Hey guys, welcome back! Sorry it’s been a minute since I’ve been here. I’ve still been really sick and haven’t really been up for writing a post lately. However, I didn’t want you to think that I’ve disappeared!
Throughout the whole illness, I’ve still been working hard on the editing of my book and now, deep into the second go around, I’ve finally been cutting the words that I need to. (I hate it though, not gonna lie.) I think I’ve also figured out a couple of chapters that can be completely rewritten and moved around to cut even more.
I’m not gonna lie, it’s been hard. Not just because I haven’t wanted to face the fact that I need to cut so much, but I’m tired constantly and sometimes the words are all meshing together. I’m kind of interested to see what I’ll read during the third read through to see just what I’ve done this last time around. Lol
With all of this going on, I’ve been happily reading some fall themed books and trying to keep in the feel of my favorite time of the year. I may not be able to get outside, but I can live vicariously through the words of other authors who have been giving me all the autumn small town feels.
Anyway, I am so happy you guys are sticking with me and I hope to get posts out on a more regular basis once again. Hoping for either a better diagnosis (or drugs) this week when I go to the doctor and I’ll take it from there!
In the meantime, be good, be safe and have a few pumpkin spice lattes in my honor!!!
Need something to read? I’m a PangoBooks Ambassador! Get $5 off your order with my link and code: https://pangobooks.com/NEWCHAPTERCOVE use code: NEWCHAPTERCOVE
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Already started holiday shopping and need ideas? Click one of my shop links on this site. Or…for my vintage and estate jewelry: linktr.ee/stuffwefind for fun stuff I’ve designed like stickers, bookmarks, tshirts and accessories: linktr.ee/stuffwemade
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If you’ve made it this far, I thank you and will see you soon. ☺️
Hey guys, welcome back! Hope everyone out there is doing well! Just here for a quick post to say hello and give a fast update on my progress. So far? It’s been a trainwreck.
It seems that cutting words from the manuscript is proving to be a vicious challenge. I am having so much trouble trying to figure out where cuts should take place! I had to cut the book into two sections so I could fit the entire thing into the app to work on. In the first section, I cut over 3000 words…ok good start. This week in the second section? At one point I added words! It was unintentional of course. I was trying to reword a paragraph and ended up with a higher word count. As I get closer to the last chapters, I’m having trouble with where to make cuts in them.
The one light at the end of this twisted tunnel is that I think I’ve figured out a sideways solution to this situation. Rearrange the chapters, the dialogue, the story and then doing major cuts with the old work. I believe that by possibly making the book into a sort of jigsaw puzzle, my problem may be resolved. In the meantime, I’m finding myself getting distracted and getting off track during the process and that is a red flag for me. I do have a bit of ADD but while I’ve been working on this book, I’ve been laser focused on it. To suddenly be distracted? That worries me that it will take me much longer to get this finished than I had hoped. Of course, it could just be the panicking of the cuts that has my mind going in different directions.
The one thing that will always ground me of course is reading. As I said in my last post, I had been rereading a series to gear up for the newest addition to it and now that it finally arrived? I’m diving in all the way. So far this book is exactly what I’ve been waiting for and I’m excited to keep going with it. The one thing about this series is that it has kept me grounded with my own writing, both this reading and the previous one and right now, I’m holding onto that. I have absolutely no idea if that makes any sense, but then again, my brain is currently mush right now.
Anyway, I can’t recommend doing something like reading for yourself to escape more. Escaping, even mentally, can help in so many other ways. It’s how we reset our minds for other things like the dreaded word…responsibility. So whatever your escape of choice is: listening to music, crafting something, picking up a book, going for a walk, it all helps you reset to be your best self. Now that Fall is here, maybe going pumpkin or apple picking, watching something scary, or decorating for Halloween is the way to go!
And that is where I will leave you for today. Short, sweet and a little off course, but as always, I hope you’ve gotten something out of this post.
