Monday Motivation

So how was your weekend? Wet and wordy here. Caught the tail end of Velvet Goldmine last night - thought a snatch of the soundtrack would be just the thing to get the motors running as those doing NaNo face the difficult second week. How come it is always 'the difficult second book/album?' The jury is still out on NaNo - it feels a bit like being back at school (everyone seems to know what they're doing, everyone knows one another, everyone's word count is miles ahead of yours ...). Someone gave me the NaNo box set ages ago - sticker charts, 'onerosity coupons' (threw those out immediately), and prompt cards. The funniest one this week I'll reproduce as today's prompt. If you make it through the month you get to wear a big shiny badge that says 'Novelist'.

In the meantime the set also has jaunty stickers saying 'Ask Me About My Novel!' Perhaps you are supposed to stick one on your forehead? Or leave one ostentatiously showing on your notebook in a cafe? Do you talk about your work in progress? I'd prefer a sticker that says 'Please, DON'T Ask me about my novel', in fact if I'm writing Please Don't Talk To Me At All. How many times have you just lost a sentence, plot twist or snatch of dialogue because something interrupted you and you didn't pin it down in time? I still find it hard enough to talk about the books once they're written. Title: 'ummm well, I have a few in mind ...' Synopsis: 'ah, well ... don't really want to be pinned down at this stage.' Maybe you're the same, but I like to keep the energy and tension contained - talking something through dissipates the drive to get the thing down on paper. Once the first draft is down, fine - talk to friends, editors, the dog ... but while it still feels like I'm trying to bottle lightning I tend to keep quiet. This new world - these new people are all 'in there' ... but at the moment it's like the signal isn't quite tuned in (the picture's fuzzy, the dialogue is patchy). What about you - do you have a strong feel for your work in progress, or do you also feel like you're trying to reach out and touch a shimmering mirage?

TODAY'S PROMPT: NaNo Day 9 suggested taking Zsa Zsa Gabor as our literary role model. They suggest her enthusiasm for marriage is a great approach to plotting. 'Hitch yourself to any likely plot suitor. You'll have a great time with any of them, and you can always grab a different one on the next go round.' If quantity not quality is your aim (which is the whole jist of NaNo) - not procrastinating too much is good advice. Why not take the energy of falling in love/lust with your plot idea and write it out? Even if it ends badly (as it did nine times for dear Zsa Zsa), you may end up with something small and perfect - a subplot for a later novel, or a short story.