From My Cabin In The Middle Of Camp NaNo…

Oh wait. Did I forget to mention that I’m at camp this month? Yeah. I’m sharing a cabin with Karen Pokras and Catherine Stine on the grounds of the beautiful Camp NaNoWriMo.

bedroom in log houseHow do you like my room?

Log house-poolAnd what about our pool and patio?

Okay, okay. So the cabin is actually a virtual cabin on the Camp NaNo website, and ‘my’ room and the pool are just photos of where I wish I was right now. I nabbed them at Morguefile.

But … Karen and Catherine are very real. (don’t you think it’s cute how all of our names begin with the ‘k’ sound?)

Karen is kicking my butt in word count and, until two nights ago, so was Catherine. Unfortunately, Catherine hasn’t updated her word count for a couple of days, so my feelings of elation (similar to Rocky Balboa running up that humongous flight of steps) are, I fear, going to be brief.

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That was me last night when I realized I’d just bumped her to third place. I could hear everyone shouting, Kristy! Kristy! Kristy! I ignored the little voice whispering in my ear, reminding me that I’d be resuming that position at some point today. But just for a moment… Just for a moment, I am in second place. I hope that just brought a tear to your eye because it should have. I think this bit of acting is worthy of an Oscar nomination.

Seriously though, I’m loving every minute of camp. I’m using the challenge to try and write the complete first draft for Nolan’s book, one of two sequels for Laying Low in Paradise (in the Casteloria series). By the way, that book is now permanently free on iTunes, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, and Smashwords.

One more thing before I get started (in an effort to maintain my tenuous lead over Catherine)…

I was just thinking about the difference between this experience with NaNoWriMo, and my first one – where I wrote Holding Out For Love in twelve days, along with the first draft of Erin’s Christmas Wish (plus something else that escapes me at the moment) in November 2012. Setting a reasonable goal, like I’ve done this time, makes life a whole lot easier. I’ve also found that writer’s block isn’t as much of an issue as it is when trying to double your word count.

When I get too stressed out, strange things begin to happen. For example, the incident below occurred in the midst of my trying to write 100,000 words in 30 days (instead of the normal 50,000)…

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Kristy’s Rules to Overcome Writer’s Block (aka…what to do when you’re stuck in the middle of a scene):

1. Remember that a bowl of popcorn, and cup of hot cocoa will solve most writer’s block dilemmas.
2. It is always best to STOP thinking about the story you’re stuck in the middle of when preparing the popcorn.
3. Placing the cover on the hot air corn popper increases the likelihood of said popcorn actually landing in the bowl.
4. Pressing 30 seconds on the microwave to melt butter works better when you push ‘Start’ rather than ‘Clear.’ This the hardest rule to remember when experiencing a writer’s block crisis, and causes the most confusion when you continue to find a lump of butter in the bowl. Sometimes it can take as many as three tries to hit the correct button.
5. Remember the spoon so you can eat it like cereal and you’re golden. But keep Lysol wipes to clean the keyboard handy, just in case.
6. When you finally remember that you left your hot cocoa sitting on the counter because of the confusion over the Start/Clear buttons on the microwave, just pour it in a microwave safe mug and…warm it up…in…the…..oops…microwave. The one that still has the ‘Clear’ button on it.

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5 Responses to From My Cabin In The Middle Of Camp NaNo…

  1. karenmcfarland says:

    Go Kristy, go! You are an inspiration girl. I am on the sideline cheering you on! 🙂

  2. kitsyclare says:

    Haha, this is very funny and entertaining. I am on the road right now, in Philly for the American Idol concert. Yes, it was hokey but man, those kids can sing. Plus we got backstage passes and took selfish! But lookout., I will soon be back at my writer’s desk. Lol

    • Kristy K. James says:

      Uh-oh! I’d best get writing (and writing, and writing, and writing). Of course, I’d also best get a little more sleep or I could wind up sending the characters to Venus for a honeymoon. 😀

      My daughter would be SO jealous! American Idol AND backstage passes? She would be totally green with envy. 😀

  3. karentoz says:

    Hahaha… wait. Does the winner get a trophy? Too bad none of us are competitive or anything. I think I need to go buy some popcorn. And.. let me just mention… you’d probably get a lot more writing done if you weren’t spending precious writing hours, reading through & correcting my stuff. 😉 Have I thanked you lately? xoxo

    • Kristy K. James says:

      If you mean write like I did for the 2012 NaNo…no thank you! I skip back and forth over the line be between sane and insane like it’s a jump rope, I’m afraid if I set a 100,000 word goal again, I’d be stuck on the WRONG side of that line forever. I’ll let you decide which side that is, lol.

      I need popcorn, too. I might have to make a quick trip to the theater after the movie starts tonight and pick up a bag…

      And you’re welcome. 😀 xoxo

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