Day +5: Finished, But NO STOPPING

Everyone give a "WHOOP" because I "won" my third straight NaNoWriMo. On the last day of November. With 2 hours to spare. TWO! It came down to the wire and I was writing non-stop on the last weirdly rainy in LA day. But I did it. 50,000 more words done. Only problem is... wait for it... waaaait for it.... I'm still not done with my novel. *Price is Right fail music plays*

Still not finished. But now my novel has a staggering 193,853 words. That is an insane amount of words. I wonder if I have yet worked the words "kumquat" or "fart" into any of the 193,853 words. I don't think I have actually. And that is an INJUSTICE.

Holding myself from constantly editing my writing has obviously led to this momentous occasion. But I must still hold back. I need to finish the novel first. You may be questioning my sanity or if I'll ever finish, but fear not, I have a fun fact to share that will hopefully instill as much hope in you as Katniss instills hope in the people of Panem (which is a lot, despite herself).

My novel takes place over a short period of ten days in a row.  And we follow eight characters over the course of those ten days. That's not the long of a period of time, so how come it is taking so long, Ben? I shall ignore your question, and just gladly tell you that I am currently on the last day of those ten days. So the end, it is near!

I only have 24 more hours to get through... and even though everything in my novel has been building up to this last day and it is the climax and everything relies on it and, oh god, I can't screw this part up!

Blog reader? Are you there? I'm probably talking to the void of the internet at this point. But just know. THE END IS NIGH.

OH, also, I still am doing the 52 books in 52 weeks challenge. Yea, so I'm a bit behind. I have to read 11 more books in the next 26 days! AHH! So, excuse me while I go lock myself in my room.

Until next time...

- ben josé

31 Days til NaNoWriMo 2014: SteamPUNKed

Just announced: NaNoWriMo's 2014 Theme: Steampunk!!! Okay, I am nerding out because my novel (ya know, the one three years in the making now) is steampunk themed! So, this must be a sign that I will finish it this year and everything will be great? Right? Right.

It's about to be the month of October, the month of spirits and fall. That means only 31 days left to prepare for the forthcoming NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month, for the plebeians). As I have been working on my novel all year, I just need to further crack my knuckles and prepare to devote ALL my time to it, not just moments here and there.

Life has been going well so far. Instead of moving in November like I did last year, my girlfriend and I jumped the gun and will be moving in October! Aha! Still in Los Angeles, just to a completely different part of the City of Angels. Excited for the change.

 

Also, I fixed my broken phone, fixed my broken car, finished up other issues. I don't want any distractions when it comes to NaNoWriMo. The cruel apple red face of Netflix stares me down and I can't look away, but I must, I MUST. Be gone, Netflix! I banish you from my sights. After binging three seasons of Scandal, I just can't. But, what is that...more shows, more movies. WHY!?

 Excuse that mental break above, I will find a way to disable my Netflix during NaNo, or else doom will fall. In my spare time, I've also been writing for this great site called Whedonopolis.com. If you can't guess from the title they are lovers of all things Joss Whedon. Ya know the guy. He did Buffy, The Avengers... I could go on, but I shan't.

Anyways, I've been writing reviews for them including, Bates Motel, Salem, Under the Dome, Gotham, and Once Upon A Time. So if any of those shows interest you, take a look: www.whedonopolis.com. Also check out my book reviews on Goodreads! I'm doing the "52 book in 52 weeks challenge." 34 books down, so I'm a little behind schedule. Don't worry though, reader. Reading is fun!

Welp, that's about it. Let the countdown begin. 31 days. I already feel it. This is the year I finish my book. #Steampunk 4 EVAR!

-ben josé

WRAPRTY

Howdy folks! It has been exactly two weeks since LeNoWriHo (Lent Novel Writing Holiday) has started, and things are going well. I've made the "No" of the acronym to actually stand for multiple things, not just a novel. They include: a pilot, some spec television scripts, a feature film, and TV reviews. Yes, there is a lot on my plate right now, but this is what I love to do. Now pray for me to finish everything I start. I want to reach that WRAPRTY.

TME 2 PRTY YLL

Side note: I have never seen so many specialized license plates since moving to Los Angeles. People here are really into customizing their plates with cool slang, broski. I'm not even kidding. It's laughably bad. I've started taking pictures every time I see one and I now have quite a collection of "fun" plates. Stay tuned for those later.

Virtual Camping is the only camping I do!

On April 1st, Camp NaNoWriMo starts. Basically it is the April version of NaNoWriMo - I will be participating this year. Instead of the strict rules of regular NaNo, during Camp NaNoWriMo you are allowed to pick your own word count, you can write things other than a novel, and you get grouped into metaphorical "cabins" to work with other similar writers. All together sounds like a fun experience. This will be my first year doing it. I've set my word count for 50,000! CAMP TIME, y'all.

