I'm at 5,000 words, and I feel I'm onto something magical. When did you feel this?

dragoon_elf · Oct 19, 2007

So I'm five chapters deep, and I finally believe everything is taking shape. I can take the story so many places, and yet, I have a lot of foundation material that I've laid out and that I'm proud of. At 5,000 words, I'm only about 1/10th of the way done, but I finally think I have something formidable. I'm so excited! Hopefully I'll have this thing done by December.....

If anyone here has any successful novels (either in the novel market, or successful in your "personal" life), I'm curious as to when you felt that *something.* You can't really describe it, but it's that ineffable moment where you were like "This is goooood. I can work with this!"

ccarver30 · Oct 19, 2007

I think I really felt good when my 2nd draft surpassed my 1st draft as far as word count goes. My 1st was 60K. A historical romance should be 80-100k. I knew it was too short but couldn't add any more. With my 2nd, I am almost to 70K and nowhere near the end (yay). I'm pretty dang happy about it!

Azraelsbane · Oct 19, 2007

I've always loved my story, which is why I wrote it, but as far as the actual novel went it was definitely when I finished my 2nd draft. And possibly when my husband (who is my first reader) said, "Wow, this is so much better. I feel like I'm really in the story when I read it." Yeah, that was probably it. I was always excited about writing it, but when I looked over my first draft I wanted to cry because it was just that bad.

PeeDee · Oct 19, 2007

I feel better when I hit a major problem somewhere in the middle-end of my novel (as I always seem to) and when I work through it with difficulty, I find on the other side that I still love my story and characters and still have something to say. That's how I know what I'm writing is working.

EriRae · Oct 19, 2007

During the outline, when I realized I knew the ending. I have a horrible habit of starting something without knowing where I'm going.

sunna · Oct 19, 2007

I tend to be suspicious of my own good opinion of my work: I loved mine before I started writing, when I woke up one morning with the whole story and three of the characters banging on the inside of my skull.

I think the first time I really believed it was worth all the time I've put into it was when a friend read an excerpt (we were discussing sex scenes, and I used my first attempt as an example). She didn't say anything for about 20 minutes, long enough that I got up and made us some margaritas and snacks, and then she looked up and asked me if she could start at the beginning.

I'm sure my ego was a visible aura around my head for at least a week afterward.

Shadow_Ferret · Oct 19, 2007

At 5000 words I'm still thinking I've got a long way to go. I don't start thinking about it taking shaping until I've hit somewhere around 20k. At 5k I'm still doing the setup.

PeeDee · Oct 19, 2007

Yeah, the happy feeling I was talking about comes around 70,000. I do 5k a day, on average. I wish I had that many happy magical feelings...

Shadow_Ferret said:
At 5000 words I'm still thinking I've got a long way to go. I don't start thinking about it taking shaping until I've hit somewhere around 20k. At 5k I'm still doing the setup.

Will Lavender · Oct 19, 2007

PeeDee said:
I feel better when I hit a major problem somewhere in the middle-end of my novel (as I always seem to) and when I work through it with difficulty, I find on the other side that I still love my story and characters and still have something to say. That's how I know what I'm writing is working.

Well said.

I don't really trust any feeling, good or bad, until I get to about 25,000 words. HOWEVER, a good beginning is essential for a good book, and so I wouldn't be ashamed or distrustful at all about my good vibes, dragoon.

Shadow_Ferret · Oct 19, 2007

Well, my trunk novel reached 200k, but this current ms. that I'm subbing only made it to 65k when I finished the first draft. I've since, in rewrites, reached 87k.

Generally, most of my novels have hit the wall at around 13k or so. So that's why I picked 20k. It means I've broken through that wall and that I have a clear (or muddy) idea of where I'm going.

swvaughn · Oct 19, 2007

PeeDee said:
I feel better when I hit a major problem somewhere in the middle-end of my novel (as I always seem to) and when I work through it with difficulty, I find on the other side that I still love my story and characters and still have something to say. That's how I know what I'm writing is working.

Ditto for me (geez, PeeDee, why do you always have to make so much gosh-darned sense?!).

And I just battered through that barrier yesterday (after deleting five freaking chapters that were just plain wrong), so I'm feeling pretty good today.

PeeDee · Oct 19, 2007

swvaughn said:
Ditto for me (geez, PeeDee, why do you always have to make so much gosh-darned sense?!).

Because it makes Shadow Ferret grumpy.

