Okay, my NaNo daily word output or the force behind it is like an EKG strip with peaks and falls. Today, was another tough one as I had to extract the words out of me. I woke up early and went through my morning routine of doing yoga, meditation, and treadmill. I even worked physically in my sunroom to get balanced for the daily writing session.
However, no homeostasis occurred. It was a dark dreary November day with the lights in my office turned on all day.
The best thing that happened to me today was my trip to the Cannonsburg Post Office with a box of books for the Book Nook of Saugatuck located at 242 Butler Street. If you’re in that area, don’t forget to stop by. Books make great gifts.
I logged in 1,773 words for a total of 16, 298. That’s pretty much the bare minimum because I have a show next weekend – Christmas through Lowell. I will be at the Lowell Area Historical Museum.
See you there.
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I will be at the Lowell Area Historical Museum, station k, 325 W. Main St. from Friday afternoon through Sunday, Nov. 20 with my books from the Shifting Sands series.
NaNoWriMo continues
The adventure to find the lost city of Singapore continues with an average daily log-in of 2,000 words. I find that it is optimal to keep up the pace of the story, and not lose the storyline.
Any extremes above or below that count, are just that, extremes that will catch up with you. We discussed this in yesterday’s Halfway NaNoWriMo Breaking Point Podcast with authors Jean Davis and Vera West. Check it out.
The word build-up of 3,000 words tends to dwindle away if you slack off the next day. Trying to make up for the required 1,667-word daily login is almost impossible. It’s a big chunk of text.
It was an awesome writing day split into two sessions. I logged in 3,277 words for a total of more than 20, OOO words. I am working on a sequel to The Lost Town.
ChristmasthroughLowell
In my other role as a newspaper woman, watch for the upcoming story about Christmas through Lowell featuring vendors and artists in The Lowell Ledger.
I will be on the tour as well inside the Lowell Area Historical Museum in the industrial room with my books from the Shifting Sands Series plus the Konecny Family memoir.
Don’t miss out on this unique opportunity to meet a local author and shop for lovely gifts.
Copyright (c) 2022. Emma Blogs, LLC. All rights reserved.
There’s no better time of the year than the holidays which are upon us. Whether you have started your shopping or not, it’s a good time to put together your list. I like to choose unique gifts. On top of my list are books, books, and more books because there’s nothing more unique than books. As in the past, I will continue the tradition of gifting books by fellow indie authors. I have my eyes set on Mark Bello’s “Supreme Betrayal” and Sherri Burton’s “The Orphan Train Saga” for my parents. Childrens’ books for my grandkids by authors Joan H. Young, Melinda Falgoust, and Ingar Rudholm. I also buy books for myself, after all, I have to support my colleagues and fellow authors in our common endeavors. I will add to my indie author collection “Flicker” by Melanie Hooyenga for granddaughter Ella, and “Adam” by Andrew Allen Smith.
EMMA’S AUTHORS HOLIDAY EVENTS
Christmas Through Lowell, Nov. 19, 20 & 21 @the Lowell Area Historical Museum Holiday Art Fair in Ann Arbor, Dec. 4 & 5th, Washtenaw County Fairgrounds, booth no. 106 in Author’s Row
PODCAST “FOR THE LOVE OF BOOKS”
The podcast featuring Indie and small press authors is now in its second season, and going strong. You can listen to the authors mentioned above talk about their books on your favorite podcasting apps and on podbean by clicking below. https://emmapalova123.podbean.com I would like to thank my major sponsor Doc Chavent who makes the show possible with her monthly sponsorship. If you would like to become a sponsor please contact me at emmapalova@yahoo.com Also, if you would like to be a featured guest on the show, email Emma.
DECEMBER HOLIDAY SPECIAL PODCAST EPISODES
Featured authors: children’s author Melinda Falgoust, Andrew Allen Smith, Theresa Halvorsen, and Julie Nelson on podbean and major podcasting apps.
Let’s play a Christmas giveaway game: Whoever first guesses what the box with the map and files stands for will win my new book “Greenwich Meridian Memoir,” just in time for Christmas. Email Emma with the answer at emmapalova@yahoo.com You can find clues on my blog http://emmapalova.com
I am as ready as I can be for the National Novel Writing Month 50K word challenge starting tomorrow Nov. 1 with my Greenwich Meridian: Where East meets West memoir project.
However, Halloween is not only followed by the NaNoWriMo blast off , but also by All Saints Day and All Souls’ Day in the catholic calendar on Saturday. I always go to the mass at St. Pat’s for one or the other to reflect and for inspiration.
