There is a point in every young writer's career when you sit back and say, "Did I honestly just do that?" At the beginning of this November, which is also the beginning of National Novel Writing Month, I was challenged by the thought of writing a 50,000 word novel in a month. I started week one with great ambition, but by week two was starting to doubt my own abilities. Pep talk after pep talk sat in my inbox, and yes, I read them, and I appreciated their wisdom, but it took inspiration and personal motivation from everyone around me. And then it got to be week four, and the encouragement that consumed literally every conversation in which I was engaged got to be quite irritating. In fact, the people that pushed me through to the insane amount of 50,000 words in a single month were the few who told me I couldn't do it. They were the ones that said, "What do you want to be a novelist for, anyway?" BECAUSE IT IS MY PASSION!!! Words are incredible mixture of letters that you can shape to express anything you care to. They are completely non-judgmental and unprecedented, and when someone bold enough dares to shapes them into beautiful phrases, they can form an art unlike any other. So here's the purpose of this blog (other than to flaunt my dinky little web badges;): GO WRITE!! We all have unfinished plots sitting unwritten in our heads that we partially develop in the middle of the night and have never actually pursued. Set a goal for yourself, and unclog your mind by getting those pesky little plots out on paper. Start with 100 words a day, and before you know it, you'll become so enthralled with your plot that you'll write 200 a day, and then 300, and then the words won't matter so much as finding out how the scene that you're working on will turn out(it rarely ends the way you imagine it in your mind). If I accomplish nothing else by writing this book, I hope that I inspire someone to be audacious enough to get out there and write, knowing that there is a huge chance that you will fall flat and fail, leaving your literary masterpiece to rot in Cyberworld in an incomplete Word document. And so what if you do? Then someday when you're old, when you have time to sit back and ponder over the perfect word choice, you'll never have to suffer the plight of looking at a blank page. Try it! You, my dear reader, have my word: You will not be disappointed in yourself. You can do it!
Now I know on November 3rd I promised sneak peaks into this novel of mine, but honestly, when you're writing 2500+ words everyday, you have no interest in disclosing sneak peaks! But now that the majority of the pressure has been lifted, I will share with you a few details of this tale of mine.
My novel is entitled Told You So and it is meant for an audience of young adults such as myself. Here's a short synopsis written by a good friend of mine:
Sadie Richwood has the perfect life- gorgeous boyfriend, devoted friends, and a white-picket-fence family- until it crashes down around her, and she is pulled into a search for her true identity that could end up costing her everything.
And an excerpt from one of my favorite parts:
Sadie felt a rush of adrenaline flow through her finger tips, and the reality suddenly hit her. Her eyes widened, and panic spread across her face. An involuntary gasp passed her lips, which drew attention to her stationary figure.
Suddenly the bickering between the professionals stopped, and their eyes met Sadie’s. The doctor intimidated Sadie, but she couldn’t say why. His dark features penetrated her skin and his eyes seemed to read not only who she was, but what she was thinking. His blue eyes shone wickedly in an arrogant fashion that made his entire being intolerable. None of the nurses looked like they were much past the drinking age, and although they appeared to have decent hearts, Sadie couldn’t tolerate their whiny voices.
Without any further explanation than the pathetic sigh that emanated from the slightest nurse's mouth and her heavy, defeated expression, Sadie turned and bolted towards the door, tears streaming down her cheeks. She had no choice but to combine sobbing and sprinting, and her breathing soon turned to gasps for life. She ran past everyone and everything. The world blurred before her eyes and she felt the earth’s gravity dragging her down.
Once in the elevator Sadie collapsed to the ground in misery. She clawed at the red carpet that was fraying from years of wear, hoping it would relieve her heart’s pain. Sadie heard the sounds of the changing floors, but could not manage to raise herself to her feet. She stayed exactly where she was until at last her sadness turned from raging depression to exhaustion. As she closed her eyes, she heard a familiar voice.
I told you so.
The story if far from complete and the plot continues to thicken! I keep telling myself I cannot add any more subplots, that the characters are as complex as they need to be, but the inner perfectionist continues to scream, "But what if?", and sadly that side of me usually wins my internal battle. The book stands at 50,059 words, and I still am not 100% sure where my story will end up. However present the uncertainty, I'm more passionate about writing than ever, and I assure you that someday Told You So will be on the shelf of your local Barnes and Noble, at least I hope so. And so I sit here in my office, on the last snowy day of November thinking, "Did I honestly just do that?"
p. s... i did it for you, Peanut Butter