WAAAAALT, what happened!?

I wonder if Damon Lindelof ever did NaNoWriMo? Oh, Damon Lindelof. I just saw him. That, my friends, is called a seamless segue way. Mel and I went to go see the LOST: 10 year Reunion at Paley Fest here in LA. Not only were creators/writers Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse there, but also some of the cast, including gigantic adult human-sized Malcolm David Kelley aka WAAAAALT! So crazy to think that Lost ended 10 years ago. It was a show that changed my life and made me realize that I want to work in TV and that I want to do what they did.  

Angry side note: *If you don't like LOST, just leave. I loved the controversial finale. For me, it was never about all the mysteries (that was just added fun)! It was about the characters and their journeys... which is what I am trying to emulate in my novel. It all comes full circle here, folks.

But, I have to stop myself before I go too deep into a one-sided Lost debate with myself. So, as Desmond says, "See ya in another life, brotha!"

- ben josé

This Too Shall Pass

*Warning: Overly dramatic and sensitive "life-inspiring" blog post to follow!

Currently listening to a song called "Moving On" from the "Lost" Soundtrack by Michael Giacchino and realizing that "this too shall pass." That quote harkens back to a story about a king who thought everything was going well and he wanted his council to give him advice that would help him weather any hardship. They said to him "this too shall pass." At first he didn't understand what it meant, but soon his kingdom was attacked and he had lost everything and had his back against a wall. And then he remembered those words: "This too shall pass." And he was content, for even his hardship would pass. Change is the only permanent thing in this world. Everything changes. Emotions, circumstances, hardships, joys... they are not constant.

It's been a tough few weeks for me, trying to focus on writing while also looking for a new job. Life keeps getting in the way. I'm an ambitious individual with a grand imagination and high expectations for my future. It pains me so much everyday to be stagnant and stuck. I know things will change though. This feeling of hopelessness and entrapment will pass. I just need to keep moving on and not looking back or to far forward.

Be in the present. I hope this for everyone. I stumbled upon a YouTube video entitled "Top 5 Saddest Pixar Moments" and I decided to watch it at work for some reason. [Side Note: Don't ever watch a 'sad Pixar' clip at work. You'll regret it]. Damn you, Pixar, you know how to make a grown man tear up. Perhaps the saddest story for me was that of Carl & Ellie from "Up."

If you've never seen "Up," be prepared to cry within the first ten minutes. Carl and Ellie were adventurous and fun and loved each other dearly. They had dreams of exploring the world. But life got in the way. Over and over again. And they never got to live their dreams and see the world...

One of my worst fears. Life is short... I don't want to waste it. I want to see the world, meet new people, share in experiences with the ones I love.

Sorry if this is a depressing/weird/unrelated post, (aka Dear Diary), but I just needed to get these things off my chest. I've deactivated my Facebook (or what I like to call, WasteBook) for the time being. Time to focus on the more important things in my life: my loved ones, my passions, adventure, travel, cats, nature, writing...

Adventure is out there! Don't wait...

So, everyone go out and do what you want to do. Don't be afraid, or wait, or make excuses. Life is too short to not take that risk or that chance.

This has been benjosé with your cliched inspirational post.

P.S. My book is still coming along, so don't worry, my intrepid readers. You will see it one day. I'll leave you with this: #LeNoWriHo

Day 5!

Day 5
Word Count: 9,777
Mood: Wooooohoo, I need a drink. Oh, wait...

I spent a majority of my day today writing and it felt damn good. I got a good chunk of my story in and lots of things developed, including some new things. I wrote over 4,000 words today and caught up with the pace that NaNoWriMo sets for you to write each day (1,667). So, that's nice!

However, once I had written all those words today, my first thought after closing my computer was: I'm going to head next door to the Farmer's Market for a happy hour beer. Yum, yum, beer in ma belly! But, I can't. No alcohol. Damn. It's been less than a week since I stopped and, despite this urge, I feel great about it. I don't need no happy hour beer, y'all!

You can check out my progress below or here or go to Nanowrimo.org to see how everyone is doing. Los Angeles is doing pretty damn good this year.

Onwards and Upwards: Hell yeah graph!

On Monday, I didn't write much because I was finishing fleshing out my story's timeline. I charted out each character's main actions each day and night to make sure everything lined up in the end. I discovered that this novel takes place over only 10 days. Something I didn't know before. Hm. So, good to figure that out. Here's a little snippet of that chart with some of the characters:

Wow, this chart is super complicated and mysterious.

