I'm Kayla, a creative human exploring life with a mindset of curiosity and play. I create videos about creativity, storytelling, intentional living/lifestyle, and maybe a little sprinkle of other topics here and there :)
I do have a portal fantasy where the characters are transported into a futuristic earth where humans have died off, magic has returned along with mythical creatures, and most of the world is flooded, leaving few land masses. I've been using flood map predictors to create that map.
That sounds like such a cool way to make a map. I've tossed polyhedral dice on paper where each die represents something else (D4 = mountains, D20 = capital, etc) but nothing like you're talking about where you based climate and such off real places. That's too cool.
This wasn't a vlog this was a video diary. That's cool and all but once you put web developer or anything tech related there's going to be some expectations to show your workflow and tech stack and use cases of the type of problem you are solving mixed with coffee or cacao whatever floats your boat and then unwind
For my last map, i used a hexagonal grid and made shapes that I liked, cut and pasted them together on a larger sheet then made a cleaner version. Still tough but easier. I like closely you are using our world to inside your realms. You might want to look at scifi games that might have portals/time warps for their maps. I'm working on 2 projects a contemporary novella that is almost done, and a fantasy novel that is always in the planning stages.
map making is unnecessarily difficult 😅 so i feel you on that front!! i am also writing a portal fantasy with duel pov with magic and royalty!! i'm about 31k in and nowhere near done 😅
Wow! I’m really impressed with how detailed your world-building document is and how you’re diving into BTW Book 2 right after finishing Draft 3 of Book 1! AHHH! I could never! Good luck! 🥰
Sarah J. Maas has been out too long for people to not know how to pronounce her last name correctly. I know this video is 2 years old though so maybe you know now? lol
I love seeing how people plan. I'm impressed that you're doing so much so close together. I've never done Nanowrimo/Camp Nanowrimo. I find being put on a hard deadline intimidating, and all my creativity gets zapped out of me....which is going to be rough if I'm ever picked up lol. I look forward to seeing your progress! Saying "I don't make the rules" when you do make the rules is the most relatable thing ever.
I feel like I should mention that this last draft was a VERY tight deadline that I set because I knew I needed it. Moving forward I will absolutely not set another deadline like that unless I'm desperate because it definitely took a lot out of me 😅 I'm hoping for my camp to be fairly chill too 🤞 lots of backstory writing and brainstorm documents will count towards my goal! I have faith in you if you get picked up, it's all just practice and figuring out your process! 💛
You're doing Camp Nanowrimo? After finishing Book 1 a couple days (read: hours) ago?? 😮At the rate you're going, you'll have multiple books done in 2024 alone! 🙌🏾
haha honestly that would be a dream! At least some rough drafts, but we'll see 😂 I have a habit of working in sprints so I'm sure I'll hit a lull at some point
omg the fact that you’re going to jump into camp after sprinting so hard to finish your draft of book one is so impressive!!! Love that you’re feeling so much momentum, good luck with the drafting!!!!
Congratulations on finishing your draft! 🥳 Have you read ALL THE STARS AND TEETH and its sequel ALL THE TIDES OF FATE by Adalyn Grace? It’s a YA high fantasy with romance and a mysterious pirate! The prose is gorgeous! 😍
just started watching but IM SO HAPPY FOR YOU!! congrats!!! you did ittt!!! what a journey, years in the making & sooo many drafts later! finishing your manuscript is a hugeeeee accomplishment. you are so inspiring! 💛
honestly this is like the third time I've tried to make it work for me and while it was better than previous attempts, it has mostly just motivated me to be more consistent/on track with writing so that I can avoid using it in the future 😂 I'm not a huge fan
Hey Kayla! If you're looking for a treasure hunty-type show, have you checked out Outer Banks? It's not super pirate-y but there are a lot of references to (fictional) historical pirates and it heavily features a treasure hunt and is super vibey. It's not a fantasy or anything so I don't know if you will be into it as far as needing the vibes for your story, but it's definitely my favourite show on Canadian Netflix right now!
Hi Kayla, congrats on the website and Your Progress on the book. I have had that happen before and its amazing. Signed up for the newsletter also and cant wait to read it as well. If you need another beta reader hope you will remember me. Take Care
Loved this vlog so much!! So sweet hearing you talk about how the beta reader applications made you cry :’) can’t wait to hear more about this part of the process once you get the feedback!
That last part was so candid and humbling! 🥹 I have huge dreams of being a full-time indie and I'm like 80% sure my debut will be meh - BUUUT, it's gonna be a learning experience! ♡ Thanks for being so transparent about your process.
I'm going to try the dialogue first tip! I always get stuck when writing action scenes, and I think this will really help. Excited that your project is getting into the hands of beta readers, too.
I do dialogue first, too, and then I add the details in later. I hate writing descriptive scenes, but they’re needed. 😅 I like to watch RU-vid videos while I write because it helps me focus. I have a few scenes I need to scratch and rewrite as I finish my second book. I had my first burnout for my first book because I would only write.
You have no idea how much I needed this video. Our writing journeys seem to have been very, very similar to each other, though you’re farther along in yours. Thank you so much!
I actually love the long vlogs. Also, I love that you came to the realization by the end of this vlog that beta readers are there to help you clean up your manuscript. A lot of the concerns you have will be addressed when they do their part. That's the best thing about a beta reader. If you have something super specific, I suggest that you let them know. This way they can specifically look for that and give you feedback on top of everything else they are addressing.
Thank you for mentioning this, I will absolutely be giving some specific prompts! It's taken a lot of battling with my self-doubts but every day is a little better 💛
This will certainly be a fun part of the process. Under better circumstances I'd take on a read of your material, having really enjoyed your poems ... alas, June is destined to be among the most dumpster-fire months of my life. Good luck on this.
The note in the library book was SO CUTE ☺You've reminded me I need to pick up the third book in that series! I remember loving the second book! Also I looove longer vlogs!
I filled out the form early too! (We’re excited! 😂) I’m absolutely open to a relationship/critique partnership as the story grows, I think that’s an excellent way forward! ❤
