The November 2023 Review

There’s not a lot to report for this month as I had been consumed by Nanowrimo.

Nanowrimo

When August saved Lydia from a reoccurring nightmare, he was only curious. The Dreamwalker was pushing the boundary of his newfound powers after learning that he could control some part of the dreaming – his and others.

But the source of Lydia’s nightmare would not tolerate outside interference. Even as they grew to look forward to their dreamtime dalliances, August’s meddling had only complicated Lydia’s predicament and made him question his morality.

When dreamtime fantasies and the real world collide, August realises that the stakes are very real, and the outcome is going to be fatal for one of them.

…or at least that was the plan. When you’re pantsing it, things rarely work out the way you thought, but that’s part of the fun.

Do I enjoy writing a novel as a full time job? Yes and no. I did indeed had the flexibility to do nothing but write a book for one month solid, but it’s because I’m between work projects. Add in the expected sprinkling of “what the heck am I doing” and “this isn’t making any sense” and the standard amount of self-loathing.

Dreaming of Water is based on the two short stories I wrote during Stories on Fire, which in turn was based on a collaborative Storium game/story (DOL) with a friend. This story predates DOL, featuring a Dreamwalker that had a significant cameo in one chapter. I didn’t know where I was going with it. I just wanted to explore his story. It’s hard to figure out what genre this falls under – The Dreamlands can be anything you want it to be, and I happen lean more into medieval fantasy.

I completed Nanowrimo with 50,031 words, but the story is not done. I’m not sure if I will continue or if I’m going to start breaking it down and resequencing the entire narrative. I’ve already written down the ending in bullet points but the journey there has become muddied. There are things that I wanted to happen after other things, but because I was out of ideas, it ended up where it ended up.

I guess I’ll give it a couple of months. Apparently January is Stories on Fire month again, and I may give it another shot.

Gaming

Nothing new to report other than my house is coming along. I spent most of November doing the bare minimum, which is to farm on my plot and sell produce, with the occasional run outside to mine, forage and hunt. Decorating has been subject to inspiration. For example, I had no idea how to populate this trophy room until I was inspired to turn it into a study. This view shows off the desk the best, but the background is still a work in progress.

Coming Next

• With Nanowrimo out of the way, I have more time to forus on tarot reading. If you want to get one, you can order it here. If you are an IRL contact, you can opt for an in-person reading. Just get in touch with me to make arrangements.
• December will hopefully see me editing some of the short stories I wrote in September and looking into submitting them somewhere, even it’s it’s just AO3.
• I also plan on making another crack at moving the stuff and things out of my room and get them donated or set aside for the next preloved market.

Links Roundup

A no-commentary list of articles and media I found interesting enough to share on my Discord server.

• 63 Things To Declutter And Let Go Of By The End Of The Year
• The Importance of Writing Habits for Content Creators: Advice from John Steinbeck
• Dog leads owner to cat stuck 100ft down Cornish mine shaft
• Has It Ever Been Harder to Make a Living As An Author?