The New Floodgates of the Mind

x-posted to the NaNoWriMo Montreal/Quebec Forum:

Broke 13k tonight, although I was 2k short of the goal I set for myself. Granted, it was still 4k in total, but… I like challenging myself and pushing myself forward but I guess this time 6k was too much to ask 🙂

However, it’s only a quarter to 10pm, and I can technically write for a couple of more hours before having to pass out… but I also need rest :>

When I see the rankings now, I keep thinking how I could simply add my current count to the finished novel, but then think how that wouldn’t be right. Two distinctive works, written in two completely different styles, mean they should be covered differently. So there.

Chapter 3 is finished and our main character has now suffered a physical death, and a psychic death… or did he? Hm. (twisted grin)

More revealed next chapter as we are introduced to those who are stuck between life and death!

(thank you for indulging me)

This time I can honestly say that if I don’t finish it, that will be ok. However. I do plan to finish it. 🙂

Yes, it is November 17th. Yes I have about 13 possible writing days, which means about 3.5k to 4k a night. But I have started it.

Novel #2: “The Anti-Bodies: Heaven Can Wait”

Chapters 1 + 2 Completed. Word count so far 8917.

Place your bets 🙂

Yes, indeed.

Just when I thought I was OUT, they pull me back IN!!

I am, insanely, talking about NaNo again.

Due to great public demand, I have begun a second novel. This is still my night off, so I’m only at 1715 words, but it IS a start.

So for those of you who haven’t started (Sara, Alan) and for those of you who need that kick in the ass (Pat, Niall) now’s the time to get it in gear!!!!

Come on, people! Let it rip! :>

Well, I’ve done it.

I’m not bragging, mind you. Please, I’m simply stating.

11pm November 13. I kept myself going with about a 3.5k to 4k nightly average and I have managed to pass the 50k point (50,545 words). I can’t believe it. I knew it would come, truly believed I would be able to make it after the first 20k (which was the hardest, emotionally, to overcome), but now that it’s actually done, I feel a little numb.

I’m exhausted, or at least quietly burnt. The novel can actually stand on its own right now. I don’t have to add more to it, but probably could if I gave it a bit more thought. The only thing is that, right now, I don’t want to give it any more thought.

I’m taking tomorrow off. Completely. And, I’ll probably take Saturday off as well. Maybe, perhaps, I’ll go back on Sunday and look at it again. But for now, whatever I do will be more for tweaking and editing sake than anything else. I’ll simply be wiating for November 20th when the servers will be ready to count words officially and upload what I’ve got.

Thank you, everyone, for your encouragement and kind words. I had a complete ball doing this and will indeed do it again next year. I don’t expect next year will be at all like this year. In fact, I’m almost certain that it will be much tougher for me, but I will also have different tactics and self-challenges. I’ll talk about those later on in the month, though. No use to talk about them now 🙂

For now… my bed calls to me. Maybe tomorrow night I’ll give myself a little celebratory pat on the back. But for tonight, c’est assez. I need my rest. 🙂 Good night, and good typing. You have all been great.

I’ve been very busy, obviously. Work has been busy but good. I’ve gotten some really good feedback and things keep looking brigther and brighter. That’s a good thing.

But, even with so much going on, I don’t have anything to share. I’m busy at work, having fun at home, what else do you need to know? I met an old friend last week who I haven’t seen or spoken with in 20 years and we went out for coffee this week which was really cool. But that’s my life.

And in the world of NaNoWriMo, I just hit 46,693 words. I’m a lean, mean, insane, writing machine. I don’t need to say anything else. Because, I don’t feel like it. So there.

Not much to say tonight.

Had a really good weekend. Relaxing. Contemplative.

Currently up to 35,293 words in NaNo. Am taking it slow (if you can believe me). Even went to my first Meetup this afternoon which turned out to be really, really nice.

Tonight, for some reason, just feeling mellow. Really, so mellow that I’m not in the mood to write again. It’s like I feel the weather changing outside and just want to stand in front of the windows and gaze outside, peer into the darkness, looking for hints of truths and sparks of consciousness…

“All I want is a Window to look through… All I need is a Window to look through… It’s the only thing that I really want to do, anyways…” – Missing Persons

Hm. I’m not that far away from 30k for NaNo. I told the guys at work that my personal goal for this weekend was 32k. I think I’ll be surpassing that.

One thing I noticed now that I’m this deep in, I seem to have written up pretty much most of what backgrounds and characters I wanted to. I am now getting into the meat of the story, or rather, the main point I wanted to put out there when I began this project. This means, for me at least, that there is more thinking involved before and during the actual typing. I guess I’m trying to put some formal format to the book so I have a better sense of direction. 21k to go, we’ll see if I’ve got enough of it to keep me going 🙂

More music which is playing or has played in the creation of this opus magnus so far: Great Big Sea, Hits of 1965, Van Halen, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Sheryl Crow, Rod Stewart, Roy Orbison, Echo and the Bunnymen.

It should be time soon to begin playing much darker stuff like Specimen, Gene Loves Jezebel, Siouixie and the Banshees, stuff like that… Or, the main push/ focus/ idea for the book: Generation X

And if you were wondering if I had spent all morning on NaNo, the answer is NoNo 🙂 We’re dog-sitting this weekend and those woofing balls of fur decided that 5am would be the best possible time to groom themselves. Why is it that dogs licking themselves clean can make sounds quite similar to moaning? Sheesh. Anyhow, I figured that there was no way I’d be able to sleep with all that snorting and after 2 hours of fighting it, I got up at 7am. Sheesh. Having gone to bed past midnight, I didn’t need that. I wrote for an hour, had breakfast, and then went to visit my parents. I got back a little while ago, wrote another hour or so, and now am taking a lunch break. I would also like to shave since I’m feeling quite fuzzy at the moment 🙂

So, here I am, having just broken the 27k point without any true realization (unlike when I broke the 20k barrier). I’m now at 27,487 words.

I realize I still have a way to go, but at least that way is less than half of where I’ve come already! Yet, I also realize that although I’m still moving, I’m not moving as quickly as I have been up to now. It is getting a bit more difficult, but one thing it is NOT is a chore. This is still a blast and I’m thoroughly enjoying this experience much more than I ever thought I would. Really, I feel quite in my element, which is wonderful. Always nice to remind yourself what it is you truly love doing 🙂

I have begun to wonder though when my next “whoa!” moment will come. Will it be past 35k? Will it be at the 40 or 45k point? I’m curious to see…

For now, it’s time to break again. No need burning myself out when I’m putting out a decent +3k nightly average. Besides, it is the weekend and I am expecting to do a lot more this weekend (as long as the inspiration keeps flowing) 🙂

Either way, I’m looking forward to meeting a bunch of the Montreal NaNo group in person on Sunday. The West Island Meetup this past Wednesday, short though it was, did give me a good boost which added almost 10k to my output. I can only imagine what Sunday will bring… :>

I finally polished off Neil Gaiman’s “American Gods” today. Good-time reading 🙂 Best $4 I ever spent 🙂

Next on the reading list, “Violin” by Anne Rice.

It’s fun working next to a really good used-book store. Dangerous, but very good 🙂