Saturday, November 17, 2018

NaNoWriMo Story Update No. 1: The Story Floweth!


Granted, it's now halfway through the month and this is only the second time I've updated you all... but those first couple weeks, man--that was rough!!

The Situation

First of all, my current work situation has me frazzled and tired out most days, since I'm either sitting and talking, or pacing on high alert in a recess (noisy and chaotic) or crossing guard (vehicles and their drivers who do not go 20 MPH IN A SCHOOL ZONE YOU MONSTER) situation, so when I get home, there is a lot of "de-compressing" in order, and by the time I've got my energy level back, it's after dinner and there are only a couple hours before I start nodding off in front of the screen... So yeah, I spent most of the first two weeks lagging hopelessly behind.

Second, I started plugging away at my two projects, only to realize that, to my chagrin, thinking that I already had all my planning done and not doing any planning during October to get my mind into gear for November was a mistake. I had been avoiding these projects for so long, that when I finally sat down to write them in earnest... the words just were not there. I had "fallen out of my characters' heads" as the literary expression goes, and it was going to take a few days to get back into the swing of things--and with every day that ticked by when I was scrambling for even a thousand words, I fell a thousand more words behind.

It's been about three days of good, solid writing, though--so I think it's safe to say that I'm back! Things are humming, I am on track and slowly working my way ahead of the curve... and a holiday weekend is coming up, giving me even more of a chance to get all squared away before the month is through! I can still win this thing, I know it!

Now for the story updates!

The Last Inkweaver

I'm nearing the end of Chapter 22, and we are finally out of the clutches of Ronni the Bounty Hunter Queen! Dearie me, that first "transitional" scene, going from "this is horrible" to "now what" was really hard... I mean, at first I had thought that I felt like tweaking the plan... but I only got a couple hundred words in before I stalled and ended up having to go back to the "point of deviation" and write it all back through again, more or less like I planned it. I am very much amazed at how much more involved it all got--actual descriptions of the house in the woods, the Pit where she keeps her prisoners, and the whole community they've formed down there, as well as getting amazingly prepared for their eventual escape, should it happen in their lifetimes.

This particular scenario also marks a big turning point for Callista and I think things really came together in such a way that it's going to be simple enough to bring that out for the reader. Being able to bring in a new character and open up the Wordspinner concept into a more widespread area, I think, also adds a bit of cohesiveness, so that I'm not restricting the action in the book to only my main characters, like I did the first time around. Plus who doesn't love a good recurring character? Knowing where my story is going to end up lets me put in a lot more foreshadowing, that the reader won't see coming... this is going to be so much fun!

The Sheriff's Showdown

Two chapters down, eight more to go! I know I should really be focused on Inkweaver, as that's the project I really want to FINISH this year, in spite of the fact that the more I add to it, the more it feels like the story just gets longer and longer, and I'm still not getting any closer to the end! But all in all, I'm really happy about the way that this one has been turning out, too.

Just like Inkweaver, I am finding myself adding more secondary characters, and giving the setting and the world itself a little more color and variation, instead of narrowing my focus onto one or two people around which the entire story revolves. Among those are "Tru and Pru", a couple of good, church-going, spinster sisters who run a bed-and-breakfast in town and are always making other people's business their own. Actually taking the time to describe what's going on around Laura, and not just what has direct bearing on her, I think, is helping me form a clearer picture of what's going on, and a broader scope--and it is my hope that this will also be the case for my readers. As matters stand, I think I'm going to set that aside for now and "ride the wave" that is Inkweaver for as long as I can before returning to "the adventures of Laura." All in all, it's coming off pretty successfully and I'm happy with it!

>>>>>>>>

So there you have it! Two weeks down, two more to go... "The End of Inkweaver Or Bust" is the name of the game! Wish me luck!

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