Nano progress
Nov. 11th, 2008 01:03 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
musingaloudNot a word count progress--just a general observation. I don't seem to have the Nano gene. I simply don't write that fast. I amble along and think and stop and write a bit, play a game of freecell, write a bit, etc etc etc. Not that it's bad. I think I'm just discovering my own way to write. And that's a good thing. I sound like I'm a novice at this, and I don't consider myself as such. But I don't think I've taken myself as seriously as perhaps I ought.
I don't have a lot of hours in the day to write, but then I know most of you don't, either. Two hours should be enough to write about 2-3k, but not for me. Not usually. It feels forced. I'll be happy if I can learn to do it, but I don' t have a lot of confidence that it'll happen.
What I am discovering is that maybe I am a outliner. Not an outline in the traditional sense of the word, but I do like to plan ahead in my normal everyday life. Not usually with my writing, though. So not having a sense of where I'm going feels scary and I think that's what interferes. Not that I don't think I'll come up with something to write once I get there, but I have to learn to live with the fear and not let it stop me, maybe. So I'm treating this nano project as an outlining project. Traditional outlines make me want to puke, but I think my outline method is to write an essay, a story about the story. In other words, a *very* rough first draft. This should be head-slap-simple, I suppose, but I feel like it's an epiphany for some reason. It's all a matter of how you look at things. Just changing the way you think about something often results in a big lightbulb moment.
It's all a process of discovery. I'm going to be really happy if I get to 25k. Actually I'm going to be really happy if I get to 10k. I'm learning to write faster. My poke-along method is just too slow. Yes, I realize I've contradicted myself a couple of times. It's my nature to write slow. That nature is too slow. But something will work out and come of it.
I don't have a lot of hours in the day to write, but then I know most of you don't, either. Two hours should be enough to write about 2-3k, but not for me. Not usually. It feels forced. I'll be happy if I can learn to do it, but I don' t have a lot of confidence that it'll happen.
What I am discovering is that maybe I am a outliner. Not an outline in the traditional sense of the word, but I do like to plan ahead in my normal everyday life. Not usually with my writing, though. So not having a sense of where I'm going feels scary and I think that's what interferes. Not that I don't think I'll come up with something to write once I get there, but I have to learn to live with the fear and not let it stop me, maybe. So I'm treating this nano project as an outlining project. Traditional outlines make me want to puke, but I think my outline method is to write an essay, a story about the story. In other words, a *very* rough first draft. This should be head-slap-simple, I suppose, but I feel like it's an epiphany for some reason. It's all a matter of how you look at things. Just changing the way you think about something often results in a big lightbulb moment.
It's all a process of discovery. I'm going to be really happy if I get to 25k. Actually I'm going to be really happy if I get to 10k. I'm learning to write faster. My poke-along method is just too slow. Yes, I realize I've contradicted myself a couple of times. It's my nature to write slow. That nature is too slow. But something will work out and come of it.
