Musings & Thoughts for Saturday, April 20, 2024, or: Reunion: Coda – My Writing Journey Continues

Late Morning, Saturday, April 20, 2024, Madison, New Hampshire

Hi, there, folks.

Well, the weekend is here in the rural world of Carroll County, New Hampshire, and it’s chilly, gray, and not terribly inviting. Currently, the temperature is 48°F (9°C) under cloudy skies. With humidity at 87% and the wind blowing from the southwest at 4 MPH (6 Km/H), the feels-like temperature is 54°F (12°C). Today’s forecast calls for scattered light rain showers throughout the day. The high will be 58°F (14°C). Tonight, we can expect mostly clear skies. The low will be 34°F (1°C).

On Writing & Storytelling: The Story Continues…and Chapter 15 is Underway

Despite a late start to my Friday work period – I was at my desk by 2 PM as planned, but I didn’t write anything useful until 3:30 – I managed to start Scene One of Reunion: Coda’s Chapter 15. I didn’t write a lot of words – 435, excluding the titles for the chapter and scene – before I got too tired to think and type, nor did I finish the scene, but at least I got the damn thing started.

In that regard, I did far better this time around as far as keeping the momentum going after finishing a chapter. Often – not always, but often – it takes me a week, and sometimes more, to recoup after I reach the endpoint of a chapter (or, as of late, between scenes). I wasn’t expecting that to happen; on the contrary, I believed that as I made more progress with Reunion: Coda, I’d write not just with more confidence, but at a faster pace. Or, if “faster” wasn’t in the cards, at least with more…I don’t know…” can-do” attitude?

Of course, since this is the first time that I’ve started writing a novel and made it as far as the 15^th chapter, maybe I am having a hard time understanding the process of creating such an ambitious undertaking. I’ve never written anything longer than 70 pages before – the longest screenplay I’ve written that’s been produced was less than 40 pages long (and in the less wordy screenplay format, too), and Reunion: A Story, my novella, is around 57 pages long – so maybe I’m just a bit overwhelmed.

I’ve also never devoted over a year to a big writing project – I don’t include blogging as a “big writing project even though I try to do it every day – before, so maybe I’m also a bit tired.

So…yeah, yesterday I was surprised when, 90 minutes into my afternoon shift (the novel-writing shift, if you will), the spark of inspiration ignited, and I began typing this:

The soft light of a partly cloudy morning spills through the east-facing kitchen window, casting a warm, diffused glow across the room. The walls, painted in light, airy colors, are brightened by sunflower motifs on the curtains and matching towels. Among the cheerful decor, a red telephone box cookie jar and a miniature Big Ben stand as proud reminders of Maddie’s English heritage.

(Of course, that’s the edited version; the “rough draft” version was a bit less…presentable.)

As I said earlier, I started later than I would have liked, and I didn’t even write 500 words, much less 1,000. But….I fucking wrote something, dammit.

And that counts for something, doesn’t it?