NaNoWriMo 2023

Daily Note

Every day, a photograph, a poem. And in November: writing a novel…

My November writing — a poem a day plus writing 1667 words every day for NaNoWriMo [National Novel Writing Month–for more information see my post: I Write] has been successful. It’s magical to allow your words to flow without an inner editor stopping every few seconds to correct a comma or debate a word with your self. Just write the story. Get it out the imagination.

In November of each year, that’s what I do. The goal is a story with all its flaws and errors simply flowing out of the imagination: a new world no one has ever seen, characters with struggles and a quest, a setting that changes with the moods, a story no one has heard or told before, and all in fifty thousand words in thirty days.

And I have finished today: 50,000 words done! A Winner of NaNoWriMo 2023! Hooray. The story is almost finished– the portal will soon be closed and Walter and Sandra… will they be saved?

An Excerpt

The Argument

“You found what?”

Olivia heard her Uncle Grant bellow through her slightly opened door. She turned to listen.

Oberon, her father, said something, but it was not legible.

“How long have you kept this from me? And you, Gretchen, what have you got to do with this?”

Olivia could hear Gretchen, though she was speaking calmly and quietly. She was in “Listen” mode for Olivia. “This place was built by my family when the community was founded.”

Grant responded, “Well, by the looks of your dress, not black, not grey, as the Booth colors are, but purple…”

“It’s lavender,” Gretchen interrupted. Olivia could tell she was attempting to goad Grant subtly to fit her plan.

“You’re going against the Booth House now?” Grant demanded.

“Our family invited your family into the community; I think we’re allowed to reflect on our own past,” Gretchen stated, slowly, calmly.

“Hmmph.” Grant growled. “And you are allowing this, Oberon?”

Oberon coughed. “Let’s go into the office to discuss this. You’re waking the other families.”

Olivia heard her father’s cane on the floor and could tell that his steps once again were hesitant, influenced by Grant’s power over him.

“Drat. Getting Uncle Grant to the lantern sculpture will be more difficult than we thought,” Olivia considered.

A yellow light flashed along her window as branches banged against the outside walls. Olivia frowned, “That storm is getting worse again.”

She scooped up the side of her satchel and gave the bag a few shakes to situate every thing into place. She was about to roll up her map when she noticed that the white light that had shone so well earlier was now fading. The spot on the bluff by the river with the knotted pattern dimmed, but the white path to the lantern sculpture remained bright.

She placed her wristlet over the map again, and pressed its lantern charm, repeating the spirit charm for truth,

“Listen to the moon stream, child.
Listen well and long.
Watch the flowing force of life
Spin it’s story song.”

The path remained lit, the bluff briefly shone, then dimmed.

“We must get Uncle Grant to the lantern sculpture,” she thought. “That’s what this must mean.”

As she thought this, the map repeated the lighting of the path to the sculpture and the flash and dimming of the bluff. Olivia nodded her head, and thought, “I only hope this isn’t too late to help Walter and Sandra.”

Sheri Edwards
So Say We: A Novel of Other Worlds

This is my thirteenth successful year of NaNoWriMo, and this year and the last three are a continuation of the same novel — rough, really rough draft though, since the inner editor for each was silenced in order to get the storyline written. My “winner” page at NaNoWriMo:

And so I decided that screenshot will be for my poem today.

Poetry

StoryTeller

Each year
for thirteen years
in November,
worlds I’ve created—
inner editor silenced—
words flowing, balanced
in characters on a quest,
fairies and dragons
in the woods and meadows,
where shadows and evil
stalk and obstruct,
until finally the light
of heroes together
overcome and build
a better world
in fifty thousand words.

Sheri Edwards
11.25.23 329.365.23
Poetry/Photography/NaNoWriMo

#clmooc #smallpoems #poetry23 #NaNoWriMo #NaNoWriMo23