
With the exception of my weekly “Tales of Contraction” updates, I’ve been pretty quiet here on the old blog. Now that school is back in session (I teach editing classes at Portland State University), I don’t have nearly enough time to devote to creative writing endeavors. But that’s not going to stop me! In less than two weeks, I’m taking the plunge and participating in the granddaddy of all psychotic writing challenges—National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo).
“What’s NaNoWriMo all about?” you ask. Well, let me tell you. Or, better yet, let me let the folks at NaNoWriMo.org tell you:
National Novel Writing Month is a fun, seat-of-your-pants approach to novel writing. Participants begin writing November 1. The goal is to write a 175-page (50,000-word) novel by midnight, November 30.
Yes, that’s right, I’m going to try and write an entire novel in thirty days. Oh, the insanity!
Will I make it? Probably not. Will I try my hardest? You bet your sweet bippy!
Now, you’re probably wondering why I’m telling you all this. I have two reasons: 1. I’m offering an advanced apology for all the NaNoWriMo content you’re going to have to put up with during the next few weeks. 2. I want as many people as possible to know what I’m doing (You know, to motivate me to keep going and stuff).
I promise to keep you informed of my progress and even throw a few excerpts your way. This is your chance to sit back and watch a novel come to life. So, stay tuned.
P.S. For those of you who are going to ask “What’s your novel going to be about,” I’ll tell you this much: My story involves a shapeshifter who finds work as a screen actor. That’s all you’ll get for now. I’m not allowed to actually write the story before November.