Novel: Episode 1, I Begin Anew

I've been working on a book since about 2001. I've written as much as eighty pages of it, only to through out what I've written because 'it wasn't working.' Or, 'It was boring.'

I've started it again, and I've decided this time what I've written is 'pretty good' but this state can pass. But Bob made me a Buddha's Cosmo at dinner (his signature drink) and I had the great idea that I would blog about writing the novel. I promise, no word counts, no discussions of the actual novel itself. But this way, if I don't actually write the damn thing, my disgrace will be public.

So I've started with a chart that illustrates my understanding of the process of writing a novel, based on writing four of them. I am somewhere between the first point on the graph and the second point on the graph.

Tomorrow, when the alcohol wears off (one drink, especially one of Bob's drinks, pretty much makes me technically over the legal limit for blogging) I will wonder what the hell I have committed myself to, and then post about outlines versus organic. Or more to the point, about my preconceived and clearly foolish notions about those things.