The 'super duper totally going to finish a proper novel this time' goal

annapalooza · Oct 12, 2014

I've participated in several Nano's, and have won a majority, which means I can put out words with the best of them. However, as soon as Dec 1 rolls around, I immediately move on to whatever else interests me.

That means I have half a dozen 3/4 novels in my life, and not an ending among them.

The closest I've gotten is when I wrote a story out of order, so I do have most of a novel, including a last chapter, but it's complete in the 'swiss cheese' kind of way where I couldn't really call it a draft.
Which is just infuriating to me, because I love writing. I mean, I also hate it. But mostly love, and I really want to get ONE novel done and polished up enough to send out, so I don't live to be eighty and my grand kids want to know why I have ten thousand notebooks filled with writing when they had no idea I was a writer. And also why I insist on stealing their hover boards when I can't even walk any more (I WAS PROMISED HOVER BOARDS). :Soapbox:

So I've made myself a goal of at least having a FULL DRAFT and ideally, a second draft, before I turn thirty. Because I anticipate that being the time where I really start to loose my crap and ask questions like "what are you doing with your life?" "why are you so disappointing?" and "why can't I afford to have a proper midlife crisis with a fancy car and everything?" :Shrug:

And that's happening next September. So I spent my first few hours of declaring this goal making an excel spreadsheet. Because of course I did. And then I researched character names, and locations, and medical school. Because obviously I can't just write, that's crazy talk.

But I'm happy to say I've made a proper start, and I am full steam ahead-

Also I joined a writing forum, and then spent a few hours researching what a query was, because why not. Listen, what I'm trying to say, is I'm setting this realistic goal because I have a real hard time sticking with things-

I just read Lexicon, and it was pretty good- OH MY GOD.

tl;dr Novel. Complete. Polished. September 14, 2015. It's going to happen if I have to throw my router out a damn window.

lanyip · Oct 13, 2014

Well done for both realizing you want to complete something, and for going public and setting a deadline. Best of luck as you make your way towards a complete draft!

I hope that: i) you can make good use of a bunch of that existing material, rather than starting from scratch; and ii) if public accountability is a good tool to focus you that you consider setting a goal with close friends /family too.

wampuscat · Oct 13, 2014

Congratulations on setting your goal!

I think people are right when they say that you learn a lot by forcing yourself to finish a book. Endings take a certain set of skills. I've got a lot of unfinished books or bits and pieces as well.

Do you outline? For me, when I finished my first book, I really leaned heavily on my outline.

For me, I enjoyed writing, but as soon as I lost passion for a project, I'd skip off to something new. That was usually in the soggy middle when I was starting to doubt my project, my writing skill, my existence, etc. I don't know if this is at all helpful, but I read a lot about various authors and their process, and I came to the realization that all authors think they suck at some point. All authors think their project is worthless at some point. All authors struggle with WTF to do next at some point. That was a huge realization for me.

Another thing I learned was to keep thinking about the idea and keep getting excited about the next bit that needed to be written. I'm all about momentum as a writer.

Best of luck!

Siri Kirpal · Oct 13, 2014

Sat Nam! (literally "Truth Name"--a Sikh greeting)

What everyone else said.

I do hope you complete some of your NaNo novels as well as whatever you're starting now. (It was unclear whether this is a new one or a revision of an old one.)

May you accomplish your goal.

Blessings,

Siri Kirpal

annapalooza · Oct 13, 2014

Thank you guys! I appreciate the support. I have told those of my friends who are writers in an effort to pretty much shame myself into finishing. Here's hoping that pans out

@wampuscat I tend not to outline, but I did kind of give myself a rough outline this time round because I wanted to estimate word count so I could give myself a 'goal' on my spreadsheet. So hopefully it helps! Also I have read many authors who have said over and over again that the first draft is the hardest, and most rubbish thing they produce. So I take some consolation from that. Until I read a Q&A by Christopher Moore that said 'nah, they pretty much use my first draft'. I hate you Christopher Moore. You've set me back at least fifteen years :Headbang:

annapalooza · Oct 13, 2014

oh and

@Siri Kirpal It is a new draft. Though when I was lamenting my wasted Nano efforts, I was like 'hey...I should just update one of those!' And then immediately slapped myself in the face because FOCUS ON ONE PROJECT. Maybe someday I'll be able to juggle multiple WIPs productively, but currently I just use 'juggling' as an excuse to avoid.

