November

Well, this is it, the last day of November, the last day of Nanowrimo. I think I should reach my half nano which is nice, though it has not been an easy month. This last week I have spent a lot of time lying on the floor or in bed due to my back playing up nastily, almost impossible to sit down and I have spent quite a bit of time staring at the ceiling thinking about some kind of contraption I could set my laptop up onto in order to write while lying on my back - I didn't come up with anything feasible! lol but if anyone has any suggestions then let me know, cause I am sure there will be a next time.
The niggles are still working their way out of my back now, and I really hope they disappear for tomorrow - I have to drive to Wellington, and I can't take my pain killers while I'm driving.
Feels so weird thinking that tomorrow my cousin is getting married. It makes my wedding feel a lot closer than it has until now. I just checked, 79 days!!!!!!!!! Time is just flying by, it's going to be 2008 before I know it.
I am thinking about signing up for Nanofimo which happens during December in order to get more of my novel completed, anything would help right, extra motivation seeing as December really is one busy month. But that said, I guess I am a little worried that I might fail that challenge too.
So, I'll sign up... lol can't let silly fears get in the way of my life anymore!

Decisions

So, I have decided to bow gracefully out of Nanowrimo. I would have to work myself pretty hard in order to finish at this point, and while some people have the strength and willpower to do that - I do not. What I do have the strength to say is that this wasn't a good writing month for me, or rather, this wasn't a good month for me to be attempting such a challenge.

I feel like I have now had enough of a breather from exams and the stress of this years study that I can let myself get back into those things which I love and so the aim now is to complete the smaller challenge of 25,000 words in November proposed over on the Kiwiwriters board for those who haven't had the time for the whole 50K. Seeing as that means only 7,000 more odd words then I should be fine! At least this month I will have succeeded at something writerly.

I have been thinking a lot this afternoon, about how hard it has been to motivate myself lately. I fell into this slump since exams have finished, this little world where you know you don't HAVE to do anything, there is nothing demanding your attention directly (other than small child, but I guess I am just so used to filling her needs and demands that it almost doesn't count). There are a lot of things I want to be doing, but just have not felt motivated enough to do.

I would have loved to have finished nano, I would have loved to have my garden totally in order, to have spent hours getting back into painting, to have done the massive house clean I have been dying to do, to read a few novels just for the hell of it, to get down to the beach more, to exercise more, to spend more time catching up with my friends, to have finalized the myriad things which need finalizing for the wedding... and so the list goes on. But what have I been doing? reading blogs, sitting around, watching day time TV, chilling out with my girl, playing games...

So I guess essentially I have been in 'recovery' mode, and thats ok, but it's time I moved on from there into some other kind of stage - unsure exactly what yet, but something that involves more productivity. I'm going to start giving myself smart, achievable lists of things that need doing in the week. Some of them will be a few hour jobs (finish weeding the garden), some of them will be longer term projects (collect shells at the beach for table decorations), and some of them will be attempts to set up habits (take the dog for a walk at least three times! Write for at least one hour a day).

We'll see how it goes. I have ticked two things off this weeks list already and am feeling better for it.

I'm an Aunty!

Little Jasper Kyle was born at 1015am this morning, everyone is healthy and happy though very tired seeing as labor started on Saturday!
So happy, can't wait until I can go and visit. Have been waiting very patiently for his arrival.
It's so exciting, and I am really looking forward to seeing what kind of father my little brother grows into. I know he's going to be a great one, but I also know that you really cannot have any idea how parenthood is going to affect you until it actually happens.
Welcome little one, I love you so much and I have not even laid eyes on you yet.

on not writing.

I haven't been, I think it's been two days since I wrote more than a sprinkling of words on my nano. My wrist is still quite achey and I have been giving it a break, this morning it feels a little better and I will give writing a go today.

it's wednesday right?

