Refilling the Well

We're 25 days into the 90 Day Writing Challenge and I have written 19K words on Big Dixie.

I think I fall more on the side of Pantsers vs Plotters, so the word count was a big surprise. But it also took my focus off the WRITING and shifted to simply stringing words together on a page. Essentially, I was over 70 pages into a 400 page novel and I had no idea where it was going, or more importantly, WHY it was going there.

So, accepting responsibility for my own career, my own manuscript, my own time, I freely admit, I chose not to write. For two days.

But I didn't abandon Big Dixie. I took the time away from my computer to figure out who my characters are and why they want what they want, and what's standing in their way (basics, yes, but hey, PANTSER here). I've figured out weaknesses of the scenes already written, so I know what I can toss and what I should keep. I've discovered how my Hero reacts the first time he meets my Heroine, and how to make that initial spark more of a zing.

I have not given up on the challenge. I'll write tonight, for at least 2 hours with the girls at the Ruby Slippered Sisterhood. And I'll write tomorrow. But I don't want to write a 100K word manuscript simply to brag about the word count - I want the words to count. (See what I did there?)

Happy Writing (or Well-Filling, whatever the case may be)!

Ava