Hi everyone!
Wow, what a time.
A week ago WHO announced that COVID-19 is a pandemic, but at that time it didn’t seem to have an impact on my day-to-day life at all (besides making me wash my hands more & better.) The week before that I was chilling on the beach in Los Angeles and being excited about #AuthorMentorMatch results. Things change fast don’t they??!!
Social distancing is important now. Even though I’m young and at low risk from adverse outcomes of COVID-19, I might interact with people (who interact with other people) who are seniors or have chronic conditions. To play my part I’m doing my best to stay at home.
(To be absolutely honest with you guys, when I heard that social distancing is a thing… The introvert in me rejoiced!!! Finally- an excuse to skip out on social events! No more small talk! Endless days spent at home in my PJs!)
Having more alone time means that I also have the time (and energy) to work on my creative endeavours (such as writing!) It is during this crunch time that I finished my novel Fog, which I’ve been working on since November 2019 (NaNoWriMo.)
Finishing a novel always feels bittersweet for me. On one hand, I am so happy and overjoyed that I’ve created a story in my heart and put it into words. I am happy for my characters who (**spoiler alert!!**) overcame their hurdles and emerged victorious in the end. I am proud of myself for coming along so far.
And yet it also feels sad because it means that I have to say goodbye to the characters that have been in my head for months and months, who I’ve thought about every single day. These characters have surprised me at times and frustrated me at times, and I love them all.
But overwhelmingly, I am relieved. Because I’ve been working on this first draft for what feels like a long time. And it always felt like I was THIS close to finishing it and yet it kept going on and on and on.
The final word count??? [drumroll]
156,565 words!!!
Which is officially the longest novel I’ve written. *wobble wobble faint*
(At this word count, this novel is also not publishable hahahha. BUT that, my friends, is what editing is for.)
A few stats and graphs
- I finished this novel in 4 months and a half.
- On average I wrote 1151 words per day.
- In the month of November I wrote 60,117 words; December 20,235 words; January 30,033 words; February 15,668 words; and March 30,152 words.
- On 12 days, I wrote more than 3,000 words (yay!!!)
- On 28 days, I wrote ZERO words (boo!!)
- But most of the time, I wrote 1 to 2999 words.
As you guys can see in the chart above, I’m by no means a consistent writer. But sometimes, life happens and no words get written, and that’s totally okay.
What is this novel about again?
No one knows where the Fog comes from. All they know is that those who enter the Fog never return.
Luna and her twin sister Treya live in a town on the coast of Suni. Luna is the quiet one, while Treya is charismatic, powerful and the pride of the Delphinus Clan. Treya has already decided to be a Sorcerer and join the Queen’s Army, just like their mother and father. But Luna doesn’t know what she wants to be; also, joining the Queen’s Army seems like a lot of work.
On the day of their graduation. Luna rescues a boy from the edge of the Fog. His name is Caio Amadeus Vladimir and he looks nothing like anyone in the country. Caio wants to go into the Fog and map out the lost regions of Suni, and he asks Luna to be his bodyguard. Luna thinks he is delusional.
Until Treya disappears on a misty day. Luna will do anything to bring her back.
How about a snippet?
When the rest of the family has left for the Boneyard, Luna stays in her room. She sits on Treya’s bed, where Treya’s ceremonial robe is still laid out on the sheets. It is just a few days ago when they had explored the streets of Taisun together, when they marvelled at the bunk style beds in their room, when Luna and Treya sat in their own room at home, chatting while Luna wrote her letters. She had thought that they had the rest of their lives together. Now Luna is alone.
She looks down at her hands to find them clenched, her nails digging into the flesh of her palms. There is only one thought that comes to her mind, and it much bolder and more brave than Luna’s own voice.
What would Treya do?
The thought takes away Luna’s hesitation and gives her a singular goal. There is one thing that Treya would do. Treya doesn’t wait around. Treya fights for her friends. Treya is confident that she will succeed, and because of her confidence, she does succeeds. Treya does what is right.
Luna slides the suitcase from under her bed and begins to pack her things. She pulls out a drawstring pouch and counts her coins and notes. It is all the money that she and Treya has ever had, amassed from helping out with odd favours around the town. She takes a needle and thread and sews the pouch to the inside seam of her robe. It isn’t much money. Just enough for one day’s worth of meals.
How have you been? What are your go-to activities while social distancing and/or self-isolating? Stay safe & healthy everyone!
Photo by Artem Sapegin on Unsplash
SOPHIE LI 
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