Rising to the Challenge

A few of us are kicking off another writing challenge on Monday. Hopefully this will help some of shake off the rejection funk that has, at least for me, dampened my writing enthusiasm. I hadn’t touched my MS since November. I decided to take Christmas off, then January 3rd, the bomb dropped and I hadn’t cared. Instigator took the chapters I had with her on vacation and came back with edits that have gotten me slowly back into the mindset, although I’m not really writing much new text. The challenge will force me to do that. Deadlines, even if self-imposed, can get you back on the horse and into the swing of things. I so need it.

Last summer, our writing challenge produced a whole book in six weeks time for each of us. It was a very rough draft, most definitely, but it pushed me through the hem n’ haw middle where I stop writing if I hit a wall or forget what I’m supposed to be doing. Not sure I’m going to be that ambitious this go around, especially since I’m trying a longer formatted book, but I do have 120 pages under my belt already. Of course, the first 100 pages are always the easiest for me and now I’m approaching said middle.

Perhaps I can finish. My goal this time will be modest – 350 page book minus 120 already written, is 230 pages. Divide that by seven weeks worth of weekdays (I’m a realist here) and it gives me almost 7 pages a day, less if I manage to write on a Saturday or something when DB is sleeping. Totally doable. I think. My goal is really 380-400 pages, but this is a rough draft and I can flesh out the rest in the revision challenge that will inevitably come sometime later.

The thought just occurred to me that when this challenge is done, it will be April and we’ll be that much closer to going to Scotland! Guess I’d better crank this out because after Scotland is Dallas and sometime in the middle there, I have to sell a house, move into a new house and finish this book so I have something to pitch in an editor or agent appointment in Texas. So much to do!

I know I’ve just flown all the way through July with that last paragraph, but time can certainly fly when you’ve got a bunch of things going on. Lots of stuff happening – good stuff, really. I’m feeling good about the world in general, which is the first time I’ve felt this way in a while. I hope it sticks around. (My realtor is coming to the house tonight, so it may vanish by the time you’ve read this.) I’ll enjoy it while it lasts.

Motivation can be hard to come by. What do you use to perk up the ambition when its no where to be found?

SP

Watch for the return of the mighty Zokutou meter next week!