Tag: Writing

My thoughts on the writing process.

Posted in Writing

WIP Marathon 24

Posted on by Amy McNulty

Has it really been two years since we started these monthly updates for the WIP Marathon group?

Last report wordcount + chapter count/scene count:

YA FANTASY FAIRY TALE RETELLING/PREQUEL: 10,704 words, 4 chapters

NOBODY’S LADY: 70,746 words, 28 chapters (waiting to get final edits)

Current report WC + CC/ SC:

YA FANTASY FAIRY TALE RETELLING/PREQUEL: 36,153 words, 14 1/2 chapters

NOBODY’S LADY: 70,881 words, 28 chapters (revisions turned in)

WIP Issues This Month: I was doing really well with the new WIP toward the beginning of the month. I managed to write at least 1000 words a day for a while. Then I got caught up with a lot of work and kind of hit a “meh” part of my manuscript and I stopped working on it every single day, or only wrote a few hundred words a day. I had revisions to do as well. Still, I wish I could write faster. I know it’s not a race (no deadline for this), but I hate drafting. I love everything else about writing (revising, marketing, even querying) much more.

Four things I learned this month in writing: 1. You can run out of steam on a book even when you don’t think you will at first.

2. Pushing through and working on the manuscript anyway is painful, but every writing session takes you closer to the end.

3. After stepping away from a manuscript for a long time (NOBODY’S LADY), some of it can seem brand new when you read it.

4. Reading your work a year and a half after you initially wrote it is a strange experience.

What distracted me this month while writing: It’s been cold, so I’ve mostly stayed home this month. I’ve been busy and stressed with work and life, but I do have some news to share. The short story that I wrote back in April (I reported the word count on these updates) can finally be announced! It’s going to appear in a charity anthology later this year. I was also allowed to reveal the blurb for NOBODY’S LADY and you can pre-order the paperback. (The e-book will be available but isn’t up for pre-order yet.) My cover reveal is scheduled for February 26th, and you can sign up here if you want to participate!

Goal for next month: I might have NOBODY’S LADY proofs to look over and then it’s probably ready to go to the printer! *-* Meanwhile, I want to keep working on my YA FAIRY TALE. I’d love to finish it in February, but I’ll try not to set the goal only to be disappointed.

Posted in Writing

Announcing My New Short Story in a Charity Anthology

Posted on by Amy McNulty

My new forthcoming short story, JOSIE’S COAT, will appear in Month9Books’ charity anthology, IN THE BEGINNING, out October 25, 2016. Some of the anthology proceeds will be donated to WriteGirl, a Los Angeles-based non-profit agency that empowers young women writers through mentorships, workshops and classes. The anthology consists of YA speculative fiction retellings of Bible stories. I was a huge fan of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat as a middle schooler, so that was the story that sparked my imagination:

Author Amy McNulty’s story, Josie’s Coat, reimagines the tale of Jacob’s favorite son Joseph, his dreams, and his famous coat (Genesis 37). Josie, a dream-worker, is great at her job and her coworkers’ cruel jealousy leads to her enslavement and the loss of her dream-worker job—but even that can’t stop her terrifying visions of what’s to come.

The “dream-worker” part was also influenced by an idea I’ve had when I’m tired from a day of working: How I wish I could get my work done while I slept and save my working hours for something fun! This is what happens in Josie’s world, but only a select few can benefit from this arrangement.

Add IN THE BEGINNING to your to-read list on Goodreads!

Posted in Writing

WIP Marathon 23: End of Year

Posted on by Amy McNulty

I already did an end-of-the-year and goals-for-next-year writing update here, if you’re interested.

