I did it!

This year, like every year, I told myself that this was the year I was going to actually finish the story, but it proved to be difficult. I did not like my story one bit. But funny enough, I think that helped me. Instead of rushing through it, giving myself a writer's burn out by the end of the month, I paced myself. Every day was a struggle to get words on paper, which meant that I thought more about where to go and what my characters would be up to next. There were still a few surprises along the way, but no elaborate ones like the years before when the story went completely off one end and it took me at least two days to get it back to where I wanted it. Great for word count, but not so great to keep the story going.

Anyyywayyy...

Last night, just after midnight and with little under 24 hours to go, I finished my story. Finished it. It's crap, the end seems rushed, but that's beside the point. I finished the story, and did it in 51005 words.

I did it and I'm soooo proud!

Nanowrimo

Just ten more writing days, people. Can you believe it? Just ten more!

Nanowrimo has not been that great for me this year. I have already had 3 days of no writing at all, and I am not in love with my story. Every day I sit down to write feels like a chore, and it shouldn't. But I can't help it. My story sucks, and I'm trying to change it bit by bit every day to try and turn it into something I might end up falling in love with, but so far, no luck.

But... and this is the strange part... I think this is why it is going so 'well'. Well in the sense that I have already reached the 50,000 words, like previous years. Well in the sense that I am pacing myself, taking the time to think about what I am writing, planning more as I go along. I am hopeful that this year, my actual story will be finished by the time I reach the 50,000 or maybe it will just take a few hundred more words, not a ten or twenty thousand more.

There have not been any crazy detours, no tricks to boost up my word count, nothing like that. And now that I am working on the laptop rather than the main PC, I can lean back in the pillows instead of sitting on a stool that is slightly too high for the desk, leaving me with major back pains.

It's all good. I will survive Nanowrimo, and the story will too for a change. Just ten more days!

Little Street

Little Street is a mixed media work on three panels, that you can either hang in a group, but also hang further away from each other. You could even keep one panel and give two to loved ones, so you can be united in art.

The panels are 10 x 10 cm, roughly 8 x 8 inches. I used acrylics, water colour and scrap book paper. The sides are covered too, so the panels do not need framing.

The third panel is signed, EH stands for Eveline Hessels, and that's me!

Work in progress

I just thought I'd show you some Work In Progress, and show you that I'm not a big fat liar when I tell you I've got NO space at all to work in. But it's coming along nicely, and I hope to finish it later tonight.

Go check out this give away!

You know your brainy friend? The one who has more books than the local library and knows them all by heart? The one who knows more about science than your science professor? The one who can never make it to your cool party because she's too busy with a project or has to study so she can keep her A+ record up?
She would looove this pendant, wouldn't she?

I found it in Beat Black, a great shop at Etsy. And guess what... She's having a great give away on her blog!

If you visit Beat Black's blog, and leave a comment to this post, you might end up winning a $50.00 gift certificate for her shop! How cool is that!

Go and check her out!

Fireworks night!

Remember, remember the fifth of November,
The gunpowder, treason and plot,
I know of no reason
Why the gunpowder treason
Should ever be forgot.

I'm not sure if the people who live behind us actually know why they are firing fireworks, but man do they have a LOT.

Thank you!

Books, books, books

Nanowrimo has started. Yes! Finally! This year I did not do what I normally do, which is start at midnight on Halloween, I was too tired from a long day shopping and then all those trick or treaters at the door. So I started this afternoon and finished my first chapter at 2491 words. I'm happy.

I keep my notes in a notebook. Due to my lack of preparation this year, I'm using a simple spiral notebook, ruled. Ruled! I hate ruled pages! If I had prepared like I normally do, I would have searched for a lovely book, a notebook I would proudly take everywhere, a notebook I would cuddle, stroke the pages of in anticipation of the words that would soon fill it.

A book like the ones My Handbound Books makes, perhaps. They look absolutely gorgeous!

Did I mention Christmas is coming up, and that my birthday is on December 30th? Hmmmmmm.......