Almost three weeks into the Writer’s Digest 2013 November Poem A Day Chapbook Challenge and I’m still hanging in there!
November 19, 2013
Prompt: “Two for Tuesday” 1. Write a love poem. Or … 2. Write an anti-love poem.
November 20, 2013
Prompt: Take the phrase “Always (blank),” replace the blank with a new word or phrase, make the new phrase the title of your poem, and then, write your poem.
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c.b.w. 2013
As I work my way through the Writer’s Digest 2013 November Poem A Day Chapbook Challenge, I’ll be posting my submissions in groups of two or three. However, I am holding true to the idea of writing a poem each day, rather than playing catch up all the time. So far, the prompts are forcing me to play with words and ideas in different ways. My poetic muse is definitely feeling the push to try new things.
November 1, 2013
Prompt: Someone or something appearing out of nowhere
November 2, 2013
Prompt: News of the day
November 3
Prompt: The last time I was here . . .
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c.b.w. 2013
Here’s how October went in terms of my writing goals . . .
1) Complete final draft of Novel #2.
Goal complete.
The edited draft for Novel #2 is still looking good. I have no complaints!
2) Work on converting Novel #1 into first person.
Still on the shelf (and that’s okay).
3) Submit 5 pieces of writing.
I didn’t submit anything in October, but I did decide to join the Writer’s Digest 2013 November Poem A Day Chapbook Challenge. By the end of November I should have 30 poetry submissions and be eligible to win publication in the form of a chapbook.
4) Submit three query letters for Novel #2
Goal complete!
However, the silence is deafening. During November, I’ll be researching more agents in which to send my query package.
5) Continue building author platform
It seems I’ve reverted back to my love of Facebook and I’m almost completely ignoring Twitter. Perhaps in November, I’ll get back on the Twitter bandwagon! I hereby set the goal of one tweet a day in the month of November, (links don’t count!).
My Facebook Page has grown from 335 to 341
On Twitter, my followers have slipped from 546 to 543
Thanks so much to all my followers on social networks and on this blog. Your support and encouragement means so much!
6) Read three books on the writing/publishing process.
I pulled two books off of my shelf:
The Complete Idiots Guide to Getting Published
The First Five Pages: A Writer’s Guide To Staying Out of the Rejection Pile by Noah Lukeman
As soon as I get done with Allegiant (Divergent #3) by Veronica Roth, I’ll be tackling these two books!
7) Inspire others to keep writing.
As always, I can only hope I am a positive presence!
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How are you doing on your 2013 goals?
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c.b.w. 2013
At the beginning of September, I set an insane goal of finishing my second novel by the end of the month. I knew it was crazy the moment it popped into my head, but I also had the belief that I could do it thanks to an exercise called the Love List, (see What I Love About My WIP).
It’s truly amazing what a surge of motivation can do for a Work In Progress! I fell in love with my second novel all over again and I literally could not wait to work on it every day. After working nine to ten hours at the day job, I’d go home briefly to eat and then head out to my favorite coffee café for my second shift as a writer. Every part of me is utterly exhausted, but I’m proud of what I’ve accomplished.
My September in a nutshell.
As a result of focusing so much energy on one goal, some of my other goals had to be put on hold. Initially, this really bothered me, but ultimately it came down to listening to my muse and finishing something that means a lot to me.
1) Submit five pieces of writing to contests, journals, literary magazines, or the newspaper.
For the first time in three months, I did not submit anything. However, a small victory was achieved when I received my very first rejection letter. I framed the letter and hung it above my writing desk as a reminder that I am on my way, (see My First Official Rejection Letter.)
Thank you to my readers who participated in the Poetry Poll series, for the poems you chose helped me cross the threshold of receiving a rejection letter! All of you helped me get one step closer to achieving publication.
I set the goal of submitting of five pieces this year and I’m proud to say I can cross this goal off my list. Up until last month, I had the count listed at four submissions, but after reviewing my submission log I realized I was wrong. Earlier this year I submitted an entry to a competition in the Fourth Writers’ Platform Building Campaign. Seeing as I won that competition, I’ve decided it counts as Submission #5.
Of course, reaching this goal doesn’t mean I’m done! I’m looking to submit at least one more piece before the end of December.
2) Finish minor changes in my first novel.
I’m sad to say I did not touch my first novel during the month of September. With all my energy devoted to Novel #2, I let Noah and his story sit. October will hopefully be a better month for this goal.
Starting word count: 7,975
Ending word count: 7.975
Total word count: 0
3) Work on my second novel.
This is the huge success story of the month. Through some serious dedication and stubborn determination I finished the first draft of my second novel. Let this be a solid piece of evidence that you can do anything if you want it badly enough. My passion for the story took over and pushed me to go further than I thought possible.
