After updating my website I realised I needed a WIP cover for my next project, Forest Heart. I really enjoyed making it and revealing it on Ko-Fi.
Follow me on Ko-Fi
It’s free to follow me on Ko-Fi and be sure you don’t miss out on my latest news, or any freebies. You can buy me a virtual cuppa or merchandise from my shop, including a signed copy of my book.
This project is set in the same low fantasy world of The Soul Heart Series. In fact, for readers of Ocean Heart they may recognise the main character, Denny.
This story is a prequel. It’s set in the 90s, back when Denny was a teen herself. It will cover how she became friends with Gwyn, started her Sparkle Cake business, and the highs and lows as a new mum.
Preparation
I feel more prepared now I have created a title, cover, and blurb. Of course these are all just a work in progress, so could change but it helps me feel more focused.
I’ve started writing an outline. I intended for this to be a novella but I already have a sneaky suspicion this could become a full length novel.
I’ve also made a spreadsheet to help me track my word count. If this works successfully, I will look at making a version available to my followers on Ko-Fi.
The Goal
I’m going to aim for the big Five-O (50,000 words). If I don’t make it, I will still have made progress, but if I do, it’d make me so happy.
I’ve been struggling with motivation because Sky Heartis on hold until I can afford the professional services I need to move it forward. I’ve also been bummed out with all the germs (sick kids) ruining September, and fracturing my ankle ruining October.
I really want to get back into the habit of writing again. My ultimate goal for November is this: To write!
Are you doing NaNoWriMo? What’s your project, goal, and how do you prepare?
Here’s my Camp NaNo writers diary for the second half of Camp NaNo.
Thursday, 15 April
I wrote the scene I have been struggling with – the big fight scene. It was 1,422 words. It’s not The End yet as I’ve realised there is one more scene needed to join this to the end that I wrote. But, The End is in sight.
Friday, 16 April
This morning, I had a one-to-one chat with Pagan it was an Author Breakthrough Session. I had no idea what to expect but afterwards I felt more focussed and empowered. I’ll be writing a full blog post on the experience.
My 2y old was in a creative mood today. We did painting, we did slime, and puzzles. My mum popped over and I showed her what I’d done with her Cricut Maker I borrowed. Later, my son helped me at the vets and food shopping.
Tonight, I wrote 812 words and finished my first draft of Sky Heart. The End
The final word count is 76,763 words. Usually during my first self edit this number increases as I discover where I need to add more detail.
Saturday, 17 April
I managed to escape the kids for a writing sprint on Facebook. As Sky Heart is finished, I worked on a novel I may offer as a readers magnet or sell as a prequel.
I also attempted to make a book trailer for Ocean Heart. As it’s my first attempt at this, I’m still not sure.
Sunday, 18 April
Today we went into town to get sandwiches and cake. We then went for a walk in the woodlands and had a picnic. We were so full we saved the cake for home.
I fiddled a little more with the trailer, especially with tweaking the sound affects. It’s very tricky trying to achieve precision on a mobile phone. I’m happy with the outcome. I guess I ought to make Sky Heart one.
Monday, 19 April
Today was meant to be my marketing Monday but Pagan would not been impressed because I didn’t do it. I was really into my secret project and wanted to work on it. I’ll do Marketing tomorrow…
Tuesday, 20 April
I lied. I didn’t do Marketing today either. I had a little anxiety about tomorrow so had an early night with my husband.
Wednesday, 21 April
Tonight was my Live with World Indie Warriors. We had so much fun chatting we were on for 2hs.
Today was my long work day. After work I chilled out and had some me time. I ran a bath and read The Rookery.
Friday, 23 April
I published Ocean Heart using Ingram Spark for both the paperback and eBook. It never went live on Google Play, or Apple Books. I was busy with my launch so left it. Once Christmas was out the way I queried what happened with IS.
IS confirmed it should be on Apple and would look into what happened. It turned out my files were too big. But, things got busy at work so I left it.
Today has been a busy day working on how to resolve it. I uploaded it to Google Play – this was pretty straight forward and I now have to wait to be approved. But Apple has been a complete nightmare with their iTunes Connect page displaying an error 401.
