Writing, Visualization, and Music Stuck in the Mind

Firstly, I would like to announce that I've finally hit 45,000 words.

I want 50,000. Now.

Well, not now, but soon. I intend to have it by Monday night at the latest. Nothing like a last hurrah for April. And then...May. And June. And July...but I really do want to have the thing done by May 31st. It's already almost a month past its due date. When I started the file on January 1st, I put a little note under the title: "I will finish this by March 31st." And I haven't changed it yet, because I feel like I need that little reminder, that little "...whoops. Dropped the ball on that one."

I think, though, that when I hit 50,000, I'll be able to change the March to May. Weird how things like this work. 50k is a bit of a magic number for me, though, with my NaNoWriMo "training." And it'll definitely be past the halfway mark, because the chances of this thing surpassing 100k are absolutely miniscule, and do you know why? Because I won't let it. And because I don't think there's enough content to carry it that far.

But on to other things. I was working on Friday morning, on something that required at least a little bit of concentration. I was going just fine until the song "Court of Miracles" popped into my head and would not leave. Now, I love "Court of Miracles." It's quite possibly the neatest, darkest song in any classic Disney movie (Hunchback of Notre Dame, for the curious) and it's definitely the darkest I can remember, but it's also got such a lively spirit to it...it's odd, but I love it.

So I had accepted the fact that it wasn't leaving and was going back to my task, but soon I realized that I was reading the same paragraph ten or twelve times without taking in a word of it, because I was too busy listening to the music in my head.

I tried replacing it with other things (a succession of Japanese songs and eventually "Savages" from Pocahontas), things that I've worked around before, but nothing would depose it. This song was completely in control of my brain.

I was pretty desperate to get it out at this point, so I visualized a CD player and mentally hit the stop button.

The really weird part? It worked.

Have you ever had a specific song running through your head? How do you get rid of it? Have you ever resorted to forced visualization in a situation like this? Are any of you quite as crazy as I am?

Day...um...

Yes, I've lost track. That's what happens when real life sneaks up and bites you in the neck like the little wannabe vampire it is.

All I know is that over the last...um...five days, I've averaged approximately three hundred twenty words a day. Yes, there is a zero in the average. Monday killed me. I have not uphelp the pledge to write every day. I just sat down at the computer and couldn't face it. Bad Miri. No cookie.

...okay. I can't do that. There are fresh chocolate-chocolate-chip cookies and I'm having one, dagummit. And besides, another large reason I didn't write is that I was reading and critiquing my mother's novel. That's definitiely good for brownie points, right? (For those interested: past the fact that I want to hit her over the head with a comma in the hopes that she'll learn to use them (love ya, Mom!), it was very, very good.)

BUT. Today, during in a lull in my traditional 7:40 to 8:25 A.M. activities, I bit the bullet and outlined the next bit of my own WiP (in narrative form. I'm not dealing with all those little literal bullets). I have a definite direction now and, while I can't have everything outlined from the get-go, I'm at a point where I do kind of need to know what's happening in the immediate future. I'm over my bout of "This novel sucks. I suck. Why do I bother? {repeat ad nauseum}" and I'm ready to get this thing done.

I've determined that I need to do it in big chunks if I'm going to get anywhere.

So tonight's for a warm-up round (1500 or bust!) and tomorrow I'm going for a marathon. 4k at the very least.

Oh, and I thought you all might find this interesting. It's part of my signature on a forum I frequent.

Status: Finally, movement! They're alive, I tell you! (Or: When all else fails, mess with the established group dynamic.)

"SLEEP? WE'LL GET ALL THE SLEEP WE NEED WHEN WE'RE DEAD!"

(That last bit is a quote from one of my critique partners. Hey, Sarah!)

Day Seven!

First off, thanks to everyone who comments with words of encouragement. Seriously, it helps a lot.

Now, my big news.

40k! YES!

I wrote 2,022 words yesterday, and it didn't feel like all that much. I realized that if I can do that for the next month, I'll be done. Sweet.

Days Four, Five, and Six

Because I've not been able to update every day.

Day four: 778. Yay!

Day five: 385. Still respectable.

Day six: 452. Not bad.

My total wordcount now is 38,400ish. (I'm on a different computer.) Think I can hit 40k today? I do.

Day...what day are we on again?

Three, I suppose.

Last night, I wrote a total of (Do I really have to admit to this?) 147 words.

Y'know what? I'll take it. Especially considering we had company last night.

Hope you have/had/will have a blessed Easter!

Writers Write: The Challenge?

Well, apparently, I'm racing Erica and Annie this month. The idea is to beat each other's daily wordcounts and finish our novels first. Sounds good to me!

You see, I'm naturally drawn to competition. I respond well to a challenge. (Hence a two-year NaNoWriMo winning streak. Hey, I'm proud of it. I also snagged the highest wordcount in my very well-written NaNo region. ;) 73k for the win.) I've needed a good kick in the pants for quite awhile (my original I-want-this-finished date was March 31st...whoops!), and this is just the thing.

So wish me luck! I'm going in!

(And I WILL have more than 88 words tonight. I will!)