Day 9: Slow Down

Decelerate
by Laurie Kolp

Her race car mind
speeds from one thought to another
‘round and ‘round the track it goes
imagining serendipitous what-ifs
dreading delusional catastrophes
spinning wheels of imagination
a racing conundrum
only to slow down
mile by mile
when her mind
settles;
peace
waves through
her mind
at the beach.

Cheers with Pearl

Now that I am a week into the whole NaNoWriMo thing, I have to admit it's not as easy as I thought it would be. I mean, to tackle a 50,000 word novel in less than a month is HUGE.  It requires dedication and determination, with no room for deviation; and now that the first weekend has come and gone, I know this is going to be harder than I first thought. Saturday and Sunday I found myself less inclined to sit and write for long periods of time like I do during the week.  The interruptions were many and my concentration quickly diminished.  I started to think of this challenge as a nuisance.  In fact, I even began doubting my story line.  I grew envious of writers who take retreats or sabbaticals to write free of distraction.  How would I accomplish this insurmountable feat?

Well...

Again, God has sent someone special into my life to help me through.  Pearl is a friend from Poetic Asides (The Street) who is also participating in NaNoWriMo.  She sent me a cheer the other day, then I reciprocated, and now we are helping each other stay motivated.  Here are some of the encouraging words (cheers) between us...

Pearl:  Go Laurie, Siss Boom Bah, Who do I recognize on The Street from afar!!! Go LAURIE!!!

Laurie:  Give me a P, give me an E, give me an A, give me an R, give me an L... what does that spell?  PEARL, PEARL, G-o-ah, Pearl!  You're on!

Pearl:  Rah Rah Siss Boom Bah
50,000 not for Laurie fah.... I mean far ...lol..< 3
Keep planting a sapling with about 1800 leaves a day and together we'll have our forest before the turkey 's on the table ♥

Laurie:  Go Pearl, go Pearl/ write those words, bird by bird/ Go Pearl, go Pearl / don't give up, fill that cup! Yeah, Pearl! Corny, I know, but my brain is fuzz right now. ; )

Pearl:  Laurie.. you are a sweetie...my brain was fried earlier .. so we were fuzz and fried... Mhmm Fuznfride sounds like a lovely town in Switzerland.. perhaps outside Zurich. Sweet dreams. Enjoy tomorrow and keep attaching those leaves to the trees ♥

Laurie:  Sounds like a fantastic setting! Night, night Fried. Hope you wake up nice and fresh for a day of writing.

Pearl:  Laurie Laurie you're my pal
Told me your numbers and got me to match the tal
YAY TEAM! (as a team we're almost done!)..
GET THAT TURKEY READY WE'RE COMING ♥

Laurie:  We're so great, we're so fine
We'll make it to that final line!
GO Write! Don't fight!
Word by word
We'll see the light!

Pearl:  YAY YAY LHK ♥
WE WILL GO ALL THE WAY ♥
WRITE THROUGH
YOU - YOU - YOU
L - H - K ♥

Laurie:  Go, team (NaNoWriMo)! Go, team! Who do I mean? I'll say it loud, because I'm proud! P-E-A-R-L! L-A-U-R-I-E! ; )

Pearl:  Got two sessions of writing yesterday.... Frankly wasn't at all comfortable with here I was pushing story in second session....this morning wrote some more.... So I'm okay for family football game this afternoon. Now back for a snooze....happy writing..., partner... ♥

Laurie:  Yeah, today will be a little harder for me, but I got up to 15,139 yesterday. Have a great day, too!

Thank you Pearl, for adding some cheer in my doubtful head...and thank you GOD, for sending Pearl my way.

Day 8: Agreement poem

Getting Along With A Spouse
by Laurie Kolp

On topics like
the birds and the bees
or the cycle of life
we invariably agree,
and quite often
support for free.

But when pulled into
an ugly quagmire
or grisly dispute
our views backfire,
and of dreams apart
we often aspire.

* Purely fictional

Day 7: Pro_____

PROFESS
by Laurie Kolp

Pure love
Riddled doubt
Obsession procures
Future drought
Essential denial
Solicitous shout
Saddened heart

Words of Caution

When faced with the monstrous task of writing 50,000 words in 24 days (yes, I'd like to finish by Thanksgiving), I can feel overwhelmed at times.  But if I try not to think about the big picture and simply focus on what I am doing today, then it doesn't seem so... huge.  I mean, as I write this post at 8:00 on a Saturday morning, I have reached 12,702 words (and I haven't written anything yet today). 

I am learning many valuable lessons from this whole novel writing challenge. Don't get me wrong, I am still loving it. In fact I can't wait to see what happens next. But there are a few tricks I have learned that I want to share with you.

1. Don't Do not use contractions.  They only count as one word.  I must admit I do have to use some contractions in the dialogue or it would sound too formal and boring, but I try to use them sparingly.

2. Do not use hyphenated words either.  They, too, count as one word.  Ditch the hyphen, or use something else; you can fine-tune next month.

3. Write compound sentences because when you join them with a comma and the word "and" or "because," or "or" then you have added a word, and remember every word counts.

4. Try to write at a quiet time of the day when you have very few distractions.  What?  Sorry, I have to go...

*These suggestions are intended for fun only and in no way reflect a devil-may-care attitude by the author, nor do they aim to poke fun of anyone.  In a nutshell: please don't take this seriously.

Day 6: Looking for ______

Looking For Color
by Laurie Kolp

Looking for color in a world of black and white
images floating in a never ending sea
swarming with sharks and man-of-war
that will bite you in the ass
pull you down,
down,
down
until you see the light;
depression drowns.

