Joyously Prolific

Busy few days, but I am actually getting caught up on work and looking forward to the March Madness week of writing. I counted over seventy people signed up for the single week event. That's going to be a lot of words written. (grin)

I've still have a few other things to get done. The big one is to get the new two month dare set up, which I completely forgot about and didn't put on my schedule. Since we consistently have 100 or more people involved in that one I think I had better get it done before I have a rebellion.

I did finish and post the last of my Back to School classes yesterday. I'm several days early, but with so much else going on right now I thought it important to get as much work out of the way as I could.

Until yesterday I was not at all excited about March Madness. I think I didn't feel that I would get caught up on enough of the other work to really take part. But now not only do I feel like I might make it, but I think I even have a project. I'm behind on the fifth Dark Staff book, which I really should be turning in soon. I've been doing a lot of notes on the rewrite (and yes, I'm rewriting from scratch yet again!), plus handwritten material to add in. I started working on it the other day but only got about 3,000 words before I was distracted by other things that MUST BE DONE NOW and I haven't had a chance to go back to it.

So I am thinking that March Madness is going to be a perfect chance for me to make a real run on it. Not only will I be able to do a lot of writing, but it will be on something that I must get done anyway. Seems like a really good combination to me. Russ has been worried because I've not been at all excited about March Madness this year, and it's always been one that I really enjoy. My year has sort of gone that way, though, in general. I think if I can sit down and concentrate on something -- anything -- in writing, I'll get excited about it. (grin)

Of course, by the time the 25th arrives, I'll probably have some other novel to work on. It's been that kind of year for me. I do have a couple other works that I could be writing on, but I think Elliora's World is going to be the one. Really.

I have to admit that it's been exciting to do the 2YN class. It's difficult to decide how to lay out the work, of course -- because it is forcing a pattern on a process that would normally be more chaotic and free flowing. But a class has to have some structure, and in the end you can only make what seems a logical decision to yourself and stick with it. Others will not find it logical at all, of course (grin).

The class is into the 12th week. During the next couple months the people working there will start to take more and more divergent directions as some get done with types of work (worldbuilding and outlining) ahead of others.

A large part of this class is going to be helping people get all the way through their novels. All this work leading up to the writing is an attempt to give a strong set of notes and background material to help see them through. I've started reading through all the posted material so far so that I am acquainted with what the story they want to tell. That's also why I'll be culling out the people who have not been around for six weeks or so. I never expected everyone to make it all the way through the two years, of course. My ideas and the stuff that I present is certainly not going to suit everyone.

But the one thing I can bring to others is the determination to see the work all the way to the end. The only story that can't be fixed is the one a person never writes and completes. If I can help people get to the end, then all this work is going to be well worth it.

(Oh, and Joel -- we're waiting on some paperwork on the house. We weren't in any hurry to get anything going until after all the snow melted anyway. If the owner has changed her mind it's not going to bother us all that much. We'll just have to wait a while longer and see what happens.)