katecavanaugh
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I FINISHED + bonus stream and book club + experiment poll!
🕑 Added 2024-04-08 14:01:03 +0000 UTCQUICK EDIT: So sorry, y'all! Have to run out and help my partner's grandma. Moving our stream back a day, but at the same time. (Friday the 12th at 4:15CDT) Thanks and see y'all then!
I DID IT, I DID IT, I DID IT!!!
I finally did it -- I finished this draft of A Closet Full of Cauldrons and sent it over to my three alpha readers.
It's so funny, as excited as I am about the project (and I am), there's still a sense of relief with having it done. A weight off my shoulders, in a way. The self-imposed deadline had loomed large in my spirit, even though I'd crept past it a couple times bahaha.
It'll be a month and a half before I re-read ACFoC again and that seems like way too long. I want to be back with those characters, but I know I need the space in order to see everything with fresh eyes.
Unfortunately, I couldn't go forward with my plan to print it all off because it's now upwards of $65 per copy?! (I know EVERYTHING has gotten more expensive, but I swear it was <$30 just a couple years ago.)
Oh well! I'm going to try something out of The Last Draft (our first book club pick!) and, mid-May, read the project completely in a coffee shop or the library or somewhere that I didn't write a single word. I'm hoping that space will also help reinforce the "reader brain" rather than nitpicking things too early. Usually reading a paper copy does that for me, but I hope using an iPad and a new location will work just the same! :)
Speaking of our book club, thank you all for being so patient with me as I pushed back last month's stream in my quest to finish my draft. Now that I'm free, I'd like to host it as both a reading and writing stream, only this time we'll flip the order: we'll talk about WONDERBOOK first and then do some writing sprints!
That will be this Thursday, April 11th at 4:15pm CDT!
Bonus pic of Vin trying to read the book with me, lololol:
Now since I'm done with revision, that means we're back to Drafting Season!! Time to write all the words with wild abandon. Through the past six (seven?) years, I've discovered that this is truly the BEST time (and sometimes only time) for writing experiments.
So I'd like to present you with two options:
500 Words Per Scene Per Day:
Inspired by our resident Jocrazyface, think of this as another kind of Zero Draft. Only instead of moving perfectly chronologically, I'll take my outline and just write 500 words wherever I feel like writing them. Maybe at the beginning, maybe at the end, maybe in the middle. I'll jump around for each sprint and each writing session. That way, I'm sort of building out the draft. Also I can write more than 500 per day! Think of it as my minimum. :)
More Words Than the Day Before:
Inspired by silentgee on Twitch because they said "curse broken!! I got more words than I did yesterday!" I thought, wouldn't it be fun to see how many days in a row I can increase my word count? I've done variations of this before, but never just, open-ended, how long can I keep this up? I'd like to find out!
Let me know which you want to see! I love them both and think I'd be able to fit them both in before mid-May, but just in case, wanted to pick y'all's brains. :)
Finally, it's Total Solar Eclipse Day! We're lucky that our home is in the path of totality (at least for a minute) so we'll be staying put. But if you could please keep your fingers crossed for good weather for me, I'd love it! The past few days have also been "cloudy" but have cleared a little in the afternoon, so I'm still hopeful we'll be able to see this awesome event.
Either way, I'll keep y'all posted! :)
Alright, that's it from me. Hope y'all have a WONDERFUL start to your week and I'll see you on Thursday! Happy writing!
Comments
somedeepmystery
Congratulations!!!
Tamy
Congratulations! 🎉
Michelle Mahan
Congratulations on finishing A Closet Full of Cauldrons!! Hope you got to see the eclipse. Both experiments sounds so much fun…I went with 500 words a day.
Kate Cavanaugh Writes
THANKS JC!!! So excited to take a nice, long break from revision (with your WIP for me to read too, hooray!). And I always forget about that method! One of these days I'll try it, but maybe when I won't be marking it up quiiiiite so much as I expect I will in May bahaha. Maybe next draft!!
Kate Cavanaugh Writes
I'm so glad you shared because I feel like that's really something that would work for me too! I'm excited to try it, whether it's for this experiment or something else. (Although 500 Words is currently in the lead, as I type this. 👀)
Kate Cavanaugh Writes
I think so too!! If I can find a way to fit them both in, I'll do it! :)
Kate Cavanaugh Writes
Thank you! <3
Kate Cavanaugh Writes
Thanks Silvia!!
Kate Cavanaugh Writes
Thank youuuuu! :)
Kate Cavanaugh Writes
That's an excellent point! It'd be a fight that final day, but the real question is whether I'll get there in two or three or eight bahaha. (Also congratulations on a 2K and then a 6K day, that's incredible!)
Joanna Ortiz
I mean, I can't not vote for 500 words lol, but I'm so intrigued by More Words Than the Day Before! IDK what it was about the 500 word scenes per chapter (I usually try to write at least 2 scenes per day) but it really unlocked something for me in my current WIP and I am having so much fun with it again.
J S Roberts
I like the idea of more words that the day before, but I chose 500 words per day because I wrote like 2k words on Monday and then 6k words on Tuesday and can't imagine trying to write more words than that on Wednesday (I mean, I had Mon & Tues off from work, so that was why). Ha! So I don't want to torture you.
Author JC Carpenter
Congratulations on finishing ACFoC Kate!!! That's so amazing! Also you can always upload the book on Amazon as if you're going to publish but just don't actually hit publish, click on send proof copy and then you can get it in actual book form like a book from the store and it's extremely cheap to do it that way. Less than $10. Can't wait for the experiment and the extra stream! Enjoy the Eclipse and fingers crossed 🤞🏾
giseledute
Congratulations 🎉🎊🎊🎈💃
Silvia Letizia
Congratulations on finishing A Closet Full of Cauldrons! I voted for 500 words per scene per day, but both options sound like a lot of fun
mothnaut
Congratulations on finishing A Closet Full of Cauldrons!!
Tib Roe
I love both ideas, but I can't vote twice. They both sound like fun experiments!
disorderedcabinet
I love the idea of more words than the day before as it makes us mindful of our capacities. Knowing when to stop to prepare for the day after is something we have to be mindful as well !! Can't wait to know how your drafting is going now !!
