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[FrickingKaos]

That’s awesome you’ve kept at it. I think what’s helping me stay on track is listening to music while I write. It doesn’t matter what music really, just any music. I also watch science fiction movies if I’m home for background noise. Titan A.E. Was a huge inspiriation for Take Me Home even though the stories aren’t that similar. I just always thought the character of Cale reminded me of Nick even though Matt Damon plays him lol

[RokofAges75]

Music is so helpful to me too!  I go through phases with it, and once in a while I will write in silence, but usually I'm listening to something.  I almost always have to have instrumental music, unless I'm already really inspired and on a roll because, otherwise, music with lyrics will distract me.  What music has inspired you lately?

I don't usually write in front of the TV unless I have some kind of ambience video on, but this morning I wrote a little bit while watching ER reruns on the Pop channel.  I only wrote 129 words though, so that was not so successful LOL.

[mare]

I’m sorry if you’ve already done this, but can you explain this nano writing thing? Does it have to be fanfic? I don’t really understand what that’s all about.

[FrickingKaos]

Music is so helpful to me too!  I go through phases with it, and once in a while I will write in silence, but usually I'm listening to something.  I almost always have to have instrumental music, unless I'm already really inspired and on a roll because, otherwise, music with lyrics will distract me.  What music has inspired you lately?

I don't usually write in front of the TV unless I have some kind of ambience video on, but this morning I wrote a little bit while watching ER reruns on the Pop channel.  I only wrote 129 words though, so that was not so successful LOL.

Not any music in particular. Just music that happens to fit the scene I’m writing at the time. I listen to all sorts of stuff, from broadway musicals to rock and rap, everything in between.

[RokofAges75]

I’m sorry if you’ve already done this, but can you explain this nano writing thing? Does it have to be fanfic? I don’t really understand what that’s all about.

No, it can be any kind of writing!  It's through NaNoWriMo, which is short for National Novel Writing Month in November.  There the goal is write a 50,000 novel in a month.  (I don't know how anyone can do that. LOL)  Camp Nano is like a less formal version run in April and July, where you can set any goal you want with any piece of writing, even if it's already in progress.  You just create a "project" and set the word count you want to hit by the end of the month.  Then you update it throughout the month and earn badges by making progress and updating so many days in a row.  It's fun, and it has definitely made me feel more accountable.  Go to nanowrimo.org to create an account, and then you can join our group at the link I posted.  Let me know if you need any help!

[nicksgal]

Here is our group again, in case anyone else would like to join us and set a goal for Camp Nano.  It starts tomorrow!  https://nanowrimo.org/writing-groups/the-absolutely-chaotic-backstreet-project

Yes, join us! (I'm like the children of the corn, lol.)

I’m sorry if you’ve already done this, but can you explain this nano writing thing? Does it have to be fanfic? I don’t really understand what that’s all about.

Would love to do so! So NaNoWriMo is National Novel Writing Month. They're a non-profit with two main goals: get people writing, but especially get young people writing. So the money they fundraise both goes toward keeping the lights on and supporting their young writers program. Their big event is the aforementioned National Novel Writing Month in November. The idea is that you start a new novel from scratch on November 1st and try to write 50,000 words during the month. (They're less stringent now than they used to be, so an intense level of pre-planning, working on an existing project, and writing fanfic are all now fine when they wouldn't have been before.) The site runs year round, but they run Camp NaNo in April and July. They used to put you in cabins with similar people to start writing groups, but now writing groups run all year long so you can find whatever groups to be part of. For the actual NaNo event, 50,000 word novel is really the plan. But for the Camp events you can write anything: poetry, non-fiction, screenplays, whatever (they're starting a memoir coaching track for this next one). And, unlike the Official NaNoWriMo, you can set your own word count, so it doesn't have to be 50,000.

It's fun, you get little badges and charts on your progress. Plus, you can find out just how many words you write in a minute, lol.

I'll pop back in later to respond to everything else, but saw this and figured I could give it a quick answer. Let me know if it doesn't make sense -- I am two fun glasses of wine deep because the bestie and I were both having kind of a bum day. But I did still finish editing and posting my update before Wednesday ended even though AC and AO3 think it's Thursday, so I'm still on top of things! Maybe...  