To check out the series I’m reading, hit the 2025 On the Bookshelf tab up above on the site to see what I’ve been reading this year. The series is under the author Laurie Gilmore, just click her name to find the books!
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Need something new to read? I’m a proud PangoBooks ambassador! Click on my link to get $5 off of your first order. PangoBooks is a great way to buy used books super cheap and you can sell them as well: https://pangobooks.com/NEWCHAPTERCOVE
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To find some fun Halloween and Fall themed designs (that I’ve designed) on stickers, tshirts, mugs and so much more, you can check out my shops: linktr.ee/stuffwemade
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If you’ve gotten this far, I thank you! Thanks for being here and I’ll see you real soon. 🎃
Hey guys, welcome back! I once again dropped the ball after not having posted twice last week, but I was both celebrating the finishing of the first draft and then did a deep dive into editing hell. lol I’ve also still been sick, so between trying to do massive word count cuts in the manuscript and trying to breathe, I’ve been laying low.
It’s been quite a daunting revelation this whole word count issue. If you missed my previous post, I completed the first draft of my manuscript that I began in April and went wayyyy over the word count that is normally accepted by the industry. And by way over, I mean, well over 300,000 words. So I am here to tell you that editing hell is a real place and you don’t need a passport to get there!
However, I am here to say that in the first week, I’ve already cut close to 3000 words and have figured out places where big chunks could also be taken out. I’m not going to lie, this is all killing me. To me, there is a definite progression to my story, as it should be of course and everything written (in my mind at least) is important to the story as a whole.
I’ve tried finding places where I could just cut the book into several, but then it wouldn’t make sense. Yes, there will be a sequel/possible series from these characters, but this is the first one. The one with the background stories, the one with the whole ‘getting to know you’ stuff. The one that is supposed to have the readers wanting to come back for more! (I don’t want to cut anything!) And I’ll be honest here and tell you that on more than one occasion, as I sit in the dark and become merciless with the delete button, I stop and do a little whining and apologize to my characters…you know, like a grown up.
While all of this is going on, I’ve still been reading a ton and since I’m in the process of rereading a series that I’ve already read two other times, I’m really paying attention this time to how the author connects the stories. Trying to figure out how I can do that with my own. By the way, I’m reading these books again because there is a new one that just came out and I want to familiarize myself with the characters again. Also because they are great Fall reads and I need the escape. Not that I need to justify it, but yet, here I am doing just that.
I’ve also become late to the party and currently obsessed with Hamilton. Only took me ten years to watch this and now I can’t stop. I’ve also developed the mantra, “what would Lin-Manuel do” when it comes to editing. I’m sure with the way his genius mind works, many of the songs were freestyled first and then edited down. I’ve now dubbed him my own personal yoda and if he is reading this right now? Hi! Wish Hamilton had been around when I was still involved with theater myself, but that’s ok. I now sing the songs around my house daily.
I don’t know if you can tell from this post but between the editing and my illness? I’m slightly losing it. I’m working so hard on this book and trying to make it its best while also trying like hell to make sure I don’t cut or rework things into something that makes no sense. I’m not sleeping right as the score of Hamilton plays over and over in my head and then mixes with the scenes I eithe just got rid of in the book or scenes that I’ve now realized I can get rid of without it affecting the story.
Writing was the easy part for me. The rest is heartache. Hopefully what I am left with is something that will not only want to be read, but more importantly, that I can be proud of. Because if I’m not, then what the hell is this all for anyway, right?
And that is where I will leave you for today. Sorry if it went to a weird place, but that’s the kind of place I’m in right now. I think we very now and then, it’s ok to go there. It’s what makes life less boring.
