Wednesday, May 4, 2011

When you can't write, just type... and Favorite Lines from the sequel to EVERNEATH

Hey y'all. It's time for a...


Chimichanga Challenge Update:


Team Tamale: 11,845 words (out of 40,000)
Team Gluten-Intolerant: Disneyland (out of 40,000)


Yep, Bree Despain is in Disneyland. So let me just say right now, what were we smoking when we said 40,000 words?


But the contest has kick-started me into the second book. Most authors I know warned me that writing a second book, under contract, under deadline, would be much harder than writing the first.


Now I know what they mean. This second book has been the naughty child. It's shy, stubborn, and it gives me the silent treatment. I kept trying to coax the story out of its bedroom, but most of these attempts ended in a door slammed in my face.


So I sort of just ignored it. But here's something I learned... something we should print on a bumper sticker or something:


The book won't get written if you ignore it.


Catchy, isn't it? Even more simply put: It won't get written if you don't write it.


I know it seems obvious, but it's so easy to forget. If you're like me, you like for your inspiration to hit first, and then the writing comes. But sometimes, you have to write first.


And that's when the writing can be painful... like I have to quite literally take my hand, shove it up my nose, dig around in my brain for the right words, and then yank them out, covered in cerebral goo.


Sometimes you have to forget about the writing and focus on the typing. Just type. Type as many words as you can in an hour.


And through this random typing, I discovered a few scenes I wasn't expecting. I love these scenes. But it took a lot of bad typing, and bad words, to get there.


Just for fun, I thought I'd share some of my favorite lines from EVERNEATH 2. I know they are out of context, but hopefully you'll enjoy them. (I shared a few on Twitter last week).


"Aren’t you the least bit curious about how I got you into bed last night?"


“You haven’t changed a bit. No 'how do you do?' no talk of the weather. Just a good swift kick to the groin.”


"I couldn't help but notice you confiscated a clump of my hair last night."
"What was your first clue?"
"The ripping pain at my temple."


"Sorry, but the vomit spewing from your mouth drowned out that last word. What were you going to do?"



"I hope you realize, if you forget him... he WILL die. You know this, right? Tell me you know this."

Okay, I don't know if those will even be interesting when they're so out of context. Most of them are spoken by the same character. (A character I have grown to love. Obsessively). 

If you're ever stuck on writing, try typing. I promise it will get better. 

What do y'all do when you're stuck? And do you like the lines? And if you're in the Chimichanga Challenge, what's your word count?

17 comments:

  1. All these lines make me laugh. See, you are funny. ;) Good luck with the writing.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Jenny- Thanks! Yeah, the book is hi-larious. Except I should've mentioned someone is getting tortured in the background of each of these lines. :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. I love the first line. It just makes me want to read more. I think all of the lines sound interesting and I can't wait to put them into context. Glad you haven't given up!

    ReplyDelete
  4. i'm currently in the ignoring my WIP stage, so i guess it's time to stop procrastinating and start picking my nose.

    in other news, these lines are fantastic. in context or way far out of it, i heart them. good luck with the next 29K words!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Jenni- Yeah, that first line is a little sketchy, isn't it?

    Abby- Yes! Start picking your nose! See what comes out. (I hope we're being metaphorical.) :)

    ReplyDelete
  6. Loved it! Keep up the good work!

    ReplyDelete
  7. I love this post! You are so right about just sitting down and typing and not waiting for the inspiration to strike. (Though it is *way* easier when that inspiration hits.) That is definitely something I have learned from this challenge.

    Man, all those lines are making me want to read your book/s so bad! Curious....curious....curious.....

    ReplyDelete
  8. Nicole- Thanks! Get ready for Word War. :)

    Kristin- There's nothing like a word challenge to show you what you can really do. That's for sure. Are you doing word war today? (in, like, 25 minutes?)

    ReplyDelete
  9. Sorry I missed the word war. We were having a family bar-b-que today. Taking advantage of the nice spring days! :) Winter has been a bit over-long this year...

    Did you have quite a few participants?

    ReplyDelete
  10. Hello Brodi!Seriously, I thoroughly enjoyed your post. This was superb! Thanks for sharing!
    http://nelsonsouzza.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
  11. Kristi- Fun day for a bbq! We had about five people, I think.

    Nel- Thanks for reading!

    ReplyDelete
  12. I love them! So fun! I laughed out loud! When is THIS book being published?

    Something else I've noticed lately--no editing elves fix my WIP while I'm off doing other things. Lazy jerks. :)

    ReplyDelete
  13. Robin- Lazy S-O-B's. :) Cut their paychecks.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Oh, I will. No more cookies for them.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Can't wait to read those line in context. =D

    ReplyDelete
  16. I think all those lines are awesome! Like everyone else, I can't wait.

    ReplyDelete