Another Six Months Gone

I'm still a little jittery as I type this. My breakfast of Ramen noodles washed down with two liters of Mountain Dew has probably just cost me another six months out of my seventies, but it did result in a pretty good night of writing. I wrote 1048 prior to midnight and proceeded to write another 1454 after midnight. Since I have a PhD in throwing out a random numbers, I'll say about 35% was recycled material from the old chapter three.

I had hoped to keep the second draft of part one to three chapters totaling about 15,000 words, but with the project being serialized, it seems to present itself a little better as four chapters. This is because it is best if a chapter ends with a climax to a situation or a small cliffhanger of sorts, so I felt compelled to break up chapter 3 into two smaller chapters. I am also going to go over my word limit, but not enough to be of a concern, maybe 17 or 18 thousand words. It is the first part of the series after all and some things need explanation that won't be needed later.

I guess my readjusted goals are to finish chapter four tomorrow. Do a quick edit of the four chapters on Saturday, maybe on into Sunday and then ship it off to Cullen. I guess I'll get to see what he'll let me get away with in a couple weeks. Literally, I will be able to physically see him, so he can rap me on the noggin for the stupid parts.

What do I mean by that?

Kim has offered to buy me a plane ticket to Albany for my birthday. (Despite my requests for no presents.) The timing was a little too good to pass up seeing as I will be at a down point in my writing, and an upswing in my job hunting efforts. It'll be good to head onto SUNY's campus for an afternoon to hit up some of my old teacher's for recommendations in person. (Actually, I'll email them in advance, but whatever, I'll still visit. Gotta do the whole pollyticking and kiss ass thingy.)

Of course, more importantly, I'll get the opportunity to visit all my friends in Albany that I've missed. I know, from time to time, I get cheesy and talk about how wonderful my friends are and how I wouldn't be where I am without them. And I don't mean just my friends in Albany. I mean all of them, and my family too.

Cheesy or not, it's true. All the way on the other side of the country, they've been the driving force I've needed to keep myself going during this project. They've been so supportive, not doing my best and not managing to accomplish as much as I have, would not have been a failure to just myself. I would have failed all of them as well.

Sadly, I bring myself to tears when I write about such things. Not as bad as when I wrote that letter to Vicki and her husband about what a terrible friend I am and then attached it to their wedding gift. I think I was at my worst for that one. I actually had to stop and finish a few hours later. I'm such a softy when it comes to my friends.

It's embarrassing...