Edited to add: Julie beat me to it, lol.

[RokofAges75]

Update:  I did not make 50,000 words, but I was within 5,000 words of it and did finish Chapter 23 with about ten minutes to spare before midnight LOL.  Also, my average writing speed came up to 5 words per minute! Haha.  I'm aiming for 25,000 words in July, but hoping I can surpass that and come closer to 30,000.

Edit: I had a Nano troubleshootin g question here earlier, but I figured it out, so never mind.  I clicked a link in my email to register for Camp Nano the other day, and it prompted me to make a new project.  Then I realized I didn't really want it to be listed as a separate project since I'm still working on the same story, but I couldn't figure how how to set a new goal for my old MBK project and tie it to July Camp Nano because that wasn't coming up as an option.  I finally figured out that if I deleted the new project so I no longer had one associated with July Camp Nano, it would come up as an option for a new goal on the old project.  So what's what I did.  Now I'm ready! LOL

[RokofAges75]

Yes, join us! (I'm like the children of the corn, lol.)

Come and write with us... forever... and ever... and ever.

[mare]

Thanks for all the info ladies. Seems a little overwhelming for me this time around, but maybe next time I’ll be ready to write something.

[Rose]

Soooo I've been looking at my notes for current stories. I probably won't commit to writing on them until I get moved in three weeks and my life settles a little. But I'm looking and I feel like that's a start.

[RokofAges75]

Thanks for all the info ladies. Seems a little overwhelming for me this time around, but maybe next time I’ll be ready to write something.

No worries!  You can create a project and set a goal for yourself on there anytime, even outside of the set months when they have an event running.  It's kinda fun to track your progress once you get into a routine.

Soooo I've been looking at my notes for current stories. I probably won't commit to writing on them until I get moved in three weeks and my life settles a little. But I'm looking and I feel like that's a start.

Yay!!  That is a great start!

[Rose]

I definitely have a lot of emotions I want to channel into writing this year. I've been doing notes, so I figure post move I'll probably dive in. I've also had an idea for a story but I'll sit on that till I finish something.

[RokofAges75]

Obviously everyone copes with grief differently, but writing was a great escape and distraction for me after my grandpa died a few years ago.  That is when I finally got going on A Heart That Isn't Mine, and I've been writing consistently ever since.  So channel those emotions, girl!  I hope something great comes from it.  I would love to see you finish When the Daylight's Gone, and I'm curious about this new idea!  Dee and I are here a 00Carter revival whenever the time is right, too.

[nicksgal]

Yeah, even when I was an enthusiastic and prolific new teenybopper writer, I only averaged one "novel" a month - and I have since written short stories with a higher word count than some of those "novels" LOL.  They definitely wouldn't qualify for NaNoWriMo.

I think averaging a chapter a week is a good pace.  That's what I've been doing, too.  You doubled that in May; that's impressive!  It definitely makes you prolific in my book.  That's 14 stories in two months if each chapter was a one-shot! LOL

Same. Although, comparing my teenybopper novels to middle grade novels they seem almost close in word count? So... Maybe right on the money for age.

Haha, I'll tell that to the one-shot readers. PNecklace was about one chapter every four days, but this new one is going much slower. I think because I stopped the first chapter in various points, I'm not sure how long my chapters will be on average, so I'm stuck on the second one.  It did dawn on me yesterday though that the last time I'd written a scene for it (very excitedly) was the week I listened to Millennium on repeat for its anniversary. So, I'm trying to mood listen right now to get back in the groove. We'll see how it goes.

In general, I think a chapter a week is a good pace. It gives you space to think if you need it, but also keeps you from stalling too much.

"I have had it with these motherfucking snakes on this motherfucking island!"  LOL Yeah, I could totally see that.

I dunno about the drink thing; remember Benjamin Guggenheim in Titanic who was like, "We are dressed in our best and prepared to go down as gentleman... but we would like a brandy!"  He was last seen sipping brandy by the Grand Staircase, so someone must have served him.  Of course, they also had music to drown by.  I do think things would be a little different nowadays LOL.

That makes sense that a smaller boat would be easier to escape from.  Thanks for teaching me a new word!  Jack Dawson didn't use that term when he was describing the suction. LOL

Exactly! lol!

