Deliverable 3

Right okay deliverable one is finished. I have completed up to chapter 10, which completes act 2. As for writing, I'm in the middle of chapter 12. So the whole book is roughly 87 pages and about 21,000 words. Again, this is with minimal editing and no chapter breaks.

So I have to have some form of picture evidence of my deliverable. But unfortunately for you, I've already posted the beginning of chapter 6 so that's nothing new. 

Okay but also I'll give you some evidence of chapter 10 aka the very end when she decides to be a Red Cross nurse. There's a minor spoiler I guess so don't read if you don't want a spoiler. 

And now I'm on to act 3, probably my favorite part for reasons I can't tell you. But trust me, it is wonderful. 

Okay well I'll post again next week. Thank you again for reading. 

I don't know how to title things

Act 2 is finished! Chapter 10 is done and now I'm on to chapter 11. The deliverable isn't due until next Friday so I'll have time to edit and add things and all that jazz. But coming up is Act 3, which is probably my favorite. It's when things get very interesting. Seeing as I've already started act 3, I'll give you the first snippet of chapter 11.

The tents were white. The sky ranged from blue to gray to black. The people were ashen and the smiles invisible. But the color I saw the most was red.
Red was the color of a nurse's flush as she ran back and forth, carrying water and supplies to sick and dying men. Red was the color of the cross we bore on our arms and heads, representing the aid we delivered. And red was the color of the blood that dripped through our fingers and congealed on bandages wrapped around wounds of an even deeper crimson. 

Also I have that playlist I promised. The link is http://8tracks.com/jaydabird/rose-of-no-man-s-land

Okay well I guess that's all I really have to say for now? Writing is hard, if you're wondering. I have had the worst writers block and I'm going to have to go back and add a lot to this past act. But I introduced one of my favorite characters so I guess you have to appreciate the little things. I'll keep you updated on the deliverable. Seeing as it's a grade, I have to. 

Thanks for reading again. 

Posting on time!

Okay so I have miraculously managed to remember to post on time. I finished chapter 8 this week and I'm almost through chapter 9. My goal is to finish chapter 10 over the long weekend, thereby completing the act and giving me 2 extra weeks before the deliverable is due to get ahead on act 3.

But the good news is, thanks to my favorite history teacher ever (hey Mrs. Guffey) I have another resource on the battles of the war to assist in my writing. Battles are pretty important to a war so I should probably have a better understanding of them. 

Okay at this point in the story, Elsie has befriended a young soldier over the phone and they talk often. Soon, however, she will leave the Hello Girls and join the Red Cross. There are a good number of events leading up to that, none of which I want to spoil. 

So I'm going to add a few links to this post and put them on a links page somewhere on this blog. I might add to it periodically. 

http://pinterest.com/Jaydabird18/the-rose-of-no-mans-land-storyboard/

This is the link to the Pinterest board I created to pin inspiration for the novel. It's helped me find some nice resources in addition to actors I would cast as the characters. 

http://8tracks.com/megan_h/downton-abbey-mix

http://8tracks.com/thefontbandit/nanowrimo-adventure

http://8tracks.com/thefontbandit/nanowrimo-writing-fuel

http://8tracks.com/thefontbandit/nanowrimo-fight-scene

These are playlists on 8tracks that I listen to while writing to drown out the real world and focus. Credit goes to the creators of the playlists. I should probably make my own. Maybe next time I'll have that up for you. 

That's really all for now. How about an original playlist and maybe another snippet next time? Thanks again for reading. 

Better Late Than Never

So I had a blog post due Friday but I totally forgot about it. I don't know what kind of grade it counts for but I figure that I should probably post just in case; and besides, I owe you all an update.

The good news is that I managed my goal of finishing two chapters over break. Then I slacked off. But with chapters 6 and 7 done, I only have 8-10 left for the current act. I intend on working some tonight and throughout the week. These chapters have been shorter than the previous ones but I expect after editing, they'll beef up nicely.

And now for a surprise! I've been considering doing this for some time but I wasn't sure what to do. I'm going to post a snippet and talk a bit about it. To avoid spoilers, I'll post just a nice description. This is the beginning of act 2, which I'm currently working on. It's Elsie's description of France.

Winter melted into spring. Snow dripped into rain. Crisp wind swirled into a gentle breeze. France was beautiful in the changing seasons. Until we reached the cities.
It was early March when we arrived. After swearing into the American military, a ship and a few train rides later, we found ourselves in the heart of the country. We glimpsed the French cities, bustling about with their everyday lives. It was different here than it had been in America. Women worked almost every area of the city. Men were incredibly sparse. And yet every “bonne journée” was resigned, like it might be the last day they would ever have, whether or not it was good. Each smile between neighbors struck somber, clipped with melancholy, as if the smile might be toxic. The air swam with the tension of total war, knowing every effort they made for their soldiers was being replicated in a German town elsewhere to be used against those soldiers.
America wasn't like this. We still had joy and hope, festivities and a fighting spirit. But total war took as much of a toll on its supporters as it did its soldiers. America wasn't like this. But it was on its way to becoming it.
I tried not to think about how the Germans across the continent were looking at each other with the same misery. I tried not to contemplate that we were all the same people, standing on opposite sides of the battlefield and looking at our own reflections. I tried. I really did.
The country was beautiful for a while. That’s where I saw the changing of the seasons. Then we passed the trenches, miles of holes in the earth, fortified with barbed wire and dead bodies. Even from the distance, I could see this was no childhood fort. It was hell on earth.

