All posts by Jackie Pick

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About Jackie Pick

Jackie Pick is a former teacher and current writer living in the Chicago area. She is a contributing author to multiple anthologies, including Multiples Illuminated, So Glad They Told Me: Women Get Real about Motherhood, Here in the Middle, as well as the and the literary magazines The Sun and Selfish. She received Honorable Mention from the Mark Twain House and Museum for her entry in the Royal Nonesuch Humor Writing Competition. Jackie is a contributing writer at Humor Outcasts, and her essays have been featured on various online sites including McSweeney's, Belladonna Comedy, Mamalode, The HerStories Project, and Scary Mommy. A graduate of the University of Chicago and Northwestern University, Jackie is co-creator and co-writer of the award-winning short film Fixed Up, and a proud member of the 2017 Chicago cast of Listen To Your Mother.

NaNoWriMo Days 8-10: Farthest Away and Halfway Home

NaNoWriMo, NaNoWriMo2016

Life got in the way of updating the last few days, and I didn’t write too much the day of and after the election, but I’m back full force today.

I hit the halfway mark today, Day 10, and it feels good to refocus on what gives me purpose: putting thoughts onto the page. It feels in some way like a long hike to 50,000 and in other ways it’s not nearly enough. It’s a good feeling.

day-10a

Day 8 Stats:

  • Essay: “The Real Christmas Newsletter” 584 words
  • Essay: “Errant Blue Lines” 737 words

Daily Word Count: 1321

Total Word Count: 23,058

Day 9 Stats:

  • Essay: “Nothing is Funny Today” 847 words

Daily Word Count: 876

Total Word Count: 23,934

Today’s Stats:

  • Essay: “Dyspepsia: The Choice of a New Generation” 2873 words

Daily Word Count: 2873

Total Word Count: 26,807

 

NaNoWriMo Day 7 — Unfancy Report

NaNoWriMo, NaNoWriMo2016, Writing

I find it interesting that the short story I am working on is my slowest work and the one that rattles my confidence. I feel at this time I approach it from its blind spot and poke at it a little every day.

I’m not much of a short story writer. I was discouraged from writing fiction early on, and I’ve not yet confidently shaken that. To finish this piece and then to return to it in a month is one of my goals.

Every moment was filled today and still so many words. Today I tried talk-to-text for one of the essays, and I have to say it took me longer than it would have to write or type it. I felt more aware of how right or wrong everything sounded, and I began meta-crafting and editing and criticizing my work. I wonder if that is a function of that particular essay’s topic or of the talking process. I’ll revisit.

I love NaNoWriMo. I do not look forward to Dedit-cember.

Today’s Stats:

  • Essay: “The Real Christmas Newsletter” 209 words
  • Essay: “The Circle of Life: From Lonely Cheese Back to Farmer in the Dell Again” 1862 words
  • Short Story: “Pie Trauma” (working title) 1084 words

Daily Word Count: 3155

Total Word Count: 21, 737

NaNoWriMo Day 6. Also Skeet Shooting Season Starts Today.

NaNoWriMo, NaNoWriMo2016, Writing

We’re about three hours into skeet shooting season here in the town where I live. I know this because every damn shot makes me jump, and I’ve been jumping a lot today.

It has made writing a challenge today. I can’t focus on any one piece adequately, so I’m hopping around, adding a little here, throwing in a paragraph there, starting something new. My work is edgy today. Slow. Angry.

nanowrimo-day-6

And I’m shot, if you’ll pardon the pun. I hope I’ll be able to get a few more words in later today, maybe as the sun goes down and the skeets are all dead, but I have more words written than I did at the beginning of the day, and that’s something.

Also, I’m enjoying giving my writing silly working titles.

Today’s Stats:

  • Essay: “Pinatas and Glitter Girls” 614 words
  • Essay: “Processing the Leftovers” 1051 words
  • Essay: “Betty Off-Her-Crocker” 1156 words

Daily Word Count: 2821

Total Word Count: 18,582