Over on the Writer's Retreat Blog, we feature members' writing during the week or just in general. Since my entry links back to my blog here, I'll just share the link below. But do check out the Writer's Retreat Blog, because we have some other great stories for you to savor!
I wrote this in response to a prompt last year in the March FADness, or Flash-a-Day, competition. I enjoyed it because the main character was modeled, oddly enough, on my cat Seryozha.
It's called "Succession." Enjoy!
Friday, December 4, 2009
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Thursday 13 – December 3, 2009: Thirteen Randomities
It’s Thursday! … I have a cold. So guess what? You get a window on the Noonybrain. o.O
1. Chocolate is good food.
2. Why is Starbucks so blinking expensive? I don’t like their practices, and they burn their beans, and yet I still go there and buy stuff. I spent seven bucks this morning!! On a coffee and a scone! Isn’t it Einstein who said stupidity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results?
3. Einstein is stupid.
4. Yeah, yeah. I know. Shut up. It’s MY list, I have a cold, and I can say whatever witless witticisms I desire! Besides, Einstein is a hero of mine.
5. So is Ben Franklin.
6. And DaVinci. I love his idea of the trivium and quadrivium. (Extra points if you know what those are without googling them.)
7. I love Google. I love googling stuff. Makes my writing so much more… well, hey. I’m a curious person. Google is like crack for curious people. Must.keep.clicking…
8. I’m a big fan of Day and Nightquil. I also use propolis tincture and VitaBiotic, as well as my regular vitamins, when I’m sick. And lots of sleep. Saw a thing once, about the duration of the cold from the Renaissance to the present. Sadly, I don’t remember where, so I can’t give credit, but it went something like this: colds, 1598: treatment – bed rest, chicken soup, water, juice; duration, two weeks. 1955: treatment – bed rest, chicken soup, Vick’s cough syrup, Vick’s rub, water, juice; duration, two weeks. Present day: treatment – Dayquil, Nightquil, Contac or Benadryl cold, chicken soup, tea, Echinacea and goldenseal, vitamin C, multivitamin, bed rest, juice, salt water gargle; duration…
Two weeks.
Yeah.
9. I’m tired of coughing.
10. Humidifiers really help at night, particularly in a cold place where there are heaters that steal all the water out of the air. We put tea tree essential oil in ours, which is anti-fungal and anti-bacterial. I slept a lot better last night.
11. I actually like Office 2007. There are several new features that I’ve grown to depend on, mostly having to do with how fast I type and maneuver around the keyboard. I like being able to control formatting on paste, for example, and more pasting options. It’s a lot smarter about where and how to paste images, too.
12. I feel bad for homeless people. I know, that sounds like the usual yuppie complaint, but there was this crazy woman at Starbucks this morning, dressed in thick rags and talking to herself. She bought herself coffee and then tried to talk to me. I feel bad because I don’t have all the energy to heal everyone I come in contact with, no one does. Mother Teresa said, don’t be afraid to do the little you can do, because it matters. But when I see people like this woman, I feel like it’s never enough, there is too much misery in the world. No one should be shamefaced in giving back to the world a portion of its lost heart, which is the frontispiece from Sarah Ban Breathnach’s excellent book, Simple Abundance, though I can’t remember the woman who said it. But anyway, I try to remind myself of that, to remind myself of what I do for others and that it’s enough in the eyes of the Universe.
But that woman will still be cold today, and hungry, and crazy. And I feel bad for her.
13. I’m not always this morose. My puppy makes me happy. She’s got cute feet, and they smell like corn tortilla chips. (Don’t look at me like that. You go smell your dog and tell me if they don’t smell like chips! And if you don’t have a dog, don’t judge what you don’t know!)
I TOLD you it was a random list!
1. Chocolate is good food.
2. Why is Starbucks so blinking expensive? I don’t like their practices, and they burn their beans, and yet I still go there and buy stuff. I spent seven bucks this morning!! On a coffee and a scone! Isn’t it Einstein who said stupidity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results?
