Back from Neptune

wow....it's been too long since I've written.

I woke up on November 22 (Thanksgiving day) and started to work on my novel.  I was just over 40,000 words at that point.  I wrote a paragraph, didn't like it, deleted it.  I started again, didn't like it, deleted it.

I found myself wondering why I was having so much trouble.  Up until then I just sat down and wrote, without thinking too much.

The answer was in two words.

I wrote "The End."

I wasn't actually done with the novel but I was done with the first draft.  My head was already thinking about how to rearrange it and make it better and all kinds of second-draft-type ideas.

So: I didn't reach the goal of 50,000 words, but it's not a 50,000 word novel (at least, not in first draft).  I'm much happier of reaching the goal of getting the story down on paper.

My original plan was to start my second draft right away.  Then I read in Stephen King's "On Writing" that he waits two months before he even looks at his first draft again.  I thought that sounded like a good idea.

Actually, I'm itching to work on it right now.