Beware the Space Under the Stairs...and 147 Pages

FAIR WARNING:  I have decided to share bits and snippets of various things that are of significance in my book (or things that I just really like and want to inflict on you share).  Sometimes I may reveal a new character, details about where the story is set, important oddities about the setting, or other random things that might prove interesting.  Here is today's offering:
 

Beware the twll dan grisiau.

So, now that we have the obligatory creepiness out of the way...

I have to confess; this is the first time I have ever attempted to write an entire novel in long hand before I enter it into the computer and start editing it.  I have discovered that I actually prefer to write in pencil...it makes the changes and revisions less distracting than staring at scribbled out blocks of text that are further proof my stumbling along. 

I also found that I like the immediacy of being able to whip out my notebooks and get to writing without having to wait for the computer to boot up, to open the program and document, etc.  I also prefer the satisfaction of seeing the pages pile up.  It is a bit humbling to flip through page after page filled with words...my words!

Early on, I started dating my efforts to show how the progress grew...I could mark what was going on in my life when I was writing each word.  It is a bit unnerving to be able to flip to a random page and look at a date and think, "Oh, wow, I wrote that three months ago...was it really that long ago?  That was right before my husband's surgery..."  It makes the book almost a milestone of this year of my life.  I wonder how many characters suffered a change in fate simply because of the mood I woke up in that day....  I may have to examine this more closely once it is completed.

I have found that there are also some potential downsides to writing everything out in long-hand.  For example, I have a paranoid fear of losing the notebooks, or spilling something on them, or getting in a car wreck and barely extracting myself from the wreckage only to have the car burst into flames before I can rescue my only manuscript....

Other than the fear of obliterating my only copy of my book, I have also been obsessing over the amount of time it is also going to take to enter the whole book onto the computer once the first draft is completed; I do think that may actually work in my favor, since I can use it as my first round of editing (or so I imagine).  Fingers crossed!

Things have started getting more intense in my story line the past week or so.  People are on the run and finding out that the didn't really know those closest to them at all.  A new character is about to make an appearance, and there could be some romantic interest there.  I need to write more and see what kind of chemistry they have, but in my head it is going to throw some wonderful kinks into things.  The conflicts are building up, and in some ways it makes it harder to write.  I have found that when the plot becomes more interesting to read, it also becomes more emotional and nerve wracking to write.  But the past week has been pretty productive...I have completed 147 pages.



Pencils, Pictures, and 111 Pages

Well, I had to make last night another "late writing night."  I have been trying to write over my lunch hour so that the writing does not take too much time away from my family.  (I have an over-abundance of "Mom Guilt" so I constantly worry about this.)  But the past three work days, I have had to work through lunch to make up for taking off work early one day last week to take my son to the doctor.  However, today is my last "lost lunch," and I am eager to get back on track. 

Last night was productive, though.  A new character is making himself known.  Apparently, his name is Thaddeus--an older gentleman.  I am not sure how prominent of a character he will end up being, yet; however, I have a feeling that he will be pivotal. 

I also had to map out the region in which my story takes place.  Many of the characters live in a common area (in a valley), and I needed to be able to plot scenes.  I can't very well have characters running through woods if I can't see where they are going, now can I?  (To be honest, all this mapping is making be feel rather Tolkienesque.  Is that a word?) 

Enough already.  Focus, you silly redhead!

I really want to stick to my minimum of one hour per day.  I will let you in on a just-now-recognized goal...apparently I have had a subconscious "draft due-by date" of July.  I know, I know!  What am I thinking?  Well, it seems that I want to have the first draft completed before I turn forty.  I had no idea that this ambition was brewing in the back of my brain until I blurted it out to my friend, Angela.  But I did blurt it out, and now it is "out there," and it seems that I am making it even more real by talking about it here.  Nothing like a little public pressure to make yourself stick to a goal!

Also, since I am a visual person, I thought I would post a picture of where I write when I am at home (as opposed to when I write at my table in the break room at lunch, or at a stop light, or in the van while waiting for the school bus...):

My "writing spot."

You may notice that I write in pencil.  If you didn't notice, just believe me when I say that I do.  Therefore, I decided it would be a good idea to mount a nice, old fashioned pencil sharpener on one of my book shelves.  (This may have something to do with the fact that I burned up the motors on two of the fancy-pants electric models, and it was getting rather expensive to replace them!)  For those that give a flip, here is a photo of that as well:

My nice, sturdy pencil sharpener.

And yes, if you are super observant (as I so rarely am), you will notice that the calendar above the pencil sharpener proclaims it to be March of 1946.  Don't panic; it is still 2012.  The calendar was from my (much loved and much missed) great-grandmother's store, so I keep it as a reminder of her.  It also reminds me that time only stands still once you are in the grave, so I better do my living now!

Oh, before I go...yes, I got my hour in.  This makes my page count 111!