Deadlines and Schedules

Last week, I posted my novel-writing game plan and said that it was missing an important element, one that I'm reluctant to face.

A timeline.

I know schedules are integral to thoughtful planning; otherwise, things are likely to be delayed indefinitely (which is what's been happening with my writing so far). I understand the value of due dates because I am a very deadline-motivated person — just look at how I write English papers: I procrastinate like crazy until the last possible moment, then write the entire thing in one night. Yeah, I don't think that's going to work out so well when it comes to writing a novel.

So maybe I just need to set my own schedule... but that comes with its own set of problems, too.

It's not that I'm schedule-adverse. I like them. I really do. I love the idea of being organized and staying on track and knowing what's coming up so I can mentally prepare myself. But I also like flexibility and spontaneity and having options. Sometimes this results in writing out a meticulous schedule only to blow it off on a whim, leaving me to wonder, later, how I managed to get so distracted.

I realize this does not bode well for my project.

I'm terrible at slow and steady, yet I know it's something I'll have to learn if I plan to write a novel. (I hate marathons too, but that might have more to do with the fact that I detest running.) Besides, the important thing is to keep going even if I fail, right?

I actually have no idea how long any of this is supposed to take — outlining, drafting, revising. I know it's different for everyone, perhaps even different for every project, so for this first one I'm giving myself a lot of leeway: a year and two weeks. That means I'd like to complete at least my first draft by July 1, 2012. That should be plenty of time to write 80k words or so, no?

I'm hoping to have a concrete outline by October/November, just in time to give NaNoWriMo another shot (last year I only managed a few thousand words, so my hopes aren't high). Then, depending on my progress, I'll set a (low and doable) weekly word count goal and go from there.

Fingers crossed that I'll finish on time, if not early! I must say I feel a bit at a loss when it comes to this aspect of planning, so if you have any thoughts or tips, I would love to hear them!

What do you think? Do you give yourself a deadline for your projects? Or is there one decided for you? Do you have word count goals or scheduled time to write, and how did you decide how much they should be? And how do you push yourself to meet your goals?

Inky Linky Love 05.28.2011

So I'm just going to pretend that this post isn't awfully, horribly late by backdating this post. Ooh, magic! Now it looks like I posted this last week when I should have. Except I'm telling you the truth and ruining it because I don't want you to question your sanity in case you stopped by before and didn't see the post (why yes, I am the epitome of kindness and selflessness).

Anyway, I've been busy and distracted lately, which accounts for my recent MIA-ness. Oops. But I'm glad I don't feel overly guilty for taking a break. Back when I first started blogging I would beat myself up if I didn't post every weekday. I still feel a slight twinge of uneasiness for not posting as regularly as I'd like, but I figure it's better not to guilt-trip myself over it. I'm still working on the game plan post — the outline is there, but I wanted to flesh it out a bit more before posting it (soon, hopefully).

I half considered just skipping the linky post for last week but I read some awesome posts that I want to share and don't want to overwhelm you by combining two weeks' worth in the next post. (I have a hard enough time narrowing them down as it is — I read hundreds of blogs and of course they're all amazing!) So here are a few of my favorite blog posts from last week (or thereabouts):

CRAFT

• I was so excited to discover that Patricia C. Wrede blogs! Dealing with Dragons and Searching for Dragons are among my favorite books ever. I absolutely adore Cimorene and Mendanbar — they're so awesome! Her blog is wonderful as well; here's a great post on nurturing story ideas. 

PLOTTING

• Kristen Lamb uses Pixar film Finding Nemo as a case study for story structure. I love children's movies too, and she presents her points about action and conflict by using concrete examples. Very helpful, and I'll be sure to keep the lessons in mind during outlining and drafting.

SETTING

• The ever brilliant Juliette Wade blogged about the significance of architecture in setting and putting your worldbuilding onto the page. I love hearing about the thoughtful details she works into her own WIP, and her posts always inspire tons of cool ideas.

REVISION

• Charlotte Jane Ivory at Steam&Ink wrote a hilarious post about notes she makes to herself while reading her manuscript. I seriously cannot wait to make snarky comments about my own writing. That will be motivation to finish!

WRITING LIFE

• Natalie Whipple is incredible. Between Fact and Fiction is one of the first writing blogs I subscribed to (I think it might be the first), but though I've been reading it regularly for a few years, I didn't start commenting until recently (what can I say, I'm shy!). I appreciate how open she is about her journey as a writer. One thing that always impresses me is how she can come up with one awesome idea after another and draft them so quickly. I love her post about her writing process now; it's interesting to see how it changed over the years.
• Vanessa di Gregorio at Let the Words Flow totally failed to make me think she's not cool. I can so relate to her struggles to write instead of procrastinating and am glad I'm not alone. 
• Anna Staniszewski gives 9 tips for finishing a novel, and wow, those are great tips. Since this blog is all about getting myself to finish a novel for once, I'll be doing my best to take those tips to heart.

PUBLISHING

• I'm ages away from even considering querying or publishing, but I love reading author success stories. Lori Roy guested on Jenny Bent's blog about how she landed her agent and got a book deal.

FUN VOCABULARY LESSON

• Mark Nichol at Daily Writing Tips compiled a list of 50+ animal adjectives. I don't know if you'd want to write in your WIP that your hero possesses an acciptrine fierceness or that your villain cries eusuchian tears, but imagine how fun it would be to wow your friends with your superior vocabulary the next time you describe a passerine appetite or complain about someone's testudine pace! (Or maybe I'm the only one who thinks it'd be fun? :P)

If you have any tips on how not to fall behind in blogging, please share!