3. Einstein is stupid.
4. Yeah, yeah. I know. Shut up. It’s MY list, I have a cold, and I can say whatever witless witticisms I desire! Besides, Einstein is a hero of mine.
5. So is Ben Franklin.
6. And DaVinci. I love his idea of the trivium and quadrivium. (Extra points if you know what those are without googling them.)
7. I love Google. I love googling stuff. Makes my writing so much more… well, hey. I’m a curious person. Google is like crack for curious people. Must.keep.clicking…
8. I’m a big fan of Day and Nightquil. I also use propolis tincture and VitaBiotic, as well as my regular vitamins, when I’m sick. And lots of sleep. Saw a thing once, about the duration of the cold from the Renaissance to the present. Sadly, I don’t remember where, so I can’t give credit, but it went something like this: colds, 1598: treatment – bed rest, chicken soup, water, juice; duration, two weeks. 1955: treatment – bed rest, chicken soup, Vick’s cough syrup, Vick’s rub, water, juice; duration, two weeks. Present day: treatment – Dayquil, Nightquil, Contac or Benadryl cold, chicken soup, tea, Echinacea and goldenseal, vitamin C, multivitamin, bed rest, juice, salt water gargle; duration…
Two weeks.
Yeah.
9. I’m tired of coughing.
10. Humidifiers really help at night, particularly in a cold place where there are heaters that steal all the water out of the air. We put tea tree essential oil in ours, which is anti-fungal and anti-bacterial. I slept a lot better last night.
11. I actually like Office 2007. There are several new features that I’ve grown to depend on, mostly having to do with how fast I type and maneuver around the keyboard. I like being able to control formatting on paste, for example, and more pasting options. It’s a lot smarter about where and how to paste images, too.
12. I feel bad for homeless people. I know, that sounds like the usual yuppie complaint, but there was this crazy woman at Starbucks this morning, dressed in thick rags and talking to herself. She bought herself coffee and then tried to talk to me. I feel bad because I don’t have all the energy to heal everyone I come in contact with, no one does. Mother Teresa said, don’t be afraid to do the little you can do, because it matters. But when I see people like this woman, I feel like it’s never enough, there is too much misery in the world. No one should be shamefaced in giving back to the world a portion of its lost heart, which is the frontispiece from Sarah Ban Breathnach’s excellent book, Simple Abundance, though I can’t remember the woman who said it. But anyway, I try to remind myself of that, to remind myself of what I do for others and that it’s enough in the eyes of the Universe.
But that woman will still be cold today, and hungry, and crazy. And I feel bad for her.
13. I’m not always this morose. My puppy makes me happy. She’s got cute feet, and they smell like corn tortilla chips. (Don’t look at me like that. You go smell your dog and tell me if they don’t smell like chips! And if you don’t have a dog, don’t judge what you don’t know!)
I TOLD you it was a random list!
Monday, November 30, 2009
I DID IT!
I finished my novel! It's my first, full-length original novel. I'm so excited I could spit!
Neither cold, nor stroke, nor homework foul could keep me from my novel!
I'd love to wax poetic about how amazing it is to write a novel, but... MY IS TIRED!
~faints~
Neither cold, nor stroke, nor homework foul could keep me from my novel!
I'd love to wax poetic about how amazing it is to write a novel, but... MY IS TIRED!
~faints~
Thursday, November 26, 2009
Thursday 13 – November 26th, 2009: Thirteen Things I’m Grateful For
Happy Thanksgiving!
I know it’s sort of common this week, but I don’t care. Gratitude can never be overdone; we can never be too grateful for the abundance in our lives.
So what are you grateful for? Tell me, in comments!
1. Chocolate.
2. Chocolate.
3. Choco… Oh, fine. I was just kidding. I’m grateful for my lovely husband Michael. It may sound sappy, but he’s pretty farking awesome, man. So is my stepson Joshua. Woot!
