The Confabulator Cafe

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  • Slogfest

    Slogfest (or: 13,470 Words Written, Each One a Challenge)

    Sometimes inspiration just isn’t there. Anyone who pursues a creative project knows that some days (heck, MOST days) the inspiration to create is completely missing from the equation. And even when we’re inspired, we’re not necessarily motivated. That’s where I am so far this year.

    I have an interesting idea for my story this year. Good, overarching concepts, interesting twists and turns for my characters, some fantastic new settings, some “big idea” high-falutin’ philosophical themes to tackle, and more. But forcing myself to write every day is just that: forcing myself to write my required daily words.

    I have some valid excuses, perhaps more than any other NaNoWriMo in the past. For those that don’t know, this year I am:

    • getting divorced
    • still cohabitating (peacefully, but still) with my soon-to-be-ex.
    • trying to sell our house
    • prepping a brand new course for spring
    • writing a sequel to my favorite, most marketable manuscript

    So, no pressure. No stress. Right?

    😉

    Look, I’m not complaining. Really, I’m not. The words are coming. Often at 11:30pm each night, just under the wire. But they are coming. And they’re not bad. They’re not brilliant, but the bones of the story are forming up nicely. I’ve made some interesting discoveries, introduced some twists even I didn’t see coming. I’m having fun.

    But it’s a forced fun. Which is…odd. Like having ice cream shoved into your mouth: you like it, even though you didn’t put it there.

    Okay, that wasn’t a good analogy. You see what I mean by not being inspired/motivated? Yeah, there we go.

    I’m hoping for a better post for next week. Maybe the light bulb will go off! Maybe the rocket will be lit, and off I’ll go! But even if not, I promise I’ll have between 37,000 words written when next I post.

    That’s NaNoWriMo. Good, bad…whatever.

  • I Survived Week One of Nanowrimo

    Nanowrimo Day 8

    Current word count: 12,180

    The first week of National Novel Writing Month is in the bag, and somehow I am still alive and still writing.

    I knew it would be a challenge, making time for everything I have committed to this month. So I’m not surprised I’m already showing some frays at the edges. I will probably have to hold it together by shear force of will by the end. I feel as thought I should apologize to my friends and family while I still have the mental awareness.

    Sorry in advance if I neglect, avoid, and/or yell at you over the next three weeks. Please forgive me when I morph into a sobbing pile of hormones and emotion. Over and over again.

    (more…)

  • Something NaNo This Way Comes

    Whelp.  It’s already November 7th.  We are one-fifth of the way through the month.  If you’re as obsessive-compulsive about keeping up with par as I am, you’re one-fifth of the way through your word count goals.  It’s pretty beautiful.  Last year, I had a lot more buffer by this point in the season… but then again, my first year I was pretty consistently lined up with par the whole time.  So, no cause for alarm yet, I suppose.

    I’m even happy with my idea this time around.  Hopefully the third time is the charm, and this will be the novel which I actually finish writing once November ends.  My first NaNovel quickly fell apart, what with all of the ridiculous plot holes and glaring inconsistencies.  My second NaNovel is a lot more solid, but the climax of the novel calls for a lot of action and violence- something which I am utterly horrible at writing.  This time around, my NaNovel is soft SciFi, and the villains are working through subtle manipulation instead of brute force terrorism.  So, hopefully, this type of conflict will be far enough in my comfort zone to be able to finish it.

    Okay, yes, there is something to be said for using NaNoWriMo to reach outside of your comfort zone, and write something you’re not familiar with.  But that’s for people who have finished works under their belt.  Let’s get the cart connected to the horse before we try and pop wheelies and do horse stunts, hey?  And anyway, this is only my third NaNo.  Check back in a few years, and we’ll see how things are going. (more…)

  • Who’s That Girl?

    MrsKravitzOh, look, Abner! It’s that weird girl who used to be at the Cafe all the time. Do you think she’s back for good?

    No, Mrs. Kravitz. I’m not back for good, yet. I’m back for NaNo. Now close the curtains before you see something really upsetting.

    I know. I said I would be gone for a month or so. That was–what?–eight months ago? Nine? I don’t know. It’s all a blur. I’ve published  two more books  since then. Seriously. And I wrote a book without it being NaNo, for the first time ever. And I went to Disney World. And I showered.

    I haven’t forgotten you, though. I promise.

    And here we are for NaNoWriMo once more. This is my fourth time around. I sold all three of my previous NaNo books, and they’re out in the world. This one is already contracted and due to my publisher February 1st. So, you know, no pressure. (more…)

  • NaNoWriMo 2013: Day 6

    Hello, sweethearts. We’re entering day six of NaNoWriMo. I haven’t done anything yet today, because I’ve had a slow morning. You see, yesterday I was too busy drinking to really focus on meeting word count goals.

    I’ve also been too busy working, cleaning things (sometimes), doing stuff with my kid, staring at my novel, having feels, running, et cetera. It’s so easy to find all sorts of things that have to get done in November!

    Everything was pretty much the worst in the first four days. I swear to god I used to be able to write, and now I don’t remember how the fuck a plot even works. What the hell are words? Why does anyone write for fun — it’s bullshit.

    By day five, writing stopped making me want to drink all the moonshine in my freezer. I even enjoyed it a little bit on day five. And I love the social spirit of NaNoWriMo, which is 90% of why I do this every year. I’m even sort of looking forward to the next couple of write-ins. And at least I’m kicking my nemesis straight in the ass.

    Knowing my luck, by the time anyone sees this post, he will have updated his word count and be ahead.

  • Yesterday’s NaNo Word Count Was What?

    I only wrote 139 words yesterday.

