- Writing Time: 01:30
- Session Word Count: 1852
- Total Word Count: 19720 (18333 par)
Ah, a quiet weekend, and the peace of knowing that I can take my time reaching my word count. In this session, my main characters meet a new character who is incredibly straightforward. He has certain beliefs, and he acts on them with conviction. I’m enjoying having him in a story where most of the characters are very cagey about pretty much anything.
Now that I’m 1/3 of the way through NaNoWriMo 2023, I’ve been thinking about what I find valuable about the experience. I once wrote about what I like and dislike about NaNoWriMo, but I have a couple things to add.
First and foremost, I’m enjoying how it offers a clear goal and a deadline. For those of us who procrastinate or experience certain types of executive dysfunction, an externally imposed deadline can be a huge help in actually getting things done (even if there are effectively no external consequences for missing the goal).
Second, it is helping me to identify the questions I need to answer to write the book. Even though the version I’m currently writing may not address those questions, or not address them in great ways, I can identify the questions and decide on better answers in revision. In this sense, writing a book during NaNoWriMo is a bit like treating the whole book as a series of writing spikes.
While I was writing yesterday’s NaNoWriMo post I came up with a solution to the prison island transport dilemma: goods are being smuggled out in secret, but non-illicit stuff and personnel comes and goes on ordinary ferries. So both can serve a purpose in the story.
Blogging has provided me with so much evidence of the usefulness of journaling about my writing. While it sometimes feels like work on top of work, forcing myself to think about what I’m doing and why I’m doing it has done a ton to improve my writing.
Words Deferred 