It's the final week of NaNoWriMo and I survived! I must confess though, I didn't make my original intended work count. But in all honesty, I'm okay with that. I am so much closer to a first draft of my unfinished novel than I was a month ago, and that would not have happened if it wasn't for NaNoWriMo. Along this journey, I've learnt so many incredible things along the way. It only seemed fitting from this last update that I would share the things I learnt from this experience!
Despite not reaching my intended word count, I couldn't be more happier with the results. I am one step closer to finishing my novel, and two steps closer to Christmas! I may even participate in new year's NaNoWriMo. So until next year, folks!
Fellow NaNoWriMo-ers, tell me your thoughts? How did you find this year's ultimate month of writing? Let's talk!
- No matter how many times you think you can't write anymore, there is always something to put down on paper. Maybe it's a random sentence that you can't find room for just yet in your story. Write it down, and it'll make sense in time.
- Who says you can't leave pages blank and continue on with the rest of the novel? Writer's block can only ease itself - in small doses. If it isn't working for you, move on and come back later. Give that section a break.
- It doesn't matter if you can't put your thoughts down perfectly on paper the way you want to, all that matters its down on paper. Ready to be edited.
- Editing is everything. It will make your raw ingredients sound like perfection. You would never have even known what it came from!
Despite not reaching my intended word count, I couldn't be more happier with the results. I am one step closer to finishing my novel, and two steps closer to Christmas! I may even participate in new year's NaNoWriMo. So until next year, folks!
Fellow NaNoWriMo-ers, tell me your thoughts? How did you find this year's ultimate month of writing? Let's talk!
The DUFF - Watch the trailer here. |
Thoughts
I have very mixed feelings about this trailer. On the one hand, I understand why CBS decided to turn it down the sexual tension a notch. It makes sense - the novel was slightly riskay afterall. But to change the entire premise of the story is something else entirely. The DUFF was never about 'reinvention', but learning to accept and love the quirks and qualities that made you unique - your individuality. The good and the bad. There is so much more to Wesley and Bianca than just their labels on the social ladder, and this trailer doesn't really showcase that. If I hadn't read the book, I would pass this story off as a typical high school cliché story, which it is far from.
In the novel, Bianca never sets out to change herself and learns to accept herself for who she truly is. That's part of the reason why her her character is so iconic, and why I'm concerned for this adaptation. In this trailer there is also no mention of Bianca and Wesley - other personal dramas involving their family, which is something I hope has been omitted from the trailer - not the actual movie itself. Based on this trailer alone, it feels as though Hollywood has decided to take this story and tried to turn it into - or at least advertise it as - this generation's She's All That. That being said, this is a first look trailer. There may be so much more than we haven't been shown. Maybe this is all a marketing tactic to gain some further interest in the story. The thought of that alone, leaves me feeling pretty optimistic.
Highlights
Despite some major changes to the plot, I still feel like this story holds potential. It's possible that the themes and events that take place in the novel, may be explored on camera - just without so much sexual tension. That is my greatest hope for this film.
I absolutely love the quirky nature of this trailer. Mae Whitman nails that quirky, quick witted yet humble persona that Bianca holds. It's hard to say anything more about the other characters since the trailer solely focuses on Wesley and Bianca - but here's to hoping that they stay true their novel counterparts, (and are more than just the typical high school type-casts). As long as the stories core principles and issues are stuck to in this adaptation, I'll be a happy bunny, and so thoroughly entertained. But anything otherwise oh ho ho - CBS, you will have disappointed me big time ...
What are your thoughts on The DUFF? Have you read the novel? I'd love to hear more about what you think ^_^
Popping out 1000 words per day, without planning most of what I'm trying to say is difficult. Much more difficult than Week One - where I exhausted the surface ideas I had, and Week Two where I filled in the missing gaps between those plot lines. I really appreciate the ideals of this month, but I miss the writing without pressure of reaching a word count. And the feeling of disappointment if I don't. So from now on, instead of demanding 1000 words per day to reach the word count, I'm just going to try to write however much I can daily for the duration of NaNoWriMo.
Can anyone else relate? Fellow NaNoWriMo-ers, how you finding the challenge?
When I was in Year 7, my English teacher gave my class an assignment - to write a letter to our future-selves that we would open in our final year of high school. At 11 years old, I remember thinking it was a strange concept. I couldn't imagine myself five years down the line as a 16 year old young adult, ready to take on the world. What would I want to say to myself? What would I want to know? I remember writing that letter so clearly, and also the day I opened it. Its a memory that I've always held very dear to me. So when I came across this tag on my Bloglovin feed, I instantly jumped right at that opportunity. What better what to honour that memory than writing another letter to my future self. I'm also at a significant point in my life where anything can happen, and with that, you can't help but wonder where life may take you. So without further ado, here is the letter I'm sending to my future self 10 years from now ....
NaNoWriMo has been the perfect platform to write the story I didn't know how to write. By committing myself to put pen to paper, I've been able to write fragments of the story I've envisioned for so long. The story, that I've had so much trouble putting to paper, is slowly working its way towards the image in my imagination. I know more than half the things I've written probably will not make the final draft of novel. Not everything I have right now will make the cut; so much will be changed! But those words that I hold on the page are a starting point, and isn't that worth something in it's self?
Throughout this process - when I've actually had the opportunity to write-, I've found it really hard not to edit for a number of reasons. Editing is where the magic happens, where words that initially have no meaning or just don't run smoothly become lyrically awesome. Where raw ideas are polished and primed. It really is like music to the ears, when you hear those words climb off the page and perfectly encapsulate the moments you see enfolding before you. And that magic does not happen the first time round! This je ne sais quoi happens the second-third or even fourth time around, where you're whizzing through the words, and polishing the raw material into a masterpiece - prepared to wow the reader. It's so hard for me not to edit during this experience, because editing adds so much more value (and sometimes more words too!). It's where a simple expression can become legendary - worthy of being quoted one day. But without the foundation of words on the page, editing is not possible. It simply can't happen. That is one of the most important lessons I've learnt along the way, and is one I hope to remember long after the end of NaNoWriMo 2014.
For all of you participating in NaNoWriMo, have you been feeling the same pinch? Let's talk about our experiences!
Throughout this process - when I've actually had the opportunity to write-, I've found it really hard not to edit for a number of reasons. Editing is where the magic happens, where words that initially have no meaning or just don't run smoothly become lyrically awesome. Where raw ideas are polished and primed. It really is like music to the ears, when you hear those words climb off the page and perfectly encapsulate the moments you see enfolding before you. And that magic does not happen the first time round! This je ne sais quoi happens the second-third or even fourth time around, where you're whizzing through the words, and polishing the raw material into a masterpiece - prepared to wow the reader. It's so hard for me not to edit during this experience, because editing adds so much more value (and sometimes more words too!). It's where a simple expression can become legendary - worthy of being quoted one day. But without the foundation of words on the page, editing is not possible. It simply can't happen. That is one of the most important lessons I've learnt along the way, and is one I hope to remember long after the end of NaNoWriMo 2014.
For all of you participating in NaNoWriMo, have you been feeling the same pinch? Let's talk about our experiences!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Social Icons