As I mentioned before, "A Song of Ice and Fire" aka "Game of Thrones" is one of the biggest influences on my writing. Like "GOT," each chapter in my book is from the point of view of a different character. In this first book, I have eight point-of-view characters with wildly different experiences and beliefs. It is fun writing for these completely different characters and really getting into the heads of each of the characters. For each character, I listen to a different station on Pandora. It's pretty fun. Maybe a little later on in the month I will go into more depth about each character and their story.

I am the hardest critic on myself, so I have to learn to let go and just accept my writing for what it is. This is only a first draft, so I don't have to be completely nitpicky (that is until I reread everything when I'm done. Then I will nitpick it up! Is nitpick a real word? The answer is yes!).

Well, the sun has set on another day and only 25 days remain. I have about 41,000 words to go. Thanks for checking in, folks.

Side note: The soundtrack to "Amelie" is beyond beautiful. Ah, to be quirky in Paris...

- ben josé

My Top 5 Distractions from Writing (And for Drinking)

Writing a novel is no easy task, especially for someone who is easily distracted... like moi. Instead of trying to delve into the reasons of why I am the way I am, I thought it would be fun to share my top 5 excuses for not writing, which coincidentally can also be used as my top 5 excuses to drink. I'm a simple guy.

5. Los Angeles, California

Ah, the City of Angels. The city of endless possibilities–endless possibilities which don't involve sitting at a computer alone typing, and all of which involve going outside, hanging out, and drinking muchos alcohol! I moved to Los Angeles in January 2011 from Texas and never looked back. In LA, at any given moment, you are five minutes away from: the beach, the mountains, the wineries, your homeless friends, the traffic, the roads, the gross Hollywood clubs, the hiking trails, the In-N-Out drive-thru line, that celebrity you saw in that show one time but who you don't really like but will still brag about seeing to your friends, and, also, the traffic. It's all here, folks!! Not to mention: Disneyland, Joshua Tree, Catalina Island, San Diego, the Price is Right...! I could go on... In fact, the entire beautiful state of California is one big reason to procrastinate. I always think to myself: "Why am I sitting inside writing when all of this beauty and adventure awaits me outside? And, they sell liquor in CVS 24/7? Whaaat!?"

4. Weekends & Friends

This photo was taken at an event proudly called "Bootie LA" and no, this was not on Halloween.

Living in LA is hard enough, but spending my time with my friends, who are all young, fun, professional workers, who also happen to like spending their weekends having fun, is very tough. I always say each weekend that I am going to "really take it easy" and try to read or write, but the lure of going out and dancing, laughing, and making memories always seems to pull me off of the metaphorical typewriter* and into an overly stuffed car, driving down the 101 to Koreatown. Jeez, friends, be less fun. And weekends, stop coming around every 5 days!

3.  The Search for a New Place

This one is pretty self-explanatory. Luck would have it that November is going to (possibly) be my last month in my current apartment. MOVING! YAY. We have been in this apartment since May 2011, but it is time for a change and my roomie is moving out. The stress of moving and searching for a new house or apartment is always welcomed and fun. Can't wait! Feeling those happy flames on the side of my face at the thought of dealing with the classy LA realty market!

4. Netflix, Or What I like to Call the Time-Suck from Hell!

Oh, Nicholas Cage, how I loathe thee? But, seriously, Netflix! God damn you! How I wish I could quit you! Every time I try and move away, you put up my new favorite show or movie. Why yes, I do want to watch my favorite Disney movie, "Mulan" at any time. Yes, I do watch to binge watch "Orange is the New Black", "Sherlock", and "House of Cards." Think I'm done? No, I NEED to catch "Nacho Libre" and that obscure documentary about killer whales before they disappear forever into the abyss of broken Netflix dreams. For this process, I am doing the unthinkable: Staying off Netflix for all of November. Well, at least, staying off Netflix when I'm by myself and craving a weird tv binge or a class Nic Cage caper.

5. Ya Know... Life.

My Cat: Captain Daenerys Phoebs Tonks Bluth likes to contemplate life.

Look y'all, I don't have my life figured out yet. I'm still searching for that one thing I want to exactly do (besides writing). There is some quote about how life gets in the way when you are worrying about other things, or something like that. I know I totally butchered it, but I'm too lazy to actually look it up. I want to travel the world, meet people, and visit family and friends. NaNoWriMo is only 8 days away. I can't get too far ahead of myself on the big picture. Just have to keep telling myself to let the small things and little worries go.

Woah, we just got deep. I apologize. I'm gonna go watch some "Lost" on Netflix to raise my spirits. Yes, "Lost" raises my spirits. "We have to go back, Kate! We have to go back!" Gets me every time.

8 days to go.

-benjosé