Tag: nanowrimo2022

Winter in San Francisco: A Writer’s Second Year

Alina H. Hansen Writer & Poet

It’s a quiet Sunday morning, and our Boston Terrier, Nora, is in a deep sleep. Curled up on the bed, her eyes twitch, and she huffs and gives a little bark. What’s she dreaming about?

The window is open, and the brisk 50-something air creeps into our apartment. It hasn’t rained in more than a week, and I’ve been enjoying my second chilly yet sunny winter in San Francisco. I’ve been taking long walks in North Beach and Chinatown, and last week took Clay Street all the way to the Ferry Building, where I hung out and read by the water. I can’t say it enough, I love this city.

Now as 2022 is easing into 2023, I’m hoping next year won’t be as chaotic. Approaching the third-year anniversary of the Pandemic and I can’t help but feel like I’m wedged somewhere between whiplash and a gnarly hangover.

white wooden framed glass window
Photo by Nida on Pexels.com

It’s not even ten in the morning but I’ve already gone to store and stocked up on groceries for the week. I’m sit with my cup of cold green tea wondering if I should take a stab at writing 1,600 words of my new novel today (about 2/3rds done) or if I should try to scribble out a poem or two. But honestly, I want to read.

I’ve been reading constantly for the past few weeks, blasting through a few 300-something-page novels, and catching up on the most recent issues of Poetry Magazine. My reading goal for 2022 was to read 25 books, I’m behind, but it’s not as bad as I would’ve thought (18 books read). It’s an itch I need to scratch, and I know I could spend the next few hours getting lost in a book or two. What am I reading?

Books on Writing Novels and Feminist Literature

Still Mad: American Women Writers and the Feminist Imagination

Novelist as a Vocation

Mastering the Process: From Idea to Novel

gift boxes under festive tree
Photo by Olena Bohovyk on Pexels.com

What are my plans for the holidays? Staying home, writing, and reading more books. I’ve settled into a nice rhythm with reading, and I feel like I could quickly begin reading as much as I did in college (4-5 books a month).

This slow winter month feels like a gestation period. I’m thinking of new ideas and trying to wrap up chapters of my NaNoWriMo22 novel (no, I didn’t finish it by November 30th, and that’s alright). There’s been a lot of progress and I feel like I’m levelheaded enough to take on a big project or even start an online course on top of everything else I’m doing.

Recent obsessions? Cooking. I’ve been watching a few shows and would love to take a class, really learn how to properly chop up vegetables would be helpful.

person slicing vegetables on chopping board
Photo by Kristina Snowasp on Pexels.com

My favorite meal this week: Surprise! It’s ramen

Nongshim Shin Ramyum cooked with baby bok choy and a handful of sliced white mushrooms and topped with an over-easy egg.

What am I drinking? Wassail and gin.

While I’m not reading, working, or deep in a writing jaunt, I’m listening to music a few hours a day.

What am I listening to this week? Here’s a link to my SF Dec(ember) 2022 playlist. Some old and some new stuff but really it’s a certain atmosphere that I’m going for when I’m putting together a monthly playlist.

Are you writing or reading anything fun? I want to know. Leave a comment below!

Thank you for reading, and I wish you Happy Holidays and a Happy New Year!

decor and confetti on the floor
Photo by Karolina Grabowska on Pexels.com

If you’re a writer looking for a Beta Reader, I can help. Check out my Alpha/Beta Reading service here. Questions? You can message me on Fiverr 🙂

NaNoWriMo2022 Continued: End of Week Five

Alina H. Hansen Writer & Poet

NaNoWriMo2022 is over this year! But not for me. I’m still going, and I hit over 30k words this week. The pressure has dissipated, and I’ll work at my own pace. I want to take my time with this novel, and there are a few plot points I’m still dissecting.

What else have I been up to? Reading and then reading some more…

I finished Book #3, A Court of Wings and Ruin of Sarah J. Maas’s series A Court of Thorns and Roses. Again, the fantastical all-powerful flying Fae are sometimes hard to grasp. There are moments where cheesy dialogue and scenes ooze with over-the-top romantic idealization to the point where the series could be immolating itself. I like this series because it’s one of the things I read in my downtime, like watching junk TV or indulging in a Bachelorette episode for laughs.

And I also started Book #2 of The Scholomance series by Naomi Novik. I’m not entirely sure why I’m doing this to myself again (another odd bit is that one of my favorite authors, Holly Black, wrote a short recommendation on the back of this book, which is perplexing).

Yes, I complained about Book #1 of The Scholomance series a lot in my Goodreads review. Honestly, my distaste for it inspired me to keep reading. There may be some sick version of myself who wants to see it improve or at least some radical character development and plot twists. Still, just like Maas’s books, I’m reading this like I’d watch some mind-numbing TV, but the difference is I actually like Maas’s series.

What am I listening to? Spotify’s “Early Alternative” playlist.

What else am I doing? I’m working on a few social media templates for my Etsy shop, The Happy Poet Studio. I also plan on going out in the city to get more shots for my IG @alinahappyhansen.

While all this is happening, I’m working and scribbling down a few words to count toward my daily goal of 3k words (unrelated to my novel writing).

