writing can be like a dripping tap... |
I really shouldn't have said I'm going to do chapter two this week, as the inevitable other problems and demands disrupted my days- not helped by over-sleeping.
Plus I had to write a 250 word story for Wednesday night's annual Manuscript of the Year competition at the writers' club (yesterday, 4th). Plus I was one of the two readers for the event.
I've had months to write it, but nothing I considered developed. Then Tuesday night reading a post on Facebook, I had one of those lightning moments of inspiration for this year's theme, 'slippery when wet'.
So Wednesday lunchtime I settled down and began to write. The words just poured out without thinking about it. I stopped at 400 plus words.
Of course it was much too long, so I started editing. I reduced the start, cut the middle and still had 342 words.
More cutting and changing left me with 262, so a bit more jiggling and I finally lost those 12 extra words.
I knew I'd lost too much of the story, and it was only humorous at the end, but it was an entry, and every entry helps make the competition.
My character, Valerie, finally decides to leave her demanding but dense partner Derek (apologies to any Derek's out there). He really should have got that tree in the front garden sorted out when she originally asked earlier in the year- one of his many faults. But of course, he hadn't and along comes autumn, lots of fallen leaves and rain.
I think you can guess what happens...
The club chairman said she thought Valerie had been out with a broom earlier piling up the leaves. :D
I really must give Valerie a new future somewhere now I know her- she deserves it.
Ten years ago managing to write a 1,000 word story was tough; but over the years the length of my stories rose naturally: 1200, 1600, 2,000.
Now I'm writing longer stories it's harder to write short ones!
image courtesy of Mister GC.& www.freedigitalphotos.net