Meredith Anderson's Blog: Worderlands

I usually don't have much structure to the order in which I read books. I'm a mood reader - I go where my mood takes me, which often is not where I intend. Often, it is far from where I intend, with books piling up on my TBR and sneaking away into the void, even when I really, badly want to read them. (*side eyes The Hidden Palace by Helene Wecker and several of Brandon Sanderson's books/series*)

But in December, I tend to approach things with at least a little more structure than the rest of the year. I participate in Goodreads' annual reading challenge, and so in December I get more strategic about what I'm reading so I can meet my goal.

This year, I have two books remaining to meet my challenge. (Note: I have so far not been counting any of the books that I work on as a freelance editor, because some of them aren't published yet and aren't listed on Goodreads. With those books included, I would have already reached my goal.) In any case, I currently have nine books on my currently reading shelf, one of which is at 52% and another at 65%. So, one would likely think those are the best choices to prioritise so I can get to the end the fastest.

I'm not sure if I want to rush the second of those books, though. It's not fiction. And it's best consumed in smaller chunks over time to digest the information and take it in more deeply. So, I might aim to finish the 52% book and find a shorter read for the second book, something that I can knock over in a single reading session.

That's where Tor often comes in. Tor is one of my favourite publishers. I love them. I have yet to read a book they've published that I didn't love. And I love that a lot of what they publish is shorter. Short stories and novellas. I can - and have three times this year so far - sat down with a Tor short story or novella and read it in a single sitting, not just because of the length, but because these books are all so atmospheric and their own worlds to step into; they're the kinds of stories that stay with me and inspire my own writing. It's easy to start reading one and lose track of time, until you realise you've read the entire story. So, there's a chance I'll be reading one of those to help finish my reading challenge. It sounds like an amazing way to spend a lazy day, between working on freelance projects, possibly with some tea and a puppy or two curled up next to me.

Speaking of freelancing, I'm wrapping up on a manuscript assessment for a spiritual memoir at the moment. It's been a fascinating read, very personal, with a lot of insights along the way. I've also been working on a fantasy novel proofread. And I'm learning book promo at the moment, for a publisher that I do some work for. It's rare that my life doesn't involve words in some form or another. Of course, sometimes reading for fun has to come second to reading for my freelance work. But the freelance work I take on always speaks to me in some way. I love it.

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In terms of books next year, I have a few intentions for 2024.

Firstly, I want to reduce the number of books on my currently reading shelf down to three and then keep it to that number.

Secondly, I recently received an ARC (a fair bit of time after the original publication date) of The Stone Road by Trent Jamieson (thanks, Trent!) and, while I've already started reading it, I am unlikely to get far with it this year. So, that will be my first priority book in 2024.

Third, I'd like to read more books by friends - by people I went to uni with, by people in my writing group, by people I've been online friends with for years, by people I've been meeting recently on Threads/IG.

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If you're reading this, how's your reading goal for 2023 going? What are your reading intentions for 2024?

This is going to be a fairly brief post.

I'm mostly dropping in to say that I won NaNoWriMo with a final word count of 53,471 words.

And my novel is only about a third of the way through, so I'm continuing to work on it. Many more words are ahead!

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If you participated in NaNoWriMo , how did you go?

Whether or not you won, I hope you got something out of it and enjoyed the process.

Is anyone here participating in NaNoWriMo this year?

After my first win last year (with The Magical Wares House [working title]), I'm not - not exactly, anyway. This month, I'm aiming to write more words than usual but not necessarily 50k. Maybe more like 10k words? I'd also love to finish another story or two, and start finding more ways to share my words with you all. (Where do you all go to find dark fantasy short stories? That's where I'd like to be.)

Anyway, last night I was up around 2.30am and it was at this point that I decided to do some writing. My brain has always worked best at night, when the rest of the world is asleep, when there are fewer things to interrupt the flow of words, fewer sounds to be heard over the clacking of keyboard keys, when the dogs are sleeping on the bed behind me instead of wrestling with each other over a chuck!it ball or barking at possums...

I use 4thewords, and last night it helped me to get to 1,888 words, bringing my total to 2,168 words for November so far. (I had written 280 words when attending writing sprints through my writing group's virtual kick-off party.) And more importantly, it was fun to lose myself in another world for a while (and beat up a few monsters along the way).

I winged it, and didn't know what I was going to write until I was writing it. When that's my approach over planning and plotting and possibly scheming, it feels like the story is coming from somewhere other than from me, from some higher power maybe, from the universe, or from the characters themselves. There's something wildly satisfying about that, becoming a conduit for these stories, and being taken along for the ride just as much as being the one to record them.

To those who are writing this month, whether for NaNoWriMo or otherwise, what's your process like? Are you happy with the progess you've made for the month so far?

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One last unrelated thing: I just got some feedback from an author on the last manuscript assessment I worked on - all positive things! It was such a fun manuscript to work on, and I hope to work with the author again soon. :D

So, I have a blog now.

I've named it Worderlands. Kind of like Wonderlands but words. Or Borderlands - but again, words. You get the idea.

I had originally called this blog Trash Panda's Pineapple Stash, as a working title, because trash pandas* and pineapple stashes are both amazing things and everyone should have at least one of each. Buuut words. And worders. And their lands. Y'know.

At some point, there will be more words here. For now, I'll just say I have several other things in progress and hope to have more to share here soon.

Also, hi!

(Don't be surprised if I open one of these blog posts with goodbye, just to break tradition in terms of where those greetings are placed.)

Anyway. I think this thing allows comments. Feel free to introduce yourself and how you came across Worderlands and/or my various words in book form or... other word-like forms?

-The one whose blog this is.


*If anyone can tell me where to find a trash panda to pat and befriend, please let me know.