Today’s word count: 2720
Today’s writing: flowing
My energy level: high
In any work that is truly creative, I believe, the writer cannot be omniscient in advance about the effects that he proposes to produce. The suspense of the novel is not only in the reader, but in the novelist, who is intensely curious about what will happen to the hero. — Mary McCarthy
Now that I’ve gotten defending and praising NaNoWriMo out of my system, it’s time for a real update on this year’s novel. Today is the halfway point, and I’m well ahead on my overall word count, as well as my daily one. To finish on schedule, I should be at 25K right now and I’m just shy of 27K, so I’m feeling pretty good about my progress.
I’m also feeling good about my book. The girls have saved the day, fixing the little town’s drakon problem with diplomacy before hitting the road again. They’ve also picked up a new friend, Bayard the Bard, who was unintentionally the cause of the drakon problem and is eager to get away from the townspeople who may decide to be mad at him as soon as they’re done celebrating.
Tomorrow, I need to pick back up with my prince and his demon and find out what they are up to. When I left them, they knew Wren had been lost at sea and Roderick was determined to go find her. It’s about now that I wish I had a better idea of the big picture for this story. I should be building towards a climax, a big moment where things come to a head. Only I don’t really have any idea what that looks like or might be. So my next few days will probably include lots of day dreaming and brainstorming, both excellent ways to gather enough material to keep pushing forward.
I think I need to make use of my extras more. Exploring the motives and actions of the characters I’ve seen fit to name along the way could provide me with some subplots and maybe even a Big Moment to hang things on. Ideas are there in the murky fog. I just need to get out my flashlight and go find them.
As I keep saying, I am really enjoying myself as I work on this novel. Part of the fun is finding out what happens next, so I need to remember that I’m actually glad I don’t know what I’m doing. We’ll see if I still feel that way tomorrow.
