It Has Begun!

NaNo WriMo has begun! For the third year in a row, I stared at the blank first page of a brand new novel, and I didn't curl into a little ball under my desk (as a small part of me wanted to do). Instead, I began typing. Then erasing. Then typing again. I deleted almost as much as I kept as I tried to find the right voice and tone for this story, weed out information that only I need to know about the characters, and keep the pacing going. Yep, all that, and I wrote only 6.5 pages.

The last two years of my life have been devoted in one shape or another to Madison projects. I know the Madison world pretty well by now. I can slide in and out of it in a matter of minutes. But while I've been kept awake many a night by visions of this new world, getting it down on paper proved a tad more difficult than I imagined. I'm writing in the first person again, so getting into my new character's head was also challenging. She's different from Madison, more mature, more self-sufficient, more focused and driven. She also, finally, has a name: Eva Parker.

Choosing a name took a large chunk of time out of my day. I'm still not a hundred percent certain it is the name, but I'm liking it for right now. The male lead: Justin. As of yet, no last name. (Cody wants "Case," but I've vetoed that; the novel's going to have humorous elements, but I'm not leaning toward spoofy.)

The other thing I'd forgotten: how much energy writing takes! I've set a goal of 2,000 words a day, with the expectation that this novel will be 100,000 words. Which means, I should finish December 20, like an early Christmas present to myself. That's the goal as of today, day one. I'll let you know if I still think it's realistic in a week.

For all you NaNo WriMo people out there: I wish you luck. The rest of you should try this!