Now comes the tough part.
I don’t want to say I’m “depressed” but maybe just a little.
I’ve written more of this novel than any other novel. Every novel consists of 1) the beginning 2) the middle and 3) the end.
Usually, I know the beginning and end but it is the middle that is tricky.
But I have finished the beginning. Don’t get tripped up by “54 Chapters” and “5 Parts.” In total, I’m only at about 35,000 words of what will probably end up as a 100,000 word novel. 100,000 is pretty average length. People just number their chapters differently. I start a new chapter with every new scene. I like to leave a little question or tease or something at the end so you keep reading.
Decisions must be made now. What will happen to our heroes? How will our villain respond?
Sometimes there is so much possibility I get bogged down and can’t decide. And I need to take out a little bit to map out the possibilities. If one character does this, what happens when another character does that and so on.
Times like these are when I pull an Eminem and ask myself if it is time to stop living up here and start living down here. Oh sorry. You didn’t see my hand. It was up high then down low to signify perhaps I should stop living with my head in the clouds.
I have to get this done now. There’s a part of me that wants to get it done by April. There’s 3 four month units to a year. Four months on Zombed. Four months this summer on a sequel. Four months this fall on another. Three in total by the end of the year. Maybe that’s too ambitious.
In the meantime life calls. There are times when it is hard to justify spending time on a zombie novel. But then I check the stats. 3.5 of you are reading so that’s motivation to keep writing so thank you.
Thanks for listening to me complain, 3.5 readers.
Tune in tomorrow for a special guest columnist. His presence has been sorely missed this year.