Dear Pop Culture Vlog: Most Anticipated 2012 Movies

Dear Word Count Wednesday

And you thought I never write a post again and just vlog my days away. Well, truth be told, it was tempting but I need to keep at the keyboard, keep the fingers flowing and hope the juices spill into the story world.

Word Count Wednesday is going to be my weekly word count review on all fronts - a ledger of truth and honesty and maybe a tad more serious than the Vlog's. (Because people, I'm layered!).

The Proclaimed: 76,704 (Finished, pitching to agents)
The Proclaimed 2: 18,532 (one third into first draft, dragging my heels)
Tethered: 0 (ideas circling and desperate to get out, scribbled notes)
That Girl: 0 (early ideas, not sure if it's a full story yet)

Have I missed the boat? That's what is haunting my writing dreams at the moment. Because as the tables in the publishing world are tipping in all unknown directions and more and more people are offered alternative ways to publish and reach audience via quick methods, is my old school traditional approach holding me back or helping me get the best version of my book out there? And more so, am I just late to the party, one of the many also rans in a crowded field of excellent writers?

My books are firmly placed in the young adult genre and I know that's where I'm supposed to be, no doubt about it. I have supernatural elements in them, and a main girl who realises her destiny after living a normal life. So, what I'm facing right now is an extremely crowded market with more and more authors of note joining the ranks. I face derision because as I go out into the world hoping people will want to read my stuff, it's a big fat case of 'oh this type of stuff is so last year.'

Also, at the end of the day, at what point do you realise, like an auditioning American Idol contestant, while you're okay at what you do, you're not next level good. You're not fighting hard for the deal that you've told people about, that people now ask about good. You're not published good, just post a few fan fictions stories online and have good feedback from characters you never created.

What's annoying is all these thoughts roll around up top as I try to write Book 2 and my new book, and it's slowing me down but also stifling my writing a bit. The freedom with which I wrote last year was amazing, I wrote the story from my head to the page, no thoughts of people and audience and it spilled forth and in less than two months I had a finished first draft (sure, it needed work). Now, I as try to write the without wings first draft of Book 2, I find myself analysing and self-editing and basically stalling in the process when I know the thoughts are there to be written - ready to go.

So these are my messy, scatter brained thoughts on Word Count Wednesday - I'd love to know if anyone else is writing, how they're going, what challenges they're facing?

Dear Pop Culture Vlog: The Scale and Celebrities I'm Worried About

I'm partially distracted by George Clooney in Ocean's Thirteen on the TV. Sorry but it's George, in a tux: he draws the eye people!

Dear Pop Culture Vlog: Weepy Movies, NYE and Moneyball review

Dear Pop Culture Vlog: The Walking Dead, Glee and more

And here is, as noted in my music wise love ramble, Ron Pope's Fireflies, which is my new favourite song to belt out loudly in the car and sing along to as I pretend to audition for X-Factor. This version below is the one that appears on the album and I encourage you to BUY it! Smaller artists like this guy need our support.