Saturday, 24 April
I had a busy morning clearing out the garden. It actually looks worse now but it is because I am preparing rubbish that needs to go to the tip.
I played with my kids and didn’t get to write or read. They were excited by treasures I found in the shed like a remote control car & keyboard. I think they ended up there because they are noisy.
iTunes Connect replied to apologise for the current issues and they are working on resolving this as quickly as possible, but there was no indication of how long it’ll take.
In the evening my hubby & I finished watching a film and started the new Shadow & Bone series on Netflix.
Sunday, 25 April
Today, is the day I work on my social media. I write blog posts and prepare my Instagram posts. As the end of the month draws near, I also worked on my newsletter.
I uploaded a free digital download to Ko-Fi for people to use to track their books.
I’d like to do a MerMay Giveaway to celebrate Ocean Heart being 6 months old but my ideas keep getting ruined.
I wanted to create a personalised National Book Token but that’s temporarily unavailable. I wanted to offer Ocean Heart for Free to celebrate it now being on Google Play but it takes 12 days to get approved, and Apples website isn’t loading the page for new authors to join so I’m waiting for tech support to resolve it.
I also thought it’d be nice to donate to an Ocean type charity but don’t have a ton of money and worry people will judge me for it not being enough.
I’m still figuring out what to do for MerMay and time is running out as I want to announce it in my newsletter going out on 30 April!
Monday, 26 April
Today, I read Rookery. Ideally I want to finish it before the end of the month because of the MerMay readathon.
I posted a few pics to Litsy, talking about my writing resource books.
I sold my first signed copy of Ocean Heart from my Ko-Fi shop. ?
Once the kids were in bed, I still didn’t do any Marketing. Eek – my check in with Pagan will be embarrassing. Instead I had a bath and watched Shadow & Bone.
Tuesday, 27 April
Today was my long day working.
In my lunch break I organised the P&P for my Ko-Fi customer and researched KDP. Apple emailed to encourage me to contact their development team about the issue as the technical team can’t resolve it.
After work, and once the kids were in bed, I signed a copy of Ocean Heart, packaged it up, and set it off to my first Ko-Fi customer.
Wednesday, 28 April
I booked a day off work – yay!
Today, I went into town to get the parcel delivered but I misheard the girl at the desk and paid way more for p&p than I wanted. I was cross, but she’d printed the labels so I just paid it. :(
I tried to confirm the amount Google Play paid into my account to verify and prove its my bank account but Google said I’m wrong and to guess again. I’m going to wait and see if they pay another amount in and try again in a few days.
I also looked at creating my Amazon affiliate account for UK/US. And, started developing a webpage disclosing my affiliate accounts.
I also did a lot of work on my newsletter. I add to it throughout the month but it needs pics and tidying up. I only have the related social media posts left to do now.
In the evening, I caught the WIW Live with guest Julia Scott. She’s author of Mirror Souls and a formatter. In fact, she was my formatter.
Thursday, 29 April
Today was my long day at work, and I didn’t sleep well last night. I think I need an early night. That’s if Aria lets me – she’s playing up tonight and refusing to go to bed. Which is odd because she was crying and begging to go to bed before her milk was ready.
I did the finishing touches to my newsletter ready to send tomorrow. Relaxed by reading the Rookery, and then watched some Shadow & Bone.
Friday, 30 April
Today, I sent my newsletter. I hope I’ve made the right choice with my Giveaway.
As you can see I’ve taken a break from writing now Sky Heart is written. But, after this weekend I will start the self editing process.
Discover more about Sky Heart by visiting my Sky Heart page. Sky Heart is book 2 in the Soul Heart series.
Discover more about Ocean Heart by visitingmy Ocean Heart page. Ocean Heart is book 1 in the Soul Heart series.
Here’s my Camp NaNo writers diary for the first half of Camp NaNo.
This post contains a few bookshop.org affiliatelinks.
Weds, 31 March
Camp NaNo Eve I attended the first of World Indie Warriors IG Lives. J D Groom & Cassidy Reyne are the hosts and introduced their own Camp NaNo projects.
WIW are also doing snippet challenge on IG to give people an excuse to share her the projects they are writing.