Last report wordcount + chapter count/scene count:

YA SUSPENSE:  53,965 words,  16 1/2 chapters

YA FANTASY FAIRY TALE RETELLING/PREQUEL: Not even thought of yet

NA CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE: Thought of, but not outlined at all yet

Current report WC + CC/ SC:

YA SUSPENSE:  58,546 words,  17 1/2 chapters  — SHELVED

YA FANTASY FAIRY TALE RETELLING/PREQUEL: Outlined completely; 10,704 words,  4 chapters

NA CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE: Outlined completely

WIP Issues This Month: Coming off NaNoWriMo “failing” (even with 25,000 words) and just not feeling the love at all for my YA SUSPENSE, I struggled in early December. I wrote every day (until I FINALLY took one day off), but it was often just 100 words. I’d been off-outline for a while with this book, but I just wasn’t loving it at all. But at the same time, it was already my second take at this (having thrown out the vast majority of the 50,000-word draft from 2012!), and I was worried I’d never finish it if I didn’t keep moving forward. (Also, I didn’t finish a single manuscript this year.) Plus, I’d worked on it EVERY DAY since early September, forcing myself to write even on insanely busy, tiring and stressful days.

But I just got.tired.of.it. I knew it might mean I’ll never finish it, or maybe I will come back to it someday. (It’s near the end and I have a vague idea of where it’s going, but it probably needs another 10-20k I’m not up for.) I wondered if I should give it up and work on my next project, which I pictured as the first of four books in a NA contemporary romance series I intended to straight-to-self-pub, but at the same time, I did want some finished YA manuscript to try to get an agent with again. (Coming up on two years without one soon!) Then I got a shiny new idea–finally a fairy tale retelling like I’ve always wanted to do that I think hasn’t been done before. (The fairy tale has been, but not this aspect of it–it’s more of a prequel with some of the same elements. Also, it’s not even one of the more popular fairy tales among YA retellings.)

So I got my love for writing back by telling myself it was okay to give up on the YA suspense. I outlined the new idea for a week while I tried to keep going with the YA suspense and finally decided to turn my attention to the new idea instead. And I’ve written a lot more per day so far, so I’m hopeful… I just hate being back at square one with a manuscript practically. ;-; Oh, but I also outlined the entire first book in the NA contemporary romance series in my downtime when on this writer’s high, so I feel like this had been a good decision for me.

Four things I learned this month in writing: 1. Shelving a manuscript might sometimes be the best thing. (I’m just hoping I don’t get to 58k with this new one and think the same thing…)

2. It’s hard to tell the difference between the “this really should be shelved” and the “this is just you struggling and you really should finish it” feelings.

3. Writing is just… always hard!

4. Ideas hit you during the strangest most unexpected moments.

What distracted me this month while writing: I haven’t gone on any day trips this month, but I’ve been busy with work. (And Christmas! Yay!) Oh, and of course I saw Star Wars and felt like a kid again, and I’ve seen a few other movies.

Oh, fellow WIP Marathoner Suzanne van Rooyen and I have our books I HEART Robot and NOBODY’S GODDESS up for a Month9Books Readers Choice Award until December 31st! Throw either of us some love and vote or comment?

Goal for next month: I’m hoping I’ll finally get the edits for the second round (perhaps final instead of expected three rounds?) of NOBODY’S LADY revisions for real in January. There was a hiccup and I expected them back in October and each month since, but… I think now they’re for sure on their way. I’d love to get a lot more done in the YA fairy tale retelling. I don’t think I’ll want or need to start the NA until I finish the YA. I could start outlining the other books in that series, but I’ll probably wait until I’m focusing on that manuscript.

 

Posted in Writing

Writing Goals for 2016

Posted on by Amy McNulty

Weapenry and Patchwork Press are getting ready to make 2016 our best writing year yet, and we want all of you to dream big with us. This week, authors are coming together to start thinking about the coming year and all of the books we’re getting ready to write. If we dream big and write all year round, we can easily make this our best year yet!

What is your favorite writing/publishing memory from 2015?

Seeing my YA romantic fantasy debut, Nobody’s Goddess, go on sale and hearing from readers who enjoyed it. I know it’s out there in a few bookstores and libraries as well, but the first time I saw it “in the wild” was just recently at a branch of my local library. That was a cool moment.

bookinwild

Also, my first signing was at BookCon! I felt awkward, but I had a lot of fun thanks to my boyfriend and my bestie/beta reader, Melissa Giorgio.