There you have it. A description of France from the perspective of a Hello Girl. "Bonne journée" means "good day" if you didn't pick that up from context clues. It's possible you didn't. Forgive me for any typos; my software doesn't notice such things.

Well I guess I don't have much to say about the snippet after all. I hope you enjoyed it. Sorry for my forgetfulness. Thanks for reading.

Post-Christmas

I swear I'm going to go back to my normal Friday blogging schedule one day (probably when school starts back up and I'm required to keep the Friday schedule for a grade). But, as today is Sunday, that day is not today. Of course, with Christmas and gifts and family and movies, my writing has, once again, been neglected. But, due to Christmas and gifts and family and movies, I have received many resources that I will be able to use for a long, long time to benefit my writing. For that, I thank my family very much.

As it is relevant to the story of Elsie Hudson, I feel it's pertinent to remind everyone that this December 25th marks the hundred year anniversary of the Christmas truce of World War I, where soldiers from both sides of the war called out greetings and tossed tiny tokens to each other from across trenches, even meeting in 'No-Mans Land' land between them, just for one night. For that one night, they allowed Christmas to stall the fighting. Even George Washington didn't do that.

I should mention that I have written some of the next chapter, and I've written other things as well. My goal is to have two chapters finished by the end of break. Whether that will happen, we'll have to wait and see. But it is a goal and goals are not met with hope, they're met with work. So it's off to work I go!

Thanks, as always, for reading--all two of you.

Whoops

As you may have noticed, I am a terrible blogger. I said in my last post that I'd write again in a week and here I am writing a week and two days later. Sue me. 

It might shock you too know that I'm even more terrible as a writer. Not only have I not written my blog in over a week but I've also not written on the novel in that time. As a writer, I know it's terrible to neglect your writing, even for a day, as it is a tool that can easily dull. In my defense, I had extreme work to do in preparation for the exams I took throughout the week. Although that is no excuse, I'm using it as one anyway.

I've been keeping my tool sharp regardless of the fact that I haven't written on the project. I've been planning and plotting and developing ideas for other novels. Sorry to say that my creative mind is not limited to just one story. Now that I have two weeks off, I'll be using my vacation effectively by writing as often as I can. Hopefully my Supernatural marathons won't get in the way. Also family. Family might limit some of my time. Then there's the actual holidays themselves. But don't worry because I'll be writing at least some of the time and if I can write almost half of an act in less than a week, I can do anything.

Merry Christmas, if you're into that. There's still a few more days in Hannukah so happy Hannukah if you're into that. I think Kwanza is coming up too. But everyone should enjoy a happy new year, sorry but you're all required for that part. Okay thanks for reading again. See you next week probably. 

Deliverable 2

So I thought deliverable 2 was due next Tuesday but as it so happens, it was due today. Fortunately, I got the memo this Tuesday and managed to cram in my last two chapters throughout the week. Despite writers block on Saturday, I finished chapter 3 over the weekend, and wrote chapters 4 and 5 on Wednesday and Thursday, finishing up act 1. If you read the introduction page and are aware of what the story is about, Elsie has completed her training and is on her way to France at this time. If you're not aware of what the story is about, why are you here?

Moving on, now that you've got weekly review, we can talk about important things, like the deliverable. Act 1, unedited and without page breaks, is currently 47 pages. With the software I have, I'm not alerted of any spelling or grammatical mistakes so that's certainly subject to change, especially once I edit it. It's a little over 11,000 words, getting me closer to my estimation of 50,000 words, the typical goal of National Novel Writing Month. 

So about writers block. It's a pain. To deal with it, I usually try to squeeze out at least a couple sentences while uninspired. Sometimes I go to another story to get my mind in another place, usually promoting more creativity. I also have a few playlists on my 8tracks that are just movie scores, sometimes in the mood of whatever I'm writing. Without words, I don't get distracted and can just enjoy the peace and mental stimulation. Tea and food are also helpful. Focusing on your novel's backstory or having a conversation with a character can help. Even throwing in a weird plot twist, free writing, or messing with an alternate universe with your characters can help. I've heard exercise also assists but, as an unathletic person, I generally choose not to do that. 

Okay this has been some really fantastic writing tips with Jayda. I'll be back next week for yet another update. Now if you'll excuse me, I have some Supernatural to watch. Thanks for reading.