Resolutions, Goals and Plans

I've said here before that September is the real resolution-making and goal-setting time of year for me, and it's true that after the lazy laid-back days of summer I like to get busy writing again. That's not to say that the end of the year is not a good time for reflection and re-grouping, however.

I'm feeling quite anxious to get to the rewrite of The Seventh Crow now; I feel that the story is strong as it is and now my job is to polish it until it gleams. I'm looking forward to it. So that will be my first job of the year, and I think I should be able to finish it by the end of January or soon thereafter.

Beyond that, I'm not sure right now. I should try to finish my other rewrite--it's so close to being done, and yet also in such a mess--the amount of work it would take to get back into the story seems enormous. I know in the past, though, I've felt like that about projects and then been pleasantly surprised when they turn out to take less effort than I expected. So I may turn to that.

I know what I will probably want to do will be write the sequel to The Seventh Crow, since so much of the story has been rolling around in my head since the idea originally came to me. I may talk myself into doing that after the January rewrite as a reward. ;-)

Whatever the case, I feel like I must get back to some serious work on my writing in the coming year. 2006 was not a good year for it, but hopefully that tide will change in 2007.

Some Holiday Doggerel

A good friend asked for some "cheery" Christmas stories and such, as it's a difficult holiday season for her this year. I dashed off this bit of doggerel in the cause, so I thought I would also share it here:

The Write Before Christmas

'Twas the night before Christmas
I sat and took stock
All month I had suffered
From writerly block

The shopping and wrapping
I'd conquered with ease
But nary a word
From my brain could I squeeze

I thought about Santa
And wishes come true
And suddenly realized
Just what I would do

I'd write him a letter
"Dear Santa," I'd pen,
"Please let the New Year
Get me writing again!"

I typed it up neatly
And spell-checked it through
Tossed it into the fire
Up the chimney it flew

Then hopeful and nervous
I headed to bed
Maybe when I awoke
There'd be scenes in my head

Sometime through the night
I awoke with a start
I could hear rustling noises
And my pounding heart

I tiptoed downstairs
To my office I went
A white-bearded man
O'er my manuscript bent

He muttered and marked
A red pen in his hand
I watched until finally
No more could I stand

"Just what are you doing?"
I asked with a frown
His twinkling blue eyes
Looked me up and down

"It's really quite good,
This story, you know,
So why's it not finished?
There's much more to go."

"I ran out of words,"
I confessed with a sigh
"My letter to you
Was my very last try."

He tsked and he tutted
And shook his white head
"I can't bring you words,
But I'll tell you, instead

How to find inspiration,
Will that be all right?"
I nodded, heart pounding
And hugged myself tight

Could it really be true?
Would the secret be mine?
He moved to the window
And pointed outside

The moonlight spilled down
On the new-fallen snow
"The answer's not out there,
It's in here, you know."

He tapped me, just lightly
On the side of the head
"In your brain and your heart,
Just look there instead.

Whatever is needed
To follow your dreams
You already have it,"
He said, eyes agleam

Don't give up, keep going
He seemed to command
And my manuscript suddenly
Was back in my hands

In a flash he was gone
To the window I flew
Silhouetted, a sleigh
Rode the sky midnight blue

And I think my poor brain
Grew three sizes that day
I suddenly knew
All the things I could say

I looked all around me
This wonderful night
The tree and the presents
The snow cold and white

The candy and ribbons
The bright Christmas lights
I ignored every bit of it
And sat down to write.

Looking Ahead

It's a week before Christmas and strangely, what's on my mind a lot lies beyond that. I'm pretty much ready for the holidays, with only a few minor things left to do, and so my mind is turning to the rewrite of The Seventh Crow. Right now, I'm looking forward to it.

Last night I read through Holly Lisle's very good article on How To Revise A Novel. Much of the advice is similar to what I suggest in my old article, Fiction Workshop for One, which makes me think I might actually know what I'm doing as the rewrite rolls around. My husband has read the current draft and didn't spot any continuity or content errors, so I feel fairly confident that the story has a good foundation.

The trouble I'm having is that while I know there's very little sense in trying to start working on it now, with Christmas mere days away and school finishing up tomorrow, I want to start working on it. And I feel ridiculous to be even thinking of "putting off" writing that I want to do. I just don't want to make a good start and then have to leave it.

I'm not sure what I'll do. But I do enjoy the feeling of looking forward to the task.

Spam Steps

I've had to activate the word verification option on this blog, to try and reduce the numbers of comment spam I've been getting. I apologize if folks find this annoying, but there it is.

What I find weird is that the spam comments show up on posts from a year or more ago. Who's even reading those now? Why post to those? I don't understand it.

Anyway, if you're a real person and not a spam generator, I hope you won't mind.

Happy Places

On Friday the kids and I all had dental appointments in the morning. During the drive to the dentist's office, they were both bemoaning the probability of fluoride treatments on the horizon. I told them they should just try to ignore it while it was happening and go to their "happy places." Then I asked them what their happy places would be like.

Emily described hers as a huge library, with all the walls covered floor-to-ceiling with books, comfortable chairs for reading, and the added feature that one could get the characters to come out of the books if you wanted to.

Mark described a room filled with every video game system ever invented, each connected all the time, and of course also every video game for each system available all the time. Snacks would be available, in the form of junk food that was actually healthy for you.

Of course I had to tell them mine, too; a cottage on the beach with a writing room and an art room, and a door in the back that would lead to Emily's library. ;-)

Mark thought it was hilarious that mine would be on the beach. However on reflection he said it would be convenient, since I could wear my bathing suit to write or draw and then run out for a dip in the water anytime I wanted.

What's your happy place?

NaNoWriMo wrap-up

The end of NaNoWriMo usually means, for me, a couple of days of feeling a bit mopey, with a nagging feeling that there's something I'm supposed to be doing, and then the sudden realization that it's December and I have a million things to do. This year was no exception, which is why there haven't been any posts here lately.

However, I did finish the novel and get to "The End" at a little over 55,000 words. I'm happy with the outcome; I only wrote it for fun in the first place and I did have fun with it. I'm trying to decide what I might do with it in future, and thinking I might podcast it, or serialize it on my website. Some folks have expressed an interest in reading it and either of those formats would make it accessible. I'd have some fun doing it, too, so it would be a good project to help me stave off those winter blues that I'm sure will be hanging around in January and February. Keeping busy has proven to be the best way to fight those feelings, so it's good to have some projects on the horizon.

We had a pizza party TGIO for NaNoWriMo, where most of us read an excerpt from our novel and I think a good time was had by all.