Published by Tor Books
LIKE NEVER AND ALWAYS
A TYPICAL WRITING DAY WITH ANN AGUIRE!
What is a typical writing day like for you?
I get up late since I’m a night owl, take the dog out, then give her a cookie for doing her business in the yard. Next I shower and make something to eat and have a meal before I get started. Most of the time, after that, I grab my AlphaSmart if I need to make serious word count. Being disconnected helps me to focus better on the project, which is why I love my AS so much.
Where I write depends on my mood. The AlphaSmart doesn’t need to be plugged in, so it can go anywhere. Sometimes I work in my office, which is gorgeous, but it’s also at the top of the house and it has a lot of windows, so on hot days, it becomes like a greenhouse in there. Other times I write in the TV room, but in there, I have the temptation to watch shows instead of focusing. There are a couple of other places where I might write—the upstairs terrace or the downstairs patio. I love getting fresh air while I’m working.
At any rate, once I pick the location, I settle in and generally, I write in sprints, either one scene or chapter (depending on the chapter length). Once I finish, I take a short break: move around, play with the dog or the cats. No longer than fifteen minutes, though, or I’ll be tempted to quit for the day. I’ll do another writing sprint then, which usually takes 45 minutes to an hour.
Then I break for lunch or at least a snack, such as a protein bar and yogurt or a piece of fruit. In the afternoon, I do a couple more sprints, however many it takes to hit my daily word count goal. The target depends on how pressed for time I am, to be quite honest. Sometimes I end up overloaded and having to bump a project back nearly to the wire, so if I only have a couple of weeks left, then I have to write 5,000 words a day, which is 3-4 sprints. Breaking them up makes the volume of work seem less and taking breaks between each one helps also. When I have more time, I can write less daily and still make my deadline. 3,000 words is a more reasonable amount and I can do that in a couple of sprints. Until I meet my word count, I stay off the internet and avoid email because potential distractions can undermine my ability to concentrate on the story.
My AlphaSmart can hold a lot of words, so I usually transfer them to the master Word doc when I’m done for the day. It’s kind of magical when the word count spikes. I don’t really edit as I’m drafting, but I do fix typos and formatting. After that, I knock off for the day, and I used to try my best to be done for the day by 4pm because that’s when my kids get home from school. But my daughter is at university now, and my son is leaving for college in September, so soon 4PM won’t be my stop time anymore. I try my best to write like this is my day job. Even with the kids gone, I’ll still need to be done by 5:30 or so, to make dinner for my husband.
And that’s what an average writing day looks like for me! Thanks for having me on the blog. If you have questions about Like Never and Always or about my work in general, please leave a comment.
About the Book:
Title: LIKE NEVER AND ALWAYS
Author: Ann Aguirre
Pub. Date: July 17, 2018
Publisher: Tor Teen
Formats: Hardcover, eBook, audiobook
Pages: 336
Find it: Goodreads, Amazon, B&N, iBooks, TBD
On a hot summer night, a screech of brakes and shattering glass changes two lives forever.
Liv wakes in the hospital, confused when they call her Morgan. She assumes it’s a case of mistaken identity, yet when the bandages come off, it’s not her face in the mirror anymore. It’s her best friend Morgan’s.
Morgan always seemed to have the perfect life, yet Liv must navigate endlessly disturbing secrets of the criminal and murderous variety—and a romance that feels like a betrayal. Torn between the boy she loved as Liv and the boy she’s grown to love as Morgan, Liv still has to survive Morgan’s last request.
About Ann:
Ann Aguirre is a New York Times & USA Today bestselling author with a degree in English Literature; before she began writing full time, she was a clown, a clerk, a voice actress, and a savior of stray kittens, not necessarily in that order. She grew up in a yellow house across from a cornfield, but now she lives in sunny Mexico with her husband, children, and various pets. She likes books, emo music, and action movies. She writes all kinds of genre fiction for adults and teens.
Website | Twitter | Facebook | Tumblr | Goodreads
Giveaway Details:
1 winner will win a Kindle Oasis, US Only.
5 winners will win a finished copy of LIKE NEVER AND ALWAYS, US Only.
Tour Schedule:
Week One:
7/2/2018- BookHounds YA– Guest Post
7/3/2018- Here’s to Happy Endings– Review
7/4/2018- YA Books Central– Interview
7/5/2018- Literary Meanderings– Interview
7/6/2018- The Desert Bibliophile– Review
Week Two:
7/9/2018- A Dream Within A Dream– Review
7/10/2018- Twinning for Books– Review
7/11/2018- Parajunkee– Excerpt
7/12/2018- Wonder Struck– Review
7/13/2018- Christen Krumm– Interview
Week Three:
7/16/2018- Jena Brown Writes– Excerpt
7/17/2018- Novel Novice– Guest Post
7/18/2018- Hauntedbybooks– Review
7/19/2018- Book Dragon Lair– Review
7/20/2018- Eli to the nth– Review
Week Four:
7/23/2018- Under the Book Cover– Review
7/24/2018- Confessions of a YA Reader– Review
7/25/2018- Moonlight Rendezvous– Review
7/26/2018- Simply Daniel Radcliffe– Review
7/27/2018- Two points of interest– Review
Week Five:
7/30/2018- For the Love of KidLit– Interview
7/31/2018- Smada’s Book Smack– Excerpt
This sounds unique and mysterious and so much fun to read.
This really sounds really good!! I think this is a new concept for me in a book!!!
Congrats on the new release! It sounds like an exciting book.
This sounds really different from Ann’s other books. Intriguing.
I would love to read this one this summer.
Looking at your Tumbler page. I noticed you like Asian Dramas. Looks like we share that in common. I don’t find to me authors who love the Asian dramas and are authors. I myself an aspiring author working on my own book series. It is nice getting to know you and your book as the premise of your book sounds like it could be a K-drama. Thanks and congrats.
This sounds like such an amazing read!
Thanks for having me. I’m so excited to have my book compared to a K-drama!
This looks like a good book. It definitely has my attention!
Thanks for hosting the book tour. Looks interesting.
I love reading about her writing process. I’m also a night owl so I like how she works that into her work. This book does sound interesting and I’ll be checking it out. Great premise.
This sounds original and creepy. Thanks.
This sounds like an awsome read!
I like the sound of this!
This sounds great! Thank you for the chance!
This sounds like a really intriguing story! I can’t wait to read it!
Thanks for letting me know your writing tips with sprints and breaks with rewards. I thought at first that you got a cookie for doing your business and then I reread the sentence and realized it was your dog who got the cookie. Like Never and Always looks like a psychological read with amnesia and love mixed in.