This week's question to myself is: Can I write 35,000-ish words and finish up this rough draft before the end of November. The answer is: Hmmmm....maybe?
Will those words be spectacular? No. No they will not. They will require massive rewriting and editing, but hey, they are in great company because so do the 53,713 words currently in the file. for those of you wondering, yes, this is normal. Rough drafts are exactly what they imply: Rough. They are the writer's way of getting the plot and characters on the page in their crudest form. We are telling ourselves the story so that we can then refine it for an audience. I suspect that this particular rough draft is going to need a boat load of refinement. We're talking changes made with a chainsaw and blow torch rather than a scalpel and fine thread. Even overlooking the typos that are having a rave all over the pages, there are some serious glitches in its matrix, and the characters haven't told me what happened to the stinking cow yet. I mean, I think I know who stole it and why, but I've been known to be wrong before. On top of that, I'm growing suspicious that the arch of this particular story line is off by a bit. I won't know in which direction until it all plays out, but I suspect that the front end will require a weight loss program to get rid of some fluff. For those of you wondering, I don't consider the rough draft to be the "First draft". The First Draft title goes to the piece after the main concerns are addressed and I wrestle it into something that can be read coherently. Considering the app I'm using right now let's all of the typos sit there giggling gleefully without so much as a red squiggly underline to point them out, this thing might as well be written in ancient Sanskrit. I blame autocorrect for my lazy typing skills. I truly do. A First Draft is not the goal right now, though. I'm just trying to finish step one. Sure, I'm behind. My revised schedule-which I completely ignored when it mattered-says I'm supposed to be finished this week. This not going to happen. BUT, I failed forward. I'm inching closer to the finish line. I didn't quit. That's what really matters. And on that note, let me get back to it while you get on with your amazing day, too.
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AuthorJosie Dorans Archives
June 2022
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