NaNoWriMo begins! I'm making some edits to my outline, and then I'll start writing! Who wants to be my writing buddy? Here's my NaNo profile: http://nanowrimo.org/participants/mary_demauro
Short post, sorry, but happy writing everyone!
Tuesday, November 1, 2016
Tuesday, October 18, 2016
Handwritten Word Count
So I figured out how to estimate the word count for my handwritten pages.
According to some rather tedious counting, my word count on college-ruled paper will be either 150 words per page or 250 words per page, depending on how I'm writing.
Usually when I write by hand, I don't indent paragraphs, but instead skip lines between paragraphs. I counted the words on one page where I did that, and I got 166 words. I'll round that down to 150 words. Of course this fluctuates depending on whether I'm writing lots of short dialogue sentences, etc., but that's my estimate.
Today I tried writing on every line, not skipping lines in between paragraphs but just indenting. On the page that I counted I went over 250 words. Again I'm rounding down to 250, and, again, it's just an estimate; fluctuations are going to happen.
Those are the numbers I'm using to calculate my handwritten word count. Of course everybody has different handwriting, with some people writing big, some people writing small, but maybe those numbers will help you. :)
I've heard from several places that a typed page averages 250 words per page, but I forget if that's double- or single-spaced, what kind of font they used (Times New Roman is different from Courier). I'll have to look it up.
According to some rather tedious counting, my word count on college-ruled paper will be either 150 words per page or 250 words per page, depending on how I'm writing.
Usually when I write by hand, I don't indent paragraphs, but instead skip lines between paragraphs. I counted the words on one page where I did that, and I got 166 words. I'll round that down to 150 words. Of course this fluctuates depending on whether I'm writing lots of short dialogue sentences, etc., but that's my estimate.
Today I tried writing on every line, not skipping lines in between paragraphs but just indenting. On the page that I counted I went over 250 words. Again I'm rounding down to 250, and, again, it's just an estimate; fluctuations are going to happen.
Those are the numbers I'm using to calculate my handwritten word count. Of course everybody has different handwriting, with some people writing big, some people writing small, but maybe those numbers will help you. :)
I've heard from several places that a typed page averages 250 words per page, but I forget if that's double- or single-spaced, what kind of font they used (Times New Roman is different from Courier). I'll have to look it up.
Saturday, October 15, 2016
Am I A Stationery Addict?
Saw this list awhile ago. Let's see how I match up!
1. You delight in pens that come in a rainbow of colors.
DEAR GOSH YES. I love colorful pens. <3
2. The smell of freshly sharpened pencils makes you swoon.
Pencils do smell nice, but I prefer mechanical pencils. I honestly don't like sharpening pencils.
3. Doodling is a recreational pastime of yours.
Yes! I love drawing!
4. You have a giant collection of adorable erasers….
Actually, no. I always hated those things because they were useless. And I hate erasing stuff. Don't ask me why. I prefer to cross it out.
5. Which you would never ever use because they are too precious and cute.
See above.
6. This is how you feel about the smell of erasers:
I guess erasers do smell nice, I just don't like using them. XD
7. You actually own weird contraptions, like the eraser shield.
What is that? Sounds cool.
8. Or the ingenious pencil with the cool built-in sharpener cap.
I don't, but that would be awesome!
9. Running your fingers over a letterpressed card is like…. (picture of swooning people)
Those things are cool. ^_^
10. In fact, you’re in the market to get married just for the experience of picking out wedding invitations and handwriting all of your thank you notes.
Well... no.
11. Making lists is your forté.
I do love making lists!
12. You own more notebooks than space for all the thoughts in your head.
Notebooks are cool, but you know me--I prefer folders and binders.
13. This is what cracking open a brand new moleskine feels/looks like:
Again, moleskines are awesome, but I prefer loose leaf paper.
14. The Sanrio store was your favorite store in the mall growing up.
I actually don't know that store.
