Give Thanks, Y'all!

“Brigitte,” Installment One of Tales from Vlaydor, is available as an audiobook and an ebook! Just follow these links:

Ebook:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09JBGSLDF?searchxofy=true&binding=kindle_edition&ref_=dbs_s_aps_series_rwt_tkin&qid=1636325653&sr=8-1

Audio book:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09L283KLX?notRedirectToSDP=1&ref_=dbs_m_mng_rwt_calw_taud_tkin&storeType=ebooks&qid=1636325653&sr=8-1

To become a patron, visit patreon.com/writinginthetinyhouse, and I provide an Advance Reader Copy of my short stories as a thank-you for my patrons.

Contact Copy Editor Krissy Barton at www.littlesyllables.com 

The following is a transcript of this episode. The complete transcript can be found on the podcast website.

[00:00:00] Guys, I just got news at four o'clock this morning that "Brigitte," Installment One of Tales from Vlaydor is also available as an audio book now on Audible and I think in two or three other locations. So as of this morning, not only am I an author, but I am also a narrator. But that's actually not what the episode's about.

[00:00:31] We're actually going to talk about NaNoWriMo today on Writing in the Tiny House. Hello. Hello. Hello. And welcome back to the show. Welcome to Writing in the tiny house. I am your host Devin Davis, and I am the guy living in a tiny house who is here to show you the ways to write that work of fiction that you have always wanted to write and show you that you can do it no matter how busy you are.

[00:01:15] It is entirely possible to squeeze in some of those writing projects so that you can get the work done. But today with some of this news, a brief reminder that "Brigitte," Installment One of Tales from Vlaydor, is for sale as an ebook on Amazon.com. But like I said in the introduction, it is also available as an audio book on Audible and I think in two other locations, I will figure that out. If you want to listen to "Brigitte," Installment One of Tales from Vlaydor, you can download the audio book narrated by yours truly. So it's good. I would personally follow the link in the show notes so that you can purchase it through a web browser instead of through the Audible app, just because if you purchase it through the Audible app, you're going to spend a credit. And this is only one hour of audio. So, I mean, if you want to spend a credit, do that, if you want to get it for cheaper, purchase it through a web browser. This is a particularly interesting month because there is a nationwide and for some people internationally wide competition or a big push for people to draft.

[00:02:40] That is what NaNoWriMo is all about, to draft 50,000 words in one month from start to finish. And I'd like to say that up to this point, we are on track. At least I am on track. You can follow me on the NaNoWriMo website. My username is author_devin_davis. So author Devin Davis separated with two underscores in there and you can track my progress.

[00:03:14] It is so interesting that this competition takes place in November, just because of Thanksgiving. Now, I don't know about you, but I am the guy who loves to do like the 25 days of giving thanks countdown. I love to do it. I've done it every year for the last long while, of just taking a moment to reflect on what I am grateful for and sharing that on my social media, just because it is really awesome to bring lights and to bring a big focus onto what you are grateful for. Sometimes I get caught up a lot in complaining and in being unsatisfied and whatever else. It's easy to focus on the things that I don't have.

[00:04:03] And so sometimes in November, it is such a good moment in the year. It is such a good time in the year to reflect on the things that I do have, on the things that are going well and to sit in those feelings for a while and to express them. And to be honest with such a big project, like NaNoWriMo, that takes such a big chunk out of every single day and requires a lot of motivation and requires a lot of self-determination.

[00:04:36] It is such a good driving force for me to remember the things that I'm grateful for. So I don't know about you. I have already spoken about different ways to take care of yourself and take care of your body during this push for NaNoWriMo and really for any big project that you're doing. If you're in the middle of a big project at work, if you're in the middle of a

[00:05:01] a big thing, whatever hobbies you do, it is always good to schedule your time to take breaks, to have healthy snacks and healthy eating habits and to get plenty of rest and different things like that. It is good to take care of your physical self. At the same time. With writing and with any really big projects, but the whole thing can also be very mentally taxing.

[00:05:30] It can be hard to simply push through. And considering that writing is likely not a collaborative thing for you. I mean, I know a lot of people who co write things, or I know of people who do that, I don't actually know people who do that. But writing really, isn't a team sport. And for almost all people, it's not really a team hobby either.

