Category: NaNoWriMo 2011 (Page 1 of 2)

Well, now that NaNoWriMo 2011 is over I can step back for a moment and reflect and re-vision the novel I am working on.

NaNo was the first step. It was meant to be a ctalyst to get me writing the story about events leading up to the birth of John ther Baptist. It has served its purpose well. One thing I was forced to do was the research needed to be historically accurate. I did just enough research to be able to get though the chapter at hand, but not enough to really bring the world of Zechariah and Elizabeth fully to life.

The next step is research and more research. I have begun building a library of textbooks that will aid this. I have found a few websites also.

So, the journey continues and I will post the rest of the chapters as I complete them.

Bless God

Today has been a bit of a lazy day so far. I did not get back to writing on chapter eleven after the Thanksgiving dinner last night as I planned. Sometimes long interruptions like that make it hard to get back into the flow of things.

 I did complete it this afternoon though. Weighs in at 3,113 words. Makes the total word count now 23,520. This is the longest continuous story I have ever written. I have 8 more days to accomplish my task. I am feeling pretty good about it at this time. Still very do able.

Chapter eleven will be posted shortly.

Bless God

This day starts the marathon. Goal is 5,000 words a day till I complete the novel.

Yesterday I wrote around 2,400 before I went to dinner. I had planned to write more after dinner but did not kick myself hard enough to get in motion. Finished the chapter this morning. Cleared 17,671 words so far.

Will post it shortly.

Bless God

Today begins the final push to complete the novel. I have completed 14,248 words so far. I have taken vacation time next week and have no other daytime plans but to write. If I can avaerage 5,000 words a day I will be done by next Friday.

I still need to map out the chapters so I can see the path to the finish line. Today I will start with Elizabeth Miriam just hanging out after the men have left for Jerusalem. After this chapter I am not sure where I want to go next. We’ll see. The story has been helping me see where it wants to go as I write.

Stay tuned for Chapter Nine.

Bless God

Day Fifteen. The last day of the first half of NaNo. I am further along this year than any previous attempt. Over 14,000 words so far. More words than I have ever written in one story.

I have toyed with the idea of writing this book about the birth of John the Baptist for several years now. I procrastinated due to the research involved to be historically accurate. NaNo is just a first draft but I am spending about 50% of my time getting the facts sorted out. Last night, I put together a list of the names for the priests by working my way through Numbers and 1 Chronicles. I have more than enough to get me through the rest of the story and learned a few things about them in the process.

I am not sure what the focus of chapter nine will be yet. I left off with the priests on their way to Jerusalem. I may switch back to Elizabeth and Miriam and some girl talk or do the market scene. Perhaps I will do both.

But that will be after I go to my Tuesday evening writer’s group at Common Grounds coffee house. I don’t don’t drink coffee but I do enjoy the company. It’s cooler here today so I will proabably have my first hot chocolate of the season. Afterward, it’s home to crank out some more words.

Bless God

Almost halfway through the month now. I wrote less over the weekend than I planned but will make some up this week. Then, next week I have decided to use some vacation time to focus on writing.

This is the third time I have done NaNoWriMo but the first time I have truly desired to complete the 50,000 word goal. I am feeling good about the story so far. I am enjoying the process of discovering the story as I write it. Hope you are enjoying it also.

Bless God

Here it is day twelve. I am still writing. I am 23.47% of the way there. 11737 words written. Six chapters in.

Tonight has been a write in with other NaNo authors at St. Michael’s Episcopal Church  in Lexington. Not sure how long I will last. Suppose to write untli 11 AM Saturday morning. Started at 8 PM Friday night. I get the feeling some may hang through the night but not write much.

We’ll see.

Bless God.

Yesterday brought some kingdom privileges my way I did not anticipate. I was asked to spend part of my evening praying for a class at my church. God showed up in a big way. So glad I did it. I also had a friend from church ask if we could talk about some major life decisions. Both of these opportunites trumped getting some words written.

The good news though, is that tomight is an all night write in. Other writers from the Lexington area will gather together to write. Not sure how late I will gather with them, but it will allow me to totally focus on the task at hand this month.

There were sixteen visits to this blog yesterday. Thanks to those of you who visited. Hope you are enjoying the novel so far.

Bless God

I had every intention of writing last night but used up all my brain energy at work. This is one of the chalenges I face when trying to write. Sometimes I can make myself do it, but last night I just didn’t make myself. I did do a little thinking on some of the scenes I can include later on though.

I also spent some time reading my Bible last night. Daniel 1:8 caught my eye. “But Daniel purposed in his heart he would not defile himself…”

I sensed the Spirit reminding me that following Jesus is always a personal decision. Recently I heard a pastor talk about his “pre-decisions”, the decisions he makes before he is faced with life decisions. He talked about how we make pre-decisions all the time. And those decisions determine how we live. Reflecting on our lives exposes the pre-decisions we have made and shows us the pre-decisions we need to adjust.

I have been thinking about the conversations that the priests will have while Zechariah is at the temple for his week of service. I think God may be giving me some topics for discussion among them.

“But Daniel purposed in his heart he would not defile himself…”

Bless God

Off and running with my day. Setting up a new server at work to manage all the code and documentation for the project I manage. 

Yesterday was a full day and I did not get any writing done. The rest of the week though is wide open. I expect to get a couple of chapters written this evening and hopefully catch up on my word count. Friday is an all nighter write in. I will gather with other Lexington based writers participating in WriMo this year at St. Michael’s Episcopal Church and write all night. I hear there may be some dancing, popcorn, and door prizes involved also. Should be a fun time.

Have a good day.

Bless God