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TAKING A FLYING LEAP: ENTERING THE WORLD OF NANOWRIMO
November 12, 2015
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I'm participating in my first NaNoWriMo -- National Novel Writing Month. During the month of November, writers take the challenge to pound out 50,000 words on a new manuscript. Things got off to a strong start -- my character bios were completed, the setting was coming to life and the plot points were bubbling. Then, it happened.
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I got ahead of myself plot-wise and had to backtrack and create scenes to bridge the growing gap between the start and the middle. Not an insurmountable task, but as I moved chapters around and added scenes, the sequence of events became tangled in my brain. And, when that happens, there's only one solution: I must print out the pages. For some reason, that's the only way I can get the plot straight in my head again. While I'm not exactly 'wasting' paper -- because this is a must-do thing -- it still feels wasteful. But, it's unavoidable if I'm going to get the story on track and make it to my goal of 50,000 words.
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At this point, there's no way to tell how much of what I write during November will be useable, but, so far, it's been a great exercise in stretching my comfort zone and keeping the momentum going.Â
