Word Counts and Updates
- Thread starter Homer Potvin
- Start date
Wrote 1459 in a third segment today. No rounding up or down, every word counts on its own merit. Edits will probably add something, maybe another few hundred, maybe up to a thousand, but I reckoned this would be one of the shorter episodes from the get go.
I will admit that I didn't particularly feel like writing today, which is a terrible confession, but went ahead anyway because the record of effort on this thread is a lesson I need to learn. So thanks everyone. Keep it up.
I will admit that I didn't particularly feel like writing today, which is a terrible confession, but went ahead anyway because the record of effort on this thread is a lesson I need to learn. So thanks everyone. Keep it up.
Today was a lot more productive that I expected. My MC is starting to realize how FUBAR'ed he is but I was kind of at a loss of where to take the story, so I decided to talk to Claude the AI about it. Despite what you may think, it was very helpful as a sounding board. It pointed out holes in my logic and asked pretty good questions that helped me flesh out the mythology of my world.
What I thought was going to be a 0 word day turned into 1,808 words and I have a clear direction to take the story.
So far, I'm at 8,641/30,000 for this month. One week down, three to go!
I check in multiple times a day, and it's nice to see the progress updates everyone is posting in this thread, it helps to keep me on track.
What I thought was going to be a 0 word day turned into 1,808 words and I have a clear direction to take the story.
So far, I'm at 8,641/30,000 for this month. One week down, three to go!
I check in multiple times a day, and it's nice to see the progress updates everyone is posting in this thread, it helps to keep me on track.
Only 897 words this fine Friday. I could plead the fact that I was at work from 7:15 in the morning to 10:10 at night, with only a couple of hours break between the two jobs. But the more glaring fact is that I had no students for three and a half hours at school today, and I could have knocked out a very large tally, instead of half of a very small one.
My only excuse was that my "new" car, the one I've had for only a week, began stalling out at stop signs on the way to school this morning and giving me yip. I was so worried about it, I drowned my sorrows writing in my journal and watching YouTube videos on my phone.
If I had any sense, I would have worked off the anxiety by getting more fiction words on the page.
Anyway. There's the 897 I had by midnight, for a total of 9,211.
My only excuse was that my "new" car, the one I've had for only a week, began stalling out at stop signs on the way to school this morning and giving me yip. I was so worried about it, I drowned my sorrows writing in my journal and watching YouTube videos on my phone.
If I had any sense, I would have worked off the anxiety by getting more fiction words on the page.
Anyway. There's the 897 I had by midnight, for a total of 9,211.
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Speak With Animals
New Member
Nothing yesterday, and 1,089 today, which is not what I was aiming for but a complete "scene" that I'm almost happy with. I may take another day away from it tomorrow and come back to it Monday with a more focused mind.
I'm at 14k/50k, though I started at 5-ish. In other words, I'm behind. The excuse is I'm a pantser, and as I got to know the protagonist more I realised I needed major plot adjustments, so I set out on an edit. (I know, I know I probably shouldn't)
The thing is, knowing the curve I took makes some things in those early chapters disconnected. They would just sit there moaning at me in a distracting manner until I tied the loose ends. Anyway, I'm happy with how things are shaping up. Onwards and upwards.
The thing is, knowing the curve I took makes some things in those early chapters disconnected. They would just sit there moaning at me in a distracting manner until I tied the loose ends. Anyway, I'm happy with how things are shaping up. Onwards and upwards.
Not much time today, so just 600 words. Now I've got 11626 of 25000 words.
I realised my Captain's story lacked tension/a climax. Yeah, weird thing to forget. Thankfully, due to planning, the Captain is already a complex and flawed human being, so after a bit of thinking I saw where his character would run up against a wall of his own making.
By chance, I started Remains of the Day today, which is written in diary form, and wow... just wow. I can see a whole new kind of energy in the Captain's Log now. I think I will stick to it for now.
I realised my Captain's story lacked tension/a climax. Yeah, weird thing to forget. Thankfully, due to planning, the Captain is already a complex and flawed human being, so after a bit of thinking I saw where his character would run up against a wall of his own making.
