NaNoWriMo and Beyond

Not going to lie. The next three months are going to suck. I've packed my schedule so full that I'm pretty sure there are days I'm going to have to sleep while typing in order to make everything happen. Not having a real full-time job is going to greatly help.
There is going to be a two-week period in the middle of NaNoWriMo that I will be working on seven novels at once. Yes. Seven. 7 FUCKING BOOKS will be worked on at once in the middle of November. All while advancing the one novel that I 'm using as my NaNovel.
I'm going to have a tab for the "Weird" series as soon as I can come up with a decent series title for it. But for now it's just the "Weird" series because I'm unable to creative.

You're Probably Right, I'm A Little Bit Crazy

But it just might be a lunatic you're lookin for! (Shush I know I got the lyrics wrong I DON'T CARE WAH) anyway hey guys WOW I'm really kind of shocked to see that two days ago, inexplicably, I got like 40 views on here! WOW that's amazing! I've not updated in a while and I come back to see that. That's some amazing stuff right there, man.
So I just wanted to kind of give y'all an update on what's going on with the Emma and you know what I've been doing and whatever without giving you any reason to really have your hopes up or anything. I've started working on a couple of new projects, one that I'm hoping to be able to talk about very, very soon. The others, well, not so much. I'm working about as fast as I can work, which is about the speed of a turtle in January in Antarctica. But you know, that's okay! As long as I keep going, I will eventually finish all these projects I've started.
I'm actually really excited to share one of the things I'm working on with you because it's very personal and actually something I've been wanting to write for a long while, yet haven't had the proper inspiration for it. Until now none of it has come out right, but now it's really starting to seem that I will be able to share it with the world REALLY soon!

And I suppose I can probably tell you all about the wonders that happened last Saturday night. So some of you might know that this past weekend was my birthday weekend (Monday I turned 25. Yes, I'm 25 now) and I was out of town all weekend. We drove out into the darkness Thursday evening and drove straight through to Chicago. We got into Chicago at just about 9AM and we went to the Field Museum and saw Sue (that really big T-Rex skeleton) and a bunch of other things (including a wall of ducks which prompted a video of me showing the world "how many ducks I give. Look at all the ducks I give!")
And then we found a hotel and crashed for like 15 hours. Saturday we woke up and got ready and drove into downtown and picked up a friend and we all went to the Weird Al concert in Joliet. That was hectic, trying to get the logistics of all that down (and trying to convince the valet parking dude that no, we didn't need to be parked, we were simply waiting for our friend!) and then driving those terrible freeways in Chicago. That was awful. I really don't want to drive in Chicago again for a looooooong time.
Well the concert was amazing, I started crying as we got to our seats and we were in the second row! It was CRAZY! The concert was SO good and I didn't think the night could get any better- and then it did.
The following is a picture that more aptly describes what happened than I could ever describe:

Yes, that's me. 

Yes, that's Weird Al.

Yes, that actually happened.

OMG

If you've ever wondered

If you've ever wondered quite why I never get anything released when I say I'm going to, it's mostly due to the fact that I'm constantly working on at least four projects at once. Sometimes it's as many as 100. Last year it was 100. Hell, at one point before I ever even really considered publishing anything (except as a far-off dream) I would work on 20-30 projects a week AND FINISH ALL OF THEM.
But now there's that desperation for quality, but there's also the call of the fans for a finished product. So I'm very often left at an impasse. Hell, a lot of the time I get to about the halfway point and I get too bored of it to continue, or I start stressing that I've lost the original message I wanted to get across with the work. Or that the project has lost its soul.
So I abandon it. I start fresh. That's what's happened with both planned sequels for Viscera and the last book of the Sketchbooks Series.
That's what's happened with the Cedarcrest Series. TWICE.
Hell it happened sixteen times with Paper Dolls long before I ever planned on publishing it. I never planned on showing it to anybody but my mom and yet I had to restart it that many times.
And then the entirety of Paper Dolls was written in about two weeks.
So please, please bear with me when I say that I'm going to release something in a certain month (or year) and then I fall through. It's not intentional. I just want to give you the best product I can.
I will no longer be announcing anything I'm working on except in passing. You'll know what I'm doing when it's already out.
So if I get quiet or don't update my blog for a reeeeeeally long time, it's not me trying to keep you in the dark. It's me trying to not get your hopes up.
Because I love you, dear readers. And I want you to get the best possible things that can come from my brain.
And that's also why I'm holding that writing contest. Because I really want to give you the best possible things. And sometimes that means having some help.

