Friday, May 7, 2010

NaPiBoWriWee Done

I did it! Hard to believe I actually pulled off the seven drafts in seven days before the deadline: http://paulayoo.com/content/natl-picture-book-writing-week-napibowriwee-2010-may-1-7-2010 Am I ever glad I participated in this event.

The push of the challenge format really helped me. I started off a bit behind. Saturday, the first day of the challenge, we took the kids fishing. Hey, it was the Orillia Perch Festival. But that afternoon and evening I curled up with my notebook and got the first one done. Day two and I did...nothing writing related. So it was one on Monday and two on Tuesday. Wednesday was a bit trickier because that idea kept wanting to rhyme. Some of my prose rhymes too much...or my rhyme has too much prose in it. So it's finished but it stinks, basically. There's something there I'd still like to work on, though.

Thursday was ouch. It was an idea I had thought of every so often for a lot of years. I did hammer out a draft but it's the one I like the least. Rats! Friday, today, was a bit of a surprise. I was going to do another idea I'd been thinking of for quite awhile but as I was going through the random slips and ripped bits of paper that pass for my idea file I pulled up a note, a single sentence really, and ran with that. Now that one I can't wait to get back to working on.

As a result of this challenge week I have some new piles of stories to shape. I'm completely happy with that.

Thank you Paula Yoo for all your work organizing this event, blogging about it, encouraging all the participants. You rock!! (and I wrote that like I mean it! :>)

6 comments:

TerryLynnJohnson said...

whoa! I haven't heard about this! THanks. and congrats on finishing! I've just finished a rewrite in 6 days - some kind of record I think! A little push of a deadline is a great thing.

Rebecca Gomez said...

Yay! Something to work on (or several somethings) is always a good thing.

Unknown said...

Wow, I'll say that rewrite's in record contention, TerryLynn. Good for you!

I love having writing to work on, Rebecca. For me first drafts are the hugest hurdle!

Ishta Mercurio said...

Oh, man - I missed this! My front yard has consumed my life for the past couple of weeks. But thanks for posting about it - maybe I can do my own private challenge next week. And congratulations on finishing it!

Caz Williams said...

Hi! Just popping over from Paula's blogger list. I was so excited to participate and am now quite sad that it's over. It was such a blast, wasn't it?
Good luck with the post PiBo period! I hope those drafts serve you well :)

Unknown said...

Next year, Ishta! Hope your front yard is now in ship shape.

It definitely was a blast. Good luck to you too, Free Range Citizen. Here's to both of us honing some strong stories! Thanks for stopping in.