By chance, I started Remains of the Day today, which is written in diary form, and wow... just wow. I can see a whole new kind of energy in the Captain's Log now. I think I will stick to it for now.
Same here. I'm making notes as I go so I remember what I want to go back and fix, and I'm continuing as if I've already fixed it. But I know even that even if I went back to fix it now, somewhere down the line I'm likely to run up against a problem that would make that edit redundant too... so onwards and upwards, as you said.
1,881 words today, besting yesterdays record of 1,808.
The time I spent talking to Claude yesterday is really paying off. The new mythology I fleshed out feels a lot stronger than my original concept. It also opens up a few glaring issues in my earlier chapters. The urge to go back to chapter 1 and work though everything, fixing plot holes, is strong. I'm going to pretend those chapters don't exist though and keep moving forward on the story. There will be plenty of time for rewrites during the holiday shutdown during the last two weeks of December! At least, that's what I tell myself.
Total: 10,522/30,000
~35% complete
The time I spent talking to Claude yesterday is really paying off. The new mythology I fleshed out feels a lot stronger than my original concept. It also opens up a few glaring issues in my earlier chapters. The urge to go back to chapter 1 and work though everything, fixing plot holes, is strong. I'm going to pretend those chapters don't exist though and keep moving forward on the story. There will be plenty of time for rewrites during the holiday shutdown during the last two weeks of December! At least, that's what I tell myself.
Total: 10,522/30,000
~35% complete
I added 437 items to my purchase database for the new restaurant. That counts for something, right? I'm definitely not making my 50k this month, but I will be back on the horse next week I hope. Unless the horse decides to fuck me from one side of the ponderossa to the other, which would be less painful. Remarkably I'm still in excellent spirits about the writing thing. Haven't felt this good in years.
Missed my morning writing due to a meeting in the morning, a nap in the afternoon, and dinking around on the forum in the evening. Guess I better do something about that.
another three k in to the sculptor book now on 45k and change... the working title on that is Hot Metal, play on words because he's a metal artist but hes also stolen a bunch of gold from some very bad men who'd like it back
17,309.
When I submitted the original synopsis for Book III, both agent and editor requested more magical realism in the story. I've been turning that over in my mind without coming up with a good way to add it without seeming contrived. While I was tapping away at the keyboard tonight, the solution arrived, just like... magic.
It requires some adjusting to what is already written, but no biggie, I'll catch it on the next run through. Right now, I just want to get those 50,000 bones in place to support the next phase of the book.
When I submitted the original synopsis for Book III, both agent and editor requested more magical realism in the story. I've been turning that over in my mind without coming up with a good way to add it without seeming contrived. While I was tapping away at the keyboard tonight, the solution arrived, just like... magic.
It requires some adjusting to what is already written, but no biggie, I'll catch it on the next run through. Right now, I just want to get those 50,000 bones in place to support the next phase of the book.
I like that a bunch! Puns and word play entertain me to no end.
Look at organized you!
I have something like this, only it's hand-written in a little spiral-bound notebook I got as a prize for asking a question at a writers' conference workshop in May. Ironically, the workshop was on using A.I.
Are you keeping a running total anywhere?
Thought this would amuse you: Hot Metal Street, Pittsburgh
I continue to feel my way into my novella project. Dean Wesley Smith would call that "writing into the dark." BS. I'm in the dark already. I'm trying to write my way out into the light.
So, I started with 9,211 words. Got 1,518 more added by midnight. That takes me up to 10,729 words. Not bad for eight days in.
I'm pledged to 25k words for this November Writing Thing, but I think I should press on to 30k or so and get the first draft done. That'll give me a pad of 10,000 words or so to lick the puppy into shape. 40,000 is a good length for a novella, I believe.
So, I started with 9,211 words. Got 1,518 more added by midnight. That takes me up to 10,729 words. Not bad for eight days in.
I'm pledged to 25k words for this November Writing Thing, but I think I should press on to 30k or so and get the first draft done. That'll give me a pad of 10,000 words or so to lick the puppy into shape. 40,000 is a good length for a novella, I believe.
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