Day 21 – 1967
Day 22 – 2306
Day 23 – 476
Day 24 – 2489
Day 25 – 0
Day 26 – 0
Day 27 – 1107 (so far)
Total So Far: 50,515
In the interest of transparency and holding myself accountable, well, you can see the numbers. I don’t think those zeros are objectively bad, they just go against that other blog where I talk about writing every day, even if it was just a single sprint, and how that was a good thing. To be clear: I still think that’s a good thing! But if writing is my job, I should treat it like a job, and people do take breaks from their job (or they should, provided they can).
And I don’t think that a day with only one sprint counts as a break. It might, if I can get into that mindset, but right now it doesn’t, especially while I’m working on other projects on those days. I just need to find a balance. And 50k words in 27 days is a lot (more, I would wager, than most people (some writers included) write all year), so there’s an inevitable burnout that comes with NaNo, I think.
Still, I’m aiming for another 10k by the month’s end, and I’m fairly certain I can do it. There’s four whole days left! (And the rest of today!) I’d also like to plot out the novella I’ve been thinking about over the next couple days so that if I can fit it into August with The Association revision and my niece’s visit, I’ll be ready to hit the page writing.
I’m at some pivotal spots in the text (here’s the current ambient sound I’m listening too), and I keep having to remind myself that this is the final story, so it’s okay to wrap things up and give characters major development and closure. I’ve treated these guys like they’re in progress for so long that it’s hard to shift over to transformed. I’m worried about pacing and getting the whole character growth thing right, but you’d think over three books and a couple hundred thousand words these dudes would change at least a little, right?
But I’m hesitant to end it all because I kind of love these guys, and while I know I’m going to be writing a whole lot more with them and doing a buttload of revisions over the next 10-ish months, there’s something about completing that third act, bringing it all to a head, even if you have lots of big holes you have to go back and fill in, that feels so final. So far almost every story I’ve written, I save the actual ending for last last. I plot it out and write up little bits, but I have a hard time actually drafting those last few scenes while there are still holes other places. I have an illogical fear something vital will change in the halfway point and ruin the end (this can happen anywhere, and typically does anyway), but it’s really just because I don’t want to say goodbye until I’m really ready. It’s dumb, but sentimental. I want to make sure that their ending is a reflection of who they’ve actually been, not who I guess they will be even though I know I can change it.
On the other hand, maybe I won’t miss Lorelei and the gang that much. I started publishing the serial almost exactly four years ago, and I was writing and planning it years before that, so I have a healthy affection for the story, but it will be a relief when, ya know, some of these idiots finally, like, punch each other, or kiss each other, or evolve, or die, or whatever. I guess I’m excited for them to get there (wherever that might be) I just hope that they all end up in the right place.
A.K. Caggiano 