Category: journal

Writing My Way Through

Laura Highcove

So I’m a little late on this journal entry, as, well I just haven’t gotten back into the habit of biweekly updates yet. So here’s my update:

Doing well on getting my daily word count of at least 1k words. There’s also been some revision in there so I don’t have the straight up word count that would suggest, but I’m happy with my progress. I wrote a whole bunch of scenes that really pushed things forward, and plenty of scenes where I just stared at the screen for a while because nothing was happening.

I have, since this week, gone back to the beginning to smooth out the story a bit because I’m unclear about a few things. My story is coming out even more fractured than it was for LotDK, and so I’m having a harder time holding it together in my head. Smoothing is the only option for that, even if I lose the straight up word count I would otherwise get. I’m also supposed to have my rough draft done by the end of this week before spending two weeks smoothing. That is a long shot unless some idea just completely overwhelms me. I don’t have an ending yet. I tried writing a bit of it but I’m just not far enough in the story yet.

I suppose in the future during the planning phase, I should interlace word output with smoothing, because that’s really what ends up happening anyway. So the plan is to finish smoothing, pour out some more words, rise and repeat until my March Alpha Read. I’ll certainly have something to show them, even if I don’t exactly have an ending yet. And technically I can still write the ending while they’re reading the first bit. 😀

Writing the Storyteller

Laura Highcove

So last week I finished up my read through and wrote out my list of everything major point that still needed to be written in both the Huntsman and the Wizard. Creating the list ended up only taking two days instead of the week I had allotted to it, so I started writing out some scenes that needed to be changed. I’m giving myself a goal of 1000 words a day. Most days so far I’ve ended up writing more than that anyway, but I don’t want the number of words to discourage me too much. I’d rather get consistent words.

Probably get a chapter done a day for about a week and then I’ll just try and write as many of these scenes as possible. When I write new scenes like this I generally end up with something good eventually. Maybe not every scene, but as a discovery writer, discovery writing is where I really shine.

Nanowrimo style for a month now, so I’m excited about what’s going to come out even though I have no idea, but after this I SHOULD have an idea of what the ending will be. This is about when I need to know where I’m going. Then I sort of work in from both sides until I figure out the middle …like a sandwich? Something like that.

The Year 2020

Laura Highcove

The first journal entry of the new year! Things were crazy at the end of the last year. Crazy! And now I want to get back to a normal. Not the same normal as before, since that’s impossible with my new houseplants and YouTube channel, but a new normal that I can be happy with.

So basically I “forgot” about writing for about three months and even now I’m having a little trouble getting back into it. I can give you all the reasons why I think this is, but after I wrote that long tyraid, I did what I normally do in a situation like this. I created a list!

This list is all the things I need to do to basically finish the Storyteller trilogy.

*Smooth what I have written
*Write the rest of the Wizard, draft 0
*Alpha read
*Fix major plot point through two books
*Fix minor points through two books
*Beta read
*Fix any problems
*Two-three final passes

Man, it looks so easy when it’s just a list like that. But once I had that list, I went through and guesstimated how long each step would take.

So I currently have seven more chapters to smooth. I’m going to give myself one week for that. I think that’s pushing it a bit, but it might just force me to get it done and over with. It’s not important that it’s perfect yet. *Jan 13-19*

Then I need to write the rest of the wizard. So I think what I need to do is once I’ve smoothed it, I’ll do another one of those “outlines” where I go through and outline what I have, then get ideas of where I wanted to go and scenes I still need to write. And write a list of all the things I want to have happen. Including the ending. *Jan 20-26*

Then I need to write them. I’d like to give myself a month, do a Nanowrimo type deal. *Jan 27-Feb 23*

Then I’ll need to smooth, maybe two weeks. *Feb 24-Mar 8*

Then I send out the Wizard for alpha reading. Hopefully they can get it done in a month. *Mar 9 – Apr 5*

When I get it back, go through the list, then go through myself and write down everything! *Apr 6 30- Apr 19*
-scenes that still need to be written/finished
-plot holes
-details to be done
-medium things
-minor things
-naming crap

Then I need to fix these problems. This is going to be the hardest to figure out the time-line of. For right now I’m giving myself a month. This will likely change. I’ll reevaluate the time-line when I get to the step above. *Apr 20- May 17*

Beta read: See, again, if it can be done in a month. *May 18- Jun 14*

Fix any problems, make a final list: one week *Jun15- 21*

Two-three final passes: ~month min *Jun22- July19*

Whenever I do one of these schedules, I’m reminded about *why* it takes so long to write a book. There’s just so many steps and there’s only so fast you can go over this many words. Still, I now have my goal set up in front of me. When I finish it this time, I can finally play Kingdom Hearts 3. :p

Still on Track

Laura Highcove

Okay, so it’s October 17 (when I’m writing this, not when I’m posting it) Meaning I have exactly two weeks and one day until Nanowrimo starts. I got a little behind with all the traveling I needed to do for weddings the past two weekends while on one of the hardest parts of the story, a very important fight/turning point scene.

