This is a week of turkey and football, complicated histories and NaNo.
In my case, it is also a week of car trouble, account lockouts, and absolutely amazing strawberry jam. So, deep apologies for not getting this prepared and scheduled earlier, but I plan on being here tonight, as the holiday means I don’t have to work tomorrow!
So, this week makes me think about history. Thanksgiving is a lot more complicated when you know more of our history, and in my case, my husband’s family has members who survived the Trail of Tears — and others who didn’t. It’s a time that we try to remember as well as spend time with family and friends, and as my children get older, they start to learn that things aren’t as simple as they seem. In fact, this was the week we explained Israel/Palestine to them and the horrific attack by Hamas — as well as the sixty years of complicated history, following centuries of complicated history, and that there’s almost never one side.
The same should be true in our writing. When we discuss historical events, however, it’s easier to build a single accurate account that everyone knows. It’s easier to have the Thanksgiving pageant, the Thanksgiving myth. But people never remember the same event the same way. That’s even more true if it’s decades since the event occurred, or may have occurred, or didn’t at all but someone wanted to believe occurred. Whether we write historical or contemporary, speculative or nonfiction, the past is never so fixed as it can become on page.
Today, on a day of thanks and a day of remembrance, let’s play with that!
Tonight’s Challenge: Write a fact that isn’t, a memory that’s not as clear-cut as someone wants to believe.
Beyond that, we’re almost done with NaNoWriMo — and for those on the site, especially who participate in their local communities, you know how complicated that has gotten as well, as the Board tries to grapple with possible federal crimes committed — and hidden — for years.
NaNoWriMo Goals & Progresses! :)
Aashirs nani -- get this novel together. Nov 16: People, but not events, are in place for the concluding chapters.
bonetti -- 50,000 words, hopefully completing a story and associated world-building Nov. 17 91,119 words
dconrad -- 50,000 words, & work on some trunk novels. 16 Nov: 35,799 words.
elenacarlena -- write every day.
Evail -- write two books 2 Nov: 10k words.
mettle fatigue -- just write some stuff fiction. Nov 16. ...still not yet… :(
mockingbird1971 -- finish what I've started.
NoBlinkers -- hit daily par, finish romantasy, get farther on epic fantasy. 23 Nov: 36k, daily par lost.
Reppa -- 10-15,000 words, plus spending some extra time planning/prepping for January 2 Nov: 2k words.
sagesource- insert & proofread classical Chinese original text for translating the Daodejing (aka Tao-te ching) ... I’ve been picking away at that book for thirty years: Nov 17: Text supplied up to Verse 12. Slowed considerably by my own inconsistency; the first few textual notes were not written in quite the same style as later ones. Probably still on track for producing a finished draft by the end of the month.
Sonnet- making a major subplot from one novel into another all on its own. Nov 17: Still writing!!!!
strawbale - 250 words a day, no matter how good or bad. Nov 16: goal met every day so far.
ThurzdaysChild - Goal: 5 writing self-appointments during November, one to 4 hours each; continue editing/revising the current WIP ('memoir'). Nov 9: 5 hours.
Write On! will be a regular Thursday night diary (5pm leftkost, 8 pm Eastern) until it isn’t.
Before signing a contract with any agent or publisher, please be sure to check them out on Preditors and Editors (&/or critters.org/c/pubtips.ht), Absolute Write, and/or Writer Beware.