Thursday, November 05, 2009

Sailing Over Bumps

By Nichole Giles

Don't you think it's funny how writer's often work best under pressure?  When I originally considered signing up for NaNoWriMo, I hesitated.I had a whole list of reasons why, other than December, November is the worst possible month for me to commit to something as big as 50,000 words.Then there's the issue of me having problems with fitting an entire novel into 50,000 words, and wondering if I can possibly finish a novel by the end of the month. Seriously, I probably need more like 100,000 before I can actually write the words, The End. 

But that's irrelevant today. For now, I'm just writing. And though I've had a couple of days when I could only add a few words to my count, there have been others in which I've bulked up quite a few. And even though yesterday I found a total of 30 minutes to NaNo, I am still ahead of my projected weekly goal. As always, there are bumps in my writing road. Today, I'm going to fly a kite and hope it will pick me up so I can sail over them.

It is day five in my 2009 NaNo journey, and I've already logged a total of 11,451 words. And I haven't started yet today. My plan is to log around 3000 words, but we'll see.

Oh, but I haven't told you the best part. My group--the village I talked about last week--has collectively logged over 140,000 words and counting in the past four days. (I don't have today's count yet.) Tell me that's not incredible!

Writing prompts of the day: (Borrowed from the awesome book, The Pocket Muse: Endless Inspiration by Monica Wood.)

1. Write about a shocking discovery (not a body) in a fallow field.
2. Start with a smell that brings it all back.
3. Write about a painful loyalty.

You don't have to use these, but if you find yourself staring at a blank screen, feel free to pick one or all of the above to fill your NaNo writing tank.  Good luck.

On your mark get set...go!

(By the way, how are you doing with your writing this week? I want to know.)

7 comments:

nephite blood spartan heart said...

I'm not doing the NaNo because I have specific writing that needs to get done-but I suspect I will have close to the same wordcounts.

I'm writing some short stories fro some various little fantasy markets.
The Hand of Fate-a heroic/arabian nights type tale-10,900 words

Name of the Game-a Gladitorial Aztec ballgame tale-1,000 words done out of 15,000?

Under the Gun- an Indian boy with a sentient gun(Custer)-1,000 words out of 10,000

enough self-plugging-Best wishes everyone else on the NaNo

Anonymous said...

The last two days have been bad for me with Nano. However, I'm going out of town this weekend for the specific purpose of writing and I hope to log a bunch of words. (I hope!)
Congratulations on your success! I'm very glad you're doing so well with all the constraints you have. Keep at it!

Karlene said...

I got off to a good start on NaNo, then reality hit. But I'm planning to hide out on Saturday and write my fingers numb.

Nichole Giles said...

David, I think those kind of word counts should count for something--that's for sure. You might as well have done NaNo. Who says all the words have to be on the same book. =)

L.T., have a great weekend and get tons of words written.

Karlene, numb fingers are a good thing. You and me both, sister. I have to bulk up for Thanksgiving weekend.

Good luck to all of you!

Carolyn V. said...

I didn't do the nanowrimo this year (school finals are the 2nd week in December), but I am writing. I hope to get at least 2 chapters done this weekend!

Unknown said...

It is great that the nano is going so well for you. I know how much better I write when I actually set targets and goals (fluid of course). It seems to give me a sense of purpose and direction which really helps keep me motivated.
Wishing you the best with your story.

Nichole Giles said...

Carolyn, school is mega important too. I think the fact that you're getting a degree is way cool. You can NaNo when you're done, but for now, two chapters sounds like a lot for you. Good luck with that.

Cassandra,thanks for the well wishes. You're right about the sense of direction. When I pour so much of myself into the progress of the book, it becomes such a massive portion of my thoughts that I even dream about it. That can't be bad for the story. =)

Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Ladies!