You may remember that last year I wrote a novel which I have worked all year to complete, but I still haven't managed it. The word count is around 85,000 words, but it hasn't been resolved to my satisfaction. I probably know the reason why, as another author put it: "I put everything I know into my first novel." I'm sure I did too. There are many characters and ideas to work out before I'm through, so it will take a while!
But I'll continue working on it, though a few characters and situations may disappear before it's finished. I apologize to anyone who has asked me where to get a copy as there just isn't one!
But I'll continue working on it, though a few characters and situations may disappear before it's finished. I apologize to anyone who has asked me where to get a copy as there just isn't one!
This year I began writing a new novel. To be a winner on NaNoWriMo, you must write 50,000 words in the month of November. I wrote about 52,000 words, which wasn't as easy as it sounds because I was sick with the worst cold in my life (or the flu) and was in bed much of the time. Another situation was that Lisa and her family had a disaster at their house and moved in with me the end of September. They've decided to sell their house and are moving in here until they can decide what their next move will be. They have a townhouse in Murfreesboro which may come in handy the next few months. We have no idea how things will work out, and it's hard on everyone to be in limbo.
I talk about NaNoWriMo.org because I want to encourage anyone who has ever thought about writing to think about joining the millions of people who take the plunge every November. You have a whole year to think about it, it's absolutely free, and you get a copy (sometimes 5 copies) of your novel from Create Space (amazon.com) when you finish it in June. But you must complete it by the end of June to get the copies.
AND even if you don't write 50,000 words, the exercise will surprise you the way it pushes you along while you're writing words you never dreamed were in your head. Or, in the case of some people, they've had a novel in their head all their lives practically, but just haven't put it on paper. I was so resistant that it took Lisa, Quinlyn, and Donna to talk me into even trying. I kept saying that I had nothing to write about. And that may still be true, but I came up with ideas and I've enjoyed the process. Quinlyn chose to write 20,000 words and was successful (at 14 years old, she can choose how many words she wants to write above 1,500 or so). She's turning into a wonderfully expressive novelist herself.
And I will say that writing this novel is an exercise which allows all of us to experiment and surprise ourselves with what we can do when we put our thoughts and ideas into words on a page. One of the best suggestions I've heard is to write about what you know. We can all do that, can't we? My novel isn't necessarily about what I know, except that I know how people respond to life, which is what our lives are mostly about--responding to things that happen to us. The fun part is that you get to choose how each character responds to what happens. And one more thing is that if you allow your novel to do so, it will mostly write itself. My novel has turned into something I never intended it to be--one character a murderer and another a spy ? How could that be??? I find it hard to believe myself!
I know most of you are busy with holiday decorating and gift buying, but keep Writing A Novel on your list as a possibility for next year. And to anyone out there who gives it a try, I congratulate you because (as NaNoWriMo.org would say) you're already a winner!
Have a great week~
Mimi
