Meg Dowell Writes

Though I have no chance of ever holding a place in the #1 spot (and never will, and that’s all we’re going to say about that), I’m happily resting in place #10. It would be a lot more satisfying if the ninth spot was easier to grab, but I’m not sure this novel has 12,000 words left in it. It’s definitely about to pass 70,000, but I’m not sure how much further beyond that it’s going to go. Only about three and a half chapters to go, which averages out to about eight thousand more words (if that many). But they’re good chapters, so I’m getting a little excited. Who’s telling the truth, and who isn’t? Or is everyone bathing in lies?

I can’t really say anything more about what’s going on in the story. I’ve left Colleen at a cliff hanger and can’t give her the rest because I’m still missing the next five or six pages that come next, because my computer is still dead and being operated on and what-not. Hopefully when he brings it over today and plugs it in it’ll just magically start working right again. Otherwise, I don’t know what I’m going to do about these missing pages. They were really intense and awesome and I’m shutting up now.

Maybe this is God saying, “Time to buy a laptop!” HInt hint, father of fatherlyness.

When normal people do Wrimos like this (NaNoWriMo, JulNoWriMo, MarNoWriMo…whatever)–and by “normal people,” I mean people who don’t write 70,000+ words in fifteen days—it gets a little rough and slow around thirty thousand words, on a treacherous path to fifty thousand. You’re a little past halfway, and yet the end just seems so far away. Things tend to get a little slow, or you just take a writing break or give up altogether (not recommended, but that’s just my opinion). My low point for speed-noveling usually hits somewhere between 60,000 and 70,000 words. I’m just past 69,000, and I seriously don’t want to do this anymore. I’m kind of like, “Can somebody else finish this for me?” And I sort of want a new hobby.

But pressing forward during these times of zero motivation, though it’s hard and the writing that usually comes out of it is hardly novel worthy, is just what you have to do sometimes. Because once you’re finished, it doesn’t matter what you do. You could jump right into editing, which I absolutely despise beyond comprehention, or you could just let it sit for awhile. You could even throw it away if you wanted (though, again, not really recommended). So I’m just going to get this thing done within the next week, so I don’t have to force myself to write on my birthday. That’s not always a very fun thing to do.

Speaking of birthdays, I keep dreaming about mine. Last night my mom made me pudding instead of chocolate cake and a guy I know from way back when came to my house and gave me a present and kissed me. Weird.

Word count as of 07/15/10, 7:51AM Chicago time: 69,036.

Love&hugs, Meg♥