NaNoWriMo: Week 1 Update

Ok, so you've seen the samples here and here of how I'm using the Tarot deck as a writing prompt and you've seen here how the deck originated. So how is all of that translating into word count? Very slowly it turns out.

However that is more due to time constraints than anything else. During NaNo there is very little time for planning, research and adjustments. You really need to be flexible and be able to run with an idea. I've been especially thrilled with the progress so far. I feel like having a cohesive idea of a beginning, middle and end help. Having certain historical points I need to cover helped. But the use of the cards as a writing prompt generator has allowed me to add a bit more flavor and draw upon the characters' personalities without chaining them to the plot. In short, they feel much more human.

So how do I feel about the Tarot? It's a fun game, it's a great writing prompt. However, after week one, I am still maintaining it's mostly a tool for exploring the psyche in non confrontational manner and a ton of confirmation bias. Will the next few weeks change my mind? Who knows.

NaNoWriMo Day 2: Mallory's Reading

Mallory's Reading (Cross Format)

Card #1: (Self) 
Six of Cups
Happy memories play a part in Mallory's story today.

Card #2: (Situation) 
Seven of Pentacles
With this card we see Mallory appraising results of her efforts. Given she is revolving around memories today, we should see her starting to make sense of them.

Card #3: (Fears/Weaknesses) 
Queen of Pentacles
This queen is someone who cultivates the necessities of the physical world. Mallory is lacking much of her connection to this world at the beginning of this chapter.

Card #4: (Strengths) 
King of Swords
Mallory will find strength in someone who is driven by ideas, someone who forces her to look around her and pull herself together.

Card #5: (Past Influences) 
Ace of Cups
We have a beginning here. An opportunity for Mallory to experience personal and emotional growth.

Card #6: (Outcome) 
III - The Empress
This card signifies an abundance of creation. This is a big indicator for Mallory as she's really just being introduced in this chapter and she is a very blank slate due to her mental state. This is our Theme Card for the day.

Today's Writing Goals

Today, I'm bringing in Mallory. She's a mess. Literally. Mallory is chaos and confusion, but there is a method to her madness. The challenge is writing her in a frayed mental state, but not crazy.

The Horror...  er, I mean... Aftermath

OK, so today was a bloodbath. I'm behind a few hundred words, but I'm physically and mentally exhausted even after a full can of Monster. I'm not worried today since 300 odd words is barely a deficit at all. Those can easily be made up during the week when things calm down.

NaNo Day 1: The Reading, The Goals, and The Aftermath

Lila's Reading (Cross Format)

Card #1: (Self) 
XVI - The Tower
Lila is unexpectedly facing an event that changes everything. Well, all in all, not a bad way to start a novel. If not a bit obvious. This is our Theme Card for the day.

Card #2: (Situation) 
0 - The Fool
This is the moment before everything changes. Zero Hour. Since Card #4 is an ace we have an emphasis on new beginnings. The knight in the #6 spot tells us that Lila will be traveling. Also, for the author this bodes well for brewing drama to move the story along.

Card #3: (Fears/Weaknesses) 
IV - The Emperor
The Emperor in this position tells us that Lila is fighting with or against creating order and stability. It also symbolizes her father, who has been absent. As the author I have to ask myself what system is Lila fighting for or against and how is this holding her back? What role does her father play in this?

Card #4: (Strengths) 
Ace of Wands
Here we find Lila's opportunity to harness her own will and express the fire that drives her. This is, however a fleeting moment, but provides her with a superb boost of energy to see it through.

Card #5: (Past Influences) 
VI - The Lovers
 Lila's passions have driven her in the past. Given the lack of romance related cards in this reading we can gather that this can be more of an inner drive and passion. This card tells us that Lila will be taking the passions that she has held onto and use them to guide her into the future.

Card #6: (Outcome) 
Knight of Swords
We can gather from this card that Lila's outcome today will depend on her looking for someone unpredictable who is motivated by new ideas. This opportunity is fleeting and this person will be impatient if Lila attempts to argue, but will delight in helping Lila solve her problem and provide her with new perspective.

The theme card for the first chapter is the Tower.

 

Today's Writing Goals

Today, being day one, I'm looking to set up the story. The Tarot theme is going to be very minimal and superficial today. This is all about Lila. I want to introduce Lila and her friends and foreshadow some of the coming troubles with the darkness that is Malgoria. We also want the theme to be fun and not beat into the ground by middle to late November. I'm starting about 500 words in due to the midnight kickoff write-in so I need about 1,200 word based on this reading and these goals.

The Horror...  er, I mean... Aftermath

OK, so it wasn't a bloodbath. I managed to write over 1700 words. However, today was a bit more sluggish than I wanted. The weather is freezing here and I usually depend on getting some physical exertion before writing. Combined with the late night from the kickoff party, I'm not really surprised.