If only we could sink in comfort these days, lol! I think now it's all about evacuating safely and efficiently, ergo, no time to serve evacuation drinks.

The smaller ones have less of the slorp going on. Just think of the sheer force of that suction from a luxury liner!  It was bothering me that I didn't know the word, so you're welcome, lol. And no, Jack Dawson is not one for large technical words. He also remembered fishing on a lake that hadn't been invented yet, so...

No, but they were written in Google Docs.  I remembering making the choice to delete them and not back them up once I had my third beginning that I was happy with, knowing I would never be able to recover them, so they're gone forever.  They exist now only in my memory. LOL  The third version was more similar to the first version than the second; I even used some of the same dialogue from it, so at least there's that.

I forgot, you make new documents instead of greenlining over things, lol. Interesting. Why do you think you leaned toward something more similar to the first than a combination of the two or a completely new option?

Love your little Titanic reference, lol.

That's a great goal!  I wish I could get to that point too, but I haven't managed to transition from one story to another without taking at least a few weeks off from updating.  But if you have enough chapters hoarded and the new story is short enough, you can do it!!

Thanks for the vote of confidence! It is not going well so far, two days in, lol. We'll see what happens. I have until November to figure it out, so that's comforting at least.

No... I think that's the only one where I used the prologue for a flash forward like that.  Most of my stories don't even have prologues; I only use them when I have some kind of introduction or shorter beginning that I want to be set apart from the rest of the story.  And now that I'm posting on AO3, where the first chapter posts as "Chapter 1" no matter what, I will probably go out of my way to avoid prologues altogether LOL.

How about you?  Are you a fan of the prologue and/or epilogue?

I don't really use them? I think PBox had a paragraph related to the actual myth of Pandora's box, but nothing that necessarily affected the story itself. I also don't really use epilogues either.

But I think what you use them for make sense. Something short to be set apart.

Yep, that makes sense.  I guess it's also like a turning point for me as the writer - once I have them make that decision and there's no turning back, it's full steam ahead, so I might as well start posting it LOL.

Yeah, relative to its length, I guess Chapter 18 isn't bad, but that also shows me that Broken could have been shorter LOL.

Haha, so up until the characters reach the turning point, you could turn back and say "nope" to the story. That's overall how I feel about posting: oh well, it's up, the plot is what it is at this point.

Sure, you know that now, but you didn't then. Broken is the exact length it needed to be at that time.

Yep, and I'm sure I had a lot of Brian girls reading because most of my stories were about Brian back then.  A lot of my ideas came from the desire to write another Brian romance without finding a way to get rid of Leighanne, hence the AU... except I don't really like AU, so I didn't get anywhere with them LOL.

I'm sure historical fiction does take a ton of research.  The closest I've come to that is Guilty Roads with the Amish aspect of its storyline, and I did not enjoy researching for that as much as I thought I would, so I think historical fiction would be a challenge for me.  Yet I can spend hours researching medical stuff LOL.  Julilly did write historical fiction - kudos to her!  It is definitely impressive.

There was a supernatural element and kind of a suspense/mystery subplot to the reincarnation idea, but not full on horror.  The horror idea I do have also contains a supernatural element, but no reincarnation.  If I had an idea for a reincarnation horror story, that actually sounds cool!  Maybe I'll be able to merge some ideas someday.

Makes sense that your readership would mimic your writing. In regards to getting rid of Leighanne, may I suggest the always delightful "set prior to INBYH's American version video and/or ALAYLM video," problem solved and "getting rid" unnecessary! (Admittedly, I'm fuzzy on this release timeline... I think ALAYLM may have been first?) Or realistically, as long as it was before they got married, it's a lot easier to get rid of a girlfriend than a wife (though not impossible if you consider divorce rate statistics). Relationships can all end in mundane ways under the "right" circumstances that have nothing to do with catastrophe. But I get it, hard when you want to keep stories more modern.