Each week there is a prompt, and you post a snippet from your WIP on that theme. I’m a rebel and posting on different days. But, I’m determined to do them all within April.
Thurs, 1 April
I caught a Writing Sprint on Facebook hosted by @unstoppableauthors . It helped me make a good start on my goals, achieving 1k words. I’m going to look out for this sprint next week.
The sprint was hosted by Urban Fantasy author H B Lyne and dystopian author Angeline Trevena. Both also have published writing resource books.
Friday, 2 April
Busy day today. I took my son to play in the garden of a friends house. It was really cold and we couldn’t go inside due to the pandemic rules.
My husband found my long lost Kindle. It needs charging but I’m so happy to have it back.
I managed to write 500 words today. I am so close to the end now but took a break as I’m struggling to picture the big fight scene.
I finished reading A Heart of Salt & Silver. Look out for my full review next week. A short version is already on Goodreads, Litsy, and Amazon.
Saturday, 3 April
Spent the evening going through the list of people I follow but don’t follow me back to decide if I want to unfollow them.
#WIWSaturdaySnippet
Sunday, 4 April
I went to Homebase to get paint for some redecorating we’ve been talking about for ages.
Didn’t feel well so I went to bed early. Good news was my Kindle is charged, so I watched The Wilds on Prime.
Monday, 5 April
I cleared out my son’s bedroom and did masking tape. His room was the first we decorated when we moved in. At age 5, he peeled off the animal stickers as he said they were to babyish, and we promoted to redecorate… 2y later, we are doing it.
My son is a bit nervous about not sleeping in his room. He doesn’t like change. But, he’s excited to see his new grown up room tomorrow.
Still not feeling great, so had another early night. I didn’t write but I did a lot of research and practicing a new skill, that I’m hoping to sell one day. I was creative, but not with Sky Heart.
Tuesday, 6 April
Noah loves his new room. #Win
I had work all day today but managed to write 500 words for Sky Heart. I have roughly three major scenes to go but these are big ones and pretty tough. I’ll admit I feel intimidated.
I’ve done some brain storming for the big battle but still can’t see it clear in my head. I can however see the ending, so I may jump ahead to that.
Wednesday, 7 April
I worked more on my secret project. I also worked on prepping images for my IG feed.
This evening I watched the WIW Live with guest author Kara S Weaver. They chatted about editing, the different types, and why it’s important.
Thursday, 8 April
Today has been pretty chilled out other than my phone screen cracking.
I won a free call with Pagan Malcolm, who coaches authors to take their careers to the next level. I’m booked in next week, early Friday morning (although for her, I think it’s late). I’m not sure what to expect – should I get her to help with my battle, public speaking, or my secret project. Whatever we get up to, I’ll probably blog my experience.
I watched the replay of a masterclass I recently attended on how to write a 5 star ending. Then I watched a live author chat from the fantasy writers festival, QuaranCon2021.
Once the kids were in bed, I used an app to animate my characters created in Art Breeder, to sing. Author procrastination at its finest.
Mariah from Ocean Heart on Wombai.ai
Then, I attended a writing chat and Sprint by Unstoppable Authors hosted by H B Lyne and Angelina Trevena, and wrote 478 words.
Friday, 9 April
This was a bad day. First, my 2 year old threw my mobile phone and the screen cracked. I use my mobile for everything but can’t afford to fix it, so I’ll have to carry on and hope it doesn’t get worse.
Then, I received news that my daughter isn’t getting a place at our chosen nursery. She was on a waiting list for morning sessions which fit around my work & childcare availability but they only have afternoon sessions. To accommodate that, I’d have to cut my working hours in half and not only is my employer unlikely to agree to that as it’d make travelling to my appointments within the time very challenging, but I also can’t afford to reduce my hours. I now need to find another nursery or quit my job. There aren’t many nursery’s nearby as most closed permanently during the pandemic for various reasons.
When I’m stressing about a problem I can’t write. I opened my manuscript and stared at the blank page before closing it and trying something creative. I worked on my secret project.
