I’m working on one of my new years resolutions. I’m working on my book. I’ve got a story, I’ve got a protagonist and antagonist. And I think it’s got an interesting premise. Maybe I’ll get the courage up and share that with the general population soon. I haven’t even shared it with loved ones. It’s sort of a Sci-Fi story but leans towards and action/adventure.

The question I’m asking myself is – do I flesh it all out, outline the plot and then get down to writing during NaNoWriMo? Or do I just get the high level points (which I kinda have) down and just start writing. Try to complete it in 3 months.

I’ve been participating in a 7 day writing challenge to write 1000 words per day. To do that I have been participating in online sprint writing sessions. These run 5 minutes a piece, and I’ve found I can write 1000 words in 30 minutes. But those 1000 words will need major rework. I find when I do these sprints that are stream of conscious, I basically tell the story and don’t show. To get 1000 words that quick you need around 200 words per 5 minutes and that means not so much character dialogue. So its me, as the narrator, “telling” the story. Not showing through character actions But it has let me capture some interesting additions to the story that I had not thought of initially. So maybe there is some use there.

So if I go forth with this current idea and spend 3 months writing it, I’ll put together a first draft of my memoir during NaNoWriMo. Yes, my memoir. That seems like an easy, straight forward story once I come up with a premise I like.

So New Years resolution #4 is underway and I think I’m going to do it this year. Oh, and I’m still writing in my journal at least every other day if not daily. It’s good therapy and one day perhaps my kids will read it after I’m gone and understand what was going on with me during this time of my life. My journal along with my memoir will give them a somewhat complete perspective of their father. Something I wish my Dad had done.

Alright enough philosophical meanderings. Interested in hearing my premise?