First thing I need to say is, for the second year in a row, Frodo did it!
He did more than yeoman's work, he...okay, I actually don't have words to describe what he did. Because of school work, and just being wiped out when he got home from school, getting behind (and discouraged from that) and whatnot, he found himself behind the 8-ball last week. We're talking a giant 8-ball covered in poison-tipped spikes and packed with explosives. And what does he do? He buckles down. I don't know how much of it was a burning desire to write, how much of it was competitive spirit, or just his near-compulsive need not to leave something unfinished, but he knocks out 3 straight days of 2K+ words -- 3K and change the last day (even staying up late, I hope his teacher's don't hate me for that). A lot of what he produced in those marathon sessions were more creative than I'd thought him capable of, too.
Overall, our tribe didn't do as well this year as we did last. Much of which can be attributed to our change in schooling methods. Last year we could spend as much time as we needed to on our writing. This year...not so much. That's the number one reason everyone had a harder time. It still would've been possible as far as time goes for everyone to finish, but it was a lot harder.
Like I said at the beginning of the month, though, their content was of a much higher quality than it was last year. Samwise just couldn't stay focused on his work, and flamed out at the end of a week. But I'm very proud of what he tried to do.
And the Princess? We're talking light years between where she was last year and where she was this year. With some better preparation next October, she could produce something really good. If she's up for it -- she was pretty discouraged by the end.
What about me? Last year the question was, can I do this? This year it was, can I do it again? The two mind-sets are very different. Also, the story I wrote last year was something I'd thought about for about two years (hadn't worked out more than 2 chapters, though). I came up with this year's idea on Oct. 28th after toying with two others for a month or so. Biggest difference in the two final products is that this year's book has an ending (missing a bridge from the middle of the work to the end -- like the Yankees for most of this year, my 7th and 8th innings are a big question mark). Last year, I had a target in mind, but didn't make it there -- and a few days later when I went back to finish, I'd completely forgotten where I was headed. It feels much more like I accomplished something when I could say "The End."
What I produced wasn't something I want to show anybody, but there's a lot of good raw material there to be refined and perfected. I know in my heart that no publisher is going to want to touch the final product, that said, I'll be a better writer if I see it through to the end. I'm itching to get to it, but am taking advice of smarter, and more experienced people and taking a few days off to clear my mind. But starting at the end of this week/beginning of next it's research for historical accuracy, revising, editing, rewriting and polishing. I'll keep you updated on things as that progresses.
For now, I've blathered on long enough. I have a lot of semi-neglected housework, very neglected books, and a dusty exercise bike to get to.
0 comments:
Post a Comment