I have now, gotten past that scene and am into the final push to the climax. There are seven chapters left. Which means a chapter every two days if I’m to finish on time. Not ideal, but I am going to get this done.

I feel like I should have more to write for this post, but a lot of what I’ve been doing has been traveling, so while it’s a lot of stuff, it’s not really good material for a blog post.

I have also started a youtube channel where I talk about the plants (mostly succulents) that I have. It’s a fun little side project for me because, well I love showing off my plants in case you’re interested in that.

Other than that, it’s a countdown to Nanowrimo, which is exciting, as I hope to finish the draft of the Wizard, or at least get about 50k words farther with it.

Back from the Boat

Laura Highcove

So apparently I went so head down about the Writing Excuses Cruise coming up that I just simply forgot about writing anything for my blog in over a month. That being said, once again Wxr was awesome. If you remember last year I was so impressed by the Wxr cruise, that despite telling my husband and myself last year that it would be a one time thing, I simply had to go again, and this time I brought the husband.

I was far more relaxed this year because I knew what to expect. It was all the same airports, hotel, cruise ship, and many of the same people, who actually remembered me! We were on shore for an extra day this time which I wasn’t super keen on. Mostly because it felt like I was just hanging in limbo before getting on the boat, and it also meant more meals to pay for. By the time we woke up Sunday morning everyone was talking about how it felt like we’d had a whole convention already but yet we still hadn’t gotten on the boat.

The lines to get onto the cruise ship practically flew compared to last year. I was prepared for the waiting in line, but there was only a minimum amount of waiting before we were on the boat and our rooms were ready shortly after. (We got a little pizza first.)

We had fewer classes this year. Last year was very class heavy and even I, ever the dedicated student, had trouble keeping up. This year they cut the number of classes. I think a little too far. Added to the fact that I didn’t go on any excursions this year, I ended up with a lot more free time than I expected. I did spend much of that with my husband, which may have helped stave off the depressive episodes I had last year, and I still felt like I got in my Wxr people time.

The classes were good. Piper’s class on animals in novels was fun and informative, and Mary Robinette’s impromptu 8am class on short stories was very helpful, even though I’ve heard her give bits of it before. I think the fact that we wrote a flash fiction helped to cement it better, and I’m feeling much more confidant about short stories in general.

I was apprehensive about Dongwon’s class on Writing Good Beginnings because I feel like I’ve been though so many of those classes before, but something about this one struck a chord with me and I realized my first “page” in The Law of the Prince Charming doesn’t have any stakes or reason for the reader to be invested in Tabitha. I had gotten that feedback before but didn’t “see” it, much less understand how to fix it. After Dongwon’s class I was able to see what I was missing and how to fix it. That gives me some more hope for when I send out another batch of queries.

I also went to watch the karaoke, which was far more populated that I expected from a group of writers. They had to close sign-ups at one point because they had so many people already signed up. My husband and I also participated in game night a bit more, which was good because the bar under our room played music that vibrated through the floor until ‘late’ (11:30-11:45 pm). I also recognized a lot of the food offerings at dinner from last year so I was able to avoid the bad ones and get extra of the good ones. Mwahaha! It was wonderful and fabulous, and I’m so hopeful we’ll both be able to go back again next year.

Ahead of Schedule

Laura Highcove

I am now three weeks in on my schedule of just getting a rough in of all the things I need to add. But, that has gone so easily that I’ve also gone back and been able to smooth those places in as well. The first 12 chapters of this story (except for one fight scene) are looking rather polished and it’s a great feeling.

And yet I’m still struggling with not thinking I’m spending enough time on my writing. Why is it that we always feel like we have to be doing more? Why isn’t what we’re done ever enough? /flops around on the floor

Next week, however, takes me into the dreaded chapter 15. The place where the ‘done’ colors in Scrivener move from yellows and oranges back into the less polished reds. I have made great strides in these chapters, but they’re still rough and I’m not yet sure exactly how rough or how much work it will take to finish them. This coming week will let me know if I can keep up with my current speed, or if it will turn into a slog. I’ll keep going either way, of course. I can still remember when I thought I would never figure out this story and now it’s pretty close to being a cohesive whole. I’m really excited to getting it to beta reading stage.

Also, we’re at under a month until the hubby and I go on the Writing Excuses Cruise again, the cruise that very much changed my life last year. I’m hoping for some more great interaction with other writers, learning a lot of great stuff, and a huge burst of motivation. So excited!

