Wrote a bit today. Dreadful stuff, really. A depressing scene. Hard to write.

I started a new job, so things have been really hectic, and I'm sorry to admit I haven't done much writing at all. What I have done has been sporadic at best. In fact, really it has been just little paragraphs here and there. I know that's no way to write a novel, or at least I think I know...

Anyway, things are calming down a little bit and I feel sort of recharged in a strange way. Probably just because I haven't written much in a while. At the same time, even though I feel like I am refreshed, I seem to be hitting the same wall when it comes down to sitting and pecking away at those keys. I think it might be because I'm at a difficult scene to write. I know I tend to write in tiny little snippets when I'm writing a hard scene because it is mentally taxing to try to get through it. I'm going to try to plow through it though, write now. Er, right now. ;)

Also, thanks for the concern, I am recovered from my terrible illness!

I hope to get a bit of writing done tonight after game one of the Stanley Cup finals.

Hello, I'm not sure what I had, whether it was some strength devouring food poisoning, or some mutated flue virus on steroids, but I am feeling much better now. I even managed to get back on the writing horse today.

I read through the whole manuscript again today for the first time in a while. It can sometimes be a strange experience. I may find myself thinking, "did I write that?" And the answer is always yes. Today, however, all I felt was a bit of joy. I am actually still happy with how the book is going! I know it probably seems like I am getting too much joy out of the smallest accomplishments, but really I'm trying to stay as positive as I can through this whole experience to help me keep my motivation up. Try not to let it bother you, and don't think me some arrogant jerk, okay? :)

The updates should be coming regularly again now that the illness has been chased from my veins. Thanks for your patience if anyone missed them.

I'm terribly sick, so I'm not sure when I'll write next.

My muse was speaking fluently to me tonight. I got a very important section done tonight, and during the writing of it I got a flash of inspiration that I feel will greatly enhance the story. It is an idea that is both intriguing and terrifying, and although I know it will be hard to write I think it will make the story stronger as well as make the plot make more sense. I don't know where the idea came from, but I'm sure glad it hit me! Yay!

Just one more example of how organic the plot to this book is. Since there are mostly hardened checkpoints with more fluid places in between, the chance for change is high, but although that can make writing difficult at times, it also gives me the freedom to quickly incorporate new ideas.

I'm going to start doing a little writing before bed. Hopefully I can get a bit done this weekend as well!

I haven't gotten anything written today yet, but I did read about an experience of going to a writers' workshop. It got me thinking that I should try to find something like that.

Well, I managed to hit a milestone in my writing and my wife was nice enough to take me out for ice-cream, so that was awesome! Things are coming along fairly well. I really feel good about this so far. I think I can finish it before next summer, if not sooner.

I received a question about whether I post short stories or bits of the novel. I am hesitant to share my writing when it isn't a finished project, so odds of me putting bits of the novel up aren't great, unless maybe it was a small snippet. Short stories are a possibility, but I'll have to think about it. I worry about putting my stuff out in the digital domain because I don't have any of that fancy copyright stuff, so although I have the natural copyright that comes with the creation of anything I write, if someone decided they wanted to steal it, I would have no way of defending it.

I'm probably just paranoid since, most likely, my writing isn't anything anyone would want to steal, but hey.

I guess my response is that, if there gets to be enough demand that people really want to see a sample of my writing I'll think about it. :)

I'm getting into a part I've been looking forward to for a while. A character is going to really spill his guts here and give some perspective on his existence. The hard part will be making the situation that makes this happen seem realistic. Well, that and the dialogue, of course. In any case, I'm excited!

Anyone have any theories on how to write good dialogue? I feel like I can write it pretty well, but since a lot of what I write ends up being dialogue heavy, anything I can learn that can improve it is good to know.

Nothing much is new to report. Sadly I got very little writing done today. I guess I'll have to do better, tomorrow/today? Anyway, hopefully I can get out of the rut I was in today. I just wasn't feeling it.

I've come to a few places in the story so far that will require research, but so far I have pretty much skipped over the areas that the research will sort of...fill in. Again, I'm trying to simply finish the story before I mess with trying to edit and make it perfect. I wonder, with something like research, if that is the best approach. What has been glossed over so far hasn't been anything crucial to the plot, so I suppose it is alright for now.