Saturday, 10 April
We decided that I’m no stressed enough, so we painted part if the front room. Every chance my 2y old got, she was “help painting”. It was exhausting keeping her away all day, and the house was freezing as we kept the windows open.
I did not write. My head is not in the right place.
#WIWSnippetSaturday
Sunday, 11 April
So, my 2y old didn’t sleep. She was up at 3am. By 5am I gave up and she attempted to “Help painting.” I’m pretty sure I’m running on empty.
I did make progress on some blog posts and have drafted two Behind the Book posts that I now just need to proofread and schedule. I probably won’t get to this until next weekend.
I also helped my 7y old son to create a cute Woodland scene for school. We borrowed my mum’s Cricut Maker and he created his die cuts in Canva, and I helped him add them to Cricut. I then helped with sticking them down where he told me, while he painted. We spent over two hours on it.
I’m so frustrated. I want to write the fight scene for Sky Heart but it’s not coming to me. I didn’t want to waste my time, so I worked on my secret project.
Monday, 12 April
I’ve found two nurseries that might be able to take Aria. Fingers crossed I can sort this out so I can feel more settled.
I spent most my day playing with Aria, and tidying up. I also completed most of the application form for one of the nurseries.
I accidentally forgot to charge my laptop so it was taking ages to come on even with the charger in. I decided to watch some TV with my hubby.
Tuesday, 13 April
I worked all day today.
Then, in the evening I wrote 192 words. It doesn’t sound like much but I finally had a breakthrough with the difficult scene and can see it now!
Wednesday, 14 April
I worked today, and by the time the kids were in bed, it was already 9pm. I attended the World Indie Warriors IG Live. Today the guest speaker was Michelle Raab, chatting marketing, writing dystopia, and psychology.
This year, I’ve really struggled with creating my goals. The problem is there’s so much I want to do but where to start?
I know if I have too many plates spinning, they’ll all crash. As I’m writing this it’s January 1st and I’m finally choosing my goals after agonizing over them for two weeks. And… I may still tweak them before this post goes live.
Personal
Skincare routine: Over the years, I’ve tried loads countless products and I’m constantly changing my routine. During 2021, I plan to finalise my skincare products which I think will benefit my skin.
I hate waste so I need to use up products I already have, and it also depends on money too. I’ve already decided on the products and look forward to sharing these with you as I buy them.
Visit Hollowtree Farm: Fear of the virus and lockdowns reduced the number of places we visited. We even had a gift voucher for a fun day at the farm and never got to go. They’ve said it doesn’t expire so this is a priority for 2021!
Selfcare: I never have time to indulge in things like doing my nails or a face mask. So, I’m planning to reward myself with products to support this when I hit my other goals.
Writing
Sky Heart: This is the BIG one. I want to finish book 2 in the Soul Heart series. But… there are many steps to a published book so this will likely take me all year.
Publishing a Novel To Do List
For accountability, I’m going to tweet my progress every Sunday.
Novella1: I’m working on two novella’s but I want to finish “Denny’s story” first. I’m thinking of using it as a readers magnet.
Novella2: This project will be on standby and only worked on if I’m waiting on stuff for the other writing projects. This is ”Luna’s story”. I’m still working on the titles of my novellas.
Ocean Heart: I have ideas to do something special in Mer-May. But, I can’t say more until I’ve figured out the details.
Reading
10 Books: Yes, it sounds low but when I’m busy on a writing project I only read a chapter or two a night making my progress very slow. 2020 I only just hit my goal of 12 books. ?
I do only record fiction books but I also read a few non-fiction books on writing. I’m hoping to review these on my YouTube channel this year, as well as other bookish content.
I will keep posting my reviews to my blog, Goodreads, Amazon, Book Bub, Litsy, if able to. I will track my reading goal on Goodreads.
Goodreads/Litsy/Book Bub/Book Sniffer: I’ve used Goodreads for a few years but never been very active. I hope to improve that and get better at using the other reading social apps. Which brings me on nicely to my next goal…
Social Media
Website update: I’m going to quarterly review my website content to check it is up to date. And, update during that month.
Shop: Okay, it’s not social media but it is connected to my website. I’m trying to create a shop on my website but struggling. I will master it! I mastered moving my website during my book launch.
