It's four in the morning, but I don't much care, because I made it to 25,000 words. It was slow going initially, but then things just started falling into place, and I stopped noticing the word count. I love it when that happens.

Halfway there!

Current word count: 25,143.

New goal: Get to 30,000 words by the 15th.

Story based Goal: To complete Chapter 5 of the novel.

In other news, romanticalgirl was absolutely wonderful and wrote a fic for me. I think that may have had something to do with my burst of inspiration; her stories often do that to me. Thanks again, romanticalgirl ! You're awesome!

And while I was taking a break from writing to surf deviantart; I saw something that was simultaneously amusing and disturbing...



I'm not sure there's anything I can say to make this any weirder. Feel free to have a go yourselves, though.

Current Word Count: 22,038.
Goal for today: To reach the halfway mark.

I'm currently a day (or 2,000 words) behind my preferred schedule, but I'm not too worried, especially with the weekend coming up.

I'm pleased with the way the novel's shaping up. All of the characters are behaving themselves, and I keep coming up with new ways to make sure the story ties together.

And then there are the moments where I sit back and realize that what I've just written is actually pretty good. The death scene I mentioned in my last post was one of them. And oddly enough, so was yesterday, where I wrote 2,000 words of porn.

Yes, you read that correctly.

( There's a reason I'm using this icon instead of the Plot Bunnies one= )

Dear William,

Up until today, I had written a grand total of two scenes with you. And yet in those two scenes, you showed your playfulness and sweet nature. What's more, you've been lurking in my mind, whispering ideas for further scenes. You made it supremely hard to do what I had to do.

Of course, it helps that you're based off of Ioan, so of course I'm not going to make you an arse. But you've worked hard to make yourself likable, which I think will help the novel overall.

And today, I took a deep breath, sat down, and wrote your murder/death scene.

William, you outdid yourself. The scene leading up to your death was pitch-perfect. Not a single line seemed forced, and every action seemed perfectly natural. I could almost see Ioan acting it out in a film version.

And then, when you were stabbed, you faced the end calmly and bravely. Despite the fact that you bled to death in the entrance hall of your home, you bore it as stoically as if you'd been killed in battle. You didn't give any signs that you were pissed at me for doing this to you.

I am so sorry I put you through this, but if all goes well, you won't have died in vain. Your death has added 1,534 words to the novel, and your sacrifice will set off a series of events that lead to some of the better scenes in the story. Besides, now I can write those sweet moments you've been nagging me about for the past few days.

Thank you for making it easy for me to write something so emotionally painful. I owe you big.

With respect and affection,
Ioanite

********************************************************************************************

Current word count: 13,673

If you want to read the scene, you can find it here, under "Novel Info" (although it may not work if you don't have an account): 

www.nanowrimo.org/eng/user/554136

And if you're morbid and would like an idea of how gut-wrenchingly awful I felt writing the moment where William slips away, here's a photo that's fairly similar to the expression on his face when he died.

( Click only if you WANT to feel depressed )

God, I need to cuddle with Ioan right now.

Current Word-Count: 6,062.

I'm pleased with my current word-rate. Like so many people, I did the calculations and discovered I need to write 1,666 words a day if I want to make the goal (a number that I think is wildly appropriate, given the plot of my story). In order to have a safety cushion, I write to the next thousand (I.E, if the goal is 7,856, I'll get to 8,000 before calling it a day).

Things that are going well:

1. I wrote in my last post that I thought what I'd sketched out in my head would net me 5,000 words. 6,000 words later, and there's still more from my original outline I can put in, in addition to more recent inspirations.

2. The dialogue is working fairly well. I have affectionate banter between my married couple and interesting exchanges between my other "couple".

3. The centerpiece of the story--a meeting between two of the main characters--is making excellent progress.

Things that I'm not too thrilled with:

1. I'm having trouble keeping the naming system clear. Since a lot of the scenes feature one character watching or talking with a mysterious character, I try really hard to keep it secret until the last minute, but it just garbles the syntax.

2. I cannot write accents to save my life. One of my characters is supposed to have a lower class accent, but I'm afraid to write it out that way for fear I'll take it to an extreme and be mocked for it.

3. As one would expect from me, there is a character in this story based on Ioan. He's a combination of William Wilberforce and Kenneth Grahame (from the upcoming "Banking on Mr. Toad"), and while I haven't written much with him, he's great to write for. The problem is, I'm growing extremely fond of his character. Ordinarily this wouldn't be a bad thing, except that if I want this novel to work, I have to kill him off. It would be one thing if his death scene happened offstage, or if it was painless, or if he died but came back through dreams or seances or something. But no, I had to decide that this story would feature a brutal death scene of a Ioan inspired character, and what's more, that he will have a goodbye scene. It's going to be very painful to write, and I have to do it quickly, or else I won't be able to do it at all, and the story's ruined. So you may see another post on here in a few days with me all depressed and in need of a hug. Maybe I'll even post the offending passage on here.

One way or another, wish me luck. Similarly, good luck to my fellow participants!

(And by the way, bumble_85 and whatever_freak , what are your screen names over on the official site? I'd love to add you to my Writing Buddies list.)

For whatever reason (the challenge, perhaps?) I've signed up to participate in National Novel Writing Month. I have an idea that I'm sketching out in my head, and I'm just waiting for November First so I can put it down on paper. The parts I've thought through so far could probably net me about 5,000 words, which is a start, I suppose.

Anyone else on my friends-list participating as well?

