Fourth NaNoWriMo Win!

I think I'm getting better at writing novels. I didn't make it to the final conclusive ending yet, but I have one in mind, a real one that actually works. Of course, it means revisions to the first half of the book. That's how NaNoWriMo goes – unless novels spring fully formed from your mind. Which mine don't.

The last three novels I wrote had ending issues. The first one I simply ended the way I wanted it to without figuring out how to get there. My draft reader was severely disappointed, although she liked the story that led up to the "fake" ending. The second and third novels didn't end. They just stopped at around 50,000 words. One of the them I think may actually have a real ending to find. Not sure about the other.

However, I have improved in writing, in being able to manage the process and am feeling more serene and confident than ever before. I believe some discipline has crept into my writing, as well. I like it.

I plan to keep on writing until I have the ending down in actual printable words. Then a break to gain some perspective and then back to work to finish the thing properly. First, breakfast!

my NaNoWriMo motivators

From David Robbins at the James River Writers "The Writing Show" (January 31, 2008; The Best Editor — You!) who spoke as part of panel discussion. What I remember him saying is "It's art. First and foremost you are an artist." And he added that it's up to the artist to decide how the story goes.

Neil Gaiman from the 2008 Week Three NaNoWriMo Pep Talk

The last novel I wrote (it was ANANSI BOYS, in case you were wondering) when I got three-quarters of the way through I called my agent. I told her how stupid I felt writing something no-one would ever want to read, how thin the characters were, how pointless the plot. I strongly suggested that I was ready to abandon this book and write something else instead, or perhaps I could abandon the book and take up a new life as a landscape gardener, bank-robber, short-order cook or marine biologist. And instead of  sympathising or agreeing with me, or blasting me forward with a wave of enthusiasm—or even arguing with me—she simply said, suspiciously cheerfully, "Oh, you're at that part of the book, are you?"

I was shocked. "You mean I've done this before?"

"You don't remember?"

"Not really."

"Oh yes," she said. "You do this every time you write a novel. But so do all my other clients."

I didn't even get to feel unique in my despair.

So I put down the phone and drove down to the coffee house in which I was writing the book, filled my pen and carried on writing.

Maureen Johnson from the 2009 Week Two NaNoWriMo Pep Talk

You have wandered into The Middle. Thing is, writers spend something like 97% of their time in The Middle. Once you leave those first pages, those first days... you wander into strange land and you stay there for a long, long time. It took me a little while, probably a few years of full-time writing, to fully accept that that middle bit was where I was going to be spending pretty much all of my time. This is the thing they don't tell you. When you see portrayals of writers on television or in movies, what are they normally doing? They're sipping coffee or cocktails, or jetting around to signings, or solving murders for fun.

I like to know my misery is normal. I like hearing that it's all part of a process, that I am on the path, on the way and that something else is coming up ahead. I just have to keep on going.

Those thoughts have kept me going. Thanks, everyone! I'm ahead in my word count for the first time ever. I like this story a lot. Even the trite bits, the stupid parts and the silly character names. Everyone should write a novel.

My Novel Wordled

Word count rising - plot nearly real

NaNoWriMo Diner in SL

My total word count is 16,712 today. I think I must have miscalculated. I thought that 2,000 words a day would catch me up. I seem to still be about 3,000 words behind. I'm going to start doing 2,200 words a day and this weekend I'm going to do more than that in a bid to close the gap.

I'm really glad there's a NaNoWriMo group in Second Life. It's been motivational to have a word count hanging over my AVs head and a place to sit and "type." I have, actually, been typing off-world mimicking my in-world double.

I'm also cheered on by friends in Facebook and the twitter stream #nanowrimo. I'm also keeping an eye on #nanopanic to remind myself how easy it is to fall behind. No more lazing about for me! The pain of not finishing is worse than the pain of working. Well, not so much the pain of working. More like the pain of starting. Today wasn't too bad. I wrote a thousand words before lunch. Then it only took about five hours of procrastination to get to the other 1200 (or so) words.

Meanwhile, I'm learning all over again how fiction writing is a beast with a life of its own. Just hang on and ride the thestral.

getting started on my fourth novel

I haven't written in two days. I'm a bit stumped on the plot which means I haven't gotten to know the characters good enough yet.

In history there's the "great events" versus "great men" theory. Do great men cause great events or do great events cause great men? In Story, Robert McKee says they're interactive. Only he talks about structure and characters. If you change the characters you change the structure — change the structure, change the characters. Interdependent is a better word. Yes, interdependent. This makes sense to me. So, also in history it is most likely neither but both — men and events interact, are interdependent.

All of which takes me away from the novel. I have started researching to find some facts that might inspire me. I've also pulled up all my old notes from the first novel, as the novel I'm working on is book two of the trilogy. Some of the process is made easier by using Scrivener, a writing software that I have on free trial until the 15th of December. Then, if I "win" (by writing 50,000 words by Nov. 30th) I can purchase the software for half price. Such a deal! Right? Yes!

Scrivener makes the process easier by letting me keep all my research and notes in one place. No more going out into the distracting hard drive to search for something. It's all right there whether PDF, text file, document or web page. The only file format I haven't been able to import is Excel (or Numbers).

Scrivener also makes it easier by letting me organize my writing by character, chapter, or/and scene. Then, with one touch of a button, it will "compile" my book into industry approved manual format for submission. Pretty cool.

It also has a little indicator at the bottom of the screen where I input number of words I intend to write. That part is nice and scary. Nice because I can see my word count go up as I type and scary because it isn't high enough. It's amazing how difficult it is to get going and how easy it is to do a 5,000-word day by the end of the month.

I've also discovered that, as before, it takes a few thousand words to get into the groove. Which shows me that writing every day is a very good thing. Ya know, it's a skill that needs to be practiced. Sure it's like riding a bike, but a trick bike. And just like you need to keep up your tone and skill for extreme biking you need it for extreme novelling, too. If only every day writing were as much fun as NaNoWriMo.

[big sigh] No excuses! Must write.