I’ve been writing, not nearly as much as I’d like, but I’m getting somewhere. I finished another chapter yesterday. I’ve been going through some emotional ups and downs (largely downs) lately, and had a new development unfold last week, which was not a surprise, but still has me really kind of upside down. But I’m crap at talking about personal stuff even to people I’m close with (which are appallingly few, possibly for that same reason), so I am not going to say anymore right now.
Instead, I’ll tell you that I am experimenting with writing longhand. It’s something I’ve wanted to try for a long time now, but I’ve always thought, “I’ll try it when I start the next book.” But I decided I didn’t want to wait any longer.
So I started mid-chapter, 21 chapters in.
So far, I like it.
I grabbed a new blank sketch journal—I hate lined journals—and cracked it open. In order to not just stare at the blank page for twenty minutes, I rewrote the last line I had typed in Scrivener into a journal. Then I just kept going. I wrote over 1000 words in less than an hour.
The next day (the 21st), I didn’t have time to write. Too many other things going on. Obligations. Kids. Appointments. Sure, I could have sacrificed some down time later—I am catching up on Stranger Things and watching season 4—but it was what I needed at the time. So says the voice in my head. But I do think that we need down time, some tuning out time. At least I do. And that day beat me up a bit. So it was all Vecna for me that night.
One of the things about writing longhand is that it’s harder to count words until you’ve transcribed it into your computer. So my last number below is an estimate.
It’s not a lot of words. Hardly an homage to NanoWrimo’s goal of 50k, but again, better than nothing. I’ll get there.
Anyhow. It’s Thanksgiving now here in the U.S. That seemed to creep up fast. Hoping to get some writing in later, but first we eat and play board games. I’m thankful for you reading this and hope, wherever you are in this too often miserable world, and in these extremely challenging times, that you can find something to be grateful for.
Below is my updated word count.
| Date | Words |
|---|---|
| 3Nov25 – 9Nov25 | 839 |
| 12Nov25 | 200 |
| 13Nov25 | 1061 |
| 14Nov25 | 0 |
| 15Nov25 | 202 |
| 16Nov25 | 431 |
| 17Nov25 | 182 |
| 18Nov25 | 22 |
| 19Nov25 | 812 |
| 20Nov25 | 1012 |
| 21Nov25 | 0 |
| 22Nov25 | 765 |
| 23Nov25 – 26Nov25 | 1100 |
| Total | 6626 |
Tristram Lowe 