How goes the word wars? Feel free to post your weekly word count in the comments section.
It's also quite fun to read Spencer's sarcastic voice.
Here is the link to the Amazon Kindle page: http://www.amazon.com/The-New-Recruit-Mission-ebook/dp/B0097ADIGW/ref=pd_sim_kstore_3
And here is a Facebook/Twitter message you could post on your wall, if you're feeling saucy and would like to help spread the word:
Like spy guy books? The New Recruit by Jill Williamson is FREE on Kindle through 6/22. Get yours now! http://tinyurl.com/kyabaok
Thanks so much for any help you can give.
And to encourage you in your word war, here are two videos that my friends Chris and Jacob did, penalties for the losers of their word war with each other. Pay no attention to the length of these videos, they're super funny. So, have a good laugh. And keep on writing!
Loved the videos! Chris especially went all out. :)
ReplyDelete~Sarah
Ha! Those are hilarious! And I've been wanting to read The New Recruit for a while, so this is perfect!
ReplyDelete-Abby :D
Ohhhhh my goodness. xD That was HILARIOUS.
ReplyDelete...wait. WAIIIIT. There's no hidden punishment for losing, right? RIGHT?!?!
Mawhaha! (evil laugh) Wouldn't you like to know? :D just kidding!
DeleteI hope there isn't a punishment either.
Naomi
What is the use of putting Anonymous as your username, and then putting your name, Naomi, at the end of your comment??
Delete-Cedar
I think a few of our readers do that because, for a variety of reasons, the anonymous option is the only one that works for them/their computer, but they don't necessarily want to be anonymous.
DeleteI started at 17303, now I'm currently at 22677 (though I'm writing a chapter as I type this, so it'll change quickly).
ReplyDeleteAwesome, Zara! I honestly haven't written much...writers block had to happen THIS week. *facepalm*
DeleteZara, great job!
DeleteAmanda, I can totally relate. I had writer's block for a while. I don't know if this will help you, but try taking a break and go for a walk. Sometimes that helps me get ideas flowing again.
My total word count so far is 7040, but I will be writing more after posting this comment.
ReplyDeleteWhooo Bookishqueen! :) Keep it up!
DeleteThanks! I'm really happy with the number.
DeleteWill definitely download The New Recruit! Saw this in your author newsletter and have been meaning to get it. This was a good reminder. Thanks! :)
ReplyDeleteTotal word count 2,332...have lots of work to do.
ReplyDeleteYou can do it! :D
Delete*Sings* Just keep writing, writing, writing.
DeleteHey Everyone!
ReplyDeleteMeant to post this Monday, but haven't gotten to. Lol.
So, I started the Word War Monday at 7:48 p.m. ET with 5,018 words already written on my WIP, and am currently at 5,655, which means this week I've written 637 words total. That is not much compared to some of you writing wonders, but I'm excited! :) This is a lot of fun.
Thanks for sharing those videos, Mrs. Williamson! They were hilarious. And I'm hoping along with Amanda, please no hidden penalties!!!! ;o)
Good job Whitney! :) I'm about the same as you are stat wise--around 6k at the start, around 7k now. Not much, but hey--it's more than I would've written this week otherwise!
DeleteFunny videos! I haven't gotten a chance to start writing today, but I'll post how many words I've accomplished later today.
ReplyDeleteBy the way, do any of you guys know about how many words should be in a typical scene?
I think it depends on a) voice and b) whether you write big or small. Obviously, some characters/narrators are going to be more or less drawn out with how they speak or write, and that's just the way it is.
DeleteMore importantly, you should make a note to yourself of how much you write. I tend to write small: I plan out a scene and say it'll be 2500 words, and I get across all the information I need to in 750. My friend usually overwrites: she plans out a scene for 2000 words and writes 4000.
All of this is to say that scene word counts are pretty flexible. Have you gotten across the information you need to? Then the scene is probably long enough. If you feel that it's spinning out of control, make a note of it, step away, and come back later in revisions. Become aware of how much you usually write, and set goals with that in mind. I usually aim my scenes for 2000ish words, write about 1500, and flesh out later if I need to.
Hope I helped!
Thank you! That was very helpful.
