Greetings from Camp NaNo 2013!

I'm taking a quick break from Camp NaNo to write a letter home. (aka - this blog post) I had a shaky start, with it being 4th of July and a long weekend. In the last week, I caught up and surpassed my word count goal. Saying that, the rest of the month will now be jinxed.

Several people have asked about this story and I thought I'd take the time to explain it, to the best of my ability. I'm not even quite sure where it's heading.

First of all, let me say that I'm pushing my comfort zone boundaries nearly to their max. Over the years, I've stretched those boundaries little by little. There was a time when I wouldn't write anything I didn't want my mother to read. Happy and uplifting or with solid moral lessons, that was the way to go. It took me a while to break from that mindset and realize that's not where my writer's brain wanted to go.

Yes, I still enjoy writing children's books, but I also wanted to write darker stuff. As followers and readers of my blog, you know I knocked down the wall concerning abuse and murder with WHAT THE WHOLE TOWN KNEW. Deciding to write that was a huge step forward for me, even if it never gets published. It meant I was capable of writing in that vein of thinking. I could push my personal boundaries and trample them.

I'm a huge reader. My house is full of books of every type. I mean EVERY type. You can't go in a room at my house without encountering them. Even the bathroom has a small bookshelf. Reading so many different genres and styles means my brain likes to mix them up to see what happens. It brings up lots of What ifs? that need exploring.

I still have things I won't write. Erotica, for one. I mean, I get squirmy and uncomfortable writing a kissing scene, how well do you think I'd do getting that graphic? But, most other things are fair game.

Now, onto my current project, which started out as a romance, but is quickly becoming more literary with romantic elements. Some of you saw me asking for help on Facebook, looking for military information. Everyone who stepped up, thank you! You gave me a basis to build on, although I'm going to need more help when I go for revisions.

OF LOVE AND WAR is first person POV (Point of View), from the perspective of Private Billy Brown. (First comfort level breached - writing from male POV.) Set in US Army (Second comfort level - military and warfare), it follows Billy, through flashbacks (Third comfort level - non-linear writing) as he falls for a superior officer, David Long (Fourth comfort level - gay romance) during the repeal of DADT. Yeah, I'm taking on a lot at once. My biggest worry is making sure I portray all of these elements in the right way. My second worry is finding Beta readers willing and knowledgeable enough to straighten out any inaccuracies I accrue along the way.

So, that's the current news from Camp NaNo. Have any of you written out of your comfort zone? Even if it was a different genre or story length. What was it and how did it go for you?

I'm on a Panel!

I'm still here. Taking the 'Absentee' thing a bit seriously again, I'm afraid. Last week it was family vacation week, this week started Camp NaNo. Working on something new and I'm completely out of my element. I'll let you all know how it goes at the end of the month.

Between getting writing, editing and revising done, I'm still making appearances. This month, I'll be sitting in on my first panel at Charlton Library. I'm excited and a bit nervous. If you all want to come and give me some easy questions, I'd love you forever.

Seriously, if you're in the area and considering self-publishing, come check it out. I won't be the only one there, so even the hard questions have a chance of being answered.