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About the book
Blood Moon by Lucy Cuthew (Blurb)
My thoughts
Book Review of Blood Moon by Lucy Cuthew on YouTube
Frankie lives next door to her bestie. Together they love to hang out in their tree house planning to take pictures of the moon. But, they don’t agree on everything. Her BFF is boy crazy, and Frankie finds it embarrassing.
There is an internship at the Planetarium and there’s a few hoops to jump through to get the role. Both girls decide to go for it. Frankie works hard on her essay and gets her science teacher to check it over and write her reference.
When she finds out her BFF sent an inappropriate photo to the science teacher instead of an essay, Frankie worries how their friendship will affect her reference. Her BFF knows she screwed up and is hurt that Frankie won’t stand by her side when she needs her most. The girls have a massive fight and are no longer friends.
To make matters worse, her now ex-BFF tells their mutual friends her version of what happened, and now Frankie is alone. Being alone enables Benjamin to get to know Frankie better. The pair get closer, and closer, and one thing leads to another.
The best feeling in the world, rapidly turns into a dirty secret. Someone knows the sordid details of what Frankie and Benjamin did that afternoon. And, now it’s all over the internet, one meme after another.
How can Frankie get the bullies to stop and who can she trust? This is a fast paced emotionally driven story of friendship, bullying, and first love. With an epic ending.
The challenge was set by World Indie Warriors on Instagram. They created three #WIWBingo boards; YA, Romance, and Fantasy.
The aim is to read and review the books on Instagram and tag @worldindiewarriors
The goal is to get three in a line, and help indie books get seen.
I’m doing the challenge. I’ve already read some of the books on the board so I’ll be reposting them this month, and I’m hoping to read some new one too.
Annabelle is your second published book but the first book you self published. Why did you choose to self publish?
I self-published Annabelle because it’s a novella, and getting a traditional publisher to consider a novella is…well, rather difficult. Only later did I decide to self-publish all my books. Part of that decision was born of impatience. Traditional publishers take months, sometimes even a year, to get back to you, and only accept about 1% of the manuscripts submitted to them. It can take years to get a book deal. So, while I was wasting time and energy on query letters and five different synopses of different lengths for each manuscript, along with one sentence summaries, summaries of varying page lengths, and all manner of other things (formatted differently for each publisher or agent) to even submit…All my work was gathering dust. Since I write quickly, the manuscripts were also piling up. So I did some more research and found that self-publishing would be a better fit for me. Having creative control and the final say on each step played a huge role, as did the fact that most of the marketing (a.k.a. the part I really wanted a traditional publisher for) is up to the author in traditional publishing, unless the author is already famous.
Annabelle by Elexis Bell (Blurb)
What genre is this book and can you name any similar books?
Annabelle is a bit of a hybrid. It’s a thriller, specifically a vigilante justice story set within a western. I’m terrible with comparisons, but one reviewer said that fans of Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn or The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins will like Annabelle.
Please share a snippet or teaser from Annabelle?
I walk along the main road of another dirty western town and sashay past the saloon, knowing my prey follows close behind. My silken yellow dress and all of its lace flows behind me, trailing in the dust.
I can hear him getting closer but pretend to be so absorbed in the folds of my parasol that I don’t notice. Really, I’m checking over the mechanisms concealed within it, making sure that everything is in working order.
I turn down a bare alleyway as the sun begins to dip below the horizon. He follows. Still, I pretend not to notice that anything at all is amiss. A smile spreads across my features.
Where did you come up with the idea of a weaponized parasol?
Annabelle was originally inspired by a statuette made of starched doilies, which actually became a gift for someone else. I was looking at it as I boxed and wrapped it, and just imagined it coming to life, twirling its delicate little parasol. But my mind doesn’t really leave things…delicate. It very quickly morphed, becoming something much darker. For the time period, a parasol was a perfectly acceptable thing for a girl to carry, making it a perfect concealed weapon.
What do you want readers to get out of your book?