DeleteLooks like Diana's got you covered, but I thought I'd leave my opinion as well ;)
DeleteI don't watch word counts.
Say what? Basically, what I mean is I end a chapter/scene/whatever when I think it's done, not when I think "oh dear, this is getting long." Now, that's just in general. There are definitely times when I decide that I need to wrap this chapter/scene up. But in general, especially in the first draft, I just write until it feels done. :)
My word-count is around 2,000. However, I'm writing for the next few hours, so that should bring it up to my target. I'll look at those once I'm done for the day. :)
ReplyDeleteKatia
2500, right now. And I'm going to write for 2 to 2.5 more hours.
DeleteAwesome, Katia! :)
DeleteI'm working on it...
ReplyDeletehttp://youngwriterscafe.wordpress.com/
-Sam
hey um, I have two questions.
ReplyDeleteone: Is it too late to join in the word war? I doubt I would have any chance at winning it now, but still.
two: how do you get your name to show up at the top of your post, as opposed to posting anonymously and then putting your name at the bottom?
~Katelyn~
Hi Katelyn!
DeleteI don't think it's too late, but Stephanie or Mrs. Williamson would have the final authority, of course (I'm thinking especially to see if you'd be eligible for prizes and whatnot).
And to answer your second question, at the bottom of the box where you type your message, there is a "reply as:" drop-down. Select "Name/URL" (the URL part is optional), type in your name, and hit "continue." (It doesn't go to a different page or anything). That's how it works on my screen, at least.
Hope this helps!
trying it right now...
Deleteyay it worked!!! thanks Whitney!
DeleteI'm pretty certain you're allowed to join whenever you want during the week, Katelyn. And yay, you got it! :)
DeleteYou're welcome, Katelyn! I was pretty excited myself when I learned how to do that lol. ;o)
DeleteI can't see the videos at the moment, but I got the free book. Huzzah! Thank you, Ms. Williamson!
ReplyDeleteMy writing is also going well. I'm currently at 10,319 words, mostly thanks to the writing class I'm taking and the fact that I wrote 1500 words last night and then realized that my story was way too long and not figured out well enough. Oh well. I'll come back to it later.
Yay Sarah! That's awesome! And yeah, I know the feeling. "Wait a second, I've written 25,000 words of...nothing. *facepalm*" That happened to me last summer. :( It's not fun, but...at least you realized it now!
DeleteThanks, Amanda! And about the 25K of nothing, ouch. That stinks. I hope whatever you're writing now is turning out better.
DeleteThanks again for the encouragement!
It is. Much, much better. :)
DeleteYou're welcome!
Thanks for the free book! I can't wait to read it!
ReplyDeleteMy electricity went yesterday for scheduled repairs so I couldn't type, I was so disappointed! Well, I did 2,000 on Tuesday and I'll do around that today and hopefully tomorrow too :) (AND MY TEN EXAMS ARE OVER YAY!!!)
ReplyDeleteAww, that's too bad, Rose. You can do it, though! And HOORAY FOR EXAMS BEING OVER!! WHOOO! :D
DeleteI love to write so much but I'm not great with figurative language or writing poetically. Because of this, I feel like my writing isn't as good as other people's writing. Any advice on improving writing skills?
ReplyDeleteHey Anon!
DeleteFirst of all, I'm assuming that by "figurative language" and "writing poetically" you mean the flowery, simile-and-metaphor-filled kind of writing? If not, go ahead and clarify further if you'd like. :)
If that was what you meant, I'd have to ask first of all why it is you want to write like that. Is it just because you think you should, in order to be "as good as other people"? Is it because you want to write like that for yourself?
If I'm interpreting your comment correctly, it sounds like you think you need to be able to write like that in order to be writing as well as other people. If that's the case, I can help you out pretty easily: you don't! There are plenty of amazing books out there that have absolutely no flowery, poetic writing. For example, Ms. Williamson's book up there in this post (The New Recruit)--I haven't read it yet, but I've seen bits and pieces in posts as examples, and let me tell you, the main character Spencer would NOT use any of that sort of writing while he's narrating the story. ;) I rarely use that sort of writing, myself--I love description, but I wouldn't say I write "poetically." I'd say the same about a lot of the books I've read, as well.
