What To Write When There Is Nothing To Write

I've been staring at this link for a month with no idea what to say. I don't want this to turn into a personal blog because my life isn't all that interesting--which is why I write in the first place. Still, life has been quite busy lately and I just haven't have the time to write.

I'm making a commitment to get something done this month though, and then March is NaNoEdMo, which I am also committed too. Getting my novel finished and readable is one of my top goals this year. As for my resolutions...well...I am averaging 100 words a day, but I can't say with any certainty that I will have exactly that number. It proved a loftier goal than even I realized. Still, I am hoping that getting back into blogging, writing, and editing will bring me to a better place than last year.

I don't think I have mentioned it here but I have been dreaming about a novel for years. It is titled The Life and Times of a Pseudonym and one of my resolutions last year was to get something started for it, an outline, a chapter, something, ANYTHING. I ended up getting nothing at all done for it, but I wasn't sorry because I did participate in NaNoWriMo and I did succeed so I now know that I can do it. I also know that story outlines aren't for suckers or bad writers, but for smart people who know that "feeling like writing" isn't really a condition one can count on. I moved my goal of getting something done on Pseudonym to this year, and I plan to start working on it in April, after my last novel is finished (can I just add that the phrase "my last novel" makes me giddy with pleasure?). I also want to start planning my next NaNoWriMo project, a mystery that current lacks a title but I think I have a few ideas for it. Still in the very rough, very undecided brainstorming phase. I'm thinking of setting it at a college, and possibly around a theatre program. Obviously the "show is cursed" theme is out, having been done to death, but there are still lots of places I can go. I've been reading up on mysteries, from a fictional and non-fiction point of view, trying to get an idea what I am in for. The result? I know I'm in for a rough road. Still, Necessary Fiction was the fluff, easy piece I was looking for. If I want to be a real writer then it is time to explore the tough world of fiction. Maybe not the impossible world of Fantasy but at least something beyond romance.

With all that said, it is Superbowl Sunday, and I'm ready for some breakfast. Hoping to get some editing done before the big game. NaNoEdMo entails 50 hours of solid editing in the month of March, but realistically my novel needs a lot more love than 50 hours can provide. Time to make this thing readable! ...ish!

A Lofty Goal

On the heels of NaNoWriMo, what I find myself missing the most is writing every day. This is a habit I want to be in, so as one of my resolutions (oy, don’t mention it, I already know I am taking on too much) I am committing myself to writing 100 words a day. I don’t think this is too much of a challenge, as there is a variety of ways I can put this writing to good use. I am going to count blogging, doing homework, and revisions to my novel (when it increases my word count, of course). These are things I need to be doing daily anyway, so 100 words shouldn’t be an issue. Hell, I’ve written 100 already!

My other artistic project is a challenge from my friends’ mom, to take a new picture every day, and post it to Facebook. I’m obsessed with taking pictures of my dog so I’m totally going to do it and probably all the pictures will be of Tucker. He’s my one and only (shh, don’t tell Marcus!).

My last two resolutions (four…I KNOW I KNOW GEEZ!) are pretty standard: Eat Less, Exercise More. Part of what I need to do to achieve goals is see progress, so I’m going to try tracking these two goals in OneNote. We’ll see how long that lasts, and how well I do. If it isn’t too cold out, I will probably take Tucker out on a walk (and take a picture of him while on it!). If not…then Monday I join the gym. I really need to lose 2 dress sizes for this wedding…and for health, no really. If I could lose 2 pounds a week I could be at my goal weight by the end of the year. That’s really not all that much if you think about it. I’m not trying any fad diets or screwy meal plans. I’m gonna control my portion size and make healthier items (like Pot Roast with fat free gravy!).

This seems like a really early time to start blogging as my 100 words, but I feel like that’s a goal I’m gonna have to improvise over time, depending on where I am and what I’m doing. I am hoping to travel and spend more time with friends this year. If that’s what goes down…who knows what I’ll be writing, and when. Poetry, stories, blog entries, homework…anything goes.
Oh, 2011. I am ready for whatever you have to bring. So stoked for another great adventure.

The Importance Of Feedback

I double dipped with my NaNoWriMo project, Necessary Fiction, and used the first scene in the first chapter as an assignment in my Creative Writing class. This was really a good call because I got a lot of really useful feedback from my classmates and my instructor. I definitely need to work on building tension, as well as solidifying Chelsea's voice as a narrator (although the novel is told from Third Person Omniscient). Something that struck me about the feedback was this:

"What I especially liked about this draft was how totally bizarre it seems to have taped so many TV shows!!!!??? So I am hoping for more bizarre behavior from parents."

My instructor is right, it IS a bizarre behavior, one ripped right from my real parents. Although Roger, the father (not seen in this first scene) is nothing at all like my real father, the FMC's (female main character's) mother is not unlike my own mother, who is also working her way through thousands of VHS to convert them to DVDs. I agree that it is totally bizarre, but also, totally realistic. I tried not to base my characters on real people, but Samantha, the mother, Beth and Charlie, the sister and brother-in-law, were all based on my own mother, sister, and brother-in-law. The people in my life are all true life characters, and I think, as I continue writing, they will all appear in one novel or another. I just wanted to include them because of their super awesome support for my NaNoWriMo project and putting up with all my "I need to write" bullshit.

Beginning the revision process has been hard, I am feeling a bit burned out on writing. I think I'm going to give myself a break for a few weeks and work on other projects. Something Fiction-related I'd like to work on is the Emily Chase story that Chelsea is writing. Maybe I'll have better luck, she came up with a really good plot :o).

The Greatest Thing I Have Ever Done

Was marry my husband.

But NaNoWriMo is a close second. Just finished my novel. It's nowhere near readable, and I don't know if it ever will be...but it feels great to have finished something and there are ALWAYS revisions.

Enough writing though, time to take a break! Happy to have time for blogging again though :o).

A Haiku From The Trenches

Thirty Thousand words
Still so many left to go
A worthy pursuit.

The Journey Continues...

NaNoWriMo continues to challenge me. I'm certain what I have written is terrible but I am having a lot of fun, and never before have I written 22,000 words, on any subject. I imagine I won't be able to say that by the time I get my degree, but I'm also hoping that 22,000 will become 50,000 by the 30th.

School is going well. I was able to post my first 2,000 words from my novel as my second Rough Draft so that really helped. Also, finished my Anthropology paper in the nick of time, and I have a 100% grade in The Reading of Shakespeare. Gonna start working this week on getting the ability to register for Intermediate Algebra. I am really hoping to finish the class by March 19th, thus guaranteeing me the ability to transfer in Fall, as I am dreaming. Trying not to get my hopes up but I think it is a bit late for that, lol. I'm pretty confident I can do well, but first I need the teacher to give me the okay to add to his class after everyone else has done so. If I can get that, then it's game on for transfer. REAL COLLEGE HERE I COME!

I really can't wait.

Writing is going really well. Life is going well. Guess these meds are working! I've done 3,300 words today, and I want to do another 3,300 before I go to bed, so I guess I better get started on that. 25,000, here I come!

Even God Sleeps Sometimes...

I am too tired to do anything but brag: I wrote six THOUSAND words today, bringing my word count up to 11,772. This makes me happier than a pig in what pigs like to be in. It's an incredible amount of writing for one day, and I am exhausted. I can now look forward to a guilt-free weekend...that I will probably sleep through.