Just a really quick check-in before I get ready for church this morning.
I finished April off with about 4,000 words over my goal for the month. So that’s good. I took the last two days off from writing to do other stuff. Yesterday, I walked over 4 miles in the Juvenile Diabetes walk. Then I went to a Mother’s Day banquet yesterday afternoon hosted by my mom’s church. Sometimes there are other things we have to do besides write.
I’m kind of stuck in the plotting for my second Hemlock Ridge Mysteries series written under my Catherine Lynn pen name. I have the basic plot, but there’s some important stuff I’m not getting. I’ll probably go ahead and start writing, because a lot of my ideas come WHEN I’m writing instead of before. That’s why I like pantsing better. I think better during the process of writing than the process of plotting. I’m trying kind of a combination of both. I know the basic things I need to know for the plot, just not all the details. Does that make me a “plantser”? Hmm, a new word.
lauralynnelliott.com 
Sorry about the loss of your friend, Lauralynn, I don’t know how long it takes to not have sadness on the anniversaries–maybe forever.
There is a lot of life that takes precedence over writing, which is why I failed so well at NaNo. I personally think that there’s less to write about if one doesn’t live life.
I also like your new word, Lauralynn! I remember that Ruth Nestvold called that being a puzzler.
Lots of things come to me as I write, so if I waited to have everything set in stone, I’d never write anything, not even the stuff sitting in my file drawers, lol.
When I took a class by Lynn Lorenz called “Plotting for Pantsers”, she said one of the problems with being too rigid with plotting is that you take so long to plot, you never get the book written. Whatever method works for each writer, right?
Those anniversaries are always hard. And the bad thing is, I lost another good, long-time friend week before last. As I get older, it seems I lose more people. But I guess that’s a natural thing with age. I just wish these friends had died of old age instead of suddenly in their prime. 😦
I remember your losing your friend at work so suddenly, That is very difficult, especially when they are so young. My brother was only 65, and I had spoken to him only the week before.
As for plotting forever, I think that is true. I know there are folks who write complete story bibles, and still get the work written, but I don’t think I could do that.
It’s having friends and family who pass away who are younger than you that really hits home. We were at a funeral yesterday for one of my hubby’s cousins and he was 10 years younger than us.
You are so wise to take part in the walk and the banquet. Those nourish our souls for sure.
Great progress made! All the best this month.
That really is hard when they are younger. You start looking at yourself.
I really did enjoy Saturday. It definitely was soul nourishing.
Planster? LOL That’s cute. 🙂
I can’t plot. I gave up after several attempts. I have to write the story to figure out what to do. I think we’re just wired differently.
It probably seems like I don’t ever do anything but write, but I love hiking and doing puzzles while watching TV. Plus, when I take my mind off the story, it is often easier to write when I do sit down.
I actually prefer pantsing. But if I do a basic plot, it keeps me from getting things mixed up.