So my dad comes over the other day. He pokes his head into my makeshift office. He sees me typing away in a MSWord doc and asks, “How many more words do you have left until you’re done writing that book?”
“Oh probably 30k or so more words,” I said with a bit of a groan. I’d been working through a particularly hard scene and the words were not coming fast enough for my liking.
To that, my dad responded with, “Great. Can I get you to help me with some typing when you’re done?”
Dad’s question got me thinking. An author’s view of a word count is different than most people. Non-authors don’t really know what it’s like to write a book. It’s a creative process which is a very abstract concept to non-creative types. It’s not a matter of just hitting a word count. You can’t take my average words per minute typed and use that to estimate how long it would take to write an 80k novel. If that were the case, I’d be churning out stories by the truckload monthly! That would be pretty awesome though, wouldn’t it?
A lot of “writing time” (and I’m using myself as an example here) is spent staring at a blinking cursor, making odd faces at it while you work through a plot issue in your head. There are also many hours of research that need to be done for some stories. Distractions like: Email, Facebook, Twitter, and Message boards might have something to do with that too, but we’ll just ignore their influence for now. =p
For me, an average writing session can last anywhere from 1-3 hours, and in that time I may not get more than 1k words down on the paper.
Of course, some stories take longer than others to write. My first novel took 5 years. The second, only 6 months, but by the time I got to the fourth one, I was back up to taking a year to write it. Each story is like a living, breathing thing, which requires its own amount of time to grow and mature.
So, while I’m stating a word count goal to my dad, it’s really not a measure of how long it will take me, just an end result. Which means I won’t be getting out of helping him with his typing project any time soon. =p
Alas, a writer’s work is never done.
Thanks for reading, and if you want to check out my work, you can find me at
http://www.katiesalidas.com/
Immortalis Carpe Noctem (Book 1)
Becoming a vampire is easy. Living with the condition... that's the hard part.
Bleeding to death after brutal mugging, twenty-five year old Alyssa is rescued by the most unlikely hero: the handsome and aloof vampire, Lysander.
His gift of immortal blood initiates Alyssa into a frightening, eternally dark world filled with: bloodlust, religious fanaticism, and thousand-year old vendettas.
With Lysander as her guide, Alyssa will have to learn what it takes to survive in the immortal world. She'll have to find the strength to accept her new reality and carpe noctem; or give in, and submit to final death.
Hunters & Prey (Book 2)
Becoming a vampire saved Alyssa from death, but the price was high: the loss of everything and everyone attached to her mortal life. She’s still learning to cope when a surprise confrontation with Santino Vitale, the Acta Sanctorum’s most fearsome hunter, sends her fleeing back to the world she once knew, and Fallon, the friend she’s missed more than anything.
Alyssa breaks vampire law by revealing her new, true self to her old friend, a fact which causes strong division in the group that should support her most: her clan.
Pandora’s Box (Book 3)
After a few months as a vampire, Alyssa thought she’d learned all she needed to know about the supernatural world. But her confidence is shattered by the delivery of a mysterious package – a Pandora’s Box.
Seemingly innocuous, the box is in reality an ancient prison, generated by a magic more powerful than anyone in her clan has ever known. But what manner of evil could need such force to contain it?
When the box is opened, the sinister creature within is released, and only supernatural blood will satiate its thirst. The clan soon learns how it feels when the hunter becomes the hunted.
Powerless against the ancient evil, the clan flees Las Vegas for Boston, with only a slim hope for salvation. Could Lysander’s old journals hold the key? And what if they don’t?
And how welcome will they be in a city run by a whole different kind of supernatural being?
Werewolves…
To purchase the Immortalis books (In print and ebook):
Amazon USA
http://www.amazon.com/Katie-Salidas/e/B003APXXWO/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1
Amazon UK
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Katie-Salidas/e/B003APXXWO/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_pop_1
Amazon DE (Germany)
http://www.amazon.co.de/Katie-Salidas/e/B003APXXWO/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_pop_1
Barnes & Noble
http://productsearch.barnesandnoble.com/search/results.aspx?WRD=katie+salidas&page=index&prod=univ&choice=allproducts&query=katie+salidas&flag=False&pos=-1&box=katie+salida&ugrp=2
Smashwords
http://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/KatieSalidas
About the Author:
KATIE SALIDAS
Katie Salidas is a Super Woman! Endowed with special powers and abilities, beyond those of mortal women, She can get the munchkin off to gymnastics, cheerleading, Girl Scouts, and swim lessons. She can put hot food on the table for dinner while assisting with homework, baths, and bedtime… And, She still finds the time to keep the hubby happy (nudge nudge wink wink). She can do all of this and still have time to write.
And if you can believe all of those lies, there is some beautiful swamp land in Florida for sale…
Katie Salidas resides in Las Vegas, Nevada. Mother, wife, and author, she does try to do it all, often causing sleep deprivation and many nights passed out at the computer. Writing books is her passion, and she hopes that her passion will bring you hours of entertainment.
http://www.katiesalidas.com/
Thank you so much for having me here today!!
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