Until next week…cheers all! 😉
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If you’d like to follow me on social, including my (happily) growing booktok: linktr.ee/promosocially
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To read the Dream Harbor series I’m currently reading, start with book one…The Pumpkin Spice Cafe. Small town romance with a bit of spice and quirky characters. (Btw, they get a little spicier as the series goes on. Not dark by any means, but don’t let the cozy covers fool you. These are adult books.) As of this post, the ebook is currently free on prime reading and you can go to author Laurie Gilmore’s page to find the order in which to read them. To check out the first book, click: HERE
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To find some fun Halloween and Fall items that I’ve designed, you can find them across my shops: linktr.ee/stuffwemade
Hey all, welcome back, hope you all had a great weekend. I’m going to jump right in, because I’m so excited to announce that I have finished the first draft of my book! Woo-hoo!
I still can’t believe it’s done and of course now the hard work really needs to happen, the serious editing. If you’ve been following along here, you know that I’ve been editing like crazy throughout this process including over the course of five rereads of the manuscript. However, just as I feared, I went over the word count goal. Not even by a little bit either.
From doing all of my research on how to get published traditionally, when submitting to a literary agent, there is a magical word count number that will get you noticed. Depending on the genre and the agent, it can be from 80,000 to 140,000 with the sweet spot being about 100,000. Mine isn’t even close to this.
When I checked my count, I was more than shocked to find that since April, I have written, (are you ready?) 437,404 words! And no, that is not a typo.
I knew I was in trouble when I was combining the chapters into one document and Google docs wouldn’t allow any more chapters into it. Did you know that there is a 1.5mil character limit in docs? Well, now you do. And so do I! I had to break the book up into two separate files.
I’ve done editing work in the past for others and have been brutal when I needed to be. But this is my own work. To me, every word is needed for the story to unfold properly. I’m now rethinking this of course. It is unbelievable to me that I have to cut almost 340,000 words of my own work. I have only rarely in my life used the word unfathomable, but I think this occasion calls for it.
Apparently I write the way I talk and if you know me in person, you know this to be true.
So now comes phase two. Lots of cutting, lots of red ink on printed pages and lots of my work going down the drain as I figure out how to shape this story into something that will not only get the attention of an agent, but will make sense and be readable to my future audience. To say that I’m totally screwed is an understatement but I am up for the challenge!
Of course the real challenge is also going to be not writing the sequel while I’m editing this one…although I have thought about using what I cut from this work in the next book. Seems sensible, no?
Anywhoo, that’s what’s going on here. While I’m more than happy and ecstatic that this book is now in its next phase, I’m already panicked about the work that needs to be done. For now? I’m going to enjoy the accomplishment and maybe, take the night off.
And that is where I’m leaving you for today. Until next time…cheers! ☺️
Hey guys, welcome back! I want to take a second to say thank you to everyone who has been reading my ramblings. It means so much that you come to see what’s been going on and those who keep coming back? I love you guys! I do hope that means that you’ve been getting something out of what I’ve been writing about. Anyway, I just wanted to let you know that I never take for granted those who support myself and this site. It is more than appreciated. ☺️
And now, the ramblings!
In my previous post I was talking about all the rereads of my manuscript that I’ve been doing. What I failed to mention is that because of reading it over and over, I haven’t been doing a lot of actual writing. I had stalled out with coming up with the last chapters. So I figured if I read the book all over again, it would not only spark ideas, but would also be a chance for more edits.
I had been adding to the book during editing, so in that respect, I have written a sentence here…a few words there. However, over the last two days, I’ve written a chapter and a half and it feels so good to be writing again!
Creativity is a tricky thing. I don’t care what your thing is. Meaning, whether you write music or books, create ceramics or works on canvas, make jewelry or bookmarks (that is also me), we ALL go through blocks. I made jewelry for over twenty years and there would be months when nothing would come to me. No ideas whatsoever. Then suddenly, I’d get a burst of creative energy and I’d make ten pieces in a few hours. The spark will come back, it’s really the definition of ‘trusting the process.’
