NaNoWriMo Continued

I did not do a week 3 end post, partly because Thanksgiving and getting sick and picking up a car and helping out family and enjoying people's company all got in the way, and partly because I had written so little that it was complete embarrassment to think about posting. Mainly, also, because even by the point I was starting to realize that I would not finish this year. I'm happy with the decisions I made, but posting my wordcount still would be a bit too much for me.

Now that we're in the final week, I've gotten somewhat of a second wind. I have to write slightly over 7,000 words per day to make it, and that's given that I have a house to clean, people to pick up from the airport, sleep to get to make sure I don't get sick, and rehearsals during what I had originally hoped would be my final hours on Friday. It's doable, but it'll be tough, and I'm not going to cry if I don't make it. (Of course, if I'm close enough, and feel well enough, I may very well stay up a bit...later...on Thursday, trusting that I can go to bed earlier Friday and sleep random hours throughout the day Saturday).

So that's where I stand right now. As far as the story goes, I'm on chapter 4, page 38 (single spaced), my heroine just became kidnapped by a large well-worn dragon ala the Velveteen Rabbit, and my hero just met his narrator who's job it is to help him along into having the best story possible...beginning with the one where everyone stays at home and is happy, which, however, he has now lost all possibility of doing. Both the dragon and the narrator already have more life than my characters, though I think I've realized the main personality and flaws of my heroine.... one obvious place where I'll have to go back and rewrite later in order to give the main characters more life in the beginning as well. I'm still not posting a word count.... if I wind up by some miracle making it, perhaps I'll boast by posting how much I wrote each of the last five days.

Wish me luck!

Week 2

Word Count: 11,228/50,000
Time Left: 15 days, 0 hours, 12 minutes


I'm still not quite where I was last year, which means still very, very behind. However.. this is the product of about three actual days of writing. I've discovered (through "I'm desperate, and being given incentive through having been mentioned in other blogs, and can't dare back down now" type desperation) that I can write about 1,000 words in around half an hour. Which includes a limited amount of time to think about what's happening and make decisions about the story.. about half of every minute can be spent doing that to get the 1,000/30min speed. So even spending 15 minutes thinking about each 1,000 word section, I need only 20 hours to successfully reach my goal. Entirely do-able! And this story is going so well (when I make time for it) that it's practically writing itself.

As of now, the "uh-oh, things are starting to go funny..." scene is written, as well as all the scenes surrounding it, my two main characters have gotten themselves into an entirely unexpected disagreement, and I've found out that I actually am capable of writing conversation, at least moreso than I ever was before, which might not be saying much. I've already found myself foreshadowing things I never intended to include in the story but now, naturally, am going to because it fits so well; and even I don't know who the mysterious note-writer is, but I'm sure I'll figure it out.

In the real world, I've discovered that dinner isn't actually important unless eaten at someone else's house, and there's no such thing as too much Halloween candy or too many cookies. Laundry, however, still needs to get done, no matter how few people are in this house. And having someone else to talk to sometimes is good.

Shocking Saturday

I had to fit in a post of celebration at some point - especially as I've had no one to jump up and down and excitedly scream in front of.

This morning I went to Mass with the goal in mind that, afterward, I would be singing with someone for the specific purpose of being told exactly where I was failing and what I needed to work on, a bit of criticism I figured was coming one way or another, and ought to be taken care of on my own terms and in a way that would also be beneficial to me. It has, after all, been two and a half years since I've had anyone give me any real suggestions or helpfully tell me what to work on after hearing me sing, and I'm not the best person to be doing that for myself.

I walked away from this meeting with plenty of suggestions - and an invitation to join the Schola at my church, at least for long enough to see whether I can fit in.

And I now have one more reason to be very grateful to my old choir director; I half considered emailing her just to mention this opportunity and express my overwhelming thanks. Instead, I'm placing those thanks in an area I'm fairly sure she'll never actually see, but what's a girl to do. Thank you Ms. Silva!!!

Just a Bit Late for Halloween

I watched Tim Burton's Sleepy Hollow last night. I have to say, it was a bit creepy. I was okay with creepy once upon a time, even went out of my way to watch creepy/suspenseful movies. (Not usually gory, mind you, but plain old frightening was fine.) I'm one of those odd people who started watching horror movies at eight, who watched the Ring and wasn't fazed at all, who would watch (or read) whatever scary movie (or story) I could get my hands on in the dark alone late at night.