4. My father-in-law comes home from the hospital tomorrow (Friday). He had a stroke two weeks ago and it was dicey there for a while. He’s still got a bum arm, but he’s moving around and anxious to get home.
5. My big fat Italian family. I’m half-Irish, but honorary Italian by marriage. I love it! They’re loud, rambunctious, loving, inclusive, and MAN can they cook!
6. My job. One of my online buddies mentioned that, and I think she’s totally right on. In today’s economy, I’m grateful to have a job I love and that I enjoy my coworkers and the work I do helps people. I could do a lot worse (and believe me, I have… I once counted traffic!)
7. That I no longer count traffic.
8. I was grateful to count traffic at the time, though. I mean, I got paid an hourly rate AND got expenses! My expenses were a per-mile charge I got to write in for, and it varied by tax year. It meant I could drive to way far locations and actually get extra money! This was way cool when I was in college.
9. I am grateful I’m no longer in college and don’t say way cool anymore.
10. I am grateful I can type. Srsly.
11. I am grateful for the internet. Like, way cool, man.
12. I am grateful for our new car. I got stuck in Minneapolis last summer, see. Stuck as in stranded. My car died. So we bought a new one. We named her Black Betty, after the song. Woah Black Betty/Bam a Lam… which is a lot cooler on the radio than typed. ANYWAY. She’s a pretty black car and I love having reliable transportation!!
13. Turkey. Triptophan coma. Woot!
I know it’s sort of common this week, but I don’t care. Gratitude can never be overdone; we can never be too grateful for the abundance in our lives.
So what are you grateful for? Tell me, in comments!
1. Chocolate.
2. Chocolate.
3. Choco… Oh, fine. I was just kidding. I’m grateful for my lovely husband Michael. It may sound sappy, but he’s pretty farking awesome, man. So is my stepson Joshua. Woot!
4. My father-in-law comes home from the hospital tomorrow (Friday). He had a stroke two weeks ago and it was dicey there for a while. He’s still got a bum arm, but he’s moving around and anxious to get home.
5. My big fat Italian family. I’m half-Irish, but honorary Italian by marriage. I love it! They’re loud, rambunctious, loving, inclusive, and MAN can they cook!
6. My job. One of my online buddies mentioned that, and I think she’s totally right on. In today’s economy, I’m grateful to have a job I love and that I enjoy my coworkers and the work I do helps people. I could do a lot worse (and believe me, I have… I once counted traffic!)
7. That I no longer count traffic.
8. I was grateful to count traffic at the time, though. I mean, I got paid an hourly rate AND got expenses! My expenses were a per-mile charge I got to write in for, and it varied by tax year. It meant I could drive to way far locations and actually get extra money! This was way cool when I was in college.
9. I am grateful I’m no longer in college and don’t say way cool anymore.
10. I am grateful I can type. Srsly.
11. I am grateful for the internet. Like, way cool, man.
12. I am grateful for our new car. I got stuck in Minneapolis last summer, see. Stuck as in stranded. My car died. So we bought a new one. We named her Black Betty, after the song. Woah Black Betty/Bam a Lam… which is a lot cooler on the radio than typed. ANYWAY. She’s a pretty black car and I love having reliable transportation!!
13. Turkey. Triptophan coma. Woot!
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Thursday 13: Thirteen Reasons Why I Love the New Coffeemaker
1.
2. It's pretty.
3. It makes coffee.
(Really. You didn't see that one coming?)
4. It can make decaf!
(Really. My intern, gods bless her little ditsy heart, stood there with my coworker and I as we're setting up the new coffee maker. She looked quizical and then asked, "Can this machine make decaf?")
5. ...
Yeah, made me speechless too.
6. IT MAKES FREAKIN' COFFEE!
7. It heats the water inside the unit, so you don't have to have the burner on to have hot coffee. This is a plus when you're the first one in the office and have to make the first pot; you can just put your cup under the basket and voila! coffee.
