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So, my Preptober vlog is all finished and I'm all done giving writing advice that I'm not 100% sure is useful or not. Now, for the first time in I don't know how fucking long, I'm actually going to attempt to write something! This vlog doesn't really have anything useful. Just me giving a daily update on how many words I've given each day. Go me! ^_^

 

Go you! The cat wagging its butt at the screen always makes me smile. I enjoyed this one a lot, just hearing you yap about your progress, keep it up! Its really hard for me to keep momentum when writing things, which is why i much prefer reading other peoples works and reviewing them, but it will be very rewarding when you get it done.

:wholesome:

After NaNo's finished, I'm planning on getting into the habit of writing on a daily basis. Definitely not 1667 words a day because that's going to get me burned out real quickly. But 500 words a day is something I think I can do. I mean life does has a habit of smacking me around the head with a sledgehammer this time of year, but this year I'm determined to ignore life completely. I think the key is to just put my phone on silent while I'm writing and hope that nobody dies. ^_^

Day 2! Wrote 3149 words. Very happy! Watch as I make an idiot of myself learning that you cannot put a Do Not Disturb sign on an inward closing door. ^_^

 

 

Actually, placing a "Do not disturb" sign inside my room makes perfect sense for me because I have a habit of getting up and walking around whenever I try to sit down and write something. The sign could remind me to not bother others and focus on my writing XD

Seriously, though. These posts have given me a lot of motivation to write. Thanks for sharing :]

Finished Day 3!

 

TLDW: Daily total: 2298 words. Grand total: 9214 words. I am making lots of progress and am very proud.

Random lesson learned today. When coming up with names for fictional characters and places, it is surprisingly difficult to come up with a word that isn't already a word.

Day 4:

 

TLDW: I wrote 1856 words total, which brings my total so far up to 11,071 words!

Today I was working on a particularly fun chapter that introduces The Harvesters as the antagonists of the novel. "What are The Harvesters?" I presumptuously imagine everybody asking. Well, my novel is set in the middle of an industrial revolution. There have been massive breakthroughs in technology and science and medicine. One of these breakthroughs being the first successful organ transplants and so, of course, this is a huge deal! Every promising young scientist wants to learn as much as they possibly can about this incredible new procedure. But, of course, that requires a lot of fresh, healthy, well preserved organs to transplant and to experiment on. But where is a budding young doctor going to find a steady supply of fresh, preserved organs?

Well, that is where the Harvesters Guild comes in. They are a guild that… Has a strange talent for finding recently deceased bodies of young people with absolutely no damage to their organs. Isn’t that convenient? What a nice, helpful group of people! ^_^

Ah, the ol' Burke and Hare treatment.

They really put the Fun in Funeral. ^_^

These guys would be good friends with those wholesome, good aligned necromancers Darius was so into.

....which fucking reminds me, I'm still withholding his and Ace's Thunderdome stories. Whoooops.

It's been a crazy couple of weeks okay, my brain is completely fried.

I'm sure The Harvesters can fix you up with a new one. ^_^

I was actually cringing when you tried opening that package with your NaNoWriMo nails. I was so paranoid they were going to break lol

... They did... I had to stop filming, glue them back together and then make part 2 of the video. >.<

At EndMaster's request, from now on I will be putting all of the text before the video so as not to break the front page. Anyway, today I found out that apparently, somewhere on my laptop, there is an internet exploding button of doom, and if I ever accidentally press it, then my internet will just straight up die. (No, I did not put the internet on flight mode. I am not quite so stupid that I don't know how to turn off flight mode.) Luckily the guy at the electronics store pressed the button that performed the internet resurrection spell and its all fixed now. Hurray! ^_^

Word count for the day: 1898 words. Not bad.

Day 5

 

Another day finished... Didn't do so well today. I was busy. Stupid life and family and friends and things that aren't writing.

