The Writing Progress Blog Hop

So a few days ago, the amazing Adriana (AKA YA BookNook) tagged me for this. I thought it looked like a pretty awesome/informational/update-ish thing to do, so here goes!

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1. What am I working on?

At this point in time, there is not a lot of solid writing/drafting being done. Nor is there a lot of revising. Mostly...simmering.

This spring is basically a transition of sorts. I'm a big believer in taking breaks and hiatuses to recharge for another "writing season" ahead (On the other hand, when I'm drafting, it's an intense month, or two months. Revisions are the same--they're done in frenzied chunks of about 3 months.)

As of now, I'm querying TeaNovel--tentatively titled Blood Lily. It's basically a YA light fantasy--sort of like Memoirs of a Geisha combined with elements of a drug thriller. Querying is basically an essay made of long sentences of waiting, punctuated by an occasional period of  "RE: QUERY" (cue the millisecond of frenzy while your fate loads onto the phone screen).

But starting in May, when my schedule calms down, I'll be heading into revisions for MagicalThing, which involves fairy tales and a competition of magic, of two empires that head into centuries-old war. I'm very, very excited.

2. Why do I write what I do?

I write because when I was a little kid, my grandfather told me historical stories and myths and somehow, I became a storyteller.  But my imagination has always been way too big for my own good.

3. How does my writing process work?

The truest answer is; I don't have one. (This post of mine goes a little more into that)

But--I have many writing tendencies. I'm the "write drunk, edit sober" kind of person. I speed through the first draft, usually the wild, crazy NaNoWriMo style. I don't rush--I just pack an insane amount of drafting within a short timeframe, and then I take a month or two off to recuperate.

I prefer complete rewrites over big revision overhauls, but my favorite parts of writing are the first drafts.

I am a strange kind of pantser--I cannot, for the life of me, outline on paper, or on Post-its, or index cards--but I won't write a scene until it plays itself out in my head.

I like music--a combination of soundtracks and songs with great lyrics/music combos.

Tea and coffee are equal wordboosters in my mind, and I love them both. But my default is usually tea.

Chocolate is always the best food option. When it's not available, I eat my writer's angst and self-doubt for dinner.

But at the end of the day, I think stories are the most kickass things in the world, and I love every bit of the process--writing them, reading them, telling them and hearing them.

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Those were really nice questions! I tag: Rosanna Silverlight and Marisa Hopkins