Shadow_Ferret · Oct 19, 2007

The day you actually make sense, I'll let you know if it makes me grumpy. :tongue

Stew21 · Oct 19, 2007

I got really excited about my current work when I hit about Chapter 5. I took a nose-dive at chapter 14. and then something happened, but I stumbled through it. Mac is the one who actually just said, "Stew, go write it. just write it." I did and I loved it. It brought me back around; it said what I wanted it to and better than I thought it would. The theme was reinforced.
so I go through that Manuscript Euphoria usually once in the beginning (after the first few chapters), once in the middle after a hurdle is jumped, and once at the end when I tie up loose ends and put a pretty little feather in its cap.

The_Grand_Duchess · Oct 19, 2007

The whole thing is magical to me. All my little darlings all the time. My heart is easy that way. I write bits and pieces of my work out sometimes. When I can string those bits into the story that's when it really becomes something.

Also when I write a cool line. I don't cut my cool lines. Everything fits.

melaniehoo · Oct 19, 2007

I've also had a couple moments of excitement. This is my first true writing attempt, so each word count milestone had me jumping up and down (10K, 20K was big). I'm 500 words shy of 75K and really excited but hitting a wall. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel and I'm trying to force my way through.

I had another a-ha moment a few weeks ago when I figured out my overall theme/character arc type thing. That should help the ending flow.

a_sharp · Oct 19, 2007

I was having trouble with my second chapter, although I've finished the first ten. I had eight versions of the dang thing, and then yesterday I came up with a whole new concept for it that sets up my MC and his dilemma better than anything else. I wrote 2700 words in about four hours because it just poured out.

I was shouting cheers when my wife came to the door and asked if I was all right.

Soccer Mom · Oct 19, 2007

When I get past the middle.

Starting a novel is easy and I'm always enthusiastic until around 20 or 25K. Then it gets tougher. Middles are haaaaaaaaard.

But once I get close to 30 or 40K, things really pick up steam. I'm deep in the middle, but I've got my catalyst to push me through. I get enthusiastic again.

By 70K, the end is in sight. It reminds me of a soccer drill. You place the balls all around the net at a variety of angles and distances and then shoot them at the goal as rapidly as possible. By 70K, I've got the balls laid out. Time to start shooting and that's the fun part. The set up is done.

melaniehoo · Oct 19, 2007

So I should be shooting balls about now? Maybe that's my problem.

sorry, back OT.

JoNightshade · Oct 19, 2007

In the past, I've sort of floated through my whole novel-writing experience, loving every moment of it. That was when I wasn't actually TRYING REALLY HARD to get one published. This last novel I tackled as if it were my day job (well, since it was). I knew where I was going and I knew what was going to happen along the way. So actually writing it was often tedious and I slogged through it, and when I reached the end I felt great-- but I also had this feeling like, "Is anyone even going to like this crap?"

But then I edited it, and I rewrote some parts... and now that it's done (until an agent gets his/her hands on it) I actually read it and think, "Wow. This is actually... good!!!" It's a weird and amazing feeling, and it's worlds better than the other way-- loving the writing process and then coming out on the other side feeling like it just doesn't quite stick together. I also have more fun reading my own work this way, because while I'm doing it I'm trying to fit pieces together like a puzzle. Then when I'm done I can relax and read it for enjoyment.

Which is really why I write... so I can read what I like.

Sassee · Oct 19, 2007

PeeDee said:
I do 5k a day, on average.

How do I know I'm on to something? When I can't stop thinking about it. When my characters start disturbing me in my sleep. When I agonize during work because I want to write when I really should be doing my job.

mscelina · Oct 19, 2007

when I got my first check.

melaniehoo · Oct 19, 2007

mscelina said:
when I got my first check.

That dream is what keeps me going. Long shot, I know.

MidnightMuse · Oct 19, 2007

I get happy when I pass 80k and still have story left to write. That's how I konw the finished piece is going to be long enough (after edits and cuts) to be a decent novel length.

Though I do get the occasional warm fuzzy whenever I work out a particularly sticky plot issue or scene I was dreading or afraid to tackle. And I do like that feeling I get when I realize how well I know the characters and how often they're doing the driving.

JLCwrites · Oct 19, 2007

I get an "A-Ha!" moment when an idea hits my head. Then I write. So the excitement and magic already exists.

I'm at 5,000 words, and I feel I'm onto something magical. When did *you* feel this?

Nicole Castro

Agony is defeat

Where's my tea, please...?

:P

Court Jester

Where's my tea, please...?

Everything is what it seems.

Court Jester

adrift

Where's my tea, please...?

Court Jester

I record everything.

And thus we begin the edits

Somebody give me an A

Crypto-fascist

And thus we begin the edits

has finally arrived

Momma Wolf

Teh doommobile, drivin' rite by you

And thus we begin the edits

Midnight Reading

I'm at 5,000 words, and I feel I'm onto something magical. When did you feel this?