After I updated last week, I managed to figure out my timeline problems and get back on track. I dropped about 1500 more words, and was satisfied. Then, I started tinkering with a side project, because I am a glutton for punishment.
A while back I wrote a little story called Super Joe. It’s a rhyming tale of a teddy bear who saves his person from the boogie man. It’s cute, and I want to do something with it, so after I wrote my quota I spent the rest of the day editing and fine-tuning that, and looking into illustrators. Twitter came through for me with tons of leads, and I am currently talking to one person about a collaboration.
So, Friday morning got me working on that instead of the WIP, which was aggravating, but I find myself stuck at a certain spot. I’m still discovering this new character that appeared halfway through the book, and I am having trouble getting her “right.” That morning I did 500 words, not the greatest but I definitely moved along the plot. Then I went and updated my Pinterest board and read some articles.
On Saturday, I didn’t write in the morning as I usually do. Instead I waited until afternoon when I was at my friend Sahar’s house. She is also doing NaNo, so we planned a slumber party/write-in. To be honest I wasn’t much in the mood to write at first because I just wanted to talk with my friend, but we went to lunch and by the time we got back to her parents’ house we were all caught up. So, to the laptops we went. I was able to drop 2000 words but realized the chapter is too short, so back to the drawing board.
Sunday morning was lovely.
I sat on the sofa in Sahar’s living room with the sun streaming in my face and a fresh cup of hazelnut coffee, and immediately dropped 1400 words, pushing me past the 40k mark. Another cup of coffee and a cigarette break later and out came another 700. Then another 1000. By 11am I was at 42,365. I got home and transferred everything to my desktop. I considered starting chapter 15, but it wasn’t fully formed in my head yet, so instead I watched the Bills kick the Dolphins asses across the field and spent time with Hubs.
Monday brought roughly 250 words in the morning, mostly just stuff to drive the action along, so not what I enjoy writing. Still, it flowed pretty smooth, and I was prepared to come back to it in the afternoon, where I finished chapter 16.
Tuesday: Chapter 17 is a doozy. I was going to take a day or two to get my thoughts together on it, but then I wrote 1200 words and figured what the heck, might as well. I’m starting to feel a little sad, though. I am very close to the end of the story. I’m on the last chapter now, and I am excited to see where my characters are going to end up, but I’m also sad that I have to say goodbye to them. I’m not writing a series, there will be no follow-up here. It’s a stand-alone book. But…I want to give them a good sendoff. I want to imagine a world where they are happy now, despite the horrible things I have put them through. I did another 750 after breakfast, and outlined the remainder of the chapter.
On Wednesday I wasn’t feeling it. I usually make it to the computer by 8am, but didn’t drag myself into the office until after 10. I managed a little over 1000, and was satisfied with that. What I’m not satisfied with is how short this book is going to be. I assumed I would easily hit 60k, but it looks like it will top out just over 50. Of course, this is pre-revision, so there will be much I add to the first part to foreshadow the second. We shall see what the final product is. Of course, that’s not the point right now. The point is to get the words out.
Which brings me to this morning, where I am sitting and staring at my last chapter, wondering how to write this bad boy. Having a very “wat r words?” moment. It’s the last scene before the epilogue, so it’s vital that I get it right. Or I could just push though and get to the end and worry about it in edits. That’s not how I roll, though…I do a lot of editing as I go and I really want to capture the very essence of what I’m trying to say. So, no writing has been done so far today. Just thinking. Lots and lots of thinking.
I ended the week at a little over 47k, and I still have more than a week to go. I hope my other NaNo buddies are out there killing it-and if you don’t think you will reach your goal, don’t be discouraged. Whatever you have today is more than you had on the 1st. Keep pushing.
Ham 'N Eggs 
Really enjoyed this insight into your writing week! That Sunday morning sounds special – hazelnut coffee does it for me every time!
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