15. You didn’t even dread the first day of school because of school supply shopping.
Oh, I dreaded the first day of school, but buying that stuff is always fun. And now that I've graduated college, I can enjoy the atmosphere of Back To School Shopping Season without worrying about school! :D
16. You haven’t used Scotch tape since the day you discovered WASHI TAPE.
Washi Tape is a new discovery for me, but it's pretty awesome! I love decorating my journal pages with it. <3
17. You’ve owned pens with charms dangling off of them.
Actually, no, but that would be awesome.
18. You’re of the dying breed of people who still choose to write a letter over email.
I don't really write letters or emails for fun, but if I did I think it would be fun to hand write stuff. Though when I wrote emails for fun I got to play with fonts and everything, but that was back when I was fourteen-ish.
19. As a grown ass adult, somehow you are STILL collecting stickers.
I think I prefer washi tape, but I do love stickers.
20. You’re always looking out for the perfect pencil case.
Oh, heck yes. I have a whole collection of pencil/pen cases. XD
21. You’ve fallen in love with someone via their penmanship before meeting them IRL.
Well, no, but I do love old-fashioned penmanship!
22. You much prefer a physical planner to Google Calendar.
I tried digital calendars, but hand-written stuff is easier.
23. You have your own definitive ranking of holy grail pens.
Oh yes!
24. You, when someone borrows your favorite pen and doesn’t return it. (Picture of girl with a sword.)
YES!!!! THOU SHALT NOT TAKE MY PENS
25. You’ve never left a Japanese stationery store without spending hundreds of dollars.
Alas, I've never been to a Japanese stationery store.
26. The smell of Kinko’s conjures up joyful childhood memories for you.
Rarely been to Kinko's, either! What's wrong with me?
27. You’ve actually listened to episodes of The Pen Addict podcast.
No, but then I don't listen to podcasts. I HAVE seen pen-related youtube videos!
1. You delight in pens that come in a rainbow of colors.
DEAR GOSH YES. I love colorful pens. <3
2. The smell of freshly sharpened pencils makes you swoon.
Pencils do smell nice, but I prefer mechanical pencils. I honestly don't like sharpening pencils.
3. Doodling is a recreational pastime of yours.
Yes! I love drawing!
4. You have a giant collection of adorable erasers….
Actually, no. I always hated those things because they were useless. And I hate erasing stuff. Don't ask me why. I prefer to cross it out.
5. Which you would never ever use because they are too precious and cute.
See above.
6. This is how you feel about the smell of erasers:
I guess erasers do smell nice, I just don't like using them. XD
7. You actually own weird contraptions, like the eraser shield.
What is that? Sounds cool.
8. Or the ingenious pencil with the cool built-in sharpener cap.
I don't, but that would be awesome!
9. Running your fingers over a letterpressed card is like…. (picture of swooning people)
Those things are cool. ^_^
10. In fact, you’re in the market to get married just for the experience of picking out wedding invitations and handwriting all of your thank you notes.
Well... no.
11. Making lists is your forté.
I do love making lists!
12. You own more notebooks than space for all the thoughts in your head.
Notebooks are cool, but you know me--I prefer folders and binders.
13. This is what cracking open a brand new moleskine feels/looks like:
Again, moleskines are awesome, but I prefer loose leaf paper.
14. The Sanrio store was your favorite store in the mall growing up.
I actually don't know that store.
15. You didn’t even dread the first day of school because of school supply shopping.
Oh, I dreaded the first day of school, but buying that stuff is always fun. And now that I've graduated college, I can enjoy the atmosphere of Back To School Shopping Season without worrying about school! :D
16. You haven’t used Scotch tape since the day you discovered WASHI TAPE.
Washi Tape is a new discovery for me, but it's pretty awesome! I love decorating my journal pages with it. <3
17. You’ve owned pens with charms dangling off of them.
Actually, no, but that would be awesome.