Starting word count: 66,210
End word count: 75,808
Total word count: 9,598
Let the revisions begin!
4) Send out five query letters and be ready with a synopsis.
My muse never ceases to amaze me as not only did she go nuts with inspiration for finishing Novel #2, but she planted the seed for a query letter. Towards the middle of the month, I began writing a short synopsis for the Novel #2, which eventually developed into a full query letter draft. It all started with one sentence that hit me while brushing my teeth. After chiding my muse for terrible timing, I found my notebook and wrote it down. From there, everything fell into place. Some things are just meant to be!
5) Keep up with my blog.
I may have disappeared during the last week of September, (see Into the Writing Cave), but I was very good about posting on a regular basis throughout the rest of the month. Thank you to all my readers for sticking with me even when I wander off for a bit. I promise it was for a good reason, (that I hope you will all get to read at some point!).
6) Network more with other writers.
My self-imposed immersion into the imaginary world of my second novel left me with little time to play in the realm of social networking. That being said, I was quite active on Facebook during the writing process this month. I hope those who followed me enjoyed the journey of a severely caffeinated author!
My thanks goes to everyone who has stopped by and followed me Facebook and Twitter.
My Facebook Page has grown from 188 to 198 Likes.
On Twitter, my followers have grown from 287 to 288.
To join in the fun, please visit my sidebar to follow me on either network. My goal for October is to increase my presence on Twitter and join in more conversations with other writers.
7) Inspire other writers to keep writing.
As always, I hope I am a positive presence!
March has proven to be a busy in terms of the goals I set for 2012. This month was all about building my platform, which gave a few goals a nice jolt of progress. However, the time and energy that went into platform building took time away from other projects on my list. While frustrating at times, the lack of balance was a necessary evil. The business of writing, (or in my case learning the business of writing), often asks writers to step back from the process of writing. It’s painful to do, but I’m hoping it’ll pay off in the long run.
1) Submit five pieces of writing to contests, journal, literary magazines, or the newspaper.
When I wrote The Last Page I thought it might be something interesting to submit to some of the literary journals and magazines I have on my list. It received good feedback and I’m encouraged to take it a step further after doing a tad more revising and editing. Thanks so much to everyone who left comments!
2) Finish minor changes in my first novel.
This is one of the projects that went untouched. It’s going to get much more of my attention in April, mainly because of the progress made on Goal #4.
3) Work on my second novel.
Novel #2 kept me up at night with brainstorming and writing due to an almost constant stream of inspiration! The story is moving forward with incredible speed, (I’ve never written anything this large so fast!) and I love how the plot line is coming together. In addition, the characters continue to evolve in amazing ways and I am so excited to be their chosen writer.
4) Send out five query letters and be ready with a synopsis.
The big news on this front is the fact that I finished writing a synopsis draft. At the end of February I set a deadline of March 15 and that seemed to do the trick. I was actually done well before that date and have already begun revisions. In early April, I plan on sending a revised version to several beta readers.
As a result of completing the synopsis, my query letter got a total makeover. Once sentence continues to bother me, but that will be resolved soon enough.
Seeing as deadlines seem to agree with me, I am setting a deadline of sending out my first query before the end of April. Hold me to it!
5) Keep up with my blog.
Yet again, this goal has not been a problem. I find so much inspiration and encouragement in the blogosphere! I wrote and posted 25 blog entries this month and I appreciate everyone who stopped by to read and comment on them.
6) Network more with other writers.
Thanks to the Fourth Writers’ Platform Building Campaign, March was another banner month for my networking goals. I’ve continued to meet and connect with so many wonderful people in the writing community.
In the campaign, my second entry (See Fatespeak), was shortlisted, but I have yet to hear anything more. As soon as the site of the campaign is updated, I’ll have more information. Regardless, I’m pretty excited to make it on the short list. It’s the first time my writing has ever been recognized beyond the first round of judging in any competition.
UPDATE: I found out this morning (thank you mywithershins and Melissa Maygrove for telling me!), that I won the Second Campaign Challenge!! I wish a had a better word than “excited,” but at the moment I’m too busy doing a happy dance to think of one!
As for social networking, my circle continues to grow as I follow writers, agents, and publishers. I’m so honored to see my numbers grow on both Facebook and Twitter. Thanks so much to everyone who follows me.
Recently, I joined the World Literary Cafe, (see the button on my sidebar), and I plan on exploring this network over the next couple of weeks. It looks like another golden opportunity to network with readers and writers.
7) Inspire other writers to keep writing.
As always, I can only hope I inspire those around me!
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c.b. 2012
C.B. Wentworth 