Just on a side note, I saw the Angels & Demons movie tonight. As a writer, if I was Dan Brown I'd be fairly upset. Although, maybe he is getting enough money that he doesn't much care. I suppose if one writes commercially, one may not mind how the work is changed as long as one is getting paid, since that is the goal. As it stands right now, if I get this book published when it is finally completed I don't expect to make gobs of money off of it, but I'm okay with that.

Well, I got a bit of writing done, but nothing I think is really great. I get the feeling this part will be almost completely redone by the final draft of this book.

I'm settling in to start writing for a bit here. It's nice because it's Friday so I can stay up late writing and not worry about sleeping in tomorrow. Hopefully I'll make some good progress. Just for the heck of it, I tried submitting some short stories to various places. We'll see what happens.

I wrote about four paragraphs, but I'm really tired. I think that might be all I have in me for the night. We'll see what happens.

Well, I managed to complete a chapter I had started earlier. Another way this writing experience has differed from any of my short story writing is that I always wrote those from the beginning of the story to the end. Here I am allowing myself to put notes (using the comment function) in certain places if I want to come back to them later. I think this is helping me because mood plays a large part in writing. I think that has a lot to do with writer's block. If I'm not in the mood to write a particular bit, I can leave myself a note and try to move on. This way I don't find myself sitting, staring with nothing to write for long stretches of time.

This chapter not only revealed a bit about the main character, but also gave me a chance to do some foreshadowing. To be totally honest, though, I'm not even sure I want to keep this part of the story. Still, that will be for another day to decide. Right now it feels good enough that I can move forward with the story.

I haven't gotten too much written today, but that's not all that surprising for me. I'm a night owl, and I write my best at night. This tends to play havoc on me though, since I have to teach during the day. I spend most of my days pretty tired, but it's worth it, I think.

Looking back at many of my short stories, they are usually (not always) a little pessimistic. Without consciously thinking about it though, the way I'm planning on this novel ending is a bit happier than most of my writing.

Of course, the plot has been pretty fluid and malleable so far. I mapped it out before I started in a sort of flow chart, and already only five chapters in it has deviated quite a few times. I get sucked in trying to make a point or I realize a character needs more, I don't know, existence I guess.

In any case, I think so far this crazy blog idea is working. I can feel my writing gears kicking in. I'll post again after I write for a bit. We'll see how long.

I got on a nice roll. I managed to write another couple of pages. If I can keep up this pace, I'll finish before I'm thirty ;). I suppose people might want to know what I'm writing about. I suppose it wouldn't hurt to say a little about the story, and perhaps someday down the line maybe I'll post bits of it.

The novel itself is both an exploration of the human condition and a study of the world the human mind builds. I'm trying to write a story with meaning. Don't get me wrong, I love to read a good adventure book as much as the next person, and perhaps my first attempt at poignancy will seem heavy handed and amateurish, but I'm still giving it a shot. The books I like to read best are ones that challenge me to, if not alter, at least examine the way I view the world.

So there you have it. I managed to write a brief description and yet not really tell you anything. Maybe I'll go into more details later.

It is a lot harder to write a novel than a short story. At least for me. I have completed dozens (and have nothing to show for them) of short stories. It isn't quite that I get bored while writing the novel, but it is more daunting, and also, the payoff doesn't arrive as quickly.

I'm pretty much to the point now where I'm getting into the meat of the story. All but one or two of the important characters have been introduced. I have always been an edit as I go kind of writer, even in school, so I'm actually trying to force myself to just write more. I think editing as I go is more detrimental in this case. I need to understand it won't be perfect the first time through.

I didn't get anything written today. I'd like to write at least a little bit every day from now on.

So far I am 21 pages of double spaced type into the book. From my understanding, that is about 42 pages in a book. I hate to say I'm trying to hit a certain page number, but I'd really like to hit 100 typed pages.

I hope to accomplish a few things.

This blog is not only a chance for me to record the process of writing my first novel, but will hopefully also provide me with the motivation to keep writing it if I don't feel like it. After all, if I don't write the book, there won't be much use for this blog.

This might also show me patterns in the way I work that maybe otherwise I wouldn't have noticed. These could be both positive or negative.

Finally, if anyone ever decides to read this, not only could it be a chance for people to offer advice, but maybe it could offer some inspiration for anyone that has ever wanted to try writing.