Looking Back—Camp NaNoWriMo Process, April 2018

April started out fine… and then got downright busy. I cut back a lot of activity to focus on completing a few. Finishing the book I was working on fitted in just fine with Camp NaNoWriMo. This is the running record of how the novel progressed that month:

Writer’s Biography:

I live in Canberra, Australia's capital, where I am currently writing and publishing full-time. The main project is a 90k novel I need to finish around mid-April - and, yes, I've started it already, because the task for camp is to finish the last 54k... and to do that I need to get to 36k by the end of March. I'm also working other projects.

Blaedergil's Host is the second novel in the Mack 'n' Me 'n' Odyssey series. Book 1 will release during camp. Dear Tiger: Let's Go A-Hunting is a YA chapter book and the fifth in a six-story series, where each story, apart from the first, is 9-12k long. I'll also be writing Bk6 in this chapter book series, Bk6 in another series, and Bk2 in a third, during this process.

Work Log as follows:

18/03: Blaedergil's Host: Start date to continue and revise what was already written on . Added 3,898 new words. End total for the day:10,008; Dear Tiger: Let's Go A-Hunting: Start day at 0 words. End total, 3,682 words.

19/03: Dear Tiger: Let's Go A-Hunting: Revised/edited yesterday's words. Added around 300 words here. Went on to add another 3,580. After that I created a cover for, and added 3,046 words to Blaedergil’s Host and did a little social media,.

20/03: Today I created the cover for, and added 3,304 words to Dear Tiger: Let’s Go A-Hunting. After that, I spent a half hour on another project before adding another 3,041 words to Blaedergil’s Host.

21/03: Today, I got hurt my back and could not sit for extended periods of time. Of the 4 hours I managed, I spent too much time on social media, and only wrote 158 words on Blaedergil’s Host.

22/03: With the time lost yesterday, and with my back continuing to be painful, today, I had to prioritise my publishing goals. I dropped work on Blaedergil’s Host so that I could finish Dear Tiger: Let’s Go A-Hunting and, hopefully, start on Dear Tiger: Help Me Find My Sisters. I managed the 2, 031 words needed to complete Dear Tiger: Let’s Go A-Hunting, and wrote the outline and the first 407 on Dear Tiger: Help Me Find My Sisters. Both these chapter books are due for release in April.

23/03: Continued back pain made it difficult to write. I only added 1,093 words to Dear Tiger: Help Me Find My Sisters, and was not able to return to Blaedergil’s Host.

24/03: The back pain continued, but I was able to sit at the desk for longer periods of time. The pain was also less distracting, so I managed 3,965 words on Dear Tiger: Help Me Find My Sisters, but none on Blaedergil’s Host. If my back improves, I hope to get back to that next week.

Camp NaNoWriMo Starting Point:

At this point, I had hoped to be at 36,000 words in my novel, Blaedergil’s Host. That did not happen. My back happened, Easter happened, family happened, and the rest was scramble. Now, I have to try to catch up without killing myself, because this sucker will probably take a fortnight to edit properly and format, I’d like a week’s break between writing it and editing it (and ideally four), and I have one project to complete for publication the week before. I have work to do.

The current starting point for Blaedergil’s Host is 16,265 words.

Day 1 Progress: By the end of April 1, Australian EST, I had reached 16,383 words, which was pathetic, even if it was Easter Sunday. For April 2, I changed my approach. That day is not yet over, so I’ll report on it, tomorrow.

April 2: Blaedergil’s Host: added a total of 1,679 words, well short of the 3,000-word target minimum. The novel now stands at 18,062 words. Also on the upside, a very long walk has made my back feel a lot better.

April 3: Blaedergil’s Host: added a total of 5,062 words, a thousand over the 4,000-word daily target. (I decided I had ground to make up.) The novel now stands at 23, 124 words. I also managed two half-hour walks today, and my back is no longer causing me pain, even though it remains stiff.

April 4: Blaedergil's Host: added a total of 5,119 words to this project, today. I also wrote four pieces of flash and two poems for two other projects, and did a couple hours of writing admin, so a busy day, but I need to catch up.

April 5: Blaedergil's Host: added a total of 5169 words to this project, today. Now, it's time to do some publishing :-)

April 6: Blaedergil's Host: added 146 words - stuff happened.

April 7: Blaedergil's Host: added 5,086 words - a better day.

April 8: Blaedergil's Host: Added 5,073 words - and still got to spend time with the family :-)

April 9: back injury recurred, and I hit a slow bit on the novel, only managing 1,750 words.

April 10: Words were slightly better today, but the back injury persisted and I had to prioritise publishing the short chapter book due for release at the end of the week. I also had to stop at 2,294 words on Blaedergil's Host, when pain signalled the need for an early bed.

April 11: Today, my back still hurt, and typing time was limited by the short stints I could be at the computer. Regardless, I managed to finish 3,447 words on Blaedergil's Host, amidst pain-mandated naps and the usual household tasks.

April 12: Today was a better day. My back pain has eased to almost non-existent making the time taken away from the computer in the last few days was worth it. Rather than try to catch up the short fall in words in one marathon sitting, I am going to add 1,000 words to my daily goal of 5,000, and catch them up over a few days. Today I added 6,075 words to Blaedergil's Host, and am now off to address the publishing tasks I haven't completed in the last few days.

April 13: Completed the formats for a side project due for release on April 27th. Stayed up until midnight to scrape through and add 5,062 words on Blaedergil's Host.

April 14: Discovered why staying up until midnight is a bad idea. Got almost nothing writing or publishing wise done, today. I did manage the washing, and going for a walk, but I was pretty dead on my feet all day. Added 139 words to Blaedergil's Host.

April 15: After an early night, I prioritised my writing, today, and had added 6,315 words to Blaedergil's Host in 6 hours of writing. Now, it's off to edit Book 1 in this series, so I can release it at the end of the week (April 20th).

April 16: Nil words. Administrative tasks ate the day.

April 17: Added 6,745 words to Blaedergil's Host.

April 18: Added 8,027 words to Blaedergil's Host.

April 19-20: Nil words as publishing tasks took up the time.

April 21: Added 659 words to Blaedergil's Host. It was hard getting back into the novel after two days away. Also added 3,103 words to Rocky & the Raptors.

April 22: Added 2,830 words to Blaedergil's Host. Also added 3,111 words to Rocky & the Raptors.

April 23: Added 3,210 words to Blaedergil's Host. Also added 3,025 words to Rocky & the Raptors.

April 24: Added 6,575 words to Rocky & the Raptors, completing it. Currently working on Blaedergil's Host. Day's total for Blaedergil's Host is 497, but will grow.

April 25: This morning I added the last 4,625 words to Blaedergil’s Host, and completed the novel. *Very* happy! :-)

I stayed off Mack's radar for a good three months, or so I'd thought. Maybe he was just letting me run. He found me, kicked my backside and hauled me right back on board. He'd been doing that on and off for the past twelve months. Problem was, Odyssey was also on my tail, and, when this job was done, Mack was supposed to hand me back. Not gonna happen. And, now I was back to Square One: Kick free of Odyssey and kick free of Mack... just as soon as the mission was done, because how could I turn my back on *that*?

Mack ‘n’ Me: Blaedergil’s Host is the second science-fiction novel set in the Odyssey universe. In it, Cutter is back in Mack’s company, and still trying to work out how to get away from him, his merry band of space-faring freelancers, and Odyssey.

NOTE: The main character swears like a sailor, and the support cast aren’t much better. If swears bother you, this this story may not be to your taste.