8. People that put their cup under the basket to steal my coffee before it's even brewed. Hey. I do it. IT'S MY COFFEEMAKER.
9. Put cinnamon on the grounds before you brew it.
10. Honey in my coffee is better than sugar or sweetener. Tastes lovely and isn't overprocessed.
11. No one is asking me WHERE IS THE NEW COFFEEMAKER? Did you know the old one is broken? When is the new one coming? Srsly. I actually had an email asking, I kid you not, "how was it shipped?"
IN A BOX!?
12. It makes coffee!
13. And the number one best thing about the new coffeemaker?
IT'S NOT BROKEN!
2. It's pretty.
3. It makes coffee.
(Really. You didn't see that one coming?)
4. It can make decaf!
(Really. My intern, gods bless her little ditsy heart, stood there with my coworker and I as we're setting up the new coffee maker. She looked quizical and then asked, "Can this machine make decaf?")
5. ...
Yeah, made me speechless too.
6. IT MAKES FREAKIN' COFFEE!
7. It heats the water inside the unit, so you don't have to have the burner on to have hot coffee. This is a plus when you're the first one in the office and have to make the first pot; you can just put your cup under the basket and voila! coffee.
8. People that put their cup under the basket to steal my coffee before it's even brewed. Hey. I do it. IT'S MY COFFEEMAKER.
9. Put cinnamon on the grounds before you brew it.
10. Honey in my coffee is better than sugar or sweetener. Tastes lovely and isn't overprocessed.
11. No one is asking me WHERE IS THE NEW COFFEEMAKER? Did you know the old one is broken? When is the new one coming? Srsly. I actually had an email asking, I kid you not, "how was it shipped?"
IN A BOX!?
12. It makes coffee!
13. And the number one best thing about the new coffeemaker?
IT'S NOT BROKEN!
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Thursday 13 – November 12th, 2009: Thirteen Pet Peeves
So. I admit it. Our coffee maker at work died, and I’m caffeineless. For the second.day.in.a.row. A caffeineless Noony is not a happy thing. So, I figured I’d share. Don’t say I never gave ya nuthin’.
1. Paper cuts. Something about the winter air makes my skin dry, and I have been getting little nicks and slices every time I go in my briefcase for a file. And manila folders HURT. Maybe it’s a sign that I should not do my homework?
2. Weirdos on the train. I mean, I’m sure there’s a cultural awareness group for Weirdos, but really, who wants to join? Weirdos! This guy on the train today had these big silver dishes on the side of his head (okay, they were SOLD as earphone, but they looked like freakin’ plates, people!!). I looked up and he met my eyes and gave me this big grin – the kind of grin you don’t give strangers. I mean, hello??? We’re on a train, dude. Keep it down.
3. People with too much crap that they take up more than one seat. You know who you are. SCOOT OVER!
4. CELL YELL!!! Need I say more?
5. Small, yappy dogs. Dude. If you wanted a cat, get a cat. You don’t want to walk the damn thing anyway, so what’s the point? Annoying the neighbors? Well, you’re doing GREAT! “But terriers bark, that’s what they do!” Yeah? That’s what Draino is for!
No, I’m not THAT mean, I just haven’t had coffee. I’m not going to feed Draino to Muffy.
I sure might be tempted, though.
6. CELL YELL!!! Oh, wait. Said that one already.
7. Parking spaces that aren’t. (You suburbanites probably won’t get this, but that’s because you’re the ones DOING it in the first place.) You know, when you come home at oh-dark-thirty because class ran late and you just want to go to bed and there it is: Tah-dah! A spot, in front of your house.
It’s a spot, all right. Just won’t fit your car. The spot that will?
Yeah, that’s four blocks away.
8. Female gingko trees.
9. …
Okay, I’ll explain. Female gingko trees STINK. Somewhere between bar puke and dog shit. I’m not kidding you. Apparently, the male gingko trees don’t, since we’ve got one not four trees from our house and it smells just fine, thanks. No, this one’s a doosy, and it’s been stinking up the neighborhood for about two weeks now. It will go away, and has been fading. But dude, firewood mean anything to you?
