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Now, I'll have a beginning and an end. Or just an end. Or just a beginning. I'll write scenes that go nowhere, create characters with no home, draft dialogue that drifts off like clouds across an achingly blue sky.
Why does this keep happening? Is it that the ideas/stories aren't grabbing me? Am I too easily distracted by life? Are the writing "rules" I've learned over the years paralyzing my creativity? I still don't know.
But here's the thing: This. Ends. Now. By the end of National Novel Writing Month, I will have an entire draft of a novel. It might out-stink the tortoise poop, but it will be done.
Wish me luck! I'm going to need it.
Wishing you lots of writing luck, Madeline. By the end on November, you WILL get the entire first draft written. Just write!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Rachna! I'll take all the help I can get. :)
DeleteWhile I am giggling about the tortoise poop, this is exactly how I've felt lately, so you are not alone!!! We will do this together!
ReplyDeleteWe will! Definitely.
DeleteTortoise poop - LOL (literally) I've never smelled it, so I'll have to take your word for it. :P
ReplyDeleteHave you tried any of the worksheets on Jami Gold's blog? Those can help you keep your story on track.
Good luck with NANO.
IWSG #115 until Alex culls the list again
You'd be surprised.... :)
DeleteMaking a note about those worksheets - thanks!
Best of luck! I'll be following you. :) Maybe you can compile a bunch of your scenes into a novel?
ReplyDeleteBest of luck to you, too!
DeleteGood luck! You can do it. =D
ReplyDeleteThank you!
DeleteI know you can finish your novel, Madeline! Good luck and have fun! :D
ReplyDeleteThanks, Chrys! I actually am having fun...so far. :)
DeleteMake it so! Write the whole thing.
ReplyDeleteI will!
DeleteYay, I love your goal! You can do this!! I need your determination to rub off one me. Now, go write! :)
ReplyDeleteMy determination is your determination. :)
DeleteGood luck, Madeline. Finishing your stuff is key! I'll be cheering you on as we near the finish line.
ReplyDeleteI'm KickboxingWriter if you'd like to add me as a buddy.
I'll be cheering for you, too! And I'll look for you over there next time I'm on the site. :)
DeleteYou can do it!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Deborah!
DeleteGood luck. Keep thinking positively and don't look back at yesterday's effort - keep moving forward :-)
ReplyDeleteI definitely learned my lesson about not going back and editing. I do allow myself to read over a page or two of the previous writing session, and I can tweak things, but that's it, no big changes.
DeleteYou don't need luck, just an epic wedge of cheese! Go, go, go!
ReplyDeleteHmm...cheese.... :)
DeleteGood Luck!
ReplyDeleteYour brain may be trying to write in a new way. Can any of these stories fit together? Like subplots for example. It could be changing the angle a little may make all the difference. And one heck of an interesting read. :-)
Anna from Elements of Writing
I don't think my brain is trying to write in a new way - it's just fried. :)
DeleteGood-luck! You will do great! I just know it! I know exactly how you feel though. I'm having the same problem. I think my creativity has been ruined:) All the best.
ReplyDeleteNah, our creativity is probably just hibernating. Time to wake it up! :)
DeleteYou can do it! I believe in your writing!
ReplyDelete:)
Thanks so much, Tyrean! I appreciate that.
DeleteLuck to you all month long. I know you can do it.
ReplyDeleteSusan Says
Thank you, Susan!
DeleteGo you! You can do it! And here's how:
ReplyDeleteWrite the story you really want to write, even if you haven't started it yet. Just write it down and don't stop. When you get to a part that's difficult just push, push, PUSH through it. Get it out of your head so it can finally breathe. You can do it. You can do it because you've already done it.
I'm writing the story that I would so totally read. :)
DeleteDo you do any sort of outline? I do a short one-pager, which I'm not attached to and will change if inspiration drags me elsewhere. Otherwise I get writers block. I do sometimes also have issues finishing if I have too many stories competing for attention. But like you said, sometimes you have to give yourself an ultimatum and just stick to it!
ReplyDeleteI'm usually a hybrid - part pantser, part planner - but this year I did more of a loose outline and scene cards. I hope to refine all of that as I get deeper into the story.
DeleteWhy does it keep happening? Because you're a writer, that's why. lol not the best of answers but its an honest one . . . we all have the same issues because we get in our own heads. But yes, THIS is the month! I'm trying Nano for the first time, let's do this, Madeline!!! :D
ReplyDeleteYou can do this, SK! Go for it!
DeleteGood luck this month! I did Nano a few years ago, and it really helped me lay out the skeleton for my story.
ReplyDeleteThank you! I'm going to need it. :)
DeleteBest of luck - you can do it!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Simon!
DeleteHooray for you. I have never dared do NaNo...I don't think fast enought. Wishing you success.
ReplyDeleteYou could do it! There are so many ways to approach it - you could be a NaNo Rebel! :)
DeleteI've been going through the same thing this year and my problem is the "is this worth it" syndrome. I've written and had published so many books, but the business end of it is so time consuming, often the sales aren't rewarding and then they change the rules and sales fall off again. I just can't motivate myself to add another book to the pile, which is stupid, cause it could be the book that "hits." Sigh. Regardless of the reason, I feel your pain and I'm sending you loads of good writing wishes.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the good wishes, and I'm sending some your way, too. I try really hard to focus on story and craft, and not so much on sales etc. Easier said than done, I know. I think about why I write, why I read, and go from there - it helps. :)
DeleteThat's the spirit, Madeline. Best wishes to you!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Donna! :)
DeleteWoo-hoo! Do it! Good luck!
ReplyDeleteI will! :)
DeleteYou can do it!! I'm cheering you on! :)
ReplyDeleteAppreciate it! :)
DeleteYou can do it, and it probably won't stink either!
ReplyDeleteI'm doing NaNo too. I've figured out that it's easier for me than others because I'm not one of those who has to perfect things as they write. Those self-editors make it really hard on themselves to get those words down fast. :)
So I'm with you for the NaNa game. Good luck!
I used to go back over my words and make big changes, but now I allow myself to go back only a little bit and make tweaks, sort of getting my head back into the story.
DeleteGood luck to you, too!
Go, go, GO! Tortoise poop manuscripts are the best ones -- pungent and natural. You can polish them into...eh, whatever tortoise poop becomes when it's polished. Happy NaNoing!
ReplyDeleteHa ha! Love that! And thanks. :)
DeleteGo for it! I think you'll probably surprise yourself. I think you're right that trying to follow too many rules can lead to overthinking and paralysis. NaNo is an excuse to throw the rule book out of the window because you don't have time to think about it, you just have to follow your gut. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Nick! :)
Delete