// goals for 2006.write

o I love to write. I’m not horribly great at it—it is quite easy to tell that I’m made for research writing and not engaging, entertaining fiction. But everything I’ve ever heard and read about writing says that practice is the main issue at hand. So despite what I believe is an inherent inability to ever become a fiction writer, my desire to actually be published one day has inspired me to make a short story goal.

o For every three months of the year, then, I will produce a short story (not necessarily every three months, just four stories a year, finished more or less as the inspiration comes to me). As for length, I’m thinking 20,000 words should be about right for a short story. For NaNoWriMo last year I ended up with 21,000 words for one month, with about two-and-a-half weeks of hardcore writing and one-and-a-half of next-to-nothing. It also seems sufficient space to develop a decent short story, though I know I will have no problem going back and buffing it up with detail.

o So, by December 31, 2006, I will have written four short stories, each 20,000 words in length. Hopefully, then, one of my goals for next year can then be to get one of them published in some kind of digest.

04.06.06
Update: Four thousand seven words so far. Better, but not much.

04.05.06
Words: 881 A semi-productive night tossed this chunk into my another one of my stories. It's another relatively easy fluff piece, this more of a current relationship situation bit--useless relationship, eventual cheating, fun for all. It's going to be horribly boring, but it's the only bit I can write at the moment.

04.03.06
Words: 731 This was written during break time at work--actually an impressive word count considering the scant amount of free time I had for the task. It's merely another section of the easiest bit I can write at the moment--the story following a Brian-type post breaking-up with a me-type (or, if I wanted to be blunt, the story of Brian mere months from now); in other words, catharsis.

04.02.06
Update: I've officially cheated on this goal in light of my incredibly horrible showing (and possible impossible-nature of the goal itself). In the ninety-two days that have elapsed this year, I have written a pathetic 2,395 words. Last year, during NaNoWriMo, I had written 20,000 words in just twenty days. Granted, I was unemployed at the time and not trying to accomplish a couple years' worth of other goals, but still.
Anyway, I've slightly eased the requirement from 20,000 words every three months to 20,000 words every four. Hopefully the extra month for this session (and the much more manageable 600 words-a-day compared to the thousands I was looking at having to close in March) will spur me into gear. By next session, then, I will have primer sections for a collection of stories (I have multiple ideas running around in here, and I can't focus on any one entirely) and hopefully it will lead to a much easier second session when I will be into the groove.
In other words, despite my better judgment, I'm not giving up yet!

03.26.06
Words: 261 I popped out a small starter chunk of a story based on Maximo Park's Apply Some Pressure in the Hillsboro Subway on a Sunday morning before heading back to Chicago. I really had to just get away from Brian before having to spend four hours in a car with him, so I took the walk downtown (heh, downtown Hillsboro... hah) and sat with a cookie and drink for half an hour. I got this far in before a soccer team of screaming children came in for lunch and I couldn't stand it anymore.

03.26.06
Words: 408 This was written during an immensely informative meeting at work. I just couldn't concentrate and I figured I'd rather look like I was busy taking notes than busy sleeping, and it really came down to the two. It's another starter story, pulled from an idea I had about writing a story for every song on Maximo Park's A Certain Trigger. I started with the first track, Signal and Sign, for this, but I'm not entirely sure where I'm going with it or if the song will be recognizeable as a source when I'm finished.
We'll see, I guess. If I ever touch it again, that is.

02.21.06
Words: 544 Added more to the daydream. I'm totally using this one to get me away from problems with B.

02.20.06
Words: 556 I started this story today, based around a daydream/fantasy about one of the guys at work. It's entirely fictional, centered on the idea that I could create an entire other me that would step up and start a thing with this guy. Right now, it's purely escapism authoring on my part.

02.16.06
Words: 622 Over the last couple days I've been toying with this idea, but I'm pretty sure nothing is going to come of it. It's rather William Gibson-esque, following an assassin character. I really have no clue where to go beyond a couple quick plot points, and as yet, I'm not even sure how to get to those points. All in all, not a promising start, especially considering how late it is.

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	o	I love to write. I’m not horribly great at it—it is quite easy to tell that I’m made for research writing and not engaging, entertaining fiction. But everything I’ve ever heard and read about writing says that practice is the main issue at hand. So despite what I believe is an inherent inability to ever become a fiction writer, my desire to actually be published one day has inspired me to make a short story goal.
	o	For every three months of the year, then, I will produce a short story (not necessarily every three months, just four stories a year, finished more or less as the inspiration comes to me). As for length, I’m thinking 20,000 words should be about right for a short story. For NaNoWriMo last year I ended up with 21,000 words for one month, with about two-and-a-half weeks of hardcore writing and one-and-a-half of next-to-nothing. It also seems sufficient space to develop a decent short story, though I know I will have no problem going back and buffing it up with detail.
	o	So, by December 31, 2006, I will have written four short stories, each 20,000 words in length. Hopefully, then, one of my goals for next year can then be to get one of them published in some kind of digest.