Writing Smackdown

Author's Note: Wow. It's been a long time since I last posted or had anyone else post. Oops. I promise to be better...

So, I'm participating in Savvy Authors/Entangled Publishing's Smackdown. It's a week-long basic training to work with Entangled editors in getting a novel ready to write and finish for NaNoWriMo in November. A friend of mine did this last year, and she said it really helped her learn how to write faster. Oh, and she also got a contract with Entangled. :)

When I first signed up, I was planning on working on a current novel, the first in a planned series of three. I know the characters, their GMC, the plot, etc. Well...yesterday, Savvy sent the participants an email letting us know that this had to be a brand new story, one that we haven't started writing yet. 

Yikes!

So, I went to Plan B, which was to work on Book 2 of aforementioned series. Now, all I knew about this story was the basic hook, the characters, and their GMCs. I usually don't write synopses until I've written much of the first draft as I'm mostly a pantser. I spent an agonizing day yesterday trying to figure out what the hell my characters were going to do to get from Point A to Z. But I finally did it, and turned it in just a few minutes before the midnight deadline.

Well. The editors assigned to my team read the synopsis this morning, thought it was a nice idea...but it didn't really fit the line we are trying to write for. It was too sweet and smalltownish for the sexy Indulgence line.

Dammit.

I quickly brainstormed a new idea that might fit better and ran it by them, asking if I could write another synopsis. Yes, as long as I turned it in by midnight tonight.

Shit!

So I spent all day today brainstorming and starting a story from scratch. Then wrote a synopsis for it. Usually, I have an idea in my head for a few weeks/months/or years before I even take pen to paper and start fleshing out the characters. But today, I came up with an idea, characters, GMCs and wrote a friggin synopsis. All in one day. :) And I LOVE the story I came up with. I'm so excited to write this book.

I'll find out tomorrow if the editors like it. I sure hope they do. I'll definitely keep you posted.

Let the Smackdown begin.