On nanowrimo failure, and why it's not such a bad thing

Wow, that is really a long blog title, but it is really to the point. I guess this blog is horribly overdue.

I guess in a nutshell, there is always something to be learned from stories that just don't hit the age of maturity known as completion. And, usually, if you set aside the story for a while (a long while), and then reread it, the lesson usually jumps out at you like an alien chest burster.

So, obviously this last nanowrimo attempt was an abject failure, and as these things tend to be, was indeed chock full of lessons. Yeah. Giant chest burster lessons. Mmmhmm.

Lesson one: actually figure out what you want your story to say. Not that it needs to have a moral, but it really needs to have a path, and goals. How do we do this? I hear you ask. I think the answer is outline outline outline. Unfortunately I hate outlining, but it's something I need to get into to improve my writings. I think I'm always afraid that setting a stiffer set of story goals will limit my creativity, but I'm starting to come to the conclusion that it'll help focus my energy instead of having it fly over all willy nilly.

So. That's where I think I am at for now. I may elaborate on it later. Bedtime now :) back later

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