NaNoDoneMo

What an eye opener NaNoWriMo has been. Despite the fact that I knew my novel would be far from complete at 50,000 words, I rushed over to the NaNoWriMo site this morning to download the little PNG at right.

Although I intend to finish the novel in exactly the same fashion as I’ve started it, blasting through the (minutely plotted) first draft, I’ve decided to blog first today, instead of getting the words down for the novel.  That decision marks a change in mindset for me. Somehow I have NaNoWriMo permission to get back to previously scheduled programming.

Until I get to the massive rewrites, I won’t know the results of this grand experiment.  One thing I can say right now, though, is that I’ve never written such a bloated first draft.  At 50,000 words I am basically at the midpoint of the novel when I had planned to be at the midpoint around 40,000 words or so.

Another thing I can say is that I am feeling less connected with the characters, which is also not my usual.  I sense them whooshing by and can’t quite grab hold of them as I hurtle through the first draft at breakneck speed.  Although I adore plotting, I find that I write for the characters–for their demons and dreams, for their quirks and quests, for what they will eventually become.  But not on this novel’s first draft.

I had wondered what the view would be like once I broke through the 50K word ceiling and it turns out to be not much different from the view at 25K. There’s still a lot of novel left to go and I can’t wait to find out how the finished product will look.

I’m uncomfortable with the process thus far, which is the best thing that could have happened. For me, that’s what learning feels like.