9. People who complain about the broken coffee maker. Yes, I know it’s broken. I’m the one that put the frackin’ sign on it! Didn’t I order a new one? Didn’t I send an email about the new one? Do I LOOK like I want to discuss the finer points of coffee service and what we didn’t get but should have? I HAVEN’T HAD ANY COFFEE EITHER THIS MORNING, DO YOU REALLY WANT TO START SHIT WITH ME?
10. Broken coffee makers. See #9.
11. New biz-speak. Dude, seriously. The language is English. We have enough people in the cultural salad bowl adding words to the piquant dish that is our tongue. WE DO NOT NEED FAKE ONES! This was on my business school required reading panel for Module One: “Most educationists consider learning by doing to be the most effective learning methodology.”
Educationists???
The word, people, is “educators.” ~headdesk~
12. MAN, do I need coffee.
No, that wasn’t number 12. THIS is number twelve: PEOPLE THAT BUG ME ABOUT MY LIST! I’m writin’ it, I get to say it how I want. Type it. WHATEVER.
13. Bicycle messengers. No, really. If you don’t live in an urban environment, you probably think, oh, cool, they’re keeping down pollution and staying healthy. Yeah. Don’t you believe it. Those people are VULTURES. Worse. Ninjas with wheels. They have NO regard for pedestrians or traffic laws and are dangerous, the lot of ‘em. I once had one whiz in front of me, jump the curb, narrowly miss the woman standing near me, and careened into a planter. I’ve had them hit my car as they drive by, ignore red lights, and cause accidents. GAH!
~shudder~ There. I feel better.
1. Paper cuts. Something about the winter air makes my skin dry, and I have been getting little nicks and slices every time I go in my briefcase for a file. And manila folders HURT. Maybe it’s a sign that I should not do my homework?
2. Weirdos on the train. I mean, I’m sure there’s a cultural awareness group for Weirdos, but really, who wants to join? Weirdos! This guy on the train today had these big silver dishes on the side of his head (okay, they were SOLD as earphone, but they looked like freakin’ plates, people!!). I looked up and he met my eyes and gave me this big grin – the kind of grin you don’t give strangers. I mean, hello??? We’re on a train, dude. Keep it down.
3. People with too much crap that they take up more than one seat. You know who you are. SCOOT OVER!
4. CELL YELL!!! Need I say more?
5. Small, yappy dogs. Dude. If you wanted a cat, get a cat. You don’t want to walk the damn thing anyway, so what’s the point? Annoying the neighbors? Well, you’re doing GREAT! “But terriers bark, that’s what they do!” Yeah? That’s what Draino is for!
No, I’m not THAT mean, I just haven’t had coffee. I’m not going to feed Draino to Muffy.
I sure might be tempted, though.
6. CELL YELL!!! Oh, wait. Said that one already.
7. Parking spaces that aren’t. (You suburbanites probably won’t get this, but that’s because you’re the ones DOING it in the first place.) You know, when you come home at oh-dark-thirty because class ran late and you just want to go to bed and there it is: Tah-dah! A spot, in front of your house.
It’s a spot, all right. Just won’t fit your car. The spot that will?
Yeah, that’s four blocks away.
8. Female gingko trees.
9. …
Okay, I’ll explain. Female gingko trees STINK. Somewhere between bar puke and dog shit. I’m not kidding you. Apparently, the male gingko trees don’t, since we’ve got one not four trees from our house and it smells just fine, thanks. No, this one’s a doosy, and it’s been stinking up the neighborhood for about two weeks now. It will go away, and has been fading. But dude, firewood mean anything to you?