Trial Canva Pro: I love Canva and been tempted to pay for the pro version. But now there’s a scheduled too. It would be incredible to have everything in one place.
I bought Planoly during my book launch so I could schedule videos and carousels on IG. There’s been a few occasions it hasn’t posted, so I’m tempted to try other schedulers.
Consistently Post: This went really well this year for my blog and Instagram. I want to continue it and add YouTube and Twitter to my goals.
Blog: Mon, & Thurs
IG: Mon, Weds, & Fri
YT: Tue (fortnightly)
Twitter: Sun
Newsletter: end of month (was every other month)
Followers/Reviews: I’ve seen people track their followers growth. I’ve never done this but it’s a good idea. I will aim for a 20% increase over all platforms.
2021 Followers Count
I’d love to reach 10k on Instagram as it opens up certain features but it feels still too far out of reach. Until I worked out what 20% was, I was thinking of aiming for 5k by June. I think 4687 is more realistic and although social media helps with marketing my passion is writing.
My Facebook page has been around longer than my group. The Soul Heart Readers group was created in October to help with Ocean Heart’s release. I’m hoping members will stick around for Sky Heart – I’ll need BETA and ARC readers later this year.
I use Parler the same way I use Twitter, and really like the platform. My numbers grew fast when I first joined but has now slowed down. It’ll be interesting to see which of the two platforms has more growth in 2021.
My YouTube channel is very new, I’m not sure how fast it will grow. I’ll also be posting to Odysee to try out the new platform – I’ve not used it yet. Over the Christmas break, I created a new Intro & Outro which I’m looking forward to using.
Reviews: I have a page on my website where I’ve collected my favourite reviews of Ocean Heart, and directed readers to where the original can be found.
Reviews are really important for a books visibility, so I will be tracking how many I have and – eek – remind my readers to leave reviews.
January Goals
Listing my goals for only this month looks like a lot. Eek ?
Personal
Record unboxing of Naturismo box (then start using products)
Writing
Sky Heart: Write 5k per week – track progress on Google sheet. Share progress on Twitter/Parler for accountability
Reading
Set annual reading goal on Goodreads
Finish reading Cinderella is Dead (paperback) – track progress on Goodreads
Finish reading Winter Trials (eBook) – track progress on Goodreads
Social Media
Update website content
Add shop to website
Blog & IG: Create January content & make a start on February content (aim to always be two weeks ahead)
Record, edit, schedule two YouTube/Odysee videos
Try out Canva pro – if scheduler is good, cancel Planoly
I think we can all agree that this year has been unexpected. I started the year with concerns over a new flu virus threatening to sweep the world and feeling a bit silly for being so worried about it. But, by the end of February, the rest of the country had caught up with my fears, and we were on lockdown.
2020 PPE a face mask and a tin foil hat
Conspiracy Theories
As a result, it has made me more open to conspiracy theories. The things I saw at the start of the year that caused my concerns were of people being chained in their homes to prevent the spread, Wuhan the hospitals being overwhelmed, and people dropping dead in the streets. Thankfully, we’ve not had it that severe here. In fact, I suspect those early videos weren’t real. Luckily we don’t know anyone personally that has had Covid. I’m over being worried.
I’m following a few Court Cases: Johnny Depp vs Amber Heard, Ghislaine Maxwell (and Epstein) vs the trafficked girls (and boys, if any come forward), and Trump vs Election Fraud.
I actually quite like the New Normal
Adapting to the new normal
My husband and I are now predominantly working from home. We even had a short spell of home schooling our son – which was quite challenging but we did it. My little girl has adapted to having us both home. It has brought us closer together as we get to spend more time together as a family.
All this staying home has been great for the environment. I hope when we come out of this, people do think more about whether they need to travel.
We’ve missed spending time with family and friends.
What we’ve missed
Play groups is something I feel I’ve missed the most. Aria was enjoying playing with other kids and using different toys, and I appreciated meeting up with other mums. Noah has just hit that age where he wants to play at his friend’s homes, and found not having a party for his birthday tough. My hubby has missed the freedom of going out, like having the option to just visit someone.
