Day 1,476 - Action!

I had two opportunities to write today. One mid-afternoon, where I saw down and reviewed my questions from last night. After coming up with different possibility and imagining how each would move the story forward, I settled on one in particular.

Tonight, I was able to start my 30 minute sprint at 11:00 PM instead of 12:00 AM. A big difference in mental clarity. I jumped into it with the new direction and... it wasn't quite working. Five minutes of writing, another five figuring out why, and then I had it. It was too generic. I needed to make it more human, and less mass mayhem. Changed the venue, added a Senator and a teenage girl, and I knew I had it right.

With everything in place, you'd think it would be smooth sailing. A minute into the revision, and it was feeling dull and lifeless. There was an active shooter, which is about as far from dull and lifeless as one can get. The problem? I was writing in a kind of present tense that was impersonal. It was telling or relating the events, but there was no actual action. No dialogue, no real pace. It was like reading a police report.

With info of what was off in hand, I was able to quickly adjust, and ended up with 427 words. 77 more than the last writing sprint a few days ago, and better quality. I am one happy writer!