An ongoing project

Today's 100 words:

I've always wanted to write a family history memoir. For years I've been working on and off to transcribe cassette tapes my dad made of some of the memories he has of growing up and working as a logger in the days when horses were as common as trucks out in the woods. Now I'm about ready for my mother's story of growing up a country girl, then a city girl, then a country girl again. The history of how these two very different people met, fell in love, and married is what I hope to document for future generations.

NaNo, Day 1

This morning's 100 words:

Well, the first night of NaNoWriMo is over, and although I only managed to write for an hour, I'm happy with the 401 words I have so far. My story is going in the direction I had anticipated, but the voice is different than I had thought it would be. The protagonist may be just a little more irreverent than I had planned, but that irreverence seems to work, and I'm glad the words are spilling from my fingertips and finding their way to the page the way that they are. I'm hoping I can reach about 2,000 words today.

After writing for a good portion of the day--between other tasks like making lunches and changing diapers and breaking up kid-fights, of course--I managed another 1,601 words, ending the first day of NaNo at 2,002. (Unless, of course, I decide to write a few more words after I post this entry!) The writing went much more slowly than I had anticipated, and the voice that I wrote about in my 100-words paragraph above didn't really extend through the words I wrote today. The story, too, seems to be taking a different turn from what I had anticipated, which is all right, I guess, but it leaves me feeling a little out of control. However, it is a rough draft, which is something I need to remind myself every so often as I try to fight the perfectionist demon, who demands that I edit as I go. Still, all in all, I'm happy with the word count I've accomplished today--if not with the actual words themselves.

So--story number one in my collection is on its way to being completed (in a first-draft version, of course). Now I wait to see what tomorrow will bring.

For those of you taking on the challenge, how was your first day of NaNoWriMo? Did you meet your word count goal? And is your story taking the shape you'd thought it would, or is it veering off in another (exciting) direction?

NaNoWriMo uncertainty

There's now a possibility that I may not be able to participate in NaNoWriMo next month. I can't really get into the details right now, except to say that someone very close to me has discouraged me from making the attempt. I've been having a lot of fun brainstorming and prepping and have really been looking forward to working on my project, but I'll need to see what happens in the next few days in order to decide if it's going to happen this year.

Just don't count me out yet. ;)

Progress! (A very brief update)

Last night I did more brainstorming for my NaNo project. I'm happy with how well it's going so far, and I'm starting to get excited for November!

For those of you participating this year, how is your planning going? Are you ready to begin?

NaNo, NaNo!

I can't even put into words just how incredibly happy I was to write this 100-words entry this morning:

I think I've finally settled on an idea for this year's NaNoWriMo project. Now I have to see if I can keep my enthusiasm for it going until midnight on October 31. The fact that I woke up this morning still excited about the idea is a good sign, I suppose. Now I have to work on an outline and somehow succeed in striking that delicate balance between planning too much, which could easily lead me to hate the idea, and planning too little, which could paralyze me in November and cause me to be unable to write at all.

I'm not sure yet if I'll attempt the 50,000-word goal or if I'll become a NaNo rebel and set my own goal this year. Honestly, I haven't done any real writing for so long that getting even a few thousand words on this new project would feel like a win to me. Like everyone else who's attempting NaNo, I need to figure out which things in my life I can let go of for the month in order to make my writing a priority. Having young kids makes working difficult, of course, but I know that many other NaNo participants have not only that concern but countless others and still manage to meet their goal. Since I don't think I can convince my husband to take on the laundry, cooking, and cleaning duties for the month, I guess I'll just have to wait and see how much I'll be able to accomplish. Regardless of the word count, I'm looking forward to the challenge.

If you're participating in the insanity this year, what things will you put on the back burner for the month? How do you restructure your life around NaNo?

And finally, I'm counting on you guys. Help me out here, okay? Don't let me lose my NaNo enthusiasm! :)