50412!

I managed to cross the Nanowrimo finish line today!  I didn't have far to go, but distractions abounded, all of them good distractions that I'm happy to allow to distract me, especially my DH.  But he wanted me to win, so he and the rest of the fam put up with me typing (and even cheered me on and teased me) while we went bowling today.  When I got home I had less than 300 words left, and got those in right quick.  My bowling kinda stank, but I had a great time.

Now it's a matter of finishing the darned thing to The End.  While I'm on vacation I may have a few quiet moments here and there, so we'll see, but most of the time we'll be sightseeing and enjoying each others' company.  

I hope those who participated in Nanowrimo this year felt like they got a fair shot at the win, and learned and grew and enjoyed focusing on writing.  See y'all next year!  And I hope those of you thinking about it will join us next year too.  Merry writing!

The Turkey with No Name (44656)

We had a fabulous Thanksgiving in Bend, ate a wonderful smoked turkey with no name and tons of fixings, plus homemade caramel apple pie that was divine, and are setting up to head on home.  Even Dakota had a good time, though I think the long car ride was hard on her.  The family played on a Wii for the first time.  Strange, and fun, and a lot more active than traditional video games.  The golf courses are amazing and fun.  I can see how golfers can become enamored of spectacular golf courses in exotic locations.  The setting is integral to the fun.  Having said all that, I still prefer bowling and I'm unlikely to take up real golf.

There's something about very cold weather that I find compelling.  The sharp air, clear skies, ice, snow and the scent of snow, and the cutting wind grab the primitive organism part of me and put me into a completely different mindset than my summer-self.  We went from Wandering/autumn weather to winter in the course of one car ride, so I observed the transition, though I can't say I understand its nuances.  Now I wonder if it'll flip back into Wandering, or if I'll be stuck in winter.

I put some words into Nano last night.  Not much time left.  I wrote a wee bit more after I logged in my word count for Thursday, so it's likely I have close to an even 5000 words left to write.  Doable in a day, but I have travel time and family time to take into account, so it'll be a near thing.  My DH won!  First year, and not only does he finish ahead of me but he wrote The End.  His book/novella is really excellent, too.  Mine is bantha poodoo, normal for a Nano for me, and I have a ways to go before I hit the end.  Someday it'll be a real book if it's truthful and ... whatever all else.  But after Nano, aside from tapping away here and there to get to the end before I lose my so-called train of thought, this project will get set aside in favor of editing Masks.  Since I prefer writing sweet and light first drafts over bitter and complex editing, I can use my Nano as a reward for getting stuff done on Masks.  

As for other writing goals, getting short stories out into the marketplace also has to become a priority, and I need to clean out and consolidate my gizillion emails left over from the smashing success that was OryCon 30.  So I'll be a busy thing over the holidays.  I hope folks who were sick over Thanksgiving are feeling better, and those who were able could spend time with their friends and/or families.  With all the serious strife, horror and pain in the world, we need times to reflect on what we have to be grateful for more than ever.  May peace and comfort be yours.

The weekend that ate the moon

We've got a busy schedule still, but the busiest part of it is done.  

The convention was a great success!  I made people cry (in a good way, I hope) at the Broad Universe reading,  got very encouraging feedback on the openings I read for the ORCs, and excellent feedback on the Mayhem opening for the writer's workshop.  My DH sold lots of books.  I got a free signed copy of a book from a very nice pro.  As far as I know, I didn't make a fool of myself at any of the panels I was on.  And I learned tons, including how to properly do the Five Tibetans straight from Steve Barnes.  This will come in handy when I beta-test a life improvement system for him.  

So not-selling any art this year didn't sting.  It would have been nice to sell something, but I didn't feel like I wasted my time or art show space.  An extra perk--people said nice things about my work, and one of them was an unsolicited remark from artist Alan Clark.  I admire the heck out that guy, so it encouraged me that I may be heading in a good direction.  

That's all I have for now.  I have a pillow to hit.

(41474, still) Last minute stuff

I'm still prepping for the homecoming and for OryCon.  Note to self: try not to overlap two major events, an art deadline and a writing deadline again.  Evah.  (I know, I know, I'm dreaming--this kind of stuff always overlaps.)

This blog will very likely be dark or at least very shady until Nov. 24, 2008 due to OryCon, and sporadic thereafter through early December due to various trips around the Pacific NW.  Posts will pick back up to their usual almost-daily schedule starting on or near Wednesday December 10, 2008.  