[00:05:57] Especially the drafting part, the first draft and most books die on the first draft anyway. There is a lot of your energy. There is a lot that you put into this. Not only are you scheduling time out of your day. For me, it has been two hours every day.

[00:06:19] And my writing goal is on target right now and it's been okay. But two hours every day is a lot, including the weekends when I have my kids and other obligations. And so it it's worked out, but with this creative process, the story comes from you. For me, not only am I spending two hours a day drafting, but sometimes I need to bounce ideas off of people, or I need to take a break and kind of think about what I'm going to be writing about so that whatever I go through makes sense.

[00:06:56] It's just a lot. I'm grateful that I'm doing it though. I really like the feeling that comes with rallying together. Granted, all of this rallying for me has largely been online forums and on the website for NaNoWriMo, but it's really inspirational to me to be doing a similar thing with a group of people who have such a big goal. 50,000 words, if you're kind of unfamiliar with what word counts kind of resemble, 50,000 words is, is about 200 pages of texts.

[00:07:31] 200 pages of a standard manuscript. And that's a lot, that's a lot to do in a month. That's a lot for anybody to do in a month. I mean, there are people who write far faster than that, or crank out more words than that in a month, but I know far more people who don't. So just in the light of November and in the light of giving

[00:07:54] thanks, if you are finding yourself, Kind of in the depths of despair, if you are losing motivation, if you are mentally burned out. If you are not very excited to continue drafting your book, usually that means that you need to revisit your outline. If you're a pantser and you are coming up on writer's block, then you might want to take some notes from an outliner and just kind of outline the next part of your book, just because that is the perfect way to deal with writer's block.

[00:08:30] Anyway. In face of all of these really big, heavy feelings, it helps me to reflect on what I'm thankful for. I personally don't fully know what NaNoWriMo is going to look like over the Thanksgiving holiday, just because I'm going to be with family. I'm not going to be in the tiny house during that time.

[00:08:54] But everybody knows that I'm taking this goal seriously. And so hopefully I'll be able to sneak away and maintain my goals. So that is my invitation to you. Go ahead and spend time every day. I know that you are not writing 24 hours a day, and reflect on what you are thankful for before you gear up and start drafting.

[00:09:22] And let me know how it goes. Go ahead and send me your stories. My email address is [email protected], and I would love to hear inspirational stories from you, or you can send them to me on Instagram. My handle is@authordevindavis.. I'm excited to hear your news. I'm excited to see your progress and go ahead and log on to NaNoWriMo and follow me as one of your buddies.

[00:09:51] So all of that information is in the description of the show notes. This episode is a little bit shorter than what we are used to, but that is okay. Take time for you. Take care of. Take care of your body and take care of your mind. And especially this month, remember the things that you are thankful for, not just because it's a cheesy thing to do, but it can actually help with dealing with stress and dealing with motivation.

[00:10:24] So that is my tidbit for today.. Let's go ahead and hear all about a little syllables editing. 

[00:10:33] Run by copy editor, Krissy Barton, Little Syllables editing is a reliable resource for anyone looking to improve their manuscript. Chrissy does line edits, copy edits, and the final proofread for experienced writers and newbies alike. Krissy offers incredible customer service by always being in contact with the customer.

[00:10:54] And she gives a fast turnaround time. She is always willing to give your work a sample edit for free. So you both can find out if you'll make a good team without any obligation upfront, go to little syllables.com and reach out to Chrissy today. A link is in the show notes.

[00:11:16] so that's it for today. Again, a brief reminder that Bridgette installment, one of tales from blade, or is available to purchase on amazon.com as an ebook. And as of this morning, it has been uploaded to audible and a couple other locations as an audio book. So go ahead and get your copy today. If you are a patron of writing in the tiny house, I provide an advanced reader copy of all of these short stories.

[00:11:44] As a way to say thank you for your pledge. So if you wish to become a patron of writing in the tiny house, go to patrion.com/writing in the tiny house today. a link for that is also in the show notes. Be sure to follow me on social media.

[00:11:59] My Instagram is at author Devin Davis and my Twitter is at author Devin, D I'm excited to hear about your news with NaNoWriMo and we will see you next time. Have fun writing.