeah. 🙂
February 4th, 2015 at 5:40 pm
Migraines are awful, and the crazier the weather gets, the more mine flare up. I hope yours stay away for a while.
Good luck with your goals! And Bruno is adorable. I’d have a hard time saying no to that face. 🙂
February 4th, 2015 at 6:31 pm
Sorry about the migraines. 😦
I love the snippet. 🙂 I can almost here the avoided group hug as everyone gets ready to fight.
February 4th, 2015 at 6:53 pm
Haha–TOTALLY no group hug here.
February 4th, 2015 at 7:36 pm
Blarg. Homonym trouble. Sorry. HEAR. H.E.A.R.
February 4th, 2015 at 7:37 pm
I got you. 🙂
February 4th, 2015 at 7:37 pm
I know you did, but it bugged me.
February 4th, 2015 at 7:38 pm
No judgement, but good on you for correcting it. 😉
February 4th, 2015 at 6:45 pm
Great little snippet!
I hear you on working from home. It’s damn near impossible to get anything done sometimes – even if you do have help!
February 4th, 2015 at 7:20 pm
That’s quite a list, Kate! I don’t see any boredom in your future anytime soon. *g*
Nice couple of lines for the mini-snippet. 🙂
February 4th, 2015 at 7:38 pm
It’s amazing. I’m always busy, but never feel like I’m accomplishing anything. But you’re right, boredom is rare. 🙂
February 4th, 2015 at 8:05 pm
I get the feeling like I’m not accomplishing anything! Listing what I *did* get done at the end of each quarter helps a lot against that. 🙂
February 4th, 2015 at 7:30 pm
Sounds like things are coming along in spite of the snow and kids and out of town hubbie. And goon on your character for not wanting anyone to wander off to death alone.
February 4th, 2015 at 9:22 pm
You’re getting so much done! So exciting that you’re getting that close on the edits.
Bruno the Mexican Bed Hound is so adorable! I understand about the crowding such a little creature can cause. I hope you find a good compromise soon so you can get some sleep!
February 5th, 2015 at 10:00 am
The mini snippet made me smile. See, that’s how you know someone’s really your friend. Though probably better to take it on faith if that’s an option.
Wowzers on the to do list. Get thee a TARDIS. And then come pick me up, because, dude, that would rock. 😀
February 5th, 2015 at 12:36 pm
Loved the excerpt, there’s a lot of character packed into those two lines.
That’s a mighty cute Mexican bed hound you have there. Funny how the small ones seem to take up more space than the big ones sometimes. And I do not envy that to-do list of yours…
February 5th, 2015 at 4:31 pm
Here’s my “unschooling mom whose kids are never at school” trick…
I list everything that i might possibly want to do (and more than I can ever get to). I call these goals (so, any time I do anything more than breathing, pretty much, I can call it progress – seriously!).
In there are lots of little, not brain intensive things. I do these when the kids might want or need me, so that I can stop easily to hug or chat or try to remove a splinter, or discuss the nature of schizophrenia, or whatever. (Usually, they feed themselves, these days).
I break those times up with one minute cleaning sprints using my microwave timer. I can do a LOT in a minute, and it gets the oxygen flowing in my blood, and stirs up the thoughts…
I tend to save the big, mind-intensive stuff for when they’re occupied with TV, reading, gaming, Skyping with friends, outside or visiting their grandparents down the hill. Or when they’re asleep…
I don’t know if these will work for you – it’s different when kids haven’t ever gone to school, because that’s just not a part of their reality. Their schedule, and mine, really aren’t affected by snow days unless we were planning to do something (museums are much more fun and a lot quieter to visit on weekdays!).
But maybe you could look at that list and see if there are things that can be easily set aside when you need to be mom, and that allow you to tend to the other stuff you just gotta do…
The snippet made me chuckle. I like the last line, especially. I detect wry humor in the face of catastrophe.
February 5th, 2015 at 4:34 pm
Thanks! That’s kind of what I do on regular days. I do things like writing blog posts, promotional stuff, and listening to podcasts when they kids are home, and save the stuff that requires more focus for when they’re out of the house. Maybe I just need to be a bit firmer about “me time” when they’re home. 🙂
February 5th, 2015 at 5:13 pm
I’ve found that my kids understand “me time” better now that they’re older. At 10.5 and 13, they both like to spend a good deal of time alone in their rooms, doing their own things, so they understand my need to do the same in a way that they didn’t when they were smaller (I scarcely wrote anything until they were 8 and 5; there just wasn’t time and energy available for it!).
Something that helps me to get some time for my own pursuits is to make sure I’ve interacted personally with each of them, if they’re awake and interested, before I try. I kind of “touch base” with both of them (and Jim, too, if he’s home, because husbands need love,too!).
Because Mom at her laptop is such a common thing, and because it’s hard to tell what I’m doing, I try to let them know in advance when I’d prefer not to be disturbed short of necessity, and when casual contact and interruptions aren’t going to be a big deal.
I also do my best to respect what they’re doing when they’re deeply engaged, which makes it more likely they’ll return the favor.
Because we’re nearly always together, we’ve had to learn to get along. What works best for us is always trying to make it so that everybody wins, somehow. People who feel like they’re getting what they need are a lot more likely to try to give that to others, at any age.
Sending you a few extra doses of the quiet that’s here right now….one kid’s about to go to sleep, since he’s been nocturnal the last few days, and the other is snuggled in with Furbys and Monster High videos and two Kindles….
If only I didn’t really need to get on thtat going to Oregon list I’ve been stalling on….
February 5th, 2015 at 5:16 pm
Like you, I definitely get less done on snow days. On the other hand, I don’t have a huge to do list like yours. If I had that I’d be freaking out! (Sorry. Doubt that helped.)
But, I’m with you on having the kids be first on snow days. Mine are fairly grown (13 & 9) and have their laptops (which if they could they’d be on all the time). Yet I insist we do at least one thing together as a family (like a craft) and that they read some minimum (sometimes I add in exercise to drain energy and studying for tests or the like).
Anyways, I’m cheering you on! That list is dead meat once you get a hold of it! 😉
February 6th, 2015 at 10:02 am
How old are your kids Kate? It’s summer here and doesn’t snow in sunny Queensland but we have 40degree (Celsius) days which are probably very similar. Stuck inside with the air con going, kids going stir crazy. (Mine are 4 & 7) so often break down into arguments because the youngest is still learning emotional regulation and my eldest is learning how to handle someone who can’t emotionally regulate herself very well yet. Ahh.
I look forward to the days where I can spend more time on stuff. At the moment I get about 1-2 hrs at night after they go to bed if I’m lucky.
I liked your snippet too… wish I knew what they were heading for.