I hope to see many of you at OryCon 30!

OryCon 30 Schedule

I have a very full schedule at OryCon this year.  

I'm officially scheduled as a panelist/reader at:

*Artistic Inspirations, Fri 2pm Elizabeth Fellows Kamila Miller Jeff Sturgeon Vincent Vaughn Jeff Fennel

*But I thought YOU were going to write the ending: collaborations Fri 3pm Kamila Miller Bruce Taylor Richard A. Lovett S. Danelle Perry

*Evil scams for newbie writers Fri 4pm  Kamila Miller Mary Rosenblum J.C. Hendee Bob Brown

*Saturday 10am Broad Universe readings!! Please come!  M.K. Hobson, Cat Rambo, Sara Mueller, C.S. Cole, Robin Catesby, Tina Connolly, Ann Wilkes and me!  You don't want to miss this, trust me.  Or, if you do absolutely want to miss this, go to Rory Miller's reading at 10:30am for a great reality check.  You won't want to miss that.  Um, either.  Darnit!

*Where's my robot maid? Sat 11am Bart Kemper Jean Lamb Mike Shepherd-Moscoe Kamila Miller

*Art Jam: everyone draws Sat 1pm Jeff Sturgeon John Gray III Kamila Miller Alan M. Clark

*The Autistic Spectrum Sat 2pm Kamila Miller John Hedtke S. Danelle Perry Laurel Anne Hill Rory Miller

*Nanowrimo: Shut up and write! Sat 5pm Nina Kiriki Hoffman Kamila Miller Mary Rosenblum C.S. Cole Amanda Kundert

*Who is Mary Sue and why does everyone hate her? Sun 11am Ann Wilkes John C. Bunnell Sara Mueller Kamila Miller Louise Owen

*Feedback--time to feed or slay the concom dragon, 2pm Sun with all the usual suspects.

You may also be able to find me at the following (if I haven't curled up into a little ball in a corner to rock and suck my thumb):

The bar

ORCs Friday and Saturday nights, 9pm onward

The bar

Rory Miller's panels

The bar

and also possibly the bar.

I'll also try to hit a couple of parties.  Check out the Reno bid, and support the Endeavor Award, please!  And buy art.  And don't forget to pick up some books in the dealer's room, especially at Lady Jayne's because we love her.

I hope I'll see y'all at the con!

I Slept! (41474)

I slept last night!  I slept I slept I slept for I think about six hours, and then after I got the kids off to school I got in another couple of hours and it was glorious!  

So I had lots more energy today and actually got the downstairs looking nice.  The upstairs is a disaster, plain and simple, but a disaster I can live with.

I haven't written at all on my Nano for two days.  Shame on me!  But I'll probably have some time while my DH is napping, and I plan to be at the write-in at OryCon 30.  The finish line is right there.  I can almost touch it.  But the big welcome home became hugely more important than Nano.  I even dreamt about it last night, apologizing for what a pit the place was.  My house isn't particularly tidy on the best of days, but in the dream it was ten times worse than usual.  Poopyheaded anxiety dreams.  

Tonight, if (when!) I get to sleep, I trust that the poopyheaded anxiety dreams will be well at bay.  But the dreams I will have will be intense, as they always are when I haven't written in a couple of days.  Wish me luck that they don't become nightmares, or even more inventive anxiety dreams.

A million ants

I have so much stuff to do prepping for OryCon and a fabulous homecoming that I've fallen behind on everything.  Nano.  Housework.  Exercise.  Painting (the house interior.)  Watercolor projects.  It's the attack of the million ants.  Every project is manageable, but I feel like I've been swarmed.

I made progress on some neglected stuff today, but it feels like just one or two ants got smushed out of the swarm.

Argh, ants everywhere!  Ants!

Thank goodness my kids are helpful and forgiving.  And bowling yesterday helped, weirdly.  I think the bowling ball must have taken some of the ants out.

Still fighting insomnia.  Maybe tonight will be my night to sleep more than four hours.

(40328) Romance rocks

I've hit an awkward spot in the plot, but it's all good.  These things get ironed out in the end.  