The courage to speak up. Now, obviously, I don’t endorse serial vigilantism. But victims of sexual assault need to speak out, and people need to take it seriously. Victim blaming NEEDS to be a thing of the past, as does sexual assault. But neither of those things will ever happen if people keep ignoring or hiding or minimizing the problem.
If you could have any super power what would you choose and why?
Either flying or teleportation. I’ve always wanted to be able to fly, but the idea of not having to spend days in a car or hours on a plane to travel is pretty appealing.
Tell me about a typical day in the life of author Elexis Bell.
Usually, it starts with me posting to my author pages from the passenger seat as my husband drives us to work. Then, I spend the day brainstorming while working in the factory. Repetitive work, mostly comprised of muscle memory, is great for thinking through story arcs and world building. After work, I do chores around the house and watch an episode or two of one of our shows with my husband. Then, somewhere between midnight and 2am, I start writing or editing. I don’t usually go to bed until 5 or 6am. On days off, I just start earlier on my book stuff.
Where can we find out more and buy your books?
My website has information and links for all my published works, as well as little tidbits about my WIPs. My blog is chock full of (blunt) writing advice and updates on all my work. www.elexisbell.com
For the November 2019 NaNoWriMo there was a new revamped website. I am going to start with how I got on using it and how it affected my NaNoWriMo experience.
Wrimo Buddies
All the old information had transferred over except connections. I sent invites out to those I remembered and added some new ones I made via other social media sites. If you would like to add me, I am Redfae on NaNoWriMo.
Forums
I still feel the social side of the NaNoWriMo site isn’t really working for me. I can’t figure out the forums but I didn’t have much time to explore them. Maybe they will get easier to navigate as the site develops.
Stats
OMG! I love the Stats. I used to have to create spreadsheets to record where I was with my word count and calculate if I am on or off track and how many words I need to do to keep up but the new website does this for you and can tell you cool facts like when and where you like to write.
I found it really motivating to see my overall progress It helped to visually see when I was falling below the line and knew I needed to step up the pace.
You can choose between a bar of line chart. In the above chart you can see my overall progress. I started off ahead of target but after an unfortunate week and a spell of not writing, I struggled to stay on track and then fell behind target. The rest of my NaNo progress is trying to get back on track. On a positive note, you can see that I didn’t give up and the line does keep going up even if it’s not as steep as I needed.
The last few days I really pushed myself to catch up and managed to write 6k on the final day! That was my best daily word count all month. This bar chart really highlights the days I skipped. Those days were detrimental to me reaching 50k, but sometimes I need to take a break for my own well being and I didn’t want to burnout.
Here are links to my weekly writers diary for you to learn more about how my NaNo weeks went (click on the picture):
Here are the last final two days of my writers diary:
Fri, 29 Nov
I dropped Noah off at school. I then needed to call the doctor about Aria’s shoulder making an odd popping sound (they booked me in for a call back). I had to call Very because they had sent me my order twice and charged me twice – no thank you. Once that was done, I decided to take Aria to a local playgroup as she missed out last week. I kept my phone on so I could hear if it rang.
When I was about to leave the playgroup I saw I had a text from the doctor’s surgery to say they had tried to call but there was no answer and I needed to call if I still wanted to be called. It was odd because there was no missed call on my phone. I rang to get put back on the waiting list. Although Aria isn’t in any pain, I want her to be seen as she is always doing crazy stuff all the time and I worry she may have hurt herself and just not let us know.
Finally, I got a call back and had to accept an appointment when Aria usually naps. I dreaded I was in for a grizzly afternoon but she wasn’t too bad at the doctors. In fact, being sleepy probably helped as she wasn’t tearing up the place. The nurse that saw her wasn’t concerned about Aria’s shoulder and said to keep an eye on it. If Aria appears to be in pain then take her straight back otherwise hopefully it will go on its own (I’m to keep an eye on it for 1 to 2 months).
I then did school pick up and as Noah was trying really hard to be good, I took him to a local sports club that he has been banned from (by us) for four weeks. Noah got so excited at the class that he was bouncing off the walls, crazy, embarrassing, very naughty. Needless to say, the ban is back.