    We’re starting day six of NaNo, and contrary to what you believe, I’m not panicking. I’m actually doing really well. “But Amanda,” you might say, “you only wrote 139 words yesterday.” Don’t worry, I hear the confusion and the worry in your imagined voices… and I thank you for it. However, don’t worry about my word count.

    I’m doing just fine. This week is hectic for me. I have deadlines and karaoke and three days of nothing but my birthday. So I planned for it. I spent the whole weekend with my fingers flying across the keyboard. To stay on track, I don’t have to write another word on my novel until Sunday.

    That isn’t how you do NaNo though. (Well, everyone can do it differently, really). You do NaNo one day at a time. The point is to learn how to bang out some words every day of the week. So I’m going to. My word counts may just be a bit lackluster. (more…)

  • You’ve Lost That Nano Feeling

    Nano Battle Report, Day Five.  Behind on word count, though not insurmountably so.  Have only been caught up on one day so far.  Never fear though, I shall intrepidly plow my way through this.

    First, a reflection.  Last year, I planned a whole month before Nano.  I made an outline.  A good outline.  One that I was quite pleased with.  And when I started writing, I followed said outline.  It took me exactly where I needed to be: 30 days, a beginning, middle, and end, and 50,006 words.  The plan and outline strategy worked so well that I decided to do something completely different.

    Different is going through some growing pains.  My story this year isn’t as focused as last year.  In fact, lots of it are quite rambling and stream of conscious.  I have several different stories going on at once, a man living a string of fantasies that may reflect real life, or they may become real life, or they may have nothing to do with real life.  I haven’t decided yet.  Mostly because the fantasies are much easier to write then the real life bits.

    Next year, remind me to outline.

  • Attack of the NaNo Machines

    November is a pretty special time in our household. November means NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month). This month, I will see a lot of friends, and spend a lot of time working on the first draft of a new novel.

    This year will be a little interesting. I am a dedicated pantser. I don’t go into most projects with any sort of plan. I have a concept and generally an opening line, but that is about it. This year, I’ve decided to expand a previous short story.

    I wrote “Mama’s Little Boy” based on a news report I read about a guy who kept his dead mother in the attic. He didn’t tell anyone she died because he wanted to keep collecting her social security check. It was one of those cases where real life was just as twisted anything I could come up with on my own.

    I was pretty happy with the short story, overall, but several people mentioned in a writing workshop that they wanted to know more about the story. I decided to expand the original short story into a novella. The interesting part about this is that by using my original short story as source material, I am basically using an outline, which is a first for me outside of screenwriting, and makes me more than a little nervous.

    I’ve expanded the story significantly, and changed toe structure of the story. So far, I am a little over 6,000 words in, and I am relatively happy with it. By the end of the month, hopefully I will have a serviceable first draft that will amount to something after the re-writes. Given that I am still working on my Master’s degree this November, my plan is to end with a novella of around 25,000 words.

    After graduation, I am going to get some of these novels re-written and see what happens. First, however, I need to finish this draft of Mama’s Little Boy, and make it through this November with both an original novella and an A in my classes.

    NaNoWriMo Progress: 6338 words and counting.

  • NaNoWriMo 2013 Excerpt from The Demon Within

    NaNoWriMo has come once again and many of us at the Café, myself included, are already busily typing away trying to get to that coveted 50,000 word goal. Sadly, the frenzied pace of full-time job, word counts, and daily living leaves me little time for actual, coherent writing, so instead I’ll treat you to weekly postings from the trenches. Please note that “treat” here is a subjective term. This is pure, unedited and unfiltered writing here folks. I can’t be held liable for damages caused to your psyche or personal property due to reading this material.

    I’m writing five, 10k-word short stories this year for NaNo. This excerpt is from The Demon Within (working title), about a barbarian bred for fighting demonic hoards who gets exiled for being tainted by one.

    (more…)

  • Value Proposition

    Here’s why NaNoWriMo is so important to me: today I did not feel like writing.

    That’s not an unusual day. In fact, out of the 365 days in a year, I’d say that ~300 are days that I do not feel like writing. And out of those ~300 days, at least half (and probably a lot more) are days where I don’t write, because I don’t feel like writing.

    But during November? The fact that I don’t feel like writing doesn’t matter.

    I’m going to write today. I’m writing right now. I’ve finished 1,000 of my requisite 2,000 words/day (I’m a minor overachiever this year), and after I finish posting this brief entry to Confabulator, I will go back to complete the other 1,000 words.

    Do I want to? Nope. Still not at all in the mood. I’d rather be doing something else.

    But NaNoWriMo gives me freedom.

    I know, it probably seems like it’s the exact reverse, right? Freedom would be allowing myself to choose: write or don’t write. Right?

    Wrong.

    Freedom, in this case, is rising above something small–like reluctance, or self-loathing, or ennui, or a bad day, or a silly distraction–to focus upon something that is much more important. Something that will enrich my life in the long term. Something that will make me proud, and provide a sense of accomplishment. Something that I’ve always wanted, but never gotten, until NaNoWriMo set me free.

    This year, like the last eight years of my life, I’ll write a novel. Despite myself, I’ll achieve that goal, one more time.

    And it will be glorious.

    NaNoWriMo is like a personal trainer, forcing you to battle past hurdles that seem insurmountable, so that you can become stronger, leaner, faster. And, afterwards, you’re given an entirely different perspective on the hurdles that were preventing you from succeeding in the first place, and you can recognize how trivial and silly they were in the first place.

    NaNoWriMo lifts me to a higher place. It forces me to prioritize one goal above all others, and pursue that goal relentlessly until I achieve it.

    That’s why NaNoWriMo is important.