Rebel-Dynasty · Oct 13, 2014

You can do this! It takes time, dedication, discipline, and of course, the desire to get it done, but if you're this dead set on it, now, I believe you can make it to your goal. ^^

Best of luck, and of course, keep us apprised of your progress.

wampuscat · Oct 13, 2014

annapalooza said:
Thank you guys! I appreciate the support. I have told those of my friends who are writers in an effort to pretty much shame myself into finishing. Here's hoping that pans out

@wampuscat I tend not to outline, but I did kind of give myself a rough outline this time round because I wanted to estimate word count so I could give myself a 'goal' on my spreadsheet. So hopefully it helps! Also I have read many authors who have said over and over again that the first draft is the hardest, and most rubbish thing they produce. So I take some consolation from that. Until I read a Q&A by Christopher Moore that said 'nah, they pretty much use my first draft'. I hate you Christopher Moore. You've set me back at least fifteen years

I dunno about others, but my first drafts SUUUUUUUCK. I love, love, love writing them, though.

Rebel-Dynasty · Oct 13, 2014

wampuscat said:
I dunno about others, but my first drafts SUUUUUUUCK. I love, love, love writing them, though.

The first draft of my first four or five chapters was beyond cringe-worthy, so I feel your pain. Fortunately, they acted as stepping stones.

Seeing it evolve from start to finish is half the fun (or so I imagine; I'm only about halfway done my first book...and hell only knows how long it will be before I'm officially done, after all of the revisions).

Siri Kirpal · Oct 13, 2014

Sat Nam! (literally "Truth Name"--a Sikh greeting)

By all means, finish one first! Then redo one of the NaNo's.

Also, those folks whose first drafts are spiffy tend to be people who revise as they go along. They've done the revisions...just sooner. (Or they've been lightning struck by the muse. It does happen, and it's wonderful if it does, but no writer should count on it.)

Blessings,

Siri Kirpal

annapalooza · Oct 13, 2014

@Siri Kirpal He did also mention that he takes a long time to write, which leads me to believe that he's making sure everything is right when he's putting it down in the first place. My brain knows that, accepts it. But then my, I don't know, 'absurd expectations' brain is like BUT HE ONLY DID ONE GO. HE DID ONE GO, AND NEARLY NO CORRECTIONS AND IT WAS A FIRST DRAFT. YOU'VE LIVED YOUR WHOLE LIFE WITH THE 'It's okay, it's only a first draft' MANTRA. AND NOW YOU'RE RUINED. RUUUUUUUUUUUUUIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINNNNNNNNNNNNNNNED*. :gaah

My absurd expectations brain is of course a very small, and often ignored section of my head. But it's just the little things it loves to latch on to. I always take the things it says with a submarine full of salt, but I wish it were easier to distract it. Like, hey, look, there's a shiny thing. Go think about that instead of bugging me about how important perfection is, because it's not. Now enjoy the shiny.

*It should be noted that my excessive caps lock is used here for overly dramatic emphasis and not to imply that I'm having a violent rage filled argument with myself over here. :e2tongue:

Rebel-Dynasty · Oct 13, 2014

I can already tell...I'm going to like you, annapalooza.

Honestly, by the sounds of it (with all of your 3/4 finished stories) you've got this in the bag. Starting is harder than building off of what you've already got, right? Or so I've noticed, in my case.

Also, what Siri said; I'm definitely not one of those "got it right with the first draft due to revisions" types, but I am one of those, "revise as I go" people.

I try not to be, because it takes so much longer to get the actual story written, that way, but if I notice something that needs fixing, my brain won't leave me alone until I do it.

But, I digress...

You've set realistic expectations for yourself, and I think, because of that, you really will follow through. ^^ So, best of luck!

DragonHeart · Oct 13, 2014

It sounds like we're in pretty similar positions right now. I've set almost the same goal, only mine is finish draft 1 by the end of the year. I've started plenty of things, just never finished most of them, usually from a lack of interest and/or discipline.

You can do it! If I can anyone can, and so far I'm (mostly) on track. Go for it!

Muppster · Oct 14, 2014

annapalooza said:
BUT HE ONLY DID ONE GO. HE DID ONE GO, AND NEARLY NO CORRECTIONS AND IT WAS A FIRST DRAFT. YOU'VE LIVED YOUR WHOLE LIFE WITH THE 'It's okay, it's only a first draft' MANTRA. AND NOW YOU'RE RUINED. RUUUUUUUUUUUUUIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINNNNNNNNNNNNNNNED*.

Lols. Breathe

Everyone has this fear. Seriously. This book is the most wonderful trip through the terror of being a playwright (and this guy has written like a bajillion amazing plays and practically owns his own theatre, and still feels sick about turning in a script).

