Tuesday, March 31, 2015

Is It A Bird? Is It A Plane?

via Pinterest
 No, actually it is April's Camp NaNoWriMo. *insert internal screaming* I decided to participate in said event earlier this month as a challenge to buckle down and finish my novel from November's annual edition. Now, April is nigh upon us and suddenly I find myself feeling overwhelmingly unequipped. I shouldn't with 61,000+ words already written in the manuscript and having the mental knowledge of exactly where the story is going and how it will end. I should be singing out "Let's get down to business" with confidence or, donning my newsie cap, "Now is the time to seize the day." Instead, I am madly scrolling through my manuscript and wondering if I am crazy to try and even attempt to tackle a 50,000 word challenge during one of my family's busiest months of the year.

*takes a deep breath*

 Maybe it is a little crazy and I will have some days where I am wondering why I am even doing this, but at the end of day (or month in this case) I am going to be glad I did it. I will be that much closer towards a finished first draft ready for edits and polishing. And, hopefully, I won't feel like it was a complete failure.

 For anyone interested, I created a beautiful new board for The Letters of Lee Ames (my current WIP) on Pinterest. The images never cease to inspire me and help me visualize the story's setting and characters. Such a board will prove useful in this upcoming struggle.

So, what have you been working on? Are you going to participate in April's Camp NaNoWriMo? If so, what is your NaNo username? I would love to see how you are progressing. I am Lady Agda.

6 comments :

  1. I've been going back and forth about this. On the one hand, I haven't done a NaNo event in a few years, and I feel it could be fun to use Camp Nano to get some work done on my novel...and then, on the other hand, I tend to stress if I'm not accomplishing as much as I think I should be, so I don't know if a NaNo goal would be too much added pressure! But if I do decide to jump in at the last minute, I'll definitely look you up!

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  2. Elisabeth - I definitely know what you mean about it sometimes adding to much stress if you feel like you aren't accomplishing as much as you think you should. I ran into that several times while trying to participate several years back when I was still in school. I had to just stop doing Camp NaNo because it was adding to much stress to my life that I did not need. There is a fine line between stressing to much over it and having just enough pressure to keep you at it.

    Thank you for stopping by!

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  3. That's exciting! You can do it!!! I did NaNoWriMo a couple years ago, but I've never done the Camp NaNoWriMo. What's your novel about?

    I'm currently working on a novel based on the true story of Hans and Sophie Scholl, a brother and sister who wrote and distributed anti-Nazi leaflets in Germany during WWII.

    Have fun and happy writing!!!

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  4. Emily - My novel is about an American war widow living in London in the early 1950s. The protagonist, Lee, is a writer, and when she starts working on a writing project about the people of London she unwittingly finds herself on a journey that opens a new chapter of life, one that brings healing, new friends, and even love when she was least expecting it. I started work on it last July, wrote a good chunk of it in November, and have been needing a good challenge to finish it. I have difficulty explaining the story sometimes but I think that will probably become easier once it's finished. :)

    I was reading about your WIP on your blog the other day and it sounds fascinating. I had never heard of Hans and Sophie Scholl before and I look forward to learning more about them and watching your progress as you write.

    Thank you for taking the time to comment!

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  5. Your novel sounds really fascinating!! It definitely sounds like something I'd read. Are you planning on publishing it?

    Thank you! I'm excited to bring their story to life!

    -Emily

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  6. Emily - As of right now, I do not see myself publishing in the very near future. I would like to someday but, right now, I still feel like my writing needs to improve a bit more before I start pursuing publication. It is highly encouraging, however, to know that you are interested in it! Thank you!

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