On writing a rough draft at full speed
On First Drafts
I have come to the conclusion that a first draft is the textual equivalent of an unsorted pile of socks that went through the wash with a couple of used tissues.
First drafts literally just have to exist. You can't edit something that doesn't exist. You can't make it better if it's only a vague idea percolating in your head. You have to fight with it, chisel the block of stone into...something, and then you can improve. Then you can shape it into something real and beautiful. But imaginary possibilities are just that. They're imaginary, and they can't get very far. So write the thing. Write the sucky first draft. Get it out. And then make it better.
Which is all a philosophical way of saying, I conquered NaNo (more below) with 90 seconds to spare this year. I'm proud of myself. I'm also exhausted, but not as exhausted as the past two years where I've pushed myself far harder than I should have! This year I took the breaks I needed and some I didn't, and kept a promise to myself by doing the best I could. The end result was 50,000 words of very rough drafting on my next two books.
More Thoughts on NaNoWriMo
Every year I have to discern my participation in National Novel Writing Month. The morals, agenda, and messaging of the organization are deeply problematic to me as a Catholic, and I respect the fact that many of my fellow Christian and Catholic writers choose to stay far away from the program. And, practically speaking, the sort of fast-drafting that NaNo is made for - 50,000 words in 30 days - isn't a great idea for everyone.
At the same time, I've found that my local NaNo region (which has an 8-person leadership team and hosts a million events and an active Discord server) is a really good place to evangelize through presence and example. Besides the grocery store, which I avoid going to anyway, NaNo is the only place I regularly encounter people outside of my faith. It's a huge challenge to be faced with the broken sinfulness of the world in this microcosm, to be face-to-face with those whose morals — particularly as regards human sexuality — are at times downright disturbing.
The key for me, however, is "face-to-face." I need my Catholic ecosystem to grow as a person, to grow in holiness, and to remain grounded in the good, the true, and the beautiful. But if I stay there absolutely all the time, I forget the Great Commission. I relegate those who do not know Truth to an absent "they." I dismiss them as too far away from me, beyond my help, beyond my care.
So, for me, I've chosen to stay involved in the Detroit region of NaNoWriMo, though I do refuse to donate to the overarching organization. For the moment, at least, it seems to be where God is calling me to be present in my faith and in who I am. Maybe it's just so I can collect more intentions to pray for. Or maybe it's because I need to be there for someone else's sake as well as my own. God only knows!
Bits and Pieces
I had the joy of attending the Dominican Rosary Pilgrimage this year, and wrote an article for OSV News
Meet Sister Mary Margaret was featured in Aleteia's round up of Catholic kids books
Thank you to CatholicMom.com for the lovely review of Meet Sister Mary Margaret!
(To be honest, marketing this book is really hard. I'm learning a lot — the hard way — about what it means to be one author in a crazy, crowded digital world. I'm trying to focus on learning and growing, and strengthening my marketing muscles!)
I'm in the midst of my friend Erin's amazing course, Filled with Good, where she melds Theology of the Body, modern science, and her own story to help guide people to a rightly-ordered relationship with food. I'm grateful I took the plunge to commit, because it's been exactly what I needed.
Y'all have a blessed Advent!
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All opinions are my own, and are not endorsed by Our Sunday Visitor, Chrism Press, the Order of Preachers, NaNoWriMo, or the Catholic Writers Guild.