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What story are you most looking forward to working on in 2016?

I want to finish the YA suspense I started in September. It’s my second time tackling this concept, and I completely revised a few major things about an old, shelved draft. It’s been tough for me to feel passionate about this project, but I’m determined to see it all the way through.

Are you the type of person who makes New Year’s resolutions? Why or why not?

Usually not, no. I don’t like the feeling of defeat that comes along with not meeting my goals.

What area(s) of your writing/publishing process are you going to work on improving in 2016? (dialogue, marketing, output, pacing, formatting, etc.)

Not repeating the same gestures over and over even in the drafting stage. (“She crossed her arms,” “I bit my lip” type of things.) It takes a lot of work to fix that in revising, and it’d be nice if I just didn’t rely on the same descriptions while drafting!

How would you describe a successful publishing year in 2016? What goals are you working toward?

I hope more and more people discover Nobody’s Goddess so Nobody’s Lady (out April 12) is successful as well. I hope to get my Wattpad-first Patchwork Press title, Fall Far from the Tree, featured on Wattpad so more people discover it, and I’ll finish publishing all of it on Wattpad in 2016. I’m hoping I can then release the e-book and paperback versions in late 2016, although it may be 2017.

Tablet-FFFTT

If you had to guess, what do you think your biggest challenge will be when it comes to publishing and writing next year?

I need to get this YA suspense to a place where I’m satisfied with it and then start querying agents again.

How far ahead do you plan your writing schedule? Do you prefer to prepare or to see where your muses take you?

I don’t really schedule my writing. Now that I’m finished drafting my contracted work (THE NEVER VEIL SERIES), I just have to worry about revisions for those books whenever they’re ready for me to work on them. Besides that, I can write what I please!

Tell us about something non book related that you’re currently looking forward to for 2016.

Going to NYC again (as I do at least once a year to visit my boyfriend’s family) and attending C2E2 and BookCon in Chicago… Although I guess that’s book-related.

If you could offer up one piece of advice to other authors and writers for 2016, what would it be?

Don’t give up! It’s really easy to give up and ignore your little successes in the face of larger failures. But every little success counts!

What about you? What goals (bookish and otherwise) are you planning to work toward in 2016? Let us know in the comments! Weapenry will be giving away ebook packs of both Refilling Your Inkwell by Kellie Sheridan, and Surviving First Drafts by Erica Crouch to three randomly selected commenters across the posts going up this week. Be sure to either include your email address or to Tweet at us @patchwork_press along with your goals so we can get in touch if you win!

Posted in Writing

WIP Marathon 22

Posted on by Amy McNulty

Last report wordcount + chapter count/scene count:

YA SUSPENSE: 30,155 words, 10 chapters

Current report WC + CC/ SC:

YA SUSPENSE:  53,965 words,  16 1/2 chapters

WIP Issues This Month: This is the first year I’ve tried NaNoWriMo that I lost. So even though I got more words done this month than I did the previous couple of months, I’ve been bummed about that. I’m losing the drive to finish this story. AGAIN. (This is my second attempt at it, with some major changes, and last time I petered out at about 50,000 words, too. Only last time I was stuck in the narrative and this time, I’m just bummed about it.)

Four things I learned this month in writing: 1. Sometimes even NaNoWriMo fails me. 😦

2. Even when I have an idea of where I’m going, it’s possible to lose interest in writing it.

3. Finding not one, but 2-3 similarities to a popular YA book in your WIP also helps make you less enthused about finishing it.

4. It’s hard to go from 100-500 words a day to 1700. (I managed for like 3 days and then just couldn’t do it anymore.)

What distracted me this month while writing: I went to Chicago (again ^^) one day early this month, but mostly I’ve been really busy with work. The time I do spend writing just isn’t that productive, either. But I have continued to work on it every single day, even if it’s only a few hundred words.

