November Was NaNoWriMo Month: So What?

The major project for November was the completion of the first draft of book 3 of the fantasy trilogy, A Seared Sky. The book stood at 111,079 words when I set out on the NaNoWriMo journey and it ended up at 194,352 words. That’s 83,273 words during the month, though I actually completed the book on 21^st November.

I accompanied my wife to the frozen north to visit her relatives and friends for the pre-Xmas get-together and that took a few days out of the month. I read 4 books and reviewed 3 of them; the last one was reviewed in December. And I completed 4 blog posts. I also wrote a couple of poems I’m intending to submit to contests this month. So, all in all, a pretty satisfactory month’s writing.

The end of NaNoWriMo generally leaves a void to be filled. I’ve been pretty busy with other things, so it’s only today that I’ve started feeling the need to create again. Lots of ideas for short stories, and there’s a novel brewing somewhere in the back of my mind.

The 1^stvolume of the fantasy trilogy was supposed to be published this month, but, as can happen in the publishing world, a technical issue has delayed that. No-one’s fault: just one of those irritating things that sometimes occur. Because we’ll miss the Xmas window, we now intend to publish in Spring 2014. So, the marketing and pre-launch activity I was expecting to participate in is no longer necessary and I find myself with a small spell of spare time. Those poems, stories and the novel start to beckon. And, I think I might put one of my ebooks out as a paperback: possibly The Methuselah Strain. There are still large numbers of people who don’t yet have the facilities or the desire to go digital and it seems a shame to exclude them from the circle of readers.

The pie chart shows how my time has been spread over the month. I urge you to do something similar, especially if you have a tendency to procrastinate; and what writer doesn’t? Keeping a record of time spent on the various aspects of your writing activities can be surprisingly informative and sometimes a little alarming!

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The NaNoWriMo Experience Fulfilled.

In common with many of my fellow writers, I started the project to complete the 1^st draft of a novel NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month, which ought to be renamed International Novel Writing Month, except that InNoWriMo somehow doesn’t have the same cachet), is a motivational project aimed at moving the writing along.

during the month of November.

I had a go at this in 2011 and completed over 110k (the official target for the month is 50k), but ditched the result due to an insurmountable flaw in the plot. This time, I used the motivational aspect to hurry me through the final half of the 1^stdraft of book 3 of my fantasy trilogy. I expected to add about 110k to what I’d already written. But, as so often happens when you write by the seat of your pants, the story took a slightly different turn from that expected and came to a natural end a little earlier. In the end, I had only to complete another 83k words, and I did that on Thursday. The book now stands at around 194k words.

So, my NaNoWriMo experience is complete for this year. This doesn’t mean the book is finished, of course. In fact, it’s only just begun. The real work will come in the editing, which I’ll start in a couple of weeks, once I’ve done other stuff that will let me come to it more or less fresh.

But there’s no doubt that this publicly undertaken exercise does wonders for self-discipline and motivation. At the rate I was writing before November, I’d have been completing the book by the end of December. A worthwhile effort, I think. I’d definitely encourage anyone to have a go. And for those would-be writers who have difficulty completing anything, this is an ideal exercise as it encourages you to just write, without ever stopping to edit along the way.

I strongly advise writers to try this. Too late for this year, of course. But next year might be the time you finally get that novel actually written instead of just talking about it.

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NaNoWriMo Progress into the Third Week.

The first draft of volume 3 of A Seared Sky: Convergence, is going apace. I started the NaNoWriMo process when the MS was at 111,079 words and it’s now at 181,684 words, which means I’ve averaged 3922 words a day so far during November.

Believe it or not, I’ve lived a life at the same time. It hasn’t been easy, turning out this number of words each day, but the public nature of the target does concentrate the mind and helps prevent prevarication and distractions. I know that, once this draft is finished, I’ll have some serious editing to do. But the story, the essence of the novel, will be complete. I’ll have all the twists and turns in place, all the characters where intended, and all events covered.

Along the way, I’ve had to introduce new characters, of course. I made this easier for myself by creating a list of possible names for future use before I started on book 1. I also have a character template and a collection of around 1,000 assorted photographs of people, so I can hang the description onto an image of a real person. I find this helps me develop the character more fully. Some events have occurred quite unexpectedly, as characters take on more importance than I originally envisaged or as favourite characters get into situations it’s impossible for them to survive. I don’t like killing off characters, but it has to be done, of course.

And now? Well, my guess is that around 20,000 words will complete the book. I’m working on the denouement, putting each of the three groups of individuals into those situations that will close their parts in the story. There’ll inevitably be a few loose ends, with a cast of over 90 named players, but all the main characters will end up with a satisfactory conclusion to their specific tales.

I’m looking forward to the appearance of book, Joinings. FantasticBooks Publishing are currently waiting for their designer to complete the cover design. And the book should be available before Xmas. I’m excited about the publication, of course. But, for the moment, I’ll continue to use NaNoWriMo as a way of ensuring that volume 3 gets completed. At least those who buy volume 1 will then know that they won’t be let down by an author failing to complete a trilogy; something that happens far too often, unfortunately.

Watch this space for further news.

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This NaNoWriMo Lark.

We’re a little over a third of the way through the challenge to complete 50,000 words in the month of November. Those of us who’ve grasped the nettle, begun to climb the greasy pole, entered the race, and any one of a number of clichés you care to attach to the venture, are well into the project.

Me, I joined in order to concentrate my mind on a specific task. I’m currently writing volume 3 of a fantasy trilogy. Volume 1 is due to be published by Fantastic Books Publishing before the end of the year. Look out for news of that event here and on the social networks I dabble in. I started off the NaNoWriMo challenge with a MS at 111,079 words and I expect it to be around 210,000 when complete. Though, that is a moveable feast, of course. Who knows how long a book will be whilst actually writing it?

Does it work? Well, here’s the evidence. In the 17 days prior to my summer break, I averaged 1,566 words a day, which, I know, isn’t actually a bad result. When I returned from holiday, I re-read the words already strung together on the page and joined NaNoWriMo to see if I could up the ante. In the 11 days so far covered, I’ve averaged 3,835 words per day, something over double the earlier rate. I think that speaks for itself. But it only worked because I set myself a very specific target. I was, and remain, determined to complete the first draft before the end of November. That way, I can take December off as a rest period from the fantasy and start on revision and editing in the New Year with some distance between creation and the more detailed work of honing those words.

Now, this is obviously working for me; concentrating the mind and disciplining me to work consistently because I’ve publicly declared my intention. That doesn’t mean it would work as well for every writer, of course. For some, the very idea would be anathema. For others, the thought of having to write a minimum number of words each day would actually paralyse their creative spirit. And for yet others, existing commitments would render the challenge insurmountable.

But, for those who have the ability, need and freedom to accept the challenge, I suggest you have a go. This year’s too late, of course. But perhaps consider it for next year. It’s a superb way to defeat that curse of all writers; the temptation of procrastination. When that target beckons and you know all your peers are going to be able to measure your output at the end of each day, it has a remarkable effect on your self-discipline.

I’d be fascinated to learn the experience of others who’ve tried this challenge. Place your comments below and let’s see what secrets emerge from the revelations, eh?

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