We got home and had dinner. Then I got on the PC and forced myself to write although I was still quite upset about earlier and feeling a little put out that I am so far behind and unlikely to make 50k. I am now aiming for 40k. I did pretty well and ended the night at 39k. I feel motivated that I can meet my new goal tomorrow.
Sat, 30 Nov
My husband let me have a lay in which I used to write an impressive 2k, on my mobile phone, in bed. It made me feel great knowing I have achieved over 40k today when I thought it would be impossible as I have a very busy day planned. One appointment cancelled, giving me a little more breathing space.
My husband took Noah to get his hair cut. Then, I took both children for a Christmas photo shoot. I booked it because I really struggle to get nice pictures of them. They are both full of energy and struggle to stay still.
Sadly, Noah was still in his silly mood. He was photo-bombing Aria’s pictures and running in-front of the light and casting shadows. He was messing around with the props and climbing all over the furniture and trying to touch the very expensive camera. The photographer polite and patient with him but I am not hopeful that we managed to get any pictures – I now have to wait and see. Once out, I asked Noah why he did it. He was ‘excited’ and he wanted more pictures.
Aria was no angel either. She didn’t want to stay on the set or sit still – this is the reason my pictures of her are a blur or she’s half out the shot. I really felt like giving up and then I saw a cute picture of her on my phone that I took on holiday. I posted it to Instagram and it shared to Facebook. One of my friends commented “She’s gorgeous but she would look even prettier without the dummy x”. It broke my heart. I thought it was a cute picture and I was being judged for allowing my baby a soother. People are always judging parents and I was at breaking point. I wanted to send her the study on Sudden Infant Cot Death that showed dummy use reduced cot death by 90%. Yeah she might not look pretty with it, but she’s happy, she’s safe, she’s sleepy and I have a photo of her. But, I didn’t fight back. I was exhausted, feeling like a terrible mother and I just cried.
My husband gave me a prep talk and helped me feel better about myself. They are both going through tricky stages. Noah will learn to control his energy. Aria is just running everywhere and climbing everything because she’s discovered she can and the novelty will wear off – hopefully, soon before she hurts herself.
I got on the PC straight away and decided to write to see how close to 50k I could get. I finished at 45,062 words. It might not be 50k but I a damn proud of myself.
World Indie Warriors Live
Another massive achievement for me was going live on Facebook. I did on the World Indie Warrior Facebook group and hosted a live write in. It was lots of fun and really motivating.
I don’t know about you but Monday are meh. But, getting online and chatting with other writers reminded me that I am not alone. I am part of team. This indie community is so supportive and we cheered each other on. We shared what we were working on and I read out samples of their projects that they share with me (including some very steamy scenes).
As I completed chapters during NaNoWriMo, I posted them to Wattpad. You can read them here in my novel Diamond in the Sky. I warn you it is a real first draft!
I’m really pleased with the progress I have made and can see me finishing this novel. NaNoWriMo estimates it will be finished by 5 December but it needs to be more than 50k to be done.
I am going to continue writing it whilst Jewel of the Sea is getting edited. That’s right! I paid for an editor for my birthday and I am taking those first steps to publish my debut novel. Wish me luck.
I created this cover in Canva using an image from Unsplash.
Today’s blog post has been written by G.C.Ramey and when I read it, I was able to relate to every word.
NB: His article is written in American English.
Write for the Sake of Writing
By G.C. Ramey
“Are you ever going to finish writing your book?” my wife asks as she passes by my office, noticing that I am reading Neil Gaiman’s Ocean at the End of the Lane for the second time this year.
“I’m hunting for inspiration,” I say, glancing back at her. “I think Neil might have hidden the secret formula in here somewhere.”
I can tell by her face that she is unamused. Her comment had a purpose to it, a purpose that couldn’t have been more obvious if it had been written across the side of airplane and flown directly through our house. Obvious or not I plan to ignore it anyway, but then she says it plainly, “Stop procrastinating.”