I think we all have our "thing" that we will pour hours into researching, then eventually look at the clock and go "oh well!" Yours is medical research, mine is myths and legends, etcetera. But, I think it is a testament to our craft that we will research what needs to be researched for the good of the story. I think for historical fiction, it would depend on the "history" for me. Like, I feel kind of "meh" about history the more modern it becomes. As far as American history goes, I'd probably be more interested in writing historical fiction about the Revolutionary War than the Civil War than either of the World Wars, and so on. Whereas, I think I've mentioned before that I spent several years checking out "The Complete Gods and Goddesses" from the library, and eventually purchased a copy, just for fun. And I think in general, I'm much happier researching anything that has to do with arts and culture, than say... politics or military anything (which you'd never know because I can definitely talk your ear off about the evolution of weaponry on battlefields or the rise and fall of dynasties -- though some more in depth than others).

Julilly, come back and tell us about your process for researching historical fiction! (We need an @ system, then it would be easy to summon people with specific questions for them instead of Mare's "I think I saw my name in here somewhere" posts every now and again.)

I'm always here for more supernatural elements! Always wishing you well in your endeavors.

Yep.  Thanks!  Maybe I'll bounce some ideas around here when I'm ready to start a new one.  I'll appreciate any perspective I can get!  As of right now, I have no idea what my next story will be (unless it's a MBK sequel), but I don't think that will be until next year, so I'm not worried about it right now.  I usually end up changing my mind anyway, or a new idea comes along.

I appreciated your input this past week (it gave me some things to chew on), so I'll always return the favor. Definitely focus on MBK! (I've said it before and I'll say it again when a topic leads to speculation on future endeavors.)

LOL I know, same here.  And shake my head.  Oh Boys...   But I have faith in them this year, knowing they've already recorded.  In this day and age, it can't possibly take that long to put together a Christmas album.  They don't even have to have all original songs!

So my Pandaskunk idea had a main plot and a subplot.  The main plot I can still use if I decide to write another one.  The subplot was specific to 2020, so I'd have to either scrap it, change it, or just keep the story in 2020.  It was going to be a parody of A Christmas Carol with the three ghosts visiting Brian to try to convince him not to do that Littrell family Christmas show everyone was mad at them for doing in the middle of the pandemic last year.  The three ghosts were going to be characters I'd already killed off in the previous pandaskunk stories, so it would have been perfect.  But I may be able to use the basic idea with a different goal.  I'm sure the Littrells will do something cringey again this year that I could make incorporate LOL.

Especially with most holiday songs in the public domain. I think it will be fine and finally come out. Though, I do hope at least some of them are original.

LMAO! I love this concept. I'm sure you'll have something just as cringey to draw from at some point.

Yes, exactly!  Yellow goes well with most other colors.  Decorating was my favorite part of buying a house instead of renting - so many more options!

Here's a pic of my kitchen: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1jSIeTE__GaA8qIH5KTKPguNZGhxl9lAn/view?usp=sharing  It's very kitschy, but I love it.  My house was built in 1952, so kitschy works.

I adore your kitchen! It's so big and cute!

I've enjoyed putting nails in the walls -- something my mother would have never let me do in our apartments when I was growing up, lol. Like I never knew how much I loved frames until I could actually hang things where the weight of a frame wouldn't be a deterrent. But on a whole, I haven't super redecorated our house, since hubs has been contemplating the timeline for either selling it (or possibly keeping it as a rental property) since I moved in with him, so I just didn't want to get too attached to a pricey renovation project if we were moving elsewhere in the next few years. I am looking forward to really personalizing our next place though.

That's a good idea!  I do love those needlepoints that look so sweet and pretty and then say horrible things LOL.  But I already have the vinyl wall cling, so I'm gonna use that.  I think if I end up painting the walls, I will probably also do the door... but if I don't, then I probably won't.  I am indecisive right now LOL.  I did already paint the back of the door to my writing room, which was identical, so I might as well paint another one if it will look best.  My shower curtain came today, so now I can go look for paint chips and get a feel for what will work best with the color scheme.

Weird and macabre things are the best!  Ask Rose about her zombie-themed bathroom LOL.

I figured you would and it goes with the kitschy 1952 vibe of your home, lol. How's life with your new shower curtain? Has it made you feel more stabby? lol

@Rose (see, how great would this be?), I think this is a call for you to post a picture of your bathroom.

I actually ended up having a pretty good writing night last night!  Once I got off here and went upstairs to write, I churned out about 1,300 words and got a good start on my chapter.

