Day 4
As we inch closer to October (but no closer to autumn, it seems, at least in Los Angeles), I find myself somewhat absently thinking about National Novel Writing Month. (NaNoWriMo or just NaNo to those in the know.) I’ve participated several times and even managed to complete the full 50,000 words in 30 days challenge a few times. After the focused experience of writing my book, I believe more than ever in the power of momentum, and want to use that to drive forward in November. There’s a novel I’ve been sitting on for years that is begging to be told.
It’s presented problems in the past though. I’ve tried to get started on it and I always lose momentum or get bogged down in details and plotholes that I can’t figure out the answer to. But I’m committed to powering through in November and getting it done.
What do you struggle with most when it comes to writing?
I started the Writer’s Notebook as a 28-day challenge to find joy in writing again. Traditionally, a writer’s notebook is a collection of observations, reactions, ideas, questions, memories, quotes, sketches, lists, snippets of moving language, or some combination of the above. (Sometimes they’re also called Commonplace Books!) Want to join in? Leave a comment below letting me know and I’ll come check out your work!
I don't often have a problem getting started, because I write non-fiction mainly. But I tried NaNo once and sat there for a whole month staring at a blank page! Horses for courses I suppose. However, the only thing I would suggest doing if you get blogged down in plot holes would be to make a note of the problem and where it is in the text, and work on a completely different aspect of the story. I do something similar in my writing when necessary, and it works for me. Alternatively, you could leave the plot holes unresolved and make THAT part of the plot. In Webster's The White Devil, some characters appear in the first half the play and are never heard from again, but it works somehow! Good luck with it.
I voted for "procrastinating," but could've just as easily marked "getting started." Getting that first sentence on the screen is always my biggest hurdle.