Her remarks are well meaning. When we got married, she decided to take on the arduous task of keeping me straight, and in this case I needed just that. Although her comment was brief, the layer of hidden subtext rolled over me soberly and I knew every word that she had left out but meant to say, “Telling people that you are writing a book is not the same as actually writing one.”
That was the not so subtle kick that I needed.
I love writing. It’s the thing that I enjoy most in the world. The only thing that comes even close to it would be reading, but even then, why would I settle for a world created by the hands of another, when I have the power to create my own?
The idea of creation is powerful and even, at times, magical. Maybe it’s that faint desire to be like God— which would explain the typical bouts with pride that most author’s face from time to time— and maybe it’s just the joy that comes from expressing one’s inner feelings in such a physical and intimate way. Regardless, the appeal to tell stories is nearly synonymous with my identity as a person. It is who I am and what I was born to do. Even so, something strange always seems to happen. My identity has the habit of feeling more like a chore and less like a purpose, but why is that?
While I cannot speak for every writer who faces this, I can speak for myself. My current situation is one where I am constantly feeling the unforgiving push of deadlines. Whether it be from graduate school assignments, freelance jobs, or even just volunteer edits for my friends, I feel as if I am always burdened by the pressure to complete things. The part of my passion that suffers from the vice of procrastination is not professional productivity, but instead, my personal creativity. Because I am constantly meeting these professional obligations, I have forsaken my own projects. Of course, I defend myself by rationalizing that it is simply an act of maintaining proper priorities. I mean, deadlines have to come first, right? And my own creative expression can come with whatever time I have left. Maybe that is good in theory, but the problem is that by the time “leftover time” comes around, I feel so burnt out on the process of writing, that writing is the last thing that I want to do. It’s as if the joy is stripped away from it.
It’s quite a sad place to be. It reminds me of a story I heard a few years ago in college. In a small town, there was a baker who worked tirelessly at his craft to make bread for those in the community. Everyone who came to his bakery left well fed, and although he found joy in feeding those who came, he began to grow weary because he never stopped and ate for himself. The demand for more bread continued, and the baker pushed onward. Eventually, he died of starvation, surrounded by plenty of food, all because his professional commitment outweighed his personal need.
With this in mind, I suggest something to those writers who have felt similar pressure. The suggestion is simple, write for the sake of writing. Whether it be a poem, a journal entry, a fun review of a book you love, or even that novel you continually put off writing, just do something.
Get back to the joy of writing for yourself. In this way, you can continue feeding the masses, without dying of hunger yourself.
G.C.Ramey
G.C.Ramey is contributor for a sports news source (thespursupshow.com) and contributor for a sci-fi and horror site (alienbee.net). He is a masters student at the university of New Orleans. You can learn more about him by visiting his blog (gcramey.blog) or Twitter (@gcramey).
I recently enjoyed a blog post on the pros and cons of writing by hand. It got me thinking about how I like to write.
Many people find it beneficial to write by hand. They feel the connection between the pen and paper and their words flow more clearly.
As a teen, I always wrote my stories in a notebook. I liked to write my ideas in the back and then fill it from the front, chapter by chapter. I liked to write in bed and my sheets were covered in ink stains
It wasn’t until I decided to take writing seriously that I began creating at a PC. I have never quite found a digital way to develop ideas that works like the back of a notebook but I do prefer writing on a computer. It’s easier to read than my handwriting, and editing is neater. Once finished I can easily prepare it for submissions.
Since switching to write electronic I haven’t used my notebooks for writing until recently.
Recently, I had an Instagram challenge to write somewhere different. It was a challenge to also boost creativity and it worked.
In fact, I enjoyed writing in my notebook so much I have since used it again. It makes developing my story and exploring ideas so much easier. Moving forward, I think I will continue to use it this way. Perhaps, treat myself to some new stationery…
This morning, I went to the sling library, then did the school run, I managed to bath both kids, get them to bed and now I am downstairs ready to write.