My plans for week six? I want to write 5k words and wrap up the story’s climax. Did you participate in NaNoWriMo? How’d it go? Leave a comment below or HMU on nanowrimo.org; my username is alinahappyhansen ?

NaNoWriMo2022: End of Week Four

Alina H. Hansen Writer & Poet

November is almost over, and what’s next? I’m still working on my novel, hovering around 30k words, but I’ve made huge strides. The story’s finally where I want it, and I’ve got a few plot points boiling in my head that I can’t wait to try out. I feel free to hit 50k words by Dec 1st, so I’m pushing my deadline to the end of December.

I finished Book #1 of The Scholomance; what a letdown. The plot warbled here and there, the characters felt flat, and the only parts I was really interested had the student-eating monsters.

I’m working on finishing Mastering the Process by Elizabeth George, which is also a big disappointment. I’ve read many books on writing novels, but this one gives general advice and has a ton of filler that just excerpts from one of her novels.

My plans for week five? I want to write about 10k words and finish the story’s climax; I’m thinking of a significant character reveal. How’s your NaNoWriMo going? Are you looking for a writing partner? HMU on nanowrimo.org; my username is alinahappyhansen ?

NaNoWriMo2022: End of Week Three

Alina H. Hansen Writer & Poet

This week has gone by in a flurry. I took a healthy amount of time off to spend with my partner, it was our ninth anniversary, and we had a fabulous day out going to a hip restaurant and then out for drinks at a local dive bar by the Haight. I was swept up in fun and fell behind in my writing, but I wouldn’t trade our good times for anything.

My novel is over 25k words, but I’ve a solid grasp of where the story’s going and how things will unfold. I find reading for long periods of time refreshing to clear my head.

I finished No Nature by Gary Snyder this week, and I’m almost done with Book #1 of The Scholomance. I’m not in love with The Scholomance. It’s a painful read, and I’ve almost stopped a few times because of the boring inner monologue of the main character.

She’s not relatable, not bright, and unpleasant, but I like the world-building, and the monsters who snatch up and eat students are fascinating and disturbing; definitely good inspiration for how I can craft my own to scare readers, hopefully.

My plans for week four? I need to write about 15k words and build up to the story’s climax; I’m thinking of a fight or death. How’s your NaNoWriMo going? Are you looking for a writing partner? HMU on nanowrimo.org; my username is alinahappyhansen ?

NaNoWriMo2022: End of Week One

Alina H. Hansen Writer & Poet

With a finger of Haku vodka and the rest unsweetened cranberry juice, I type away on my laptop while taking periodic sips of my simple homemade cocktail. It’s supposed to rain, pour today really, but there’s not a whisper of raindrops yet.

I just finished lunch, steaming hot rice topped with tuna and mayo mixed and a sprinkling of Tajín. Is this what happens when you get older, your taste suddenly evolves, and you crave absolute bitterness and savory flavors? I’m not sure. But I am sure that the end of week one of NaNoWriMo went unexpectantly well for me.

For October, I’d been writhing with anxiety, unsure what my upcoming novel would be about. But now, with only a few thousand words down and a fuzzy picture in my head, big surprise, it’s gonna be about witches.

It’s easier than I thought to create something from nothing. The ideas that flow in the back of my head take on an existence of their own. Without careful planning and the millions of compartments that occupy the space between consciousness and my imagination, the hideaway desk that is my mind would be a wreck.

Besides taking an hour to two hours a night to scrap together the minimum word count (or more, if I’m willing), I’ve spent most of my time reading. For the first time in over two years, I have enough time to read and read more.

A Deadly Education (The Scholomance #1) by Naomi Novik

No Nature: New and Selected Poems by Gary Snyder

A Court of Wings and Ruin (Book #3) by Sarah J. Maas

I’m gravitated towards Fantasy recently and slowly spinning around poetry as usual. Nothing changes. This is far from unusual for me. And sadly, with Halloween 2022 now over, I’ve got the rest of San Francisco’s mild yet wet Fall/Winter to look forward to.

The fog hangs low, and there are dead leaves strewn on sidewalks and streets here and there. Walking through Chinatown, the Transamerica Pyramid often comes in and out of view as I walk southbound on Stockton Street. On most days, a good portion of it is hidden by the fog; on others, the soft lighting and bright colors of the century-or-so-old buildings in the forefront create a pleasant contrast.

Yes, there are days when it feels like I’m walking on a Bladerunner set sometimes, and other times, I get the sense that I’m traversing through a mystical city hanging in the balance between the sea and the rest of the land mass that is North America. Somewhere in between, close but also far away.

There’s plenty of inspiration to go around this city and more than enough details to invigorate a fledging novel. Dead baby sharks for sale on a street corner, pigeons with one foot or crumpled toes hoping in the gutter, a white cat in the window of an herbalist shop, hanging roasted ducks…I could go on forever.

Are you participating in NaNoWriMo this year? I want to hear from you. You can connect with me today on nanowrimo.org ~ my username is alinahappyhansen 🙂

Want to get a feel for my novel?

Below you’ll find a link to my WIP’s Pinterest Board visuals and the playlist I’ve been listening to as I write.

Vincent’s Collection of Mystiques ~ Pinterest Board

Spotify Playlist ~ This is Pensees

If you’re participating in NaNoWriMo, I wish you the best of luck!