Daedalus

😀 @seagreen. Perhaps December could be a Den SloMoWriMo, because December and writing do not appear to ever co-exist anyway!

The Banjo
The phone rings in the lost property office at Euston Station in London.
“Lost Property, Smith speaking, how may we help?”
He takes a sip from his tea, listens.
“Yes, sir, anything left on a train on this line ends up here. Assuming it’s turned in, like. What have you lost?
“So, a banjo is it sir? Well let me have a look, won’t be…[Read more]

Thanks @Daedalus @John & @JaneShuff 🙂

Loved the story, Elle, congratulations!

Well done, good job as usual, L!

Not tempted by the NaNoWriMo, but if the Den does a SLoMoWriMo, I’m in!

Thanks @Seagreen!

Thanks @Philippa — I was channelling my passive-aggressive self for that line and it just popped out!

Congratulations, L. Another fine story 🙂

Ditto @Richardb
Niggles like an itch in a sensitive spot. Impossible to leave.

Yes, there’s something to be said for leaving all the polishing until the editing, and I’m sure it works for some, but not for me. If something I’ve written doesn’t satisfy me, it niggles at me until I’ve put it right.

I might sort of do it from the sidelines… use the general impetus and ground swell to push on with book 2. Very much doubt I’ll be hitting those targets, but I’d like to get some more chapters written.

Maybe we can have DeNoWriMo (Den novel writing month)

What a beautifully written story. My favourite line: “You said she made you feel young. How did she do that? I replied. Did she read you bedtime stories?”

This is brilliant! A great publication, @elle

I’ve never had a problem writing crap, but I do have a problem allowing myself to. That’s one reason I find it useful sometimes. Focussing on a goal other than perfect sentences stops me getting tied up in knots and losing all interest in what I’m doing. There is a view that all the polishing should be left for the editing.

Can’t say I’ve ever felt tempted. I find rigid targets counter-productive, and I fear that if I were concerning myself with the number of my words rather than the quality I’d churn out crap. And I can’t bear to write crap, even temporarily. Quality over quantity for me, any day. Yes, I’m slow, but I usually get there in the end.

So my short story “Did You Know?” has been published today in Story Magazine. Really thrilled as it’s a magazine I’ve been reading for a long time. Feel free to have a read:

https://storgy.com/2018/10/22/fiction-did-you-know-by-laure-van-rensburg/

It’s not my cup of tea but I’m supportive of anyone who does it. I know someone who sets her own word count for the month and that works well for her.

😀 @jd73 Although 1,666 isn’t much less daunting!

So I am signing up, but making myself no promises. We’ll see. I need to do some serious planning before it kicks off. I think I’m raine_clouds on there.

@raine I made it 1,666 words a day – 50K over 30 days. Have the counts changed?

Edit: ah, never mind – you did say excluding weekends – I’m half-asleep today!

I didn’t really enjoy it the one year I did it. I stopped using Strava for cycling for the same reason, namely that it becomes, for me, about word count and targets than actual enjoyment of the activity, and that can affect quality. But that’s just my take. People do produce publisher-ready material from it. I probably should do it again. I quite…[Read more]