That’s right, 50,000 words, well, 50,496 to be precise.
And the novel isn’t finished yet, so I’ll continuing, and updating the word count until the end of the month.
And, that, of course then shows the certificate which I will have to downland and fill out.
I was writing Chapter 29 and suddenly I had a bad feeling. You know the sort of feeling you get, you’ve forgotten something, or there wasn’t a lead into an event which will feel like it came from nowhere…
I’m having one of those moments.
Damn.
I’ve forgotten something.
So, I stop writing and bring up the last eight chapters and start reading.
No, nothing I’ve forgotten. But there is something.
No point going on. This has to run around in my mind for a bit while doing something completely different, like painting a ceiling.
True, I’m in the middle of painting the dining room ceiling and put it off to get on with the project. The project has hit a speed hump, so it’s back to the painting.
Halfway through the roof, it comes to me.
A basic error, of not making sure all of the points are covered in the story otherwise the reader will say, ok, you said that back in Chapter 18 and now, why haven’t you realised that something’s going to happen because of your negligence.
I know what it is.
And it will require another chapter.
But first, I have to finish the painting.
The story continues.
Chapters 23 through 28 are done and we are on the home stretch.
There are seven days and hopefully seven more chapters.
I have finally decided on how it’s going to end, and he’s not going to finish up with the one he thought he would.
And another twist that no one will see coming, even though there are hints.
I have in mind how this will play out in one of the last three chapters, and there is a devastating truth that comes with it, one that is going to be hard to understand for one of the two main protagonists.
Such is as it should be.
And then, there’s the James Bond type ending.
I’m still working on two back chapters which might become three,
But…
I’ve been steadily working on chapters 24 through 29 which were dependent on the framework set up in the two back chapters.
It actually has made it easier to see where the story is going, and make changes in both parts as I go along.
That now leaves me at Chapter 30, which is a major turning point for the story.
In the outline I had the two protagonists doing one thing, and now I’ve pulled the plug on them, and they are doing something else.
The problem was, to me, it was too predictable.
Still, now I’m at chapter 30, anything can happen.
This is Chester. He’s come down from his bed in our bedroom to see what the commotion is about.
He stops at the top of the stairs down into the lounge room and sees the TV.
I might have guessed, the Maple Leafs are playing, he says.
Yep, I say, gleefully, and they’re winning.
Its not over until you know what…
Way to be a spoilsport. Stop complaining and take a seat. It’s a new day, a new coach, and a new invigoration in the team.
He sits and does that wrap around thing with his tail that indicates irritability.
Don’t get your hopes up, he says. And shouldn’t you be out in the office working on your NaNoWriMo project.
Under control I say. It’s practically writing itself.
Is that a shake of his head?
I’m currently working of some back chapters because they impact from the point where I’m currently up to, chapters 24/24, and with a little twerking this part is coming together and will serve it’s purpose as a lead in to what happens later on, and make sense where it before it was a little out of the bluish.
I’ve got a new character, but what her role will be beyond this part of the story is yet to be determined, but I think it might end up being a walk on walk off but part with lines.
Other than that, the novel is proceeding, and the end, three or four chapters long is sitting at the back of my mind, and after a few more days, as we get closer to the end, it will become clear.
There is the plan, but as we are all fully aware, something things don’t go according to plan.
This is Chester. He’s feeling very smug.
Our focus has mainly centred on getting the NaNoWriMo project done each day, but in between all of this, a number of issues have arisen.
The first, the Maple Leads, and what Chester calls my obsession with ice hockey.
He doesn’t get it. No one plays ice hockey in this country at the same level, and you can never find it mentioned anywhere, so why bother.
Besides he adds in his most cutting tone, they’re a bunch of losers.
So they’ve lost six games in a row and sacked the 50 million dollar coach, but…
To him it’s but nothing. Chester now refuses to watch the ice hockey with me, not until they win again. That 6-1 drubbing two games back was the start of the slide.
I tell him that we’re missing key players and with the newish lineup it takes time to work as a team.
Right.
So we move to God Friended Me.
What the hell is going on there. Miles and Cara are stumbling, with doubts seeded, Rakesh has just had his heart torn to shreds and the incoming Bishop is at a crossroads.
So, for a little early advice…
What’s going to happen to Miles and Cara?
Chester: I’m cynical, their the heart of the show, they won’t be forced apart. It’s all about the ratings.
What’s going to happen to Rakesh?
Chester: Draw out the angst for another 14 episodes, we’ll have to keep tuning on to see what happens.
And the bishop and his girlfriend?
Chester: Send them to another parish, they’re just a distraction we don’t need.
I’m inclined to agree with him.
Except about the Maple Leafs. They’re in Pheonix tomorrow, maybe with a new head coach they might pull off a miracle.
It’s now two-thirds of the way through and I’m making great progress.
The consequences of the twist that happened yesterday did not have much of an effect on the planned storyline, so it’s full steam ahead.
This story is going to be longer than 50,000 words as, at the moment, the count is just under 40,000 words.
So far I have 8 chapters in Part 1
9 chapters in Part 2, with one to be written (outline is written)
24 chapters in Part 3, with 2 to be written, (also have outlines written)
Looking at the plan, there are approximately 9 more chapters to be written, and then,
3 or 4 chapters in Part 4 to wrap it up
Best guess, this story will come in at around 70,000 words.
I’ve been having mixed results with the NaNoWriMo site word count recorder, but a few days ago, a daily update facility was added and enabled me to put the correct word counts against the right days.
My problem was, it was sometimes taking to the next t=day to add the previous day’s words, and once I did that, they’d add on to another day, or just disappeared.
But it has caused me to miss out on some of the badges, not recognising the consecutive days writing.
Overall, the new site is harder to use than the old one, and I’m not sure everything I had from before was brought over.
At the moment I can’t see where you can have your word count validated at the end of the month, but I guess we’ll find out soon enough.
The graph looks something like this
and the daily word count looks like this
As a result of a sit down with Chester, who has been keeping an eye on the progress of the project, or at least that’s what he thinks, we’ve decided that there’s going to be a slight change.
Plan or not, writing the story was always going to go the way the characters want to go, and I’ve decided that the two protagonists are not going to have a happily ever after.
They can’t.
It was a pie in the sky notion that they could given the nature of their professions. But it’s not only that, it comes down to the plans their employer has for them, and it certainly isn’t for them to be together.
So, the way it’s written they were about to have that intimate moment when commonsense took over, and instead of being together, they are apart in her apartment.
She wanted him to stay, he wanted to stay, but there are forces in play that dictate caution.
Then the plot twist no one saw coming.
I’m excited about the next ten days.
Stay tuned
Thrills, Spills, and just a dash of Romance 