Unprepared for a Month of Writing

NaNoWriMo is coming! NaNoWriMo is coming! Tomorrow is the day!

And as you can tell by the title of this blog post, I’m not really prepared for it. Maybe one of these years I’ll create some kind of outline/plan. I don’t think I’ve had a particular story going into NaNoWriMo since probably 2013? I’ve won the last five years anyway, so I guess I find ways to make it work without much thought into the story process.

In the beginning of October, I really did start thinking how I wanted my November to look like. I knew I was going to pretty much stop reading books. (I actually started Book #20 early last week, but there’s no way I’m finishing it tonight. I deliberately chose a book where I wouldn’t have a problem remembering the story if I don’t happen to pick it up again until December.) I was also happily willing to sacrifice my exercise regimen that I was so strict with for the past four months. Then the chaos of October struck, and by the second week of this month, I stopped working out. Oops. I was just practicing sitting in front of my laptop for November, right?

But in between all the birthdays, all the weekend social activities, getting a new car, dogsitting, and my sister getting engaged, I pushed all things NaNoWriMo out the door. (I did, however, write my first poem of the year last week.) Except now it’s officially starting in less than twenty-four hours. I’ve been getting myself acquainted today with their new website.

My plan so far:

-Write a bunch of stories until one finally sticks. I have one idea that I was kicking around last month, so I’d like to give it a go at some point. I actually haven’t written any fiction since June, so I know I’ll need to write “warm-up” stories for the first couple of days. One of the stories I started back in June has potential, so I’d love to revisit those characters too.

-Be an overachiever this year again and write at least 1700 words/day instead of the recommended 1667 words/day. Hopefully I don’t lose my sanity in the process.

-Apply the tactic of write-after-midnight more than usual. If I write 45-60 mins right after midnight, it still counts for the new day. Therefore, I don’t have to write so much at once in the evening. It usually takes me almost two hours to get my word count in per day.

-I have 4-5 albums lined up for me to listen to while writing next month. Music helps me tune out the world so I can disappear inside my writing better. Listening to an album straight through prevents me from constantly leaving my Word document to change the song to something else that I prefer.

-Win.



It’s not a whole lot different of a plan compared to years past, but there’s no point in changing something when it’s not broken. My eyes are on a sixth Winner’s Certificate.

Needless to say, in case you need this reminder, I will be absent from this blog for the entire month of November. I have marathon writing to focus on, you know.

On that note, see you in December! And hopefully I’ve recovered from any sleep deprivation by that time.





P.S. Happy Halloween! I was hoping to show off my latest pumpkin carving, but my sister’s schedule was too hectic this month for us to do any carving, so it didn’t happen this year. Instead, here’s a picture of an adorable black cat because it’s Halloween-related and I’ve always had a spot soft for them.

P.P.S. Fun fact, but this is my 100th post on this blog!

Snakes, Snakes Everywhere

Snakes. These slithering reptiles have long been a common literary device, mainly used to symbolize a negative idea. This year, however, they have been cropping up on all sorts of book covers.

Months ago, I thought it was a cool coincidence that black snakes graced the covers of Pierce Browns’ DARK AGE and Leigh Bardugo’s NINTH HOUSE. They looked dark and menacing, a thing not to be trifled it. But between the months those two books were released, Shelby Mahurin’s SERPENT & DOVE was chosen to become Barnes & Noble’s monthly book club pick. Last month also added Kendare Blake’s FIVE DARK FATES, which has small red-and-purple snakes coiled around a shield. And just recently, the book cover was announced for Suzanne Collins’ hotly anticipated Hunger Games companion prequel. The name of the book? THE BALLAD OF SONGBIRDS AND SNAKES, which sports a golden snake draped across a circular tree branch.

Curious about this phenomenon, I hopped onto Google to see if anyone else had noticed this trend. I was surprised by the lack of articles, but at least there were a couple out there. Even if I thought the content was lacking the substance I was hoping to find. Both articles were published way back in April.

Over on Stacked Books, the author listed eleven books she stumbled upon with snakes on recent YA and adult book covers. Some snakes were more in your face, others were more subtle. On Epic Reads, they noticed the same particular snake appearing in different forms – the snake gracing the cover of Bardugo’s book. (And then Epic Reads had fun with this idea and photoshopped the snake onto other popular book covers. Some of them are quite hilarious. Others actually could have fooled me, thinking they belonged on the actual book.)

I also learned that skulls have been a common occurrence on book covers lately too, usually accompanied with a snake. How interesting that the current literary fad is dark fantasy, filled with morally ambiguous characters, sly snakes, and creepy skulls.

But what is it about snakes that book designers believe will entice readers to pick up the novel?

A serpent made its very first appearance in one of the oldest stories out there: the Garden of Eden in the book of Genesis. The serpent tricked Eve into eating the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge, twisting God’s words to sow doubt into Eve’s heart. As a consequence, enmity was formed between man and the snake.

This biblical story and its snake meaning still echoes in the current age. If you get called a “snake” nowadays, you are considered to have a slippery character. Someone who is sneaky, someone who is hiding something, someone who is crafty. A liar.

But snakes aren’t always considered a negative symbol. It could also mean “rebirth,” because of how a snake will shed its layer of skin to make way for a new one. It could signify “healing,” for it appears on the modern medical staff (based on Roman mythology roots). When a snake is shown eating its own tail, it represents “unity” or “completeness.” A never-ending loop. 

Are any of the recent book covers trying to portray the reptile in a more positive light? Eh, probably not. I have not read any of the books I listed above (yet), but based on the tone of the cover designs, I’m going to make this assumption. Dark colors, flickering forked tongues, and broken crowns don’t scream, “soothing” or “restorative.”

Like any other fad, I’m not certain how long we’ll be in the “dark fantasy, snakes, and skulls” phase. Maybe once the world seems a little bit brighter, when we’re all tired of reading and consuming stories about people overthrowing corrupt organizations, we’ll move on to another genre and symbol. For all I know, perhaps butterflies and doves are next. 

But in the meantime, I’ll enjoy my ominous snake-covered novels.