NaNoWriMo - Day #28 - Whahoooo!

I'm too tired to write much tonight. I'll write a full update sometime on the weekend, when I've had a chance to gather myself and go for a nice long run.

The short version is that, for the second year in a row, I managed to crank out a little over 50,000 words of a draft novel in just under a month.  I have no idea whether what I've written is any good or will ever be read by anyone but me, but I'm damned happy I made the effort.

Sleep well, folks! I know I will.

NaNoWriMo - Day #17

This has been a day of no writing and the week ahead isn't looking much better, but for some reason I'm still clinging to the hope that I'll find the time and energy to churn out another 26,000 words before November 30th - which really doesn't seem likely. Work is hectic, Christmas is just around the corner, and we invited 50 or so people to our house for a kitchen warming in a few weeks so I've got more than enough to keep me busy.

And then there's running. I managed to squeeze in three good workouts last week but skipped my long run today so that I could spend a couple of hours cleaning and prepping my motorcycle for winter. It felt good to get that chore done but I'm grumpy as hell about missing my run.

The trouble is weekends just aren't long enough. When we bought our country place a few years back, I imagined I'd spend long hours there pursuing various creative projects - quilting, painting, writing, photography. Instead, most weekends are taken up with running, blogging and various social activities so I rarely have time to pursue other interests.

I know it's a just matter of setting new priorities and making some decisions. If I want to spend time doing other things, I simply have to give some things up.  Either that or become one of those crazy morning people who crawls out of bed at 5:00 to run, blog or whatever. It would be amazing if I could be one of those people but I really don't think I have it in me.

And yet…and yet... if I were a morning person, maybe I could find time for all those things I want to do.

One thing's for sure, I'll be working a day job for lots more years so I'd better figure out how to juggle things better than I have been.

And, on that happy note,  I guess it's time I was tucking in. Here's hoping a good night's sleep either inspires me to do some serious writing in the morning or helps me make peace with ditching NaNoWriMo 2013 once and for all.  I'll let you know how it turns out.

Happy writing and running, friends!

PS The photo above is one I took in Paris in June.  I'm hoping to write a post about our visit there soon. Stay tuned.

Nanowrimo - Day #10 - It goes...

I'm nearly a third of the way into my 2013 Nanowrimo journey and the best I can say is that it goes. Don't get  me wrong. I've sketched out a reasonably complex story that's unfolding nicely. It's just that I'm not feeling especially enthusiastic about it.

I'm not sure what the problem is. Maybe it's that I'm so focused on working out details of the plot that I've yet to become immersed in my make believe world in a way that lets me smell and taste it. Certainly, the text doesn't include much description, which is fine - I can go back and add colour later - but I like writing description and, to this point at least, I'm mostly writing dialogue. Guess I'll just keep plugging and hope I start enjoying it more soon.

It's a three day weekend for me since our offices are closed for Remembrance Day on Monday. To mark the day, I plan to attend the service at the local cenotaph and write a brief account of our trip to Normandy. The photo above is of one of the many beautiful monuments we visited at the Memorial in Caen, France.

What about running, you ask?  No, I haven't given it up altogether but, yes, I've reduced the intensity of my training since Cape to Cabot. My current plan is to run 3-4 times a week for a total of no more than 30-35 kms - enough to maintain a reasonable base for next season but not so much that it interferes with other activities. We'll see if I can stick to that. Yesterday, I went for an "easy" 8k and couldn't resist upping my pace to 6:20/km - not blistering, by any stretch but much faster than I intended when I set out.

I still haven't settled on my running goals for next year. I think I might like to focus to shorter distances and see if I can increase my speed. However, watching the runners in New York last weekend had me daydreaming about one final big city marathon so I may not be done with long distance events quite yet.

And motorcycling and photography?  I managed to get Patti running yesterday long enough to go for a quick trip up the river and back. She was a little grumpy after so many weeks sitting in the driveway but, once she warmed up, she enjoyed carving down the highway as much as I did. If the rain holds off, we'll do a longer trip out to the beach and back today.

Unfortunately, my camera stayed in the bag all week because I was too busy with work and NaNoWriMo but I hope to get it out before long to try my hand at street photography. I've started following a wonderful photographer named Valerie Jardin who's got me thinking a lot about why I like taking and sharing photographs. More on that when my thoughts gel a bit.

