It is January 3, 2026. Happy New Year everyone! I didn't write as much as I hoped to in the month of December but I am currently sitting at 57,612 words and that feels pretty damn good. The story keeps evolving and expanding in a way I can't completely predict and I think that is helping me in one sense but hurting me in another. Let me explain, I need to not completely plan my stories or I get bored of them. So, the fact that it is evolving means it is keeping me interested and making me want to write more. But, I get stuck for days sometimes on how to make it all mesh. Sometimes that stresses me out too and makes me not want to write. It's basically a big balancing act to make myself still interested while knowing where the hell I'm going in the next part of the book, while also combating my perfectionism. 

While I continue into 2026, I am now focusing less on word count and more on finishing the first draft. I feel about 70% through this book and need to finish it up. I will probably do monthly updates until it is done but to be honest, I would like to have it done by the end of the month. We shall see. 

Cinder and Ash- December 2025 Update

Today is December 1st, I wrote 30,007 words for Cinder and Ash and I have decided that I will continue my challenge in this month! I will be trying for 40k this time because I think that that is how many more words I have left in the first draft of the book. I hear a lot of people call that the zero draft too but I jut don't like the way that one sounds lol. That's probably my autism though lmao.

I won't be tracking the daily word count on here but I have a chart in my planner to track the word count. I'm also starting to think about things like beta readers. I have two people in mind right now who's opinions I care about a lot. Maybe a third one, but I don't think that one will like the fact that Cinderella turns to witchcraft lol. 

Cinder and Ash

A dark retelling of a classic tale of Cinderella, but this time the Prince is the villain and Cinderella is accused of murder. 

This book is going to be my guinea pig to see how fast I can really churn out rough drafts. In the month of November, I will be taking part in the Rough Draft Challenge. A challenge that is being held by Sara Cannon from Heart Breathings. Since she is a successful self-published author with 30 books under her belt and the 31st in the works, I look up to her. I want to see what she does and how see if I can incorporate any of it into my work and you know, finish my books and publish them too! 

Saturday is the first of November and it is my first day to get at least 1,200 words, but I am so exited about this book and I've been thinking about it all month and prepping it, so I'm just going to let myself go with writing. Might as well use the excitement while it's there and binge as much of the book as possible. Even if I go back and add more in the middle of scenes to beef it up. I have realized it is okay to do that, like there is no rule that says I can't do that lol. Just a self imposed rule to make my life harder. Yay autism. 

Anyways the goal is to finish the whole rough draft of Cinder and Ash in November which I estimate will be around 30k words but honestly I'm not sure how long it will end up being. But that's my favorite part of writing, letting the idea take wings and go wild. 

Below I'll have a chart that I fill in every day of November.