I've been working on my graphic novel lately, and I actually like the work I've done. I've solved some pacing problems and have a lot of words on paper which means I am more or less done with a first draft and I am working on the second draft of the script. So this seems like the perfect time to get working on that other novel, right?
Yeah, don't worry, it sounds crazy to me too. But here it is November 1st and I'm feeling inspired and hopeful, so after a 10 year absence I am attempting NaNoWriMo yet again.
The funny thing is that when you are faced with either wrestling your manuscript into submission or tackling a blank page, suddenly the blank page doesn't seem so intimidating. In fact, compared to my graphic novel manuscript, my NaNoWriMo novel is fresh baked cookies and warm tea in a room full of doilies and sunshine. I'm ready to move in! Oh, sure,the honeymoon will be over in just a couple of weeks, but why worry about the future now? Here, have another cookie.
Is anyone else attempting NaNoWriMo this year? Let's join forces and spur each other on. I'll bake you cookies if you brew the tea (Earl Grey, hot).
Showing posts with label revising. Show all posts
Showing posts with label revising. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
The Heart of a Warrior
I met a new friend at last weekend's Spring Spirit Conference. Like me, she is 40 years old. Unlike me, she has a 14 year old child in the house (I was envious of the built-in audience testing, I have to be honest). And, well, she kind of reminded me of myself at 19. Now, wait, hear me out.
See, my new friend has a completed manuscript. Oh, she knows it's too long. And she knows she has too many protagonists. But she can't bear the idea of hacking her words to bits. She wants to create, not destroy. She is in love with her characters and doesn't want to tell one of them that she loves them less than another. Who amongst us can't relate to those sentiments?
But she also conveyed to me a feeling of betrayal, of jadedness at the entire publishing process. And that's where I found my 19-year-old self starring back at me across the aisle of our Fantasy breakout session (led by the incredibly charming and dynamic, Bruce Coville). The 19 year-old who'd had her heart crushed by her first love and was certain that "this whole love thing isn't for me." Because, you see, my new friend's face lit up whenever she talked about her characters and the world they inhabit. But then she'd utter the words "I dunno, maybe writing for children is not for me" and I'd watch as the fire in her eyes was doused by a flood of self-doubt.
This writing thing is hard. Not the writing itself, that's a joy. But putting it in front of people, being told it's not right, tearing your hair out trying to solve the issues your critiques have pointed out (or get your characters out of the corners you've painted them into), then starting all over again. That's war. That's being in the trenches -- hand-to-hand combat. But if you really, truly love your characters, you do it. You give them the chance to do what they were meant to do: touch the hearts of children everywhere and give them hope, comfort, joy.
I think my new friend can do this. I think she has the heart of a warrior. The heart of a writer.
See, my new friend has a completed manuscript. Oh, she knows it's too long. And she knows she has too many protagonists. But she can't bear the idea of hacking her words to bits. She wants to create, not destroy. She is in love with her characters and doesn't want to tell one of them that she loves them less than another. Who amongst us can't relate to those sentiments?
But she also conveyed to me a feeling of betrayal, of jadedness at the entire publishing process. And that's where I found my 19-year-old self starring back at me across the aisle of our Fantasy breakout session (led by the incredibly charming and dynamic, Bruce Coville). The 19 year-old who'd had her heart crushed by her first love and was certain that "this whole love thing isn't for me." Because, you see, my new friend's face lit up whenever she talked about her characters and the world they inhabit. But then she'd utter the words "I dunno, maybe writing for children is not for me" and I'd watch as the fire in her eyes was doused by a flood of self-doubt.
This writing thing is hard. Not the writing itself, that's a joy. But putting it in front of people, being told it's not right, tearing your hair out trying to solve the issues your critiques have pointed out (or get your characters out of the corners you've painted them into), then starting all over again. That's war. That's being in the trenches -- hand-to-hand combat. But if you really, truly love your characters, you do it. You give them the chance to do what they were meant to do: touch the hearts of children everywhere and give them hope, comfort, joy.
I think my new friend can do this. I think she has the heart of a warrior. The heart of a writer.
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