NOBODY’S LADY got an official release date: April 12, 2016, a few months earlier than expected!

I revealed the cover to my YA fantasy that’s going to someday be published with Patchwork Press! …And I started serializing it on Wattpad! It’s going to be a Wattpad-first novel with eventual ebook and paperback release in late 2016 or 2017. Click on the image to start reading today! 😀 Btw, this was my first WIP Marathon manuscript from back in 2013! *-*

Pageflex Persona [document: PRS0000040_00007]

And I made a trailer for NOBODY’S GODDESS! That was actually a really fun distraction. I always wanted a trailer, even though I know they’re not the most effective marketing tools. I didn’t have the budget for one, so I made it myself. I had so much fun, I want to make one for FFFTT, but I really shouldn’t waste the time when I’m so busy. (See, I always want to do marketing stuff instead of draft when I’m unhappy with a draft’s progress!)

Goal for next month: I’m hoping I’ll finally get the edits for the second round of NOBODY’S LADY revisions this month. So I have to do that if so. Also, just to keep going with this YA suspense and not be tempted to move on to shiny new ideas. I have a feeling if I give up now, I won’t finish it at all. It’s not unsalvageable or anything, I just am not feeling the love….

 

Posted in Writing

WIP Marathon 21

Posted on by Amy McNulty

Last report wordcount + chapter count/scene count:

YA SUSPENSE: 15,706 words, 6 chapters

Current report WC + CC/ SC:

YA SUSPENSE: 30,155 words, 10 chapters

WIP Issues This Month: Writing even when I don’t feel like it. (But I’ve kept my promise to myself and have written in the WIP every single day since I started in early September… Only most days I only write 100-200 words!)

Four things I learned this month in writing: 1. Tiny, short writing sessions still add up!

2. Tiny writing sessions aren’t that bad. I’ve always done better when I write more words per day, but writing just a few words is better than no words.

3. I can feel lukewarm about a manuscript while writing it. (I usually like it more than this… I mean, I DO like this one, but…)

4. Publishing is complicated

What distracted me this month while writing: I went to NYC for my NINTH time with my boyfriend! (+ Twice as a very young kid.) See my Instagram for pics from the Hunger Games exhibit (it was amazing *-*) and a book signing I went to. I also spent a day in Chicago earlier in the month. (We seem to go at least once a month now, don’t we?) Work, stress, etc. I’ve kept busy.

I also announced a new book I’m going to be releasing at some point…. FALL FAR FROM THE TREE! I’d appreciate it if you added it to your Goodreads page.

I started up a newsletter! Please sign up here! (First newsletter goes out tomorrow, so don’t miss out!) You get access to a deleted scene from an earlier shelved version of NOBODY’S GODDESS for signing up.

Wattpad “featured” my short story YA collection, DROWNED SILENCE, and it went from like 70 reads to over 14,000 in just a few weeks! Plus, the first story in the collection is Halloween-themed, so it’s the perfect read for today!

Goal for next month: I’m participating in NaNoWriMo for my third year! Add me if you haven’t already. (I think most of you have.)

NaNo-2015-Participant-Banner

I’m only sort of feeling it this time, though. But my goal is to add 50,000 words to the YA suspense (I’m not doing that other idea I mentioned last time)–but also not to be upset with myself if I don’t meet that goal.

I’m supposed to get the second round of edits for NOBODY’S LADY in November as well! So I’ll have to get that done if so.

I’m not sure where I am on edits for FALL FAR FROM THE TREE because some complications have arisen with publishing it…

Posted in News

My Next Book: FALL FAR FROM THE TREE

Posted on by Amy McNulty

While I know a number of you are anxiously awaiting the second book in the NEVER VEIL series (tentatively July 2016), I’m proud to announce I’m publishing another fantasy book soon with Patchwork Press!

Read my introduction here!