Day 5: Transformation poem

One Kiss
by Laurie Kolp

With just one Kiss
she became a rose
red as the cardinal
singing good morning
to one and all,
no longer a weed
out of control,
pestilent;
her life
forever changed
with just one Kiss.

I think I can, I think I can...

Well, I'm doing it- I'm writing my novel.  And guess what?  It's been great so far... I love it!  I love the deadlines, the goals, and I especially love my plot and characters (thank you, God).  I've always worked better under pressure, which is why I keep praying for an agent to come knocking on my door. 

The goal is to write 8,335 words by Friday night, before you go to bed.  So far (at 11:00 AM, Nov, 4) I've written 8, 497 words, which means I am ahead of the goal (yahoo).  I am going to try to stay that way because the kids have the entire Thanksgiving week off from school.  I know this sounds crazy, but I would like to have the novel completed by then (rough draft, of course). 

Right now, I'm like The Little Engine That Could, climbing the steep mountain and chanting "I think I can, I think I can."  Hopefully I will get to the top and scream, "I can, I can... I DID!" 

If you want to check my progress, I have attached a baby blue badge at the top right-hand corned of this blog that records the number of words I've written (which I update daily).

Are you participating in NaNoWriMo?  If so, please feel free to share in the comments!

Day 4: Containment Poem

Freedom
by Laurie Kolp

A smile spreads across his face
lies the truth cannot erase

secure, buried deep within
a vast sea of burning sin

perfect, really, for his plan
a label coveted- free man.

Day 3: Location poem

The Castle
by Laurie Kolp

abandoned
sinister
tenebrous
the castle sits atop
rocky
dangerous
precipitous
mountains reaching
billowy
stormy
menacing
clouds enveloping
musty
dusty
spooky
room where a child
scared
alone
disillusioned
spins like a top
dizzy
turning
falling
on the hardwood floor
nightmares
wake
you
up

Ready, set, go!

I am so amazed at how my fingers always seem to have it more together than I do.  I mean, yesterday was the first day of November, and I knew that I had to get busy writing a novel for NaNoWriMo, BUT I HAD NO IDEA WHAT I WAS GOING TO WRITE ABOUT. 

I had been praying to God for several days to inspire me with a plot for this new novel or even just a few words to get started, and still no lightbulb had gone off (no dumb blonde jokes, okay?).  I woke up bright and early, wasted time on Facebook, checked email and sent the kids off to school; then I had to go to the dentist.  I bemoaned myself Sunday night for making an appointment to get my teeth cleaned on the day after Halloween, but since it was the first day of NaNoWriMo I decided to go.  I told the dentist and hygenist what I would be doing this month and when they asked me what I was writing about, I really had no clue yet.

"We'll see," I said. "I'm not really sure yet."

They both looked at me perplexed.  I was even beginning to doubt my own capabilities.  I usually had something in mind, at least when I have written books before, which I have.  The first one is based on my life written in third person so that nobody will know it's about me (in case the kids should read it).  That was my very first book, written after confiding in a friend about my crazy, demented past.

"Wow! You should write a book," she had said when I was done talking.  I mean how many people can have all that happen to them before they turn thirty? 

And so the seed was planted.  I wrote and wrote, relived the past, poured hours over this project and finished it; but I was too shy to share it with anyone.  Until Mary, that is.  She read the whole book word for word, and we sat in amazement as we compared how similar our pasts had been.  And then she died, and my book has been sitting in a drawer for nearly three years.

The other book I've written (but not completed) began when I was taking a class from Lamar's Continuing-Ed department.  We were given a prompt and I took off on that one, baby.  That's when I knew my fingers were messengers of God.  I mean, where did this stuff come from?  Part of the reason I've sat on it for so long is that I am in FEAR.  The topic has become so complex and unbelievable that thoughts of the children reading it are too much to bear.  What will they think of their sweet old mommy?  I guess I'll have to use a pen name or something.  I know how I want it to end, but am not sure when I want to end.  This story will remain shelved for a bit longer.

So now I am embarking on this third book.  Thankfully, a thought inspired me sometime after lunch yesterday and I went to bed having written 1,697 words AND a poem for the Poem-A-Day Challenge (see my other blog, Conversation With Laurie).  I spent a great amount of time this morning working on it, took a break for lunch and chores, and am now procrastinating again.  At least I'll know when my fingers are ready to begin again.

The PAD Challenge has begun

The poems I post in November are inspired from Robert Lee Brewer's November Poem-A-Day Challenge on Poetic Asides.  I will post as often as I can, but am also participating in National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) so I might have to catch up from time to time and post several days together, which I've done today.  I will also journal on my NaNoWriMo experience periodically on my other blog, Conversations With A Cardinal.

Day Two:

Michaelmas Daisy
by Laurie Kolp

A time when many shrivel up and die,
drooping eyes pop open
splaying shades of purple, white, pink,
and hues of blue
amid blankets of orange, yellow, red

autumn colors spreading fast
as falling leaves touch the earth,
while new flowers reach for the sky
nourishing God’s creatures
with pollen enough for the winter,

until their life is through.
Nature’s colorful vista
not even Claude Monet can recapture,
symbolic of life’s cycle-
out with the old, in with the new.
_______________________________________________________
Day One:

Frog Prince
by Laurie Kolp

Goosebumps on warm skin
Ignited passion tingling
Desirous love
A kiss from you transforms me
I am no longer a frog