Friday, November 11, 2011

Motivation, Oh Motivation, where fort art thou?

Well, Happy Cats' Eye Everybody (11/11/11)!

Well, here we are almost 2 weeks into my sixth annual quest for 50k that is known as NaNoWriMo, and I have a handle on what I am writing [futuristic western set in an alternate timeline, just your run of the mill book, ya know]!! I even have some ideas about what is going to happen and how to get there [lots of gunfights, hold ups, horse chases, you know typical western stuff]. BUT, I have written a total of 4,340 words as of right now.

I am supposed to have 18,333 as of midnight tonight to be on track :( Do you see my problem??

According to NaNoWriMo.org, I am on track to finish my book on MARCH 5, 2012!!! ZOMG! What in the world!

I started off the month with an idea for a totally different book based in my Sci-Fi world that I have written 3 novels in thus far, but that idea fizzled out after 479 words on day 1. Well, maybe fizzled isn't quite the right word, I just looked at where I had this book going and put it aside for a Non-NaNo book, since it would take longer than 30 days to work thru the idea and get it to where I would want it...

So, word count back to 0! But, you guys all know how this madman's mind works: put one idea out and another idea springs in to replace it. I am driving to work on the 4th and am listening to a podcast by two of my Facebook Friends, Scott Gardner and Michael Bailey, called "Tales of the Justice Society of America". Great Podcast, btw, totally worth 2 hours of your week, but I digress. They were discussing the ads that were prevalent in the JSA comics in the 70s and 80s, and they said "Slim Jim and Grit" just like that. And that was when the idea for a western came to me about a sheriff and his deputy who were known as "Slim Jim and GritS".

Okay, simple enough premise, right? I mean, I have watched hundreds of hours of Gunsmoke, Bonanza, Have Gun, Will Travel, plus several John Wayne Westerns and know what it takes to make things work.

But, this is when the problem started. . . I have to write 1667 words a day in a normal NaNo to get 50k by the end of November. Here it was, the 7th of November, and I was sitting on a GOLDMINE of 405 words when I was supposed to have 11,667... No biggie, right? I usually get up in the mornings during NaNo and get a good bulk of my days 1667 done. Why not get up earlier than normal and knock out 2000-2500 words before work.

UM, NO! Here it is the end of the week, and I have gotten up early twice (once 30 minutes after my alarm went off at 4, the other an hour after the alarm went off). And now I am at the end of my second week staring at needing 2283 words a day for the rest of the month just to get to 50k. I do plan on getting up early each morning, but for some reason "the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak"!

Does anyone know where my motivation went? If so, can you return it to me? I need it to write!!!

I welcome your feedback on this or any of my other blogs. Please use the comments button below or shoot me an e-mail at childofking88@aol.com.


Until we meet again, remember, two wrongs don't make a right, but three rights make a left.