I wrote an article for LinkedIn years ago, (I’ll post the link below), called Creatives Inspire Creatives. It really is so true. I could look at a photograph and get inspired because of the way the photographer made me feel. I could read another author’s book and suddenly an idea, (that has nothing to do with what I’m reading by the way, just want to make that clear), will hit me. We feed off of each other. There is something about the creative mind that attracts others and for that, I am truly grateful.
I’m currently reading a favorite book series for the third time. The latest in the series came out this week and I wanted to familiarize myself with all the characters again. Thanks to the second book, I found where I needed to go with my own characters. Again, not taking anything from this author, it’s just that while I’m reading, my mind frees up and suddenly I get inspired. Not only that, I’ve been paying attention to how the books flow from one to the other as I’ve decided to make my current book its own series. I’m constantly learning from other authors and I highly recommend doing that. I also pay serious attention to the acknowledgments at the end of the book to see who they thank. Their agent’s name, publishing house, editors, everyone. It helps me to look them up and see if they are looking for submissions and if they’d be a good fit for my work.
Speaking of getting inspired by other authors, thanks to #Booktok, I’ve become online friends with several others out there. I can’t tell you what a relief it is to see posts that, while funny as hell sometimes, completely sum up what the writing process is like. From banging a head on a desk hoping to jog the mind into an idea, to trying to come up with a one hundred word author bio, to yelling into pillows when things just aren’t going right that day…it’s been like therapy for me. Booktok does for me what I hope this site does for you. Make me realize that I’m not alone in the struggle. We all go through our own little breakdowns now and then and we need to know that it’s not just us. I mentioned a few posts ago that I was battling the three hundred word summary for my submission emails. I was thankful as hell to see that MANY other authors out there had the same issue. So hey, it’s not just me! (And it’s not just you either.)
Booktok is also a great place to discover your next read. Sooooo many book recommendations out there and many by indie authors trying to get their work into more hands. I’ve discovered lots of new authors who are doing their best to hustle and show the world that months or even years worth of work are ready to be enjoyed. If you are a reader and want to check it out? There’s several hashtags to be used on TikTok to join the fun! #booktok #bookish #readng #booktokfyp and so many more. You can even narrow it down by genre: #romancebooks #darkfiction etc.
And that’s where I will leave you for today! Again, I thank you for being here and hope you’ve gotten something out of this post!
Have a great weekend! Until next time…
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If you’d like to follow me on social, including my own #booktok, shop my shops (including shopping directly through my linktree): linktr.ee/promosocially
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To read my article, Creatives Inspire Creatives click: HERE
(to see other past articles, hit the ‘past works’ on this site)
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Find a new title on Booktok that you want to check out but don’t want click one of my Amazon links to get it? That’s ok! I’m a PangoBooks Ambassador! It is a great app/site where you can buy used books nice and cheap!! I got two for $1.38 each on my first order!! Use my link to get $5 off your first order, click: HERE
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Looking for some fun Halloween tshirts and stuff? Be sure to check out my various shops with designs done by me: linktr.ee/stuffwemade
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The book series I mentioned above is the one by author Laurie Gilmore. Book one is The Pumpkin Spice Cafe. Just a note on this series…the covers are cute and cozy, the stories are small town romance and there is a bit of spice to them. So make sure the kids don’t think it’s something for them! (Never judge a book by it’s cover is so true here.) Bonus FYI…if you are an ebook reader, as of this post, you can get a FREE copy for Kindle/Kindle app through Prime Reading. For all formats click: HERE
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By the way, I’ve been trying to sell a domain for a few years now and the name would be perfect for fantasy writers, musicians, medieval folks, even Harry Potter fans. It was my old jewelry site that I shut down a while ago and I’d really like it to sell so I can stop paying for it. I’m not responsible for the pricing, but you can find out more: TheGoblet.com
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If you’ve made it this far, I thank you!! Being a ‘starving artist’ means every time you click on stuff on the site or donate to my Ko-Fi, it helps to support my site (and me too). I thank you again for being here and will see you again real soon. 🍁
New Chapter Cove 