I am DEEP in the second week slump of NaNo. While I am often that person who touts “Hope springs eternal”, I don’t really have a prayer of reaching 50k. And I’m okay with that. I didn’t really think I would. The thing that’s falling to the wayside seems to be the novella (for which I still have not hit on the right title, though thanks to all the folks who offered suggestions). I’m smack dab in the middle. I have my outline and know mostly how the rest of the plot unfolds, but my brain isn’t too interested in it this week. Instead it was hijacked by a new character in the bathroom earlier this week (I know, really), whom I believe I’ll offer up as a Flash Friday blurb tomorrow so you can at least see who has been occupying my time. She seems to be finished talking to me for a while, so I have no idea what her story is or where it fits in with…anything, but she’s introduced herself, which means that my brain will be percolating on her as we go forward. I have, thankfully, been moving forward at a steady pace on my lectures, thank God. I have 3 remaining. So that part, at least, I feel confident that I will successfully complete for NaNo. Yay for sanity.
Yesterday, instead of writing a single word (I did try. I stared at the unfinished scene I was working on, then at the blank next scene and nothing came.), I went on a reading binge. Hubby was late getting home, so after I got supper started, I sat down with Simon Holt’s The Devouring, which is aptly titled as I tore through it in 2 and a half hours. Some seriously creepy stuff in there, though thankfully I did not have nightmares like I did after reading Strange Angels (It’s the zombies, I tell you! Though, The Devouring did have a scary ass clown. If you have seen or read It and aren’t afraid of clowns, there’s something wrong with you.). I’m really intrigued by how dark a lot of the stuff coming out for teens is now. They didn’t do that when I was a teen. They played it safe. Which is probably why I didn’t read much teen fiction when I was that age and just skipped right over to the adult stuff.
In any event, following The Devouring, I started Maggie Stiefvater’s Shiver. Oh. My. God. I love this book. I’m only about 25 pages in, and I’m already hooked on the voice and the characters. I certainly have not been able to say that about many books I’ve picked up this year. Maggie, my hat goes off to you. I actually heard about the sequels to both Shiver and The Devouring first and went back to find the first ones. I’m always really happy when that happens because then I have something immediately to turn to when I love it. Except that with Shiver I don’t. Linger doesn’t come out until NEXT SUMMER. That makes me want to wail. I hate waiting for good books. It’s not that I don’t have lots of other things to read, but when I have something that I know is going to be good (as opposed to the stacks of TBRs that might not be), I like to be able to dive right in.
Anyway, I’ll be taking Shiver with me on this weekend’s campout/motorcycle rally down in DeSoto State Park. I may do a little writing by hand if I’m so inclined (I won’t be going on one of the planned rides, so I get the nice empty campground to myself), but I’m not going to be counting on it. It’ll be good for me to unplug and recharge with nature. Supposed to be gorgeous weather, just perfect for camping. There will be hot dogs and marshmallows (because the presence of campfires demands the roasting of tasty things on sticks). And it will be me and about 35 men. Because I am, apparently, the only “cool wife” who actually rides and is not just showing up Saturday night for the big cookout dinner. This should be entertaining.