March Highlights // 2017

CAMP NANOWRIMO HAS BEGUN! 

*freaking out freaking out freaking out freaking out freaking out* I'm terrified and excited and pumped and nervous and have allll the feelings, but first let's look at the monthly highlights. :P

Even though this month was crazy busy, it wasn't particularly eventful? Just the normal daily grind of alll the tasks. A few exciting highlights happened, though, especially turning seventeen! I'm still wrapping my head around the whole "ohmygosh I'm one year from being an adult." It's a rather scary thought but I can worry about that more as it gets closer. :P

It was also my mommy's birthday, and my sister made amazing chocolate covered strawberries. (which were quite photogenic. I love photographing food, but whenever I see the pictures later I immediately get hungry and wistful about all the eaten goodies :P)

I also got sick for the first time in forever, which was entirely inconvenient since I had to cancel a bunch of plans. -.- And it was the type of sick that I didn't feel like doing anything, not even reading. Thankfully it was only for a few days, but still. :P

One year ago (on the 23rd) I applied to Starbucks. I've already almost been working there for a year! o.o The time has gone by craaaazy fast, and I'm still enjoying it immensely. (I had three days off this week and found myself getting antsy to go back. So I guess that's a good sign. xD)

Speaking of working... I had my first ever morning shift. I am not a morning person. Ahem. It did not go well. [story's in the twitter thread below and you might have to click and go to the twitter site to view it?]

**STORY THREAD**

Titled: Bad Things Happen When I Wake Up Early

— Katie Grace (@KatieGraceWrite) March 25, 2017

The Scorch Trials [3/5]
The Lost Girl of Astor Street [4.5/5]
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire [5/5]

Yep. Only three books. My monthly book counts are getting lower with each month that passes. By the end of the year I'll be reading a negative amount of books in my wrap-up posts. xD

I'm currently in the middle of three books (I almost never read books at the same time, but one's for fun, one I'm buddy-reading, and the other's for school...), so I should be able to finish all of those up pretty easily next month even with the Camp NaNo craziness.

And how is it that I'm usually able to make my writing and blogging goals, but reading is completely different? I set a goal for seven books this month. SEVEN. Ha. *sighs* I keep saying that I'll "read more when I have time," but I'm not seeing any extra time appearing in the near future. BUT I'M GOING TO CONQUER MY GOODREADS GOAL OF 100 BOOKS NO MATTER WHAT. (so I say...)

I got three books for my birthday, which is awesome, but now I'm looking at my shelves and very quickly realizing that I don't have room for more books. Ahem. I just got this bookshelf last year. -.- But I'm not complaining -- I'm completely fine with lining my floor with books meanwhile. :P

AND LOOK AT ONE OF THE BOOKS I GOT! (gifted by the ever-lovely Nadine Brandes. you should all go read her books immediately) It's a special edition of Heartless. LOOK AT THE GORGEOUSNESS. *screaming forever* I haven't stopped staring at it and it's so hard to tear my eyes awaaayyy.

Most of March was filled with frantic rewriting (aka my favorite thing in the whole wide world. *sarcasm*). I was a little nervous that I wouldn't be able to finish the draft before Camp, but I went into ninja-editing-mode, complete with candlelight, fuzzy blankets, and calming music, and got it done. <3

*happy sigh at the pretty candlelight*

So, after I finished the rewrite, I traveled to the magical world of PLOTTING! *squeee* It's insane how much I actually enjoy plotting. (especially since I used to look upon it with glares and cringing shudders) It's calming now -- I do all my plotting on paper so there aren't many distractions, and no headache-inducing screen. It almost makes me want to try writing a novel by hand. Almost. But not quite. ;) (maybe someday...?)

AND YES, THAT IS A UNICORN MUG. (thanks to my aunt!) HIS NAME IS ELWOOD. He'll be helping me with all my Camp NaNo craziness this month, most likely filled with coffee or chai. <3

For Camp, I'm writing my prequel to Where Shadows Lie. It explains the story of Eerie's parents -- before she was born -- and the history of the mysterious island. :D 

I don't have as much of a plot as I would prefer, but since I've always pantsed my novels in the past, I'm just going to go with it. (more exciting and unpredictable that way... right? :P) My goal is to write the first draft, but it's hard to set a word goal because I'M SO BAD AT ESTIMATING WORD COUNTS. So either this book could be an easy 60k, or a massive 100k. (for the sake of my insanity, I dearly hope it's not the latter.)
For now I've set my goal at 75k. If you want to stalk my stats... here's my Camp NaNo profile.

(and because we're insane, Aimee and I are starting off NaNo with a #10k1day. send help and pizza. xD)

I've mulled over what to do for blogging this month for quite awhile. (sigh, decisions have never been my strong point) I don't want to not blog, but yet it will be tough to take every Friday off of writing so I can write my blog post instead.

So, I've decided that I will still post weekly, but they will be Camp-related posts. (whether it be a wrap-up, a lil vlog update, snippets, general craziness, first drafts, etc.) This should make them a teensy bit  easier to write, so even though I'll still be blogging for the majority of the day, I'll have a some time for writing. 

(and hey, if you have any Camp-related topics you want me to write on, send them my way)

I wish you all the best of luck on your Camp NaNoWriMo adventures! It's going to be crazy insane. xD

<3,
katie grace

what are you working on for Camp?

what's your word count goal?