52,989 words = a Winner!

National Novel Writers Month, 2010, what an interesting experience. I improved my typing (but not my spelling). Ignored my inner critic, perhaps the hardest thing to do and managed to write 50,000 words + on my middle grade novel, “The Emerald Boots”. It is still very much a work in progress. It still needs some severe editing and elbow grease polishing but the whole story is there.

Much of the novel wrote itself, which was a big surprise. I’ve always heard of the phenomenon where the characters write themselves and emerge with traits you didn’t expect. The plot changes and the challenges I had planned on were far more boring than the ones that evolved as characters and problems converged at the 'The Greater Midwest Traveling Medicine Show'.

I abandoned my characters often: I left Jade and Mr. Diggs swinging from a hot balloon caught in a thunderstorm over Kansas to do the dishes. I turned a lost little girl into the ‘The Girl from the Moon’ on my birthday. I left Jade stuffed into an old tiger’s cage while I fixed Thanksgiving dinner. I found that cats have a wonderful philosophy on life in bed at 3 am during a wind storm. I discovered that the Bernice the Bearded Lady and Ralph the Strongest Man on Earth actually had a thing for each other after my guests went to bed…who knew? And I finished the rough plot and notes and dialog last night during a football game. I don’t know who won; I actually don’t even know who was playing.

But I know that I won as I logged 52,989 words to cross the finish line for NaNoWriMo 2010 (a self-imposed, joint marathon for writers). It’s a good feeling. I don’t think my family thought I could or would do it. I don’t think I thought I could either, but I did!

Now I need to polish, edit, revise, rewrite, sleep, polish, revise and edit some more, then find an agent...piece of cake.