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November 16, 2005
Still going
Thanks to those of you who stopped by to cheer me on. I just wanted to offer a noveling update. So, I’ve written 30,000 words in 16 days. That’s more than my entire senior thesis in college, and consequently more than I’ve ever written on one topic (unless maybe you want to count “unrequited crushes” as a topic and add up the word count of all my high school journals… heh). When you put 30,000 words in 12-point Courier, double spaced, which is apparently what publishers ask for, I have over 120 pages of novel. Not that I’m anywhere remotely close to wanting to publish this thing, mind you.
But it’s been an incredibly interesting, challenging, fun, and educational experience thus far. If you’re reading this and you’ve ever had a vague thought that writing a novel is something you might like to do “some day,” I can’t recommend the NaNoWriMo process highly enough. It’s amazing how, with a commitment of a couple hours a day, every day, you can transform yourself into a novelist. The commitment to a crazy, silly endeavor is so freeing. I have days when it’s easy, when the next scene is pulsing in my fingertips just waiting to pour out onto the page. And I have days when I drag myself to my desk and look at the little clock on my laptop and sigh and say, “Okay, I will write for 15 minutes,” and I do and it feels like what I’m typing is the most pointless exchange of dialogue or the most banal description ever to be put into words, and then I end up typing for another 15 minutes and it stops sucking quite so bad, and then another and I add up my word count and I’m up another 1,000 and I shut my laptop and go downstairs to reward myself with some Degrassi Junior High.
Some days the world feels more complex and beautiful than a lifetime of novel-writing could ever capture, and I feel like I’m dashing along, gathering scenes and images and typing them up as quickly as I can. Other days, I just feel tired, and I want to stay in bed all day and forget I made this commitment. But I know I won’t, and that’s been the most valuable thing I have learned. That I can stick with this, through the good days and the bad –- already I feel like I’ve weathered several deserts of dried-up inspiration and come out into the even more fertile pastures on the other side. I think that giving up has always been my biggest fear –- not just with this project, but with writing in general. I saw such potential in it that it felt safer to hold off on really starting than to start and give up. I’m into week three of my novel-writing month, and I see no signs of giving up, but I’ll check back in and give a celebratory holler when I pass 50,000 words.
Oh, and p.s. - if you care to check up on me yourself, you can do so via my profile at the NaNoWriMo web site, which is here.
Posted by sarah at November 16, 2005 04:19 PM
Comments
Is that the authentic 80s Degrassi Jr. High, or the new-school "Degrassi: the next generation" ?
I was hoping that this major writing project would have the added benefit of more exciting confessions entries - yay! It's good to hear about what you're up to. I don't know anyone else who makes watching t.v. sound so cool. Have you heard the This American Life called "reruns"? It's so bizarre and great, and the beginning with Starlee reminds me of you 'cuz most people are all "too cool" to admit liking the sit-coms but she's all "i *love* watching these totally lame reruns!"
Happy autumn!
take care,
katie k.
Posted by: katie k. at November 16, 2005 07:18 PM
Katie! Hi! How great to hear from you!
Oh, it's absolutely authentic 80s-style Degrassi. Season 3, currently -- I just watched the episode where Clutch and Paul pressure Lucy into throwing a party at her house when her parents are out of town. It's from Netflix. Thanks for saying I make t.v. sound cool... funnily enough, I wrote a scene earlier today where my main character's watching old Family Ties reruns. I haven't heard that episode of This American Life, I don't think. I'll have to check it out.
Hope you're doing well. Are you still in Chicago?
xo,
sarah
Posted by: Sarah at November 16, 2005 10:13 PM
