NaNoWriDaySeven

When I was going to stop this evening, it was so close to the 10k mark, that I just had to push on. The last few days have been slow, largely due to them being work days, but I managed to pull a 2000 word day today, so I'm not too far behind. I still need to be topping 1700 a day, but that's not so bad.

It is, unfortunately, depressingly bad. The plot is incoherent, the cast is completely wrong, the jokes are missing in action, and the whole thing sucks on several other levels. I managed to drag 2000 words out today by hammering an old idea, involving Rod Serling from out of the Twilight Zone, into more or less the right shape to fit my NaNo story. Still, there should be some comic potential there if I can ever bring myself to edit this rubbish.

NaNoProMo

I'm over a day behind target now. But that's ok, because I've struck upon a brilliant idea: have a half price sale at www.stevetrower.co.uk, and spend valuable writing time packing books and running to and from the Post Office!

So, for the duration of NaNoWriMo (aka November), you can pick up a copy of Countless as the Stars for £4.50 including UK p&p, or £6.99 including worldwide p&p.

Stock up for Christmas. Please, if I don't need to keep going out to buy Jiffy bags I will be forced to continue writing the utter drivel that is DragonQuest....

NaNoWriDayThree

I thought it was going to be a disaster.

I thought I was getting off to such an abysmal slow start that there would be no coming back.

But, incredibly, it picked up. Late at night on November 1st I got some kind of inspiration and started banging words out. At a quarter to midnight I got Chapter One finished, at a length of 1,666 words. (NaNites will realise the significance of that immediately; for anyone else, the clue is that I'm aiming to write 50,000 words in 30 days.)

Day two went off similarly well, such that I am now a few dozen words ahead of target, and only marginally more sleep-deprived than I otherwise would have been.

There is, however, a problem. This much is inevitable. The problem is one I knew I would come up against: my comic novel isn't funny. Still, I think it's a fun premise, and hopefully once I get to know my characters and figure out where the plot should be going, I'll be able to edit the funny in later.

Re-booting...

I'm never sure how to restart this thing after an unplanned hiatus. I feel like I should apologise for my absence or something....

Well actually, this time I should apologise for completely missing the memo on the CSFF blog tour last week. Oops! Technical difficulties again...

I'm not sure this is a good idea, but I figured I would reopen the blog this week so it's ready and waiting for my loyal reader to get my NaNoWriMo updates during November.

On the subject of which, in celebration I have just posted my 2008 (winning!) NaNo effort on my website, in all it's original, unedited NaNo glory. Honestly, it's not representative of my complete and edited work!

Much more NaNoWriMo goodness to follow over the next few weeks....

CSFF Blog Tour: The Vanishing Sculptor

Ok, ok, I know what you’re all thinking: it’s another fantasy novel, so the sci-fi geek has gone AWOL again… Well, I promise you, it’s not like that. I’ve been unwell. I’ve got a note from my mum and everything.

Which is a shame, because it means I haven't been able to make bad puns like 'The Vanishing Sculp-Tour', or joke about my Vanishing Review. Or create a (now 'traditional') Top Ten, although I could easily refer you to the Top Ten Dragon Songs from the July '08 Tour if I was feeling lazy (which I am - I've been unwell, remember).

No, seriously, there’s been a lot of Dragon Flu going around these parts, and it’s really unpleasant. The turning scaly I can just about live with, but the flaming cough is a killer. I mean, the other day I was settling down in my sick bed with a Lemsip and a review copy of The Vanishing Sculptor by Donita K Paul, when I sneezed and incinerated the thing. No word of a lie.

So, sadly, no in depth review here. Try these bloggers instead:
Brandon Barr
Jim Black
Justin Boyer
Rachel Briard
Karri Compton
Amy Cruson
CSFF Blog Tour
Stacey Dale
D. G. D. Davidson
Jeff Draper
April Erwin
Karina Fabian
Linda Gilmore
Todd Michael Greene
Katie Hart
Ryan Heart
Becky Jesse
Cris Jesse
Jason Joyner
Julie
Carol Keen
Krystine Kercher
Dawn King
Rebecca LuElla Miller
Mirtika
Eve Nielsen
Nissa
John W. Otte
Lyn Perry
Crista Richey
Cheryl Russell
Chawna Schroeder
James Somers
Speculative Faith
Rachel Starr Thomson
Robert Treskillard
Steve Trower
Fred Warren
Dona Watson
Phyllis Wheeler
Elizabeth Williams
KM Wilsher

Mr Penumbra's Twenty-Four-Hour Bookshop

I have much I want to say about this that I don't think I'm going to have the time or energy to say right now, so I'll leave you a recommendation until I do:

Read this, or, if you prefer, listen to it on Escape Pod. It's funny, it's weird, it's sci-fi, it's fantasy, it's topical, and it has Google in it. More thoughts on it later in the week.

Blog Quote of the Week

We interrupt your regular scheduled blogging because this quote just tickled me a lot:

The film could have easily made its point about a sexually driven culture without contributing to one.

From Paeter Frandsen's review of Gamer. It sounds even better on his podcast!