Word Count for the Day: 471 words

I don't mind though. 471 words isn't bad and I'm already pretty far ahead from all the writing I did before, so not really much of a set back... In happier news, I found a really nice writing group that I met up with and also, I don't live in America! ^_^

 

You got this! We're rooting for you!

Thank you! You're super sweet! Apparently everybody did really badly on day 6 because they were either crying or celebrating over the election results. ^_^

Really, really great word count today!

Daily Word Count: 4319 words
Total Word Count: 16,959 words

I am very, very proud! 4319 words is probably the most I've ever written in a day. Everybody clap for me! ^_^

 

I know it's a bit of a belated congratulations now, but I'll give you a virtual standing ovation! Setting a new personal record is always a great feeling. 

Thank you very much! You are kind! Also, what's the hat for? ^_^

Oops, missed this question. It was my birthday last month. TCat photoshopped a birthday version of my pfp, though it's now December and I forgot to change it back. 

I was always assuming you gave it to yourself for winning sherbs reading contest lol late happy birthday though. 

Thank you

Happy not Birthday anymore! ^_^

Short, boring episode today. Went back to work. Didn't get as much writing done as usual. Don't really care. Still probably done more writing this past month than I have in the past three years combined.

Daily Word Count: 1,428
Total Word Count: 18,387

20,000, here I come! ^_^

 

Finished off the Harvester chapter today and worked a little on a dream sequence where the protagonist learns the reason why one of his guild mates is a psychopathic bitch.

Daily word count: 1,600 words
Total word count: 19,987 words

... Nope.

Daily word count: 1,620 words
Total word count: 20,0007 words

And now I get chocolate! I like chocolate. ^_^

 

Loved the video. You're coming along so fast, already at 20k!! I've never had their brand of chocolate before, so its not just the American homies. Had to give the video a like, helped put me in a better mood today. 

Oh, you poor thing! Do not worry, you can order them online, which is very much worth doing after Christmas and Easter when their seasonal stock drops down to like 75% off. ^_^

For some reason all the different expressions of the Briar avatar in the videos make me laugh.

Yey! ^_^

Rewarding yourself for reaching your milestones is a fun technique, I remember giving myself a milkshake at the halfway mark of my last storygame and a ring with a little crown at the end. That chocolate looks good too. I might have to try to hunt for it in my nearby shops. 

It is fun! And delicious! I think Hotel Chocolat might only exist in the U.K. though.

Looks like they have a shop in a nearby town. If I get through all my readings this week without burning out, I'll pop by and maybe get something there. 

So today I went to a writing festival in the next town over and listened to a couple of seminars about editing and keeping up with your writing habits. It was cool, but even better, I managed to find out about a few writing groups that also take place in that town. Most are for poetry or some other stuff I have no interest in or talent for, but there is a critique writing group and, even better, there is a group that does in person writing sprints, which I am so happy about because I've been looking for one of those for ages and haven't been able to find one. The next meeting isn't until the 22nd, so I will try to get there and see how it goes.

Daily Word Count: 1,230
Total Word Count: 21,237

Could be better but still not bad. ^_^

 

So, today I have been dealing with a dilemma... Who should I kill?

Basically, with the novel I am working on right now, I was planning on ending the story by killing off one of my main characters. But the more I have written the more I am thinking, I don't want this particular character to die just yet. There is an awful lot I want to do with this character and I don't think I can fit it all into one relatively short book. But, for plot reasons, and to establish a very grimdark theme, I definitely need to kill off one of my main characters by the end of the novel... And so, I have been looking through all of my beloved characters trying to decide which one is going to die writhing and screaming in agony. Still haven't decided.

Daily Word Count: 2,486 
Total Word Count: 23,723

Pretty happy with that. Now to celebrate with chocolate. ^_^

 

... I'm dying.

Everybody press F to pay respects.

 

Good thing you're here on the forum, a welcoming place where everyone gathers to not write.

F

Getting sick is the worst, especially when you're working towards an ambitious goal. Hope you get well soon.

