Before the Novel Begins... Getting Prepared

NaNoWriMo begins in just a few days, and I've spent all of October preparing for it. I started by scouring through a storage tub filled with things I've already written, some as old as 30 years, in search of inspiration.
I started a list of What if?'s.

What if that girl back in high school and that boy she thought she loved were given a second chance? How might their story go?
What if that girl who was raped didn't call the police, but chose to get revenge? How might she do it? How might that story go?
What if that girl who shot herself had found a will to live? What might it be? How might her story go?

What if these were all the same girl?

I turned to the experts for help. I started with "Give 'Em What They Want" by Blythe Camenson and Marshall J. Cook.  Chapter 1 is titled "Creating a Salable Product." On page 6, Kate Duffy, editorial director with Kensington Publishing Corporation, is quoted as saying, "The writing I look for should be relentlessly commercial."

Well, I'm not looking to create the Great American Novel here; it's a race to get 50,000 words pounded out in 30 days. I'm okay with relentlessly commercial as a genre.

The text goes on to give me direction: I need a planned plot; I must hook the reader; I must write at a pace that doesn't bore the reader; I must provide enough suspense to make you turn the page... hmm, turn the page? I guess that doesn't really apply here... how about enough tension to keep you scrolling down the screen and characters who grow and develop just like real people do.
By page 24, I've got a whole list of do this - don't do that. I didn't read any more of this book because the rest focuses on pitching and selling the book after it is finished. I'm not opposed to getting published and paid and all that, but this little project is more personal for now; it's just a story from me to you.

Next, I turned to "How to Write and Sell Your First Novel" by Oscar Collier and Frances Spatz Leighton.  Again, I skipped the chapters on sales and focused on the writing tips. I actually did write a novel for last year's NaNoWriMo, but I didn't sell or try to market it, so this is my first novel for public consumption.
These authors tell me to get to know my characters, so I've made a lengthy list of all the things I'd like to know about them. Before I begin to write about the things they say and do, I have to figure out who they are. I've been working on developing biographical information for them.
I also need to know what my story is really about. The text suggests summing up this idea in one short paragraph. So, I've been thinking on that too. The reason to create this sort of purpose statement before beginning to write the story is to help keep the writing focused. It's easy to go off tangents, especially when I'll be writing live, here, every day, without editing.

Lastly, I just finished reading "Writing Romance Fiction, For Love and Money" by Helene S. Barnhart. I learned in a college media class that nearly every story is a romance. As an audience, we love to see 2 people struggle together through real life and in the end, find love and happiness, or at least hope.
By page 12, a much repeated theme appears bluntly stated, "you can't write a romance novel unless you read them." I'm going to attempt to stretch the meaning of that phrase to "you can't write a romance novel unless you've been in love," because to be honest, whenever I try to read the formula romance books - I often get bored. The characters don't seem real to me and I find I don't care what happens to them. But, Barnhart makes writing them sound like such a fun and exciting adventure - even within the formula of love and loss and love renewed only to be lost again and eventually found in a happily ever after ending. And, while a happy ending is oh-so predictable, we'd be disappointed if it happened any other way.

So, throughout the month of October, I've been trying to figure out how to tell you a love story that isn't boring - one filled with people you can love and hate and sympathize with. I've begun to imagine a hero and a heroine; who they are, how they'll meet, what they love and hate about each other, what stops them from just being happy and together from the start, and how they'll manage to find happiness in the end.
I don't know all the answers yet, but I'm excited to find out. I hope you'll join me in this journey.

Did you swallow a planet?

Have you ever heard someone say something totally insensitive to a pregnant woman? Some of the most common are:

"Haven't you had that baby yet?"

"When are you due?" (said to a woman who is past her due date or to one that had her baby two years ago)

"You're huge!" "You must be having twins." (or some variation of this comment on Momma's growing belly)

"Are you going to eat ALL of that?!"

"Do you know what you're having?" (Ummmm, I'm pretty sure it's NOT a puppy)

"Will you have more?" "Are you done yet?" (Done what? Being married? My sex life is really none of your business)

"My labor was....[insert horror story]"

There are many more and there are lots of blog posts about them, so I won't go on. But, I'll share my favorite, because it happened to me today:

17 year old daughter: "Momma, you look really pregnant."

Me: "Well, I am really pregnant."

Daughter: "Yeah, but, you look like you swallowed a PLANET!"

Thank God for distractions...

