NaNoWriMo

As many of you in the struggling-writer-in-progress online world know, November is National Novel Writing Month, with its annual challenge to write a 50,000 word novel in 30 days. I signed up last year, wrote two pages, and spent the rest of the month dodging encouraging emails and reminders. This year, I'm committed. I have been writing and submitting stories and articles all year (though have yet to sell any), and throughout the summer that voice which has dogged my steps for as long as I can remember has gotten steadily louder. (You know that voice. The one who says, HEY! WRITE THAT NOVEL YOU'VE BEEN THINKING ABOUT FOREVER!!)

For the last few days I have been doing research on my topic (Lilith), as well as some historical time periods I plan to include. I have worked out a vague storyline in my head, and I hope that Neil Gaiman is right when he says at some point it will all come together like magic and I'll know what I'm doing.

My main strategy this time is just to WRITE. I have a terrible habit of writing two paragraphs, then spending 3 days editing them to death. This time, I am going to just write, get the words down on paper, and forbid myself to go back and look at anything until December 1. As they say at the NaNoWriMo hints page, the time for editing is later, when you have a manuscript. The important thing is to get to that point first.

I will add updates here, hopefully every couple of days, to let my faithful reader(s) know how it is going. I also have a post coming up on E.A. Poe, in celebration of All Hallow's Eve.

25 October 2007