Author Journey: November 4, 2022 - NaNoWriMo is In Progress!

 I'm so excited to be writing again for this year's Nano event. I really didn't plan a novel since I already have so many to work on. But I'd been tossing around the idea of a collection of stories based on writing prompts. Since I started posting some prompts myself, I thought those would actually work for me this month. 

Author Journey: How's Nano Going So Far? 

Well, I promised you guys on Tuesday that I'd share the cover I created for this collection of short stories. I really do have no idea where they're going to go. But, if by next week I have something written which I'm proud of, I'll share it with you. As of 5:38 pm CST on Tuesday, I haven't written a thing. Yet. 

Anyway, here's that cover. I'm happy to share it with you because I think it came out pretty good. What say you?

Writer's Life: What's Up?

As you may know, if you've been reading my blog for a while, I haven't been able to get much writing done lately. Between school, softball, normal chores and extra pet care beyond the usual, my mind hasn't been in the best shape for writing. Too scattered and busy with what needs to be done and when. 

So now that we're done with softball, I can at least take that off my 'busy' list. I'm not even going to mention any of the other things, except to say school has been progressing better than previous years.  

This being the month for writing novels, I'm hoping to kick that back into a nice rhythm and keep going even after Nano is done. 

Just Keep Writing: Friday Fascicles

If this is your first time participating in this kind of writing exercise, you're in for a treat. If you've done this with me before, just keep scrolling for the prompt.

Rules:

1. You can use any/all of the words and/or the photo in the prompt below to create a unique written work. Fiction or nonfiction, poetry or prose, even lyrics are acceptable.  
2. Please keep the material you write clean (ie. nothing R-rated or worse) if you wish to share the link to your work here, as well as if you link back to my site. I strive to keep my site free of such things. My readers know and expect this. I respect your right to write whatever you feel you need to write. And you're free to use my prompts. But if your material is graphic, I'd rather not view it, and most of my readers will not wish to. 
3. Have fun! This type of exercise is perfect for growing in the writing craft, or for helping through a rough patch in your current WIP. If you're looking to push your author limits and you normally write in nonfiction prose, try a whimsical collection of lyrics. If you normally write poems about real life events, try your hand at a fanfic. Give yourself some room to explore.

Don't forget to leave a link to your creation (unless you're writing graphic material) so my readers and I can check out your work. I'd appreciate a link back to this post to help me reach more readers, but it's not required. 

Photo by Vlada Karpovich

This week's photos were all found in Vlada Karpovich's gallery on Pexels.com. I hope you'll click here to check out the amazing work Vlada's shared there. 

Just Keep Writing: Knock, Breathe, Shine

You didn't think I'd forget to post a bit of my current WIP, did you? I hope you're enjoying it. 

Chapter 10 - Making Way

They’d been taking little known paths for the last nainda, always heading east. Abandoned cottages and stables housed them whenever they and the pair of bix’n pulling Merili’s cart needed rest. She must take these paths often because Merili went straight to each place, took each turn in the path with confidence. 

“Do you have much trouble if you try to follow the main paths? Or are you taking these back paths because of me?” he asked. 

She shrugged. “There’ve been times the back paths served me well.” She paused to navigate around a hole. “Besides the obvious safety in taking such an unexpected route, it’s more quiet this way. I can hear myself think.”

He chuckled and nodded. Quiet was preferable in his opinion, too. It seemed they had something else in common. 

“Have you ever been to the shrine?” she asked. 

Eerk opened his mouth to answer when he caught a whisper of sound on an errant breeze. Snapping his jaw closed, he reached for the reins. “Where?” he murmured the question. She pointed, catching his meaning and he followed the direction of her wave, pulling off onto the verge. Finding an opening in the undergrowth took precious moments, but Kai’yanga was with them. As he spotted it, he hurried the bix’n through. Pushing deeper into the trees and shrubs, he hoped their passage wouldn’t show too much to the riders speeding up behind them. Mayhap they were in too much hurry to notice broken twigs. 

Jumping from the cart’s seat, he bounded to Merili’s side and helped her down. Silently, he directed her to hide among the shrubs. He was glad she wore dull-colored clothing this dawning. Once she was still, Eerk acknowledged he wouldn’t have been able to tell she was there had he not seen her hide. 

He made quick work setting up a makeshift camp as the pounding of the taloned feet of arb’la grew louder. At least three, if he didn’t miss his guess, followed them. As they neared, the pounding slowed. A sudden brushing and snapping told of their arrival. 

“Welcome, good people!” Eerk spoke in his most jovial tone, raised a tad higher than usual and colored with a hint of M’Neshunnayan inflection. “You’re just in time for liilum and ber’l tea, if you’d like.” 

“Who are you?” Mar’l barked at him. 

A genuine smile graced his face as he spoke. “Just a peddler, on my way to sell goods. Nothing energizes me like a bit of this tea,” he waved a finger at the warming kettle, “so I took a moment from traveling.” A stick sat near the fire and he took it up to poke at the growing flames. 

Eerk was never so glad he’d allowed Merili to lighten, cut, and style his hair differently. Instead of it brushing the middle of his back, gathered and tied with a thin strip of hide, his neck was now bare. Merili had actually trimmed his hair so short at the back and sides, he wondered whether she was going to shave him bald. However, she left some length in the top, so that it flopped to one side, resembling waves rushing at the lake shore. 

His brows were thinner and shorter now with a more pronounced arch. And he’d decided a nainda past to grow a beard, never imagining it might one dawning help disguise him. Thanks be to Kai’yanga it grew quickly! And in the first village, Merili had bartered for brighter, richer clothing which he now wore. Eerk bore little resemblance to the beggar the three rogues had been chasing a few dawnings ago. 

“My name’s Hywl Frithi.” Eerk gave them the most friendly smile he could manage. 

Mar’l scowled. “What are you doing with Merili’s bix’n? I’d know those beasts anywhere.”

Hywl, allowed himself a start of surprise and blinked as if confused. “Merili?” He stared at Mar’l for several heartbeats, then said, “I suppose that could’ve been the name of the irritated lady who reluctantly helped me. My own beast had gone lame when my cart hit a rock, then a deep rut. The cart’s axle split, one wheel cracked, and my poor Bora had to be sent on to Zoleta ahead of me.” Drawing up a tear or two wasn’t a problem. He’d lost dear friends over his 27 tsimikin and missed his family. The loneliness still struck him at times. 

Shaking his head, as if to rid himself of the sad memory, he glanced up at Mar’l. “The lady was helpful, in spite of her irritation. It seems I interrupted some important work. She allowed me to purchase her own cart and bix’n. I think I may have paid extra for the kindness, but I did take her away from whatever she was working on.” He shrugged. “Sometimes, a traveling peddler has to make do with whatever Tugansol provides, even when it drains the moneybag.” He shook his head, a rueful grin on his face. How long would they stay?

Thanks so much for reading up to this point. If you did, you get four gold sticky-stars. 

I have one more completed chapter of Knock, Breathe, Shine. While I'd like to keep working on it, I think I'm going to focus on my Nano project. Those stories will take place in Y'Dahnndrya, too, but they'll be much simpler and about new or side characters from the other novels I've written. That's always been kind of fun for me. 

I hope you come back for another visit on Monday. 

Until then...

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