It’s mid-October (almost) and stuff is starting to percolate.
In an unusual confluence of coffee and a rare good night of sleep, I’m starting to plan for November.
It’s nothing too dramatic, but I’ve given it a lot of thought and I’ve come up with a few things I feel I should do. We will see if they work.
Enough’s enough. I’m going back to the one sure thing that gets me writing.
(Thanks to my lovely wife)
Repeat after me: There is no such thing as writer’s block.
You with me there? Good.
Now, let’s talk about that (translation: I will now write about that, feel free to comment below)
How the hell did that happen?
September flew by. I haven’t even finished my latest short story yet! I’m still working on editting Revenant. Now I have to start brainstorming for November. I haven’t decided whether I will officially participate in NaNoWriMo, but no matter what I am starting a new novel in November. The goal is to have 2 first drafts and one completed work before the end of the year. I’ve got 2 down.
I have two promising ideas, we’ll see which one tickles me the most during the month.
One is a story idea that I’ve been trying on and off again since the late eighties and really, it’s about time it gets written properly. It’s an epic fantasy however and not easily written. There’s a lot of work that needs to be put in before I start and I wonder if a month is enough to flesh it out.
The other came to me while watching William Shatner’s Weird or What? with my lovely wife the other day. It’s a lighter story, somewhat paranormal with a nice twist and some funny bits. I have the makings of a few interesting characters, some nice settings and fun, but I do not have a plot at all yet.
What to do, what to do?
Well I’m still about 8K behind, but catching up. It’s only 8K because I haven’t made a dent on today’s word count yet. Once I’m done writing for the day, I’ll be a lot further.
I’m not falling behind so that’s a win. I’ll be stepping up from my daily 2K quota a little, just to be safe. I plowed ahead yesterday even if I still did not have a clear plan.
A friend suggested writing a scene where my characters talk. Talk to each other or just talking, either way sounded good to me. It inspired me. I ended up writing 2500 words with my two main characters trapped in a room together. I figured I could use it somewhere later in the book. Even if the scene ended up being cut during editing, my friend’s suggestion was that it would allow my characters to speak and let me get a handle on them and perhaps that would help.
It was enough to get me writing again.
Something interesting happened.
As I stated earlier, I’m zooming towards a road block. In previous years, this caught me off guard and the block led to a failure.
This year, I’m going to punch write through it! (See what I did there? See it? Ok. I’ll stop now.)
Here’s what’s going on in my head with the novel, what it is so far, what I’m trying to figure and what I’m thinking about. Writing about it here will help things move around and gel in my head and help me get past this week and on track for 100K.
There’s no such thing as writer’s block if you don’t let these things block you.
(Warning: This is a very long post. Read it at your peril)
I am in the throes of a conundrum. It involves this year’s NaNoWriMo. I am starting to think about VERY early because I promised myself that I wouldn’t repeat the complete and utter failure of NaNoWriMo 2010.
It will. not. happen.
So, this means that I will hit October prepared and eager for November 1st. I will have an outline to work with and copious notes. I will work on something “original” (my definition of original in this context is a work that is NOT a sequel of something I’ve already done, isn’t another attempt at a story I’ve never completed, and isn’t fanfic). This attempt doesn’t have to be something aimed at eventual publication (option A is definitely not, option B could be).
I’m having a LOT of trouble making a decision. I have a while yet, so it’s not like I’m hearing the Jeopardy theme or anything, but still, it bothers me enough that I find it’s worth posting about.
I know I don’t have a ton of readers, but for those who DO see this, I put up a poll. I’d love it if you participate, call your friends and get them to participate. I make no guarantees to follow the outcome, but it might sway me to one side or another.
Note: The full description of each option is after the cut.
The Basement Office 