I've spent the last few days doing next to nothing. I'm not feeling great and I'm taking care of sick kids. Yesterday it was three of them; today I'm down to one. I've missed work for two days, and I've got a ton to do to make up once I'm there. On top of it, the office manager is crabby about me missing days. Not because I'm chronically gone, but because it means that she can't do her work while she's also covering for me. It's a fair gripe, but what am I supposed to do?
Anyway, back to NaNo. I've been pouring over the forums reading all of the tips and advice I can, as well as coming up with ideas for the story. I'm keeping a notebook of tidbits as I think of them (or borrow them from the NaNo forums), and I'm getting more and more excited. At the same time, I'm getting horribly impatient. I want to start NOW!
Of course, as these things filter through, I realize that my plot is... thin. I want my character to face a very difficult decision, make the wrong one, and then deal with the consequences. The problems brought up:
1.) What does she have to choose between?
2.) Why does she choose badly?
3.) Does the one choice lead to more choices and therefore more decisions? Or is the one bad decision enough to carry the book?
I know what the consequences are. Basically, if she can't make it right, it means the demolition of her entire village and probably lands in the near vicinity until someone else can make it right. My hope is that when she rights the problem, it makes her special in some way, which will lead her on more adventures. (Can we say sequels?)
Oh, those of you following along will notice that I've switched my main character from Izak to Piper. I liked her better, and I thought it would be fun to have a girl heroine for the 9-12 year old group. Maybe Izak will get his own series later, but for now, it's all about Piper.
Okay, my daughter is sick, the house is a mess, and the cat litter needs to be changed. So, I'm off. See you soon!
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Saturday, September 27, 2008
More plot points come to mind
The idea of this blog is to get me into the habit of writing something every day. Even if it's only a few hundred words a day, it will be easier for me to sit down to 1700 words per day later if I do it a little bit now. Plus, I wanted to keep a record of my first bona fide novel from start to finish.
Yesterday was a whirlwind day. I got off work early only to race around for an hour getting three of the kids together so that we could race to Peoria to see my fourth child run in his cross country meet. We got there in time to watch the last three runners cross the finish line. :( Luckily, he wasn't one of them. :) Then, we grabbed a bite to eat at Hardee's before moving on to Dwight to meet their dad. (He has them for this weekend.) After that, another hour and a half drive back home, with the hubby desperately trying to stay awake and me being no help at all. I think we were asleep five minutes after we pulled into the driveway.
The point of all of that? I barely had time to think of my name, much less the story. However, I did manage to come up with a few ideas on what I wanted my friend Izak to go through. More importantly, I came up with the theme of the whole story: One bad decision can ruin a whole week.
Okay.. off to work on some other projects, including working out a business plan for a small shop my hubby and I want to do to support our SCA habit. (Another post for another time and another topic.)
Yesterday was a whirlwind day. I got off work early only to race around for an hour getting three of the kids together so that we could race to Peoria to see my fourth child run in his cross country meet. We got there in time to watch the last three runners cross the finish line. :( Luckily, he wasn't one of them. :) Then, we grabbed a bite to eat at Hardee's before moving on to Dwight to meet their dad. (He has them for this weekend.) After that, another hour and a half drive back home, with the hubby desperately trying to stay awake and me being no help at all. I think we were asleep five minutes after we pulled into the driveway.
The point of all of that? I barely had time to think of my name, much less the story. However, I did manage to come up with a few ideas on what I wanted my friend Izak to go through. More importantly, I came up with the theme of the whole story: One bad decision can ruin a whole week.
Okay.. off to work on some other projects, including working out a business plan for a small shop my hubby and I want to do to support our SCA habit. (Another post for another time and another topic.)
Thursday, September 25, 2008
The Beginning
Okay, actually, the beginning should be considered yesterday. While walking back to work after my lunch hour, I came up with my main character, Izak. As the day progressed, I gave him brothers, a sister, parents, friends, enemies, and a little town in which he could interact with all of them. I have named all of his family and friends, but the town is still a bit foggy, as is the land where it sits.
This is my first NaNoWriMo, and truth be told, my first legitimate attempt at writing a complete novel. I've made stabs at it, even had huge portions written on paper... and yet they've never gone anywhere. I give up on my story - and myself - long before I get even to the middle. My inner critic is a very loud individual that just won't shut up no matter how hard I try to muffle him.
A few years ago, I found out about NaNoWriMo and decided that I would do it. Unfortunately, I always seemed to forget about it until mid-February or so. This year, however, I remembered in June and have made every effort to keep remembering. Now, as we get closer and closer to start time, I not only remember, but am excited to get going. I KNOW I can do this. And on top of that, I KNOW that I can win it. The book may be crap, but the beauty of this competition is that it doesn't matter. What matters is just finishing. I'll spend the rest of the year either revising the book later or writing a new one. Once I finish the first one... just the first silly book... then I know that fear that holds me back will be broken and gone forever.
Anyway, back to my story. Izak is a boy on the brink of manhood. He's intelligent, fierce, competitive, and horribly, horribly shy and insecure. He will of course be forced to deal with that while he works his way through a series of events that he's brought on himself with one poor choice. You'll have to watch this Blog to find out what happens to our young hero.
For now, I'm off to work. Oy... is it Friday yet?
This is my first NaNoWriMo, and truth be told, my first legitimate attempt at writing a complete novel. I've made stabs at it, even had huge portions written on paper... and yet they've never gone anywhere. I give up on my story - and myself - long before I get even to the middle. My inner critic is a very loud individual that just won't shut up no matter how hard I try to muffle him.
A few years ago, I found out about NaNoWriMo and decided that I would do it. Unfortunately, I always seemed to forget about it until mid-February or so. This year, however, I remembered in June and have made every effort to keep remembering. Now, as we get closer and closer to start time, I not only remember, but am excited to get going. I KNOW I can do this. And on top of that, I KNOW that I can win it. The book may be crap, but the beauty of this competition is that it doesn't matter. What matters is just finishing. I'll spend the rest of the year either revising the book later or writing a new one. Once I finish the first one... just the first silly book... then I know that fear that holds me back will be broken and gone forever.
Anyway, back to my story. Izak is a boy on the brink of manhood. He's intelligent, fierce, competitive, and horribly, horribly shy and insecure. He will of course be forced to deal with that while he works his way through a series of events that he's brought on himself with one poor choice. You'll have to watch this Blog to find out what happens to our young hero.
For now, I'm off to work. Oy... is it Friday yet?
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