December 1st. 24 days till Christmas, 29 days till 2011. Winter is here at last and - for those of us that decided to be insane for a month - so is the end of NaNoWriMo!
I know I was horrible about keeping you all updated on my progress, but this year was
way more hectic than last year, so I figure I'll just take this time to sort of recap the whole experience... and
what an experience it was!
Week 1 (Nov 1-7): Getting started was difficult. The first day of November, for whatever reason, was trying, and I don't think I got any writing done that day. The whole first week was discouraging, to be honest. I was behind on my word count week after week because I just could not find time to write. Day 1 I should have had 2K, and I had 0. Day 2 I should have had 4K, and I think I had about 500. So on and so forth so that by Thursday, I was a whole 7 or 8K in the hole.
And when I
did get the chance to write, the words just wouldn't come, and I couldn't figure out why. I knew my idea inside and out, I knew my characters, and I had a basic outline of what I wanted to do, but it just wasn't working. Astrid was talking to me easy enough, as was Colin, but Kara was giving me a bit of attitude and Caleb just was not giving me anything to work with. I hadn't even dealt with Haylie yet, and I wasn't looking forward to it.
I entertained the idea of dropping out a number of times, but one thing kept me going: the opening. It's difficult for me to be impressed by my writing, but I loved my opening, and so did a few friends who read it. My writing
has improved, and I felt I owed it to myself to at least see to it that this story, in its entirety, saw the light of day. That's difficult, however, when you're close to 10K behind.
Week 2 (Nov 8 - 14): I tried something different for week 2. Instead of jumping head first into my writing and forcing each word onto the paper, I stepped back and did something that has always helped clear my mind: I read. I had started Stephen King's
On Writing prior to NaNo, and didn't finish it until a couple days into week 2. Not only did that help clear my mind, but it gave me a few ideas as to why my characters weren't talking to me.
For starters, I was thinking about it too much. I was focusing on following the outline I had put together so closely that I forgot the point was to tell a story. I was treating my characters like literary objects, and not as people... which is what they are. It's what they
have to be, if your story is going to capture anyone. Once I accepted them and my story for what it was, the words came a little easier.
It was during this week that I found my muse, as well. Everyone's is different, and it doesn't always have to be an actual person. A lot of times, a muse is just a part of yourself that will help you to flesh out ideas, get your characters to talk, and keep the story moving along. I wouldn't go as far as to say it's an extra personality, because it isn't that. It's just the thing that answers back when you ask yourself,
what do I do now? Where is this going? Why is this character acting the way they are?My muse happens to be quite rude, and a bit sassy. But he kept the words coming.
The other thing that changed how I write was the release of the Doctor Who Season 5 soundtrack. Murray Gold is responsible for a lot of my week 2 writing getting done. It's incredibly difficult to not be creative when listening to his arrangements.
Week 3 (Nov 15 - 21): At this point, my characters have figured out who they are, and it doesn't really matter if I know anymore. They know, and my muse knows, and once that happens, you might as well buckle up because author or not, you're along for the ride just like everyone else.
This was the week my characters started doing things they weren't supposed to. Such a thing is frustrating in it's own right, but pretty amazing, too. It's like meeting a new friend and learning stuff about them.
The story itself began to take on a life of its own, as well. I knew the basic idea of what I wanted, but filling in the blanks was fun because I had no idea what to expect. The basic "he said but he's a liar" idea I had evolved into a full on conspiracy, and my characters began to interact and build off each others strengths and weaknesses. Writing became less about the daily word goal and more about finding out what happens next.
I kept up my reading as well, and tore through
Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil like it was nothing. I stuck mostly to non-fiction, so as to not subconsciously rip off anything from any fiction pieces I might have read. I was about 5K ahead of the set NaNo goal by the end of the week.
I didn't notice.
Week 4 (Nov 22-30): I was within spitting distance of 50K by Thanksgiving, and actually reached the goal by Saturday.
By this point, I'm hardly even aware of the word count. I don't think to verify that I've won until a couple days later. I am that involved in the story. I begin to stress over the well being of characters I like, begin to get angry and characters I hate. It is not unlike reading.
My music has shifted from Matt Nathanson, Francesca Battisteli, Laura Marling, The Hush Sound, etc. to Ludovico Einaudi, Helen Jane Long, Murray Gold, David Nevue, Laura Sullivan, Loreena McKennit, etc.
The conspiracy has now come full circle, and everything is starting to click into place. But the story is far from over. There is still a long way to go with this... however, I have now invested a month and nearly 60,000 words in it. I am more likely than not going to finish it.
I have started three other books, bringing my "currently reading" total to 4. They are all works of fiction. I simply cannot stay away from it. But they are not similar types of fiction to the one that I'm writing, so I think I'm safe.
What's more is, writing this has ignited a bit of a fire under last year's NaNo, which has been sitting in limbo for a year now. Once the first draft of this is over, I plan on editing that. And once I'm done editing that, I should be refreshed enough to start my second draft... a process I'm really looking forward to.
But first things first, I need to finish the first draft.
Congratulations to everyone who completed their goal! I hope you recognize how amazing it is to have written 50K in just 30 days!! And thank you to everyone who kept me going, pushed me on, and told me my opening - or any bit, really - of my story was good.
Special super uber thanks to Jordan and Stephanie, without whose encouragement I would have quit.You guys are awesome, and I could never put into words
how awesome, but just know.
Just know. You are awesome. Also, a shout out to Jevonne, who engaged me in a word war, pushing me over 50K in no time. I am e-mailing you what came of that, I promise!!! XD
And now, for those of you that may want a taste of The 11th Hour, here is the first draft of my opening (under the cut). Enjoy! [WARNING: mild language]
, the Second Evil
, and the Third Evil
. Now there are two more: The New Evil (which I may have read, now that I'm picking through it) and The Evil Lives! (which I know I haven't read).
, so I found The First Evil and downloaded it. And when I finished that, and I bought the Second Evil. And when I finished that, I hesitated... but ended up buying the Third Evil. I read them so fast, it was crazy. And they weren't all that much worse than they were when I was a kid.