Thank you. I took the day off work today and only just woke up at 10.15 AM, so feeling well rested if nothing else. ^_^

Still been poorly. Spent lots of time sleeping. I like sleeping. I am very good at it.

Felt a bit better in the afternoon/evening though, so managed to get some writing done then.

Daily Word Count: 1,038
Total Word Count: 24,879

I was worried that I was falling behind but I am only 121 words shy of the half way mark, and the half way mark is supposed to be on day 15, so that means I still have a solid 2 days of buffer, which isn't bad at all.

 

So right now I'm not sure which direction to take my novel in after finishing my most recent chapter, so I decided to skip forward to a dream sequence instead. My protagonist is what is known as a "Dream Weaver" which means the in his dreams, he can see the memories of the people he knows. I have found these dream sequences particularly fun to write, as it gives me a really interesting way of exploring all of the characters backstories and uncovering all of their deep, dark secrets.

Daily Word Count: 664
Total Word Count: 25,543

That's half way towards my goal for the end of the month. Go me! ^_^

 

Half way through the month already! Feeling a lot better today and managed to get a bit of catch up writing done. Still on track but only just. Will be a close call whether I'll be able to hit the 50K at the end of the month but definitely possible. ^_^

Daily Word Count: 3,348
Total Word Count: 28,891

 

So today, I did pretty well with my writing.

Daily Word Count: 2,628
Total Word Count: 31,519

Most importantly though, now that I have passed 30K, I get to open my 30K present. A fantasy book that has been on my to-read list for ages. The first book in what many consider to be the greatest fantasy series of all time! ^_^

 

 

what was the book?

... Harry Potter.

nice, those are some good books

... I see my British sarcasm has no power here.

It's got to be Fellowship of the Ring. But if she says it's not I'll be scandalized by her calling something else the greatest. However if she said it is, I'm scandalized she hasn't read it yet. Really a no win situation all around, poor Avery. :(

I said many consider it to be the greatest fantasy series of all time. I didn't say they were right. :p

The greatest fantasy series ever written in the Western Canon is the Twlight Series by Suzanne Collins, and if you disagree I'll sic an army of werevoles and vampires with you. Just need to go find a love triangle large enough to trap them and ensare them into doing my bidding

I think it stops being a triangle at that point and becomes a love octagon.

That sounds awesome

The novel I'm working on right now has love octagons and nonagons and dodecahedrons... My defence is that it takes place over the course of about 20 years, and most people aren't going to be fucking the same person for 20 years. :p

Wow, thats more shocking and disturbing than there being actual organ harvesters in your story, truly pushing the boundaries on cultural norms here, dare i say...scandalous? The writer of such a piece definitely must be a rebellious ankle shower. 

Sometimes I don't even wear a petticoat under my clothes! 

It's getting pretty late in the UK so I was getting pretty concerned you wouldn't upload today. What you said about the audiobooks was so relateable for me, there's been so many times I've tried switching to audiobooks due to the convenience just for me to give up every single time due to the fact thst things just don't register as well through audio for me, and then I go "damn I just must be so fuckin dumb" So I got a lot of comfort hearing I'm not alone there lol 

 

 

Hope you like the book! I think the first book I ever fully devoured and loved as a kid was a book called 'thief! ' by malorie Blackman. I read that when I was about 8 and absolutely loved it, I even stole the book to keep it as my treasure, it's since been lost to time and grown legs : ( 

 

The first book I ever loved though was Lord of the rings. I remember stealing it because I thought it looked so cool, I loved the way the pages felt and how OLD it smelt, I'd literally take it evrywhete with me, and id just pretend I could read the big words lol and I still havent read any Lord of the rings smh 

 

Beginning to realise I was a bit of a thief as a child lol

Honestly if I was a teacher or librarian or whatever I wouldn't be bothered by a kid stealing books if they were doing it because they just liked them that much.

