I have a few busy
weeks ahead of me. I have a manuscript to finish!
Yesterday evening,
November 12th, I attended a NaNoWriMo write-in session
hosted by book publisher, Simon & Schuster at the Indigo
bookstore at the Toronto Eaton Centre. It was amazing to be writing
mere feet away from books, some of which have been written by fellow
Wrimos. (Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen and Fangirl by Rainbow
Rowell are two of them.) Fifty of us were sitting in the Starbucks
within the bookstore for this write-in. I did not get a whole not
written, as I was fulfilling some of my mod duties (I am an event and
chatroom moderator for the Toronto region this year), but I had a
great time.
As part of the
festivities, Simon & Schuster provided us with free coffee and
baked goods, and gave us all a chance to win an opportunity to have
the first 50,000 words of our manuscripts read by one of their
editors. At 11:30pm, I was fulfilling my mod duties when they got our
attention, and drew the winner.
"Jen Flynn!"
It took several
seconds for me to realize that the name they had drawn was mine. When
the realization struck, shock came with it, and I really wasn't sure
what it all meant other than, I now had a manuscript to finish. I now
have a manuscript to finish! And I know exactly what it is going to
be. Four others also won free books courtesy of Indigo and Simon &
Schuster.
I have been working
on a trilogy for going on six years, and it has been a labour of
love. I've had to climb a few walls, and scramble out of a few pits,
but I have stuck by it. It even underwent a rewrite ten chapters in
because things, namely characters, changed. It began as such a tiny,
insignificant idea that, over a month of tending and planning, began
to grow and become something much bigger than itself. It became
bigger than me. It became my baby. It is a project I've been itching
to finish, but now, I have the motivation to actually put my time and
energy into it full time. And it deserves every second and every
ounce of my time and energy; it always has. (Thank goodness I am
almost 100,000 words into it!)
I do not know what
will become of this future meeting with Simon & Schuster, but I
am a cauldron of emotions. I am happy, I am anxious, I am thrilled, I
am terrified. My head is a whirlwind of thoughts, and of wishes and
dreams. As it's sinking in, I am realizing just how much work I have
ahead of me, and just how important this trilogy is to me. And not
just the trilogy, but the people who have stood behind me and beside
me during this venture. They are just as important as the trilogy is,
if not more so. I am very so grateful to my good friend, Robin, who
told me about a conversation he'd had with his mom. Thank you,
Sheila, for having that conversation with your son! Shannon, author
of the blog, The Creation of Beauty is Art, for allowing me to take
her along on this trip, and for being there to read each chapter as I
complete them. To everyone in the Toronto NaNoWriMo (ToNaNo)
community who has encouraged me, picked me up when I've fallen,
knocked me down a peg or two when needed, and just simply been there
along the journey: Thank you! You are very much a part of my extended
family, and you are a huge part of the reason this trilogy is still
being written. To anyone who has ever read this blog, I thank you,
too! Your support means a tremendous amount.
I shall keep you up
to date with my editing progress, and what happens when the first bit
of the manuscript is read!
