I Did It! (53,137)

Actually, I crossed the finish line a couple of days ago and hoped that I could actually finish the story by tomorrow. I did add another 3,000 words, making this year's total more than I've done before. That's due to the times when the words were coming together that much more easily than before. But then there were the times, like tonight, when I knew some conflict needed to happen (or as another writer said, a disaster had to fully 'disast') and I found it difficult to take the plunge. I'm too nice.

I guess that's one of the things I've learned from this year's experience: as much as I've improved with character and setting, I still need to work on conflicts and antagonists. Which points to another lesson to be learned: how to create a more complete outline and structure before diving into the writing part. I need a better plan for a book (or screenplay) so that I have a better idea of where its going at each stage. I'll work on that.

In any event, this novel still feels like the best I've done. It seems like less of a throwaway for the sake of learning, and more of the beginnings of something I should really try to finish and publish. So, that is the next step. I will come back to this and finish it. Probably right after the holidays.

Thanks again for everyone that has to put up with my disappearance each November, especially Judy, who's trying to get other projects done around the house with only limited help from me.

God bless,
Bill

Back on Track to the End (51,446)

The trip out to Uncle Frank's now seems like a bit of a diversion, but I can tighten that up later. Now we're back on the track to find the bad guys and resolved the whole thing. I'm a little stuck for plot and motivation here. But I'll make it work. Only 575 words today, and maybe only a few more tonight and tomorrow. Oh well.

A Big More (50,871)

I should have added even more than 800 words, based on how early I got up. But I got a bit distracted and actually didn't quite know where to start. What I did write is really a bit of a delay before launching into the climax. Except it includes the revelation of the origin of Koenig, so it is a kind of a climax at that. More tonight, I hope.

Made It! (50,083)

But the story is not yet finished. I'm going to keep on going until I finish the story or Friday morning (whichever comes first). But I easily got the word count for finishing the NaNoWriMo challenge this year. Yay! Fred has met Mr. Koenig and now they are plotting to retrieve the beam weapon and fire up K's interstellar transmitter.

More Good Progress (48,155)

I got another 1400 words or so, leaving me less than 2000 words from the 'end'. I know there is quite a bit more story to go, though. So, I'll keep writing until I get to some reasonable finish. Since this is going to get a serious re-write, I'm not too concerned with getting it exactly correct. But I want a good target to shoot at during the refactoring process. Today, I got us out to Frank Darrows ranch and introduced the old coot.

Not Many Words (46,774)

Only 750 words or so this morning, and a lot of messing around. But I also figured out some key plot points that should allow me to write the climax to this thing. And they gel with the rest of the backstory that I've created for the re-write. Good stuff (?). We'll see. We're heading to a ranch in Tujunga to find Janet. I wonder if there's a mole in Major Owens's team that will betray that location. Hmm.

Another Full Day (46,002)

Wow. I got a total of over 10,000 words done in the last three days. Over 4,000 just today. I have to admit the writing is a bit soft in spots. But it's a learning experience and I'm working out where this story is going to go. I think I have one angle worked out. But I'm having trouble really getting a grip on the ultimate antagonist and the climax. I'd like to get that figured out soon and actually wrap up the story this week. Even if I don't I know I'll have 'won' the month again. And that's all good.

Another Good Day (41,593)

I spent the morning working up a new overall outline for the story. I can fit a few of the chapters I've written into it. I was mostly trying to come up with a story to which I could write an ending. I spent the afternoon writing about 3000 words toward that ending. All in all, a decent day.

Getting Ready for the Final Push (38,563)

Ultimately made decent progress today - almost 3000 words. It would have been nice to have more, but I'll take it. Much of the day was spent mulling over where to go next. If I'm going to finish this off, I need to stick with much of the story I've already got. But I also have some interesting ideas for tweaks or different approaches. I think I just have to squelch those creative impulses and press on the straight story for now. Time for some more conflict. Ann Crenshaw goes missing.

Getting Back Into It (36,335)

I obviously took the day off yesterday. Did watch the film Hollywoodland last night to get pick up a bit of the period flavor. Might have to do that again sometime. Got about 650 words this morning. Started another confrontation scene, we'll see where it takes us later.

