Wednesday, October 31, 2012

'Twas the night before NaNo...

 
'Twas the night before NaNoWriMo, when all through the house

No one was writing, not even moving a mouse;

The plots and characters were waiting with care,

In hopes that midnight soon would be there.

Tonight at midnight NaNo 2012 starts!
 
I have to say I feel far more vested in my world and characters than I usually do when I start a new book. Clearly a side effect of the whole planning and outling thing ;). 
 
Now, I have to be honest, I’ve only partially outlined this puppy (which for me is still a major achievement!). I changed around act 1 so often, that I was wary of doing as much of a solid chapter by chapter outline for act 2. I do have scattered notes of scenes that need to happen, and I do know where it will end. (And where the OTHER books will go-LOL!  I am an avowed series junkie. )
 
Right now only act 1 is chapter by chapter. My plan (and I do have one ;)) is to take a day breather after act 1 (which could be between 80-100 pages) and tighten my chapter planning for act 2. I write big books, so NaNo won’t even get me half way there, probably not much past the first section of act 2 ;).
 
But I think I’m as ready as I can be for tomorrow (no, sorry, not staying up to start writing at midnight ;)).
 
I do have the pantser fear of freezing since so much has already been thought out, but I really think I’m going to be ok. Of course, we won’t know for sure until this rodeo gets started!
 
Happy NaNo Eve all!  (If you're not doing it- cheer on your friends!  Chances are a few folks you know are going NaNo!)

6 comments:

  1. Maybe it's just me, but isn't 50,000 words more of a novella than a novel? Seems pretty light to me. I'm lucky to finish a first draft with 90,000 words and there are usually more missing scenes to put in than info to take out.

    Personally, I think November is a terrible month for write a novel month because of Thanksgiving and all the time and travel people tend to put into the holiday. Of course, December would be worse.

    You go girl. I've got my cheerleading uniform on for you. Like the virile young men I hired to help me with the assisted lifts? Heym you! Move that hand! :)

    Here's our first cheer:

    Marie, Marie, she's our gal,
    Gonna write the next great novel.
    Punch those keys,
    Burn that midnight oil.
    You got thirty days,
    To sweat and toil.
    When your finished,
    Hear those agents rave.
    When your published,
    Bask in the critic's praise.
    Marie, Marie, she's our gal,
    Writing the next great novel.

    Lots of luck,
    Sharon


    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Sharon-LOVE the cheer! Yeah, 50,000 would be low for any adult novel- but it should get me almost to the halfway mark (my books tend to range from 110,000 to 135,000 ;)).

      Keep up the cheers! And thanks for coming by :)

      Delete
  2. I'm with you Marie! I posted my own pre-NaNo blog a bit ago over at Redcrested.com. I'm not as planned as I wish I were, but oh well! And 50,000 words won't get me there either, but it's a good start, and for me maybe 3/4 there? I won't know until I get there. I tend to write shorter vs longer, so I'm hoping to wrap this one up in 75,000 to 80,000 words. Good luck tomorrow!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for coming by and commenting Sandra :). I have a feeling our "not as planned" as we hoped stage will be ok, hopefully it'll give both of us some room!

      Good luck to you as well!! NANO power!!!

      Delete
  3. I admire your confidence, Marie. I only have a vague idea and a page or so of notes, but I'm going to NANO it anyway. November 1 snuck up on me. I'll be following your progress for encourgement.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Good luck Cheryl! Hey, most all of my books have been launched with just a vague idea and a few notes ;). We'll see how this way works!

      Thanks for coming by and happy NaNoing!

      Delete