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| Still ahead of schedule... Just. |
I know that second weeks of NaNoWriMo months are harsh. They're kinda notorious for being as difficult to get through as swimming through molasses. That's why all of the encouragement we get from the organizers in week two features some version of "Hey it's okay to struggle. You're far from the only one, so just keep chipping away and things will get easier."
To be honest, though, I thought I'd skip the difficult second week. Not because week one was epic (and it was), but because I'm in the final sixth of my book. These are the final chapters leading up to the climactic point and the last ones to finish the book off.
They write themselves.
They always have.
Usually when I hit the last quarter of a book, I can easily write up to 6k words in a day. (My record is 10k in a single push.)
But what I didn't count on was that, when I threw a huge curve ball at my characters, they would retaliate with a massive one in return.
You'd think, after having about six iterations of this same event in my draft novels without much of a dent, nothing would change when I let the same thing happen now.
Boy, was I wrong.
Because I hadn't taken into account one major thing: Every time before, the thing happened early in the story. This time, it happened near the end.
And because of everything that had happened before the event, the characters were now armed with a set of information that pointed to something I hadn't even looked at.
Et voila.
Devastation.
I've been struggling to write even 1000 words a day since Tuesday. The moment I get to scenes around this event, my unwilling fingers slow down to a drag and I want to burst into tears.
But hey! Drama's good. So I can't complain too much.
I just have to get over this.
And hopefully my poor readers will cry just as hard when they hit this scene. I'm not going to say what it was, but... I think you'll know when you see it.
How are you doing? Have you ever had a character spring a whole new world of pain on you? How did you recover?
Ten thousand words once. I'm in awe...
ReplyDeleteEven a thousand a day is good. Keep fighting.
Hehehehe it was bad because it burned me out for a month. :-D
DeleteAt least you recognized that you had to deal with the point rather than having an editor tell you about it and say, What are you going to do about this?
ReplyDeleteLove,
Janie
Yeah that's true. I don't like leaving accidental loose strings.
DeleteMy characters are always doing that to me. I have entire book ideas because of them doing that!
ReplyDeleteAt least you're still ahead of schedule! I'm so behind on my Camp NaNo goal. Not giving up yet, though!
You can catch up. I know it! :-)
DeleteI've certainly had characters spring surprises on me, and aspects of the story take on a life of their own. I'm with Alex, even a thousand words a day is more than I can typically manage. Hope you can keep on track.
ReplyDeleteI like when it happens, because I think it makes for more compelling reading. But man, this surprise wasn't a nice one.
DeleteYou can do this! It'll suddenly all make sense again, and you'll be unstoppable :-)
ReplyDeleteI hope you get through your second week blues and bust out the mega words. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteThanks! At the moment, writing still feels like I'm trying to herd cats, but at least I'm able to get the words down again.
Delete10K in one setting? You are the woman!
ReplyDeleteI don't think I've ever hit 3K at a setting. Kudos, Misha:)
Hahahaha it's a rare event. I try not to do too much in a day because it tends to burn me out to do more than 5k words.
DeleteMy endings to stories always slower to write. I guess that's because the characters are fighting me because they don't want such things to happen. LOL! Keep on writing. It'll be worth it in the end. :)
ReplyDeleteHahahaha yeah my characters definitely seem to be fighting me.
Delete10K in one go? I would love to do that.
ReplyDeleteA curve ball for our story and characters can lead to a curve ball for the writer. I hope you get through this!
Yeah I think I'm through it. Wrapping up the last chapters this week. ^_^
DeleteWow Misha, you write a lot! I know you will work your way through this. Cheering you on.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much!
DeleteI have written 10k in one go once, but only towards the end of a second draft. I'm in awe of you, girl.
ReplyDeleteI've lost all motivation for camp this time. Just spending my time reading and researching.
Damyanti
Same here. Yesterday, I wrote 8k words to wrap up the last three chapters. I wouldn't have made 10k, though, even if I did have more to write, because I'd stopped at 11:30pm.
DeleteI like the idea of NaNoWriMo, but if often doesn't work for me. I prefer not to put the pressure on myself, and see if I can simply let the writing happen:)
ReplyDeleteI have a strange relationship with NaNo. I almost always take part, but I almost never win. :-D
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