Friday 11 November 2016

Word of the Week - Words

It should come as no surprise to anyone who knows me that words are very important to me. I have loved reading and writing for most of my life and spent many happy hours as a child making up and telling stories. More recently I have begun to take my writing more seriously and even dipped my toe into the dangerous waters of calling myself a writer. So words are the toolkit that I use everyday to tell the stories that crowd my mind. Words are also the vehicles I use to transport myself to other worlds through the writing of others.

I am once again taking part in NaNoWriMo this year and things have been going surprisingly well.
The words are flowing and I am really enjoying telling my story, even though it has sprung from a genre that I don't usually write. It's a bit of a fantasy novel - not The Hobbit but there are bits that have their feet firmly in the fantasy camp. I'm enjoying writing something so different and at times using words in a slightly different way - some of my characters have an idiosyncratic way of speaking!

But today I am thinking about words in the light of the death of Leonard Cohen. He used words in a way that I can only dream of. I was introduced to the music of Leonard Cohen by my friend Alison at college. I was into 1970's pop music and David Bowie, she was into Leonard Cohen and John Martyn, artists I had not heard of or listened to. As our friendship developed we listened to each others music and I learned to love Leonard Cohen for his poetry and the smoky quality of his voice. Today I am sad that he has left us but so happy that I have the wonderful songs and poems he left behind. On the radio someone compared his lyrics to Yeats and that pleased me greatly. I am a huge fan of Yeats and read his words regularly. Both Yeats and Leonard Cohen use language in a way that draws me in, challenges me and sometimes makes me weep.

So today I shed a tear for the passing of a great poet, a weaver of words and a thoughtful human being. The world is a poorer place for his leaving it but there is a wonderful concert starting in heaven as he joins the other legends we lost this year.

Sunday 6 November 2016

Day 5 NaNoWriMo

Just thought I'd check in after a few days silence.

Yesterday I smashed through the 10,000 word barrier! I am so happy. This story is flowing so well that it's scary. I'm pantsing through the story but that isn't holding me back. I did work out the basis of the story, the world it was set in and the main characters so it isn't a total surprise what is happening but the ease with which I'm writing is stunning me.

Here's hoping I've not jinxed the thing and can carry on in this vein!

Thursday 3 November 2016

NaNoWriMo Day 2

Well this is encouraging. I'm pantsing this novel and it's romping along at a giddy pace.
I'm still ahead of the word count which is great and almost unheard of - I'm usually playing catch up even at the beginning of NaNoWriMo!

I'm especially surprised at how well it's all going especially as I'm writing in a different genre to my usual one (whatever that may be) This new NaNo novel is a fantasy type which is something that I rarely write or read. But all is going well so far ...

So onwards and upwards heading for the finish line.

Wednesday 2 November 2016

Day 1 NaNoWriMo

I don't usually use text speak, even when texting, but OMG! and WTF?
Day 1 of NaNoWriMo over and I'm 1,000 words ahead of schedule, I am totally rocking this writing thing.

Now I know that there will be tougher days ahead but I'm so chuffed with my progress. I went to Worcester to visit my MIL yesterday and got plenty of writing time on the train. If nothing else it has shown me that I can get a goodly number of words written if I'm away from distractions. So I now need to put that into practice when I'm doing the rest of NaNoWriMo - and that may mean turning the TV off! Which is something I hardly ever do as I'm a self confessed Telly Addict ...

I'm also planning on a trip into Oxford for a writing meeting with fellow NaNoers in a posh library that's part of Balliol College. I'm really excited to meet some fellow writers and seeing a part of the University that is usually closed to the public (must be my nosey gene kicking it!)

I hope I can keep reporting great progress this month and that I get a fully formed first draft out of this - I must confess to feeling rather excited at the moment!