Working with two entwined characters is great on my nerves.  I haven't had both of them floundering at the same time, which is a huge help as far as avoiding being stuck with a pov character who is dithering or at a loss or overwhelmed.   I'm also enjoying the quieter tension of 'will these two ever admit they're in love and get together?!' rather than having a plot that revolves around being extremely clever or extremely violent or both at the same time in order to get anywhere.  But I don't know if I could handle writing romance full-time, just like I don't read romances full time.  In fact, if reading was a job, I'd starve working the number of hours I read romances, whereas I have a full time + job with the fantasy/SF and writing-related NF I read.  I also read more non-writing NF than romance.  

Having said all that, there's something special and wonderful about the romance genre that keeps me coming back.  Maybe it's the happy endings.  Maybe its the skillful way a good writer can make me feel joy at the sight of young love, love that is entirely fictional but still compelling.  My first love is a good action/adventure romp in fantastical realms, and that's where I plan to write my most words.  Even those, though, have a romantic element in them.

Anyway, I'm down to four figure numbers to cross the Nano finish line.  If I spend my time wisely, I might (though it's doubtful--it's a long ways away) get to the real "The End" before my (earlier than the end of November) deadline.  After my deadline, all thoughts of writing will go out of my head and I'll be a happy, prancing Kami muffin ready for an awesome vacation with my DH.  Yay!  

All My Crimes Meme

If you saw me in the back of a police car, what would you think I was there for?

Answer me, and post this in your own journal to see how many crimes you get accused of.

Jay Lake infected me with this meme.  He was, naturally, accused of jay walking ... but not by me.  I didn't respond fast enough.  I had to come up with something else.

As a side note, as an April Fool's joke I toyed with the idea of calling up a friend of the family and have him bring me in during my DH's work shift.  I couldn't decide if I wanted to be booked for prostitution or murder.  Just telling my DH about my plan when he got home had more than enough of the desired effect.  The expression on his face was precious.  He pondered for quite a while about how he'd react to that.  

33251: The bigger conflict begins to blush

The characters have leapt nimbly, with some bumps and bruises and self-doubts and fears, over the first hurdle.  Before they've had a chance to brush themselves off, they're starting to see the glow of something ominous on the horizon.  It's the first blush of a red dawn before the storm.  They know something bad is approaching, but they still have hopes that they'll be able to shrug it off.  It might not be so bad.  They're just nervous.  You know, new town, new people, unfamiliar rules ... it's probably just the flutters.  Nothing to keep them up at night. 

And yet they're gnawing their fingernails.  Rightly so.   Because as in much of the fiction out there, the kind of fiction that follows the storytelling path of increasing stakes, increasing problems and a climax in the center of the book from which the big, final, seemingly insurmountable conflict and climax arise, they're just getting their first taste of a big banquet of troubles.  Things will be said that can't be unsaid.  Truths stranger than fiction will be revealed.  And the axeman appears.  They've sensed the danger, but not the scope and they'll flee before it right into the arms of the one person they should avoid at all costs, because they're human beings and he's familiar, he's (they thought) reasonable, and he may be not the best guy ever but he's their not the best guy ever.  And the war they've been trying to ignore and pass off as out of their hands will explode around them.  I really don't know how they're going to get out of it.  That's the fun part.  The characters and I will discover that together, and I think it will be way more interesting than anything I could come up with in advance.

And of course when I go to edit the thing sometime next year I'll gnash my teeth and curse under my breath at the slow areas, the shallow thinking, the repetitions, the dragging, archaic language and all the other little problems that I don't yet have the awareness to suspect are developing now.  But I'm not worried.  If I fret about it now, the soap bubble will pop and the magic will be gone.  This way I'll get it done.  This way I'll have something complete to edit.  There's nothing sadder on my hard drive than an incomplete manuscript that I'd planned on 'fixing' before I moved on.  The fixing never happens.  When I go back to a partial manuscript, more often than not it's much better to just start the thing over.  That's where an outline writer is way better off than someone like me.  It's easier to pick up in the middle even after a longish hiatus.  But outlines thin the walls of that soap bubble, and it often pops before its time.  I'm better off with my bottle of bubbles and my bubble wand.  

Hopefully everyone doing Nano is moving apace.  If not, don't give up!  The month is yet young.  We're not even halfway through.  So snag yourself some tea or coffee, settle in, and write, even if it's just a hundred words.  Right now.  Late or early, short on time or short on patience, brain mush or brain tuned to work, whatever.  Commit, do.  You can do it in two minutes.  On your mark, get set, go!

