500 Words- Day 14 (What I'm up to)

As part of my participation in My 500 words, I am posting what I write each day.

     This is day 14 of the writing challenge I’ve chosen to undertake. I’ve been getting up around 6 and writing at least 500 words each morning, then checking in to say I’ve completed the day’s goal. Over the past few weeks, I’ve made a few new friends online who wonder who I am and what I’m up to. I thought I’d take today to explain a bit.

     I’ve been creating stories for as long as I can remember. I made up worlds with toy cars as a little kid and feel asleep telling myself stories about those worlds. Years later, I tried my hand at writing some of those stories. Though my later teen years I kept writing. I had a few science fiction stories and a lot of self-indulgent poetry.

     Being married with a family didn’t stop me from writing, but I didn’t really get a passion until my life took a dark turn with tragic loss, personal demons and struggles for redemption. Those themes tend to prevail in my writing now.

     I’ve written first drafts for three novels and one novella. I cannot shake the desire to write a memoir, but it grounds out each time I try to get into it. Something somewhere is not ready yet. Instead I’ve been focusing on the novel that I wrote a first draft of last November. This story, a space-western has the potential to go somewhere. I’ve written two drafts and edited a printed hardcopy. My next step is to write a complete new draft from the edited version, creating more of a fourth draft.

     Before I begin the next draft of Sidewinder, there are a few things I want to do. One is to write every day this month, at least 500 words. I’ve taken the opportunity to tell the backstories of some of Sidewinder’s characters. I also have a huge project coming up, something I look forward to all year.

November is National Novel Writing Month. It’s time for me to start preparing for that. I have a story in mind with a complex setting and a few characters. I have a theme in mind that I want the story to prove. Now it’s just the work of figuring out how the stories plot and conflict will do that.

I will use this venue, 500 words to do some of my preparation. I can write backstory to set the scene and create character biographies. Developed characters are a nonnegotiable for me. Even my science fiction stories are character-driven.

I won’t actually start the story until November 1^st. The first day of NaNoWriMo is always a thrill, like runners starting out from the gate. I have a clear beginning in mind and know what I’ll be writing for the first few days. After that, I’m not sure. I hope I can do some serious outlining over the next few weeks. My outlines won’t go here. I tend to handwrite my first outlines, besides, there will be spoilers.

I will, however, tell a little more about this year’s novel, perhaps tomorrow. Thanks everyone who have supported my check-ins on Lift.

To the regular readers of my Roadwalker Blog, I can’t say that ship has sailed, but it certainly ran aground months ago. I need to be here for now, thanks for understanding.