FALL FAR FROM THE TREE is a dark YA fantasy I like to think of as Marvel Comics’ Runaways meets Game of Thrones. It has four first-person POVs (crazy, I know) and weaves the story of four very different young adults, each raised by terrible people.

Add FALL FAR FROM THE TREE to your Goodreads to-read list!

Terror. Callousness. Denial. Rebellion. How the four teenage children of leaders in the duchy and the neighboring empire of Hanaobi choose to adapt to their nefarious parents’ whims is a matter of survival.

Rohesia, daughter of the duke, spends her days hunting “outsiders,” fugitives who’ve snuck onto her father’s island duchy. That she lives when even children who resemble her are subject to death hardens her heart to tackle the task.

Fastello is the son of the “king” of the raiders who steal from the rich and share with the poor. When aristocrats die in the raids, Fastello questions what his peoples’ increasingly wicked methods of survival have cost them.

An orphan raised by a convent of mothers, Cateline can think of no higher aim in life than to serve her religion, even if it means turning a blind eye to the suffering of other orphans under the mothers’ care.

Kojiro, new heir to the Hanaobi empire, must avenge his people against the “barbarians” who live in the duchy, terrified the empress, his own mother, might rather see him die than succeed.

When the paths of these four young adults cross, they must rely on one another for survival—but the love of even a malevolent guardian is hard to leave behind.

Posted in Writing

WIP Marathon 20

Posted on by Amy McNulty

Last report wordcount + chapter count/scene count:

Nothing on a new YA suspense manuscript (Well… You can count the 20 chapters and 53,910 words I wrote during my first go at this manuscript back in 2012, but I’m doing a page one rewrite with different characters and a supernatural element removed so 70-80% of that will be scrapped.)

Current report WC + CC/ SC:

YA SUSPENSE: 15,706 words, 6 chapters

WIP Issues This Month: Setting myself up with unrealistic expectations. I’m probably in the minority of writers in that the first draft is my least favorite aspect of writing. I just get weighed down by the tens of thousands of words still ahead of me and wish I could finish a draft in 10 days every time. (I did it once! Of course, I wound up adding 30k in edits over the next few years, but still.) 5000 words a day for 10 days seems doable on paper… Ha, but it’s only rarely doable for me.

Four things I learned this month in writing: 1. Drafting doesn’t always come easily for me. (Not really a new lesson!)

2. I’m strangely very interested in marketing my books after they’re out when I have a draft I should be working on–probably because I don’t want to draft.

3. I feel like I’m not a “real writer” if I don’t say that writing is my favorite part of being a writer (does that make sense?), but it’s not. I have moments where it’s amazing, but it usually feels like a chore until I get to editing and the excitement of hoping the manuscript has a future.

4. Publishing is slow.

What distracted me this month while writing: Not too much. I tried to work on the manuscript every day, even if just a few hundred words. I spent a day in Chicago earlier in the month and attended a local cartoonist’s fair, both of which were fun.

Goal for next month: I might be getting my 2nd round of edits for NOBODY’S LADY in October, so that’ll have to take priority, but naturally, I want to continue working on writing the YA SUSPENSE and I actually have to start a new idea soon, too. I’m going to NYC again for a week, so that’ll put a dent in my progress, as I’m usually too exhausted and busy to get much done while on vacation. I hope I don’t lose my (slow-going) momentum on the project if I take a break, though.

Oh, I’m participating in YASH again in early October with NOBODY’S GODDESS! Stop by to win prizes and play along. 😀

Posted in Writing

WIP Marathon 19

Posted on by Amy McNulty

Last report wordcount + chapter count/scene count:

1. Short story: 10,003 words (second and final round completed; just waiting on a proofread/publisher approval)

2. NOBODY’S LADY (NEVER VEIL 2): 67,652 words, 28 chapters (working on first round of publisher revisions)

Current report WC + CC/ SC:

1. Short story: 10,037 words (proofread completed and turned in to publisher–no more edits?)

2. NOBODY’S LADY (NEVER VEIL 2): 70,747 words, 28 chapters (first round of revisions completed and turned in to publisher)

WIP Issues This Month: As usual, not finding time or brain power to work on my own writing. (My eyes are acting up lately, too.)

