Talking about writing, yessss
The "National Fiction Finishing Month" project has been coming along well... mostly. I've been using a NaNoWriMo account to keep a "concrete" track of my progress, which works pretty well as motivation. On the other hand, it's kind of hard, because on the days where I don't manage to make par for the typical NaNo goal, I get kind've disappointed.
... However. Part of the reason that sometimes I haven't been making par is simply because a lot of the work I do is handwritten, and I don't intend to type up the draft until it's drafted on paper. So really, I'm writing more than it looks like, but since it's not typed - well. It's hard to say just how much I have been doing.
It's fun, though. At least, it is so far. Working on something every day, I mean. One of the things I really like about this new job is that, aside from the fact that the job itself is pretty okay, I also often get to work half an hour early... and that means half an hour to write. And then lunch hour to write. Write, write, write! I get far more done here than when I'm at home, and it's wonderful.
I already have the Lost Letter story drafted and typed, but man... I'm starting to realize that it has a ton of holes in it. Not plot holes exactly, but just... eh. How to say it. Holes in the writing that need to be patched up. It's a lot more sketchy than I remember it being. I think it's partly because it's a long story - it's harder to keep everything tight when something is long. Of course, by "long" I mean, like... longer than five handwritten pages. Eh.
I think that part of what I'm going to do this month is going to consist of revising some of the old stories. There are some that I have posted in certain places, but not on my actual journal, so I don't actually consider them finished. "Small Hours"/"Starry Night", for example - and hell, I even intended to finish revising that one this year, and I still have not done it, so I might as well get it done, right? No reason not to!
Also, the Denmark/Norway/Sweden story I'd been working on is nearly drafted. 'Course, that doesn't mean it's close to being finshed; it'll require a ton of revising. Not as much as Lost Letter, though, thank gods. It doesn't have as much in the way of plot and whatnot, considering the overall concept....
I kind of feel weird talking about these stories, just a little, because most of them - well, at least, Lost Letter and the D/N/S - won't be posted under this journal even after they're finished. They'll be posted elsewhere at the end of November (or... whenever I happen to do the final revision). Then again, I usually - and will also in this case - look at it as a chance to test-drive it. See whether or not I missed the mark. When it comes to long stories, well, they just aren't something I do. I haven't written anything more than a few pages since 2009. So it still feels... strange - writing that kind of thing, I mean.
Er... where was I. Anyway, the point is, by the end of the month I expect (I hope!) that I will have these things finished:
1. Lost Letter (drafted, ready for revision)
2. D/N/S (draft nearly complete, needs revision)
3. Small Hours (previously revised, needs further revision)
4. Starry Night (previously revised, needs further revision)
It doesn't seem like a lot, but that's about 50 pages of fanfiction right there, and all of them have been unfinished for quite a while. The last two are from 2009, I started writing Lost Letter in 2010, and the DNS is from... er... I think it was around April 2011. It'll be nice to have everything finished.
... However. Part of the reason that sometimes I haven't been making par is simply because a lot of the work I do is handwritten, and I don't intend to type up the draft until it's drafted on paper. So really, I'm writing more than it looks like, but since it's not typed - well. It's hard to say just how much I have been doing.
It's fun, though. At least, it is so far. Working on something every day, I mean. One of the things I really like about this new job is that, aside from the fact that the job itself is pretty okay, I also often get to work half an hour early... and that means half an hour to write. And then lunch hour to write. Write, write, write! I get far more done here than when I'm at home, and it's wonderful.
I already have the Lost Letter story drafted and typed, but man... I'm starting to realize that it has a ton of holes in it. Not plot holes exactly, but just... eh. How to say it. Holes in the writing that need to be patched up. It's a lot more sketchy than I remember it being. I think it's partly because it's a long story - it's harder to keep everything tight when something is long. Of course, by "long" I mean, like... longer than five handwritten pages. Eh.
I think that part of what I'm going to do this month is going to consist of revising some of the old stories. There are some that I have posted in certain places, but not on my actual journal, so I don't actually consider them finished. "Small Hours"/"Starry Night", for example - and hell, I even intended to finish revising that one this year, and I still have not done it, so I might as well get it done, right? No reason not to!
Also, the Denmark/Norway/Sweden story I'd been working on is nearly drafted. 'Course, that doesn't mean it's close to being finshed; it'll require a ton of revising. Not as much as Lost Letter, though, thank gods. It doesn't have as much in the way of plot and whatnot, considering the overall concept....
I kind of feel weird talking about these stories, just a little, because most of them - well, at least, Lost Letter and the D/N/S - won't be posted under this journal even after they're finished. They'll be posted elsewhere at the end of November (or... whenever I happen to do the final revision). Then again, I usually - and will also in this case - look at it as a chance to test-drive it. See whether or not I missed the mark. When it comes to long stories, well, they just aren't something I do. I haven't written anything more than a few pages since 2009. So it still feels... strange - writing that kind of thing, I mean.
Er... where was I. Anyway, the point is, by the end of the month I expect (I hope!) that I will have these things finished:
1. Lost Letter (drafted, ready for revision)
2. D/N/S (draft nearly complete, needs revision)
3. Small Hours (previously revised, needs further revision)
4. Starry Night (previously revised, needs further revision)
It doesn't seem like a lot, but that's about 50 pages of fanfiction right there, and all of them have been unfinished for quite a while. The last two are from 2009, I started writing Lost Letter in 2010, and the DNS is from... er... I think it was around April 2011. It'll be nice to have everything finished.