Speaking of photography, I was very moved by this photo essay, which a friend shared on Facebook this week. Such stunningly beautiful and moving images of fear and pain, love and loss. To my mind, it's an example of the best kind of photography - one that evokes emotional response, exposes unexplored aspects of the human condition, focuses attention on the beauty of everyday life, and/or challenges us to question what we know.

It's time I signed off now and got back to the novel.  I had a pretty good day of writing yesterday - thanks in large part to Janet who came by for a few hours to swap story ideas (thanks, Janet!) but didn't quite reach my goal of 3,000 words. Hopefully, I'll be a little more productive today. It would be wonderful to start the new work week a little ahead of the game.

Happy running and writing friends!

NaNoWriMo - Day #4

Day #4 and I'm doing well racking up the words. Unfortunately, what I'm producing is mostly crap. And, no, I'm not just being modest. The first couple of chapters really are crap.

To add insult to injury, my neck and shoulders are tight and achy - which I blame on too much time with my laptop and the stress of knowing I'm writing crap.

In theory, the story I'm writing should interest me but, truthfully, I'm bored already - which I suppose means I'm writing the wrong story. Or maybe it's the right story but the wrong genre. Or maybe I'm just suffering a major sugar crash after devouring too many Halloween treats this past weekend.

In any case, here's a synopsis of what I've got so far:

No one is more surprised than Cassie Jollimore when she's elected to the Legislature and appointed Minister of Justice and Attorney General. Nothing in her previous careers as a small town lawyer and masters runner has prepared her for the challenges she faces as chief law officer for the Crown. Determined to do a good job and earn the respect of her colleagues while keeping an appropriate emotional distance between herself and her dangerously attractive Deputy Minister, she struggles to balance pragmatism and idealism. When  she begins receiving death threats less than a month into her new job, she can't be sure whether they're related to her new role as Minister, her investigation into a Cabinet colleague's suspicious activities, or the ex-husband she'd rather forget.

Even going for a long run yesterday didn't help much.  By the time I headed out late afternoon, my body was as tired and achy as my head. On the upside, I ran through Shubie Park where I was pleased to find some colourful autumn foliage remained - though even the rich forest smells and dogs frolicking in the park didn't do much to energize me. By the time I got back to the house, all I wanted was to curl up by the fire and sleep.

That said I'm not ready to give up on this novel just yet. After all, as I discovered last year, NaNoWriMo is an excellent antidote for post-marathon syndrome. When the little voice in the back of my brain starts nagging me to go for another long tough training run, I tell it to shut the hell up and get busy plotting. A month of short, easy runs is exactly what my body needs to recover from all the events I've run this season.

BTW, if you're participating in NaNoWriMo too, check out my friend Janet's blog for some great tips. Janet's been writing for awhile and coached me to my first NaNo win last year so she knows what she's talking about.

Time to get back to work!

Happy running and writing, friends.

NaNoWriMo - Day #-1

Here it is. The last day of October - which means National Novel Writing Month (November) starts tomorrow. I've signed up to participate in NaNoWriMo again but have to admit my commitment isn't what it was last year.

The problem is I have no idea what I want to write about.

Seriously.

As of noon today, I have only the vaguest notion that I'd like to write a mystery novel and that my central character might be a former journalist or newly-minted Justice Minister. More than that I can't tell you. I don't have a plot, characters, or locale. I don't even have a victim, for goodness sake. Which isn't at all promising.

But here's what I learned from my NaNoWriMo experience last year: That making time to write every day and giving myself permission to put fingers to keyboard with no goal beyond producing 1667 words let all sorts of interesting stuff ooze from my deepest self-conscious. At its best, the process was exhilarating, joyous, and creative. At its worst, it was profoundly cathartic.

So plot or no plot, I'm going for it. Husband's hitting the road for a week so I'll have plenty of time to snuggle into my flannel jammies, brew endless cups of hot honey lemon (spiced up with the occasional shot of rum) and write my little heart out. With luck, I'll have figured out a story to tell in a day or two. Here's hoping anyway.

Wish me luck!