November Nostalgia

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Reading Now: MORE TEXTBOOKS!

It's textbooks galore here in graduate school, but I'm not complaining. I'm actually really enjoying school--the worst part is how the time requirement restricts my freedom to write, but I knew that going in. I'd say the lack of negative surprises is a win!

As November came to a close I found myself thinking a lot about November of 2013 with great nostalgia. That month, I participated in NaNoWriMo and wrote a novel I've titled "Star Born." It's probably my favorite story that I've written so far. I wrote "The End" after 78,000 words or so. But it isn't finished. 

Good stories go like that sometimes, I think. When I ponder the story, I get a sense that there's more to tell, more detail to go into, other subplots I'm missing out on, further details to describe. Periodically, ideas to fill those gaps pop into my head, and I make a note on my iPhone to revisit later. 

"Star Born" will need more time and dedication to finish the way I want than I have to offer it now. Grad school does that. But like I said, I'm not complaining. I'm thinking about this period as a kind of training, because I want to be at my best when I finally do tackle and polish that manuscript. 

I have lots and lots of ideas for short stories that are begging to be written, and I'm hoping December and its winter break will allow for a few of them to be see the light of day. I've managed to keep up with my submissions, but new ideas far outnumber new stories written. I can tell it's been a while since I've written completely new things because my mind is crowded. Part of that, I think, is that November revs up my creativity because I'm subconsciously dwelling on how amazing that November three years ago was for my writing. My hope is that, one November in the future, I'll take part in NaNoWriMo again. Maybe to write "Star Born"'s sequel.