Ever wanted to co-write a novel? WRITING CONTEST TIME!

I'm looking to hire a co-conspirator to help me write novels. The work load will not be very heavy, but will consist of the necessity of writing about one chapter (approx 3300 words) every two weeks. I will, of course, be writing about the same, and we will double-team the novel. I will write chapter one, you will write chapter two, me three, you four, me five, and so on. There will be chapters we co-write and there will be weeks where I will have nothing for you to work on.

For each chapter you write on your own, you will be paid $30-$40 depending on length and quality. For each chapter we co-write, you will be paid $15-$20 depending on how much you contribute and, again, quality. 

You will also receive a percentage of the royalties from each book sold (payable usually about 5 days after Amazon transfers my royalty funds into my bank account).

If this sounds like something you'd be interested in, read on and consider entering the contest!

Winner gets $20 and the opportunity to help me write a book. With that opportunity, of course, comes acknowledgement as one of the authors of the book, payment for each chapter written or co-written, and a percentage of the royalties for books sold. Will also include a paperback copy of the book you help to write and the opportunity to help out with other future projects as well if we work together.

Rules:

1. Must be willing to deal with me on at least a weekly basis via email.
2. One entry per person. 
3. Have to be able to work with set deadlines once contest is over.
4. Have to be flexible and willing to take critique.
5. MUST HAVE PAYPAL. I cannot stress this enough. If you don’t have paypal I can’t pay you.
6. Have fun!

How to Enter:

1. Email your entry of no less than 500, no more than 1500 words to eewestlund@me.com
2. Entries must be received by no later than 11:59PM Central Time December 1st, 2013

What to write for your entry:

1. The scene you need to write is the main character and the love interest meeting for the first time in the hallway at school.
2. Try to make it read like a rom-com, preferably late 80s, early 90s. 
3. Please make it no longer than 1500 words and no shorter than 500 words. 

Details about main character:

1. A bit ditzy
2. Junior in high school
3. Overweight
4. high-pitched voice
5. at least 6 inches shorter than love interest
6. Human
7. Female

Details about love interest

1. Tall
2. vampire
3. gorgeous
4. kind of a dick
5. male
6. reclusive
7. intelligent
8. muscular

I am leaving the rest up to you. 

Remember, the contest ends at 11:59PM Central Time on December 1st, 2013. Your entries can be emailed to eewestlund@me.com

The winner will be emailed sometime in mid-December and work on the project will begin in early January, 2014. 

ANY QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, CONCERNS, OR LOVE FOR THE CONTEST CAN BE ADDRESSED TO THE EMAIL LISTED ABOVE. PLEASE INCLUDE QUESTION OR COMMENT IN THE SUBJECT LINE. 

Running On Empty

That is the name of my favorite song by "The Engagement" (a now-defunct local band that was based out of St. Paul. I went to college with their lead singer) and also what I'm doing in multiple ways currently. My van is on E, and I've only had 20 minutes of "sleep" in the past 21 hours. I don't get to sleep until at least 2 or 3 because I've got to mail out a package after I get off work, and at that point I might just stay awake because I'm interested in that Miley Cyrus thing on MTV tonight.

I'm hoping that my tiredness will lead to some serious bursts of creative energy and maybe, just maybe, I'll manage to get a good chunk of Fearless written today. 

Stella's Saga: Book One — NOW IN PAPERBACK!

https://www.createspace.com/4464642 Now you can own a paperback copy of Stella's Saga, the complete first book! (Note: It does not contain Interlude.)
It's available through createspace.com currently, and soon it will also be available on amazon.com. And if you purchase a paperback copy, you can get the ebook (same book, only in kindle e-book form) for only $0.99 instead of the $2.99 that the e-book is going to cost.
I've released this paperback in order to help bring the hype for Stella's Saga: Book Two, which will be released (hopefully) sometime around Christmas/New Years. I will, of course, let everyone know if there's a delay or if I finish Stella's Saga: Book Two earlier than that. My biggest thing is making sure that I've got something out there for you to read and enjoy. I'm working my ass off on Fearless and SS:B2 and I'm hoping it'll really show once the two are done.
Thank you for reading, don't forget to follow/watch/whatever it is you do with google blog things and go check out Stella's Saga: Book One!
https://www.createspace.com/4464642