Sadie Jay

This last week ran a little under the week before. I started the week strong, but work's been tense and I lost my oomph by the end of the week. Anyway, the count was 4026 words. The total count for Embers and Flame at this point is 45000, so I've only 10K to hit my goal, although I have this feeling it's going to be closer to 60K to finish it out without hurrying the ending. Again, I went so off plot, I'm not exactly sure where I'm going to end it. I'm thinking "climatic scene", solution and then jump ahead with an epilogue. The original plot was going to have more focus on them living together and the challenges they faced, but I'm not even close to that--45K in and the relationship is only 3 months old! So I'm going to put it out there--anyone interested in Beta reading and discussing the rest of the plot with me, put it in the comments and I'll send you a copy of the first draft, up to where I currently am. from Chapter 14: Ben le...

Last week's count is better at 4716 words but still not quite where I want it to be, especially considering I wanted the first draft of this manuscript complete by the end of May. Setting new goals and shooting for the end of June! (Easy-peasy lemon-squeezy!) Anyway, my goal for the completed MS is between 53--55K and I'm over 40K now, so that much is tracking. An excerpt from Chapter 13: “Cariño, I need to use the facilities. Come with me.” It wasn’t that I needed to use the restroom so much as I needed a break from Ryan. The man wasn’t a total ass, but I could see that he over-shadowed Cherry and I began to understand his lack of confidence. He had littered the afternoon’s conversations with subtle corrections and dismissals that he never threw David’s way. I had the feeling it was an old habit, something that went back to when they were first together. I could easily see Cherry, in his early twenties, as being shy and unsure. And I could equally see Ryan as being the t...

The inspiration for this story was very simply built around a campfire-- the idea of cuddling up with someone you love as you watch the flames. I brought it into Headphones in the form of a fireplace. It's literal in Embers and Flame, obviously ! "Was it some kind of ancestral instinct to build a fire, even as the remains of the sun’s heat rose all around us from where it had been stored in the dirt and the asphalt and the rocks? I watched the flames as they flickered their dance, eventually settling down to embers, cracking and sending sparks into the air like tiny firework displays."

If it was a perfect world, I'd work steadily every day and finish this mammer-jammer by the end of the month. So very much not going to happen. I'll probably be lucky to finish it by the end of June. But we can always dream. I have noticed I work well with the NaNo challenges, but I think maybe it's because I keep track of my progress. If I have proof of progress, I keep my motivation up. To that end, I decided to keep track of my words each day. Total for last week was 3064 words, which averages 437 a day. Not where I want to be, but I had a couple of low-count days. I PDFed the first 12 chapters and put them on my Kindle, just so I could read without stopping to edit. And... maybe it's not a total disaster. My goal with this novel was to be a light romance, and I think I'm hitting that. It's harder than it looks!

It's going slow, but there are moments when I don't hate it. (from Chapter 12) Ben wrapped his arms tighter around me and I could tell there was something else, something that was bothering him, but I didn’t push. It would come when he was ready. He tilted his head and kissed me, sweet and slow, and the damp lake air enfolded us, cocooning us in its heat. When he broke the kiss, his words were shaky and he kept his eyes closed. “But is it just Daryl, or do they all wonder who’s the man? When they look at us together, are they trying to figure out who tops?” Even in the dark, I could see the shine of his eyes when he finally opened them. “They think this is just sex, that you’re some blowjob genius and I’m bending you over and... They can’t see it as something real.” I hooked my thumbs into Ben’s belt loops. “Oh, my dear, no. I don’t think that’s true. And even if they do, it’s just because it’s a new idea to them, you liking dick. Honestly, I’m amazed at how well it’s go...

I follow Romance Writer Chat on Twitter. It's a chat that happens every Sunday night and I enjoy the thoughts and ideas of other authors. This last Sunday, the moderators focused on Author Newsletters and Blogs. It's interesting and something I hadn't given much thought to, simply because I haven't published yet. But now I'm thinking it's something I should consider. I find time seems to be the biggest factor in my life at the moment. But who knows what the future brings! It's just a note, but it kind of goes along with this. I have a handful of small blogs that I don't keep up with well anymore and I've been giving thought to combining them., but then there will be no main theme, just willy-nilly bits and pieces of my life. At the same time, I've given thought to including book reviews. So maybe a combined blog/newsletter format might be more manageable. Argh!

I made my Camp NaNo goal, so yeah me! I purposely set it lower than the November challenge, simply because I was being realistic. Nicer weather means time outside. But still, a challenge like that where I go online daily and record my progress seems to help me keep my mind on the project. With that said, I'm still shaky on this story. I'm feeling it more, and I'm not sure I really felt "Cracks" until I hit about 30K words (which is where I am on E&F now), so maybe that's just how long it takes for me to really feel my characters. I keep diverting from the original plot outline, which probably isn't helping, either! Anyway, I've tightened Chapter 1 a bit, so here it is in its present form: Chapter 1 Cherry The roar of the motorcycle pulling into the campsite next to mine shattered the peace of the evening, and I imagined that sunset’s reflection in the small lake rippling with the vibrations. I glared as the intruder flipped the kickstand d...