to 52,350 and beyond

according to literary legend, mary shelley wrote frankenstein in a feverish haste over the course of some ridiculously short period of time - like three days - all by hand, of course.

maybe this is a monster in its own way.

yesterday evening, after i printed out the days work, i mapped out the final chapters. it appears there's somewhere between 11 and 13 of them. at an average length of 3,000 words a chapter, i can tell from here the story will come in somewhere around 80-85,000 words. longer than i expected, and still a first draft... it's possible the book - if it's ever published - will end up in the neighborhood of 90 to 100,000.

this book, believe it or not, has hit a few shoals here and there along the way... the next few chapters are probably going to be rough - my last few certainly have been (many many thanks to my Faithful Reader for her immediate and constructive feedback both about what's working and what has not). the middle for me is the worst part of the book - that shadowy underground where anything can happen and probably should. as my dear friend rose noted in her comment a few days ago and on her own blog, delving into the dark is a critical part of the creative process. you HAVE to go to the place where You Don't Know What Will Happen Next... because if you don't... at least... if *I* don't... then neither do the characters... and what's the fun of that?

so here is what i have learned to do when i (or the story) seem to be stuck on the edge of an abyss and have no idea what should happen next. i ask myself... (and the characters) what's the last thing i'd want to happen right now? who is the last person i'd want to talk to? and... where's the last place i'd want to be?

once i can answer those questions... that's exactly what happens next.

and furthermore, the war must end. blessed be.