I emailed in my Memphis Barbeque III manuscript to my editor on Tuesday afternoon. :)
I had a great time writing the book—particularly the end when I got to tie together some subplots into the ending. For some reason, that’s always one of my favorite things to do. I just love giving the little inconsequential bits a more important role at the end.
And now—I’m moving on to the next book!
I used to take breaks from working on the next manuscript, but I’ve found that it’s a whole lot better in the long run to just keep on writing every day. Even during the holidays, I can manage a little time to move my story forward.
But the reason that I keep going is because it doesn’t take long for me to slip out of a writing habit or lose my writing momentum.
But I don’t have to write at the same pace I’ve been keeping. And I’m not editing anything right now (which is a nice break! Editing gets old after a while.)
Things I do when I’m writing at a slower pace:
Brainstorm ideas for the current WiP
Brainstorm ideas for other books in the series I’m writing
Brainstorm ideas for possible new series (I just like to keep thinking ahead)
Of course the promo obligations don’t ever really let up and I’m still doing non-creative writing—blogging, etc.—but with the brainstorming, I at least feel like I’m keeping it creative even while I’m working at a slower pace.
I know a lot of y’all are coming off the frantic pace of NaNo—congratulations to everybody who completed the challenge! My question for you is—are you giving yourself a break? Editing your NaNo manuscript? Or moving on to your next project? And…if you’re writing something new, are you moving at a slower pace?
Elizabeth – Your question is really timely. I didn’t do NaNo, but right now, my “day job” pace has picked up and demanded more from me. So I am writing more slowly. As much as I’d have liked to keep the pace up, I’m better off not doing it. When I push myself too hard, I end up writing bilge.
Yes brainstorming is great. I get good ideas on walks away from the house/computer too. :O)
I can attest that when you take a long break, the urge to write sags. I can think of a lot of ideas and stories, but none are highly marketable, while the one thing that IS, I don’t feel like writing.
I am one of the people who have just finished NaNoWriMo. At the moment I’m fluctuating between never wanting to look at the November novel again and feeling a desperate urge to add a little more explanation to the closing chapter.
I usually write something completely different after November, and I have some family history projects waiting for me so I will either work on these or on a short story.
I didn’t do NaNo but I will share my plans. I am still editing my ms. I have twelve chapters that I will finish by Saturday. There are very few comments from my editor. Yeah! But I am still waiting on chapters from her.
When I finish, and it seems like never right now, I have an almost completed sequel and a novella that is started. The plan is to write 3 – 4 novellas in a series a year and one sequel to my high fantasy. We will see if I can do that.
Nancy
N. R. Williams, fantasy author
I finished NaNo (i.e., hit 50K) but I didn’t finish the story I was telling, so I’m continuing to work on it, but at a slower pace (1000 words/day instead of 1667). I feel like I really got the writing-every-day habit built up during November and I don’t want to lose that, but I also know I found the required word count a bit of a grind.
Also, I think your blog qualifies as creative writing — you do a great job linking everyday events to writing challenges, giving us a new way to think about things. Thanks for keeping up with it!
Right now I’m splitting time between revisions on my own writing and doing editing for clients. Don’t want to totally stop looking at my own work or it grows cold in my head (does that make sense?).
I like to keep up a steady pace. When I do take breaks they are short so I don’t get out of the groove too much!
I agree on brainstorming to keep in touch with the creativity–I am currently EDITING (I went back to the project I was editing when NaNoWriMo started–hopefully just a few weeks left on that. I’ve committed to editing TWO projects before I write something new because the last year I’ve been so negligent. You’re right though, that it is VERY wearing.
I’m still working on my NaNo project, as sequel to my book. Not at the same pace, but I’m still excited. I’ll probably dive into rewrites as soon as I finish.
I’m still continuing my NaNo novel; I have a lot to write still! But brainstorming is important; it keeps the thoughts flowing.
Madeleine–I think I need to take some of those walks! Of course, today is really cold here…48, which is nutty for December in NC.
Diane–It’s too bad that we have to keep the market in mind, isn’t it?
Sheila–A short story is a great idea! I think they are SO tough to write, but I do love reading them.
Margot–Oh gosh, I write such crap some days…but then I know I can clean it all up later. I’ve gotten so I just try not to think about it when I’ve had a really off day.
