I have a dilemma this week. Do I get with this? Or do I get with that?
Do I complete my NaNo novel, knowing that I will need to reoutline and change a few things already written in the 50,100 words? Or do I set it aside and go back into the forest with Eva? I was in the middle of rewriting Dark Forest when November knocked on the door.
I walked out of the forest and went underground while all hell broke loose in the world around me. It's dark down there. Claustrophobic. Uncertain. Not at all like the crisp, clean air in the forest, surrounded by green and the sound of the river rushing over fallen logs and smashing into large rocks.
(Cue music: in your head)
The choice is mine.
So do I get with this?
Or do I get with that?
Or do I get with this?
Or do I get with that?
I could go with this..
But this is kinda phat...
I think I'll go with this, 'cause this is where it's at.
Do Da Dippity.
What would you do?
I'm still undecided. At the moment, I'm enjoying catching up on some reading. I have at least six books to get through this month along with critiquing. I forgot how nice it is to curl up with a book on the couch while it rains. It can be just as lovely walking into that forest. Not so wonderful underground where the future is bleak, but not completely unpleasant because I still have so much hope for their future. Can I leave them stranded until next year?
I guess I'm asking for HELP. Or opinions anyway.
Hi,
ReplyDeleteA momentary break from writing does no harm, but getting back to a specific project can be a tad confusing, especially once affinity has built between author and characters.
I guess it's a case of which of "them" is pulling the shortest string? To go back to the forest might prove beneficial to the soul and your writing with a fresh eye. Hammering away at NaNO ptoject might be pushing the boundaries of enthusiasm, and may well be better left to simmer in the corner unless the characters are screaming for attention.
Why not post up a chapter from each and see which way us bloggers sway!? I recently posted a piece on a top Lit Agents advice about blog writer profiles. I've taken a hint from her advice and created a profile blog specifically for posting chapters, two up already. It'll be interesting to see what comes of it in terms of comments etc., and whether it helps in promotional terms.
Good luck with dilemma!
best
F
Why not open both files and see which one your heart gravitates to the most? If still undecided, just open a third file and write with reckless abandon until you come to a decision. At least that way you'd still be writing.
ReplyDeletelol - that commercial is so horribly random but every time it comes on I can't help but put my own words to it and sing along...
ReplyDeleteI say, after you feel you have taken a well deserved break, go to the one that is calling you the most. If it's the forest, then go there. If you go underground, you might catch yourself thinking about the forest, and then that won't be fair to the underground.
Plus, you just had a long month with your NaNo novel. Probably wouldn't hurt to shelve it for awhile and come back at a later time with fresh eyes.
In general I support finishing things. I think it will be a lot easier to finish the first draft of the NaNo novel and go back to revision than it would be to finish the revision and get back to writing, especially if you stop writing at a place you're not psyched to continue from. And you can't rewrite the unwritten page so when you do come back to revise the NaNo novel at least you can take it as a whole story.
ReplyDeleteThat's my $0.02. For now its good that you're enjoying some reading time before you get back to the grindstone!
- Sophia.
I've faced this problem and it quite drove me up the wall. I'd say try writing both simultaneously, one of them will peter out ad one will take you over. Umm, Rowling did that I hear, so I gave it a shot and it worked.
ReplyDeleteG'luck!
Hmmmm, giving NaNo a break so you can go back to it later with fresh eyes could be a good idea...and I like the sound of going back into the forest :p
ReplyDeleteBut as long as you're working towards something, anything, and it makes you happer, it's all good :D
I always like to take a short break. Read, enjoy other things, recharge for a day or two(or week...) and then dive back into where I left off with the one I started first. If there is enough outline, story, scenes written in the other that I wont forget about what I was writing, I will leave it until the first is finished. You know, finishing what you start, gotta eat your dinner before desert, yada yada yada. Good luck with your decision!
ReplyDeleteHm, I guess the only advice I can give is go with your gut! Maybe take a break from both and come back to the one you're more excited about. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteooo--I hate dilemmas like that! I guess go w/the one that feels most strong to you. The one you can't stop thinking about. If it's both, just start making notes so you'll remember the feelings you're having.
ReplyDeleteGood luck~ :o) <3
That commercial is fun-ny!
ReplyDeleteI have a feeling Eva will win this dilemma. You've spent way too much time writing about the forest--It's impossible for you not to miss it.
If you feel like the nano story needs to be resolved before you can move on and concentrate on Dark Forest, then you should probably go ahead and finish at least the first draft.
However, if your goal is to send out serious queries next year, then maybe finishing Dark Forest might be the thing to do.
I think I'd go with the first...if you aren't completely done with it, I'd try to finish it. But thats just me- I would want to finish the first one before I dove into the second (even tho the second is shiny and new, and intriguing). But don't let that second one tempt you- if you don't go back to your first now, you may never. So unless you want to scrap the first for quite a while and write the second, I'd go with the first..
ReplyDeletedamn, thank you for the laugh! But seriously, I can see how both would appeal. And I read on another blog that it's ok to cheat sometimes on your wip...
ReplyDeleteI like Jeffrey's opinion...it's what I would do. Open them both and begin and see which calls the most or loudest or deepest....and good luck!
ReplyDeleteThank you everyone for your advice! I love our writer community - everyone is so supportive!
ReplyDelete