Setting up the end ? (35,673)

I didn't realize until just now but whatever actions I add into the plot now should be setting up the ending. I think that's actually happening without my overtly planning it. Yay! Fred and Janet reached a dead end trying to figure out the device, so they handed it off. They are about to be kidnapped or something. I've come up with several ideas for gluing the story back together. I need to write them down before I forget.

Another Decent Session (34,394)

Almost 800 words this morning. Not too bad. Wrote a transition that didn't seem to fall too flat. Now I have Janet and Fred about to be nabbed by nefarious forces, but only after Janet knows a little more about what's going on and her dad becomes an ally (I think).

Another Antagonist (33,670)

Now Fred has consulted someone on the nature of the mysterious gadget he found. I think it will turn out that this person has nefarious designs on the gizmo. He may even be behind some of the unfortunate events that have taken place. At least the scene seemed to come out pretty smoothly. What next, though?

Transitions (32,261)

It's hard for me not to get caught up in transitions. How the characters get from one place to another, one scene to another. I just spent 500 words or so on another one. The thing is, it actually does seem to help sometimes to figure out when actually should happen next. If I just jump around, the sequences don't seem natural and don't fit together very well.

Pushing On (31,676)

Didn't get as much done today as I'd hoped, but still stayed a day ahead of the 50K pace. The story took a bit of a twist because I decided that it was too early for Fred to confront the antagonist creature, so I'll had a killing be by another, this time human, killer. This ought to mix things up a bit, but I hope they don't make things too confusing in the end.

A Few More Words (30, 597)

I only got about 500 more words this morning, in about an hour. But they're not bad. I think I've setup another jolt to the story, we'll see how I feel when I return in a little while to continue.

Better and Better (30,047)

I came up with what I think is a reasonable way to get Janet and Fred together, without using the totally artificial way I was working on last week. It finally fell out of the change in direction I started yesterday and continued this morning and just seems (somewhat) logical. Anyway, we'll go with it for now. At least the story is still moving, even though I've sort of skipped back and forth and ignored some transitions. This will need a lot of fixing on the second draft, but that's to be expected. I really enjoyed the NaNoWriMo encouragement from Neil Gaiman this morning. It's nice to know that established authors still go through many of the same things that we mortal newbies do.

The Story Unfolds (28,256)

This morning, I had the Air Force and Ann bring Fred up to date. I'm not sure if that's really the way to go, but I'll see if it works. I may have to come back in the edit and tone down the revelations until later. At least the story still seems to be getting somewhere.

Another Day, Another Character (26,709)

Now the Air Force shows up. This means there are at least two government agencies, plus the police involved in the situation. Plus the mysterious Professor Correlli, Ann Crenshaw, and the two creatures. Not to mention Fred and his friends and associates. I think that's a pretty good population of who's in my whodunnit/whatsgoingon. But I do think there are a few more lurking. At least the story is starting to actually go somewhere again.

Yes, Much Better (25,133)

I finished up the scene I started this morning (I did get at least 15oo more, yay). It's one of the most action filled scenes I've probably written. There's a scuffle and an escape and a car that won't start. I hope everyone survives all right (hint: they do, the story's just getting going). Now, where do we go from here? I think I'll find out in the morning.

That Was Better (23,510)

I didn't start writing as early as I should have. When do I not? But with a better night's sleep and a decision to move on (or actually back a little) and write a more important, bigger scene, this morning's session was much more enjoyable. I still want to at least catch up to the 50K pace, so I'm planning on another 1500 words tonight. We'll see.

This scene lets us see that there really is something going on involving something not of this earth and puts Fred in the middle of it by meeting the lady and the scientist.

Unproductive Morning (22,382)

I only wrote a few hundred words, despite waking up even earlier than usual. What a pain.

I think the problem is that I realized that much of the recent plotting I have added is not working and I need to set off in a new direction. And the trouble is I'm not sure where to start.

