Guest Post: Anne Lange and The Making of a Great Team

Happy Thursday! 
It's rainly and...WARM here (woo! spring! finally!)...a great day to sleep late, snuggle on the couch, and get some writing done. Which is why I'm here at my desk at the lab after a delightful 75 minute commute (all of 17 miles. DELIGHTFUL 75 min. commute), ready to take on the world. After a couple more glugs of coffee.

ANYWAY.

My friend Anne, co-Dangerous Diva, is here to offer her perspective on teamwork and NaNoWriMo.
YAY!

*applause sign lit*

Thanks for being here, Anne!  

The Making of a Great Team, by Anne Lange

As writers, many of us struggle with finding the time to actually write new words each and every day. Because like anything, it takes practice, and it takes discipline.   

I’ve been writing for about three years, and taking workshops through Savvy Authors for almost as long. Until last fall, I never really gave NaNo much thought.  National Novel Writing Month (people shorten it to NaNo) brings people from all over the world participate in a global writing event each November. Many groups, such as Savvy Authors, offer their version of NaNo in both the fall and the spring.  They commit time and focus to their particular writing project—to write new words, no editing—for 30 days.

Because I’m still struggling at finding my rhythm, I thought this might be just what I needed to force myself into the habit of writing every single day.  The thing I liked about this particular event, with this particular group, was the team work, the encouragement, and the camaraderie.  Everybody cheers you on.  There are daily goals, group sprints, challenges, and friendly bantering.  The people at Savvy make it FUN.

Unfortunately, some teams don’t always work well together, or they simply fall apart for a variety of reasons.  I was on the team Dangerous Divas. There were five of us. We didn’t have this problem.  We clicked. We supported each other from day one, both on and off the official loop. We talked daily, providing encouragement and advice, keeping each other motivated. We’ve never met face-to-face. We don’t even live anywhere near each other.  We write different genres.  But we clicked. And because of that, we’ve been successful, both individually and as a team. 

We all completed that first event together last November. In 30 days, we completed rough drafts of a novel. Thirty days, over 50,000 words each.  Wow.  For me, I proved to myself that I could do it. Depending on the length of my story, my daily goal will change, but the point is, it doesn’t have to take 2 or 3 years to write that novel. It can be done in a month—if you’re disciplined.

Since then, the Divas have kept in touch.  We still talk, even just reaching out to say hi. We still offer words of encouragement and advice. And when the April Boot Camp with Savvy came up, we didn’t even hesitate to come together, as a team, once again.   At the end of Week 1, the Diva’s surpassed a total of 40,000 words. 

This time, I’m working on the second book in a series. I completed the first book during the November event.  That story is out on submission.

My current release, Worth the Risk, I actually contracted just before we started the Entangled Smackdown last November, and I was smack in the middle of formal edits while I was also writing that new book.  But I still managed to do it. I’m so proud to say I’m part of this team; I couldn’t have done it without them.

Blurb

Even the hottest sex might not be enough to ease the pain of the past…

Molly Simpson arrives at a beautiful provincial park, ready to spend the May Two-Four holiday camping with friends. This weekend is the highlight of her year—or it was, until Tanner Daivies showed up. Her high school crush is all grown up, sexy as sin, and he’s demanding answers—answers Molly isn’t sure she can give him. She had her reasons for leaving him all those years ago, but now, sex with Tanner is scorching, and when they’re together, it’s clear they were never meant to be apart. But the past doesn’t want to stay buried, and Molly isn’t sure reliving it is worth the risk…

To see an excerpt – go to http://authorannelange.com/books/worth-the-risk/worth-the-risk/

 

Author BIO

Anne Lange grew up with a love of reading. In fact, if you take a close look, she’s got a book with her where ever she goes, and will usually sneak in at least a chapter or ten whenever she can spare a few minutes. She reads many genres of fiction, but prefers to write sexy romance with attractive men, strong females, and always a happily ever after.

While embarking on a career as a romance author, Anne juggles a full time job and a family. She grew up in Southern Ontario (Canada), but now makes her home in Eastern Ontario where she lives with her husband and three children, and Rocky the bearded dragon.

Buy Links

To purchase Worth the Risk:

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

All Romance Ebooks

Kobo

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To connect with Anne:

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