Came up a little short of the ‘suggested daily wordcount’ today, but I hit a really good stopping point. So, I stopped. I have a handful of chapters to work through tomorrow to get the basics of this draft in place before I start painting inside the lines and turning this into a prized novel. Or at least a decent novel. I’m excited about this project for the most part. There are parts of the story where I feel it needs work and more thought, but overall I have a strong sense of characters and plot and where it is going and the story is worth telling. Equally important: I’m writing on a daily basis again and feeling good about putting words on the page and firing up towards my deadline.
More and more I think about how much I want writing to be a part of my life. The degree to which everything else is a part of the life is still in flux. Ultimately, the goal is to have me and my partner living a life where we are doing cool stuff and I get to write and play games while she keeps doing the cool stuff or her own stuff (or plays games or writes right alongside me, though that seems highly unlikely).
These days the typical day involves several hours at the page and a few more at the console to break it up. I like the impact gaming has on writing. I like not thinking so much and just reacting and clearing space mentally to get back on a good page. It works for me. This is becoming my process. Of course, I start with the games and maybe I ought to switch things around to start with the words. That is, at least symbolically, a positive pathway.
The more I do this and sit down to reflect on it, the more I feel I am on the right path in regards to the words. Things are going well in that sense. I can preserve that part of things and be happy.