(no subject)
Nov. 13th, 2010 02:35 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
musingaloudDebate on the value of Nanowrimo is all over the net. Some people think it's silly to try to write a novel in 30 days, but I think they're missing the point. I know I'm not going to write a complete novel in 30 days--a 50k story is not a full length novel. I think most of us are just trying to get the basic idea of a novel down--maybe a 50k synopsis--or perhaps the first half in rough draft form.
I am worried that I'm putting down words without caring what the heck they are. I'm not sure it's leading me to an end state of the story or if I'm just wasting time and causing myself more work in revision time. Without a road map, I'm afraid the story's going to end up lost in the woods and never be able to find its way to completion. I'm reminding myself that anything I write can be undone later (although it'll be a heck of a lot of work!). All this writing is good practice, even writing bad words can be good, as long as I recognize what I've done wrong and figure out how to change it.
I think the important point about Nano is learning to set a daily goal of writing X number of words and sticking to it. And to turn off the damned internal editor until Draft 2. I started out miserably, missing 3 days completely and not hitting goal in several others. But the last three days have been going quite well and I feel confident that I can make up for those lost days -- even though it will mean writing every single day from here on out, even though there is Thanksgiving coming and jury duty and a day lost to medical procedure. I'm aiming for 2-2.5 k a day from now on out, and if I hit the 2.5, I'll have caught up by next week. And if I can keep that pace up, then I'll finish a day or two early, which would please me immensely.
But the story is starting to get into VERY unfamiliar territory, and I really don't know where its going. Which will be leading me to a new post in a day or two (sorry for the length of this one! If you hung in until the end, then you get a big virtual {{hug}}.) about how I'm beginning to see the value in *gasp* outlining.
I am worried that I'm putting down words without caring what the heck they are. I'm not sure it's leading me to an end state of the story or if I'm just wasting time and causing myself more work in revision time. Without a road map, I'm afraid the story's going to end up lost in the woods and never be able to find its way to completion. I'm reminding myself that anything I write can be undone later (although it'll be a heck of a lot of work!). All this writing is good practice, even writing bad words can be good, as long as I recognize what I've done wrong and figure out how to change it.
I think the important point about Nano is learning to set a daily goal of writing X number of words and sticking to it. And to turn off the damned internal editor until Draft 2. I started out miserably, missing 3 days completely and not hitting goal in several others. But the last three days have been going quite well and I feel confident that I can make up for those lost days -- even though it will mean writing every single day from here on out, even though there is Thanksgiving coming and jury duty and a day lost to medical procedure. I'm aiming for 2-2.5 k a day from now on out, and if I hit the 2.5, I'll have caught up by next week. And if I can keep that pace up, then I'll finish a day or two early, which would please me immensely.
But the story is starting to get into VERY unfamiliar territory, and I really don't know where its going. Which will be leading me to a new post in a day or two (sorry for the length of this one! If you hung in until the end, then you get a big virtual {{hug}}.) about how I'm beginning to see the value in *gasp* outlining.
