Challenge,  On Writing,  publishing

Novel Two: Day One

Novel Two Fired Up…

(As a reminder, the overall monthly challenge is to write four novels and gain distance every week on my step count, starting the first week at an average of 11,000 steps per day.)

The Day Went Like This…

It was a crazy one, because I also had to ramp up my steps to 12,000 steps per day, almost exactly 6 miles. This would be a ton easier and a ton faster if I was running, but alas, I am still about 20 pounds too heavy to run too much on these old knees. But I do get some running in every day.

I got a full night’s sleep and got out around 3 p.m. after doing an hour of e-mail and business stuff. I went up to the WMG offices and worked on switching over the workshops to July.

NOTICE!! Everyone who is signed up for a July workshop should have a letter from me tonight. If not, write me. And still room in all workshops. If you want to break out of the Time of Great Forgetting, a July workshop might do the trick.

So at around 5 p.m. I headed out to our south store. I dinged around and worked a little there until just after the auction started (our store is next to an auction house in the same small mall.)

Then back for another hour up at WMG on workshops. Then I walked home and took a quick nap and cooked dinner.

Then I walked back up to the WMG offices to get the last of my 12,000 steps. I worked there from 10 p.m. until midnight.

Then came home, took a short break and went to work on the new novel.

On a break I also sent out the workshop letters and finished them when I was done with my writing. I got no reading in today because of having to do all the switch on the workshop, but this coming week I will be completely caught up on all novels in the challenge and short stories.

Writing…

Thank heavens this went quick tonight on the writing side. I started at 12:30 a.m. and by 1:15 a.m. I had 1,400 words done.

Break for a very short nap, then back at it at 1:30 a.m. and by 2:15 a.m. I had another 1,300 words.

Took a break to send out some of the workshop letters, then got back at the novel at 2:45 a.m. By 3:30 a.m. I had another 1,500 words done.

This book is flying along. Mary Jo sort of writes herself because the character voice is so strong in these.

Short break to get some celery and peanut butter and honey and by 4:30 I had 1,300 words.

Short break and I had another 900 words by 5:45.

6,400 words in 5 sessions. Fantastic start.

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Novel #1…The Writing of TOMBSTONE CANYON: A Thunder Mountain Novel

 Challenge Day 1… Words written… 6,600.  Total so far… 6,600 words.
Challenge Day 2… Words written… 6,700.  Total so far… 13,300 words.
Challenge Day 3… Words written… 6,100.  Total so far… 19,400 words.
Challenge Day 4… Words written… 6,200.  Total so far… 25,600 words.
Challenge Day 5… Words written… 6,200.  Total so far…, 31,800 words.
Challenge Day 6… Words written… 6,100.  Total so far…, 37,900 words.
Challenge Day 7… Words written… 3,200.  Final Total…, 41,100 words. (Novel count is 38,000)

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Challenge Novel #2

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Novel #2…The Writing of DEATH TAKES A DIAMOND: A Mary Jo Assassin Novel

 Challenge Day 8… Words written… 6,400.  Total so far… 6,400 words.
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The Day Breakdown

4.5 hours writing… 6,400 words
2 hours exercise plus normal movement… 12,300 steps
6 hours of work for workshops and meetings and such.

The rest television, cooking dinner, and so on. Plus 8 hours of sleep. Two 10 minute naps.

THE CHALLENGE SO FAR…

Days over 6,000 words… 7 of 8
Days over 11,000 steps… 8 of 8
Days over 12,000 steps… 1 of 1
6 hours of regular job work this week

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Tracking Word Counts… July 8th, 2017
Writing in Public blog streak… Day 1,389

— Daily Fiction: 6,400 original words. Fiction month-to-date: 47,500 words  
— Nonfiction: 00 new words. Nonfiction month-to-date total: 00 words
— Blog Posts: 400 new words. Blog month-to-date word count: 3,200 words
— E-mail: 28 e-mails.  Approx. 1,400 original words.  E-mails month-to date: 224 e-mails. Approx. 12,700 words

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JULY ONLINE WORKSHOPS…STARTING THIS WEEK!!!

All have openings at the moment. Information at

www.wmgpublishingworkshops.com

Any questions at all, feel free to write me. And if you are confused as to which workshop to take first, we have a full curriculum posted on its own page.

Class #1… July 11th … Depth #3: Research
Class #2… July 11th … Author Voice
Class #3… July 11th … Business
Class #4… July 11th … Endings
Class #5… July 11th … Writing Fiction Sales Copy
Class #6… July 11th … Writing and Selling Short Stories
Class #7… July 12th … Depth in Writing
Class #8… July 12th … Advanced Character and Dialog
Class #9… July 12th … Cliffhangers
Class #10… July 12th … Pacing Your Novel
Class #11… July 12th … How to Edit Your Own Work
Class #12… July 12th … Writing Fantasy

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2 Comments

    • dwsmith

      Phillip, I’ve lost almost eighty pounds since I started this a number of years back. So no matter the start point, it can be done, both with the steps and the writing. Have fun with it is the key.