August Reflections & September Goals

I started August with big plans—two WIPs to write, Kindred Creativity Club events to run, and even helping my husband revise his novel. But life had other ideas.

PMDD hit me hard this month, and I had to step back. At first, I felt guilty for slowing down, but I’m learning that rest isn’t failure—it’s part of the process. Most of August was spent reading fanfiction, watching YouTube, playing The Sims, and even treating myself to some new Halloween decorations (because spooky season is always in my heart 🎃).

The good news? That pause worked. I feel recharged and ready for September. KCC’s Creative Connections Spotlight is just around the corner, and I’ve set my sights firmly on finishing Divine Unmaking—a story that feels closer to my heart than anything I’ve written before.

I also can’t help but celebrate my husband, who finished and started querying his first novel (with book two already in progress!). Watching him chase his dreams has been a huge inspiration for me to keep going with mine.

If you’d like the full update—with more on my writing goals, KCC events, and, yes, a peek at my Halloween haul—you can read it here 👉 [https://claredugmore.com/blog/august-reflections-rest-creativity-and-comebacks]

From POV Swaps to Partner Pride: My July Writing Update.

 

July flew by in a blur of rewrites, word count goals, and unexpected inspiration!

This month, I made the bold decision to shift both Fractured Loyalties and Before the Fracture from first to third person — a 70,000-word POV change! It’s been a huge undertaking, but one that feels right for the world-building and tone I love most.

I also allowed myself to dive into something new: a sapphic dark fantasy romance that’s already 8,000 words strong and brimming with potential. If you’re curious, I’ll be sharing a sneak peek with newsletter subscribers soon!

Outside my own writing, something wonderful happened — my husband started writing a novel of his own! After years in games journalism and content creation, he’s found his spark again in a dystopian horror-comedy that’s equal parts clever and chaotic. He’s written over 50,000 words already, and I couldn’t be prouder.

The month wasn’t without its challenges — PMDD hit hard — but there were still plenty of bright spots, including spotlighting the Write Here, Write Now author community through The Kindred Creativity Club.

💌 Want to read the full update (including the hilarious, horrifying, and heartwarming bits)?
👉 Read it here: https://claredugmore.com/blog/from-pov-swaps-to-partner-pride-my-july-writing-update

Until next time — stay safe, stay creative, and T.T.F.N. 💜

— Clare

A New Era for My Creative Journey

 

Hey friends,

If you’ve been following along recently, you might have noticed things shifting around here — from my website’s look to how I talk about my books and goals as an author. It’s not just a fresh coat of paint — it’s part of a deeper evolution.

A-Z Challenge/ CampNaNoWriMo Theme Reveal

Based on results on a poll, the story I've decided to tell for CampNaNo/ A-Z Challenge is the third draft of Choosing Sides - renamed Triquetra: Book One. 

Some of you might be familiar with my urban-fantasy about oppressed witches, as I wrote it during last year's NaNo, too. Since completing the second draft (I actually came up with the idea, and wrote the first draft in 2012) I've decided it's STILL not quite the story I want to tell. 

Hopefully this serialised version will be closer to the vision in my head. As this project is only projected to be 54,000 words, it will serve as "book one" of the Triquetra series, and I plan on developing the rest of story ideas into at least two more books. 


 ---- 

“Should those with the witch gene be prevented from procreating?” 

This is the question asked by agents of the Paranormal Investigation Department (PID) in the latest government summit about those with magical abilities. 

 Being a witch in the current political climate is tough. Since a terrorist attack twenty-years ago, the PID have been cracking down on witches, imprisoning many with magical abilities without trial. 

 Those the PID don’t catch go into hiding – if they’re lucky. If they’re not, they’re caught by religious fanatics and publicly hung.

 ---- 

Chapter Index:

A is for Action
B is for Battle
C is for Casualties
D is for
E is for
F is for
G is for
H is for
I is for
J is for
K is for
L is for
M is for
N is for
O is for
P is for
Q is for
R is for
S is for
T is for
U is for
V is for
U is for
X is for
Y is for
Z is for
Bonus Chapter

Camp NaNoWriMo July 18: Week ThreeUpdate

One week of CampNaNoWrimo left to go, and I'm only 5k away from meeting my self-set target of 20k in the month of July.

I'm so pleased with how things are going. 5k a week Mon-Fri was the exact right amount for me. I don't feel burned out, I'm still enjoying the story, and I feel like I'm making good progress, instead of feeling like I've achieved nothing.

This week's highlight was the repercussions of the twist at the end of act two leading to some interesting developments for one of my main characters. I'm also setting up conflicts for the other two MCs to battle with before the climax. I'm so excited to finish this story.

And I only have another 15-20k to go, as I broke the 70k mark today. My aim is 95k max for the story, and I will probably work on the final 20k in September. I say this as I'm taking August off not only to avoid burn-out, but to enjoy the summer school break with my sons, and head to the beach for a vacation! 

So that was my positive writing week. How are things going for everyone else? Let me know in the comments, and until next week (when I'll hopefully be reporting making it to 20k) have an excellent week!

Camp NaNoWriMo July 18: Week Two Update

Hey everyone!

I'm back with another update on my CampNaNoWriMo progress.

I didn't meet my self-set 5k target this week, because I took Thursday and Friday off, but because of my efforts in week one, I'm still on target to make 20k by the end of July. I just need to make sure I don't slack off next week, or all fall behind.

Week two was mostly focused on the transition from act two to act three; dealing with the fall out of the thing that happened at the end of act two, and then setting up the building blocks for act three and the climax. It was some good stuff, but I'm excited to get back into more action-y type stuff as act three gets into full swing. 

Is anyone else doing CampNaNoWriMo or working on something? If so, let me know in the comments. I'd love to know how you're getting on.

Until next week, hope y'all have an awesome week!

Camp NaNoWriMo July 18: Week One Update

The first week of July's Camp NaNoWriMo has finished, and I'm slightly ahead of my self-set target of 5k words per week. 

This time around I'm only writing Monday to Friday, and taking weekends off, for the sake of my own sanity. Though I did take Thursday off this week (as I wasn't in a good headspace) and instead made up my word count on Saturday afternoon. That's it for this weekend though, once I've finished this post I plan on spending the rest of my weekend playing Elder Scrolls Online! 

The highlight of the week was an unexpected twist near the end of act two. I have a loose chapter plan and I know how I want the end to play out, but I still have some blanks on the way there. This was one of these blanks. Recently, I'd decided to give my healing witch Esmee an additional ability, and this manifested towards the end of act two, with some interesting consequences, which led to me writing one of my favourite chapters to date. I have one more chapter in act two to write, and I have a plan in mind for that. Then I'm moving onto act three, for which I have a handful of chapters in mind ... then nothing for nine chapters, until I start building towards the climax. So it will be interesting to see where the majority of act three takes me.

I'll be back next week to update on my week two progress, but if you want daily updates, check out social media.

Until next week, take care and have a great week ahead!