Tuesday, November 29, 2011
Greetings from NaNo Land
Music Influence: Waterhaul/Waterhaul II by 36 Crazyfists
(Waterhaul, A Snow Capped Romance, 2004)
(Waterhaul II, Collisions and Castaways, 2011)
Today is the last day of National November Writing Month. There are thousands of people out there right now pounding their fingers over the worn out plastic keys of their keyboard furiously trying to hit to fifty thousand by 11:59 PM tonight.
I won't be one of them.
Over the weekend, I completed my NaNo journey limping across the finish line at just over 51,000 words. By no means is this novel complete. Only my NaNo journey of 2011 is complete. For another year I am one of the many who warred with themselves to write 50k in 30 days. For another year I am a NaNo winner.
It wasn't easy. I have about six different beginnings. I have a bunch of stuff I just wrote to be sitting at the computer, putting words down about something- anything- in order to keep on track with the daily word count. On the weekends I spent countless hours staring at the blinking cursor on my blank page trying to come up with anything to keep going.
I was plagued by doubts, mistrusting of my writing instinct, confused by my lack of direction.
But NaNo is not the time to second guess yourself. You just have to push through it. Work through the problems at a later date. Write whatever comes to mind, regardless of how it actually fits into the story. When you get stuck, move to a different scene. These are my mantras. Keep moving. In this instances, it is one finger after another. Keeping pounding away at the keyboard. Stop doubting yourself. Put all of your mixed emotions into the writing. Pour everything out on the page. Just don't stop whatever you're doing.
Hellie talked about goals on Monday. Goals are great. NaNo is a monthly goal. Every November I pledge to write 50k in 30 days. I aspire to write 20k every month outside of November. That's 5k a week. Doable for someone like me who does most of their writing on Saturday night/Sunday morning. What keeps you going when everything seems to be heading down the drain? Do you give yourself incentives to achieve your goals? What gets you sitting in front of your monitor with your fingers on the keyboard?
(Waterhaul, A Snow Capped Romance, 2004)
(Waterhaul II, Collisions and Castaways, 2011)
Today is the last day of National November Writing Month. There are thousands of people out there right now pounding their fingers over the worn out plastic keys of their keyboard furiously trying to hit to fifty thousand by 11:59 PM tonight.
I won't be one of them.
Over the weekend, I completed my NaNo journey limping across the finish line at just over 51,000 words. By no means is this novel complete. Only my NaNo journey of 2011 is complete. For another year I am one of the many who warred with themselves to write 50k in 30 days. For another year I am a NaNo winner.
It wasn't easy. I have about six different beginnings. I have a bunch of stuff I just wrote to be sitting at the computer, putting words down about something- anything- in order to keep on track with the daily word count. On the weekends I spent countless hours staring at the blinking cursor on my blank page trying to come up with anything to keep going.
I was plagued by doubts, mistrusting of my writing instinct, confused by my lack of direction.
But NaNo is not the time to second guess yourself. You just have to push through it. Work through the problems at a later date. Write whatever comes to mind, regardless of how it actually fits into the story. When you get stuck, move to a different scene. These are my mantras. Keep moving. In this instances, it is one finger after another. Keeping pounding away at the keyboard. Stop doubting yourself. Put all of your mixed emotions into the writing. Pour everything out on the page. Just don't stop whatever you're doing.
Hellie talked about goals on Monday. Goals are great. NaNo is a monthly goal. Every November I pledge to write 50k in 30 days. I aspire to write 20k every month outside of November. That's 5k a week. Doable for someone like me who does most of their writing on Saturday night/Sunday morning. What keeps you going when everything seems to be heading down the drain? Do you give yourself incentives to achieve your goals? What gets you sitting in front of your monitor with your fingers on the keyboard?
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33 comments:
Well, what gets me in front of that keyboard lately? Sad to say because I'm feeling like I got nothing else, so I can't stop.
The saving grace of this week was Hellie's challenge to do something, even edit. And I opened my heart's dream book and discovered something wonderful.
So often, these first children end up buried, well-loved, but buried as a lost cause. And I've been worried mine might be beyond my talents to polish and submit.
I discovered it isn't. And I think that is going to get me through the rough times right now.
Congratulations on completing NaNo! I fail, badly. Maybe next year I will try again. I shouldn't talk about it. It usually will jinx it.
My Darcy Vibrates…
Congratulations, Sin!! That is such a big accomplishment. But you're right; it is a war with yourself to push through and write that much.
What gets me in the seat? That I can't stop either. I am addicted to the feel of shaping a story. I don't think I can help myself now. So I just keep going.
Mo, that's great about the story! I hope it works out. I've used portions of my first MS in this one but mine is irredeemable. I don't like my first hero. That is something that can't be fixed. I might use the suspense portion later. But the characters? Nah.
And I'm sad for you right now. Been thinking of you and sending hugs.
Congrats, Sin. I agree about the keep moving part. That seems to be the best advice for anything in life, especially the challenging parts.
And congrats, Marn and Terri, for your GH entries. I've got my fingers doubly crossed for both of you.
I'll send hugs too, Chance, even if I don't know why they're needed. Hope they provide solace.
Congrats once again, Sin. You pull this off like a champ every year! I'm not the NaNo type, so I'll just watch you go. LOL!
What gets my butt in the chair? My student loans. And other bills.
