Writing is going well. The princess and her maid not only have clothes, but they have found a village and made a bargain with its elders: in exchange for getting rid of the drakon that is starving them out, the townspeople will give Wren a special sword in their keeping. I just left the girls getting a little sage advice from a wise old man before they set off for the drakon’s lair.
I’m looking forward to the drakon, which will by my own special sort of dragon. At least I hope it will be special. I don’t know much about it yet, although I’m starting to get some ideas. I’ve decided to call them “drakons” because I like the word “drake” as slang for a dragon, only I’ve been reminded that a drake is just a male duck. I was thinking that it’s awfully early in my story for an encounter with something dragon-like, but then I decided, why the heck not? The point of this story, which I need to remember, is to cram in all the adventure I can manage. So far I’ve only had a few people washed ashore and a princess in disguise, so I need to get things moving!
Once again, I am grateful for the fact that I find the daily word goal of 1667 easy to manage. I can write for hours on end, but coming up with characters and situations takes some time, and I can’t always rush creativity. Having 20 or more hours between writing sessions gives my brain time to come up with new ideas. Last year, I missed a lot of days writing during NaNoWriMo and had to do marathon sessions to catch up. I found out that the little idea that bubbles up when I start writing can turn into something much more interesting if I can let it cook overnight than if I have to write another 2000 words about it right now.
The best news is that I am still having fun, although I think I need to add something unexpected in the coming drakon scene. I haven’t laughed out loud while writing for at least a week. My sister is putting together some cards for me with ideas of things to include in my book that I hope will both challenge me and help to shake things up. Meanwhile, I’ll have to dream up challenges of my own. Unless anyone out there has a suggestion?
Jails are always good for a plot twist, too. And maybe rats.
I keep trying to figure out how to stick them in jail. It was one of my options on the last list I made. I’ve also been thinking about enslavement, kidnapping (although I’m going to save that one), and robbery. I’m trying to stay away from heavy magic, leaving it to the faeries and drakons for now, but I may have to go there in the end. We’ll see. I did add a reference to aliens (beings from the stars) today in response to a challenge from my sister, so I’m trying to mix it up.