... might be the one situation where that applies lol.

You should read the The Children of Hurin btw. (But pay for it first.)

I'm very much a busy bee but ill see what i can do.

The book taught you well, I see.

And how the fuck does someone steal The Lord of the Rings and then not read The Lord of the Rings? Shame on you! Steal another one!

maybe he didn't want to get fully possessed by the ring, yet he couldn't let go of it because of the spell it cast on him

Its ours it is!!! ^_^

Yeah, I got distracted and didn't properly scold him for that.

And only people who gave read the Lord of the Rimgs can read the Children of Hurin anyway smh.

Really Crimson your delinquent childbrain could've at least handled the Hobbit, that was literally written for ten year olds. Should've just stolen that one instead, it's even thematic with Bilbo.

i.....couldn't read it....too complex for my child thief brain lol so instead id just smell the pages, feel them, run my finger along the words trying to read them and just formulate my own stories from my fake reading. lol 

Like Joe Biden with a small child's hair. ^_^

So, random question... Would you guys be able to help me to come up with some Gods?

In the novel I'm writing, there is a religion called "The Balance" where they pray to the Hundred Gods. Whenever they make sacrifices to their Gods, they create a giant circle with 100 altars and each God requires a different offering. The God of Death gets the traditional offering of a man tied to the altar and killed, but The God of Life would have a pregnant woman giving birth on the altar and the newborn baby would be considered the offering. The God of War would have two people fighting on their altar. The God of Peace would have a bunch of children dancing round a maypole or some gay shit like that. The God of Prosperity would have an offering of crops and livestock, and the God of Fertility would have a full on orgy at their altar. Basically, I have a few ideas, but I don't have enough ideas. 100 Gods is a lot to come up with.

So, I was wondering, would any of you guys be able to come up with any ideas for Gods? I don't need names for the Gods, I can come up with those, but I would need to know:
1. What is the God the God of?
2. What kind of offering would they be given?

Now, if I was a sensible person, I'd just change the religion to have less Gods... I am not sensible. Going to get the full hundred. ^_^

Daily Word Count: 3,209 words
Total Word Count: 34,728 words

 

The God of Space-Time. A god who created the fabric of space time which our reality now stands on. Unfortunately this god is dying and if this God dies the universe will collapse in on itself like a dying star. So the God has a test for worthy candidates to traverse through 10 dimensional rifts and slay otherworldly monsters, proving that they can survive and master the God's power. There is a cult that worships the God and basically sets up this challenge for worthy adventurers. The offering they would give is offering to be the avatar for the God.

Oh wow, that's a pretty in depth one. I think a God like that would need to be a religion on it's own, not one of 100.

The god of craftsmanship, the offering being the most prized creations of its worshippers

YES! This is a perfect idea! Thank you! I will definitely include this! ^_^

• The God of greed: the offering being a feast on the altar. 
• The god of love, two people getting married on the altar
• the god of wrath, two brothers fighting to the death on the altar
• the god of good, a RACIST sacraficed upon the altar...i mean...RAPIST!
• The god of darkness, a person blinded upon the altar
• the god of light, someone set aflame and thrown off the altar

Or like, just a torch, if you feel like not murdering 100 people every time

They would very quickly run out of offerings if every God wanted a human sacrifice.

Some really good ideas here.

The first two are pretty much spot on.
Third one... It would only really work if the brothers were actually angry at each other, otherwise they would be fighting out of a sense of obligation and there wouldn't really be any wrath involved. Two enemies fighting to the death would work, though it's a bit too similar to the offering to the God of War.
For the God of Good, I think there would need to be more of a wholesome sacrifice... I mean, to me, there's nothing more wholesome than the brutal death of a racist rapist, but the God of Good probably would probably want an act of kindness or some shit... Now the God of Justice. He'd LOVE a racist rapist sacrifice.
The God of Darkness... That might work. I will definitely consider.
The God of Light... Not every God wants people to die. A bonfire would probably suit him better.

