During my last volunteer shift at the charity thrift store, these paper-wrapped pencils came in a donated clothing sack. I could expound on the odd non-clothing items I get mixed into bunches of wadded up jeans and armpit stained shirts, but that's hilarity for another post. In this case, this "oddity" spoke to me.
Only one of the dozen pencils was missing. I had to have them.
For practically nothing, I walked away with thousands of possible future drawings. In October, I take part in "Inktober"—a once-a-day ink drawing challenge for artists of all stripes. With these pencils, sketching the beginnings of that journey will be even more fun.
But after Inktober, during the month of November, thousands of writers from all over the world create a project for NaNoWriMo. It's a personal challenge to write a first draft of a 50k word novel in 30 days. This is how I completed the first draft of three of my novels. The motivation and camaraderie helps me stay on track. In the past three years, I have exceeded the original word count goal.
This year, I want to join NaNo again—but with a different preparation method.
On the NaNo website, they have a six-week workshop and resource guide on how to brainstorm and outline ideas for a novel. I've been through dozens of articles on the plotting process, but I thought it would be interesting to both try something new and document my journey using this method. I already have a loose idea for what (I think) I want to write, so I'll start there.
Pencil Pricks (Working Title)
Genre: Romance/Chick-Lit
Tropes: Second Chance Romance, Enemies to Lovers, Redemption
Themes: Self-improvement, forgiveness, atonement
Blurb: (I wrote this out first to help me find the main character's/romantic conflict)
Cia Morton has learned to find the good in every bad situation—except when her ex-boyfriend is her new art class instructor. Determined to prove she’s unaffected, she ignores Mori’s blunt criticism and his cute backside. But his continued quips slam into 8-year-old wounds that pushed her into years of therapy. Worse, she can’t tell if he’s the same jerk who shattered her confidence or if he’s hiding old feelings. If she can just get through the course without driving a pencil through his leg, or ending up under his desk with him, she’ll have the certificate she needs to make her pet portraits a lucrative job.
Mori is dumbstruck when Cia walks into the art class he only agreed to teach as a favor. Now, his heart still longs for the woman he pushed away—the one he later realized could have been the “real” one. But his old feelings are attached to deep regrets about mistreating his now deceased brother, who Cia used to encourage Mori to be kind to. To protect himself from desiring the same encouraging comments she gives the other students, Mori hides under a mask of indifference. If he can push Cia away until the end of the twelve week course, he won’t have to face his past and admit his greatest regret.
Nano's Week 1 Challenge:
1. Make a list of 20 things/places that make me feel inspired/excited/curious:
- craft stores, wolves, okapis, 80's cartoons, watermelon, walking, nature, sketching, piano music, other countries, sweet potato fries, baking, new pencils, tropical art galleries, Hawaii, fruit picking, pre-dawn light, an almost full sketchbook, encouraging others, personal growth
2. Pick nine from the list above, and put three of them side-be-side on three separate lines
Novel idea 1: an almost full sketchbook - okapis - encouraging others
Novel idea 2: fruit picking - baking - Hawaii
Novel idea 3: piano music - pre-dawn light - sweet potato fries
3. Pick one of the novel ideas and connect them with creative thoughts, asking yourself "What if..." (I'll go with my #1)
- What if an almost full sketchbook leads a burnt out artist to Africa to research and sketch wild okapis? What if, along the way, she ends up making friends with the indigenous people who lead her on jungle safaris in search of the elusive and endangered animals? What if her journey leads to helping a hardened jungle man connect with his family?
While this idea has potential, it's not the novel I want to write now. This exercise is more for people who don't have any ideas for a story. Since I have an idea, I'll try to make the "Novel idea 1" work in the context of the blurb I already have.
- What if Cia reaches the last page of her sketchbook and can't bring herself to fill it? What if she then researches local art classes in the area and finds one close to her? What if she's too timid to join, but her friend encourages her to go for it? What if, while hugging her favorite okapi stuffed animal, Cia decides to sign up?
This may be a stretch since I tried to wedge it in to fit my blurb, but I do like the idea of Cia, probably in her late-twenties/early-thirties, still enjoying her stuffed animals. This gives me reasons for her ex-boyfriend to belittle her when they broke up the first time. So the exercise wasn't a waste. I'm now one step closer to getting inside Cia's head and finding how deep her wounds go.
I also have room to grow Mori, the love interest. Few people stay the same during eight years of life, but how many of us could see someone for the first time in years and not remember the last horrible thing they did to us? (Not I) Experiences can humble us, make us jealous, bitter, or help us realize our emotional blind spots. Relatives and friends pass on. Jobs and careers can shift. Even so, it's difficult to change an opinion about someone we've seen at their worst. Negative situations stick more than positive ones.
In Mori's case, I have plenty of real-life examples to draw from. Younger artists tend to be incredibly selfish and shortsighted, often with a huge deficit in emotional health—and I dated a lot of them. I've had to do my own personal growth to overcome my issues in these areas.
Still, not everyone chooses to grow and acknowledge their junk. Burying it is easier.
Digging into the icky parts of ourselves is the opposite of fun, but the end result is freeing. Our relationships go deeper. Peace is more frequent. Just like with characters, my own life journey unfolds one page at a time every day. I can choose to do a little bit better than yesterday, or stew in the messy parts of myself. Writing a character's journey is a reminder to keep growing in kindness, love, and compassion. When my own "character arc" is done, and I leave this world, I hope I left behind more positive vibes and memories than negative. If everyone believed this, it could only change the world for the better.
Keep on smilin'!
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