Beautiful Books 2017: How’s the Writing Going?

If you haven’t read Part 1 where I introduced Unmoored as my NaNo17 WIP, you can read that first and then come back here.

Okay, all set? Let’s jump into Part 2 (as always, questions are from my writer friend, Paper Fury).

1. Overall, how is your mental state, and how is your novel going? Mental state: surprisingly okay, although kind of exhausted. Novel status: going steadily, the first 3 days I was sleeping like nuts as I fought off a 72-hour virus (or nasty cold, still don’t know which) so it’s a miracle that I’m not only on track, but slightly ahead of schedule.
2. What’s your first sentence (or paragraph)? Ivy was sleeping when her door burst open. Her mother ran in, grabbed her by the arm, and pushed her into the closet. “Don’t make a sound,” her mother commanded before closing the door and booted footsteps started getting closer.
3. Who’s your current favourite character in your novel? Ivy, the FMC.
4. What do you love about your novel so far? I love that I’m getting to dive further into the world of  The Belgrave Legacy and tell Ivy and Alec’s story.
5. Have you made any hilarious typos or other mistakes? Not yet, but I’m sure I will.
6. What is your favourite to write: beginning, middle, or end — and why? The end because it means I’m done with a draft and will be able to revise and edit (rather than starting from a blank page)
7. What are your writing habits? Is there a specific snack you eat? Do you listen to music? What time of day do you write best? Feel free to show us a picture of your writing space! I don’t really have any, though I really should since it’d probably make me more productive. I write whenever I can. I do believe I write better in the morning, but as someone who loves to sleep that is usually hard to manage. I usually don’t listen to music, but may have a song running in my head on its own without needing iTunes to play it for me. My “writing space” is just my laptop, so you can see that prettiness on Apple’s website (the rose gold one).
8. How private are you about your novel while you’re writing? Do you need a cheer squad or do you work alone (like, ahem, Batman)? Mm, I mean, I like to have encouragement, but as to actually sharing snippets of it, I’m pretty much like Batman. You’ll see it when it’s ready, not before. Although, that sucks for my Instagram feed… so maybe I’ll rethink that drafting embargo strategy.
9. What keeps you writing even when it’s hard? Knowing that it’ll get done.
10. What are your top 3 pieces of writing advice? Take good physical care of yourself. Have a plan (even if it’s a loose structure and a few unrelated ideas). And reward yourself for small victories so you’ll stay motivated (remember it’s a marathon, not a sprint).