18. You’re of the dying breed of people who still choose to write a letter over email.
I don't really write letters or emails for fun, but if I did I think it would be fun to hand write stuff. Though when I wrote emails for fun I got to play with fonts and everything, but that was back when I was fourteen-ish.
19. As a grown ass adult, somehow you are STILL collecting stickers.
I think I prefer washi tape, but I do love stickers.
20. You’re always looking out for the perfect pencil case.
Oh, heck yes. I have a whole collection of pencil/pen cases. XD
21. You’ve fallen in love with someone via their penmanship before meeting them IRL.
Well, no, but I do love old-fashioned penmanship!
22. You much prefer a physical planner to Google Calendar.
I tried digital calendars, but hand-written stuff is easier.
23. You have your own definitive ranking of holy grail pens.
Oh yes!
24. You, when someone borrows your favorite pen and doesn’t return it. (Picture of girl with a sword.)
YES!!!! THOU SHALT NOT TAKE MY PENS
25. You’ve never left a Japanese stationery store without spending hundreds of dollars.
Alas, I've never been to a Japanese stationery store.
26. The smell of Kinko’s conjures up joyful childhood memories for you.
Rarely been to Kinko's, either! What's wrong with me?
27. You’ve actually listened to episodes of The Pen Addict podcast.
No, but then I don't listen to podcasts. I HAVE seen pen-related youtube videos!
Word Count
So I finished transcribing my novel, and I found out two things.
One: from now on I'm going to transcribe my handwritten stuff after every chapter or so, instead of waiting till the very end. Typing the whole thing is just too damn exhausting. XD
Two: ...Turns out my novel isn't actually a novel. It's actually a novella. XP
Yeah, after fleshing out a couple of scenes and adding one more in, my story adds up to 50,000 words. A novel has to be at least 70,000 words. To people who count novellas as novels, that's not a big deal, but it's still too short to get published.
So, now I have to figure out what to do. Adding scenes, building up scenes, changing scenes... I'm just really surprised, because it felt so much longer when I was handwriting it. I'm also a bit frustrated because, well, because of what I just said. Also because the last novel I wrote only added up to 60,000 words or so. So now I'm wondering if I just can't write a decent sized story.
Well, somebody on my personal Facebook said that this is all part of the learning experience, so maybe I just need to... make my outlines longer? XD
In the meantime, wish me luck getting to 70,000 words!
...Hole punching all the typed stuff to put in my notebooks was exhausting and now there's hole punch circles all over my room. XD
Wednesday, October 12, 2016
Missing Blip.tv Episodes
There were several web series on Blip.tv that I enjoyed. But for some reason, I guess I fell out of touch with those web series for awhile.
Which is why I didn't notice when Blip.tv vanished from the internet.
For awhile I was searching for certain episodes that I enjoyed and not finding them. For some reason it took me awhile to investigate WHY I wasn't finding them, maybe because most episodes that I liked could also be found on YouTube. So I didn't notice Blip was gone until, like, almost a year after it shut down. When I finally realized this, I also realized that those episodes I couldn't find were likely lost forever.
For some reason this really bummed me out. Talk about a first world problem, right? I certainly live a good life if I can worry about this. XD But, I don't know, it just disappoints me that these things I used to love I will likely never watch again. Honestly it's mostly that I'm annoyed with myself for not even noticing that they were gone. You'd think that means that I didn't actually like them that much, but honestly I did. In my defense, the year Blip went under I graduated from college. I was distracted. XD But I'm kicking myself for not knowing that Blip was going under and doing something while I had the chance. Petitioning the creators to post their series on Vimeo or something. A couple of the lost episodes I'm thinking of were on YouTube but were later removed for some ridiculous copyright claim. The web series I'm talking about are all those comedic movie reviews.