I knew you were going to say that (30060)

The echoes of insomnia are still bouncing around inside me.  Fortunately the kids have a Veteran's Day holiday, so I can sleep in.  I had reasonable rest last night, but it started late.  It ended up tanking my whole day, writing-wise, as I ended up taking a nap, then rushed off to work out (yay writer's constitutional!) grocery shop, and took care of some chores including vacuuming out the electric wall heaters (if you have them, do this please and don't forget to shut off the power to them!) downstairs, vacuuming the stairs, sweeping (yay!) the downstairs and transplanting a plant.  

I'm too punchy to write effectively at this point, but guess what!  I'm going to write at least a hundred words.  Maybe one hundred will turn to a thousand, and maybe I'll end up pushing past that thousand to my daily goal of 3000 words.  The prose will probably be rough, silly and repetitive, but it'll be on the page.  I'm 100% in agreement with Pullman in his emailed pep-talk to Nanoers--better teh suck words than zero words.

Soon I have to go to sleep.  I know, I know.  Break the cycle by getting up early, and don't take a nap.  Hopefully I'll be able to get back on the sleep track by Wednesday.

Soul Stealing (26234)

Today in Nanoland, Kami takes a tour of her novel and makes some changes.

On the way to a write in at the library, I stopped to help at a car accident that had just happened.  I tried to get people out off the highway (duh!) and made some quick assessments of the people there.  No one appeared to be seriously hurt.  Luck of the angle paired with working air bags.  It could have been head-on at freeway speeds, but there appeared (judging by the damage) to have been some swerving and braking that helped save lives.  The people there were so dopey on adrenaline I couldn't herd them all to the side of the road.  One woman especially felt a need to wander around, and her husband, carrying their child, wandered after her.  Fortunately the police showed up about a minute later, and after I let them know I wasn't a witness, just there to help, I was able to leave to go to the write-in.  Yeah, I probably could have tried to help some more, but it's better to let the pros do their stuff and stay out of the way.  As I backed out to avoid driving through the accident scene, I saw the ambulance en-route.  They were in good hands.

So I was a little distracted when I sat down to write, but also, because I'm a horrible person, I wanted to capture some of that sense of trauma in the book.  I went back and added some things in to the combat scene.  Or, more accurately, the post-combat scene.  And then I sprinkled some post-trauma stuff in.  Since that involved reading and careful placement, my word count was poopy today.  But it was poopy in a good, vulture-like way.

All y'all who think writers are wonderful, creative people who write from the soul now are witness to the ugly reality.  We really do use everything.  Including that time your two year old barfed in the grocery line, and the funny faces you make while you're talking on the phone, and the way you crossed your ankles and bit your lip at the funeral, and the way you made love to a writer one winter night in Pennsylvania.  There were, and are, people who think that cameras can steal souls.  Actually, it's the writers you have to watch out for.  But your soul isn't alone.  The writer's soul is alongside yours, was with you in that moment, and treasures it, values it, believes in it, loves it, adorns it with care, frames it with hope.  We're the shameless reporters looking out for the scoop of the century on the thing that matters most to us (or to me anyway)--the beauty, pain and joy of the human condition.  I try to respect it.  But I still use it, because my experiences are too small, and I can't watch my body in an unguarded moment.  I have to rely on my fellow human beings to see expressions in motion.  It's just how this art works, and grows.

Shiverpips results

Shiverpips are in fact goosebumps.  Next time I'll make it a contest!  I have all kinds of fun things I can use as awards around here.

The original context was:

She couldn’t be sure of where exactly he was looking, but she tried to guess and noticed a little shadowy something on the downhill side of the streamlet.  Her skin crawled with shiverpips.

25298

I'm more than halfway done on my Nano!  

Even more exciting, from a fantasy fiction standpoint, is that it's solidly in fantasy romance, a genre I've been wanting to write for a while but never quite managed to get that romance angle to be dominant enough to the plot.  Also, I've bounded nicely into Act 2.  

Actually, I fibbed about being halfway done.  I'm more than halfway to the 50,000 word goal, but less than halfway on the finished novel.  Length-wise, this one may end up being one of my shorter fantasies, which is a very good thing.  To be able to keep this at or around 80,000 words would be hugely helpful.  Masks is the length it needs to be (although I have an opportunity to shorten it a little more on this edit) to serve the story but at its current length it's a bit too long for a 'first' novel to tempt agents.  Of course it's going to take months and months to hammer this very rough draft into a finished product, and I may finish editing one of the other novels that have been stewing before I even start to edit on this one, so it's not going to be the next one I market no matter how strong I think this first draft may be.  First drafts always seem shiny to me, but after they've sat around for a month or more their warts start to show and the real work begins.