Of course, if you just *want* to write like that, I'd say read about it a bit and practice, practice, practice. The best way to improve writing is to...well, write. If you wanted to improve playing basketball, what would you do? Practice, right? Well, writing is the same way! :)
Hope this helped! If anything I said didn't make sense, let me know and I'll explain further. :)
I used to feel exactly the same way! Everyone in my creative writing class wrote beautiful, poetic prose and my writing seemed dull in contrast. I was even ashamed to share my writing with anyone until a teacher forced me to read a short story in front of the class. Guess what? Everyone loved it! Turns out my writing wasn't boring, but my style was unique because I used simple, straightforward language. My audience found the characters more relatable, the story flowed and was easier to read, and people said the story didn't feel so "weighed down" with complicated metaphors and long words. My advice is to love your style for what it is. Always strive to improve your writing, of course, but don't do what everyone else is doing. If your writing is unique, it will stand out and touch hearts. Good luck!
DeleteKelsey :)
Amanda and Anon II have it spot on. It's fine if your writing is more straightforward and doesn't have a lot of flowery, poetical stuff.
DeleteAnswer me this question: does your writing create the image you want?
If the answer is "yes", then trust me: you've got nothing to worry about.
To add to what all the amazing people above me said: a lot of the time, people have actually gone over the top with the flowery stuff, and that definitely does "weigh down" your story with unnecessary blabber. Dr Suess said "for the writer who uses more words than he needs is making a chore for the reader who reads". Personally, I like to use the similes and metaphors only when they'll really create a vivid mental picture to justify their usage. Everyone's voice is different, and if you're not a figurative language person, that doesn't make your writing any better or worse than anyone else's.
DeleteLOL, look at us all! :)
DeleteThanks, this helped me feel better.
DeleteI finally got to watch the videos. I think I recognized the tune from the second one. :)
ReplyDeleteJust thought I'd share a tip I've been using for when I get writer's block. The past few days, I'll just change my font when I can't think of anything else to say. So half my story is made up of at least five different fonts. :-)
ReplyDeleteThat's a cool idea. Like a change of scenery. I'll definitely try that. Thanks, Alyson! :)
DeleteWow, that's a really unique idea! Thanks for sharing!
DeleteHey, Jill! I downloaded your book there and I have a blog where I review books. I'm busy with one from Strange Chemistry at the moment, but would you like it if in the next week or so I read and reviewed your book on my blog? It looks interesting :)
ReplyDeleteRose @ www.darquessedreams.blogspot.ie
I guess my word war writing isn't going to count because it turned into a blog post. :/ Oh well. Lol. It was fun and I wrote something. That's all that matters, right?
ReplyDeleteYep! :)
DeleteI've written 9k so far this week... I wanted to write 15k total, but I had work yesterday and was just too tired.
ReplyDelete*So I will probably only get up with 13k or 14k.
DeleteYAY Allison! That's incredible!! :D
DeleteYES!!! YES!!! YES!!! A Go Teen Writers conference! I would totally come.
ReplyDeleteOh wait, I forgot to introduce myself. Hi there, I'm Catsie. I'm a teen writer (duh) and I just found this incredibly awesome site like a week ago. I've been haunting it ever since. XD I would love to join the Word War, but I might be a bit late, and I have slight writer's block. Oh well. Next time!
Welcome Catsie! Glad you decided to stick around! :)
DeleteI would want to go too!! That would be fun! (what wouldn't be fun about a bunch of writers together?) if it is anything like when I am just with my mom or sister (they write) it would be fun!:)
DeleteI know, right? The only thing better than a bunch of writers hanging out together is a bunch of teen writers hanging out together! And maybe chocolate. :)
DeleteTeen writers? Chocolate??? another word for that would be "Heaven"!!!
DeleteHaha, yes!!! Please, please, please, Ms. Williamson and Ms. Morrill? Soon?
DeleteI'd come too!
ReplyDeleteQuestion: By 'midnight on Friday', do you mean 0000 on Friday when Saturday officially starts, and is it GMT?
Thank you for the free book, I've been wanting to check out your work! I'm going to read it now.
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry the Word War is almost over, I would have joined if I had seen it earlier! Well, thanx again!
-Cedar