Finito--or is it?

Midnight of the last day of November is fast approaching. Once again I managed to finish my novel, but only barely in time. I am filled with the same strange mix of feelings always present after I have typed the words THE END on the last page: satisfaction at my accomplishment; sorrow that it had to end; an eagerness to read it; and a knowledge that there are many things I feel still need to be improved, which I would not allow myself to do at the time for fear I should not finish before the month was over.

There are many small things I left out of scenes that I must add, but most in mind is a whole new character, whose part I did not realize until now and am not yet certain belongs. This new character will not greatly change the story, but may add much of value to it. Yet this character is one whom I cannot easily understand, and therefore cannot easily write about, and that, I think, is the primary cause of my doubt.

Overall I think my month writing a novel went rather well. There were a few things I promised myself I would do and I think I mostly succeeded in this: firstly that I would try to end each chapter in such a way that it would draw the reader onward, leaving him in anticipation, while I shifted between characters; secondly that I would write only scenes I enjoyed, and not plow through boring sections that could only be boring to readers; thirdly that I would visualize what I was writing. These all helped to create a better story, I think. The first is more important for readers, and the latter two helped me to really get into the story, as I have never done before.

Usually I am thinking about so many things I have a hard time keeping track of all the different characters and events in my stories and how they all fit together, but this time I did not have that problem. I scarcely wrote any notes at all: only once or twice. The rest of the time I figured it all out in my mind.

This year was different than last year in another way as well. Last year I had far more free time and so was able to write a 100,000 word novel without difficulty. This year, however, what with working two days a week and teaching piano two days a week, and all the other responsibilites I have, it was more difficult. My mom pointed out that it was a good experience to have to be able to write while still doing all these other things (which could be considered a justification for why she does not let me off all my chores for the month as some people do, not that I think that is necessary), and I agree.

My parents thought it was amazing that I could start writing the novel on November 1st and finish it just a little before midnight of the last day of the month. I do not find it so. I knew I was drawing near to the end and thus wrote furiously to finish in time. That is the power of deadlines. Sometimes it is a good thing to have deadlines to meet, though in this case I do not know; I fear I may have rushed the ending a little more than I should have.

So now it is time to set it aside for a bit. I am eagerly looking forward to reading it, but that will have to wait until I have distanced myself from it a little. In the meantime there are some of my older writings I am eager to read again, and also I want to finish probably my slowest ever reading of the Lord of the Rings, which sadly is only my fifth time.

After I have revised my novel, then the time will come for it to be read. I told my brother he could probably read it, but I think I will look for other readers as well so that I may receive a good selection of criticism.

Then it will be on to other projects. At the moment I have at least two novels in mind I would like to start and one to rewrite and some others I do not remember just now, and I think I may work on these all at the same time to try something different for a while, varying which one I am writing with how I am feeling at the time.

If this all seems less coherent than usual, than I suppose it is due to the lateness of the hour and the fact that I already wrote over 12,000 words today. This would make it right around 13,000 I would imagine. Not the most I have ever written, but a goodly sum notwithstanding.