Week 3 - NaNoWriMo - Challenges

Week 3 NaNoWriMo has probably been the most challenging so far. Why? Because real life has a nasty habit of interfering!! Gosh, darn!

I did NaNoWriMo last year and this year. Last year I was a winner. This year I intend to be, too. I did all my prep work, cast my characters, did character bios, made maps, researched herbs, roots, werewolf and witch myths and I was ready to write on day one.

My NaNoWriMo project this year is kinda old and kinda new. I have a "deadline" to the publisher so I had to work on my rewrite/revision of The Wolf's Torment NOW. This project was previously with IUniverse, but I took it down, intent on changing some "big" things about the story. For one, I wanted to pair down the horror elements and focus more on the romantic elements. The biggest changes I've made: Sonia is no longer a maid - she's Mihai's half sister and Mihai reluctantly agrees to learn witchcraft, since his mother is a witch, and he is too. I just finished the first arc of the story - Viktor is bitten by Bane. I find the plot remains the same, but how I get there is much more different.


This week has been a challenge. The first two days of the week I was off and I usually do my writing at work on down time. I had to set aside time and work while my kids were home. It got tough when Joe wanted to jump all over my back. Yesterday, at work I couldn't do any work simply because I was on the the phones and I had no down time. I hope to work on the story today since I'm at a position that will allow it.

One of NaNoWriMo pleasures is meeting with my NaNoWriMo buddy, Jenifier Ranieri at the local Panera. We sit, chat a bit, drink coffee and write. It's fun to have a NaNoWriMo buddy. She's been able to get out to a couple of write-ins around the area where I haven't and it's nice to hear about her experiences.

My "unofficial" Word Count right now is 33K. My goal is to kick out another 3K today and tomorrow when I meet with Jenifier I need to get to typing.

Yes, Typing. Most of my writing is handwritten because at work, I can't have a computer and it's all handwritten. Just another challenge for me during NaNoWriMo.

I have a feeling Thanksgiving Week is going to pose another challenge for me.

Here's a RAW NaNoWriMo excerpt:
Bane watched form the rail of the ship as it approached Odessa. He had booked passage on a steam-powered boat as soon as Hecuba told him of his mark's destination – Odessa. And his mark had a name – Viktor. How delicious.

Viktor was several hours ahead of him, but Bane was resourceful and confident in his abilities to finally get what he wanted.
The winter wind wiped against his face. Hecuba was down below, resting. The potions she used to transform her body were getting more and more painful. Black magic had devoured her body. She had lived long – 200 years, but that was because she drank his blood, allowing his ability of regeneration and longevity to assist her body. It was now failing her. If she lived another two years, he would be surprised. And maybe it was time to give up the beast. He was nothing without her, and maybe he could finally consider death – especially if he could train Viktor to be his heir.

Bane ran a hand through his greasy hair. There was something about this Viktor that resonated deep in his bones. Something that he couldn't place – only that the man's natural scent, that of tiger lilies reminded him of home.


Odessa's port came into view. Bane enjoyed being a wolf, reveling in the supernatural power of his body. He was the leader of his pack and due to his age, he had skills younger wolves did not possess. Bane closed his eyes, recalling his younger days. He was born in a small Ukrainian tower – Chernivtsi, over 200 years ago, near the Romanian principality of Transylvania.

Bane looked to the sky, always aware of the phase of the moon. Because he was so old and a leader, he could transform at will. Younger wolves would only transform on the full moon when the moon's eerie light was at its full power, igniting the wolf's blood in its human host.

Werewolves needed two things come the full moon – to eat and have sex. When it came to satisfying the awful hunger, only human flesh and blood would do. There was something in human blood that held the hunger in check until the next full moon. Pig's blood would do if a wolf's appetite couldn't be properly attended to, but it lacked that special quality to be totally filling. A wolf would go insane if they drank pig's blood three moons in a row.

Then there was the insatiable desire to have sex. Only a witch could sate the wolf's heightened desires. Their energy was intuitive, feeling the wolf's emotions, calming him. A human woman could accommodate a wolf, but couldn't calm – the sex would be rough, dangerous with a human. Most wolves hunted for food at night, rested, and then, during the day, when they were human, coupled with the witches.
The full moon would occur in Odessa and while he hated to be away from his pack in Mulfaltar, he was not going to let the opportunity of biting Viktor pass him by again. He left Timon in charge. Timon was crafty yet cold, but the other two wolves could hold their own with Timon, and the witches would be protected by the wolves.

He smiled, recognizing the Potemkin Stairs. Soon, he would have a new wolf for his pack.