Unveiled and Exposed!

NO, that is NOT the name of my book in progress...
rather, it is announcing a new recurring topic for my blog. Along with an ongoing candid look at the life and process of creating a "maiden" novel, I am finally announcing the title I've given this work in progress!!

The red curtain swings open, revealing....

"Passport to Paris"

Exposed.
Retired.
Replaced.
A talented British Intelligence Operative is left with
her past, the present, and a passport to Paris...
Texas that is!

Well, that's where I am right now, getting ready to schedule a trip to Paris, Texas!
There's not much to tell you about the writing stages I've gone through so far. Plenty of reading, endless studying, pages of writing, that haven't amounted to anything much yet.

After attending the conference last month, I narrowed down my next plan of action and took certain nuggets to heart...

---Author Susan Meissner shared in her workshop, "300 Pages in 30 Days", that the best thing to do in your prewriting stages, is to get all of the "obstacles" out of the way! Meaning have your research done on anything and everything imaginable beforehand, have a general "map" of where you want to go, and get your characters fully worked up-they are what drives the story and draws your readers in.

---I heard it more than once over the weekend, but it was the single piece of advice that was urged during a brief conversation with Jim Bell. "You just need to get it all out... write the whole thing down start to finish... you can deal with it from there."

---From Deb Raney I learned that it's ok to be afraid, and not to worry about "wanting to quit". "One page a day means you'll have a 365 page novel at the end of a year!"

My goals then?

Not to quit (yet)
Complete my prewriting (ie. obstacles gone) by the end of the year.
To write the whole thing down no matter how good or bad!
Finishing studying the stack of books on my desk (starting with Plot & Structure--what else do you advise, Jim?)

Anyhow, I'm sure it will be either painful or encouraging to watch, depending on your bent. If you're so inclined, please accept an invitation to view the inside workings of early novel writing, as I endeavor to expose the intimate details of my journey.

If you're a writer trying to get a fresh start on your word count hurry and join a group of like-minded individuals as we participate in Novel Inspirations "30 Days of Writing" with Lacy Williams. If you need sound tidbits of writers' advice sign up for Susan May Warren and Rachael Hauck's "Book Therapy" blog.

Cheers!