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Writing Words - writing it is the only way of getting it written
I am crawling towards the end.
This November has been interesting for a number of reasons - I will go into detail soon. I have shown, though, that it is possible to write 50k words in (less than) 30 days even if you have no clue what your story is. I'm sure I am repeating myself here, but the only thing that matters is that you sit down and write.
I am taking tonight off. I have worked on my NaNoWriMo Novel every day up until today, and I deserve a break. Also I have the feeling that stepping away from the story for a day is going to do more good than bad.
I spent a lot of nights writing like a headless chicken. In the first week, I had basically no idea where I was going. The least I can do is write a somewhat thought out ending now so that I have an aim when I start editing the first draft.
1,111 words today.
I'm trying to find a way to wrap the story up so that I may call it a novel - first draft - at the end, which will turn into a proper novel one day, after many many many hours of editing.
NaNoEdMo is in March, by the way.
I went to London today to treat myself, but was so tired (related to the housemates from hell, don't ask... ) that I nearly fell asleep in Starbucks. But watching people was inspiring, in a way.
Participating in NaNoWriMo has taught me a few things, but the most important one is this: If you want to make it as a writer, you have to show up for work. Yeah, this is stating the obvious, but a lot of people - my pre-NaNoWriMo 2002 self included - harbour the romantic notion that a writer only works when inspiration strikes.
Sure, inspiration is a wonderful thing, and it makes the writing life a lot easier. But people who only write when they feel inspired to write something aren't writers. Writers are those people who sit down to write even though they would much rather watch the football, surf the internet or stay in bed. Writers are those people who show up for work even though nobody pays them for it (yet).
I've said it before, I'll say it again: Writers write -that's all there is to it (well, there may be a few other things to it, but if you don't write, none of the other things matter).
The end is in sight. When I started out at the beginning of this month, I wasn't sure if I would be able to make it this year.
I didn't have a well-developed novel idea; I was busy at work and the workload has not decreased in the course of November, rather the reverse; I had plans to go away for a long weekend. Well, the story developed as I wrote it - I found out a lot of things I was completely unaware of, and if I put a lot more work in, it might actually be worth reading some day; I managed to write every day despite the fact that work wipes me out every day, and most of the time I enjoyed writing, too; the long weekend in warm and sunny Portugal was canceled (now that was not necessarily a good thing
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Have a feeling I am getting sick. Writing tonight was rather painful, but now I am only 5,764 away from 50k. Unless I get a nasty flu, I should get there by Sunday night.
I am still on track to make 50k this weekend, despite yesterday's 248-word glitch. One thing is for certain, though: I won't have wrapped up the story by then, and I doubt that I will get it finished this month at all.
But that was not the point for me this year, anyway. My life has been turned upside down this year - partly by events I didn't have any control over, but also because decisions I made (like, say, move to another country), and these changes have kept me from writing. I needed to get back to a daily writing routine, and I am determined to keep writing daily once NaNoWriMo is over. Even if it's as little as 248 words.
Not a good day, obviously.
A little over 1,000 words today. Mondays are particularly hard for me, but the important thing is that I sat down and wrote even though I felt like spending the evening on the couch.
Guess who wrote the NaNoWriMo pep talk this week? Neil Gaiman! That alone would have been worth it...
This is my rather weird take at this week's Fiction Friday: Pick an existing character. Give them a nickname, but don’t wimp-out and make it a common one. Now tell the story of how the nickname came about.
Shortly after 20:00, Kirsten walks into the restaurant, followed by Karena and a man Carla doesn't know. Nick phoned in earlier to let them know he would be there around 21:00 with two business partners - important ones he wants to impress, too. Rory and Mike brought their friends Daisy and Lilac. Daisy is really called Daisy, but Lilac's real name is Heinz. How he came to be known as Lilac, nobody knows. Lilac always says that he is going to tell the story about his nickname, but then he doesn't. This has lead to a lot of speculation, including the suspicion that Lilac came up with the nickname himself because he hated Heinz so much. Which would be a perfectly reasonable explanation, as far as Carla is concerned. Lilac is thin and not very tall, and he looks much more like a Lilac than like a Heinz.
I always wished for a job that made more use of my creative skills. Now that I have such a job, I almost wish I didn't have to be so creative all the time. I often feel I have to recharge my creative batteries to get any writing done. It's a classic careful what you wish for ...
You have to resign yourself to the fact that you waste a lot of trees before you write anything you really like, and that's just the way it is.
J.K. Rowling
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I am only 1,700 words away from 30k - I want to make that tomorrow. I am busy at work at the moment, and that is taking up more of my creative energy than I like. Working at the novel is not easy, and I have no idea if I will have 1,700 words in me tomorrow.
Writing a novel can be really hard work.
So I lost - as far as NaBloPoMo is concerned. I was so tired last night that I forgot to post my wordcount for the day ...
I have back-dated this post because I need this to monitor my daily NaNoWriMo progress. Which is ok I guess since I have clearly stated that I did, and I will not claim to be a NaBloPoMo winner at the end of November.
Over 3,500 words today - there seem to be none left now.
"The only certainty about writing and trying to be a writer is that it has to be done, not dreamed of or planned and never written, or talked about (the ego eventually falls apart like a soaked sponge) but simply written; it's a dreadful, awful fact that writing is like any other work." Janet Frame
When you feel uninspired and the words won't flow, it may be a good idea to leave your desk for a while and do something that you really don't like doing. Wash the dishes, clean the windows, iron your shirts - whatever needs to be done around the house.
In comparison to these tasks, writing becomes a lot more appealing again. Also, taking your mind off your story for a little while gives your imagination time to work in the background. It is not uncommon that you come up with a really good idea while you are not actively working on your story. Write the idea down immediately, but don't forget to turn off the iron first!
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