I keep losing days, its not much fun. Recently it's been to illness, and before that to beautiful weather - i mean, we are still having beautiful weather I have just managed to found enough restraint not to lose days to it.
The writing isn't going that well - numbers ways anyway. In all other aspects its going fantastically. I find I am still excited about my story, having just discovered how to push forward from where I am. I am about to unleash several new characters into the novel, and that is exciting stuff!! two in particular I am really thrilled about, they may be a bit cliche but they are going to be a lot of fun to write, and will likely cause quite a lot of havoc for my main players - everyone has their place though right, and there is certainly a place for these folk. It's really nice that several individuals from book one are returning this time around when I thought that they would not. There is one big issue that i really need to resolve soon, but that will come up, i just have to be patient and not feel guilty about having avoided it until now....
I managed to get to 17K today which I am happy with. My wrist is aching so I don't think I am going to push it too hard tonight, and hope that in the morning it feels less achey. I bet worries about carpal tunnel used to plague writers, but these days you can have operations, or use voice software I guess. Not that I am saying that I do have that, its just something I worry about with this ache. It hasn't really settled down since I sat all my exams and had to hand write a million essays, and doing all the bead work on some jewelry recently has certainly not helped the situation.
That said, I should stop typing and sleep.... I am sure that will do my wrist, and my brain some good. I hope I dream of my characters and my novel, that would be awesome.

Well

After the excitement of solving issues with my plot, I really didn't get around to writing much. I attained my first goal which was 10K the other night, and only just last night woke Ayden from her coma state.
It's nice to have her back, nice to slip into her skin again, and really nice to see the way in which her relationship with Falen is progressing - I mean, it's not progressing fast but they have this trust and respect, this bond which is hopefully going to be the basis of a beautiful thing regardless of whether they end up together or not (and I do hope that they do...). I am only at 13K words, and I had hoped to hit 20K by the end of the weekend, which only leaves me today. 7,000 words is theoretically totally manageable in one day, but we'll just have to wait and see if I can indeed pull it off.
Ivy has been a bit sick the last few days which has soaked up my time like a sponge, but Simon is off work today and hopefully he can distract her for a bit while I get some writing done, and then this afternoon we are all probably going down to the beach with the rest of the family, and maybe going for a ride in Dad's boat out to see the seal colony, Ivy will love that!
It has been a beautiful weekend weather ways, simply stunning. I am so looking forward to it getting even nicer.
Oh and now it's only two weeks til my cousins wedding! Which means it's just less than two weeks until Nano is done for the year!!! I need to get a haircut, find a dress, some shoes... a hat. I don't own a hat, or really any shoes which are acceptable for weddings lol or a dress I can wear! it I am really looking forward to the wedding, Catherine is going to look stunning, and I can't wait to see her on her big day. Of course, I'll have to take note of all the good ideas to borrow for my own wedding, she's already said she doesn't mind ;-)

Planner or Discoverer?

I read an interesting post in one of the forums on the nano site the other day, from a fantasy author answering questions that people put to him, and in amongst many other gems of information was the idea of planners and discoverers. I hadn't heard of this concept before, and I think it made me feel better about the way in which I write.
Basically there are the people who plan and plan and plan, know all the ins and outs of their story from the beginning who end up with a complete thing - consistent, organize, and not needing too much editing. And there are discoverers who have an idea and begin, they don't do a lot of planning but they just jump into the story, learning about the characters and the situation, the world it takes place in as they write - whew, there we go, thats me! lol while I try and do some planning, I find it a much more interesting process finding things out as I go along... its a joy discovering things about my characters, my world, my story as I go. I think for some reason it gives me the same kind of excitement that reading a book does - you are never quite sure what is going to happen around the corner, while you may know some of the things that are bound to happen in the wider scope. Discoverers he also mentioned tend to have to do more edits and rewrites, as the characters/story that they begun with can develop in ways different to how they may have initially been written at the beginning of the novel, I so hear that, lol I SO have to do that!!! It might be a long drawn out process, but atleast it's fun for me.
He mentioned that most people fall in between these two extremes, and thats bound to be true, there are as many ways to write a novel as there are people who write novels.
Also, I sent the first 10K to my reader in Wellington and he is loving it. 'I'm hooked, wheres my next 10K?' he asks... lol after the weekend, after the weekend.
I was meant to have a massive writing day today seeing as its normally the day which my little one is at childcare all day, but shes home sick with a vomiting bug - not a lot of fun for either of us, and not likely to be productive in many ways. I am still intent on getting to 20K by the end of the weekend, and then I am going to have to push on pretty hard in order to get to 50K by the end of the month. It can be done though, slow and steady... I know I can do it. Not at all worried about the story know as I know everything I need will be made clear in the process. Lovely to have faith in your characters like that.
Hope everyone elses writing is going well! Have been feeling absent from forums and boards lately, I think I'm still recovering from exams, attempting to renew and replenish myself. I am sure that soon I will feel like I have the energy to participate more widely once again.