The other important thing is it’s not about how other people do it. It’s what works for you. Wow, do I have trouble with this (I’m dyslexic; my whole life is you’re doing it wrong). I look at other people in my writers’ circle and they can sit down and just write, with, like 50% less effort than it takes me. I need to make a ton of explicit steps out of the writing process, because I can’t hold onto all the information in my head in one go—figure out what the story is, figure out the action by ‘telling’ the story in handfuls, then actually start on the prose. I’m constantly feeling all of that isn’t ‘writing’ or doing it properly, and the 100 words/hour I manage at the prose stage feels glacial… but it’s what I need to do, and I’m the one writing it.

The first draft of everything is shit is a good outlook to get over the initial paralysis of feeling like you’ll never capture the idea perfectly on paper. Nobody ever does. Most books/films/plays aren’t perfect, but guess what? People still love them.

Mupp.

Phaeal · Oct 14, 2014

Good luck with your goal! Persist. That is all. Persist.

midiguru · Oct 18, 2014

Muppster said:
The 'first draft of everything is shit' is a good outlook to get over the initial paralysis of feeling like you’ll never capture the idea perfectly on paper.

I always try to make the first draft at least decent -- but with an understanding that anything in it can change (or be deleted if necessary) later. Terry Pratchett said, "The first draft is basically just telling yourself the story." I like that, for two reasons. First, it's about telling the story. Second, it emphasizes that nobody ever has to see the first draft! You can be as embarrassing as you want or need to be. You can stick notes to yourself into it [in bold, in square brackets]. You can try out five different names for your character, one in each paragraph. There are no rules for a first draft -- just get it written.

Ladyxkaa · Oct 18, 2014

good luck =D

grayworld · Oct 18, 2014

You had me at NaNo

We're actually on opposite ends of the same seaworthy-ish boat. You can't quite finish your work, and I've had a brutal case of writer's block off and on for the past few years. I'm considering doing the NaNoWriMo thing for the first time in 2014 because I need to start something. Anything. Maybe NaNo will motivate you to finish something (after you start it, of course)?

In any event, keep on keeping on. This writing game can be challenging. Best of luck to you.

bananamelissa · Oct 18, 2014

Wow six novels done in nanowrimo! Okay, you can do this!!!! So many people can't even get past the first page. You have the will power to do this. It is true that revising can be brutal, and most people don't realize that "writing" is actually revising. Why not spend this Nanowrimo revising a novel? Which one speaks to you the most? Do you want to toss out some summaries and see which one sounds strong?

annapalooza · Oct 18, 2014

@Rebel-Dynasty mwahaha. Approval from canada! World domination here I come!

@Muppster thanks for the rec! I know early drafts are shit (I mean, I mostly know. Again with the logic brain and the pain in the ass brain) I just have that minor hiccup every now and then where ass brain takes over. For now, I'm just writing 'screw it and do it' on a sticky, and any time I get overly anxious, I will direct myself to the post it and get on with things. It is a foolproof plan

@bananamelissa Revising is actually part of my problem. I love working on stuff I've already worked on, because it's so much easier at that point, the crappy words are already there! Just make them better! (to the best of my ability, anyway) So then I write a chapter, and then I revise it. And then I revise it again. And I start to write chapter two...and then have a different idea for how to revise chapter one! I mean, the drafts (partial as they are) definitely need serious re hauling. But for now I want to just go through the process of finishing something, no matter how terrible it may be, and then allowing myself to revise. Which I've already struggled with because I've changed POV in the first chapter three different times, and rewritten it a few times, and changed my mind where the chapter should start...chaos is what I'm describing here. But I am working on it!

Thank you everyone for the words of encouragement! I am making slow progress, but it's still progress, so I'm counting it!

The 'super duper totally going to finish a proper novel this time' goal

annapalooza

Learning about time management

lanyip

wampuscat

Recovering adjective addict

Siri Kirpal

Swan in Process

annapalooza

Learning about time management

annapalooza

Learning about time management

Rebel-Dynasty

Writer

wampuscat

Recovering adjective addict

Rebel-Dynasty

Writer

Siri Kirpal

Swan in Process

annapalooza

Learning about time management

Rebel-Dynasty

Writer

DragonHeart

Oerba Yun Fang

Muppster

Phaeal

Whatever I did, I didn't do it.

midiguru

Ladyxkaa

Consigliere to Don Fluffles

grayworld

bananamelissa

Climbing the mountain of life

annapalooza

Learning about time management