40 WEEKS OF ME- WEEK 16- Blossoming

This week has be extremely unproductive. The first half I spent in bed recovering from a cold. This last half has been spent trying to get caught up. I’m behind in my NaNo goals. I’m okay with that. I was having a hard time connecting with the characters, which I find is odd since I know them so well.

For some reason, the story wasn’t blossoming (Isn't this is a weird looking word, blossoming?).

I’m going to try and explain how story blossoming feels for me. There comes a moment in the story when my conscious mind disconnects and the subconscious takes over. It’s the moment when the characters become real. They take control and I simply transcribe what they tell me.

Heck, half the time I’m astonished by the places the story goes. It’s like magic. What I mean is this particular writing stage feels magical—trance-like.

I’m guessing it feels similar to what one experiences when meditating, but I’ve never meditated so I don’t know. Anyone?

Anyway, I haven’t had that spark with this story. I think it’s because I broke my usual process. I tried to write it straight through without going back and editing. In my first drafts I have a lot of narrative. My characters are talkers. They’re all—blah, blah, blah.

When I go back through after writing the chapter, I flesh it out. I add description. Fix plot holes. This leads to a deeper awareness of where I want the story to go, and I’m able to foreshadow later twists. The story solidifies in my mind and isn’t as nebulous.

I’ve spent this week editing. My word count hasn’t moved much, but I have a better sense of the story now. Hopefully, I’ll be writing new material this weekend. Plus, we have a super holiday next week and I don’t have to work. I should have some uninterrupted writing time after coming out of my tryptophan coma.