When Love No longer Features in You're Life, Can you Really Write About it?

I've been pondering that question up there for days now ... well actually months.      In this household there's a very sad case of 'no words, no inspiration - can't write' going on.

Could it be that since the 'L' word no longer exists in my life ... and yes, it's been a few years ... is this possibly the reaon I can't get it down on a page?    Has it taken five short years for the memory of what that felt like to fade from existence?

Truly - it's driving me up the walls.    I've tried everything from wine, to gin, to cocktails, back to back episodes of Sex and the City, True Blood, Vampire Diaries, Pretty Woman, Bridget Jones Diary  .... but still there is nothing.    

I'm a Piscean for crying out loud ... a hopeless romantic - at least that's what the horoscopes tell me ... sadly I'm not feeling the love.

This would-be writer is sadly lacking in the 'L' department, and, it has to be said - it's having a very negative impact on the page :(

When Work Gets In The Way !

It happens ... right?     There are loads of people who write and do other things  -   like the day job - the one that pays the bills!

So January 2011 dawned and with it a three month training course ... ye Gods!     For my sins, I'm a Health & Safety Business Partner (doesn't that sound grand) - and yep the powers that be decided it was time for yet more information to be pushed into my brain.     Personally, I felt like asking if there was a writing course I could attend ... but then they'd only have sent me on a report writing course and that's not what I'd have been driving at!

End of March saw a full day of exams plus a practical, and training for me was once more at an end - at least for the time being.    Now, for weeks all I've wanted to do is write, but I'm not finding it easy to get back into the rythym - damn the day job some might say!

Anyway, as I struggle to get my creativity going again, I'm wondering if maybe it's the thought of those pesky exam results looming at the end of June that are interefering with my writing ... time will tell!

M

The curtain falls on NANO 2010

So as the curtain silently falls on NANO 2010 my total is 39,583 - just 10K or so short of my 50K deadline for today!

Am I dissappointed?   A little!     I would have loved to have been able to go on to the official Nano site and upload the whole 50K - but we don't always get what we want in life!

It's hard to write and do the day job at the same time, so I guess I am being a little bit hard on myself - let's face it just under 40K is not so bad.

I am determined that I will finish before the end of December - at the very least by the 31st!     At least then I can set to working on this draft.

My biggest concern was that in trying to achieve the 50K I'd write a load of drivel - I'm hoping that in not achieving it I've avoided the drivel (laughing)!!!

I will take time to read through what I've written this month and I shall come back and log my thoughts here.   Writing for 30 days with this deadline hanging over my head has kept me focussed to a certain degree - for me this is a plus.    Will it have been worth it?    Only if what I've written is worthy of holding onto - otherwise it'll be a frustrating task if I start deleting loads and depleting that wordcount!

It's all about the wordcount @ Nano!

So ... I'm just over 6K words in - not bad - major clap on the back for this girl  :)  

Question is, can I keep going at this pace - not so sure!     One of my biggest worries about Nano is that you push yourself to write (quite possibly a load of drivel) because you need to keep the wordcount up there in order to finish on time.

So here's my question.     Is there any point?    Who wants to have to start at the end of 30 days and try to edit a load of drivel?

But there again - it may not be drivel - it may in fact be the most wonderful writing any of us who are in there have ever put to paper!

I wonder how many people have finished Nano and never actually done anything with their manuscript?

Nano Update ...

So far so good on this 30 day journey .... 2115 words added to After Dark.

:)

Critique on After Dark by Mills & Boon Editor

Spooky title…am I in for a spooky story?!
What we liked…

•You’ve done a fantastic job making first person narrative work for you – congrats! It’s not easy…

•You’ve certainly intrigued this reader into wanting to find answers… why did she need treatment, who and what is James Alexander?! We need to know…

What’s not working so well…
•I’m struggling to work out what I’m reading – is this going to be erotica or paranormal? It’s nice to know what genre you’re in…

•Yes, older men are hot (go vampires and Mr Knightley) but they can also be creepy (Dickensian child-bride) so I think the line needs to be straddled delicately especially if the desire sparks in an eight-year-old-girl…

•I think the narrative is strong and the dialogue nice and snappy – but the juxtaposition of the two jars – the tone feels different. Have a think about how you could integrate them better
 

Getting this made entering the competition worthwhile.     After they had chosen their Top 10 and I hadn't made it, I kind of felt a bit empty ... and then along came this!!     

Nano @ Harlequin

http://community.eharlequin.com/forums/write-stuff/nanowrimo-2010-sign-sheet


One crazy month of writing ... can it be done?    Either way, I guess there is no harm in trying!