We missed days out. Even when the lockdown relaxed we didn’t go out like we used to. For example, this summer, the local beach was heaving with people so we avoided it. We also didn’t go to the local farms. We did manage to go to the zoo and had a lovely day out.
It’s not all been bad.
What I’m thankful for
Mostly, I’ve been in the minority that has enjoyed lockdown. I like not having the commute to work, there’s no wear and tear on my car, or cost of car parking, and petrol. I enjoy not having any social pressures to go out, meet up, dress nice, or attend any special occasions.
I liked my stay at home birthday, minimum fuss, and collection dinner from the Dooley (local pub). I’m looking forward to a quiet cosy Christmas with just my husband and kids. It feels like life has slowed down so we can enjoy moments and value what is important.
Something we’ve all come to value is out health and wellbeing. We will continue to take care of ourselves and each other.
Really proud of myself :)
Achievements
I am so chuffed I hit my goal of publishing Ocean Heart. Originally I wanted to publish it in May but it was a lot more work than I anticipated and I ended up putting the date back to 1 Dec.
The launch was another big achievement. I pushed myself out of my comfort zone and did things I would never have done before. I started a YouTube channel, and did a few live streams, including my launch party. I did two press release interviews, and I did a radio interview that was played live twice. And, I managed to arrange a book signing in a pandemic!
What a way to end the year! I must admit, I do feel exhausted, but I am eager to get writing that next book.
Happy Christmas
Happy Christmas
Thank you for be part of my 2020. I have been blown away by the support of so many this year which has been a real highlight. I want to wish you a Happy Christmas – however, you chose to celebrate the holidays.
I hope you are able to find things to be thankful for, and are surrounded by loved ones. I hope you have a good book to help you escape the madness this year has been.
And a Happy New Year
Wishing you all the best for 2021
My next post won’t be until 2021 as I am spending the rest of this year setting my goals and developing a plan to achieve them.
On that note, I wish you a happy new year too, and I hope 2021 is full of joy.
Spoiler alter! I didn’t reach 50k. I knew I wouldn’t because November is a busy month, mainly with birthdays galore, but add to that everything that goes with launching a book and it’s pretty impressive I wrote anything.
Maybe I should have passed this year’s NaNo but I just can’t help myself. I love the NaNo community.
Planning
The goal for NaNoWriMo is to write 50k words in 30 days. This works out to roughly 1,667 words per day.
But, what if you can’t write every day. What if you know on certain days it will be near impossible to write? And, 30 days is a long month if never allow yourself a single break.
I made a calendar in Excel and put Y or N depending on if I could write or not. I think counted the Y, and worked out I could write on 18 days of the month. This meant on my writing days, I needed to achieve 2778 words.
How It Went…
Week 1, went well. I had planned for a day off for for going live with Holly but joined a World Indie Warriors writing sprint afterwards. I also planned a day off for my birthday but decided to celebrate by writing This put me ahead of target. I needed to hit 13,890 words and had 16,306 words.
Week 2, I allowed one day off for my son’s birthday so it didn’t impact my goal. But, I also skipped two planned writing days, and that put me behind. I needed to hit 30,558, but I only had 26,725. This is why in my mid point check in I said I was behind, even though I had more words than NaNo participants that were on target, because I knew I had less days than them to write.
Week 3, was not good. I had planned a day off for going live with Nicola. But, I agreed to an unplanned live with Lyndell. Then, I decided to sell my house and had to tidy up (everywhere) for the Estate Agent (and then we decided not to sell). Then our boiler broke and spent a whole evening trying to create a bath warm & deep enough to bathe. This resulted in my not writing on four days I planned to – not good. I needed to hit 47,226 words, and I had only reached 31,473 words.
Week 4, was getting close to my release date and I wanted to give it my full attention. I only planned to write on one day and I did. This week involved pre-recording a radio interview. I also attempted to migrate my website myself from one server to another, and transfer my domain to the new location. It wasn’t smooth sailing. I also attended a full online writing festival, Indie Fire. I needed to reach 50,000 words but only had 38,643. I could have written some evenings but I didn’t want to burn out.
Week 5, is just the last two days of the month.
Was It A Success?
