#NaNoWriMo day 9 and we’re still hunting a fucking snake

There is a light at the end of the tunnel. Somewhere, I know there is a light. A light I might not be able to see at the moment, but a blazing olympic torch nonetheless. My ‘professor’ has decided to bring forward a few script deadlines to give us a ‘taste of the working world’. This would be fine if he wasn’t asking for an hour long pilot episode and a film. Bastard. But I’m not here to talk about that. I’m sure WriMos everywhere are feeling the heat as the real world demands their attention.

My main character is a hunter – in a fantastical, dark fantasy sense of the word (no magic though) – and he and his buddy have been hunting a ‘tornado snake’ for the past three pages. There’s lots of rain and wind and grass. It’s also turned out quite phallic but what isn’t these days? Or any day. I don’t even. It was rainy, it was windy and damn was it wet. I’ve found there are plenty of ways to describe just how intense this scenario can be.

Do you know what is OK though (aside from describing the rain a lot)? Skipping stuff. Especially the bits that bore you. My friend will sometimes turn to me and say, “I would write the next bit but it’s the boring bit.” What boring bit? There (idly) shouldn’t be any boring bits. If a section of the story bores you then it’s bound to bore the reader too. The reader knows. Always knows. If the next scene is boring, then perhaps it’s not necessary. You simply cut it out. See how well the story continues without that ‘boring’ bit there. I’ll bet you 9/10 you’ve made the right call. If that ‘boring scene’ is integral though MAKE  IT  INTERESTING. You’re a writer, be creative or something. It’s what you do best.

Of course, NaNoWriMo prohibits cutting. That’s for December. I tend to colour the bits I don’t like in white so I don’t have to read them.

It’s time to carry on writing and stop procrastinating. I’ve got my coffee, my movie soundtrack playlist, unfortunately no popcorn but plenty of duvets. I love writing. I’m beginning to feel squashed by NaNo + Work but I’m a determined person. There’s nothing more satisfying that sitting on the finish line and knowing I managed to keep going. Through all the extra deadlines, scripts, rap gigs, XBox fright nights, extra curricular activities, research on top of research – I survived and wrote a freakin’ novel on top of it all. By choice. I could choose to give up but I won’t. Writing is wonderful and anyone who’s got what it takes to not give up is awesome, if you ask me. Tally-ho! Sit your butt down and let’s get back on target together.

EXTRACT
Isandro saw something out the corner of his eye and took a deep breath as the snake reared high above Patetico’s head. It’s usually bright orange stomach was slick with mud. “THERE!” he shouted. With a flourish of his vicious pole, Patetico danced aside. The snake snapped out at him and launched a few meters through the air. Its long, thick, beastly body weighed it down and it landed with a thud.

Before it could streak out of sight Isandro sprinted to where he could see the beaded tail. It was beginning to spin like a club. The spinning tail picked up speed in seconds and Isandro could feel a surge of wind around him. The rain lashed against his face like blades and he gritted his teeth. Isandro imaged the snake’s venom-covered fangs and wondered how painful it might be to feel them sink into his arm.

Crying out, Isandro swung his axe around and plunged in into the snake’s lashing tail. The winds around him spread out and his breath was easier to catch. Redirecting his energy, Isandro tensed and sized the snake’s thick body with two hands. It slid beneath his fingers and thrashed to escape. He clambered up the hissing beast, applying more of his weight to flatten it to the floor, until Isandro was able to force down its head.

Without fail, Patetico appeared and held his spiked pole high -ready to attack. “Careful!” he cried and skewered the tornado snake through the head. It stopped moving and Isandro slumped on top of it, out of breath. Wind whistled through the grass and rain roared in his ears, thundering over the marshy field.

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