Anyway, the long and the long of this is that I'm excited by this novel and I'm looking forward to all the evil waiting for the two main characters in the rest of Act 2 and all of Act 3.  Whether this ends up at 80,000 words or not, I think this is going to be a fun book and hopefully it'll appeal to a broad audience of both fantasy and romance readers.

20428

The results of the Measure 8 vote in California is disappointing.  I guess people aren't ready for sexual equality yet, and that's what this is (in part) about.  The anatomy may be the same, but the sexual reality is different.  I wonder if the voters who passed Measure 8 would be as gung ho about a yes if it was paired with losing the right to vote, or losing any of the other rights afforded to American citizens.  It seems so strange to me that people can vote, can fight for the country, can do any ol' darned thing they want but marry.  I'm not sure if the analysis in the article is correct, but it's interesting anyway.  A sad day for human rights, on a great day for the USA.

Meanwhile, my Nano is trucking along nicely.  I'm still fighting this sore throat cruddy thing, but I'm hoping if I sing la la la I don't see you! and sleep a lot and act like I feel perfectly fine, it'll get discouraged and go away.  

Yesterday I used one of my favorite writing novel tricks.  I ended in the middle of a really dynamic, exciting scene.  That way when I sit back down to write again today, I'll read back a bit, get all worked up and emotionally engaged again, and type away like crazy from there.  Whether I do this or not, what I try never to do is stop when I don't know what I'm going to do next.  That can lock a writer into an ugly place.  Do some quick research, brain storm, whine to your friends, poll people in your neighborhood, whatever it takes but get that plot rolling before you quit for the day.  Sometimes sleeping on it helps, but be careful.  If you're well and truly stuck, you can probably give yourself one sleep period (and take a nice, long hot bath or shower) to work it out subconsciously, but don't let that be your standard mode of operation.  The muse should be your inspiration.  You should not be it's slave.  Think about that.  There is a difference.  Also, muses are happier, healthier critters if they're fed a lot.  Watch a movie or read a book that inspires you with its brilliance.  Listen to music that inspires your creativity.  Page through a book of reading prompts, or turn to one of the dog-eared pages in your favorite how-to writing book.  Bubble chart your characters and plot.  But don't give in to writer's block, and don't feed the writer's block by putting off difficult decisions.  Especially don't decide to 'let it mull' or 'put it on a back burner' or 'let it rest' and then do nothing.  If you have to stop, be aware of exactly why and address the issues in an active way until they're all resolved.  Deal with it as if your job depended on it.  Because, in fact, it does.

More political stuff

Today I saw an image of Obama and realized he'd be our next president.  It brought tears to my eyes.  I normally don't get too terribly worked up about politics.  But I have to say that from a purely emotional, irrational viewpoint, from the view of my soul, I'm overwhelmed by the fact that this nation has a young, handsome, black President with a solid marriage that, when I look at him with his wife, looks like my marriage feels to me.  No sense of putting up a front for the public, or posing, or mutual respect but with emotional distance.  The kids look genuinely happy and healthy.  Typical school kid grins.  This feels like healing to me.  

And politically speaking?  He seems like a competent diplomat, and we really need one.  There's more that I like, and some stuff that I disagree with, but overall I most want America to have a serious, intelligent, and yet friendly face and I believe we got that and more.  Yay!

18923

I'd planned on getting to 20,000, but I admit that, after getting some watercolor and matting stuff done, I parked my butt in front of the tv to watch the elections.  What an exhilarating moment.  We're part of history, and part of the future now.  I'm fighting some sort of malaise, sore throat, a bit feverish, but I feel good.  Tired, but good.  Two good men, a long fight, and an outcome based on a free people voting with their hearts, minds, and consciences.  There are so many countries torn apart, run by criminals and psychotics, where death comes early, where rape is something to hide because you'll be punished for being a victim, where people disappear, where disease and hunger and all manner of deprivation are endured because there's no choice, no resources, no hope.  I'm so lucky to live here.  The western world in general is pretty good for the most part, but the USA is home and right now, I can't imagine anyplace better.  Yay voting, yay freedom, yay hope, yay to a lot of stuff even though there are a lot of problems the American people have to face.  I can't say if Obama will have the best, or even good answers, but I know he's going to give it his all, and that's all I can ask of any leader.

