Chapters Nine and Ten

These will be the last rough drafts I share with you. I am one chapter (plus a heck of a lot of editing) away from completing my first book. I really didn't think I could do it but here I am, with an almost novel on my hard drive. Very exciting.

Time to retrieve monkey #2. Enjoy the read...

Timeless, A Novel- Chapter Nine Rough Draft First Half
Timeless, A Novel- Chapter Ten Rough Draft First Half

Pushing through Chapter Seven with some inspiring words

This chapter is taking me a few days longer than I had planned. It is strange because I have already mapped it out and done a draft by hand, which is usually the magic combination for writing productivity. Perhaps I am stressed over something outside of the book. Perhaps I am feeling nervous since I am now on the downward slope, having passed the halfway mark in the last chapter. After this chapter, everything is action packed and should flow out of my fingertips and onto the page like water. This chapter, in the meantime, has proved to be a little challenging.
To meet the challenge, I have come to rely on this list:


It has been our desktop wallpaper for months. There is always one line that stands out when I glance at it, that is just right for my needs at that moment. And last night, I came across this, by my nerd crush Ira Glass:


The main thing I need to do right now is push past this. I have set a deadline that I will, for once in my life, respect. Tomorrow is a holiday so tonight I will not sleep but two hours and tomorrow I will write for a least eight hours, plus the hours I put in after the kids' bedtime. I am determined that I will accomplish #33.

So, here is what I got so far. As always, any feedback in the comments is most welcome. Thank you for reading!


Timeless, A Novel- Chapter Seven Rough Draft First Half

November Rising and Here's Chapter Six

My writing got put aside while I organized and executed the annual children's Halloween party for the school where I teach. It is amazing how exhausting such tasks can be but it is over and I am back in the saddle. I was anxious to finish Chapter Six as it contains a turning point for Ruth that not only reveals more about her as a character but pivots the plot of the book quite substantially. Since this book is to be the first in a short series, I was thinking of a subtitle that would be something like "calm before the storm" or "the eye of the hurricane". Kind of campy right now but I feel like this book is really a brief lull for these women before they have to hop into a hyperactive period of their long lives in the next book. I'll work on that subtitle later. In the meantime, I will hopefully get Chapter Seven cranked out tomorrow. Until then, I give you Chapter Six:
Timeless, A Novel- Chapter Six Rough Draft