addicted to deleting

It's day 34 of summer and I have a whopping TWO PAGES of my novel written. Aren't you impressed? It's just that I've been super busy with my hours and hours of internet surfing, my card making, my lounging around in my pajamas in front of the TV...

Also, it turns out that writing a novel is more difficult than I thought it would be. I mean, just because I have a cast of characters written up, a sweet plot, and a suggested plot timeline doesn't mean that the words are just going to tumble out onto the page. I find it much easier to write a blog post. Writing a blog post is a lot more fun for me in number of different ways:

I get to use ALL CAPITALS FOR EMPHASIS.
I can be much more liberal in my use of exclamation points!!!! Not using them feels stifling!!
It's published immediately, just as soon as I hit that magic button.
People applaud my efforts by taking the time to comment.
IT ENDS SOONER.

Max suggested that I write the novel as a series of blog posts, which was an interesting idea. I'm not sure if it would work for the particular story I want to tell. Has this been done before? The closest I can think of is The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society which is written as a series of letters back and forth. Or maybe a "dear diary" type of book? I'll have to think about this.

In the meantime, the local writer's club that I belong to meets again on Monday. If I don't squeeze out some more pages before then, I'll have to explain to everyone that my writing style is mostly just pressing the backspace key.

10 comments:

Sherri said...: Love that backspace key!! Love using CAPS and exclamation points!! See, I'm with you on the novel vs. blogging thing. Instant gratification, it's done, and you move on with your day.

Good luck, maybe a page or two will materialize before Monday's meeting!; 10:37 AM
Unknown said...: I'm obsessed with exclamation points!!! I rarely delete anything (other than spelling and grammatical errors). The Pioneer Woman told her love story with her husband in a series of blog posts that is being made into a book soon.

Also, I read a book called Wild Mind by Natalie Goldberg that helped me think about the "writer hand" and the "editor hand" and how you have to keep the "editor hand" in check until the "writer hand" is finished. It was an amazing writing tool and shows the process she goes through to write a novel. You should check it out.

I wrote a review of the book which, if you are interested, you can find here:

http://mycamocoloredlife.blogspot.com/2010/06/wild-mind-by-natalie-goldberg.html

Good luck with getting some pages written before your writing group meets!; 11:01 AM
A 2 Z said...: Hi Sarah,

Just dropped by to say hi! I was just reading your last entry. Maybe you should put everything away for a few days and relax. That's what summer is about. When you take away the stress of having to try and write that's when the inspiration comes. Enjoy your summer vacation.

Anne-Marie; 11:19 AM
Shell said...: I always wanted to write a novel- but I do like the shortness of blog posts better.

I'm trying to think of who it was who wrote whole novels as emails and texts. I think it was Meg Cabot? They were fun. Probably now, there would be tweets, fb statuses, and blog posts, too.; 11:28 AM
Bethany said...: Don't give up! You'll hit a stride and have a hundred pages turned out before you know it!; 2:53 PM
Sneaker Teacher said...: I would LOVE to write a book too, but I agree it tough to just sit down and get it done! Good luck! Honestly I would refrain from posting your story because you never know who might read it and try to copy you or something. If it is something you hope to publish keep it to yourself!!; 4:02 PM
Sharlene T. said...: Creat a separate blog for the story... and get that copyright thingy on it... I know several writers who do this and it doesn't get stolen... you could always just write them in drafts and not publish, at all... but, heh heh heh, your brain will think you're writing a blog and your fingers will know you are not! Good luck...

Twitter: SolarChief; 9:13 PM
Malia said...: Here's what works for me... the treat system. Write a chapter, get a treat. It's the carrot approach. I'd consider a Starbucks card, a trip to the craft store and dinner "out" treats.

Have you read that book my Julia Cameron? The Artist's Way? That's an inspiring read when you're working on something.

OK I am going a little nuts right now bc my mifi is so slow and I am here in the country and I can't properly accept my "award."

Hugs! Malia; 9:43 AM
Judy@grammyreads.com said...: A novel? Wow, I'm impressed. Sometimes I think I'm awesome because I wrote a paragraph long blog. Good luck to you! Oh, and I found you on SITS in case you were wondering.; 9:48 AM
Melinda said...: Don't feel bad. I had planned to get the first two chapters of my nonfiction book written this summer. Guess how many pages I've written? That's right. Nada. Zero. Zip. With kids home and hubby home (he's a teacher, too!), peace and quiet is a rare commodity. ;0) If you don't give up, I won't either! ;0)

Thanks for stopping by my blog ... I'm following you now!; 10:18 AM