See, we now have just seven days until November hits us and begins NaNoWriMo 2007. (BOOYAH!) This last week before the month o' insanity is my allotted time to brainstorm and think up a novel idea for November.
My problem is thus: I am hooked on Jubagh.
From the first part very late on the night of September 30th, to the twenty-sixth part posted today, I've written one part per day. I've made up the occasional day I missed and even once worked ahead so I could slack later. This is the most consistently I've ever written, barring the time of The Dark Wars in high school, where I was pen-and-papering my way through five notebooks just about every day, if not almost every class period.
And I'm not burnt out. That's the amazing part, along with the sheer regularity of the installments. I have about 26-27k on Jubagh right now. At this point in all my other novels, I'm tired and wanting a break, disillusioned and kinda dreading the coming trudge through the rest of the story. It all looks like a lot of hard work from here, even though I know I'll catch my
Instead, I'm looking to the grand, sweeping story arc of Jubagh and marveling at its novel-like bulk and grace. I'm doing pieces of worldbuilding in my head and eagerly quizzing my handful of regular readers* for feedback on the characters and the writing style. I think of having to put Jubagh on hold for a month in lieu of my WriMo novel-to-be... and I don't want to stop writing it!
*To those of you who have kept up with Jubagh and graciously taken the time to comment, THANK YOU from every writerly bit of me. If you guys hadn't given the story such a warm and enthusiastic reception, I don't know if it would have come as far as it has!
So! I have come to you - yes, you - for advice and suggestions. The rules of WriMo clearly state that a writer is to start fresh, with a blank slate, upon November 1st. However, I've bent those rules before, and I know other writers who have, as well. I am not so much concerned with that. And, given that I'll have a guesstimated 35k of Jubagh come the end of this month, choosing it as my NaNovel would stretch it to 85k before all is said and done. (Yes, there is enough story in there for that. Don't question it. *scheming grin*)
That said, I am capable of picking a new endeavor, writing it during November, and picking Jubagh up come December (perhaps after a day or two off). I have not yet managed to write an entire novel within fifty thousand words, sadly, so I fear the NaNovel would be unfinished for a while. But still, it would be a huge chunk of word that I would be proud to do. And, despite my attachment to Jubagh, I am confident that I could throw myself facefirst into a new novel.
So, what do you think? What would you like to see me write, given that it'll be posted on LJ as it progresses? Jubagh fans, do you want me to take a break from Jubagh and come back to it in December, or will you throw sharp things at me if I stop for a month? WriMos, what do you think is the wiser choice here? People who don't read Jubagh, what do you think I should do - keep on keepin' on, or break for something shiny and new?
Rules of commenting on this post: You are not allowed to say "it's up to you" or "do what you feel like" or "the choice is yours," etc etc. I'm asking your opinion! It doesn't mean I'll go with majority rule, it means I wanna know what you think! *grin* So give me what you think without the disclaimers of "...if you want to, of course" attached.
- I feel so:
good - I hear:NMA - Green & Grey
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On the other hand, if you already have another IDEA for NaNo and think you can easily pick Jubagh back up at the end, then it might be worth switching. I, for example, have a raging NaNo idea that sprung up last night and today* and has sunk all my other "I have no ideas that I think I can pull off" plans, so the thought of, say, continuing the 2005 NaNo or restarting the Tse epic (again) has suddenly become a lot less attractive. But it sounds like your crazy glee is for Jubagh, in which case I have always thought it's a good idea to do what you're mad for at the time.
*If you saw my 5 AM post a day or so back on the NaNo issue, ignore it. I never make lasting decisions at 5 AM.
On an inexplicable third hand, that's how I never finish anything. >_> But that's my quirk.
I'm not sure how easy it would be to pick Jubagh up in December. The only way to find out would be to try it and see, but it might blow up in my face that way.
I never finish anything either... which is one reason I'm considering just pulling Jubagh through. 85k would pretty much assure me a finished story arc. =D
Thank you for your thoughts!
so i'd personally hate to see you give up jubagh for a month.
If you really do want to do something new, then maybe do jubagh less frequently. like once a week. you do often say that multitasking is good for you. :D
or even, write another story on jubagh. different characters, maybe before the one you're on so you don't give anything away...
i always think that if you find something good, you should run with it.
The masochistic part of me wants to try a NaNovel while not stopping Jubagh. It would be crazy, and I'm hoping work picks up soon, and if it does, I wouldn't have the time to write -that much- every day. However, once or twice a week wouldn't kill me. Hmm.
Thank you for your thoughts! *hug* ^_^
"If you give yourself too much time to plan [or write something you like beforehand, and continue on with that], you might end up stumbling across a brilliant concept for your novel. And the last thing you want heading into your noveling month is a brilliant concept. Every year ... I get emails from people jubilantly informing me that they're dropping out of the contest because they've found a story they love, and they want to ... do it justice. ... Once you stumble across a fantastic, once-in-a-lifetime idea for a book, it's hard to treat that story with the irreverent disregard needed to [write 50,000 words of it in 30 words]."
Your situation's somewhat different, a sort of reversal. But if you're confident in your ability to pick up something else, I'd advise that.
(If you've been writing 1667 words of Jubagh a day and feel like you can keep up the pace -- I haven't had the time to read much of it, so I don't know how much there is -- for 30 days, go ahead. But if you'd need to speed up the pace of right-now in order to complete NaNo, the stuff that comes out of your keyboard during November would definitely disappoint you.)
It gets Real Bad. NaNo is a way to begin something, to plunge in and get water up your nose. It gives you the raw materials. It gives you crap, but crap with potential.
If you'd like to write Jubagh as "crap with potential," or feel like you've already been doing that -- do that. If it's anything better than that right now, the NaNo-produced stuff will just by its nature be a lot more raw, and that won't fit in with the texture of the story as it stands.