Usually, the Book of the Dead is on display. An evening candlelight procession goes to the cemetery.
The feature photo is an optical illussion “All is Vanity” from Belrockton in Belding. It is hanging next to the “Face of Gossip,” which is on the cover of my new book “Secrets” from the Shifting Sands Short Stories collections.
Follow me on my NaNoWriMo journey to the completion of the memoir about our family immigration saga to the U.S.
I will be signing my new book at the Lowell Area Historical Museum (LAHM) on Nov. 15, 16 & 17 during Christmas through Lowell.
Proud to report that I am in the prep phase for the National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) 2019 at full speed. During the month of October , I logged in 12,195 words. My goal is to complete the Greenwich Meridian: Where East meets West in November and follow up with revisions.
It is a memoir about our family immigration saga from former communist Czechoslovakia to the US.
NaNoWriMo is a great tool for any writing project that you may have. First of all, it gives you daily accountability of writing by logging in daily word count. The challenge is to write 50,000 words in the month of November.
I had to do a lot of prep work, because I also have author events in November with my new book “Secrets” from the Shifting Sands Short Stories series.
I will be at the Lowell Area Historical Museum during the Christmas through Lowell tour on Nov. 15, 16 & 17 signing my books. So stop by to pick up an autographed book. I will be offering writing and publishing tips, as well.
Locally, my book is available at Springrove Variety in downtown Lowell.
I am extremely excited about this Christmas event. I’ve done it before with my first book “Shifting Sands: Short Stories.” I was at the Red Barn Market with other vendors including my daughter-in-law Maranda, who has “Little Dreamers Sleepovers” party business.
I would still like to get in one more author’s event before the end of this year. And what a year it has been. Watch for my post “Year in Review 2019.”
Daily insights from #nanowrimo creative project, split between fiction and non-fiction writing
By Emma Palova
EW Emma’s Writings
Lowell, MI – I added three pages and finished the short story “Raspberry Rage” (c) 2018 Emma Palova bringing the total word count to 37, 028 in the 50K word marathon. That puts the new collection of short stories beyond the half-way point with six stories done.
Day 19 of the National Novel Writing Month
The takeaways from nanowrimo
The widget on the dashboard keeps track of your average daily writing rate and days to finish on time by Nov. 30. From the start, I averaged 1, 900 words. The projected finish will be on Nov. 26, according to the dashboard.
However, today I had to also write non-fiction “Christmas through Lowell” for the Lowell Ledger, which made up for the remaining three pages of the daily quota. Those non-fiction three pages will not tally into the creative project.
It was the biggest night of the year under the moon of falling leaves. The town of Riddleyville has been getting ready for the annual Ladies Night Out since lastyear.
Book cover for “Secrets” aka the Face of Gossip.
Everyone
has forgotten the fiasco when the city manager dressed up in an ugly sweater
with black cats and pumpkins and black pants that had a hole in them.
He
came running out of the city hall to greet the mayor, and the pants fell off of
him.
However,
being a man of no shame, Ricky just pulled them up and shook the mayor’s hand
smiling.
“You’re
dressed up Ricky, what’s going on?” asked the mayor.
“It’s
girls’ night out, and it’s almost Halloween,” Ricky put on his regular grimace
of an enslaved man. “I wanted to dress for the occasion.”
Ricky
was stubby with black hair and an occasional mustache that he from time to time
either shaved off or grew it into a goatee.
“You’re
not a girl or a lady Ricky,” said the mayor walking into the well-lit building.
“We need to talk about a few things.”
No
one has ever found out what the two talked about in the big office that night.
The
town had two memories; one forgiving and the other unforgiven.
Ricky
for the most part fell under the first category.
He
did remember not to dress up this time, since it was a chick flick night. Ricky
watched from his window the action on Main Street. He had a lot of paperwork to
finish, and the mayor too usually came in to chat.
Women of all ages were running in the street enjoying the warmth of the late autumn. Some were dressed up in their prom dresses from a long time ago; yellow, red, purple and blue. Ricky wondered how the heck they fit back in them. He himself couldn’t fit into anything remotely resembling his high school years. His pants were small, and his belly was overflowing like the proverbial muffin. Ricky fought it for years, then he gave in.
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Copyright (c) 2018 Emma Blogs, LLC. All rights reserved.
