I've learned a lot by participating in NaNo, a lot of good things and a few bad. I've learned that I can function on even more minimal sleep, but I get cranky and my patience wears thin, I make choices that sometimes benefit the novel but not my other pursuits, and I can write 1000 words an hour, although it won't make for pretty reading. I've also learned that I can devise characters that have legs enough to stand on for the length of a true novel, that I can still treadmill every morning in spite of a crushing schedule, and that I can still get excited about my characters acting in unexpected and delightful ways as I explore them.
I want a cozy area like this to read in, but I can (and have)
read anywhere I can steal a few minutes and with e-books on
my phone, it's even more convenient.
But I will be changing a few things once I get my 50,000 completed.
(1) I will return to posting my blog in the morning because it helps me focus on my writing, in essence it is like practicing scales before diving into the more complicated piece of music.
(2) I will continue to work on my novel in the mornings for at least one hour at the coffee shop and another hour at the shop *note to self - set traps for the possible mice at the shop-sigh-hate those little rustling sounds when I'm on my own*.
(3) I will continue to write something every day, working on a novel, a novella or a short story. This can be o-fic or fanfic, it makes no difference which playing field I choose, I will play.
(4) I will continue to read, research and investigate because historical fiction is what I have always loved and will more than likely continue to be the basic area I will continue to work within.
(5) I will continue to sit on my inner editor for the first draft. This is one of the hardest things I've ever done as well as one of the most rewarding. Yes, I think this one action will pay off for me many times over.
Searching for a structure for illustration I searched
for baby cages and one of the images was this one.
For Goth babies? Whatever, it's very fun looking.
Maybe Sauron had a baby cradle (cage) like this when
he was young.
So, there I go. Placing a structure around my life again because that's what I do and how I operate best. But also appreciating that sometimes structure has to go out of the window to allow the inner voice to sing. In the meantime, I've researched and noted still more areas to research, I've expanded my playlists with new pieces of music because music is essential to my creative process, especially in noisy areas like the coffee shop, and I hold out hope that I can continue to hone and improve my craft until I succeed and can look at myself with the same eye of delight that my father had when he saw his books on the shelves at bookstores. So...that's what I learned from NaNo, and it's ALL good.
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