10:12 pm
I managed to beat my daily word count and add another 1,116 words to my manuscript. However, I have been seriously distracted by inspirational pictures of Pegasuses and my husband is watching Chilling Adventures of Sabrina (a show I recently watched and loved). I have done a lot of procrastinating tonight so I am amazed I managed to write anything!
https://youtu.be/ybKUX6thF8Q
Friday, 9th November 2018
9:15 pm
I must confess that today I have failed to add to my manuscript. In the background I have been blogging so not it has not been completely free of writing. Now, I am ready for an early night.
Saturday, 10th November 2018
10:00 pm
Today was all about preparing for Christmas. We went to a fair but it was so busy we gave it a miss as you could hardly move and cost £3 per person for the privilege. So we went into town instead.
Then in the evening, I created my Xmas wish list on Pinterest… but, still no writing. I hope I’ve not lost my mojo.
Sunday, 11th November 2018
9:00 pm
Today we worked on getting the house straight then went for some drinks at our local Royal British Legion for Remembrance Sunday. I got to have my first Malibu in over a year.
Once home, we ate dinner, got the kids to bed and now I can barely keep my eyes open. I’m gutted as this is day three that I’ve not written. But, I won’t give up! Sweet dreams all, tomorrow is a new day…
Monday, 12th November 2018
9:00 pm
Tonight, I can’t relax to write. Noah has come home from school with a cold and isn’t himself. To make matters worse, Aria is so unsettled. I’m running between rooms and I don’t think I’m going to sleep, let alone write!
Tuesday, 13th November 2018
9:00 am
No surprise here, Noah is off school today. He really is full of cold. I think Aria is teething, she’s dribbling, chewing her hand, off her food, doesn’t like her dummy and unsettled. This is going to be a long day.
3:00 pm
I finally got dressed. Noah is now with my mother in law as we need to take Aria to the hospital for her appointment.
8:00 pm
Aria was tired but didn’t want to sleep. Every time I put her down she would start screaming. This time she has stayed quiet so I’m hoping she’ll keep asleep as I am starving and want my dinner.
Not sure I’ll get to write today and in really disappointed. This weeks word count is dire and I’m worried I am too far behind now despite my strong start.
10:30 pm
I got to eat my dinner and I had pudding! Then we wrapped Noah’s bday presents ready for him to come down to in the morning… But, I didn’t add to my NaNo word count. With only one day left this week, it is not looking good.
Wednesday, 14th November 2018
9:45 pm
Noah was off school again today and it was his birthday. Although he was unwell, he was also really happy and full of excitement which didn’t work well with Aria being grumpy. I’m pretty sure she is teething as she is chewing her fists and is really sensitive about her bottle or dummy going in her mouth. It is has been a tough day trying to keep an excited birthday boy – now 5 years old – calm when I have got a tired baby to sleep.
I was exhausted when my husband got home and after dinner, he asked if there was anything he could do to help and all I wanted was a shower. It is funny how something so simple can give you a new lease of life. After putting the little ones to bed, I felt ready to write.
Dabble says I need to write 947 words today to keep on track for my 25k goal. I have managed to write 822 words which I think is pretty good considering the day I had.
Reflecting on week 2
Week 2 has not been great. I am embarrassed by my progress but I am tenacious so I will not give up. I can still make 25k by the end of the month. I hope next week is more promising.
My motto for this week’s NaNoWriMo is “Make excuses or make progress.” Are you doing NaNoWriMo? How are you getting on?
I’m not going to post an update every day as I think that will be too much. I thought every 5 days would be better but I’ve struggled with that so it has turned into updates every 10 days!
The goal
My goal is to write 25k in 31 days to finish my novel titled Glide. I’ve called the project Diamond In The Sky as this is what I am considering renaming the novel as.
Pregnancy is really catching up with me. I am so tired by the time I finish work and it is so hot in the evenings, all I want to do is lie on my bed and dream of owning a fan.
I did received some good news. An article I wrote for a publication was accepted!
Day 17
So, today the good news got better as they sent me a link of how my article would look for my approval. Plus, they asked me what I’d like to write next!
