Tauri Cox

I don’t know about you but January always feels like the LONGEST month. I mean five Mondays just seems excessive, right?

But despite the dragging, I stuck to my goals and made some serious headway on a few. Others got somewhat derailed, and I got bronchitis… But hey, I am choosing to focus on the positive!

We hosted our very first #CheerChat with Writer’s Cheer – a hashtag created to provide a space where writers can celebrate their successes with each other. I saw an energy healer which was FASCINATING and a really eye-opening experience. I read a fantastic book for my internship with Entangled that I can’t wait to hopefully follow through the publishing process.

All in all, not bad. But let’s dive into the specifics and share what I did in the reading and writing world to kick off 2018!

What I Read

GRAND TOTAL: 4

The Invasion of the Tearling by Erika Johansen 

The Fate of the Tearling by Erika Johansen 

I Was Anastasia by Ariel Lawhon

The Immortalists by Chloe Benjamin

What I Wrote

After completing revisions on 700 Main, I needed something to occupy my time while waiting for responses from agents (there’s still six out there!). I had a hard time deciding whether to pursue a new project or go back and totally rewrite my first novel. For now – and I reserve the right to change my mind – I’ve decided to dive into my new New Orleans based-WIP.

January was for characters. Lots of writers tend to start with plot, but I like to have at least an idea of who I am working with. Then I can develop plot points that torture those specific people based on their personality, background, and emotional wound. Yes, writers are evil.

I took personality tests, searched Pinterest for photos, combed through Kristen Kieffer’s workbook, and answered silly questionnaires. But my main goal was to create a main character who was absolutely nothing like me.  That’s been a challenge of mine, and both my past MCs have eerily resembled my own personality traits and flaws. So it took a little longer to get to know her this time, but I can say with certainty that Jessa is nothing like me. She’s bold but reckless, observant but insensitive. You guys are gonna love her.

Coming Up

February is going to be all about plot. This week I started James Patterson’s Master Class (full review to come when I finish) and the main assignment is to create a chapter by chapter outline. Between all the research I’ve done and the Pre-Write Project I am completing now, I think I’ll be able to get a chunk of that done this month. We’ll see…

As far as reading goes, I am already behind on my TBR list (to no one’s surprise) but here’s my books for February:

• Honeymoon by James Patterson and Howard Roughan
• Circe by Madeline Miller
• Carnegie’s Maid by Marie Benedict
• The Cruel Prince by Holly Black
• The Belles by Dhonielle Clayton

How did everyone else’s first month of the new year go?