One series that I used to love--and still love--was the "What We Had To Watch" webseries by Il Neige, aka Garret Snook. My favorite episode of that show used to be his "Lucario and the Mystery of Mew" review, and I also like his "Monster House" review. Both those episodes are now gone, though I can still watch most of the series on YouTube. It just makes me miss those episodes when Il Neige references them during other reviews, and, like I said, the "Lucario" review was my favorite. XD Like most people I love his Pokemon themed stuff.
Kind of off topic, but it does have to do with creativity, namely movies and web shows, so I thought I'd post it. Also I don't think I'm the only one who was thrown for a loop when Blip vanished. Hell, Channel Awesome had to figure out a whole new way to host its videos. I really hope that the company that bought Blip.tv restores those lost episodes sometime...
Which is why I didn't notice when Blip.tv vanished from the internet.
For awhile I was searching for certain episodes that I enjoyed and not finding them. For some reason it took me awhile to investigate WHY I wasn't finding them, maybe because most episodes that I liked could also be found on YouTube. So I didn't notice Blip was gone until, like, almost a year after it shut down. When I finally realized this, I also realized that those episodes I couldn't find were likely lost forever.
For some reason this really bummed me out. Talk about a first world problem, right? I certainly live a good life if I can worry about this. XD But, I don't know, it just disappoints me that these things I used to love I will likely never watch again. Honestly it's mostly that I'm annoyed with myself for not even noticing that they were gone. You'd think that means that I didn't actually like them that much, but honestly I did. In my defense, the year Blip went under I graduated from college. I was distracted. XD But I'm kicking myself for not knowing that Blip was going under and doing something while I had the chance. Petitioning the creators to post their series on Vimeo or something. A couple of the lost episodes I'm thinking of were on YouTube but were later removed for some ridiculous copyright claim. The web series I'm talking about are all those comedic movie reviews.
One series that I used to love--and still love--was the "What We Had To Watch" webseries by Il Neige, aka Garret Snook. My favorite episode of that show used to be his "Lucario and the Mystery of Mew" review, and I also like his "Monster House" review. Both those episodes are now gone, though I can still watch most of the series on YouTube. It just makes me miss those episodes when Il Neige references them during other reviews, and, like I said, the "Lucario" review was my favorite. XD Like most people I love his Pokemon themed stuff.
Kind of off topic, but it does have to do with creativity, namely movies and web shows, so I thought I'd post it. Also I don't think I'm the only one who was thrown for a loop when Blip vanished. Hell, Channel Awesome had to figure out a whole new way to host its videos. I really hope that the company that bought Blip.tv restores those lost episodes sometime...
Saturday, October 8, 2016
First Draft Finished!!!
As of October 5, 8:30 PM, I finished the first draft of my novel!!!!
Since then I've been transcribing it onto the computer. It's time to edit!
I'm so excited about this. I feel like this turned out a lot better than the last novel I wrote, which is just sitting abandoned in my notebooks. I'm gonna see if I can get this one published! :DDDD
The big question is, what am I gonna do for NaNoWriMo this year? Originally I was going to work on this, but I finished a full two months ahead of schedule! Oh well! ^_^
This is the same project I've been showing on instagram.
Since then I've been transcribing it onto the computer. It's time to edit!
I'm so excited about this. I feel like this turned out a lot better than the last novel I wrote, which is just sitting abandoned in my notebooks. I'm gonna see if I can get this one published! :DDDD
The big question is, what am I gonna do for NaNoWriMo this year? Originally I was going to work on this, but I finished a full two months ahead of schedule! Oh well! ^_^
This is the same project I've been showing on instagram.
Sunday, October 2, 2016
How To Get Published--A Flowchart
Found this on pinterest; here's the link to the original. XD
How To Get Published--A Flowchart
The basic steps for getting your fiction manuscript published, from the writing to the agent-finding to the revising to the publishing. Including plenty of scolding for those who think they don't need to revise, don't need to read their genre, and don't need feedback. XD But seriously, this is useful. Also the blog post has a link to resources.
