eileen beha

Jumping into Murky Waters

Eileen Beha — Mon, 15 Oct 2018 21:40:30 +0000

After a year’s worth of immersion in what L. M. Montgomery, author of Anne of Green Gables, called “spade” work, I am about to jump into the murky waters of writing the first draft of a new tale for young readers. As an incentive, I have signed up to participate in NaNoWriMo: National Novel Writing Month from November 1-30. My goal is to write 1500 words per day, for a total of 45,000, approximately the word count of my other two published middle grade novels. My working title for the story is “The Tale of Nettie Rabbit.” I plan to keep you posted daily on how I’m doing. Wish me luck!

Preparation

Eileen Beha — Thu, 01 Nov 2018 21:41:40 +0000

Today, in preparation for NaNoWriMo, I created a working notebook for the 45,000 words I hope to write in the 30 days of November. Because I know that my best, first-draft work happens when I write longhand, I now have a 3-ring binder filled with 300 blank, college-ruled sheets of paper, for an average of 150 words per sheet, 10 pages per day. I don’t to plan to type any of the pages until after December 1st in order to avoid getting into a second draft, editorial state of mind, For inspiration and visualization, I am using a copy of a rabbit portrait, done in oil, especially for me by my talented artist friend, Maggie Moris, as the notebook cover. Is this Nettie Rabbit? Time will tell …

Day #1 morning

Eileen Beha — Thu, 01 Nov 2018 23:11:41 +0000

National Novel Writing Month starts in three hours, at 12:01 am on Thursday, November 1st—a little too late (or too early?) for me to start writing. But my alarm clock is set for 6 am, my coffee maker is set and ready to turn on, and my favorite coffee mug is waiting to be filled: 1500 words, here I come!
#NaNoWriMo

Day #1 end of day

Eileen Beha — Fri, 02 Nov 2018 12:55:01 +0000

Last night I couldn’t sleep. I’d set my alarm for 6:00 am in order to begin my first day of participation in National Novel Writing Month 2018. Still wide awake at one o’clock in the morning, I tried to talk myself out of getting up to write a mere 5 hours later. But I did get out of bed when the alarm rang, and fueled by coffee, wrote furiously for 2 hours. By the end of the day, I’d exceeded my word count goal of 1500 words for a grand total of 1603! Let me assure you, it was some of the worst prose I’ve ever written. Also this morning I attended the first of four, two-hour classes at the Loft Literary Center. “Write a Novel in a Month” is being taught by Abby Cooper, whose first book, a middle grade novel, was a product of National Novel Writing Month five years ago. After 13 fellow students shared why they were taking the class, Abby engaged us in a simple craft exercise to help us define WHY we want to write a novel. Probably the most important reason, I realized, is that I want my granddaughter, who is three years old and loves rabbits, to be able to read The Tale of Nettie Rabbit when she’s seven or eight years old. Other reasons paled in comparison. I guess it’s time to set my alarm and get ready for Day #2!
#NaNoWriMo

Day #2

Vicki Palmquist — Fri, 02 Nov 2018 22:21:35 +0000

In the “Write a Novel in a Month” class that I’m taking at the Loft, Abby Cooper spoke about writers riding the horse of self-doubt. And even though I’ve had two middle grade novels published, I finally realized that I’ve been ruled by self-doubt ever since December, 2016, when my agent turned down a major revision of my first, unpublished novel because she didn’t believe she could sell the manuscript in “today’s market.” This morning, at 6:20 am on Day #2 of National Novel Writing Month, I reflected upon my young granddaughter’s self-initiated request to take a horseback riding lesson as a present for her 3rd birthday. Where does such fearlessness come from, I wondered. How is it developed? How is it best nurtured? And then, riding on the back of that little girl’s courage, as depicted in this black and white photo of her during her first lesson, I sat down with a pen and ten blank pieces of paper. By 9:20 am, I had written 1644 words!
#NaNoWriMo

Day #3

Eileen Beha — Sun, 04 Nov 2018 11:52:24 +0000

Infinite possibilities … that’s the challenge of writing fiction. Face it: all fiction is made up; lies, in fact — fickle dalliances of an author’s imagination. In truth, sometimes infinite possibility is inspiring. Sometimes infinite possibility is overwhelming. This morning, near the end of my three-hour writing chunk, I found inspiration. A new scene visualized in my mind, as clear and focused as this blue leaf in the photo of fall foliage in my front yard. What I like about this scene is that it possesses elements of high risk and danger, fast-paced moments when the stakes for Nettie Rabbit are high. I exceeded my daily goal by 70 words today, for a total of 1570. Three days of National Novel Writing Month down, twenty-seven to go!
#NaNoWriMo

Day #4

Vicki Palmquist — Mon, 05 Nov 2018 13:49:56 +0000

One thing I’ve realized while drafting my last three middle grade novels is that writing the first 30 pages is “easy.” I’ve heard other novelists say the same thing. And then, you run smack dab into a DEAD END. You realize that, at its deepest level, you don’t know what your story is about. You don’t know what you’re trying to “say” to the reader, and you have absolutely no idea how to advance the plot.

