Uncle Josh Enumerates Some Fears
Originally published at Uncle Josh Talks Too Much. You can comment here or there.
I’m taking a break from NaNoWriMo to write about NaNoWriMo, because this year is a bit more of an experiment.
I have a spotty history with NaNoWriMo. My first try was back in 2004, and I finished the story at 35k. I’ve tried in other years but the NaNoWriMo database seems to only go back to 2011. In 2013 I tried to write Loyalty Oath, which is a story I’ve had in my head since I was a teenager and the novel has been kicking around my someday list since 2005. There seems to me to be enough to this story to warrant a novel, or at least a full NaNo attempt.
So this year I am re-writing it, and I’m trying a few different things.
One, I’m trying to write each major scene from more than one person’s point of view. I have four main characters in this thing, one of which is vital, two are important, and one is optional. I’m not sure about giving the antagonist his own narrative flow, but hell, I’m doing it anyway. I’m afraid some of my characters aren’t all there yet, so I don’t know if I’ll find their voice.
Two, because I’m writing each scene multiple times, I’m afraid the progress of the story will be so slow I’ll get frustrated and give up.
Three, because I’ve started a new job, and there’s an Evensong coming up and a Celebration of Life to sing at and OryCon and Thanksgiving, I’m afraid I won’t be able to carve out enough time every day.
To counteract the first, this is really an experiment in pantsing a novel. I’ve tried manymethods of writing before, and my novels tend to get fully outlined. Unfortunately, plotting is for me like puzzle solving, so it doesn’t seem as interesting to solve the same puzzle over and over again.
As for the second, I’m playing with voice. I just have to let myself play with this. I can’t talk my way down from this fear.
And finally, number three is the ever-present time crunch. I’ve got things to do, and I’m getting to the point of giving up writing because there is more frustration and rejection than anything else, and I’m falling back into consumer habits and not content creation. I may be stuck there. I don’t know, but not writing still hurts, so I’d better get back to writing.
Besides, I can write 600-700 words in a 20 minute session if I have a fairly decent road map. Although it’s mostly dialogue. I wonder if I should try more script writing. I tend to write dialogue heavy stuff.
So I will keep on.