In unrelated news, it's been snowing pretty hard these last two days. The skies are almost perpetually grey, and the snowfall ranges from light flurries to giant flakes, but it's practically nonstop. It's going to be fun trying to get to this weekend's Halloween Party, let me tell you.

I'll leave you with some cuteness to brighten up your day.

( Guess the theme of these pictures... )

I have been posting WAY too infrequently on here. I blame life. Since I've just finished a big project, I decided that it's high time for a post.

I'm sure most people on LJ are aware of the community fandom_secrets. Reading some of the secrets, I was tempted to post some of my own, but frankly, if there's something I like or hate about a fandom, I'm going to be vocal about it and not care who knows it (Exhibit A; the fact that I pimp out the Hornblower miniseries at the drop of a hat).

With that in mind, here are two Ioan/Hornblower "secrets" of mine.

( Trust me, none of them are inappropriate. They are, however, extremely weird. )

A Very Happy Birthday to both Ioan and heidi_wiggin!!!

I hope both of you had a great day, celebrating in whatever way you saw fit.

Happy Anniversary, Ioan and Alice!

I was going to make another MMV, like I did last year, but I figure no present can top their new child, so I'll just wish them well.

And Ioan, I hope you spoiled Alice rotten. After what she went through to bring Ella Betsi into the world, she deserves it.

For one week, recommend/share:

Day one: a song
Day two: a picture
Day three: a book/ebook/fanfic
Day four: a site
Day five: a youtube clip
Day six: a quote
Day seven: whatever tickles your fancy

Being a movie buff, my rec for today will be a film.

( Day 7: Swash Your Buckles, Me Hearties! )

For one week, recommend/share:

Day one: a song
Day two: a picture
Day three: a book/ebook/fanfic
Day four: a site
Day five: a youtube clip
Day six: a quote
Day seven: whatever tickles your fancy

For one week, recommend/share:

Day one: a song
Day two: a picture
Day three: a book/ebook/fanfic
Day four: a site
Day five: a youtube clip
Day six: a quote
Day seven: whatever tickles your fancy

( Day 5: A Quite Interesting Clip )

Despite the fact that I am still reeling from Ioan's new parenthood (especially the 40 hour labor part; I just keep gaping in amazement), I figure I need to keep doing this meme. I've committed myself, and I don't want to back out.

For one week, recommend/share:

Day one: a song
Day two: a picture
Day three: a book/ebook/fanfic
Day four: a site
Day five: a youtube clip
Day six: a quote
Day seven: whatever tickles your fancy

( Day 4: Stand-Up Comic (Strip) )

Well, it finally happened. I've been checking IMDB daily for news on Alice's pregnancy, but it wasn't until last night that I decided to check Alice's news instead of Ioan's. And as it turns out, it paid off.

Ladies and gentlemen, as of September 6th...

Ioan is officially a Dad.

( Details under here )

For one week, recommend/share:

Day one: a song
Day two: a picture
Day three: a book/ebook/fanfic
Day four: a site
Day five: a youtube clip
Day six: a quote
Day seven: whatever tickles your fancy

( Day 3: Writers, Take Heart... )

For one week, recommend/share:

Day one: a song
Day two: a picture
Day three: a book/ebook/fanfic
Day four: a site
Day five: a youtube clip
Day six: a quote
Day seven: whatever tickles your fancy

( Day 2: A Strange Coincidence )

Yes, another Meme. This time, however, there's no guessing or tagging required. I found this on ghanistarkiller's journal, and since I enjoy making recommendations, I decided this meme was perfect for me.

For one week, recommend/share:

Day one: a song
Day two: a picture
Day three: a book/ebook/fanfic
Day four: a site
Day five: a youtube clip
Day six: a quote
Day seven: whatever tickles your fancy

( Day 1: My Favorite Song Ever )

As with others online, I'm absolutely bewildered that Disney is buying Marvel Comics. How is THAT going to turn out? I'm picturing animated superhero movies with wise-cracking talking animals. While it's easy to come up with companions for people like Spider-Man, Doctor Octopus, and Wolverine, I'm having trouble with the Fantastic Four's sidekick. Chameleon, maybe?

At any rate, the FF remake is a little easier to handle now. Ioan got out while the going was good.

( And SPEAKING of... )

I am finally back on LiveJournal, and I'm glad to be back. I missed you guys.

I wish I could come back with great stories, but I don't really have a lot of news.

So instead, here's a little list of some semi-interesting things I did during my hiatus.

( Some ramblings, and a really strange picture )
Looking forward to talking with my friends list again!

I'm going on an LJ hiatus for awhile, so I won't be posting or commenting. Think of this as a respite from fangirl squee.

So last Sunday I went to watch a certain film that one could summarize as "The Navy In Space", aka "Star Trek". It wasn't bad, but I felt it needed work. Granted, it is an origin story, so they have some kinks to smooth out, and maybe the next film will be better (But PLEASE, keep Scotty the way he was. He's the best part of the film.)

Anyway, I got home from the event and, in the course of letting my mind wander (It has a ten foot long leash), I remembered that I'd read somewhere that Gene Roddenberry based Kirk off of one Mr. Hornblower. That got me wondering how the Horatio we saw in the Miniseries would have reacted to the Kirk as portrayed in this Film. I don't think he'd have been overly thrilled with Shatner's Kirk, but this one would have made him blow a gasket.

From there, It made me start thinking about who the characters from Hornblower most resembled, beginning, of course with the HTHS. It didn't take that long, as the original "Star Trek" has a canon Holy Trinity of it's own.

( Engage! )
Also, Hornblower and Star Trek apparently have been connected more often than I thought: memory-alpha.org/en/wiki/Horatio_Hornblower