It took a while but yesterday my total finally made contact with the diagonal line. For those unfamiliar with NaNo, that means that I actually reached the number of words I was meant to be on come 21st November – 35,000. Given that I started a week late and so was over 10,000 words behind, it’s nice to gallop into line.
In terms of the novel itself, the whole thing has turned far darker than I’d originally intended. I knew it wasn’t going to be sweetness and light (my stories rarely are), but I didn’t anticipate it going this way. Perhaps when I slip into pure pantser mode, this is what happens.
I began with a clear scene in my mind in a supermarket car park. Along with the vaguest idea of character, that’s where I started. It’s always incredible to get to this point and realise how much has sprouted from that one small idea. Sure, the whole thing’s a mess and is currently riddled with inconsistencies. However, it’s developed on its own. The latest twist my characters threw in startled even me!
My focus now is finishing NaNo and the draft itself. My usual total for a first draft is between 50,000 and 55,000, so it shouldn’t be any problem to finish it before the month’s out. I wish I’d had more time to participate in this social side of NaNo this year. Unfortunately, the pressures of wanting to catch up coupled with that little thing called life have prevented it. The only write-ins I’ve been to are the private ones in my favourite writing haunt where they know my coffee habits and don’t mind me taking up a table most of the day. I’ve written, rewritten, and edited so many projects in there over the last four years that it’s more like my primary home than my second. Seriously, if you’re ever in Wakefield, give Create at Wakefield One a try. I’ll probably be in there, whether that’s a deterrent or not…
