Hello, dreamers.

Well, Week 2 of NaNoWriMo 2019 is in the books. It was the first full week, and I’m pleased with my progress thus far. I’ve been keeping a brisk pace so far this year; while I took a light day last Saturday, I’m still averaging about 3400 words a day. At this rate, I’m on track to reach 50k by November 15. To me, that says I have a chance to take my foot off the gas at some point. And I plan to make the most of it.

It’s been a roller coaster ride so far. This story has definitely had its ups and downs, and I’ve had my share of doubts along the way. But the last few days have been special, and I’m looking forward to seeing where NaNoWriMo 2019 takes me from here.

I apologize for having been neglecting my customary weekly posts. I’ll admit it’s mostly stemmed from my frustration with the direction of the story over the past week; when you’re not sure how good something is, it’s tough to write about it. But that will change next week. And since I haven’t been keeping my readers posted, here’s the latest on my NaNoWriMo 2019 project:

Dawn of the Pioneers

Sitting here now, it’s hard to believe that mere days ago I’d considered temporarily abandoning my current work-in-progress. My week has been a powerful reminder of the value of determination…or stubbornness, depending on how one chooses to see it. In any event, it has in fact been a productive first full week of NaNoWriMo.

To say I still have my doubts about the first half of Phase 2 would be an understatement. I don’t know what it was, but I just couldn’t find my bearings during the chapters taking place on Acadia. As such, looking back I fear I simply rambled, leaving Holmes and his new companions wandering aimlessly, talking at length about nothing. I have a feeling large swaths of Phase 2 are destined for the cutting room floor, but that’s something to worry about later. As Randall Holmes often says, one problem at a time.

Luckily, the past few days have been a rewarding experience. I managed to lay down three important chapters I couldn’t be happier with (at least not until I go back to revise them), and feel more confident than ever about my path forward. Ultimately, the turning point was Wednesday’s chapter, which followed the first human test flight of the space-folding drive. The experience of writing about a space mission, and of what humans would experience traversing a wormhole, was a welcome change of pace from marching my characters through one alien forest or another. And after so much world-building and political intrigue, it was refreshing to write something that fit comfortably in my wheelhouse.

Yesterday’s chapter ultimately yielded the answer to a long-running question as to the direction of Phase 2. That necessitated a change in plans, expanding the climax of Phase 2 from one to two chapters, the penultimate of which will be written this weekend. Once that is done, I plan to take a few light days, perhaps editing while jotting down a few quote chapters (if only to allow me to add something to my NaNo count each day). Eventually, however, by the end of the week I will begin work on Phase 3, which will be another departure from my comfort zone. But I’m looking forward to it.

The editing may also help to address another nagging concern: my ballooning word count. Heading into NaNoWriMo I was behind schedule, based on where The Pioneers was on November 1 last year. Perhaps I subconsciously felt the need to catch up, but regardless, as of this writing Dawn of the Pioneers stands at over 71k, with another chapter to go before the end of Phase 2. That means I’m less than 30k away from scifi novel length, and I’m not even halfway to the end. And that is a problem.

However, in this instance I take solace in knowing I have a lot of superfluous content to cut from Phase 2. While that content will remain on my official NaNoWriMo document (because hey, I goddamn wrote it), no doubt much of the rich, but ultimately needless, world building of Phase 2 will ultimately be cut away. Ironically, simply trimming all the fat could ultimately leave the novel running short. But as I see it, while writing Phase 2 I’ve been learning what it should be, and also what it shouldn’t. In the end, trimming away the superfluous content will simply open up some real estate for me to expand the parts that truly matter to the story.

The structure of Phase 2 also remains an issue. Specifically, the phase includes two “non sequitur” chapters following Earth’s development of the space-folding drive, and I have plans that could yield at least one more such chapter. I’m still not sure where the two existing chapters should go, however. As it stands, one opens Phase 2, while the other occurs only a few chapters before the end of the phase. That gulf could be problematic for my readers, and I will need to address structure while I decide what stays and what goes.

All of this is leading to Phase 3, which will give readers their first clear glimpse of Earth in the mid-22nd century. I’m very much looking forward to it, especially after everything I’ve done lately. NaNoWriMo 2019 has been quite a ride so far, and I can’t wait to see where it takes me next. Until then, keep reading, and as always, dare to dream. – MK