I didn’t get 50k words, so I failed NaNoWriMo. But…
My big goal for this year was to publish Ocean Heart, and I wasn’t going to let NaNo ruin that. If NaNo had distracted me from my launch then it would have been an epic fail.
When I set out to do NaNo this year, I just wanted to get back into Sky Heart. I achieved that. To me, personally, that makes this NaNo a success.
What’s Next?
I’m going to enjoy my book release week as I need to recharge and revel in this long awaited moment.
I will continuing working on finishing Sky Heart, book 2 in The Soul Heart Series. I’m hoping the first draft will be ready for Betas by the end of January.
Book 2 in The Soul Heart Series
I’ve created a work in progress cover, to visualise achieving my goal. Do you like it?
I’m also working on two Novellas. I’m hoping with these being shorter they’ll be quicker to get out & help with the wait for Sky Heart. I’ll announce those once I have a title.
All Author Cover Contest
Ocean Heart is currently entered in the All Author December 2020 Cover Contest. If you like the cover of Ocean Heart please vote for it.
I was all prepared for it all to go wrong during my first attempt but it went surprisingly well. My first vids have areas for improvement but everyone has to start somewhere.
It must have been beginners luck…
I was all set to make my September videos. I got Aria down for her nap, set up a tidy space and hit record. I nattered the whole way through and then hit playback…
Silence…
My lips were moving, my face was animated but there was no sound.
I tried other recording apps on the iPad, I checked various settings but nothing would bring my audio to life. Yet, previous videos played fine.
I attempted a test recording.
No sound!
I switched to my mobile. Hit record. Hit Playback. I could hear my voice… And, I could hear Aria was up from her nap.
I’d wasted my full hour of free time on accomplishing nothing. To make matters worse, that was Aria’s last nap. We even had a few nights where she decided she didn’t even need sleep at all!
Evening Recordings
This leaves me no choice but to record in the evenings. I know this means the lighting won’t be good but it’s the only time I have, and I won’t be beat by a baby that won’t sleep.
I figured out how to set my mobile up to record – without a proper stand. I recorded my video. I hit playback and…. Yes, I had sound. Things are looking good.
I wanted to edit on the iPad as it has a bigger screen. I uploaded the video to my G-Drive but it wouldn’t let me download it. Apparently, my 5 minute recording is too big.
So, I emailed myself from my mobile, and opened the email & attachment on the iPad. It saved.
Oh, you’d think that was it but no, I got a brand new problem…
My video was pitch black! No sound & no picture! It was getting worse!
Aghhh!
I had no choice but to edit on my mobile. It took me longer and was more fiddly, but I was pleased with the end result.
The next nightmare was uploading it to YouTube. The upload button had gone in the app! I opened YT Studio in my browser which wasn’t mobile friendly. If I zoomed in, I couldn’t zoom out. I used the site in teeny-tiny-writing mode
I wrote my description and scheduled it for 7pm Tuesday evening and went to bed.
Video Cancelled
I checked it over in the morning & was proud of myself. I showed my hubby my creation.
He found it cringeworthy.
He wasn’t criticising me but… He hates being recorded; photo, video, sound, anything. And, in the background you can hear him chatting.
He begged me not to post the video and assured me I can make a better one. So, I cancelled it. The things you’ll do for love – right?
I was going to record in my lunch break, but my appointment over ran. Then, I was going to record after work, but my hubby needed a break. Then, I was going to record once the kids were in bed, but guess who doesn’t want to sleep tonight?
Oh, and did I mention, I still can’t figure out how to change my channel cover art…?
Oh well, there’s always tomorrow…
I will succeed! I will make my videos! And, it’s suppose to get easier… I mean – It WILL get easier.
I hope you’ve enjoyed the IT Crowd clips in this post. It has to be done when talking about IT issues. It was that or “Computer Says No”, from Little Britain…
This a summary of the highs and lows of my writing this month.
New Title
You may have seen in other posts that I have renamed Jewel of the Sea as Ocean Heart. In my pursuit of self publishing I am getting my book professionally edited and I want the new improved version to be easily identifiable.
Not only that but I have also renamed book 2, Diamond in the Sky as Sky Heart. The name for the whole series will be Soul Heart.