At work, I went to lunch with a group of colleagues. It was sort of a leaving lunch because it is the last time we will all be in the office at the same time before I go on maternity leave, next week.
I did manage to do a little blog writing on my mobile whilst I melted in the heat. I went to bed early and didn’t do any NaNo writing.
Day 18
I have left the gifts to the last minute so Noah and I were up early doing crafts before nursery. I was pretty impressed with what we did.
I had the afternoon off work to take him to his graduation party at the other nursery. It was a lovely little party but I still don’t think he understands nursery is coming to an end.
I’m so busy with all the activities with his nursery coming to an end and everything I need to do before maternity that I haven’t the energy when I get home to do creative writing.
Day 19
Today, was my son’s last day of nursery – we were up early making crafts for this placement too. I had a busy day at work as my colleagues suddenly realised I only have two days of work left!
I did receive some very good. My CIPD tutor let me know that all my assignments are now marked (including re-submissions) and I have passed. So, I can relax and focus on my baby and writing.
On that note, I wrote 576 words. I know it isn’t a lot but it is much better than the other days.
Day 20
This morning, Noah had another sports day – there is double of everything because he has a dual placement. It was out in the sun with no shelter and no where to sit. Noah wanted to visit his nanny afterwards but my feet were so swollen they looked like elephant trotters, so we had to go home so I could put my feet up.
It’s very hard to write upside down and it took me the rest of the day to get my feet to go back to normal. I was also incredibly tired and fell asleep for 2 hours in the afternoon. I’m lucky my husband was off ill otherwise who knows what my son would have got up to. As a result, I didn’t do any NaNo.
On a plus note, my husband and his best friend worked on building the nursery furniture which is a huge relief to see the room finally coming together.
Day 21
I’m 38 weeks pregnant today and booked in for some pampering. I felt so relaxed and happy afterwards.
Sadly, I returned home to learn there is a problem with the wall stickers I ordered for the nursery as the seller is in America. I spent the rest of the day coming up with a new theme for the nursery and looking for UK sellers that do the same sort of thing… with no luck and no NaNo progress.
Her walls will be white like the blank page on my computer screen.
Day 22
Today, I got straight on the PC and wrote 2k before doing anything. I sent my husband off in the evening for a rock climbing experience day which left me alone with the PC once the little man was in bed and I got another 1k done.
I now have a fan! Yay! Thank you mother-in law.
Day 23
I started the day full of determination to get home and do some writing but at work they were having building work which resulted in the air con being turned off and on the roof their are seagulls and their chicks and they are aggressive – so we can’t open the windows. By the time I returned home I felt like I was dying and wasn’t good for anything! To make matters worse I felt like I was coming down with a cold – despite the heatwave… is that even possible.
Day 24
Yes, it is possible. Today was my last day at work before maternity leave and I was streaming from my nose with my cold and sweating along with everyone else suffering in the heat. Most of my colleagues were on holiday as they had to use it up before the end of July. The one colleague that was in treated me to lunch for my last day which broke the day up and made it feel a tad more special.
When I got home, I couldn’t even put my son to bed as I was so ill and exhausted. I opted to sleep on the sofa as I didn’t want to keep my husband up with all the nose blowing. I was right – I didn’t sleep a wink.
Day 25
This was supposed to be the day that clawed it back! I really thought I’d have all day to write but I’m ill, haven’t slept, feeling very pregnant and it’s too hot. I spent a lot of time between household chores (nothing too strenuous) just roasting in front of the fan. I am so glad that Noah had holiday club as there is noway I would have kept up with him.
I did manage to take some pics for my blog that had to be done as the deadline for a scheduled post is in two days. I have struggled today but managed to add a few words to the count.
Reflection
Days 16 to 20 were pretty poor – partly why I didn’t feel motivated to do a 5 day diary for that period.
I’m really pleased with my day 22 progress which shows what I can achieve if I have a fan and time and feeling healthy.
I’m also really pleased about my article getting published. If you’d like to read my post about this achievement, please click here.