Did the cards help? Absolutely. It gave me some direction in the floundering attempts to kick start the story. It also provided me with a clear ending point for the chapter. Not really a bad first day at all.

My NaNoWriMo Experiment - The Tarot and the Lies They Tell

My novel for NaNoWriMo 2014 is titled Lies the Cards Tell. It's a typical YA fantasy novel, but it's something more than that. Throughout the month of November I'm using the Tarot as a writing prompt to push the direction of the story and help me through the enevitable writer's block that creeps in when you desperately need to hit that word target on a tight 50,000 words in 30 days deadline.

The novel itself revolves around a Tarot them. It explores every aspect of the cards and how they are and were used in various cultures. Despite the modern American stereotype of the TV witch throwing down the cards on the table and foretelling some ominous future, there is more to the Tarot. The cards have a long and rich history dating back centuries into the homes and leisure time of the Italian Renaissance nobility. 

If you're interesting in my writing process or the history of the Tarot. Follow along here as well as on my Twitter.

October Rush: Prepping for NaNoWriMo

For most people the countdown to October 31st is a rush to put the final preparations in place for the ultimate Halloween costume. Those of us in the writing community are probably looking for a few final accessories as well. But we aren't going out into the darkness of the Halloween witching hour to return with stockpiles of candy. Instead, we crave words! We don crazy costumes and gather in homes, public places and across the internet waiting for the clock to strike midnight and roll over to the precious wee hours of November 1st.

It's a Bizarro world version of New Years Eve. We've spent October making promises to write 1,667 words every day. We've dressed up our characters in the finest profile sheets listing everything from hair color to life goals and ambitions. The forums are picking up with our anxious questions and crazed playlist comparisons. The caffeine delivery method of choice is stashed away in a safe place. We've thought of everything. Now we wait and fidget with those last few details.

It's going to be a long and crazy November. And I'm very excited to be participating. If you've never done a NaNoWriMo before, I urge you to rush on over to NaNoWriMo.org and sign up. Find a local group in your area and jump into the insanity. Turn this November into a month long Halloween full of fascinating imaginary people and worlds, exploration of the language you take for granted and exciting new friends.

Incubation.

Writers are mother hens. It's so easy to get emotionally wrapped up in the stories. Writing something and stowing it away in a file feels like leaving a story without an ending. However, there's a certain beauty in letting go, if only temporarily. Just like eggs stories need time to grow. Ideas need to simmer.

I just finished writing my NaNo project and I've already compiled a list of problems I've found without rereading. It's tempting to go back and reread the whole novel once I realize I've left things out or changed something halfway through. Instead I've been taking notes in a separate file. It's import to get those concerns out in a concrete form, however it also import to develop some detachment from the work.

So my advice to you is to enjoy December. Go spend time with the family and friends who thought you were dead in November while you were locked up in those 1,667 words a day. Save those desires to reread and edit for when the doldrums of January set in.

Try this easy experiment:

1. Write a short story today. Print out a copy and put it away somewhere. Put it away for seven days. Don't touch it until those seven days are up. 
2. Revise it. Print it out again. Put both copies away for seven days. You may notice some plot holes you didn't see or some glaring errors in your sentence construction.
3. Make a third draft. Finalize your revisions on the work. By this time you should be able to just polish it and clean up smaller errors.
4. After you've made the final set of corrections go back and reread each of the drafts. Notice how the work improved each time. Note the difference between the first draft and the third draft.

What I learned from NaNoWriMo.

This is what a month of writing every day looks like. It's not at all what I expected. I assumed the lines would be nice and even with a few jumps here and there. I was most definitely not expecting the big dips. There really wasn't much to explain them. I wasn't sick. I didn't have an travel. Those big dips were just life doing it's thing and getting in the way.

I learned that Mondays are bad. But I knew they would be strained. Coming off the weekend takes a toll. There are tons of extracurriculars on Mondays. It's one of those things that can't be helped. Life is going to push you around some.

You see that big spike there? That was Night of Writing dangerously for my area. Those spikes at the end, they were pushing to get done because of all the posts about finishing. Community was the one thing I valued the most in this undertaking. It wasn't the most surprising part. But it was so intensely inspirational since so often writing is a solitary path.

So after everything I'm left with this mass of words.  It's a complete mess. I have entire paragraphs that say the same thing in every sentence. There are dozens of sentences that start the same way. It's not a very pretty novel yet, but it's mine. I'm proud of it. I'm better for having written it.

Sure, there are going to be people out there that bemoan NaNo. They'll say it's clogging the works with poorly written material. They forget that everything starts somewhere. And if one person out of over 300,000 becomes a better writer for it, the challenge was a success. You don't just win NaNo by getting 50,000 words. You win by pushing yourself to get past all those nagging voices and put your own voice out there in that chorus.

I'm unbelievably excited for NaNoWriMo 2014. I hope we make it to 500,000 writers next year. In the mean time I'm going to be pushing myself and I hope you will too.