Category: Novel News

The Week That Was

I am continuing to beaver away on my novel, so much so that I haven’t had a great amount of time to post anything here.  Therefore this will merely be a small update plus a few words about remembrance day.

I have now passed 22,000 words and am certain to make 25k and quite probably 30k.  The story is progressing well, it is undoubtedly the saddest thing I have ever written.  That doesn’t mean its short of laughs or incredibly depressing.  The whole premise of the novel only works if I can make the reader feel an emotional attachment to the main character.  So far I believe I have done that.  The biggest worry is that I feel like the pace of the story has dropped.  Obviously I can try to rectify it at a later date.  It’s just strange to keep forcing yourself forward.  Since I typed my first word I have banned myself from deleting anything which isn’t in the sentence I am writing.  Therefore I am certain that at times I must have page after page of nonsense.  Nonetheless I shall keep moving forward.

Nowadays it seems that no remembrance day can go by without a protest and a counter protest and a counter-counter protest.  A large number of idiots in the world seem intent on politicizing a day which is meant to be about dignity and respect.  Participating in remembrance day has absolutely nothing to do with the righteousness of any given war it is about remembering those who have given their lives in defence or in an attempt to better the lives of others.  It saddens me to see the number of 21st century digital soldiers who are idiotic enough to believe that slandering the memory of the men who marched through hell on our behalf is okay.  These i-phone loving, kindle reading, latte-sipping, nike-wearing, shit-talking, soul-less cowards are the evidence that somewhere down the line we, the human race have got it massively wrong.

35,000 Words To Go

Today I passed the 15,o00 word mark and must confess that first time I can see problems looming on the horizon.   Perhaps I was slightly naive in believing that I could free write my way to 50,000 words using a concept I refused to develop before starting.  I wanted the evolution to be natural and unfortunately I am starting to suspect that I won’t make the 30,000 word mark using this idea as it stands.

For the first time I have sat down and actually tried to plot my story line in part to help me maintain a clear direction and also to help me roughly estimate how many words I can pull from this concept.  I do not want to pointlessly pad out the plot as  that would deem the last 9 days as a waste.  My plan of action for now is to write the remainder of the story and then worry after.

In the last post I declared that I wouldn’t read the novel until the 1st of December.  Unfortunately that is now clearly impossible and incredibly unrealistic.  In hindsight I can think of a number of places where I could add new scenes which would add something to the story quite naturally.  The irritating fact is that I have very specifically tried to write a pacey, punchy manuscript and I am certain that when it comes to writing additional scenes I am  sure to disrupt the flow.  Nevertheless I shall cross that bridge when I come to it.

In the meantime my better half has started to read through what I have already written.  Her first impression is that this is the clearest and most focused story I have written.  The best news is that the major twist on which the whole plot depends, caught her completely unaware.  Her opinion means a great deal to me, although I know she is too lovely to ever tell me get a grip, give up and get a life.  Which means one of two things, either we are both completely crazy or I am a very lucky man indeed.

10,000 Words

In 6 days of writing I have comfortably broken the 10,000 word barrier.  I can now say to myself that I am 20% finished.  It is a pretty awesome, awe-inspiring feeling as it makes be believe that writing a 50,000 word novel in a month is well within the reams of possibility.  The fact that NaNoWriMo gives you daily word targets gives you a greater sense of exactly where you are in regards to completing your novel which in turn helps you keep your feet on your ground, and keep you focused.

At the moment I feel this project is far removed, and so different from anything I have ever written in my life.  Whether it will end up as a failed experiment or something I can be proud of I don’t know.  It’s exciting to be working on something which is pushing me as a writer.  It is a million miles from my comfort zone.  I have banned myself from reading it, and I shall do my level best to resist the temptation until November is finished, this way I can be assured that there will be at least one person excited to read it.

In the last update I was talking about how unusual words can come up when you write and grab your attention.  The recent word which has fascinated me is ‘lambasted’.  When you read it with a southern english accent it sounds like it means ‘to break something with a young sheep’.

It’s On

Today the starting pistol was fired for NaNoWriMo.  I wouldn’t say my start was a flyer, alas it wasn’t too bad either.  1700 words in on what will be a 50,000 word journey is quite an intimidating thought.  I feel like I am standing in front of Everest.  I am scared but also exhilarated.  I am the master of my fate for the next month.  Come the end of November, if I fail I shall only have myself to blame.   I shall try to keep posting on my blog, obviously I shan’t have so much time, at the least I shall keep adding progress reports.

It’s a strange irony that the 1st of November is not only the day I have started my novel, but it is also the day of the dead here in Poland.  As death is a key theme in this project, and death is absolutely everywhere, it’s hard to actually think of much else.  I intend on writing a more detailed post about this peculiar Polish holiday later in the week.  What I will say for now is that it the inspiration is working for me.

One of the many wonders of writing for me is when you find yourself typing a word that you seldom use.  So much so that when you say the word aloud it makes you smile.  Todays word was ‘skittish’.  Is it me or does it sound a little like a nationality?  Maybe it’s used to describe people from St Kitts?  Anyway, enough of my nonsense, I have to get ready to join the real world.

Two And A Half Days Until Lift Off

As I previously mentioned, I have signed up to http://www.nanowrimo.org and have every intention of writing a 50,000 word novel in November.  I am pumped and can’t wait for Tuesday to come around so I can get started.  You can still sign up for a month of madness, so if you haven’t already put your name down for passage on this fantastic voyage do it now.  You know you want to.

I have decided upon my subject for November.  I feel it is quirky enough to get 50,000 words from.  Not only that I get to fulfill a long-held personal ambition.  Since I decided to participate I have had an idea in my head which has already started to take on a life of its own.  I know that between now and the time I finished this project I will not be able to sleep.  Today I filled in my synopsis on the NaNoWriMo website so I feel able to publicly share the very loose basis for the project.  Of course it may change a thousand times through November but for today it is correct.  So here you are, the brief outline to my new novel.  Are you sitting comfortably?

There are three things which can irrevocably change a man’s life. Death, God and saying the wrong thing at precisely the wrong moment. Unfortunately for Professor Henry Tomlinson he has recently experienced all three. As Henry desperately tries to cling onto the remnants of his sanity he gets pursued by ninjas, hunted by journalists and stalked by priests. Can Henry get through this ordeal without losing his mind, and if he does what kind of Henry Tomlinson will remain?