Four things I learned this month in writing: 1. I love how new scenes added in revisions can really add depth to a manuscript.

2. It seems like revisions are never done (until all of a sudden, they are).

3. I’m very picky about being in the right “mood” to work on my own writing; I can’t have a ton of things on my to-do list.

4. Editing is more fun than business writing.

What distracted me this month while writing: I had a lot of work again this month, including editing a long manuscript for a client that took up every moment of my work time not devoted to the usual clients. (I also finished editing my friend’s manuscript right before then–I’ve been busy editing!) I didn’t know I’d have that client last time I updated, so there was no way I’d complete the goals I set then.

I did go to the local Renaissance Faire, as I tend to do once a year! I just love the ambiance. I was a little sad I decided not to waste any money on a trinket like I usually get, though, but I had good food.

I found out the publisher of my short story has delayed the publication until next year! And I think I’m done approving it, so I probably won’t mention it again… Until I can finally announce it.

Goal for next month: I’ll be done editing for the client by the time September starts, so I think I can finally devote some time to a new manuscript. Maybe. I haven’t worked on one in almost a year. I’m not expecting second round of revisions for NOBODY’S LADY (which will most likely have a new title in time, by the way!) until October.

Posted in Writing

WIPMarathon 18

Posted on by Amy McNulty

Last report wordcount + chapter count/scene count:

1. Short story: 9996 words (first round of revisions done and turned back in to publisher)

2. NOBODY’S LADY (NEVER VEIL 2), returned to me for first round of revisions: 69,931 words, 28 chapters

Current report WC + CC/ SC:

1. Short story: 10,003 words (second and final round completed! Just waiting on a proofread/publisher approval)

2. NOBODY’S LADY (NEVER VEIL 2), 67,652 words, 28 chapters (As of right now, I’ve been approving deletions to improve wordiness mostly, but I still have more to do and will probably be adding scenes. Revisions are due at the end of the month, too. Gah, I wish I had more days off from work!)

WIP Issues This Month: Work/life/fiction writing balance!! ;-; Heeeelp….

Four things I learned this month in writing: 1. I love fiction editing and writing and really wish I could devote more of my time to it.

2. Supporting other authors is awesome and makes you feel less alone!

3. My first drafts can be very wordy.

4. Revising is a lot of work!

What distracted me this month while writing: More work than I can handle, but I’ve been trying to balance everything. I also went to Chicago twice (check out photos here), once to Lincoln Park Zoo with my boyfriend and once to the Field Museum/Navy Pier with him and his family. (Including a 3-year-old and a 1-year-old! Very cute and energetic!) My boyfriend and I also celebrated our 10th anniversary just yesterday! 0-0 But we were both so busy with work, we didn’t do much besides go out to eat. (But we usually do that on Fridays anyway.)

I also joined “Waiting on 2016,” an awesome group spearheaded by fellow WIPMarathoner Suzanne van Rooyen (our own Emma L. Adams is a member, too) for authors with NA, YA or MG books coming out in 2016. Not just for debuts or big 5 publishers, it’s the first open group of its ilk I’ve had a chance to join. I opened an account on Wattpad while I was at it, so “follow” me there if you have an account.

I still haven’t been able to announce what the short story will be in! But I’m crossing my fingers for this month.

Goal for next month: I HAVE TO finish my first round of revisions to NOBODY’S LADY this week, even if I have a lot of work to do as well. After that, I’m going to finish editing the second book in the Smoke and Mirrors series for my friend Melissa Giorgio. (The first book came out this week! Check it out here!) Then I’ll finally be *free* for a time (until I get more revisions back). I may start working on my YA suspense page-1-rewrite. More likely, I’ll try to get ahead with work instead, though. *sigh*