Fingers crossed I can crackdown these last few days and somehow still do this! It’s not over yet! I refuse to give up! I just need days like day 22.
Are you doing the challenge? How are you getting on?
My goal is to write 25k to finish my novel titled Glide. I’ve called the project Diamond In The Sky as this is what I am considering renaming the novel. You can click here to see my post about setting the goal.
Day 1 to 5
If you want to read how the first 5 days went, please click here to view the post.
Day 6 to 15
We are now half way through the challenge and it is challenging… Here is how day 6 to 15 have gone:
Day 6
I wrote 0 words. I started the day trying to get some laundry done in the morning. The afternoon was my son’s graduation ceremony at nursery which was an amazing day. When I got home, I told my husband all about how proud I was and just didn’t do any writing.
Day 7
I wrote 1,289. I decided to skip a chapter that I was struggling to get motivated to write and instead wrote the next chapter. Now, I feel clearer about the chapter I skipped and ready to go back and write it.
Day 8
I wrote 1,493. I feel clearer about where my story is going now and was able to write the next chapter. It wasn’t the most exciting chapter but it was necessary and setting the path for what is to come.
Day 9
I got a refer on one of my CIPD assignments – I had hoped the course was finish so I could concentrate on other projects like NaPoWriMo. The time after work that I would have spent writing had to be put on hold as I needed respond to my lecturers feedback and resubmit ASAP. I want to finish before I have my baby and my due date feels like a ticking bomb!
Day 10
Today, was my Hypnobirthing class. I love Hyponbirthing. It is so relaxing. The only problem is that I am so chilled out afterwards that I can’t do anything. Word count was zero.
Day 11
I was determined when I got home from work to catch up with my word count but I got as far as about 426 words before my son started being sick. I then spent an uncomfortable night with him, comforting him as it came out of both ends. He was amazingly tough though.
Day 12
Hubby took the day off to look after my son as it would be very difficult for me to rearrange my appointments at work, especially with only 6 days of work left before maternity leave starts. On next to no sleep, I did a full days work (let’s call it newborn training). When I arrived home I was too tired to write.
Day 13
Yay, my son is better. Just as well as we had a busy day planned. I cancelled visiting a friend with a newborn as a precaution – my son could be contagious – instead, we did jobs in town (pay library fines, allergy test for my pampering next weekend, etc). Then we went home for lunch. In the afternoon, we visited the school he will be starting in September to take part in a preparing for school activity. Then my husband’s best friend came over and we chatted until I had to go to bed.
Day 14
Our house is a mess! We spent most the morning doing chores at home and popped out to buy paint for the nursery. I then played with my son in the garden in this glorious sunshine. It’s so good to see him happy and well.
Then once he was in bed, I got ready for a night on the sea front with one of my best friends – something we want to enjoy before life gets complicated with a new born. Word count was zero though.
Day 15
Today, my hubby has been great keeping my son busy so I could get in front of the PC during the day because I’m often too tired in the evening. I manged to achieve 2.5k! That is my personal best this month and it is only midday so there is chance I could add to that later on.
I also really like what I have written. There was a bit of adding to earlier chapters as well as adding a new chapter. I got to write about her casting and developing her powers and confronting Mariah and I loved it. The boys are back now but I will be looking for any chance to sneak off and write some more.
Reflection
I’m so pleased with my achievement today. If only I could have more days like that. I have seen what I can achieve if I can get the time to be able to write. I still love that feeling of creating my story, the world, characters and the magic. It is what I love and even when I felt like quitting, I couldn’t. This is me.
I am still behind target though, however, I have had some unexpected challenges that halted my progress. I thought I had finished my CIPD course and I had not anticipated my son being ill.
I have still managed to keep my blog posts regular and sent an article to a publication (fingers crossed they like it). I’d like to get ahead of my blog schedule as I’m sure I’ll be distracted once the baby is here and I don’t want to fall silent.
When I think about all I am juggling, I am achieving an awful lot – even if I do say so myself.
Let me know if you are doing the challenge and how you are getting on?