9. People who complain about the broken coffee maker. Yes, I know it’s broken. I’m the one that put the frackin’ sign on it! Didn’t I order a new one? Didn’t I send an email about the new one? Do I LOOK like I want to discuss the finer points of coffee service and what we didn’t get but should have? I HAVEN’T HAD ANY COFFEE EITHER THIS MORNING, DO YOU REALLY WANT TO START SHIT WITH ME?
10. Broken coffee makers. See #9.
11. New biz-speak. Dude, seriously. The language is English. We have enough people in the cultural salad bowl adding words to the piquant dish that is our tongue. WE DO NOT NEED FAKE ONES! This was on my business school required reading panel for Module One: “Most educationists consider learning by doing to be the most effective learning methodology.”
Educationists???
The word, people, is “educators.” ~headdesk~
12. MAN, do I need coffee.
No, that wasn’t number 12. THIS is number twelve: PEOPLE THAT BUG ME ABOUT MY LIST! I’m writin’ it, I get to say it how I want. Type it. WHATEVER.
13. Bicycle messengers. No, really. If you don’t live in an urban environment, you probably think, oh, cool, they’re keeping down pollution and staying healthy. Yeah. Don’t you believe it. Those people are VULTURES. Worse. Ninjas with wheels. They have NO regard for pedestrians or traffic laws and are dangerous, the lot of ‘em. I once had one whiz in front of me, jump the curb, narrowly miss the woman standing near me, and careened into a planter. I’ve had them hit my car as they drive by, ignore red lights, and cause accidents. GAH!
~shudder~ There. I feel better.
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
NaNoWriMoPepORama
Yes, well, so I make up words. Sue me.
But, today, I wanted to highlight Chris Baty, from NaNoWriMo. He sent an amazing Week Two pep talk, in which several things jumped out at me. It was so good, and I had such a hard time picking which parts to share, that I figured heck with it, I'd post the whole thing here.
Dear Author,
Hey there! It's Chris Baty again, and hoo, boy, have I been watching some television. Do you know this show Battlestar Galactica? I've just started in on the first season, and I am shocked by how much stuff the show's writers borrowed from NaNoWriMo.
For instance, Battlestar Galactica centers on a group of humans stranded in space after their worlds have been destroyed by their enemies. NaNoWriMo takes place in the space of November. In Battlestar Galactica, people are hunted by shape-shifting robots who sometimes wear red dresses. In NaNoWriMo, participants sometimes hunt for the, uh, red address bar, where…um.
Shoot. Okay, so the similarities break down a little bit at the granular level. But there is one irrefutable nod to NaNoWriMo in the show that many veteran NaNo participants likely noticed right away. The crew on BG use mysterious technology to "jump" from one galaxy to the next, folding time and space to cross vast distances in the blink of an eye.
This was obviously inspired by NaNoWriMo's two famous wormholes, which fling writers forward (in a good way) when they hit 25,000 and 35,000 words. At these magical tipping points, normal rules of NaNoWriMo physics no longer apply. Forward writerly motion becomes easier, fitful stories take off, and word-counts begin accelerating towards warp speeds.
Our mission this week is to heave ourselves up to the precipice of the 25,000-word wormhole. From where I am now, that feels woefully far away. In reading through the forums, I see I'm not alone. Our non-noveling lives have turned hectic, we're facing tough decisions about what to do with our characters, and we're grumpy from lack of sleep. I am also—for the third year running—facing the very real possibility that my protagonists might literally bore me to death.
To help get us through Week Two and on to the exciting worlds beyond, I have a few tips I'd like to share.
1) Write every day. Even if you just knock out 75 words before collapsing into bed, those 75 words will keep you connected you to your story in essential ways, and make diving back into your book much easier.
2) For now, stop thinking about 50K. Just sprint thousands. Visualize each writing session as a tall staircase made up of 1000 steps. You are part ninja, part monkey, and part stairmaster cyborg. You were born to fly up those steps. Bash out 250 words, and you've made it halfway to 500. Keep going for another ten minutes, and you're past 500 and within striking distance of 750. Once you hit 750, you could sneeze out enough words to get to the top! After each thousand, be sure to take a quick break and celebrate. Then fire up that monkey spirit and go run another thousand.