I'm pretty disappointed to not have been more efficient in my time management this morning. But all was not lost. I did much pondering over what to do. I did a little more research into the history of the area. I did write those 360 words. And I think I will know where to start by tonight (and I think I have the evening to write).

The Mystery Deepens (22,061)

There is a mysterious stranger at the home of Janet's parents. I know that its the same mysterious man that Fred talked to on the phone, but nobody else does. Janet's parents seem to be hiding something. And why are their cars in the driveway and not the garage?

More of the same (20,262)

Now I'm past the date and we're meeting the parents and uncovering some secrets. The story still feels like it's slowed down too much and there's too much talking and background exposition going on. Still, it's moving forward and I'm glad to be keeping up with the 50K pace with such ease. I still wish I was keeping my 60K or 75K pace.

Back to Work (19,036)

Did about 800 words this morning. Got the rest in this evening. Mostly a romantic interlude. Time to get the plot boiling again tomorrow.

Skipped a Day

My excuses: I slept in this morning, then went car shopping and buying. I thought I had just enough energy to get in a thousand words or two when we got home, then I read my email and learned my Uncle John had passed away. That sort of takes the wind out of your sails. Besides, as far as 50K goes, I'm doing alright. Maybe I can get back on my desired pace tomorrow and over this week (yeah, right).

Bogged a Little (16,425)

I sat at the computer for almost 3.5 hours this morning and only managed another 1000 words. Part of it was pure procrastination (doing other things), but part of it seems to be that I'm undecided where to go next, even though I thought I knew. I did manage to get some actual research done and make some more notes. So all was not wasted. And I'm still ahead of the curve for 50K, though I'm falling behind for 60K or 75K. I need to shut up and write.

This Is Fun (15,412)

I wish I could sit here and keep writing this stuff all day. But the job that actually pays the bills awaits. One of the things I'm noticing with this project is that I've left it much more wide-open than my previous efforts. Anything can happen. I'm not constrained by a bunch of pre-defined constraints on location, motivation or character. This seems to make things easier. Then again, I may have to reconsider when I try to tie up all of the loose ends I'm unraveling.

Keeping the Pace (13787)

This morning I hit over 12K. Tonight I added almost 1400 more words to almost get back on pace for 2000 words a day. If I have a good day tomorrow, I should be there. It's amazing that just as I think the story is about to bog down, I realize that something interesting can happen and things just start flowing again. I hope this continues through the end of the month and the end of the book.

Past the Big 10K (10405)

I really wish I would have hit this milestone yesterday. But this is still good. The words aren't exactly pouring out, but the writing is going easy enough. Maybe I'll get to add a few hundred more tonight and push ahead. This morning was nice because I got to reassemble the beginning of the love story. My previous attempt was pretty clunky. This time I'm going to let things progress a little more slowly and, I hope, naturally.

Hanging in there (8322)

I was hoping to be ahead of the curve by now, but needed to get some other stuff done yesterday and wound up too tuckered out to write last night. Even so, I did write yesterday before lunch and at least caught up with the curve this morning. And I'm really enjoying the writing, which is good. That doesn't mean that the words are always just flowing. But I am able to keep bumping along adding elements that keep the story moving, I hope, in the right direction. Anyway, maybe I'll get another few hundred words on the books tonight before Heroes comes on.

Where Next? (5528)

I've got a pretty good opening chapter or two. But now I've run out of steam for the moment. I've introduced at least three mysteries and a couple of antagonist types. It might be time for an interlude of calm before the next round of intrigue.

A Good Spurt (3633)

Well, it's nice to be on track already. I had a really good spurt last night, but forgot to blog it. I pushed on from there this morning and see that I'm now in line with the official expected progress. Except I am hoping that I will do a bit better this time. I'd like to have more than 50K words at the end of the month. That would put me in a position to edit down to a novel, rather than having to add to it later. Wouldn't that be nice?

A Modest Start (464)

I let myself sleep a bit later than originally planned this morning. Then I gave into the typical procrastination routine, which left only an hour or so of writing before I needed to stop and head to the office. Even so, I like what I've written. I think it sets a good tone for the rest of the story. Some of it may even survive the editing process.