Write A Novel In A Year

Time to write a novel! I am again at that phase of life when I find it hardest to write: caring for a toddler from 18 to 24 months old. These adorable, miniature beings seem to be able to break me down like no other force on earth. Toddler Storytime at the library on Wednesday? No, Little Guy had other ideas. I left holding him around the waist so that he would not flop his little self down in the middle of the floor again. He was perfectly happy by that time. I was in tears.

Enough about me and why it will be hard this time around. I am doing it in the company of the teen writer's group at Mandarin Library and their fearless leader, Donald Carpenter. The program: Write A Novel In A Year.

Last month's agenda was to kick the whole thing off and to eject our inner editors. This month is about creating living characters.

Time to find or create a post about characterization and to get up to speed on actually writing the novel I am supposed to be writing. 4,000 words until I'm on track! Bye-bye.

NaNoWriMo Revisited

I still have not missed a National Novel Writing Month since the year I discovered it (late) in November of 2005. I threatened to miss two of them. Just couldn't do it.

In 2007, I said I might be too busy to participate and win. The two writers I was blessed with as part of a little writing group were forging ahead. I had to join them. I made the requisite mad dash at the end to become a NaNoWriMo winner.

In 2009, with a 3-year-old and a 5-month-old, I said No Way. Then I jumped in and did my own version where my goal was to write 15 minutes each day. And I did. I reached that goal and made a silly, appreciated little story about his toy knights for my older son. I was not an official NaNoWriMo winner. That was hard for me.

I've NaNoWriMoed through two pregnancies; in four different cities in two different states; with two different writing groups and twice on my own; with a toddler and with a baby and preschooler; with the intention of winning, with the intention of "cheating" (using extremely long names for each of my characters, extremely long inserted poems, and the like), and with the intention of not finishing.

I love me some NaNoWriMo.

Waiting Without Hope

I may have embarked upon a new writing venture. There's a baby under one year old in the house, after all, and that always seems to energize my ambitions.

I've gone through the No Shame Novelist experiment and learned what I thought I would learn.

1.) That some of my favorite authors have helpful tips and ideas about writing that I would love to learn.

2.) That to write authentically, I will have to find my very own way. Anything done as a copy of someone else's work is not worth publishing.

So my new venture seems authentic so far. I'm moving ahead very, very slowly so I can make sure it stays that way. I'm also (possibly) going to keep it a bit secret. Spilling all the beans now would ensure that I have no beans to plant later.

Part of my starting out very, very slowly is that I'm going through a long list of books to read during the beginning stages of this project. Do you want to see the list? It will most definitely give you a clue to what the project might end up being.

I'll post the list later.

For now, I'll take the opportunity to remind myself of the principles that should guide my new project.

1.) Take it one step at a time.
2.) When in doubt, do nothing.
3.) Be intentional (some would say prayerful) before writing.
4.) Do my homework.
5.) "I said to my soul, be still, and wait without hope, For hope would be hope for the wrong thing."—T.S. Eliot, The Four Quartets

A wonderful Friend recently reminded me of that quote.

You may see two opposing forces at work in this blog. If so, you see me! The force comprised of ambition, energy, and will sits next to the force that thrives in stillness, waiting, silence, and release. They shove each other around quite a lot, but I try to keep them from an outright war. Every once in a great, great while they work together for the good. That is an amazing feeling.

I think I've found the right analogy for how I want to treat my new project. It's the way that I treat my baby's naps. He needs his sleep. It is very important for his development and happiness. I try not to plan anything during his two naps per day, so for the most part, we stay home when it's a nap time. I protect and guard that time. Sometimes it's worth it to skip the nap so we can go do something important, like watch my husband run a big race. This is how I'll be handling my baby-stage project. I'm going to guard it like a nap time for the most part, but sometimes it may be important to share things about it. So then I'll share.

The End in Sight

So it's National Novel Writing Month again, which I just can't miss, so here I am. Most of the excerpts from this year's NaNovel will be posted here at Once Upon A Week, the writing blog shared among my siblings and me.

But just for my own satisfaction, I wanted to report here that I am in the second round of revisions of last year's NaNovel and still/again feeling good about it. I've got a short list of potential publishers I'd like to target. All is well. Of course, what with NaNoWriMo, Thanksgiving, pregnancy, and the obligations (and fun) that go along with being a toddler's parent, I probably won't finish up those revisions until next month. The finish line is getting closer and closer, though. The best possible end result, a book I can be happy with, is within sight!

100 Posts

I've got myself a nice new little goal. This is my 90th post. I want to write 100 posts for The No Shame Novelist Project (at least).

Picture of my son's first experience with headphones is completely unrelated, if you were wondering.

I'm Back?

It's been a long, long time. I've thought about this blog occasionally and felt guilty. But I felt that Real Life was more important and that for me, at the time, Real Life didn't allow for blogging. I'm trying to raise a smart, healthy, active boy who doesn't get to watch TV all day. And be there for my family. And keep the house pretty clean. It is quite a challenge--no, let me rephrase that. It is the challenge of my life.

But I'm also thinking about things I do just for me. Knitting. Reading. Writing. My mission has changed a bit. I want this to be fun, not full of pressure. Not work, because it's absolutely certain I have enough work to fill my days already. This feels a little like confessing to an illicit love affair, but I've been blogging at Once Upon A Week to have fun and connect with my siblings. If I can do that, I can show this blog a little love too, can't I?

I don't know. This is a start.

My Eeyore Post

I haven't been writing or doing anything with my manuscript for a month or so. Every time I step away from it, I spend the time thinking how awful it really is. I read great books by wonderful authors and think that I'm not fit to try. This is where I'm at. Even to blog makes me feel ashamed.

I think the solution is to get busy, get back to the manuscript. Finish up those last writing exercises that I said I was going to do (and I am) but haven't done yet. Yes, I'll feel better if I get back to work. I'm just afraid I'll be inspired to create more crap that no one should ever have to read.

My attitude sucks.