...This was a short post, sorry. XD
How To Get Published--A Flowchart
The basic steps for getting your fiction manuscript published, from the writing to the agent-finding to the revising to the publishing. Including plenty of scolding for those who think they don't need to revise, don't need to read their genre, and don't need feedback. XD But seriously, this is useful. Also the blog post has a link to resources.
...This was a short post, sorry. XD
Monday, September 26, 2016
So I DNFed A Book
Thought about making a video about this, but I felt like writing a blog post. :)
Recently I did something I don't often do: I DNFed a book. Namely this one:
Usually when I DNF I've read only a few pages of a book, but I just don't get a feel for it and decide to read something different. However, I think I got about 90 pages into this book before I decided to stop.
The main reason for this is that I've had some health problems lately, specifically chronic nausea that makes it hard for me to focus on and enjoy reading. So I'm kind of having a reading hiatus right now, which is unfortunate because I miss reading and want to go back to it.
Like I said, I don't often DNF books when I've gotten that far into it, mostly because if I've invested that much time into reading it, I don't want to have nothing to show for that time spent. But I just can't read right now.
The series does look interesting, though, and I might go back to it later.
Recently I did something I don't often do: I DNFed a book. Namely this one:
Usually when I DNF I've read only a few pages of a book, but I just don't get a feel for it and decide to read something different. However, I think I got about 90 pages into this book before I decided to stop.
The main reason for this is that I've had some health problems lately, specifically chronic nausea that makes it hard for me to focus on and enjoy reading. So I'm kind of having a reading hiatus right now, which is unfortunate because I miss reading and want to go back to it.
Like I said, I don't often DNF books when I've gotten that far into it, mostly because if I've invested that much time into reading it, I don't want to have nothing to show for that time spent. But I just can't read right now.
The series does look interesting, though, and I might go back to it later.
Tuesday, September 20, 2016
Binders
I still love loose leaf, but recently I've decided to store my drawings and writing in binders instead of manilla folders the way I used to. I've been enjoying making my own notebooks! And constantly reorganizing the contents. ^_^
Monday, September 12, 2016
Significant Characters
There are two animated characters that are not only my favorite characters, but are also important to me on a personal level: Mewtwo, from Pokemon; and Elsa, from Frozen. In these two videos I draw them both and discuss why they are so important to me. Yay life discussions!
EDIT:
Forgot to post the images on Instagram, let alone share them here. Whoops!
EDIT:
Forgot to post the images on Instagram, let alone share them here. Whoops!
Thursday, September 8, 2016
Regency Woman
Lately I've been doing a lot of studies of historical clothing. Here's a video of me coloring in a woman in a simple Regency-era dress. More commentary from me!
And here's the finished product:
And here's the finished product:
Wednesday, September 7, 2016
Mesopotamian Women
I love history, and I love studying and drawing historical clothing. I have particular interest in ancient Mesopotamia, it being the first civilization. I filmed myself coloring in a couple of my sketches and added commentary!
Here are the finished products:
You'll probably be seeing more historical art from me!
Here are the finished products:
You'll probably be seeing more historical art from me!
Tuesday, September 6, 2016
Horses and Regrets
If you watch my instagram account, you may notice that I'm in a very horsey mood lately. I've always loved horses, and of course horses are really fun to draw, but this is partially because of a great regret I have. This regret is that I used to take horseback riding lessons when I was younger... but I stopped. I had several good reasons for stopping--health problems I was suffering at the time being one of them--but I deeply wish I could have found a way to continue. I was only thirteen at the time, which means that my options were limited; therefore I shouldn't be too down on myself. But I really enjoyed it, and working with horses--working with any kind of animal--is a wonderful experience. Over the past year I've developed an urge to take it up again, but there's an obstacle in my way. Namely, money. I cannot afford lessons. I learned awhile back that some barns allow you to work in exchange for rides, but when I asked around about this, the barns either don't allow this or they would rather you have been with them awhile before you work for them (understandable). So, it looks like horseback riding is, for the moment, out of my reach. I'm feeling a bit down about this, so I've been browsing pinterest for reference photos and copying them as a way of keeping horses with me.