True confession: I did have 30 typewritten pages, or 6839 words, of “The Tale of Nettie Rabbit” in hand before I signed up for National Novel Writing Month. On July 24, 2018, I’d shared this draft with my writing group, looking for a sign: STOP? or GO! My colleagues agreed that my early draft had a strong storyteller’s voice and “potential.” Even so, I gave up (again.) Fast forward to Day #4 of NaNoWriMo … I was grateful for the additional hour of sleep this morning. Starting at 6 am and writing until 9 am, I wrote 1,734 words! Four days down, twenty-six to go.
#NaNoWriMo

Day #5

Vicki Palmquist — Wed, 07 Nov 2018 13:19:20 +0000

Today I was thinking about Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Written by Lewis Carroll and published in 1865, it was not a book that I read as a child. Recently I bought a copy of my own because, after all, it is a rabbit who sets the events of the plot in motion: “Alice started to her feet, for it flashed across her mind that she had never before seen a rabbit with either a waistcoat-pocket, or a watch to take out of it, and burning with curiosity, she ran across the field after it, and fortunately was just in time to see it pop down a large rabbit-hole under the hedge. In another moment down went Alice after it, never once considering how in the world she was to get out again.”

This is pretty much how I’ve been feeling on Day #5 of National Novel Writing Month. I exceeded my daily word count goal again for a total of 1615 words. But all day I’ve felt like I’ve done nothing in the last 5 days but head down one rabbit-hole after another with no idea where I’m going or how I’m going to get out.

(PS: The image of the white rabbit appears on a wrap-around neck scarf that my husband gave me for Christmas one year, made by a company called STORIARTS. It’s incredibly cold and drafty at 6 am these days in my writing studio on the third floor of our old house. Picture me there tomorrow with a Wonderland scarf keeping me warm.)

Five days down . . . 25 to go.

#NaNoWriMo

Day #6

Vicki Palmquist — Wed, 07 Nov 2018 13:42:47 +0000

Edward S. Curtis (public domain)

“Coming to Light” is a documentary film about the incredible life and photography of Edward S. Curtis that a friend and I saw at the Film Society of Minneapolis-St. Paul on Sunday afternoon. After learning about Curtis’s creative journey, there was no doubt that he paid an enormous price personally, financially, and emotionally for his artistic endeavors. Fortunately for us, his legacy remains: a 20-volume series of thousands of photographs taken in the early 1900’s called The North American Indian.

During a post-film discussion, a question was raised: What if Curtis had given up? What if he hadn’t pursued his dreams? What if images like these of two native women of British Columbia didn’t exist? Think of the collective loss of understanding of their history and beauty and culture.

Edward S. Curtis (public domain)

And then I think of all the novels that wouldn’t exist if their authors hadn’t written them. I can’t imagine what my own life would be like if I couldn’t (like I’ve been doing each night this past week) lose myself in the gorgeous prose written by Louise Erdrich in her novel The Last Report on the Miracles at Little No Horse?

“Our novels await … ”

Word count today was just shy of 1500 words, but it’s Midterm Election Day, and yes, I voted!

#NaNoWriMo

Day #7

Eileen Beha — Thu, 08 Nov 2018 12:31:46 +0000

Encouragement came in a number of different forms on this last day of the first week of National Novel Writing Month. For the first time I didn’t reach my daily writing goal by late morning, a habit I knew I’d have to maintain if I were to successfully write 45,000 – 50,000 words during NaNoWriMo.

I discovered small encouragements throughout the day so I didn’t give up:

I was excited to purchase 5 new writing pens at Target, since my last 4 pens have already run out of ink.
I recalled what Loft instructor Abby Cooper discussed on the first day of class, that is, “First drafts don’t have to be good; they only need to exist.”
I reread wise words from one of my all-time favorite meditation books called Each Day a New Beginning, published by Hazelden. “We can learn to believe that we are doing any task as well as we need to do it at this time. Our job is the effort. The outcome is part of a larger plan, one that involves more than ourselves. We’ll find joy when we find acceptance of ourselves and our efforts and the belief that we are beautiful beings whose lives do have purpose and direction.”

And so, I persevered, writing this evening until my daily writing goal was accomplished: 1518 words.

Seven days down, 23 to go. Proud to be a Minnesotan on this post-election day!

#NaNoWriMo18