my friend jami sent this link to me and i just HAD to share: writing advice. it's the perfect combo of helpful, nonsensical advice mixed with humor and snarkiness. thanks, Chuck Wendig!
just a bit of clarification. I didn't tweet or post it myself because I disagree with parts of what he says. A major point being his 2nd one:
"Your goal is the novel. Your goal is not to “win” an Internet experiment-slash-experience. If you need three months, take ‘em. If you need six, take ‘em. If you need eight… well..." There lies the problem. Thinking you (the collective you, not just Mo) have months to write it. NO. If you continue reading you will see that later he finally agrees that NaNo should be thought of as a "Zero Draft" -- less than a first draft. If a person doesn't take the daily quota seriously, and do everything humanly possible to make the 50K, then it's like signing up for a 5K race, running 1/2 a block every time and patting oneself on the back for at least trying. Sometimes we have to push beyond the comfort zone. I didn't really want to sit in the cold room and write this morning, but I did it anyway. I pushed on. I wanted to stop after 600 words and again after 1174 words, but I kept going. It wasn't easy and it won't be easy the next 29 days. But it's the ONLY way to have something to edit later and for some it's the only way anything even remotely resembling a novel will get written -- of that I am certain!!
just a bit of clarification. I didn't tweet or post it myself because I disagree with parts of what he says. A major point being his 2nd one:
ReplyDelete"Your goal is the novel. Your goal is not to “win” an Internet experiment-slash-experience. If you need three months, take ‘em. If you need six, take ‘em. If you need eight… well..." There lies the problem. Thinking you (the collective you, not just Mo) have months to write it. NO. If you continue reading you will see that later he finally agrees that NaNo should be thought of as a "Zero Draft" -- less than a first draft. If a person doesn't take the daily quota seriously, and do everything humanly possible to make the 50K, then it's like signing up for a 5K race, running 1/2 a block every time and patting oneself on the back for at least trying. Sometimes we have to push beyond the comfort zone. I didn't really want to sit in the cold room and write this morning, but I did it anyway. I pushed on. I wanted to stop after 600 words and again after 1174 words, but I kept going. It wasn't easy and it won't be easy the next 29 days. But it's the ONLY way to have something to edit later and for some it's the only way anything even remotely resembling a novel will get written -- of that I am certain!!
PS -- 1828 after a Word Sprint just now. I got all fired up from posting ;)Day One is done.
ReplyDeleteUm, speaking of back pats, that is.
ReplyDeleteDamn Straight ;) I'm at 15K now... (behind, but still plugging away.) That's all we can do in life and writing... keep the hand moving!
ReplyDelete