write a novel

I never imagined writing to be so difficult. After forty-four months of writing my novel, it hasn’t gotten any easier.

But I won’t give in. I’m going to keep working on this thing until it’s done. I will finish!

If you have been following my progress here, then you are aware that I have hit a rough patch in my writing. The wellspring of words seems to have run dry.

Over the past three weeks I have placed my energies in other things, one includes reading an amazing book titled The Power of Less by Leo Babauta. (This book is all about simplifying one’s life by doing less, which promotes productivity. So if you are seeking to be more effective, then I suggest you get a copy. You won’t be disappointed.) Of the many things I have learned so far, one of them stood out:

Reassess your progress. To keep yourself on track, once a week, review your projects and see how much closer you are to completion, and what still needs to be done. If you notice that you’re focusing on something that’s not getting you closer to completion, refocus yourself.

That was music to my soul. I have completed the first six chapters of my novel well over a year ago, but I have yet to go back and reread them. Instead of reviewing my work to see what I have done and to see where the story is actually going, I ended up getting sidetracked and focused on something else. Losing focus is what stopped the flow of words. What I focused on is but a small part of the story and not the main thing, yet I made it to be bigger than what it should be. I would not be experiencing writer’s block if I had just kept my previous work nearby instead of revisiting it.

This one piece of advice alone is worth the cost of the book (at least to me). It’s put me back on track to writing a potential bestseller. That and the time I have spent doing other things have been good as more ideas have presented themselves, as well as another possible book.

Cheers! :-)

(Sigh) Things aren’t going so well. I have these grand ideas for my book, yet I fail to find the “bridges” that link those ideas together. Maybe, just maybe, my ideas are too much and I should scale them back. Or maybe my weak writing ability is the culprit.

(Sigh) I’m still trying to hang in there. After three years, I’m still working on my first novel. Every day I fight the urge to quit; every day I sit in my desk chair and try to make it happen. I’ve come so far already. Hopefully, I’ll be able to find those “bridges” and finish this novel by year’s end.

I finished the 13th chapter of my novel today. Yep. All three pages of it.

Honestly, the chapter sucks. (Sigh) I don’t know why but my writing of late has been terrible. Perhaps it’s because I took six months off (due to burnout) before beginning again at chapter seven; maybe my mind was sharper back then or something. I have no clue as to why my writing skills have declined. My efforts seem worthless and self-doubt is beginning to creep in.

Though lacking confidence, the towel is still on the rack. I refuse to throw it in, not until I know for sure that I’m incapable of accomplishing this goal. The first six chapters are golden. I just need to get that “Oomph” back somehow.

Chapter 12 is now done.

Man, it seems that I’ve lost some confidence in my writing. It just doesn’t have the staying power the other chapters have. Still, I’ll keep writing. Over three years ago I embarked on this journey. It would be a shame if I gave up now.

But I won’t. I’ll keep going. I’ll make myself and others proud.

:-)

Another chapter of the book is now done. Wow, eleven chapters so far with more to come. Things are looking good as of now.

Funny how my writing is going. For the last two chapters, I wrote two different versions of each. The second version of the eleventh chapter is written as though the previous chapter never existed. And it seems to flow better. Hmm, no one ever said editing would be easy.

But I’m not giving up, not now. I can see the finish line ahead. I will cross it if it’s the last thing I do!

Cheers! :-)

Another three weeks (or was it four) and another chapter down. However, something doesn’t feel right about it. The chapter is just under 7K words and has some great stuff in it. Yet I sense that it’s lame. Compared to other chapters, I am not satisfied with it.

So I guess I’m not done. I’ll have to go back and add some interest that will move the story forward.

Remember, I’m gonna do whatever it takes for as long as it takes to finish this novel. Been at it three years and counting. The finish line is almost in sight. I’ll be there soon!

Cheers. :-)

Two weeks and another chapter down. This one has over 7K words. At one point, I wanted to cut out almost a thousand and go another direction with it just so it wouldn’t be so long. In the end I decided to leave it be. The story has to tell itself, no?

I’m making steady progress with my novel. The end is nigh!

Cheers!

Hey, hey. I finished chapter 8 yesterday morning. Can you believe it? Well, it’s onward to chapter 9 for me!

This morning I spent 4 hours on my novel, trying to write at least 500 words. I wrote that and then some. However, I reviewed what I wrote and realized that it was all fluff. You know, useless verbiage that needs to be reduced or cut altogether. I wrote for 4 hours, only to produce 500+ words of garbage. Yikes!

That’s how it happens sometimes. I’ve learned to just to write down whatever idea is in my head, regardless of how many words it is or how long it takes. The benefit is that I can later edit it all, reducing/cutting where necessary so that my words have greater clarity and brevity.

Consider that a writing tip. If doing this helps me turn trash into treasure, I’m sure that others (like you) can make use of it. So don’t delete the trash!

Cheers :-)