I Suck (an Update)

Bleh!

You already know how this is going to go: Oh, where have I been? So busy, running around, not writing, blah blah excuse salad.

(Though I could cut myself some slack since I did plan a whole haulin' surprise get-away for my Special Lady Friend and now we're engaged. She is my Future Wife!)

So let's skip right past that part, because summer's over, Shakespeare, and I've written bupkis since my last update. That ain't going to cut it if I'd like to complete a draft of Book #2 in my lifetime. Time to roll up my sleeves and do... well, anything.

Fortunately, I had not one but two realizations over the past 12 hours:


#1: I don't need a ton of time.

I've had it in my head for a while now that I need a solid hour in order to really get rolling with my writing. As a result, there have been many, many times where I look at the clock and say "Oh, I only have half an hour before [blank], so there's no point in trying to get any writing done."

Why? Where did that idea come from? Sure, I won't finish a section in under an hour and I may not want to stop once I get into a groove, but that doesn't mean it's not worth even starting if I only have 30-40 minutes. Because even if I only get a couple paragraphs under my belt in that sliver of time, I'm still that much closer to a finished draft.

I am a jackass.


#2: I should have fun with this.

Yeah, here we go, finally to the core of why I think I've been having such a hard time staying motivated with Book #2: I'm not having fun with it.

I've come close to realizing this in the past, and I suppose the lack of fun is understandable since the kernel of Book #2's story came from the death of a friend. But still. Certainly my friend wouldn't want me to force myself through such a glum and dreary exercise. Hell no! He was fun, and I should be having fun with this, too.

I'm having some fun now. I've just knocked out another section of Book #2 which, inexplicably, was inspired by YouTube remixes of fights from Dance Moms.

Did I ever think that was a thing I would write? No, not at all. But there I was, laughing my nuts off over-exaggerated Dance Mom sassatude like it was the second coming of Monty Python, and then I sat down and cranked out almost a thousand words. Go figure.


So, what I have learned from all this? Watch more Dance Moms Time to challenge myself!

Starting today, I'm taking on the My 500 Words challenge. No, don't worry, I won't be challenging any of you with anything. This is a self-imposed challenge for me to write at least 500 words every day for the next 31 days. And if I can do that, I think that would qualify for the "well, anything" I was thinking I needed to do at the top of this post.

The rules:

• Writing for Book #2 counts 
• Blogging counts
• Writing emails does not count
• Editing doesn't count, nor does tinkering with query letters
• I don't have to try and make up for lost days (and there will be a couple near the end of the 31 days)
• Or course, I can write more than 500 words

That last rule is handy, because I'm already at 1292 words and it's only Day 1. Maybe I don't suck after all?