November stats
Nov. 30th, 2008 09:51 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
musingaloudNovember Stats:
Words this month: 20019
Average words per day: 667.3
Days of writing at least 100 words a day: 126
FOUR MONTHS of writing daily. Every single day. The first month of writing daily, I averaged 178 words per month. The second month, 283. The third month, 325. This month, I attempted to Nanowrimo. I didn't expect to hit the 50k mark. About halfway through the month, my goal dropped to 25k. So I didn't make that either. Thanksgiving happened.
But here's what I did learn. I need a roadmap to write a novel. I won't call it an outline, because I have a psychological aversion to outlines for some odd reason, despite my love of organization. But I love maps. A roadmap to my destination is just what I need. And with all maps, there can be several roads to take to a destination, some straight and narrow, others winding and long. And sometimes along the way to a destination, a breakdown can occur and the traveller stuck in a location. Maybe a new destination becomes more realistic, more desirable.
Writing without knowing where I'm going gives me anxiety. Anxiety makes me want to turn my back on it, to do something that is more comforting, and so I turn to teh internet surfing or freecell or a myriad of other possibilites all designed to distract me from trying to decide on the spur of the moment where I'm going.
Forcing myself to write even though I not know where I'm going makes me stutter and write dead prose. Knowing where I'm going will actually make me feel freer and more open to possibilities. It will not lock me in a corner. I like to be a more deliberate writer.
In the end, failing at Nano has been a success. I've learned what doesn't work. I've learned I'm not a speedy writer. Steady as she goes, that's me. And that's okay.
Words this month: 20019
Average words per day: 667.3
Days of writing at least 100 words a day: 126
FOUR MONTHS of writing daily. Every single day. The first month of writing daily, I averaged 178 words per month. The second month, 283. The third month, 325. This month, I attempted to Nanowrimo. I didn't expect to hit the 50k mark. About halfway through the month, my goal dropped to 25k. So I didn't make that either. Thanksgiving happened.
But here's what I did learn. I need a roadmap to write a novel. I won't call it an outline, because I have a psychological aversion to outlines for some odd reason, despite my love of organization. But I love maps. A roadmap to my destination is just what I need. And with all maps, there can be several roads to take to a destination, some straight and narrow, others winding and long. And sometimes along the way to a destination, a breakdown can occur and the traveller stuck in a location. Maybe a new destination becomes more realistic, more desirable.
Writing without knowing where I'm going gives me anxiety. Anxiety makes me want to turn my back on it, to do something that is more comforting, and so I turn to teh internet surfing or freecell or a myriad of other possibilites all designed to distract me from trying to decide on the spur of the moment where I'm going.
Forcing myself to write even though I not know where I'm going makes me stutter and write dead prose. Knowing where I'm going will actually make me feel freer and more open to possibilities. It will not lock me in a corner. I like to be a more deliberate writer.
In the end, failing at Nano has been a success. I've learned what doesn't work. I've learned I'm not a speedy writer. Steady as she goes, that's me. And that's okay.