Nancy–
You’ve been really productive and with more than one project! Congratulations. :)
Kit–I like 1000 words, too. It’s pretty easy to hit that goal and it doesn’t take too much time out of the day. And the book moves ahead nicely, still!
You’re making me feel better! Thanks so much. :) I definitely feel a sense of satisfaction when I blog.
Helen–Oh, it totally makes sense! It’s easy for me to forget where I was trying to go with something when I put it down for too long.
Heather–Me too. It’s easy to get out of the groove, and so hard to get back into it!
Hart–It’s not nearly as much fun as being creative, is it? I think I use a totally different part of my brain when I’m editing.
Alex–I think your timing was PERFECT, Alex! You’re still pumped from your new release, got a sequel written during NaNo, and are still feeding off your momentum.
Golden Eagle–Congratulations for writing the bulk of it, though! NaNo is a tough challenge.
Sometimes I get tired of the ever-lasting race for creativity, in my job (science) and hobby (writing). The divergent brainstorming phase is always fun, but the subsequent convergent phase when I have to collect the pieces and put it all together can be exhausting, in particular if I’m running out of time. Then it’s nice to grab the skis and get up to the slopes >:)
Cold As Heaven
You’re so dedicated. You’ve motivated me to try harder to write every day. It’s hard when the weekends hit, Hubby to do things with, and then there’s the kids and grandkids. Someday though, I might get this down. :)
Cold As Heaven–I’m imagining that, in your work, there’s a competitive element to the creativity, too. That wouldn’t be much fun, I wouldn’t think.
Wish I could ski. I’m a klutz, so it’s a self-protective thing that I haven’t learned. :)
Kathi–I think you do pretty well, yourself! I know you’ve got a blog that I tweet a lot, and you’re writing a lot, too!
hmmm…I’m in a bit of a weird space with my projects actually. I entered one in a contest but I am still revising which is fine. I think I will be sending it out by the end of January. My mystery is looking for a home but I would like to do a real tight line edit on it – I just haven’t had the energy or something. I’m also thinking of going back to my first novel and completely revising it. Yep, I want to do that. So…all in all. I need to keep my hand in every day when I’m doing the first draft but then I can go at a cooler slower pace. Still want to be working every day though as it is just like exercising – hard to get into the rythym again.
I’m coming off of NaNo and even though I didn’t meet the 50,000 I learned so much. The best part is that I decided on what to write and a beginning title. Oh, your response to one of my quandaries helped me come up with what to right about. Your post asked about the genre we like to write in. My quandary was that I received more comments on my blogging posts relating to my time in the Air Force, but that I loved writing mysteries. Your advice (I’m paraphrasing) was to take these experiences and fictionalize them into a story. It was as though a light bulb clicked on! That’s what I did for my NaNo novel. Thanks! Now that I have that overwhelming decision made, I enjoy sitting down and continuing writing on the novel! I mean, 20,250 words is a lot, especially for me! I’m in the middle and since I know the ending, it helps! Though I do find scenes and other characters popping up! One thing I find hard to do though, is write without mentally editing! Which was a problem in NaNo, I found it very difficult not to write “perfectly”. I wasn’t able to write by the seat of my pants. I found myself constantly going to Google to be sure of such things as width and length of Okinawa or stopping to find a box with my old orders to see what my unit number was or pulling out old pictures to refresh certain features. Did you ever have to deal with mentally editing? And is it something I want to overcome? Because the one good thing with this type of writing is I really have a good many of my facts already workable! Also, can’t wait till June with your next book comes out!
It seems as though I’ve been on such a long promo, blogging, organizing break that it’s about time to get back to writing. I’ve cleared my schedule for the next three months, so I have no excuse.
Jan–If you felt up to it, you could revise a little every day on the first book, while working on something new. That would satisfy both sides of your brain…and you could probably just do 15 minutes of each and still get somewhere every day. :)
Judy–Thanks so much! And I’m so glad I was able to help you out. Writing is so much less of a chore when we’re writing something that we know we’re excited about or that we’ve gotten good response on when we’ve sent out feelers (or checked the market.) I’m so glad that’s happening for you!
Patricia–Sometimes the only way to get back into it is just giving yourself permission to write really poorly…sort of a “okay, I’m writing today, but it’s just practice” sort of a thing. Sometimes I do write really horrible stuff after giving myself permission, and sometimes it’s a little better. :)