3) Remember that your book is important. I didn't say this in the Week One pep talk because we'd only just met and there's really only so much cornball sentiment from a random guy on the internet that anyone should have to tolerate in one month. But here's the truth: You have a book in you that only you can write. Your story matters. Your voice matters. The world will be richer for you seeing this crazy creative escapade through to 50,000 words.
This may be hard to believe given the craptastic state that many of our manuscripts are in. But there are great, unexpected things ahead for you in Weeks Three and Four. And there is someone out there who has been waiting their whole life to read the book you're writing now.
So don't slow down. Don't give up. We'll be at the first tipping point soon!
Chris
But, today, I wanted to highlight Chris Baty, from NaNoWriMo. He sent an amazing Week Two pep talk, in which several things jumped out at me. It was so good, and I had such a hard time picking which parts to share, that I figured heck with it, I'd post the whole thing here.
Dear Author,
Hey there! It's Chris Baty again, and hoo, boy, have I been watching some television. Do you know this show Battlestar Galactica? I've just started in on the first season, and I am shocked by how much stuff the show's writers borrowed from NaNoWriMo.
For instance, Battlestar Galactica centers on a group of humans stranded in space after their worlds have been destroyed by their enemies. NaNoWriMo takes place in the space of November. In Battlestar Galactica, people are hunted by shape-shifting robots who sometimes wear red dresses. In NaNoWriMo, participants sometimes hunt for the, uh, red address bar, where…um.
Shoot. Okay, so the similarities break down a little bit at the granular level. But there is one irrefutable nod to NaNoWriMo in the show that many veteran NaNo participants likely noticed right away. The crew on BG use mysterious technology to "jump" from one galaxy to the next, folding time and space to cross vast distances in the blink of an eye.
This was obviously inspired by NaNoWriMo's two famous wormholes, which fling writers forward (in a good way) when they hit 25,000 and 35,000 words. At these magical tipping points, normal rules of NaNoWriMo physics no longer apply. Forward writerly motion becomes easier, fitful stories take off, and word-counts begin accelerating towards warp speeds.
Our mission this week is to heave ourselves up to the precipice of the 25,000-word wormhole. From where I am now, that feels woefully far away. In reading through the forums, I see I'm not alone. Our non-noveling lives have turned hectic, we're facing tough decisions about what to do with our characters, and we're grumpy from lack of sleep. I am also—for the third year running—facing the very real possibility that my protagonists might literally bore me to death.
To help get us through Week Two and on to the exciting worlds beyond, I have a few tips I'd like to share.
1) Write every day. Even if you just knock out 75 words before collapsing into bed, those 75 words will keep you connected you to your story in essential ways, and make diving back into your book much easier.
2) For now, stop thinking about 50K. Just sprint thousands. Visualize each writing session as a tall staircase made up of 1000 steps. You are part ninja, part monkey, and part stairmaster cyborg. You were born to fly up those steps. Bash out 250 words, and you've made it halfway to 500. Keep going for another ten minutes, and you're past 500 and within striking distance of 750. Once you hit 750, you could sneeze out enough words to get to the top! After each thousand, be sure to take a quick break and celebrate. Then fire up that monkey spirit and go run another thousand.
3) Remember that your book is important. I didn't say this in the Week One pep talk because we'd only just met and there's really only so much cornball sentiment from a random guy on the internet that anyone should have to tolerate in one month. But here's the truth: You have a book in you that only you can write. Your story matters. Your voice matters. The world will be richer for you seeing this crazy creative escapade through to 50,000 words.
This may be hard to believe given the craptastic state that many of our manuscripts are in. But there are great, unexpected things ahead for you in Weeks Three and Four. And there is someone out there who has been waiting their whole life to read the book you're writing now.
So don't slow down. Don't give up. We'll be at the first tipping point soon!
Chris
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