Changing the List

Laura Highcove

Last weekend I went to Otakon with my husband and two of our friends. One of these friends I will refer to as ‘The Cheerleader’ and they drove up with us. The Cheerleader has been beta reading for me since LotPC because …well they’re good at stories and good at encouragement. Anyway, we all ended up talking about LotDK for a good portion of the trip up. I had lined up questions to ask my Hubby and the Cheerleader and I got a lot of good answers.

Not only that, but I was able to just talk about my story and hear what other people thought about it, which is very valuable. I know how the story goes in my head, and it’s interesting to see if that’s translating properly, and if it’s not, where the disconnect is and why. And even, if sometimes the way someone else takes it is even better. Or if I get to be all superior in thinking that my ideas are better and I can’t wait until they get to read it. Mwahaha!

As such, once I got back I was able to finish writing up my List of Revisions for LotDK, which after a few passes turned into a chapter by chapter list. I also managed to make a schedule for how many chapters I need to get done per week in order to be done by November (for Nanowrimo). I start out with four chapters per week and eventually end up at two a week. Obviously because the later chapters are far messier and will need much more help.

I have already started, and so far things are going well. I do anticipate problems, but every bit I get done is still done, even if Wildrose and Gabir continue to give me problems. I feel like a lot more things are starting to come together though, and that’s good. And I’m still enjoying the story, which is also good.

Making A List

Laura Highcove

And I’ve checked it more than twice. I’ve been over it at least three or four times and there’s more to go as I sort through things. My time sheet has been getting a lot of ‘organize’ time, but I’m feeling like I’m making some progress at least. All those little things I ‘put off until later’ as well as the big issues that I would ‘figure out later’ are all coming due.

Some of the little problems will likely only take a few lines to fix, and I’ve already fixed some of them, but the larger issues often either span a large part of the novel, or I haven’t figured out how to fix them, or both. But this is the point of the revision process where everything starts coming together one way or another. Hopefully with my only being reduced to tears of ‘this will never work’ a few times.

Can’t give you a lot of detail, obviously, without spoilers, but I did realize I’ve been describing my Laws and magic backward the entire time, which will require some fixing, and I’m still rough on both Gabir and Wildrose’s motivations throughout the book. Good times.

I should have more information, and maybe even more of a timeline, in my next update in two week’s time. Also remember my newsletter will be going out next week, so look forward to another Chapter 1. This one takes place in space, but is still fantasy.

Hiatus is Over

Laura Highcove

My hiatus is now over, as by the time you’re reading this, the Show Team is back from the National Appaloosa Championships and Youth World Show. Because of the extra hours I put in to make up as assistant manager while the manager was gone, I took the past two and a half weeks off from writing, and let myself play lots of Disgaea 5. But now it’s time to shift back into work mode. First thing on the list is to start reading the comments from my wonderful beta readers for the Law of the Demon King. Looking forward to the inside I get there, as well as regaining some of my motivation for working on that story.

There will be a few days of reading comments during which time comes one of my favorite parts of revision, making the list of edits! Even though this list ends up being extremely long, especially at first, it always encourages it because it’s tangible. Lists also help me organize the story in my mind since I’m looking at the whole thing at once, instead of piece by piece. I even color code the list items based on how much work I estimate it will take, which usually determines in which order I will tackle each item. In addition, my beta readers are both coming to Otakon with me this year, which will afford us more talking and brainstorming time. Mwahahaha!

Once I have a list, I’ll be able to estimate my timeline a little better. I’d like to get through with this book by the end of the year, but right now I have no idea if that’s feasible, or way too easy. And who knows, maybe I’ll get some more done on the Wizard in between bursts of revision.

Finally Back to Productive

Laura Highcove


Got back from my vacation in Williamsburg and had a ton of fun. This was Argon’s first time going to the condo, but as expected he spent maybe an hour slinking around before he was perfectly fine. I played a lot of Hyrule Warriors, went to Busch Gardens, bought clothes, ate food, and ended up writing a decent amount while I was at it.

I also used the vacation as a reset point for my writing. I didn’t record how much writing I did while on vacation. I just ended up with 8k words written on my phone by the end of the week. But when I got home, I just accepted that I was back on schedule, and I split my time between two stories: Blessings of the Neriel, which I realized I needed to keep restarting from the beginning because my characters weren’t solid enough, and a new story I started during vacation that I ended up tossing aside because the idea isn’t developed enough yet. (Oddly enough, the characters are there, the story just isn’t.) And I ended up working more on a story I had started a while ago, with the working title: Kirin.

As such I’ve been getting work done while I’m waiting for my alpha readers on the Huntsman. I keep having an urge to work on it, but I’d like to 1) wait until the alpha feedback is back and 2) read the short stories my husband wrote in the Storyteller world for Nanowrimo, but we’re having some trouble getting that formatted right so I can read it. I might lose patience before July and start working on it anyway, but for now I’m just happy to be writing again.