Ever feel like you're unstoppable?

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The Last Knight

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Good morning,

I'm getting so close to the end of my suspense novel, I can see the writing at the bottom of the last page: THE END. At about 4,000 words away, I feel like I'm unstoppable, writing faster that a few weeks earlier. I understand things are clearer in the writer's mind as the story comes to a conclusion at the end of the book. Ever feel like you're unstoppable? Do you think this fast pace can be attributed to the desire to, no pun intended, start another chapter, in a new book?

TLK
 

Claudia Gray

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Unstoppable? No, never. But I do understand what you mean about coming to the end -- for me, I tend to work faster and better, both because of the psychological boost and because the story has finally come together and all I have to do is get it to the finish line.
 
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Only when I'm high or drunk.

And I wouldn't advise actually trying to write anything coherent in those states.
 
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I'd like to see a ferret rolling down a hill. Just to see if anything sticks. :)
 

melaniehoo

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That happened to me at the end of my last novel. I knew the ending was closed but surprised myself how quickly I got there. I'm hoping that'll happen with my current wip but I'm still drowning in the middle.
 

Ugawa

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I know how you feel. I wrote the last 10k of my novel in two days, whereas it took me over a month to write the first 40k

XX
 

Michael Parks

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I know the feeling, but I've also learned how it can evaporate. In revising/reviewing my WIP, I realize that it may not be as well received as I'd imagined. That's definitely something that will reduce that unstoppable feeling, whether it proves true or not!
 

NeuroFizz

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First of all, congrats on "pulling in to the station" with this project. When you finish it, go here and add to the building data on my buttheadedness:

http://www.absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=118356

Then, get back on the train. You still have a climb through the mountains (in editing), but with a completed manuscript in hand, the scenery is great from here on. Celebrate, then get yourself out of the bar car and back into the passenger car. But now, you get a window seat.
 

JamieFord

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Actually, I feel quite the opposite at the end. I get "fear of finishing" anxiety and drag my feet across the finish line.
 

tehuti88

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Hm. I never feel unstoppable. I guess I just feel that the ending of a story is merely part of an unending process. I know that as soon as I end one story another one will begin, so "stopping" never enters the picture, not even in the sense of being "unstoppable." (How can one be unstoppable if "stopping" isn't a part of the process?)

I do have that great feeling when rushing toward the end of a story, but then I know there's another one following it. And so on and so on.

I guess it's more organic to me, a process of ending and beginning, rather than a process of stopping and starting. Not sure how else to explain it.
 

KikiteNeko

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Yes, I think I know just what you mean. When my stories are drawing towards a conclusion, somehow loose ends are tying up and I think of new things I hadn't anticipated, and it all just makes sense. I write a lot more in one sitting too. With my last MS, I somehow knew that I would be finishing it the next day, and that night I barely got any sleep because I was so charged up about it. I felt like this would be the MS that would get an agent, and the next day I finished it and sent it off, and was giddy.
 

October

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Good morning,

I'm getting so close to the end of my suspense novel, I can see the writing at the bottom of the last page: THE END. At about 4,000 words away, I feel like I'm unstoppable, writing faster that a few weeks earlier. I understand things are clearer in the writer's mind as the story comes to a conclusion at the end of the book. Ever feel like you're unstoppable? Do you think this fast pace can be attributed to the desire to, no pun intended, start another chapter, in a new book?

TLK

I'm jealous of you! For me, I get so slow at the end of a book. For me, I'm always more nervous about great endings that good beginnings or middles. The middle of the book always flies out from under me. About 10K away, though, I start. . . to. . . .dra. . .a. . .a. . .g.

tomothecat said:
Yes, I think I know just what you mean. When my stories are drawing towards a conclusion, somehow loose ends are tying up and I think of new things I hadn't anticipated, and it all just makes sense. I write a lot more in one sitting too. With my last MS, I somehow knew that I would be finishing it the next day, and that night I barely got any sleep because I was so charged up about it. I felt like this would be the MS that would get an agent, and the next day I finished it and sent it off, and was giddy.

How do you get the loose ends to tie up? It never happens for me. At least not that I notice. Something always gets irreparably left wide open. I'm jealous of you, too. Darn you and your momentum! :tongue

JamieFord said:
Actually, I feel quite the opposite at the end. I get "fear of finishing" anxiety and drag my feet across the finish line.

Whew. I feel better now. I'm not alone.
 

KikiteNeko

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How do you get the loose ends to tie up? It never happens for me. At least not that I notice. Something always gets irreparably left wide open. I'm jealous of you, too. Darn you and your momentum! :tongue

No idea. Just happens. But it helps to read everything you've just written, as you write. Keeps it all fresh in your mind.
 

October

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No idea. Just happens. But it helps to read everything you've just written, as you write. Keeps it all fresh in your mind.

I've tried that. I have a really awful memory (I hate anti-dep meds) so even if I do read things over, I don't remember them. Or I write it so there's no way I can tie up the end that makes sense, so it just hangs there. I'm jealous of all you good writers, but I'll catch up to you someday.

I know! I'll tackle the next passing writer, steal his/her talent, and run off with it. The plan is brilliant. Flawless! :D
 

Danni

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I get that way towards the end, mainly because I'm so excited to give my MC closure! My current WIP is rolling along here at the beginning, though, so it might be more about excitement and knowing exactly where you're going for me. :Shrug:
 

Elidibus

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No. I can't come out to play. My muse won't let me
Ever feel like you're unstoppable?

All the time. This usually happens not only when I finish a work, but when I start one as well. I feel like what a mountain climber must feel like, once he's decided on his next challenging summit to scale. Looking up to a mountain and saying to it "You will not stop me from climbing you" And then, once you're on the top, looking down with a great big "I just ruled you" look and smile on your face.

But the middle parts...sometimes, even though I am quite unstoppable, I choose to stop just to regain some focus. =)

Yes...that will work.
 

Virector

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I am actually more likely to 'stop' as I'm approaching the end of whatever I'm writing. That's usually the time when I start to feel dissatisfied with the story and the direction it took, no matter how 'good' I thought it was all along. I guess I'm just built like that, and that's why I seldom finish anything I start. *sigh*
 

KikiteNeko

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I've tried that. I have a really awful memory (I hate anti-dep meds) so even if I do read things over, I don't remember them. Or I write it so there's no way I can tie up the end that makes sense, so it just hangs there. I'm jealous of all you good writers, but I'll catch up to you someday.

I know! I'll tackle the next passing writer, steal his/her talent, and run off with it. The plan is brilliant. Flawless! :D

Oh, also, when I was writing my last MS, I got LOTS of sticky notes and wrote my ideas on them. I took a big white poster board and taped it to the wall, and I put ALL the sticky notes on it. The would-be events went on the bottom, and whenever I used an event, I put it in a neat row along the top. That helped out a great deal too.
 

KikiteNeko

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I am actually more likely to 'stop' as I'm approaching the end of whatever I'm writing. That's usually the time when I start to feel dissatisfied with the story and the direction it took, no matter how 'good' I thought it was all along. I guess I'm just built like that, and that's why I seldom finish anything I start. *sigh*

Google "the great swampy middle"... someone wrote an excellent pep talk to get writers through it.
 
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