Monthly Archives: November 2015

The StoryShop App – Write Better Stories Faster

One of the things that I struggle with as a writer is how to organize all my pre-planning work. That’s the characters sketches, the setting description, the major plot points, etc. The writers behind the Self-Publishing Podcast Sean Platt, Johnny B. Truant, and David Wright decided that there needs to be a specific app for this. So they’ve put together a development team to create the StoryShop app, one place where a writer can perform all the pre-production work, then export it for use in the writer’s favorite writing program, such as Scrivener.

You can see a video about this app on their Kickstarter campaign page. Or listen to the podcast episode where they talk with their lead developer, Seth Atwood.

Note: Today, November 17, 2015 is the last day of the Kickstarter campaign. Special offers, such as a lifetime membership, are only offered during the Kickstarter campaign.

 

An Upbeat, Silly Song for a Gloomy, Rainy Monday

It’s dark and rainy here this morning in Northern California as we finally get the rain that the forecasters have been promising. To keep up my spirits, and to give me a break from the explosions and bullet wounds in my manuscript, here’s an upbeat, silly song that always puts a smile on my face. “You Can’t Rollerskate In a Buffalo Herd” by Roger Miller.

Enjoy!

NaNoWriMo and Mapping an Island

November is National Novel Writing Month aka NaNoWriMo. This event involves thousands of writers from across the globe who are each attempting to complete a 50,000 word novel by the end of the month.

This will be my first year participating and I’m going to be working on a special project. In preparation, I drew a diagram of the island that my novel is going to take place on. No, these really aren’t the scribblings of a madwoman. It all makes perfect sense to me. 😀

Island_Map

Being a visual person, I often need to see a general map of the area my characters are operating in before I can write a scene. This map came in very handy for today’s writing session. However, you can probably guess that I never had a career as an urban planner or landscape designer. 😉

I also recently interviewed a member of my local chapter, Shannon Monroe, who is about to begin her ninth year participating in NaNoWriMo. You can find the interview here.

For everyone who is participating in this year’s NaNo, GOOD LUCK!!