Keep your eye out for my upcoming post on ‘Creating a Catchy Novel Title’. Follow to get notified.
My Domain
My first achievement for 2020 was purchasing my domain. That’s right, as of 1 January 2020, you will now see my site is www.allyaldridge.com!
My current theme is no longer supported so I need to look at updating that in the upcoming months.
Ill
I hadn’t factored in getting ill but it has really knocked my schedule back. Luckily, this happened before Ocean Heart was back from the Developmental Editor so there is no urgency there. It has impacted my progress towards finishing Sky Heart.
Then my husband caught the lurgy. I am allowing him to rest and picking up the slack. This has impacted my free time to work on my projects.
Mighty Network
I have been exploring creating a Mighty Network. It is a social site for creatives. I’m currently a member of a Mighty Network by Willow Editing. I have been Beta Testing a self-editing course by Elzevera of Willow Editing.
I am considering the network as a potential way to share extra bits with my readers. I am also exploring it as a space to share writing resources as many of my followers are fellow writers.
Click here for my ambassador link and create a Mighty Creator profile. Then you can join Mighty Networks that interest you and see what I am on about. Let me know what you think.
NB: The link above is an ‘ambassador’ link for sharing the network but I don’t know what ambassadors get for doing it.
Developmental Feedback
I received my manuscript back from my editor on Mon 13th Jan. At first, I was scared to open it but what Avery McDougall had written was really encouraging and constructive.
I wanted to print it so I can write on my MS where to edit and what to do. Highlight things I want to improve, like telling when I should be showing.
Printing the 18 page report was easy but I had to work out how to print the Google Doc with comments. Then I had to find a local printer to print it for me as it was around 360 pages long.
The guy at Felix Press Limited was really helpful and it was ready to collect in just a few hours!
Fear
Since printing my Manuscript to edit I have been procrastinating. At first, I made excuses but after a few days I was cross with myself for not making progress and asked myself “why?”
Yes, I was tired from lack of sleep, the kids and work. But the crux was that seeing my printed MS felt very real. Editing was another step towards publishing and what if it still isn’t good enough. What if my novel is never going to be good enough?
I think a lot of writers have this fear. Self publishing you are alone with your fears and you don’t have the seal of approval from an agent or publisher encouraging you along.
I gave myself a little prep talk. If I am going to do this, I need to be strong and remember why I am doing this. I made this choice because I would rather do it than forever wonder “what if?”
Read Through
My first task in the editing process is to read my manuscript and I’ve finally beaten the fear and started this.
I am making notes as I go and already have ideas on how to improve. It is very tempting to edit as I go but I want to get a feel of how it reads first. Then, I will use my editors feedback and my new ideas to take my novel forward.
I can’t believe my luck. I’m a huge fan of Pagan Malcolm. Her advice is always sound and backed up by her recent personal experience. I try my best to attend her lives, or watch the catch ups in her Facebook group.
During the last weekend in January she did a giveaway for someone to win a place on her course and I won. The course is perfect for me.
I won a place on Storyseller Academy. This is a course packed with content on launching your novel. I can’t wait to start it & tell you more about it.
Coronavirus
I probably shouldn’t admit this but towards the end of the month I have become increasingly distracted and distressed by events in Wuhan. Some clips I have seen have made me cry. Maybe it is my overactive imagination but I can’t help but feel the situation is far worse than we are being lead to believe.
Sadly, I don’t feel the virus is under control. I am thankful for the NHS in the UK but I worry for the countries that are not as fortunate. I worry for the vulnerable and hope I am overreacting . I must stop checking for updates but I fear by Valentines Day there will be a global pandemic.
I hope you enjoyed this update on how my January went and what I have been doing towards my writing goals. My plan is to post an update each month. I have no idea if this is useful to anyone or if you can relate to my struggles. Please let me know in the comments how your January went and keep writing.
For February, I hope to update my website as the current theme is no longer supported. I want to finish my editing so I can get to the next step in my publishing plan and I will stop checking #WuFlu updates as it is not productive. What would be more productive would be to read the information on the self-study course I won, Storyteller Academy.