Sunday, September 4, 2016
A New Coping Mechanism
If you watched/read my intro video/blog, you know that I'm neurodivergent with some mental health issues. I've struggled with anxiety my whole life. I've also had problems with chronic nausea my whole life. And I always get anxious about feeling nauseous, which increases the nausea, which increases the anxiety... it's a glorious vicious cycle. XP I've tried numerous coping mechanisms to deal with both issues, but recently I've stumbled upon something that works better than anything I've tried in the past: drawing from reference.
In the past my main strategy was writing, however I needed to think up what to write next, which isn't easy when your brain is seized with terror. When doing studies from photos, I don't need to think of what to draw next--I just draw what I see! Also, it feels productive, so I don't feel quite like I'm dropping everything to deal with my issues. Technically, I still am, but at least I'm still accomplishing a goal.
...I just hope this won't suddenly stop working for me, the way writing did. XD In the meantime, my studies are filling my folders and my Instagram account! And I like to think I'm honing my drawing skills as well. :)
In the past my main strategy was writing, however I needed to think up what to write next, which isn't easy when your brain is seized with terror. When doing studies from photos, I don't need to think of what to draw next--I just draw what I see! Also, it feels productive, so I don't feel quite like I'm dropping everything to deal with my issues. Technically, I still am, but at least I'm still accomplishing a goal.
...I just hope this won't suddenly stop working for me, the way writing did. XD In the meantime, my studies are filling my folders and my Instagram account! And I like to think I'm honing my drawing skills as well. :)
Thursday, September 1, 2016
Cat Speed Drawing
Happy first of September, everyone! Let's celebrate with my first speed drawing video!
Technically this is only my first speed drawing video for this blog. I have done similar videos in the past, but they're gone now. Anyway, enjoy the video!
Technically this is only my first speed drawing video for this blog. I have done similar videos in the past, but they're gone now. Anyway, enjoy the video!
Wednesday, August 31, 2016
August Book Haul
I usually prefer checking out books at the library, because going to the library is always so much fun. <3 However this past month I ended up buying a grand total of four books. Check them out!
Tuesday, August 30, 2016
Anxiety Drawings
Lately I've been drawing when I have anxiety attacks. Don't know why I didn't do that before; it's really been helping. But one night I had an anxiety attack and I started repeatedly copying photos from pinterest; mostly cats and horses. I ended up not finishing the eyes on a lot of them, and most of the horses don't even have manes. XD I drew them using a new pen I got--it's the kind that has multiple colors in it that you can choose from... well you'll see it in the instagram pictures.
So for those interested, here are the pictures I drew while trying to recover from anxiety. LOL. And these are all copied from photographs.
Here are cats:
And here are the horses.
So for those interested, here are the pictures I drew while trying to recover from anxiety. LOL. And these are all copied from photographs.
Here are cats:
And here are the horses.
Thursday, August 25, 2016
My Reference Book
Thought I would do a flip-through of my reference pictures that I use for drawing. I've printed out the pictures in black and white, leaving room for hole punches on the side. I know I usually use folders but in this case I used a binder.
Of course the best thing to study from is life, but when live models aren't available, pictures are the second best thing.
If you're just starting out drawing, you may be tempted to copy from carton people and animals. I strongly dissuade against that. I did that and I think my art is still suffering from it. It's fine if you want to stylize your drawings, or even if you want to learn someone else's style for fan art and such, but in order to do that properly a good study of anatomy is a must.
Here are the links to my favorite sources that I mentioned.
Posemaniacs
SenshiStock
Majnouna
Here are my pinterest boards. Be warned that I don't just use them for reference; you'll find "lolcats" and the like mixed in.
Humans
Spiders
Cats
Horses
Other Animals
Prehistoric Animals
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