Election day is on Tuesday, November 8th. Don’t forget to vote! I voted early last week.
Last month, I set a 24k-word goal for A BOY FROM NORRU. In order to meet this goal, I needed to write an average of 6k words a week. All was going well; I was on track to hit this benchmark. I’d written 19.5k words in three weeks–over a thousand more than I needed. And then, something happened that prevented me from writing the 4.5k words remaining.
I… finished the first draft of the manuscript! Which rules, especially since I previously set the end of November as my target date for the first draft.
The first draft of A BOY FROM NORRU clocks in at 49,500 words. Middle grade novels fall within 20k to 50k words, so I’ve landed right in the upper range of this. However, exceptions are granted to science fiction/fantasy novels which require worldbuilding, so I’m not worried about exceeding the upper limit by a few thousand words in future drafts.
I’m quite satisfied with the story. It’s fun; it’s punchy; it’s lean; it’s action-packed. And I think it has a pretty good twist. When I set out to write this story, these were my top priorities, as they’ve proven some weak points of mine in the past. Specifically, I’ve struggled with tension and pacing. Not so here.
Obviously, the story still needs a lot of work. In the next month, I will clean it up and reconcile plot holes. Then, I plan on giving out some copies to a small group of friends and family for beta reads. I’ll be taking space from the manuscript in the meantime.
In the week and a half since I finished the first draft, I’ve been focusing on reading. I finished A Clash of Kings and continued to tear through some middle grade novels. I have several more middle grade novels in the queue that I’ll read while I revise.
Wrapping Up
Revising and reading! That’s what the next month entails.
I’ve finally settled into work and living in Austin. Things feel comfortable, and I have a nice routine. Out of the nine weekends I’ve been here, friends have stayed with me eight. I’m not complaining; it’s been awesome. But there’ve also been many late nights on weekends, which wears on the body. But the visits are starting to slow, so I’ll have more time to decompress and take care of myself soon.
Have a wonderful Thanksgiving! Wishing love, health, and happiness to everyone out there.
– AJG
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