Flirting with writing

All over the web people point to nanowrimo as a way to kick start that novel you always wanted to write but never quite got around to. Its quite simple. In the month of November one does his darndest to write 50,000 words towards that elusive novel with little or no emphasis on quality, grammar, or even plot. It’s a simple number game or a literary enema, if you will. Once the darn thing is out -and I'm not belaboring the enema bit here- one can take as long as he wants to rework, restructure and basically beat it into shape. At the end of the month you submit your post to the website and get a pat on the back from them and from then on you're on your own. The website apparently only does a word count so you could upload your mortgage document or a legal brief and be called a novelist but why would you want to? There is an editing equivalent of nanowrimo but I’ve spent very little time on it primarily because I feel that if I’m going to write in a tearing hurry, I'd be better off editing consciously. However, since my focus is completely given to nanowrimo prep at the moment, I reserve the right to go back on my opinion on namoedmo. The website has a list of authors who went through this "novel" processing line and ended up with a published book but - this won't surprise you - none of them have gone on to win the Pulitzer yet.

When I read this I went through a cyclical round of embarassment, shame and excitement. I felt like a loser even considering the possibility of enrolling but the chance of shooting Mr that-is-such-a-stupid-idea-i-can't-believe-I-wrote-that in the head was enticing. If you'd even participated in a high school creative writing contest you'd know what I mean. The whole challenge in writing is that this busybody of an inner critic sits with you and takes over the whole process till it reaches a point where you crumple the paper, toss it in the bin, and drown yourself in back-to-back 'Sex and the City' episodes. To be part of a process that says quality is overrated and that its all about the act is liberating. For me, however badly I may write, writing really gives me a buzz. Just for that, it's worth going through this exercise, don't you agree?

I've been preparing furiously for the event, scribbling notes on paper napkins and 5-subject spiral bound note books. For a while I contemplated getting yellow legal pads to write notes on but dropped the idea because it's old (Scott Turrow wrote Presumed Innocent in this manner). I've purchased several books on the subject of writing which I've stashed in all locations where I could potentially have a free minute (in my car to read when i'm getting an oil change, in the kitchen to read while i'm waiting for the water to boil over, in the...you get the picture). These include such thrillers as Plot & Structure, Strunk & White etc., I've been reading a lot of writing blogs in my free time as well and some easier reads such as Stephen King's 'On Writing'. The only non-writing book I've read this month -Murakami's 'What I talk about when I talk about running'- ended up having considerable advice for writers.

Here is Murakami on the subject of writing:

"Writing novels, to me, is basically a kind of manual labor. Writing itself is mental labor, but finishing an entire book is closer to manual labor."

And here is what Stephen King says in 'On Writing':

"Running a close second [as a writing lesson] was the realization that stopping a piece of work just because it's hard, either emotionally or imaginatively, is a bad idea. Sometimes you have to go on when you don't feel like it, and sometimes you're doing good work when it feels like all you're managing is to shovel shit from a sitting position."

Two experts saying more or less the same thing - that it's as much about ass-to-chair as about fickle talent and the former can sometimes compensate for the latter.

I'm willing to buy it. I have nothing to lose and 50,000 words to gain.