Juggling It All

Well. I started out on NaNoWriMo well. Here's the first blog post I wrote on the very first day (on my blog Newsy Girl Speaks, before I was logged into this one).

"Wrote my first 1634 words at the JC Info Desk tonight- it was great fun.

Very easy, just flowed out, a great stress reliever on a night where I really needed one.
I had a very -not fun- conversation with an ex that left me in tears for a while, but after I got back to the desk and got back to writing, I was back in good spirits in no time!

Novel writing- the secret to happiness?

Sshhhh we can't tell anyone- what would all the psychiatrists eat after all the miserable people left them?

: )
Way excited about this!

<3-r"

So now, a couple days later, I'm back at the JC Info Desk on my Monday morning shift and I'm at...1634 words.

-hangs head in shame-

I haven't found the time to write since then- which I know is utterly ridiculous, of course, you can make time in the day for anything that's important to you (I'm writing on this blog after all). It's just something about working at Broadside all weekend, attempting to crash-read three long books on Vietnam by Tuesday, suffering from sudden fits of exhaustion from post-election guide production fallout (that was all I did Monday/Tuesday of last week), and attempting to retain some semblance of sanity by the end that has me so behind.

I knew it would be hard when I agreed to do NaNoWriMo. I came very close to refusing to participate at all, knowing how crazy my schedule usually is. (I'm one of those crazy kids who goes through the week without sleep or regular meals) But just that feeling I had the first night after writing- just that utter involvement and relaxation. It's so relaxing writing something straight out of my own head, without fears of having to back anything up in case someone tries to sue me (life of a reporter)- it's just such a stress reliever.

I'm determined to continue, come hell or high water. I may always run four days behind, I may always be playing catch-up- but I love that feeling and I want to get it back.

Plus my novel idea is just too darn good to waste. : )

Here's a brief excerpt. I wrote this part the way I thought the character would be thinking upon waking up.

"She woke up and looked around.

The walls were white, blinding white. There was a chair, yellow gingham cloth covered. A table- with a small squat yellow vase, and flowers stuffed inside it. They were a mix of daisies and other yellow flowers she couldn't identify.

She looked closer. The flowers were fake.

The only other thing she saw in the room was a doorway, right in front of her, with a hanging folder on it with files.

It looked like a hospital.

She looked down at herself. She was in a bed with yellow sheets, two yellow covered pillows.
Her arms had cords and wires on them. She was on an IV.

She reached up her hand gingerly to touch her head. There was a bandage there, covering her entire scalp.

She could not feel any hair- it was gone.
Her entire head was shaved.

She sat quietly and looked around and realized that she didn't know where she was or what she was doing there or what happened at all.

She thought quietly to herself and realized that she could not remember her name."

Yes, yes- I'm excited about this.

Now I have to get back to reading about Vietnam. I hope to treat myself to half an hour or so of writing on my novel later, after I finish Daniel Ellsberg's "Secrets."

: )

Newsy Girl
(aka Rachael)