You know, as opposed to shooting people who disagree with him and having his dick commemorated in bronze while the people he supposedly leads drink cholera-laden water, or getting together with all his buddies and grabbing as many resources as possible and then go on raids with machetes to hack down as many people as he can before his arms get too tired.  But I digress.

15750

I've had my first combat scene.  I feel all better now!  I've also gotten deeper into the antagonist's pov.  I'm digging the structure.  I'm not sure if I can carry it back to the very beginning--anything from the antagonist's pov too early on will give away too much--but I think it's fine going along the first four chapters 'normally' and then setting up the remaining chapters as primarily the protagonist's pov with a few paragraphs at the end set aside from the antagonist's pov.  

It's tempting to go back and start playing with setting and enriching earlier scenes based on what I'm learning about the characters now, but part of the process of writing a first draft, especially during Nano, is to resist that temptation.  I could turn it into a real mess if I kept adapting things retroactively, especially if I change my mind about a plot element.  Everything would grind to a halt at that point, and all my tinkering in the meantime would be for nothing.  The one thing I do allow myself to do--continuity.  I might miss it later, so if I forget to have someone reload and they need to be prepared, I go back and let them reload right after their first bout of danger.  Of course if it serves the story, I'll let them flounder and wish that they'd remembered to reload ... but if it turns into this long, awkward and unnecessary thing that holds up the story instead of adding suspense then it's better to go back and tweak.

If you can't see anything for my Nano word count widget, you're not alone.  I tried to fix it, but I suspect the real problem isn't corruption but that the Nano site is so overburdened (as usual) during this early part of the month that the widget can't get data from it.  As the month wears on people will drop out and the site will be less crazy busy.  The widget should work more consistently then.

Shiverpips

When writing fantasy it's pretty usual for me to make up words, and not just words to describe something that doesn't exist her on good ol' Earth.  Sometimes I make up new names for existing things because the original name doesn't resonate with me in the story's context, and hopefully it lends a little oomph to the setting.  And I definitely make up slurs, epithets and blessings to reflect the culture I'm inventing.  Oh my god doesn't always fit, nor does damn, or Jesus, or Christ, or cripes, or what have you.

Anyway, any guesses (it'll be easier in the context of the story for the reader, but I'm curious how it reads without context) to what shiverpips are?

Shiverpips is word 10,573.

10,033

I wrote three times--after midnight until 3ish am if I remember right (I'm a little fuzzy on the details,) late this morning, and then after dinner until midnight again.  That got me a great headstart on what's shaping up to be a fun novel to play in.  

Um, I'm pretty tired now.  I think I'm going to go to bed.  The plan for tomorrow is to sleep in and write at a relaxed pace.

I've been talking with C.S. about health, writing pace, crashes, and old-tyme constitutionals.  I went to 24 Hour Fitness today to run through my routine before writing this evening.  I don't know if it helped my word count, but it kept me from getting sore in the seat and my circulation stayed decent through the hours there.  I also made sure I got up every so often and wandered.  Writers face health hurdles with the sittin' down and the typing or handwriting.  It's hard on a body, but in the way that makes a body soft and yet brittle rather than the kind of hard that makes a body, well, hard and yet flexible.  So take care of your bodies.  Nano is traditionally a caffiene and sugar-fest with late hours and short sleep, a recipe for health ills even if you're in decent shape to start with.  So break those up with long walks, veggies, home-cooked meats, whole grains, fresh fruit--you know the drill.  C.S. suggested that it may keep away the second week slumps.  You never know!

FYI, my Nano word count widgit appears to update at its own good time.  The count may or may not be accurate.  But it will never be higher than I've actually written, unless there's something really weird going on.

1609

I'm off to a decent start on my Nanowrimo novel.  I'm taking a mental break before I start on chapter two.  Y'all can keep track of my progress as I attempt to write about 3000 words a day.  The normal Nano goal is 1667 words a day, but I need to be done early, so I'm aiming higher.  I won't be able to verify my win until the 25th, but that's okay.  That won't take but a moment.

To all of you who haven't started yet, the month is young.  You can still sign up, today, a day later, two days later, and still make it.  And to those of you on your way, go Wrimos, go!