Monday Check In

Last week...

Writing Related: Augh! Last week was a terrible writing week. I only got about half of the number of pages written that I wanted/planned to. So many unexpected things popped up that ate into my writing time. I'm about 500 words short of reaching my goal of hitting the 30k mark by the end of January. I'll get those written this week along with my usual weekly word count goal. 

Motivational Quote: "Be committed and dedicated to what you do, no half measures." ~ Olufunke Baruwa

What I'm Reading: I started Atomic Habits by James Clear over the weekend. I'm not too far into it yet, but right now, I'm not sure how I feel about it. 

Random Thoughts: I can't believe it's February already. Not that I'm complaining. The faster we get through the winter months and are done with snow, the happier I am. January usually drags on forever for me so I'm surprised how quickly the month went by this year. 

Random Photo:

These crocuses popped up in my yard last spring. I'm looking forward to seeing them again this year.
 

 

Monday Check In

Last week...

Writing Related: Another good writing week last week. I also fit in a writing related class that I hope will help with future releases.

Motivational Quote:  "Where you are today is a result of your thought of yesterday." ~ Halima Musa

What I'm Reading: I picked up two books from the library on Friday. One is Things We Never Got Over by Lucy Score. I've never read anything by Ms. Score but I've heard great things about the book. I have to admit I'm a little wary of starting it. The book has 552 pages. I didn't realize it was that long. My concern is I don't have a lot of free time to read and am worried I might not be able to finish it before it's due to be returned to the library. The second book is Atomic Habits by James Clear. I'm trying to build better habits this year and hope this book might help me achieve that.

Random Thoughts:  I eat a snack after dinner two or three times a week. I have the snack even if I'm not hungry. It's become a habit that I don't need to be doing. One of the ways I'm trying to break the habit is by crocheting in the evenings while I'm spending time with my mom or watching TV. If my hands are busy, I'm hoping it'll keep me from needing the snack. I also won't want to eat anything while working on a project so nothing happens to it. Hopefully, I'll break the habit and end up with a new throw blanket for the sofa in the process.  

Random Photo: 

                          Mrs. Green keeping me company as I write Caine's book.
 

Reading for Research

I read a great deal when researching an idea for a book. It's important to me that I get the facts right when I'm writing about something I have no knowledge of. I have a number of non-fiction books on my bookshelves relating to the Regency period, but I also have books about mythical creatures. I have an encyclopedia of serial killers, a guide book to poisons, a book on deadly killing skills (the title always makes me smile since killing skills would make them deadly, but I digress), a book about the origin of the pistol, and one about combat fighting skills. I also have two books about pirates just to name a few. 

Will I ever need or use any of the information in those books? I've used the Regency period books quite a lot as all of my books have been set in that time period. As for the others, I've used a snippet of information from one or two, but for the most part I was drawn to purchase them by their potential. I was so intrigued by the subject matter that I bought them even though at the time, I had no idea what I would use them for.

I also find that when I'm reading a fiction book for pleasure, I'll sometimes note how well the author handled a particular scene. I'll mark the page and after I've finished the book, I'll go back and deconstruct the scene hoping that I'll learn something about writing that type of scene, whether it be an action scene or a quiet one of introspection. So I guess you could say I read fiction as a form of research as well.

I've always read in a wide variety of subjects even before I started to pursue a writing career. Now I have a reason to buy all those books that whisper, "buy me, buy me" when I walk into a book store.