Woop! (I'm delayed, so I will hold off on my "how's writing going" related questions.)

I mean, yes, they were clearly manufactured in the beginning, but I do think there was some destiny involved with the other original members quitting and them finding Kevin, who brought in Brian.  They would not be the same group without Kevin and Brian, so that part seems like it was meant to be.  LMAO at "heroes thrust together by a ponzi scheme."

Kevin getting Brian out of class was probably one of the best things that ever happened to Brian. I just can't picture us adoring a Charles and a Sam, lol. Team Kentucky cousins forever! And equally great, thank goodness AJ and Nick auditioned despite being out of the age range the ad specified! And that Howie auditioned twice. Just... all meant to be.

Hey, not all heroes can have such picturesque origin stories, okay? LOL! (On a side note, when Gobosei gets its rewrite, this might end up in the summary, since it's still funny a week later, lol.)

[nicksgal]

Yep, I totally agree with everything you said here.  We can always learn more and do better.  I'm all for education, but not a fan of cancel culture either.  People who are truly committed to learning and growing deserve a chance to do so.

There's definitely a difference between ignorance, intolerance, and satire.  Being PC is fine in society, but it takes the fun out of satire.  And, again, I don't know the specifics of who exactly made the complaint about Book of Mormon or what they were complaining about, but so many times, it seems like it's "woke" straight white people getting all offended on behalf of minorities who may or may not actually be offended themselves.  Having those conversations before launching into social justice warrior mode is so important, and while it's great to be an ally, sometimes we need to take a back seat and let whatever group we're fighting for be in the driver's seat.

I agree with all of this. Actually, I would argue that if any of us are being a true ally (the type that has the conversations and provides the support that we're asked for rather than making assumptions), we should always be in the back seat. And what's equally frustrating is that many of these "woke people" will only jump on being these social justice warrior types when it's the "hip thing to do." Like a year later, I've taken many DEI focused trainings because it's something I'm actively exploring, but in general, it's not something I'm having many day-to-day conversations about anymore. And it's terrible that these things that are actually flaws and issues in society are treated like "fads."

LOL Totally understand that.  Although I actually kinda like writing Leighanne in small doses; even before last year, she was so easy to poke fun of.  Now I don't even feel remotely bad about doing so.  But go with your original plan!  I'm sure it'll be great!

See, I have no plans for her character outside of "poking fun," so it just doesn't seem worth it to include her, lol.

LOL For sure!  I forgot to mention The Passion of the Christ, which also came up and is a valid choice for an Easter movie, but damn... my story is depressing enough already LOL.

I agree that's definitely a valid choice (definitely more than Monty Python, lol), but you're right, very depressing.

That would be a great question!  I imagine you're right about the cargo plane; they probably sent the stage over in pieces and build it there.  But really I have no idea.  I think that's also part of the reason I hate writing tour/concert stuff, because I have no idea what goes on behind the scenes besides the little snippets we've seen in their videos, so I can't draw on my own experience, and it's not an easy thing to research.  So much of what comes up when I have tried to look stuff like that up is geared toward garage bands, not famous pop groups on world tours.

It just doesn't seem cost effective to have two different stages. Yes! And it's the "not actual stage show" stuff that is interesting to write about a tour, especially because our perspective on a tour is probably very different from theirs.

Like what do they really think about while one of the other Boys is singing and they're doing choreography they've practiced a million times or even just sitting on the stools. I assume not laundry or anything, but there's had to be times where Brian's passionately singing INBYH and Nick is just contemplating a cheeseburger or how badly he has to use the bathroom, lol.

Aww.  It's hard to be a productive writer when you have stuff to do around the house too.  I hate adulting. LOL  It's also hard when you're not quite in the groove yet, whether it be with a new story or just a new chapter.  So it'll be a black comedy!  Those are the best.

I haven't even opened my story since waking up this afternoon LOL, but last night/this morning was good.  Hopefully tonight/tomorrow morning will be too!

I'm finally on Summer Break, so I think I'll have plenty of time to do house stuff and write! Yeah, I'm averaging about 500 words a day on this new story, which is much lower than PNecklace was... Blah! It's my fault for trying to be realistic instead of funny, haha.

You really are in your night groove if you're not opening it in the afternoons at all.