Writing Report S2 #32 (Special Batam Report): An After-Action Report

This Writing Report is for the dates from 16 January to 30 January 2017 (2 weeks and a day, Monday to Monday)

Hey guys, I know that I haven't been updating the blog for a while. There's just been so many changes to adapt to that I couldn't keep up, from the last few days in Batam to all the packing and returning to Batam, to readjusting to Singaporean life again - All that Jazz.

Anyhow, back to the regular programming.

My latter two weeks in Batam can best be described as a period of exhaustion and cooling down. From 16 January to 22 January, which was my third week, I had two days in which I reverted back to a 1,000 word schedule, which meant about 12,000 words written. I believe it was Wednesday and Thursday when it happened.

The fourth week was basically cool-down week. Hands bleeding, need to stop. If I remember correctly, I'd had it again on Friday, going back to writing only 1,000 words, and since then, I couldn't maintain my 2,000 words goal anymore, and compromised at 1,500 words on Saturday and Sunday. In the end, I was still able to put out 12,000 words.

The 30th, on the other hand, was the day I check out of my boarding house and move back to Singapore. I couldn't do much really, as I spent the whole morning eating my final breakfast (in Batam) and packing. I left what had been my home for the past month at 12, and made my way on foot to the ferry terminal by the sea. Ferry was at 8:30 (though delayed by 2 hours as I found out later!), so I spent my time window-shopping, walking and actually shopping, before settling down to a 750 words session. My final words in Batam.

The story I had been working on up until I left Batam was something based on folklore. A Southeast-Asian version of the vampire story, but much more (oh, so much more) frightening compared to the European version. It had even made a particularly long cameo in my debut novel, where a few of its kind had menaced the main characters there. Well, you guys will know when the book's out.

And before my SEA Vamp came up, I was working on a rather crazy sci-fi horror, another body horror story that might have a connection to the very first I wrote for the collection. In short, it's all about a guy giving birth to creatures after a science experiment in a biomedical MNC had gone wrong. I'd say that I'm pretty proud of it, but it's going to need some editing.

Despite the rough latter two weeks of my writing retreat, I would say that the entire programme had been quite successful. I was putting out 2,000 words nearly every day, which was the goal. All in all, I had put out about 54,000 words on the cyber-page, which to some authors constitutes a full novel.

I am VERY close to finishing the first draft of my second book. I am about a short story and a flash fiction away from achieving that. And then, it's editing time. Oh, dreary, dreary editing. That's the time to hammer myself in the head...