Friday, October 31, 2008

NaNoWriMo - My Version

As many of y'all know, NaNoWriMo kicks off tomorrow. In theory, you are supposed to write a 50,000 page novel in the 30 days of November. It's not that difficult, if you think about two things. One, it's only 1,667 words a day. Two, that number is doable *if you don't edit.* Just Get It Written.

I'm doing my own version this year. By 30 November, I will complete me second novel. I suspect I'll need an additional 40,000-50,000 words so I'm basically doing NaNoWriMo. I'm just not starting from scratch. By comparison to my first novel, Treason at Hanford: A Harry Truman Mystery, which I wrote in about nine months, this second novel is my sophomore slump. Two years in the planning and writing and re-writing and re-writing and re-thinking. I've got my story down. I know what the chapters will focus on. I know where my heroine will go, what she will do, and the effect it'll all have on her. And I even will make room for little things that pop up.

But I will finish this book by the end of November. I don't expect my blogging to lessen but, if it does, you'll know why. Heck, reading James Reasoner's blog about his current schedule makes me laugh at my own lack of focus on this second book. I have it easy compared to him. But he is exactly where I want to be: a professional writer without the word "technical" in front of the word "writer."

I'll give everyone updates throughout the month. It's going to be a wonderful Thanksgiving.

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