NaNoWrMo Failures

Sounds like an uplifting post, doesn't it?

While, I have a few problems.

1) I am not altogether pleased with my story

That's not really a new problem...but, you know.

2) It is written in first person and "I" doesn't have a name. In a family that names kitchen knives and dead seagulls, this is especially unacceptable. He is referred to as X.

3) I only have 11, 372 words.

Considering the fact that I've been sick and I had a niece born..what's with that anyways? :-)

Alright, so I'm okay with how much I've gotten done considering the circumstances, but it still isn't enough.

4) And WORST of all- My story ended.

Yeah... I don't think I've ever finished a story yet that wasn't somehow related to school (I have no idea why I'm admitting this). This one just comes to an end 38628 words short.

I have never in my life been able to handle a short story, and here I write one by accident. It's ridiculous. I mean, Where Loyalties Lie is over 50,000 words long and I'm probably only about 1/3 through...

Bleg...I am such a failure.

But on a brighter note...

I loved writing this.

It was an idea that has been stewing for some time, but repressed because of the magnitude of my current story. I thought writing a novel in November would be the perfect opportunity. I knew 50,000 words would be stretch for the idea, but I certainly thought it would go farther than 11, 372.

I sat down to this story to just write.

I didn't go back and read anything. I just went. I didn't even use the synonym finder. I wrote what I wanted and kept going.

And now I'm anticipating some major and deep revisions and editing (if not throwing it away altogether..:-).

But I had one of the best times writing ever. I mean, writing hadn't been so much fun in a long time. It was marvelous. And even if the whole thing is a piece of junk, I think it helped me get over a hump and I'm now very refreshed.

I printed it and handed it over to my sister. She already knows the idocentric aspects of my spirit and I'm too afraid to show it to her (okay, not very afraid, anyways).

It probably has the most of me in it since I wrote about Erich, Peter, and Gabriel at their boys boarding school when I was nine. That's not really a good sign.
But I feel at peace.

I know my sister likes me, even if I don't come across very sensible on paper. :-)

Now, the question is-

a) Do I completely bag my goal of 50,000 words?

b) Do I go back to Where Loyalties Lie and try to get 38628 words written before the end of the month?

c) Do I start another and try to make it come to about 38628 words?

My sister wants one on about a Huguenot...I've never seen myself writing historical fiction, but I do think the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre has a lot of story potential and people should certainly know about it. (All the dying would certainly fit into my general writing style...lol.)

e) Just write what I can in Where Loyalties Lie while I slog through some serious edits in this new story?

Anyways....

So, yeah. That's what's been going on in my writing life.

Thanks for listening. You're very kind.

Miss Pickwickian