A new blog

I've decided to start this blog in an attempt to support my writing. I have a nasty habit of starting a novel and never getting past halfway or if I do finish it, I don't bother to edit it, instead I move on to another project. The consequence of this is that I have a lot of files called book1, book2 etc. but nothing that is worth anything. So my plan, and promise to myself, is to write, edit and submit a book within 1 year from now. Today's date is 28th September 2009. So by 27th September 2010, I hope to have sent off letters to agents seeking representation.

Now that may not seem like I trying to do much, but I think this is a good timescale. I think that just getting a book written and into a state where it is ready for publication is going to take most of the year, if not all of the year. By putting this blog out, I hope to force myself to keep up with the writing and not to wimp out for any reason.

I will be doing NaNoWriMo this year, which will hopefully help rather than hinder the process. I intend to use the time between now and the 1st November to plan the book - I already have an idea - and to create an outline that I will use in November to create the first draft. I've already completed NaNoWriMo several times, so I know I can do it.

Of course after that comes the hard part. Re-writing and editing that first draft, something I have never managed to do before.

This blog is open to the general public, but is intended more for me, to give myself some incentive to continue and not to give up half way through, or even before that. I'm not going to blog everyday, just when I have something to say.

Task 1: Write down the idea/essence of the book in one sentence. This is a good way to really think about what the novel is about and to clarify the idea.