December IWSG, 5th Grade Fan Art and Getting Close to the End

Last week I had the privilege of spending time with a class of 5th graders discussing THE MAGIC WAKES and writing. My mom teaches math, but she's been reading TMW with her homeroom class. Although this novel isn't really for their age group, they are enjoying it. Mom just skips over the kissing parts. :)

They are only halfway through the story, but they had some wonderful questions. I was impressed with their deductive reasoning and predictive skills. They guessed one thing to come but have lots of surprises in store too. The cool thing was that their guesses were some of my earlier options that I later twisted into something else.

Perhaps the neatest part was at the end of the class. Mom and I had made lot's of necklaces (Talia inspired) to give them, and some of the kids gave me pictures they had drawn.

I planned to scan them to show you, but my son's computer is stupid and I can't figure out how. I'll keep working on it. One girl drew a new pet for Talia to replace Keeta. Another drew the sunsrise, and finally another was a card telling me how awesome my book is.

For a day, I considered writing a MG book. Who knows, maybe I will someday.

November in general was a great month for me and writing. It usually is. However, my insecurities for December are growing. There is so much to do and thus far I've not had the time to sit and write once this month. (I wrote this post sitting at the dentist office) My fear is that with the permission and goal to write every day for Nano I'll stop again. The family indulges me in November, but now they expect my attention and for me to be running around all day getting "things" done.

Some of you may have realized that in life I'm not a super assertive person. I know I need to say "NO, this block of time is for writing," and yet I feel so guilty for doing it. I also know that I need to read the end of this story while my mind is moving forward with it. I'm currently 54K into THE SEARCH FOR KNOWLEDGE thanks to Nano, but I need at least another 10-15K to reach then end of this sparse draft. The other problem is it's so easy for me to fall back into editing now that November is over. Especially now that I know which of the two new guys is the traitor secretly working for the demon possessed maniac who wants Talia for his own.

Yeah. :) I wrote 50K not sure which it was. Hopefully that will make it hard for the reader to guess too early as well.

I'm so close.

But the hustle and bustle of "real life" (blah!) is slowly sucking the motivation out of me. Somebody kick me now!

Purpose of IWSG: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds!

Posting: The first Wednesday of every month is officially Insecure Writer’s Support Group day. Post your thoughts on your own blog. Talk about your doubts and the fears you have conquered. Discuss your struggles and triumphs. Offer a word of encouragement for others who are struggling. Visit others in the group and connect with your fellow writer - aim for a dozen new people each time. I'm currently #154.

Also, in case you've missed the new website, or the Facebook page...just click the links. :)