I went into NaNoWriMo with such high hopes. 50,000 words in 30 days? It wouldn’t be easy, but it would be exciting work. The first week I was off to a great start, hitting the goal word count of 1667 words, or exceeding it to make up for days that may have been 100 words under. Even halfway through the second week, I was still on track. I was optimistic and full of enthusiasm.
But now it has been a week since I wrote anything for NaNoWriMo. Oh, how I have wanted to fill my Twitter feed with milestones and updates, but they would be 140 characters of lies.
I didn’t realize how hard NaNoWriMo would be. And I could make a dozen excuses why I haven’t put fingers to keyboard, but I am not going to. It doesn’t do me, or anyone else, any good. So here is an update of what has happened so far.
Like I said, I have written a solid chunk of G.R.A.C.E., and I am happy with how it is coming along. I truly believe that it is an idea worth fleshing out and finishing, but I can say with absolute certainty that it will not be by November 30th. I am still playing the balancing act of writing short stories, blogs, and working on polishing a novel. Additionally, I have more than half of the sequel to Archangel penned, but have not touched it in months. I think I was a little too optimistic leading up to November, and not cognizant of my prior commitments.
So where do we go from here, Doug?
Well, voices of all those who are reading, let’s set up a roadmap. A couple of months ago I wrote about the importance of setting goals and having something of a planned route, and I firmly stand by that principle. If I don’t, I will probably just end up playing computer games all weekend. Which isn’t really a bad route, per se, but is not a productive one.
Okay, first thing’s first. It is still NaNoWriMo. Just because I have decided to hold off on the new novel, doesn’t mean I can’t still participate. So, going forward, I have a renewed effort to try my absolute best to write 1667 words per day, just not on that novel, perhaps. It could be working on a short story, on a Nightshade tale, or on finishing up the sequel to Archangel. And yes, if that last bit sounds awkward know that it is intentional. You will all have to wait for the title for now.
But there is more, there is always more! My goal is to have some cover art for Archangel before the Christmas season. Consider it an early gift to myself. And hopefully a professional edit early in the new year. There is a lot of work that goes into being an indie author, and I know there is more lying just below the surface.
On top of that, we haven’t had a Coffeehouse interview in a while! If you have authors you would like to see interviewed, drop a comment down below, or reach out to me on social media. One of the greatest things I have found about this journey to indie authorship is the community, and I absolutely adore getting to know people within it.
Outside of writing and this website, my current job contract is coming to an end in January, so I also have to figure out what I want to do after that. Expect a few millennial-entering-the-workforce blogs in the coming months.
Lastly on my roadmap (at least for now) is Facebook. Dear old Facebook. I started this blog alongside a Twitter account at the beginning of August, and have loved it. Twitter is a great place to network, build your brand, and reach out to peers and followers alike. I have seen it as equal parts social media and opportunity. But, those who know me know that I have been on Facebook twice in the past year, and it was only because I had to organize things in a group chat. Unlike Twitter, I had my personal Facebook already running – as most people do – and was “friends” with acquaintances, family, and members from group projects. So, unlike Twitter, it was not filtered to what I wanted to see, or things that might help me, but contained a lot of stuff. Don’t get me wrong, I like keeping up to date with friends and family. I don’t like being blindsided by racist articles or misleading infographics. Cat pictures? Yes. How more Western leaders should act like Putin? No thank you.
But, in this day and age, it would be silly of me to not take advantage of all forms of social media. I should not intentionally limit myself to an audience, especially when the audience on Facebook is substantially larger than that on Twitter. The ability to post things 141 characters long is not available to me on Twitter, but is on Facebook. Each definitely has their pros and cons, but I am missing out on the very big pros of Facebook.
So, in summary: writing every day, working on Archangel, cover art, editing, Coffeehouse and networking, job searching, and getting very well acquainted to Facebook. Also, the holidays are almost upon us.
I just wish all of these things came wrapped with a nice little bow.