The God of Good might just want a donation from all attendees to be used to aid the poor.

Really got to be careful asking a pack of CYStians questions like this if you don't want purely edgelord ideas.

Instead of a random person, maybe the priests of the god of darkness ritually blind themselves, and they always confirm a new one at this ceremony.

God of wrath: all attendees strip down to the waist, drink a berserker potion and brawl it out, usually non fatally. It's a popular betting event.

Sounds like a party! Only problem is that, when people pray to the Hundred Gods, they need to divide themselves up so that every God gets an offering. If everybody all dropped what they were doing to put on a show for the God of Warth, the other Gods would be very jealous.

The group chosen for that particular event then. They do a lot of training in advance, enjoy minor celebrity status, and hit each other with collapsible chairs.

Maybe we can make it a particularly large altar so that all the contenstants need to stay on the altar and the last one still on the altar by the end of the fight wins. ^_^

... And I am not sure whether to be pleasantly surprised or disappointed by the lack of degenerate answers.

The God of Luck - The chosen individual must roll a die. 1/2/3 = They sacrifice 3/2/1 family members; 4/5/6 = They choose 1/2/3 enemies to be sacrificed. If you don't like sacrifices, you could also make it based on money where they may incur debt or gain profit based on their roll.

That is a really interesting idea! I definitely like the idea of the offering being left to the roll of the dice, but I will toy around the idea of what the offering actually is. ^_^

The God of Witches - witches sacrifice witch-burners like villagers in the Salem witch trials for example

"We've found a witch-burner! May we burn her?" ^_^

Wouldn't really work in this world though since magic users are quite common and people don't burn witches.

heres some more for you:

 

• god of water: someone drinks or bathes in some blessed water on the altar 
• god of plants or earth: a rare and exotic plant/tree species with special properties planted on an altar
• God of renewal or rebirth: the ashes of a loved one sprinkled on the altar 
• god of poison: create an exotic cocktail potion on the altar as an offering to the god
• god of strategy: people partake in an intense strategy game on the altar

All really good ideas! Some I will definitely use and some will go in the maybe pile... Except the God of Poison because I can't picture this particular culture having a God of Poison... A God of Healing on the other hand! That could work! ^_^

God of healing: free medical services are offered to all comers for the duration of the event.

And there's a Red Cross on every corner with all the flour you can eat. ^_^

God of Empathy: the person who built the altar leaves one of co's emotions on the altar and doesn't feel it anymore. The next person who makes an offering at that altar feels that emotion and leaves one of their emotions on the altar for the next person to experience, ad infinitum.

God of Medicine- some healing herbs 

God of Empathy idea is a very interesting one, but it would work on the assumtion that these Gods are real and have the power to transfer one person's emotions to another. I haven't quite decided whether or not the Gods actually exist or not. :p

Forgot to post the update last night. Anyway, here's yesterday's update:

Daily Word Count: 2,467
Missing Word Count: 800
Total Word Count: 37,995

Not quite sure how I managed it, some somehow I managed to lose 800 words... Have you seen them?

Very, very quick update today!

Daily Word Count: 1,680
Total Word Count: 39,675

That is all.

Today I went to my writing group in the morning. I hadn't prepared anything, but we had a bit of time left at the end, so I read them a little bit of Price of Freedom and they really enjoyed it! It was fun! After that I went to work and when I got home I didn't have much free time, so I barely wrote anything at all.

Daily Word Count: 488
Total Word Count: 40,163

But I am still very happy because since I passed 40K, I get to open my 40K present! It is a very lovely present and I am so happy to have it! ^_^

Happy to see you finally got to open your most anticipated gift!! Like you said, im sure youll get many comments on it. I know i probably would. Love the pastel colour scheme it has.

Yes, if a grown man was walking around with a Beauty and the Beast bag, I imagine he would get lots of comments on it. :p