NaNoWriMo starts tomorrow!

This is it - the last day of calm before the storm. The test of my dedication is about to begin. Am I up for it?

I guess I should mention that I've come up with a title for my novel: "What Dreams May Come." I've always felt that that should be the title, as the Shakespearian passage it comes from suits the novel so perfectly, but I really struggled with the fact that there are already books and movies out there with that name. However, I've decided I don't really care, as right now I am doing this for me. I can always change the title later (or an editor can, I suppose) if my working title doesn't suit.

I need to polish up my outline before tomorrow. Thinking about it in bed last night, I decided I needed a little more "oomph" in places. I hope to work on it later tonight, but right now I have a lot else that needs doing.

'Stay the Course' video

Website update

I updated my website to reflect my new ebook venture - I now have an ebooks page in my portfolio! Check it out!

Katharine Swan, ebook author

Thanks to a Success Story article on Writers Weekly about selling ebooks, I got started thinking last week about getting into the ebook business. Screw getting paid a crummy $100 or so (which is what many ebook publishers are offering their writers) to write an entire book. I can write the books myself and sell them on ebay.

I decided to test the waters with a doll stringing instructions booklet I had written for my technical writing class a year and a half ago. I started a free trial account with Adobe online, converted the file to a pdf (after a little touch-ups, of course), and listed my ebook on ebay.

I didn't know what to expect, so I priced my ebooks quite low. That means I only get a couple of bucks out of each one after the ebay fees are assessed, but at the same time, I'm hoping the low price will attract more buyers. It's a lot easier to take a chance on a $2.99 ebook than a $9.99 ebook (as I saw a similar ebook priced at).

So far I've sold 4 ebooks - and it's only been 4 days! I'm hoping to sell more by the time the listings end on Thursday. In any case, I think the ebook has proven itself worth listing again.

As soon as I have a chance, I'm going to start working on another ebook - one about restyling dolls' hair to copy the original set. I might also consider setting up an alternate ebay seller's account under my pen name, Katharine Swan.

Ugh

I had a rough weekend, and the last thing that I feel like doing right now is working. Unfortunately, I have a lot of work piled up, so I can hardly afford to take another night off.

I started feeling kind of sick Thursday night. I didn't pay it much attention, just noticed I was having a hard time working. Friday was worse - I felt queasy all day. By Friday evening, I felt so bad that I couldn't work at all. I went to bed early, and slept late on Saturday, too. And then I was tired much earlier than usual Saturday night, as well. I got a little work done Saturday, but then my wrist started hurting Saturday night (I get symptoms of either carpal tunnel or repetitive strain injury sometimes), which kept me from working as well.

Today I felt better, but I had a toy show to go to, for an article I'm writing. As a result of being sick and having other stuff to do today, I just haven't gotten much work done in the past few days. It's pathetic.

As always after being away from work for a few days, I have the feeling of not wanting to work, combined with the unfortunate reality of having a lot of work built up that I really need to get done; and as a result I want to work even less.

Well, I guess I had better suck it up and see how much I can get done tonight before I get tired again. Since my body's first reaction whenever I'm sick (or getting over being sick) is always to sleep a lot, I will probably not last much longer tonight.

Don't forget to vote!

Thomas Jefferson once said:

"We in America do not have government by the majority. We have government by the majority who participate."

Please be part of those who participate this election! We need every vote we can get if we are to oust the conservatives!

NaNoWriMo: What am I getting myself into?

I'm not actually reconsidering my commitment to NaNoWriMo, but Will Write For Chocolate had an amusing comic about the pressures of making time for an average of 1,666 words of fiction a day. (Actually, 1,667, since you should round up.) It sounds rather like my take on it, except for me it's reading and watching movies with Michael that I'm not willing to give up. Everything else can go, but...

I have a feeling Eliza is in for a rocky month. It'll be fun to see how it goes for her...and for me!