Bye-Bye, April

    As April winds to a close, so does my month of novel-writing that I (brashly) began four weeks ago. This past month, I participated in Camp NaNoWriMo (National Novel-writing Month), an organization that encourages busy people to become busier novelists in certain months of the year, namely November. However, they set up camps a few times during the spring and summer for those who do not want to limit their novel-writing to one a year. This year, 2014, camps will be held in April and July. And -- as I mentioned above -- the April NaNo-camp is coming to a close.

    My project this April was attempting to complete a second draft of Paramount, my second novel. To be frank, I didn’t finish. Don’t get me wrong, I wrote some 50,000 words (the goal for a NaNo writing month), but the estimated length of the second draft is 93,351 words, according to my forecasting. For any of you who have any doubts, this is a lot of words. When I burned out, I had just started the fourth of six chapters, so I am disappointed that I did not get farther (especially with only two chapters (20,000 words) left of my 225,182 word, three-month ‘November’ writing project, my fairytale book).

    It was probably foolhardy to attempt such large projects, but I have to admit, that starting these kinds of projects with a goal and a clipped pace make them seem a little less daunting. In all likelihood, I would never have gotten that far if I hadn’t jumped right into it without thinking about how hard it would be. At this point, I’m far more likely to finish those final two chapters, not that I’ve come so far, the same thing being the case with Paramount (although my chapters are averaging just fewer than 50 pages in that book). Editing a 650-page manuscript, however, will take another leap of gumption (and a rather large pair of scissors).

    Many people I know want to write. Nearly half of my friends have expressed some desire to write at some time or another. Most have not completed a full draft of anything, though, despite their interest. Maybe it is because they do not have the stamina or discipline.
   However, I think they would sooner commit to something else, like work, school, etc., than to the story inside of them. Don’t get me wrong -- work, school, choir, community groups, and so forth are all important. However, if you want to do something, you have to make time for it. Writing often requires a shuffling of priorities. Goodness knows that my priorities could use a responsible reorganizing.

    If you want to write a novel, don’t say to yourself, “I can write when I’m out of school,” then, “I can write when I get a better paying job,” then “I’ll write when I retire,” and so forth until you run out of time. Time is limited. Death and taxes. You have a finite amount of time and opportunity, so use that time to what you love: writing, painting, singing, playing baseball, traveling, eating great food, making people laugh, gardening, fishing, (and probably work to, if you need, to support yourself while taking time to do the things you love).

    I apologize for that rather lofty former paragraph, but I wanted to remind you how important it is to take care of you and spend your time as you see fit. I have spent many, many hours writing in the past five years -- and I will be the first to admit that some of that time was more productive than other ones were -- but I love writing.
    Well, no. As Murray on the MaryTyler Moore Show said (this is paraphrased, I’m afraid, so if anyone has the real quote, please let me know): I like reading my writing, I like getting paid for my writing, and I like hearing, but I don’t think I like writing my writing.

    April is wrapping up, and so am I. Life interrupts and intervenes in projects, in writing, to which we can all testify. You have to know, or try to find out, when it’s best to power through a project or to let go and use your priceless time for something else. I’ll end with this: don’t be afraid to leave a project unfinished if you know (as best you can) that you will return.

Zoë Gallagher