/flashes "four-time NaNo winner" credentials obnoxiously
Well, here's the thing. I'm pretty sure I could throw myself into something new for WriMo.
But I've also been easily cranking out anywhere from 1k to 2k a day on Jubagh. In order to keep to the 1667-a-day quota, I'd just up the regularity of Jubagh posts from one a day to two, which is still extremely doable. Or I could just lengthen the posts themselves, but I'm leaning towards two-insteada-one.
I think Jubagh is better than "crap with potential" (great phrase =D), but that doesn't mean I'd not be able to churn it out quickly. By default, I am a fast writer. One Jubagh bit takes an average of an hour for something like 1.2-1.4k words; I don't plan what to write, except when I randomly daydream, and I do a skim-proofread to refine it once-over before I post. So, meeting the daily WriMo quota of 1.7k wouldn't take much longer, and given that it's WriMo after all, I'm not reluctant to devote the extra time to it.
*smile* Thank you for your thoughts! I appreciate the insight.
You could carry on with this into WriMo, or you could think of it in a slightly different way.
What about a prequel of some kind? A short story giving some background on one of the main characters that are so firmly fixed in your head? If you think about it, it's a "clean slate", as the current Jubagh won't have happened yet (being a prequel and all).
You know my thoughts on Jubagh. You really have something here. It really grabs me when I read it; it lives.
Whatever you decide, I hope you have a good month, and that you come out happier and more positive from it.
<3
*hug*
I am honestly not sure! Maybe? ^_^;;
A prequel would be related, yet drastically different, given how it would get into Rai's nefarious past and Brandon's, uh... also nefarious past. (Silly paladin...) It would be interesting, but I doubt it could be a novel, really...
Thank you for your thoughts! =D *hugs and hearts*
Personally? I think you should stick with Jubagh. ^_^ It's important, if you're really into something, to get as much of it done as you can in case you burn out.
(I scratched your back, now scratch mine? :3)
As for you... well, rewrites tend to be messy. Which is both good and bad for WriMo - good in that you -can- make a mess, bad in that you have very little time to experiment and learn. Picking up where you left off sounds better, IF you still have passion for what you're writing.
Otherwise, if I were you, I'd go with something new. Drum up some ideas, pick a char or a world and just run with it. It's exhilarating and scary to do, but oh it's great fun.
NaNoWriMo = EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!
EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE + EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE = EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE
That is all.
Do Jubagh. It sounds like you could pull it off, and while I'm a bit of a stickler for the rules, I also know how effing HARD it is for me personally to write something I'm not passionate about when something I AM passionate about is chewing on my spinal cord.
However!! !! (and this is coming from the selfish 'want more!' part of me) I also would love to see something new from you. If you think you can squeeze out one or two portions of Jubagh a week while chugging through the wordcount requirements of something new, do that. However, those above me had an excellent point about trying to write something while Jubagh is bumping into it and constantly in the back of your mind. It might be healthy for the Jubagh addicts (like me) to have their fixes spread out a bit. Besides, if you think you can keep up the current quality of Jubagh while writing something else for NaNo, I definately think Jubagh would get old a lot slower than it would continuing on with daily or twice-daily updates. (This coming from a person who can't eat any food that is even remotely stale... <.<;)
Bottom line... I'm not sure if I helped you any or only served to further muddle things up... but that is my opinion and I have shared it, so now my brain can stop growling at me for making the silly comment above. :P
*snugs!*
You have both helped and muddled by providing lots of things to think about! XD Which is perfect, really. If I must be muddled, it had better be for a good reason! ^_^
I will chew over what you've said and think on it. Thank you! =D
... what? Yes, yes, I'm kidding.
I -could- blow WriMo off, but WriMo is something I look forward to every year. This'll be the fifth year I participate, and I'm bound and determined to make it my fourth win. Granted, knocking out 1700 words or so a day isn't easy. But if I've managed it three other times, once while doing college and work simultaneously, what's to say I can't this year?
As for quality... just about everyone I know says what you write when you're writing this fast is crap. I've... never written crap, even when churning out the words. Proof - this is from my second NaNovel, unedited. Now, granted, I don't plan ahead, and plots get messy and/or convoluted... but... with Jubagh... I -haven't- planned ahead. I never do outlines. Jubagh's actually been a piece where I have less of an idea of overall plot than normal, and I daresay it's turning out damn well.
Besides. I've done two Jubagh bits in a day probably half a dozen times now, and they don't suffer for quality (imo). So, I don't think that's a problem, really. I can do Jubagh -as- WriMo with no hardship in writing that much and keeping up the quality and spontaneity.
That, and I'm silly and stubborn. *hug* Thank you for your thoughts again, mri'fao. I hope my response makes sense.
I'll save it for while I'm off work.
On a tangent, what are you asking us for? Do you need permission to bend the rules? Yes, I will read whatever you write (eventually) but it's more fun for me, there's more enthusiasm that comes through and detail and liveliness and colour and character if it's something you love.
But... you seem to be having fun. So do more of that. Screw the rules. Or if you can't do that, expand and explore Jubagh until it's a situation that is sufficiently new to fit within the rules. As for not being able to build a prequel into a novel... again, with the disclaimer of not having read any & resting on my knowledge of your talents alone... *Coughbullshitcough* Maybe you just think there wouldn't be enough because you haven't met everyone else. Yet.
In a nutshell, I'm asking you what you want to read. With the subclause that, if you have not/do not read Jubagh, what would you theoretically like to read? And you answered that, so, win and awesome. =D
And, I thank you for the vote of confidence! It's a treat. *hug* And, moreover, thank you for your thoughts, mri'fao. ^_^