gardens

Plenty of writing getting done over here, just not as much as Camp NaNo demands of me. I’m trying not to sweat it too much though. The story is benefiting from me taking my time to mold each section before heading onto the next, even if I don’t quite hit my word count goal this month.

Custom archway for vineyard in Wisconsin.

If you follow my weekly Drabbles, you’ll notice I skipped last week. Honestly I don’t have any real excuse except that my head has been in Shaleigh’s world and it’s difficult to squeeze out little bitty one-shots on TypeTrigger as often as I like because of it. Don’t worry though, I should be getting back to a regular weekly Drabble schedule now.

Here’s the progress on my YA other-world fantasy novel about urban explorer Shaleigh Mallett who is whisked away to the Land of the Fae. Along the way she encounters living statues, friendly minotaurs, and a backstabbing ruler. When she gets tangled up in a love story that can’t possibly end well, Shaleigh finds herself forced to make a difficult choice that could change the future of this new land, and prevent her from ever getting home.

Project: Madam Cloom’s Garden
Current Word Count: 32,641
New Words Written: Plenty since my last update, but not enough to get me caught up with Camp NaNo! I’m a pretty consistent 700 words behind schedule on this piece each night despite my best efforts. We’ll see if I can muster up the energy to write more over the next few days.

Progress: A visit to the rude healers, a heated argument, and an awkward guest have put Shaleigh into a rather down mood. I guess it was inevitable that the realization would fall on her eventually. It’s a good thing she’s about to make a friend.

Next up: Making a friend despite the obstacles and a lesson about masters/madams in this city.

Commentary: Some of my favorite scenes so far? Describing Teagan’s gazebo and glassed-in conservatory with its vines creeping up the walls, trying to decide if there should be a limit to the jerkiness of the healers, and figuring out what kind of formal outfit Shaleigh would choose to wear.

Got a bit of writing in over lunch. This piece was started over at Of the Pistol, and I’ve been brainstorming how to continue it for quite a while. Not quite sure yet if this will turn out to be a novelette, a novella, or even a full-blown novel, but I’m really enjoying this world so far.

Summary: Kate is running late for her Master Gardener training with Mr. Cloom. She had a map that told her how to navigate his immense garden, but now it thoroughly refuses to tell her the way. Luckily she has Mawr as her guide, one of the last stone lions left in Haplandia. Hopefully she can navigate the dangerous garden with Mawr’s help before Mr. Cloom expels her completely.

Project: Mr. Cloom’s Garden
Current total words: 1,663
New words written: 675

Total Words for 2012: 9,581

Snippet:

She hurried on ahead as the gate slammed shut behind her. She had a pink basket cradled in the crook of her elbow, and in her hands she held a bit of paper that was attempting to roll up at a moment’s notice. Absently she straightened it, adjusting her fingers this way and that as she tried to see exactly where she needed to go. Mr. Cloom’s garden was immense, and Kate knew that it didn’t take long to get lost amid the succulent scented safia bushes, which were always pleased to have visitors. If one wasn’t interested in staying and enjoying a snooze against their soft limbs, it wasn’t unheard of for them to use their vine-like roots to pull you into their embrace.