Fact is, I need another income and one that doesn't require leaving the house to do it. Thankfully, I've found one that I also enjoy. A lot. Thank goodness! The added bonus of total control for a control freak like me is a wonderful bonus.
Thanks for the congrats, Donna. I'm excited about this one. And since I've had the pleasure of reading Marn's too, I'm excited for us both. She has amazing sizzle!
Thanks guys.
I'm taking a month off of looking at my original stuff and coming back to it at the beginning of the year. The first one has to be completely re-written. Definitely a daunting task, but I'm hoping I'll be fired up after New Years to complete it.
I've got my fingers crossed for you too, Marn and Ter!! Good luck! Dominate some GH entries!
Chanceroo, I'm not sure what we're hugging out this morning but I know the Undead Monkey wants a cuddle. I'll even put a diaper on him for you.
Congrats, Sin, on being a Nano Winner! I knew you'd do it!! Becky at Village Books asked me if I'd signed up for Nano last week, and I said, "Yes, but I've failed." *LOL* She still congratulated me on even attempting it, such as my attempt was. Nano is apparently intimidating to most people. Just keep moving is the perfect motto--like a shark must keep swimming. If you don't keep moving, the story will die. (Of course, I've had stories die, then rebirth themselves, but that's something else altogether.)
Reward systems seem to work well for me. It doesn't even have to be a big reward. In fact, I don't usually think I deserve big rewards. What I'm looking for is STICKERS. Yes, I have the mentality of an 8 year old. I want a sticker to proclaim my good work on my homework. Writing is my homework; and part of the "dreariness" of writing is that I don't have Ms. Gilmore looking over my work and then marking with a red pen: "Well done!" and a big puppy sticker on it. Or a gold star. Hell, this never changed. Even in college, I looked forward to comments from teachers, hoping for a "Loved it! I can't believe a college kid wrote this!" sort of response. No stickers though.
I have some star stickers. And I think I have some pirate stickers somewhere to use. I have my calendar, and for every day I write, I can get a star. On days I do especially good or if I reach a certain point of the book, I can get a pirate sticker.
I used to reward myself with movies, trips to the movie theater, or long afternoons with friends and food--but that ends up snowballing into non-writing freedom. *LOL* (Not that I have anything against movies or friends.) Stickers are probably just safer. They're not in jeopardy of encouraging me to step away from the laptop to not write.
Enid, I'm the same way. I hate to talk about NaNo before NaNo happens. I get all anxious. And while I compete every year I'm always afraid I'll have a year like 2007 where I managed to get just a few hundred words in November. And after that happened, I had a hard time bouncing back from it (Like a three year hiatus from writing.) The most important thing is that you bounce back. And I know you will.
BTW, 99% of my success on WW has had to do with stickers. They KNOW what works.
I like some stickers. Do Ice Picks count as stickers? Because I can really get behind those. I'll be an Ice Pick spokesperson.
You get an ice pick for every 1000 words you write. You'd have quite a collection!
Even earned one last night. Damn, I'm smooth. Jules, you hear that? Not only am I getting your knife collection, Hells is gonna give me ice picks. This is a good week.
I wonder if Oriental Trading Company sells ice picks?
At least you'll be guaranteed no one will bother you. Or come near you.
People are stupid. I swear they come near me just to test my patience.
And if another person sneezes on me today I'm going to coin a new word for postal.
Congrats on winning, so proud of ya!!
As for what keeps me going when my manuscript is circling the drain ... rewards. If I do a page, I can check email. If I do 2 pages, I can have cookies. If I do 10 pages I can quit for the day ... It's all about the rewards, babe!
Jill! Write lots of pages today!
Cookie rewards... Hm, I want Ranger rewards.
I wish rewards worked for me. Though someone on Twitter last week said something like if she had a night with a hottie for ever page she finished, she'd have the book done in no time.
If that hottie was one of Jill's inspiration pics, I'd have it done in a week.
Speaking of my rewards, I read Jill's latest Lucky Harbor book over the weekend! Okay, I read it over Friday because I didn't leave my house and I read all day. It. Was. Awesome!
Bo'sun, wouldn't you be exhausted from writing ALL DAY and then "researching" ALL NIGHT?
Please. Terri is a solider. She's like Wonder Woman. She can go all day and NIGHT.
Now, hand over Ranger and no one gets hurt.
Also, have to agree that Head Over Heels is absolutely stellar work, Jill. But I've told you that a million times. But I think you should hear it once more.
You. Are. Awesome!
Thanks guys, just anxiously waiting for news about someone I treasure in the hospital.
Ice pick stickers...I'm heading to Michaels...I'll look!
I'll up my vitamins!
We should make popsicles with ice pics so when you get to the center, you get a prize! And if someone tries to steal your popsicle, you shank him.
These are all excellent ideas.
Bo'sun, that is diabolical...worthy of the Assassin!
Congratulations upon completing NaNo, SIN! And with time to spare! WOW
Not that i ever thought for one moment that you wouldn't finish. : )
What is that I hear... Oh yeah. What those kids call SARCASM.
Don't forget to swallow.
*grin*
What those kids call SARCASM? Baby-cakes what you hear is Honestty. And you & God knows that That, honesty that is, is something that I simply don't shy away from.
Now tact ... well thats another story.
Tact is overrated.
So is swallowing.
And Honestly?
I hope that you were drinking MountainDew when you read that. : )
I learned my lesson a long time ago.
That Tact is overrated? or drinking whilst reading?
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