Daily insights from the National Novel Writing Month
By Emma Palova
EW Emma’s Writings
Lowell, MI – I got definitely over Saturday’s hump in writing. It’s not like I had a choice to stop writing. I started fresh this morning, and the story “Raspberry Rage” (c) 2018 Emma Palova began to flow as the characters evolved.
I logged in today with 36,125 words in the 50K writing marathon around 9 a.m. That’s on target to reach the 40K badge by Wednesday. The story will become part of the new anthology “Secrets” (c) 2018 Emma Palova. It is my clear intention to see the new book to print in 2019.
Since, I am also living a normal life, Ludek and I headed out to church in Parnell and to Christmas through Lowell (CTL) locations that I did not get in on Saturday. The Christmas tour was a tremendous success with people steadily streaming down Main Street and between the major CTL vendors located within a five-mile radius of Lowell.
“It’s been great,” said Sandy Van Dyke with Sandy’s Fudge. “I love this location.”
Sandy’s Fudge along with 15 other vendors found their temporary home at the Red Barn Market on Alden Nash. The local restaurants were jammed packed all three days.
Excerpts from “Raspberry Rage”
Book cover for “Secrets” aka the Face of Gossip.
Klarette immediately felt her hand for the small white box with a switch on her pillow next to her head. She sunk deeper below the blanket and continued to stare helplessly into the painting on the wall as she heard the door close behind Victoria.
The
painting had some scribbles on it in cursive, but Klarette couldn’t read it
from her bed. She tried to get up, but was all entangled with the IV, so
Klarette sank back into her bed.
The
small hand on the big white clock on the wall was crawling closer to 3 as the
big hand inched toward 12. She quickly looked outside the window: the Orion
constellation was shining brightly with its stars, Nebula and Rigel.
Klarette,
sick to her empty stomach, tested her mind if it could bring back memories of
the past few days. Sounds instead entered her head giving into vibrations. She
realized that she was shaking and sweating in the cold room. The shakes, the
sounds and the sweat refused to go away. Her head was a swirl of the last 24
hours prior to arriving in the ambulance.
The swirls began to take shape of dancing flames, as goose bumps covered her body. She was itching all over. Klarette wanted to crawl out of her own skin. The cold eyelids were safely covering her hot eyeballs, that might have jumped out if it wasn’t for them. The eyelids still had smudges of make-up on them; thedark blue was smeared with the grey into a smokin’ hot explosion.
NaNoWriMo sponsors
Copyright (c) 2018 Emma Blogs, LLC. All rights reserved.
Lowell, MI – Local author Emma Palova will have a book signing of Shifting Sands Short Stories at the Red Barn Market during the annual Christmas through Lowell tour from Nov. 17 to Nov. 19.
Bring your locally purchased book available at Schuler Books & Music in Grand Rapids or Lansing. The book is also available on Amazon in two formats: Kindle for $7.99 and paperback for $11.99.
Palova divides the stories in the book into three circles: early immigration years, retail and journalism. The stories feature characters such as professor Martin Duggan in “The Temptation of Martin Duggan” based on the family immigration saga from former Czechoslovakia.
Book signing in downtown Lowell.
The hometown politics circle from journalism depicts ruthless supervisor Ned in the “Iron Horse” and charismatic Lisa in “Foxy.” The retail circle of stories highlights the retail madness during the “orange balloon clearance” in the “Orange Nights.” Rachel suffers under the yoke of the Midwest store routine.
Apple orchards served as a source of inspiration for “Danillo,” a story about a Mexican immigrant who works at the apple orchards.
“Orchards of any type have inspired me ever since I’ve read Chekhov’s Cherry Orchard,” Palova said.
The Red Barn Market is no. 1 location on the Greater Lowell map of the Christmas tour located at 3550 Alden Nash.
“I have deep ties to the Red Barn Market,” said Palova. “I’ve watched them grow over the last three years. We’re practically Neighbors. Red Barn and the surrounding Kropf apple orchards also inspire my work.”
The Red Barn Market has inspired one of the stories in Palova’s Book 2: Shifting Sands Short Stories: Secrets.
Annually, the tour attracts hundreds of visitors from far and near.
“It is our busiest event,” said general manager Barb Kropf-Roth.
The Trademark of the Christmas event are various vendors with unique wares & services such as the brand new Hastings-based “Little Dreamers Sleepovers.”
Let’s play a Christmas giveaway game: Whoever first guesses what the box with the map and files stands for will win my new book “Greenwich Meridian Memoir,” just in time for Christmas. Email Emma with the answer at emmapalova@yahoo.com
authoremmapalova 