Writing Challenge Day2 19 & 20: Opposites, Weekly Recap, & News

The weekend challenges brought out one of my favorite topics and also my least favorite type of challenge. I'm no judge of books if you go by the critics because I invariably choose books they won't even touch. :/ This makes it difficult for me to pitch my own book. What appeals to me rarely appeals to the masses.
It's also why I chose to self-publish. I don't know how long it would take to find a publisher who would see the potential in my work and I don't want to take the time or lash my soul more often than I need to with constant rejections. My skin's pretty thick after all these years, but I'm also soul-weary. On most days, I'm just too tired to fight after I've poured all my energy and effort into my work.

#MayLitWrit Day 19 - Favorite Stage of the Writing Process

I have said it so many times before but I love the planning process, world building and character creation in particular.
Finishing a first draft is pretty awesome, too. It's quite empowering to see that story put together, even in its raw state.
I haven't actually written a final FINAL draft yet. My first book is at the 'needs an editor' stage, but it's as final as it's going to get for now. I know there's more refining that could be done, though.
I also have a feeling my successive books will be better. The experts do say this is usually the case. I hope so. I really hope so. Not that I feel my first book is horrible, though. I love Ripples! It's dear to my heart. OLUS is also a tale I see coming together in a beautiful way.

#MayLitWrit Day 20 - As a reader, you'd pick your WIP because...

I absolutely hate this challenge. I know it's meant to help me create a better blurb but when my values differ so much from the values of the masses, it's really hard to answer this. I like a book that creates a new world I can get into. I feel like Y'Dahnndrya meets that need. I also like fun and interesting characters. I believe my book includes enough characters with enough variety that readers would enjoy meeting them. And in general, it's a fantasy book and those are my favorite. I'd pick it up and check it out, at the very least, for that reason alone.

Weekly Recap

I got so much done last week. Unfortunately, it was almost entirely for marketing! I did manage to edit a few parts of my short story but I need to earn some money for editing Ripples or it's never going to be at its best.
So, if you like what I do and you see the potential in my work, please consider checking out my merch on Zazzle. You can also click on the tab in the top menu to view the items I have available now. Clicking on them will take you directly to their pages on Zazzle.
Another marketing tool I've chosen to use is quizzes. Just for fun, my girls love to take quizzes on Quotev. My oldest daughter has been suggesting it for a while so I created a personality quiz based on the characters from Ripples. I had so much fun creating it and I hope people will enjoy taking the quiz, especially if they've read the book on Wattpad. If they haven't, I hope the quiz will generate enough interest in Ripples for participants to take advantage of the links I included and check it out. If you haven't had a chance to take the quiz yet, why not take it now? 

Coming Up

This week, I'll be going back to sewing for a while. I've had a mission project on the back burner since before Christmas but I've got everything I need now. I love the opportunity to give something back.
I'll also be making curtains and doing some small quilting projects. The latter will probably keep me occupied over the summer. We'll see, I suppose.
As for writing, I'll keep revising OLUS over the summer. I'll also keep working on my short story. I hope to have it ready for submission in July.