The last few weeks of pregnancy are always the hardest mentally because I start thinking it could be any day now. The false or "practice" contractions come more often and they start to make me imagine that they are real. My body produces excess Relaxin and my pelvic bones feel like they are all loose and shaking around when I walk; I can even hear them popping together sometimes. It becomes nearly impossible to roll over, and I often find I'm off balance and feel like my feet are always on top of each other when I walk.

But, I know it will all be over soon.

That's what makes it so hard mentally, is the knowing that it is all coming to an end, but not knowing exactly when, and I do not do well with unknowns - it stresses me out!

So, this month, while I wait, God has given me a gift... at least I'm choosing to see it as a gift.

He has seen fit to fill my October schedule with children's dental work - my calendar is so full and my days so busy this month, that I'm sure it will pass by in such a flurry that I will suddenly find myself nearly due with baby and wonder where those few weeks went.

We start with Summer, our oldest, who will have the pleasure of losing all her wisdom teeth tomorrow. She inherited this problem from her father, who also had his removed. I have all mine, they fit just fine in my mouth and I'll keep them thank you very much.

Then, Tyler and Jacob who have no cavities but do have deep pitted back teeth (like their mother) will each have to go in and get sealants done.

The whole dental thing started a couple of weeks ago when Ethan was playing with boys on the playground and "raced" directly into a metal pole, breaking his front top tooth. I took him in to see how much damage had been done and then went ahead and scheduled all the kids for checkups while we were there. Ethan will go in later this month and have a cap put on his front tooth.

During their visit, we also discovered that Caitlin, who had ten - YES 10!!! cavities at her last visit, 6 months ago, now only has one - But, this one is so deep it is now down to her nerve. I don't know how to get her to take sound advice and stop eating bedtime snacks that just sit in her mouth all night long.

Finally, our baby, poor little 3 year old Noah, who went to the dentist for the very first time in his whole life, needs a crown. Apparently, at some point, unknown to the rest of us, our little toddler broke one of his molars, and it had become infected - how he had no pain, we're not sure. But, now he needs major dental work. Seriously, who ever heard of a 3 year old with a crown on his tooth? Poor guy.

I figure, this schedule of appointments, all in the next 20 days will certainly keep me busy enough to not be worried about when baby is coming or how many days until she gets here. Dear God, thanks for the distraction.

I'm in labor, but it's just my imagination...

We try to describe it, in lady-like terms. We try to explain it in ways that won't terrify the young girls who've yet to experience motherhood.

But, there really aren't any nice ways to say what it's like.

I feel constipated!

My husband thinks this is a really unattractive statement. But, I really don't know of any other way to describe the tension in my lower abdomen that is sometimes so severe, I start imagining I might just push this baby out right now.

They call them Braxton Hicks.

You've probably heard of them. Some people say they don't hurt. I disagree. Maybe I'm just wimpy.
There's really nothing that can be done about them either. It's like my body is practicing; working out in preparation for a marathon...

While a part of me finds this exciting as I think I'll be holding my baby soon; it's just pretending because I know that I still have nearly 6 weeks to go and these "practice" contractions will be keeping me from relaxing or getting a good night sleep for all of them.

So, all you pregnant women can join me in a pity party as we cry over our aching bellies.

What was I thinking?

Have you ever agreed to do something and then later wondered exactly how it would all work? Or maybe even wondered exactly what you were thinking when you said yes?
You know, when you say you'll do something totally crazy like write your NaNoWriMo live on your blog?

So, I've got 26 days until it starts... I'm thinking it through.

There are rules, like you have to actually write the novel during the 30 days. You can't write it ahead of time and then just post it in November. But, you can plan ahead.

So, I'm thinking about characters, locations, situations, plot, etc.
Then, I get thinking about word count. To write 50,000 words in 30 days, you have to write about 1,800 words per day. Now, if I keep my calendar clear, I can usually accomplish this without too much trouble. Thank God I learned how to type... FAST! It's the figuring out what to say that takes time.

But, then, just this morning in the shower... do you do your best thinking there? I do. Maybe it's because it is the only quiet spot in my house. Suddenly, standing there in the shower, it occurred to me that I am going to lose a couple of writing days while in the hospital having Baby Seven. Hmm. What to do??

So, I'm going to have to recalculate my daily word count so that I stay ahead in the first week or two and give myself a break in the middle, you know, cuz I love you guys and I am so excited to share a story with you, but, having a baby is a lot of work, so I'll need a day or two off there.

I hope you are getting as excited as I am. See you next month.