Anyway, back to Sleepy Hollow. It was a creepy movie. It was a very well done movie; but it was a creepy movie. I was joking when I refused to go back to my own empty house, but the fact remains that I don't handle these movies anywhere near as well as I used to. So while trying to give this movie what should be a glowing review, I'm fighting my own "yeah, it was good, why would I ever watch this again?" sort of thinking.

I think it would have been more frightening had it not been quite as surreal. There was so much in the way of imagery (use/lack of colors, appearance of certain characters, recurring significant moments, etc.) that it detracted from the reality of the movie enough to keep it from being quite as frightening as it could otherwise have been. That's not necessarily a bad thing, and the imagery was certainly well done - there was one particular place where color was not drained that struck me immediately as perfect contrast and showed before the actual events did just what was going on in the area.

This has got to be one of the strangest movie reviews I've ever done. Anyway, I do recommend the movie, fairly highly recommend it, on the condition that you don't mind creepy.

Week 1

Word Count: 5,013/50,000
Time Remaining: 22 days, 00 hours, 44 minutes


Well, I'm behind even where I was last year at this point, which was still behind, but not so behind as to have lost hope yet or be embarressed about posting it. Scratch that.. maybe a little embarressed, but that will only encourage me to speed up. And given the point at which I finally got around to starting this I'm improving at a decent rate. AND, maybe I will even write some more tonight.

So far, we have a main guy introduced, and main girl introduced, one living constellation introduced but not yet involved, and the lead up to the big scene that will lead into the true fantasy/fairy tale part of the story rather than just the modern world. Oh, and we have one major epic battle with a courageous wizard. I'm very pleased.

My only losses so far are a large portion of a bag of candy (consumed while writing), and the odd occurance of actually forgetting to eat dinner three nights in a row. Tonight might be four, but then again, I actually feel a little bit hungry... and I will be spending all day tomorrow in an active wrestling - oops, I mean restraint - class. No extra sleep loss at all! At least, not beyond what I would have had anyway, as I'm trying very hard to stay healthy.

Completely unrelated to this particular post, or maybe not as it did give me a bit of extra time tonight, I've been given a chanting reprieve due to an overbooking. I'm scheduled to be tortured Saturday morning instead. And, strangly enough, I'm neither hopeful nor nervous. But all the better to relax and write! (Unless you want angsty scenes. And let me tell you, I am good at those.... there should be some type of prize for that).

Aging Backwards

As if telemarketers weren't bad enough... I just had someone come to the door and ask if my parents were home. I don't think I look that young. Even if half the people I talk to asume I'm still in (high)school.

And yes, I did point out to him that my parents live in Michigan. Now that I'm in my second 23rd year, I think I have that right.

enChanting

I find myself in need of a bit of help. In particular, I'm looking for internet resources for Gregorian chant - something with sheet music and (preferably) easy to hear recordings. I'm sure I'll get somewhere by continuing to look myself, but my luck so far seems to consist of recordings without accompanying sheet music, and, to make it worse, recordings which seem to all have been recorded on a cell phone from the cry room of a packed church. I would still trust my luck and not ask for help, but - I need this by Wednesday night. As in this Wednesday. As in... I'm doomed.

Anyone know of a good internet site for obtaining written chant music?

NaNoWriMo!

Despite how skeptical I am of my chances this year, it is now currently November, and National Novel Writing Month. My goal once again is to write 50,000 words by 11:59:59pm Nov. 30th. This year, I have a full time job that is really full time, as in life-time, and didn't even find time to do a blog post about the event until tonight.

On the other hand, I am also insane, and so I invite anyone and everyone to join me in this endeavor to create. (I already have one little brother joining me again; yay!) Go to the website, read about the event, sign up, add Myth as a writing buddy, and most of all, start writing! Or at least do me the favor of cheering me on - since unless I decide I will be embarrassing myself way too horribly by posting, I will have my word count right here on this blog at least once a week. The embarrassing myself thing could happen. Again, that job thing. But if it goes well, I hope to have another (and a better) book in editing by December.

And there are two things in my favor. I finally saw Orion for the first time this fall a week ago Friday night (I've been looking for a while, but always had bad conditions one way or another), and he is the ending and therefore an important part of the rest of the story; and I'm in generally the same mindset I was when I did all my best writing back in my later 'teens, though in a bit more matured form. All of which leads me to pretend confidence that it will come out well. Wish me luck!

(The link remains on my sidebar as well, where it has been for the past year; only and always for your convenience, and because I like to recruit.)